Gallipoli Campaign, Suvla Bay, WW1 Officer’s Prismatic Compass and Case
This is an increasingly hard to find example of a British Officer’s compass with a provenance that places it firmly in the Gallipoli Campaign of 1915.
The compass itself is a very fine early version of the Verner’s Pattern Mk VI compass, with the typical paper and card. The absence of any serial number or War Office ‘crow’s foot’ markings on the base show that it must have been a private purchase and therefore very probably pre-War. The high quality of the external and internal black lacquering bears this out – very little wear is evident – and the leather case is of a similarly high standard. Both have a fine patina and the owner’s initials can still be made out on the case where they were originally embossed. His initials and battalion designation have also been inked in by hand on either side of the compass case at the top. The securing strap and clasp are still present, as is all of the stitching.
Turning back to the compass, the edge of the lid carries the engraved inscription, “Capt B. E. Oliver 1/5thSuffolk Regt”, which matches the initials on the case. The compass itself functions as well as it did in 1915; transit and bearing locks both hold the dial firm, the glassware is all intact and even the radium paint marks inside the lid, used as an aid to night use, are still there. The rubber bearing ring on the base of the compass, however, has perished away.
Brian Edward Oliver was commissioned into the Suffolk Regiment as a Second Lieutenant on 2ndMarch, 1907. He was promoted to Lieutenant on 6thJanuary 1908 before joining the 5thBattalion on 1stApril 1908. He would almost certainly have purchased this compass on promotion to Captain on 17thSeptember 1912.
Captain Oliver’s medal card, pictured, shows that he took part in the Gallipoli Campaign. He was then the Officer Commanding B Company, and the regimental records of the 1st/5thSuffolk Regiment reveal that they landed in Suvla Bay on 10thAugust 1915, just in time to take part in the attack on the Turkish lines on 12thAugust. The Regimental War Diary for 15thAugust records that “…what was left of the Battalion reached reserve trenches near base” at 11.00 pm on 15thAugust. We can only wonder what experiences Capt Oliver and his compass went through.
In summary, this is an extremely fine example of a matching compass and case, with an identifiable owner who took part in the landings at Suvla Bay in August 1915.
