Maurice Wilder-Neligan

Wilder (second from left) with officers of the 9th Battalion at Gallipoli

After completing training, the 3rd Brigade was designated as the covering force for the landing at Anzac Cove, Gallipoli, on 25 April 1915, and so was the first brigade ashore about 4:30 am.[8] By 9:00 am, Wilder was performing the role of battalion adjutant, assisting the acting commanding officer to organise and direct the unit.[3] The day after the landing, Wilder's actions resulted in the award of the Distinguished Conduct Medal, the second highest award for acts of gallantry by other ranks.[2] The citation read:[11]

For conspicuous gallantry on 26 April 1915, near Gaba Tepe. Assisted by another non-commissioned officer, who was subsequently killed, he carried a wounded man into a place of safety under very heavy fire. Later on he was instrumental in collecting stragglers, who he led back into the firing-line.

Owing to officer casualties, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant three days after the landing.[2] Along with the rest of the 3rd Brigade, the 9th Battalion was closely engaged in establishing and defending the Anzac beachhead during the ensuing months, rotating between the various posts and trenches.[8]

During the heavy Turkish counter-attack of 19 May, Wilder showed "capacity to command at a difficult moment".[12] On the night of 27 May, he commanded a raid by 63 soldiers of the battalion on a Turkish position south of the Anzac perimeter near Gaba Tepe. The destroyer HMS Rattlesnake used its searchlight to pinpoint the trench to be attacked, then pounded it with twenty rounds of high explosive and shrapnel from its guns. Wilder then led his force quickly up the hill towards the Turkish position, and using only the bayonet, they killed six, captured one, and returned to the Australian lines without suffering casualties.[11][13] According to his biographer, Alec Hill, the success of the raid was ensured by his meticulous planning. He was wounded in early June and evacuated to Egypt, but discharged himself from hospital and returned to his unit by early August, when he was promoted to lieutenant.[2] In the same month, he was mentioned in despatches for the first time.[14]

In mid-September he was formally appointed as unit adjutant, swiftly followed by a temporary promotion to captain. He formally changed his name to Wilder-Neligan in October, and remained at Anzac until November, after which the battalion was evacuated to Egypt.[2][15] During its time in Egypt, the 9th Battalion was stationed for a period on the front line in the desert near the Suez Canal. On one occasion, an Ottoman patrol was seen, and the adventurous Wilder-Neligan asked to be allowed to take out a patrol on camels to cut them off. With certain restrictions, this was permitted, but no contact with the enemy occurred.[16] In March 1916, he relinquished his post of adjutant, and was substantively promoted to captain before the battalion left Alexandria for France and the Western Front at the end of the month.[17]

Soon after his unit reached the trenches in France, he planned a major raid near Fleurbaix, carefully preparing his men before launching it on the night of 1/2 July. This was a "silent" raid, being undertaken without a preparatory bombardment of the targeted German trenches. Wilder-Neligan split his 148 troops into three groups, and directed them to enter the German trenches about 180 metres (200 yd) apart to avoid German enfilading fire. He trained his raiding party and conducted rehearsals in the days leading up to the operation. On the night of the raid, Wilder-Neligan used machine gun fire to cover the sound of his troops advancing across no man's land. When they were close, he called down a protective barrage behind the German trenches, with machine guns sweeping the enemy flanks. The raiders then rushed forward, entered the enemy trenches and engaging in heavy fighting. During the final rush, Wilder-Neligan came across a German observation post in advance of the enemy trenches. He killed two of the three enemy soldiers occupying it, but the third threw a hand grenade that wounded him severely in the shoulder and in the head, fracturing his skull. Despite his wounds, he continued to direct his men until they had all returned safely. During the raid, the Queenslanders killed 14 Germans, wounded 40, and captured 25 more along with a machine gun, for the loss of seven dead and 26 wounded.[2][18] The Australian Official War Historian, Charles Bean, described this action as "perhaps the most brilliant raid that Australians undertook" at the time.[19][20] The success of the operation was recognised by Wilder-Neligan's appointment as a Companion of the Distinguished Service Order, the second highest award for acts of gallantry by officers. The citation read:[19][lower-alpha 2]

For conspicuous gallantry when commanding a raid in force. His careful training and fine leading were responsible for the successes attained. Fifty-three of the enemy were killed and prisoners taken, besides a machine gun, many rifles, and much equipment. Though wounded in the head he stuck to his command.

Evacuated to the United Kingdom for treatment, he did not return to his unit until October, when he was promoted to major. In November he was again mentioned in despatches for "distinguished and gallant services and devotion to duty in the field".[2][22] The 9th Battalion continued to take its turn at the front line through the worst European winter in 40 years. On 24 February, Wilder-Neligan was training his troops for another raid in force, this time on the German position known as "The Maze", south of the village of Le Barque, when it was discovered that the Germans were withdrawing from the front line. Along with the rest of the 3rd Brigade, the 9th Battalion was soon advancing towards the village, striking isolated pockets of resistance.[23] After this, the battalion followed up the Germans as they withdrew towards the multi-layered Hindenburg Line of fortifications.[8] In mid-April, parts of the 9th Battalion were in the thick of the fighting against a major German counter-attack at Lagnicourt.[24]

Wilder-Neligan (on horseback in front) leading his battalion through Hazebrouck on 10 August 1917

Wilder-Neligan was in temporary command of his battalion during the Second Battle of Bullecourt in May 1917, part of the Battle of Arras. For the attack on the German trenches known as O.G. 1 and O.G. 2, the 9th Battalion was placed under the command of the 1st Brigade. Before the attack, he arranged for his men to create dumps of barbed wire, stakes, hand grenades and other equipment and tools near to the battalion assembly point for the attack. He ensured that telephone lines were laid as far forward as possible, then briefed his company commanders and supporting units. Fierce bomb fights occurred in both objective trenches as soon as the 9th Battalion attacked, but the Queenslanders gradually pushed the Germans back. A heavy German barrage then fell on the captured trenches. During the battle, the unit suffered 160 casualties, mainly from bombs.[25] For his actions at Bullecourt, Wilder-Neligan was recommended for the Belgian Order of the Crown, although there is no record of an appointment to the order.[14] For other brief periods in the first half of 1917 he was acting commanding officer of the 9th Battalion.[2]

On 23 June 1917, he was temporarily placed in command of his battalion's South Australian-raised sister unit of the 3rd Brigade, the 10th Battalion.[19][26] After briefly returning to his old unit on 6 July, he took command of the 10th Battalion with the rank of lieutenant colonel on 15 July.[27][28] This was considered a surprising promotion, as at the time he was junior to forty majors then in the AIF.[19]

Portrait of Wilder-Neligan while he was commanding the 10th Battalion

Wilder-Neligan's first fight with his new battalion was the Battle of the Menin Road Ridge, which commenced on 20 September as part of the Battle of Passchendaele. In the initial planning for this offensive, the 10th Battalion was committed to the third phase of the attack by the 3rd Brigade. For this attack, Wilder-Neligan had split his command into two. The assault would be carried out by two specially trained "storm" companies, with his other two companies responsible for carrying forward ammunition and equipment and "mopping-up" pockets of resistance. During the move to the start line, the two carrying and "mopping-up" companies of the battalion were caught in a heavy and persistent German barrage, suffered significant casualties and became disorganised. Wilder-Neligan sent back his adjutant to re-organise them, and they came through the German shell fire to their assembly positions.[29]

Although initially intended as the third wave of the brigade attack, the second wave 12th Battalion had moved to the left as a result of the German barrage, and the 10th effectively joined the second wave on its right. The 10th had also moved forward to avoid the heavy barrage, and had become intermingled with the first wave formed by the 11th Battalion. When a machine gun in a pillbox held up the leading troops, Wilder-Neligan sent one of his "storm" platoons to outflank the German position. When the platoon commander was killed, the South Australians "went mad" according to Wilder-Neligan, killing rather than capturing most of the German garrison.[30] When the first objective was reached, Wilder-Neligan had his battalion fill the gap in the line to the right of the 12th Battalion.[31] As soon as the two carrying and "mopping-up" companies reached the second objective, Wilder-Neligan left them there to dig in. During a pause in the battle while his two "storm" companies were waiting to go forward to the third objective, Wilder-Neligan had specially procured copies of the Daily Mirror and Daily Mail newspapers distributed for his men to read.[32] With the help of the heavy creeping barrage, the third objective was quickly taken.[33] During the battle, the unit suffered 207 casualties.[34] On the day following the battle, he was billed by a London newspaper as "The Eccentric Colonel", due to his distribution of newspapers to his waiting troops.[35]

Wilder-Neligan was on leave from 25 September to 8 October.[27] The day after he returned, the battalion conducted a raid in force of German positions in Celtic Wood near Passchendaele, part of the Battle of Poelcappelle. The operation was a disaster, largely due to the poor artillery support provided. Of the 85 troops involved, most were killed or wounded.[36][37] Wilder-Neligan was mentioned in despatches for the third time in November.[38] The recommendation cited his "clever organisation, untiring energy, zeal and exemplary bravery" between February and September 1917, and highlighted his leadership at Bullecourt.[2][14] The 10th Battalion rotated through front line, reserve and rest areas throughout the winter of 1917/1918.[39]

Wilder-Neligan sprained his ankle on 11 January, and was away from his unit for a week. He was away for another week in late January. On 11 February he went on leave, but did not return until 20 May, as he was temporarily commanding his old battalion from 30 March until that date.[40] Wilder-Neligan was mentioned in despatches for the fourth time on 7 April.[14][38] While he was commanding the 9th Battalion, it participated in the 3rd Brigade's abortive attempt to capture Méteren on 24 April.[41] On 30 May, the 10th Battalion conducted a successful operation to capture several German posts forward of the line near Merris, suffering 64 casualties. After achieving its objectives, the battalion fought off two German counter-attacks. An innovation employed by Wilder-Neligan during this operation was a battery of rifle grenadiers formed from cooks and other headquarters staff, who provided close support to the assaulting troops. The battalion was congratulated by the army corps, division and brigade commanders for its work.[42][43]

In June, Wilder-Neligan was appointed a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George for his work as commanding officer of the 10th Battalion from September 1917 to February 1918.[14] On 28 June, he was sick with influenza but still on duty when an opportunity for "peaceful penetration" of the German trenches arose. Directed to conduct a demonstration in front of Merris, where the 10th Battalion held the front line, Wilder-Neligan took advantage of the accompanying barrage to encourage his two line companies to capture advanced German posts. He reinforced their initial success by ordering that both companies continue their advance, and simultaneously brought up most of his support and reserve companies to assist. The advance was covered by a smoke barrage laid down by trench mortars and rifle grenades. Wilder-Neligan's close coordination of an artillery barrage behind the German posts helped the battalion push even further forward. By the end of the day, the 10th Battalion had captured 500 yards (460 m) of German line, along with 35 prisoners, six machine guns and two trench mortars, for the loss of about 50 casualties. His job done, Wilder-Neligan then reported sick. This time, the battalion received congratulations from the army and army corps commanders.[44][45]

The remains of the village of Merris, captured by the 10th Battalion on the night of 29 July 1918

Wilder-Neligan returned to duty on 7 July.[46] On 22–23 July, the 10th Battalion was back in the line opposite Merris. Characteristically, on his own initiative, Wilder-Neligan pushed strong patrols forward on his flanks in an effort to envelop the village. He had achieved some success, and believed that the capture of the village was imminent when a heavy German barrage descended on the battalion outpost line. The new divisional commander, Major General William Glasgow, now became aware of Wilder-Neligan's operation, and, as Wilder-Neligan could not guarantee communication with his flanking patrols due to the barrage, Glasgow ordered the 10th Battalion to withdraw. In his report on the operation, Wilder-Neligan noted that between 60 and 70 Germans had been killed and four prisoners taken, for the loss of two killed and seven wounded. Regarding this operation, he reported that, "the ultimate withdrawal in obedience to the order of the Divisional Commander in no way mitigated its success".[47][48]

A week later, he was given the opportunity to prove the wisdom of his plan to capture Merris. On the night of 29 July, under cover of a precisely planned creeping barrage that worked its way through Merris and 1,000 yards (910 m) beyond it, he sent two companies, totalling about 180 men, on converging lines of attack from the northeast and southwest of the village. After an hour of carefully coordinated artillery, machine gun and trench mortar support, he sent his headquarters platoon into the shattered village to "mop-up" any remaining resistance. At its conclusion, the operation had captured the village, surrounding it with a series of strongly held posts, and had captured 188 Germans for the loss of 35 casualties, only four of whom were killed.[49][50] Hill states that the capture of Merris was "perhaps [Wilder-Neligan's] greatest achievement".[2]

The inspector general of training for the British Expeditionary Force described the capture of Merris as "the best show ever done by a battalion in France".[2][51] Wilder-Neligan was awarded a bar to his Distinguished Service Order for this "innovative and daring operation".[2] The citation read:[52][lower-alpha 3]

For conspicuous gallantry during a night attack on a village. Owing to his skill and courage, the plan of enveloping the village was successfully carried out, resulting in the capture of 200 prisoners and 30 machine guns. The attacking force suffered less than 20 casualties.

Troops of the 10th Battalion during the capture of Lihons

In August, Wilder-Neligan led his battalion during the early fighting of the Hundred Days Offensive, which began on 8 August 1918 with the Battle of Amiens. During the fighting for Lihons on 10 August, he brought his battalion up into close support using an unconventional method. He moved 250 yards (230 m) forward of his unit, carrying a signalling lamp on his back, using it to transmit orders to his unit to halt or advance. By this method he brought his battalion into a position from which it could support his old unit, the 9th, with only one casualty. From his advanced position, he could see that the flank of the 9th had been held up, and he sent his strongest company to assist in the capture of Crépey Wood.[2][53][54]

On the following day, 9 August, Wilder-Neligan was placed in command of a force consisting of his own battalion and the 12th Battalion for the capture of Lihons itself.[55] Despite heavy mist, he showed his clear grasp of the tactical situation when he realised that German counter-attacks were taking advantage of a gap between the forward troops, and quickly cleared it using supporting troops. During 10–14 August, the 10th Battalion suffered 123 casualties.[56]

The 10th Battalion was back in action on 22–23 August as the Allied advance continued north of Proyart. The 10th Battalion was in a supporting role protecting the flank of the 1st Brigade. Wilder-Neligan visited the neighbouring battalion, and upon learning of some difficulties due to German positions in a wood, immediately deployed two companies to clear the area, and due to his initiative the advance was able to continue.[57][58] The 10th Battalion continued in the advance towards the Hindenburg outpost line over the next few days before being relieved for a short period of training and rest. On 18 September, the battalion saw its last fighting of the war during the capture of the Hindenburg outpost line south of the village of Villeret. In heavy fighting, the unit captured the second and third objectives, and were then relieved and went into a period of training and rest. By this point, the battalion had been reduced to a strength of 517 men.[59][60] On 10 October, Wilder-Neligan was awarded the French Croix de guerre. He was mentioned in despatches for the fifth and final time on 8 November.[14][38] After the Armistice of 11 November, Wilder-Neligan remained with his battalion until 1 January 1919. He returned to Australia in July, arriving in Brisbane in September.[61] For his service during the war, in addition to the decorations already mentioned, Wilder-Neligan was awarded the 1914–15 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal.[62]

Wilder-Neligan's clear tactical acumen was accompanied by relentless striving to ensure the needs of his men were met. According to Hill, "above all he was an organiser, some said the best in the AIF".[2] Bean noted that he was "a restless and adventurous spirit",[16] "an impetuous, daredevil officer, but free of the carelessness with which those qualities are often associated",[63] "a gay, wild young Englishman, clever soldier, and inevitably a leader wherever he was",[30] and a "mercurial commander".[32]

He had many eccentric habits, and often embarrassed his officers through his actions. He would supervise battalion drill from horseback, armed with a megaphone, with which he would berate the officers incessantly, causing much confusion. On one occasion he even chased the officers off the parade square to show his displeasure with their efforts.[64] He was known by the nicknames "Mad Wilder", "Wily Wilder", and "Mad Neligan". Nevertheless, he was admired and trusted by his men. He was the most highly decorated officer to command the 10th Battalion during the war.[2][65][66]