Forcing the straits On 3 November 1914

Forcing the straits On 3 November 1914; the first British attack on the Dardanelles. In a twenty minute bombardment at Sedd el Bahr at the tip of the Gallipoli peninsula

Sedd el Bahr

Sedd el Bahr Kale, also known as Eski Kale ("Old Castle") or Seddülbahir Kalesi which was built in 1659. The British designated the castle "Fort No. 3" (at the other end of V Beach was "Fort No. 1", also known as Fort Ertugrul) and it was equipped with 10 artillery pieces, including two 28 cm Krupp L/22 guns. The castle was bombarded by the Royal Navy on 3 November 1914 causing serious damage and killing 86 Turkish soldiers.

3 November 1914

On 3 November 1914, Churchill ordered the first British attack on the Dardanelles following the opening of hostilities between Ottoman and Russian empires. The British attack was carried out by battlecruisers of Carden's Mediterranean Squadron, HMS Indomitable and Indefatigable, as well as the obsolete French battleships Suffren and Vérité. This attack actually took place before a formal declaration of war had been made by Britain against the Ottoman Empire.

The intention of the attack was to test the fortifications and measure the Ottoman response. The results were deceptively encouraging. In a twenty minute bombardment, a single shell struck the magazine of the fort at Sedd el Bahr at the tip of the Gallipoli peninsula, displacing (but not destroying) ten guns and killing eighty-six Turkish soldiers. Total casualties during the attack were 150, of which forty were German. The most significant consequence was that the attention of the Ottomans was drawn to strengthening their defences, and they set about expanding the mine field.

[caption id="attachment_464" align="alignnone" width="400"] 3 November 1914[/caption]