Battles on the Tigris

Battles on the Tigris PDF

Author: Ron Wilcox

Publisher: Pen and Sword

Published: 2006-09-15

Total Pages: 294

ISBN-13: 1526781662

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In 1914 the British expedition to Mesopotamia set out with the modest ambition of protecting the oil concession in Southern Persia but, after numerous misfortunes, ended up capturing Baghdad and Northern Towns in Iraq. Initially the mission was successful in seizing Basra but the British under Generals Nixon and Townshend, found themselves drawn North, becoming besieged by the Turks at Kut. After various failed relief attempts the British surrendered and the prisoners suffered appalling indignities and hardship, culminating in a death march to Turkey. In 1917 General Maude was appointed CinC but, as usual in Iraq, policy kept changing. Hopes that the Russians would come into the war were dashed by the Revolution. Operations were further frustrated by the hottest of summers. Fighting against the Turks continued right up to the Armistice. The conduct of the Campaign was subject to a Commission of Inquiry which was highly critical of numerous individuals and the administrative arrangements.

Tigers Along the Tigris

Tigers Along the Tigris PDF

Author: E. J. Thompson

Publisher:

Published: 2007-11

Total Pages: 144

ISBN-13: 9781846773655

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Experiences with a famous county regiment in Iraq during the First World War Beyond the attrition of the Western Front trenches, the Great War raged all over the globe. These 'sideshows' were full scale conflicts by the standards of war to that time, only diminished by the magnitude of the campaigns in France and Belgium. The war against Turkey, Germany's ally, raged from the Turkish homeland itself to the complete expanse of the crumbling Ottoman Empire in North Africa, the Holy Land and the cradle of civilisation itself-Mesopotamia-now modern day Iraq-a land through which flowed the Tigris and Euphrates-rivers of romance and legend. There was little romantic of the war the Leicestershire regiment knew. 'Johnny'-the tough enemy, the omnipresent German air force, the heat and flies were all exacerbated by rampant disease which decimated the allied troops. As part of the 7th (Meerut) Division the 'Tigers'-as the regiment were nicknamed after their distinctive cap badge-fought vicious actions in the Battles for Istabulat, Samarra and Juber Island during the 1917 campaigns beyond Baghdad towards Tekrit in the north of the country. This is a well written eyewitness account, which introduces us to the officers and men who wore the 'Black Diamond' hat badge, and is full of 'on the spot' detail and fascinating descriptions of intense combat.

Along the Tigris

Along the Tigris PDF

Author: Thomas L. Day

Publisher: Schiffer Military History

Published: 2007

Total Pages: 408

ISBN-13:

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"Along the Tigris" tells the story of 16,000 soldiers in combat, from the training grounds of Fort Campbell, through the toughest battles in the blitz of Baghdad to the Nineveh province, where the 101st Airborne Division anchored for eight months after the overthrow of Saddam Hussein. Without precedent or a plan, the division sketched the blueprint to win the peace as they went - rebuilding schools and health clinics, reestablishing the local infrastructure, standing up city governments and building trust with the local people. "Along the Tigris" gets beyond the headlines, telling the true story of the Army's most storied division in the Iraq war.

The British Army in Mesopotamia, 1914-1918

The British Army in Mesopotamia, 1914-1918 PDF

Author: Paul Knight

Publisher: McFarland

Published: 2013-08-09

Total Pages: 211

ISBN-13: 0786470496

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When war broke out between the British and Turkish empires in 1914, the 6th (Poona) Division sailed from India to Basra to bolster Britain's allies, deny the port to enemy shipping, and secure Britain's Persian oil supplies. Further expansion followed: the capture of Al-Amara was the British Army's greatest victory of 1915. When an advance on Baghdad was repulsed, the Siege of Kut became the British Army's longest siege and greatest surrender. Attempts to relieve Kut led to unsuccessful battles that were bloody and muddy even by Western Front standards. Under new leadership, revitalized and reinforced, the British avenged their defeat when Baghdad was captured in March 1917. Thereafter, the British Empire committed, in campaigns of limited value to the overall war effort, huge levels of manpower and materiel desperately needed elsewhere. What was created was modern Iraq and the first Arab government in Baghdad in over 400 years. This detailed history places the campaign in context of Allied operations in the Middle East and sheds light on several unsung heroes of the war, including General Charles Townshend whose spectacular 1915 victories led to humiliating defeat and captivity in 1916; General Frederick Stanley Maude whose March 1917 entry into Baghdad preceded General Allenby's entry into Jerusalem by eight months; and Miss Gertrude Bell, a "female Lawrence of Arabia" who played a central role in the creation of the new Iraqi state.

Battles of the Mesopotamian Campaign

Battles of the Mesopotamian Campaign PDF

Author: Source Wikipedia

Publisher: University-Press.org

Published: 2013-09

Total Pages: 24

ISBN-13: 9781230492544

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Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Pages: 23. Chapters: Battle of Sheikh Sa'ad, Battle of Es Sinn, Battle of Dujaila, Battle of Ctesiphon, Siege of Kut, Battle of Wadi, Fall of Baghdad, Battle of Sharqat, Action of Khan Baghdadi, Battle of Hanna, Battle of Qurna, Fao Landing, Battle of Ramadi, Battle of Basra, Samarrah Offensive, Second Battle of Kut. Excerpt: The Battle of Sheikh Sa'ad (Turkish: Sa Sahil) occurred between 6-8 January 1916 during the Mesopotamian Campaign of the First World War. The battle took place along the banks of the Tigris River between the Anglo-Indian Tigris Corps and elements of the Ottoman Sixth Army. The engagement was the first in a series of assaults by the Tigris Corps to try and breakthrough the Ottoman lines to relieve the besieged garrison at Kut. With the entry of Ottoman Empire to the First World War on 31 October 1914, Indian Expeditionary Force D was ordered to secure the Shatt-al-Arab and Basra in order to safeguard the flow of oil from British-owned oilfields in Persia. Following the capture, Force "D"'s mission in Mesopotamia expanded gradually as local commanders saw a chance for victories which would burnish the British Empire's prestige in the Muslim world. At the battles of Qurna, Nasiriyeh, and Es Sinn, Force "D" defeated elements of the Ottoman Sixth Army. After the Battle of Es Sinn, the Anglo-Indian force controlled the Tigris and Euphrates rivers through much of what is now southern Iraq. Sensing that Baghdad was within their gasp, the commander of Force "D," supported by the Commander in Chief, India, in Simla, argued for permission to launch a final offensive to capture it. The situation looked promising. The nearest Ottoman reserves, according to British intelligence, were 400 miles distant in the Caucasus or 250 miles away at Aleppo in Syria. All that blocked the way to Baghdad were two demoralized, defeated...

An Encyclopedia of Battles

An Encyclopedia of Battles PDF

Author: David Eggenberger

Publisher: Courier Corporation

Published: 2012-03-08

Total Pages: 546

ISBN-13: 0486142019

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"A badly needed addition to public and military libraries and to the shelves of every military writer … a definitive job." — Army Times Megiddo, Thermopylae, Waterloo, Stalingrad, Vietnam … nothing has dominated man's attention, challenged his energy, produced more heroes — and destruction — than war. This monumental one-volume work traces the long history of that uniquely human activity in vivid, accurate accounts of over 1,500 crucial military conflicts, Spanning more than 3,400 years, it encompasses a panorama of warfare so complete that no single volume like it exists. All the essential details of every major battle in recorded history on land and at sea — from the first battle of Megiddo in 1479 B. C. to Grenada in 1984 — are covered. For added convenience, this work lists the engagements in alphabetical order, from "Aachen," the first entry, to "Zutphen," the last. You'll find painstakingly researched, objectively written descriptions of the Persia-Greek conflicts of the fifth century B. C., Roman Empire wars, Napoleonic Wars, the American Civil War, World Wars I and II, and many more. Also included are penetrating analyses of the roles played by commanders of genius — Alexander, Julius Caesar, Hannibal, Napoleon, Genghis Khan, Tamerlane, Khalid ibn al-Walid, and other momentous figures. Updating this already comprehensive resource, a new Appendix deals with more recent conflicts: the Vietnam War, the Yom Kippur War, the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, the Iran-Iraq War, the Falkland Islands clash, the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, and the U. S. invasion of Grenada. Each entry includes states, strategic situations, military leaders, troop numbers, tactics, casualties and military/political consequences of the battles. In addition, you'll find cross references at the end of each entry, 99 battle maps and a comprehensive index containing titles and alliances and treaties, famous quotations, slogans, catch phrases … even battle cries. An Encyclopedia of Battles is an entire library of military history in one convenient space-saving volume. Students, historians, writers, military buffs … anyone interested in the subject will find this inexpensive paperbound edition an indispensable reference and a fascinating study of the world's military past.

The Army in British India

The Army in British India PDF

Author: Kaushik Roy

Publisher: A&C Black

Published: 2012-11-22

Total Pages: 258

ISBN-13: 1441168451

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The army in India was the principal pillar of British power in South Asia from the mid-nineteenth century until Indian independence. This volume aims to evaluate the combat effectiveness of the army in British India from the mutiny of 1857 until the British departed India in 1947. It examines how the army in India developed from a colonial police force into one of the world's largest volunteer armies which saw service around the globe. The author presents new primary material from international archival sources and develops original interpretations of the political and military role of the army in colonial India. These new arguments include: the army's conduct of 'small wars' on the North-West frontier aided it in conducting tactical warfare in Burma during World War II; small unit raids developed in India were put to good effect beyond India's borders; the army's practical experience of counter-insurgency was used in Greece and Indonesia after 1945; and, contrary to existing scholarship, the British did not follow a deliberate policy of 'Indianization' of the officer corps .