Stretcher Bearers at Gallipoli

[johnshep]

It is my belief that my father, who was a regimental stretcher bearer (as opposed to a RAMC stretcher bearer) at Suvla, went into no-mans-land to recover wounded the day after the Battle of Scimitar Hill when totally unarmed.  Can anyone confirm regimental stretcher bearers were armed?

Incidentally, he always maintained the Turks deliberately withheld fire.

John (Thales)

[EastSurrey]

In November 1916, Captain Pirie, RAMC, serving with 9th East Surrey in France, had a falling out with his new CO, T.W.S. Swanton. Swanton had ordered Pirie's regimental stretcher bearers to carry rifle and bayonet, probably whilst Pirie was on leave, but gave in when Pirie challenged him. (Lucas, 'Frontline Medic',p151.)

Michael

[stevenbecker]

Mate,

I maybe saying this wrong but I hope you get the idea.

While in a AAMC or RAMC unit, a stretcher bearer was a job in a unit, not armed

In a Fighting unit a SB was given to a group of men to do for a limited time

So they would be normal soldiers given the job of SB for a peroid of time, so could be armed for the job of SB.

Pistols could be given to SB or medical personal with Fighting units, I was told in the field in order to protect their wounded.

I am unsure if true, but I ve seen them armed for such jobs, (but also unsure if they did it in WWI?)

 

[johnshep]

Thanks Michael and Steve.

The consensus seems to be that they were unarmed.  This meant they posed no threat to the opposing forces and were therefore less likely to draw fire. This accords well with my father's experience.  In any case carrying a rifle and a stretcher would, I would imagine, have been cumbersome.

John

[Skipman]

In a letter to his father in August 1915 Private Peter Mathieson 2nd Black Watch writes -

"You will see by my address that I have laid down my rifle and taken up a bag of bandages so that instead of taking life, I do my best to save it. The only arms the stretcher bearer carries is a bayonet to be used only in self defence. "

Mike

[stevenbecker]

The arming of medical personal is often because, as much as we like to say it, not all our enemies are kind enough not to kill our wounded and medical personal.

The so called GC is for those countries that signed it, and follow its rules

We all know many such countries and groups we have fought over the years that don't follow the rules

My expirences in Vietnam and Bosnia have seen what can happen when these rules are not followed 

My dad told me about the Chinese in Korea, and my GF of what the Japs got up to in PNG