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Chapter 1 - Gallipoli

A case of criminal negligence?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 February 2020

Alexia Moncrieff
Affiliation:
University of Leeds
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Summary

Under oath at the Dardanelles Commission, convened in 1917 to investigate the Gallipoli campaign, Surgeon General Sir Neville Howse, Director of Medical Services (DMS) for the Australian Imperial Force (AIF), stated that ‘as far as the Australian troops were concerned’ medical arrangements for the Gallipoli campaign ‘were so inadequate that they amounted to criminal negligence’.1 He squarely laid the blame for this ‘negligence’ on the shoulders of the British General Staff and informed the commissioners that he intended to share his concerns with Australia’s leaders. A palpably frustrated Howse stated: ‘I personally will recommend my Government when this war is over, that under no conceivable conditions ought they ever to trust to the medical arrangements that may be made by Imperial authorities for the care of their sick and wounded.’2 His scathing critique not only called into question the British General Staff’s ability to plan and execute a comprehensive strategy but also revealed his doubt regarding the benefits of Australian deference to Britain in medical–military matters.

Type
Chapter
Information
Expertise, Authority and Control
The Australian Army Medical Corps in the First World War
, pp. 19 - 48
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2020

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  • Gallipoli
  • Alexia Moncrieff, University of Leeds
  • Book: Expertise, Authority and Control
  • Online publication: 10 February 2020
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108784382.003
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  • Gallipoli
  • Alexia Moncrieff, University of Leeds
  • Book: Expertise, Authority and Control
  • Online publication: 10 February 2020
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108784382.003
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Gallipoli
  • Alexia Moncrieff, University of Leeds
  • Book: Expertise, Authority and Control
  • Online publication: 10 February 2020
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108784382.003
Available formats
×