The Dardanelles Commission was an investigation into the disastrous 1915 Dardanelles Campaign. It was set up under the Special Commissions (Dardanelles and Mesopotamia) Act 1916. The final report of the commission, issued in 1919, found major problems with the planning and execution of the campaign.

Investigation and findings

Winston Churchill had been largely blamed for the failures of the British forces during the campaign since, as

First Lord of the Admiralty The First Lord of the Admiralty, or formally the Office of the First Lord of the Admiralty, was the political head of the English and later British Royal Navy. He was the government's senior adviser on all naval affairs, responsible for the di ...

, he had been responsible for instigating the plan and obtaining Cabinet approval to carry it out. Churchill had been forced to resign as First Lord when the

First Sea Lord The First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff (1SL/CNS) is the military head of the Royal Navy and Naval Service of the United Kingdom. The First Sea Lord is usually the highest ranking and most senior admiral to serve in the British Armed F ...

Lord Fisher himself resigned because of escalating disagreements between him and Churchill in May 1915. Churchill continued as part of the Dardanelles Committee (later renamed the War Committee), which administered the campaign in the capacity of

Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster The chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster is a ministerial office in the Government of the United Kingdom. The position is the second highest ranking minister in the Cabinet Office, immediately after the Prime Minister, and senior to the Minist ...

but resigned from this post also in November 1915. For a time, he took up a position as a battalion commander on the

Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers *Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a majo ...

(while remaining a Member of Parliament). He returned to parliamentary duty in 1916, where he attempted to rehabilitate his reputation, when the battalion was amalgamated with another. Churchill sought to obtain the release of government papers, which, he felt, would vindicate his own actions. In May Bonar Law had indicated on behalf of the Prime Minister that this might be possible, but by June, Prime Minister H. H. Asquith, had decided that it could not be done. Matters were complicated by the death of Field Marshal

Kitchener Kitchener may refer to: People * Earl Kitchener, a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom ** Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener (1850–1916), British Field Marshal and 1st Earl Kitchener ** Henry Kitchener, 2nd Earl Kitchener (1846–1937) ...

, who had been

Secretary of State for War The Secretary of State for War, commonly called War Secretary, was a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, which existed from 1794 to 1801 and from 1854 to 1964. The Secretary of State for War headed the War Office and ...

, on 6 June 1916. Instead, Asquith agreed to the setting up of a Commission of Enquiry into the affair, which was announced on 18 July 1916. The Earl of Cromer, known to Churchill, was to be the chairman. Churchill anticipated that he would be able to attend meetings of the commission, but they were held in secret. Instead he had to be content with giving evidence himself in September and arranging for other witnesses whom he felt important to be heard by the commission. Witnesses of those involved in the expedition were interviewed, with its final report issued in 1919. It concluded that the expedition had been poorly planned and executed and that difficulties had been underestimated; problems were exacerbated by supply shortages and by personality clashes and procrastination at high levels.

Appointees

The following were appointed:From: 'Appendix 1', Office-Holders in Modern Britain: Volume 10: Officials of Royal Commissions of Inquiry 1870–1939 (1995), pp. 85–8. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=16611. Date accessed: 12 August 2007. * Earl of Cromer (initial chairman, died 29 January 1917) * Sir William Pickford, chairman * Andrew Fisher, former Prime Minister of Australia *

Thomas Mackenzie Sir Thomas Mackenzie (10 March 1853 – 14 February 1930) was a Scottish-born New Zealand politician and explorer who briefly served as the 18th prime minister of New Zealand in 1912, and later served as New Zealand High Commissioner in ...

, former Prime Minister of New Zealand * Sir Frederick Cawley, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster * Lord Clyde, Privy Counsellor *

Stephen Gwynn Stephen Lucius Gwynn (13 February 1864 – 11 June 1950) was an Irish journalist, biographer, author, poet and Protestant Nationalist politician. As a member of the Irish Parliamentary Party he represented Galway city as its Member of Parliam ...

, MP for Galway * Walter Roch, MP for Pembrokeshire * Admiral of the Fleet Sir William May * Field Marshal The Lord Nicholson

Notes

References

* Jenkins, Roy, ''Churchill'', 2001, , Macmillan * Carlyon, Lee, ''Gallipoli'', 2001, Doubleday, {{ISBN, 0-385-60475-0

External links

diggerhistory
Summarised conclusions of the report

Summary page of general conclusion from UK national archives Gallipoli campaign Public inquiries in the United Kingdom