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Suvla Bay : The Golden Opportunity Let Slip, Michael John Mortlock

Master's Theses

This thesis analyzes the reasons for the failure of the Suvla Bay landings of August 1915 during the Gallipoli Campaign of the Great War. These included an inefficient chain of command, and a lack of initiative amongst subordinate generals that allowed the waste of precious time. Over-cautiousness hampered the operations that followed the landings. This characterized the 9th Army Corps from its aging commander, General Stopford, down through to many of its brigadiers, and the innate gentility of General Hamilton, Commander-in-Chief of the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force, made it difficult for him to assert himself. The chance was lost forever because …