Private William Barnett

Private William Scott Barnett, 1st/4th ( Border ) Battalion, Kings Own Scottish Borderers. He was killed in action at Gallipoli on 12th July 1915 during ” The Charge ” on the Turkish trenches at Achi Baba Nullah, aged 22. He had been born in Dunbar and was the son of Thomas and Jessie Barnett of New Buildings, Morebattle. and is commemorated on the Helles Memorial, Gallipoli, Turkey. That fateful day became to be known as the “Black Day of the Borders” as at evening roll call only 70 unwounded men answered their names out of the over 700 Officers and Other Ranks who had begun the attack. Few Border towns and villages had not lost at least one of their sons. Both Colonel McNeile from Bowden and his Adjutant Captain Lang from Newstead were killed. The first photo shows Achi Baba, the objective, marked with a cross. This “hill” dominated the battlefield and was never captured. The second shows the Borderers attacking at Gallipoli and the third shows the battlefield in 1922.