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Collingwood BattalionLanding at Cape Helles at the end of May 1915, the Royal Naval Division (RND) prepared to deliver an attack in what has become known as the Third Battle of Krithia. Amongst their ranks were the sailors of the Collingwood Battalion, who had done much of their military training in the practice trenches surrounding Blandford Camp during the winter of 1914/15.
The attack finally went ahead, from the captured enemy trenches and the Collingwoods seized the Turkish second lines four hundred yards further on. However, the neighboring French Senegalese troops were driven back by a counter-attack, leaving the Battalion's right flank exposed. Flanking fire caused devastating casualities amongst the Collingwoods, with over five hundred men killed or wounded. The remnants of the Battalion withdrew but so heavy were the casualties that the Battalion was not reformed. A memorial to Dorset's naval infantry stands at Collingwood Corner on the Salisbury to Blandford Road. This page is for information only. The Museum holds no records of the either the Collingwood Battalion or the men who served with it. We are unable to help with research into the Collingwood Battalion or identify any of the men shown in the photographs below. Related Image Gallery
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On 4 June,
the seven hundred strong Colingwood Battalion took part in the second phase of the attack. The battle started with a heavy bombardment
and at 1200 hours the RND advanced and captured the enemy front line but suffered heavy causalities. At 1215 hours the Collingwood
Battalion was to take over the advance but the communication trenches were choked with stretcher-bearers and wounded, which delayed
the Battalion's move forward.
