Dobell decided upon a frontal attack. Kressenstein’s force of 18,000 was against three infantry divisions, eight Mark I tanks and 4,000 gas shells. Dobell retreated on an unsuccessful attack on the third day (even with manpower advantage) due to defensive Turkish lines.
British Casualties: 6,444
Turkish Casualties: less than a third of British.
Kressenstein favoured a counter-attack against Murray, but his cautious commander Diemal Pasha did not approve of it.
Murray, worried about London’s reaction to the failure relieved Dobell of command and put General Chetwode in his place. Nevertheless, officials recalled Murray to London and in his stead was Sir Edmund Allenby. Even though he thought his re-deployment from the western front to Palestine was a failure, and was not on good terms with his Commander-In-Chief Sir Douglas Haig, he was responsible for a revival of his and his army’s success in a series of British victories in Palestine.
Third Battle of Gaza
Edmund Allenby, replacing Murray on the command of the Egyptian Expeditionary Forces after two failed attacks at Gaza in March and April 1917 was tasked by the Prime Minister David Lloyd George to capture of Jerusalem by Christmas 1917
Due to the recent failures, this was a difficult order even though they had greater forces in the area. Nevertheless, Allenby managed to deliver Jerusalem to London two weeks before Christmas.
To ensure the fall of Jerusalem Allenby needed first to break the Turkish defense line at Gaza-Beersheba overseen by Erich von Falkenhayn, former army chief of staff.
First, he relocated his general headquarters from a first-class Cairo hotel to the front line, thus boosting their morale. He then collected reinforcements of men, artillery, gas shells, and tanks and was resolute that he would not proceed until certain of victory. He assembled seven infantry divisions and a unit nicknamed Desert Mounted Corps, consisting of horses and camels and had a total of 88,000 men.
The Turkish Seventh and Eight armies were against him and totaled 35,000 men stretched along 40 km.
Allenby’s plan was to secure Beersheba’s water supplies during the attack. Both earlier attacks had suffered water shortages (common concern in the desert warfare).
The Third Battle of Gaza, also the Battle of Beersheba initiated on October 31st, 1917. It was not a frontal attack; Allenby wanted to take the Turkish by surprise in lightly defended Beersheba and deployed 40,000 men to the area.
He also ensured large British presence in front of Gaza. Three division and 218 guns bombarded the garrison for six days before the attack in order to fool the Turks that they were going for a frontal attack.
Allenby’s tactics succeeded. British aircraft ensured British air superiority, preventing German aircraft from detecting British troop movements.
Allenby’s infantry forces were deployed to take Beersheba while a Light Horse unit was sent to the far east, where they penetrated Turkish defenses and took the town’s wells before the Turks could contaminate them.
The Turkish Seventh and Eighths Armies retreated to Tel es Sheria, close to Beersheba. There, an attack by a camel company made the Turkish scatter believing a full-scale border attack, leaving the Seventh Army exposed. Allenby took advantage of this and at Tel es Sheria spilt the Seventh and Eighth Armies. He hoped to trap Kressenstein’s Eighth Army at Gaza but they retreated up the coast, Gaza being abandoned. Meanwhile, the Eight Army Established itself in Jerusalem prepared for the British.
Having concluded the successful capture of Gaza Allenby turned his attention to the , which he succeeded in securing the following month.
British Commander-in-Chief marched east towards Jerusalem via the Judea Hills.
General Erich von Falkenhayn’s forces strengthened Turkish lines from Jerusalem to the sea, so part of Allenby’s troops headed towards Jerusalem and the rest adopted defensive posture at Jaffa.
Falkenhayn launched attacks, greatly slowing down Allenby’s advance. Allenby would not be able to conquer Jerusalem without first assembling his forces.
Both commanders had been instructed to avoid fighting around the holy city.
Having reinforced his forces, Allenby assigned General Chetwode the task of capturing Jerusalem. This attack began on 8 December. The city fell after a day’s fighting. This decreased the Turkish morale after many British successes and Turkish failed counter-attacks.
Falkenhayn lauched a counter-attack on 26 December which was thrown back with heavy Turkish losses.
British Casualties: 18,000
Turkish Casualties: 25,000
The loss of Jerusalem was a great setback to the Ottoman Empire.
Allenby secured the British line from Jerusalem to the sea. News of its capture other battle areas.
Due to Allenby’s successes the War Office postponed operations in Mesopotamia to prepare for a definitive offensive in Palestine.
Consideration About the Topic
Primary Documents: E W G Masterman on the Fall of Jerusalem, 9 December 1917
The Fall of Jerusalem by E. W. G. Masterman Secretary of British Palestine Society
The picture of the welcome received by the troops is very delightful:
The people turned out by the Turks from Gaza and the surrounding country were trekking back with all their worldly goods and chattels packed on overloaded camels and donkeys, the women bearing astonishingly heavy loads on their heads, while the patriarchs of families rode, or were carried on the shoulders of the younger men.
The agriculturists are beginning to turn out to plow and till the fields, now they have the security of British protection. Our troops receive the liveliest welcome in passing the villages, and in this unchanging part of the world the women sit and gossip during the process of drawing water from the well, just as they did in Biblical days, unhindered by the war's progress, though not heedless of it. There is peace and safety for them all.
This end to extortion, oppression, and pillage under the name of requisitions has, in the short space of a week, wrought a wondrous change in the happiness and contentment of the people.
The German propaganda has failed miserably here.
British ideals of freedom are thoroughly known, and the exemplary behaviour of our troops has confirmed all previous knowledge of the work done by Great Britain for civilization.
To say that this country, which a fortnight ago was under the Turkish scourge and war, has suddenly become normal for the civil population, is not to use words of exaggeration. In Ramleh people are practicing the arts of peace and the bazaars are busy. Our Yeomanry are buying Jaffa oranges, vegetables, and fresh bread, a welcome change from the diet of a fortnight's strenuous times, at fair rates, the traders receiving payment in cash, an alteration from the depreciated Turkish note to which they are accustomed.
(W. T. MASSEY, in The Daily Telegraph)
“In trying to drive out the British, the Mosque over the tomb seems to have been destroyed, which is not remarkable, as its lofty position would have given the British a unique point of vantage.
The campaign takes on a new aspect when it turns from the occupation of the maritime plain to the investment of Jerusalem.
Jerusalem lies high up, some 2,450 feet above the Mediterranean, in the plateau of central Judea. In the days of ancient warfare its military strength lay largely in the deep valleys almost surrounding its site, and the powerful walls rising from these valley slopes made the city almost impregnable from all sides but the north, where the absence of a valley was, in Roman times, compensated for by a triple wall.”
“No army of invasion, knowing that opposition awaited them on the Judean frontier, would venture across those steep and haggard ridges... Hence we find Judea almost never invaded from the south.(G. A. Smith)”
“But this present war has entirely altered the conditions. In earlier invasions the army had behind them but a waterless desert; now, thanks partly to the Turks themselves, the British Army has an excellent road from Beersheba northwards, and railway tracks connect this town southwards with El Auja, and eastwards with Gaza and the maritime plain.”
“British troops early captured the site and entrenched themselves against the most determined attacks, the opposing forces being in places on the steep hillsides but forty yards apart. The recently rebuilt shrine crowning the hill, which had been occupied as a place of refuge by the Mohammedans of the neighbouring village, was entirely destroyed by Turkish gunfire
It might have been more "pious" to leave it, but it would hardly have been war, as it affords the finest look-out of all.”
“This ancient city, sacred to Moslems, Jews and Christians as the site of the Cave of Machpelah where were buried Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their wives, lies in the Wady el Khulil amid wide spreading vine-yards, fertile fields and abundant springs.
It lies high - over 3,000 feet above sea level, and is surrounded by still loftier hills. From Hebron to Jerusalem, though there are many "ups and downs," the road - an excellent carriage road - is mainly a descent.”
“Meanwhile the central forces had reached the northern Jerusalem-Nablus road, and the city being thus isolated it surrendered to General Allenby. The following day he, accompanied by French, Italian and Mohammedan representatives, entered the Holy City in triumph.”
Source: Source Records of the Great War, Vol. V, ed. Charles F. Horne, National Alumni 1923
Bibliography
Masterman, E.W.G.. "Primary Documents: E W G Masterman on the Fall of Jerusalem, 9 December 1917." 28 Feb 2004. 13 Apr 2008 <http://firstworldwar.com/source/jerusalem_masterman.htm>.
"Battles: The Fall of Jerusalem, 1917." 24 Nov 2002. 13 Apr 2008 <http://firstworldwar.com/battles/jerusalem.htm>.
"Battles: The First Battle of Gaza, 1917." 7 Feb 2002. 13 Apr 2008 <http://firstworldwar.com/battles/gaza1.htm>.
"Battles: The Second Battle of Gaza, 1917." 7 Feb 2002. 13 Apr 2008 <http://firstworldwar.com/battles/gaza2.htm>.
"Battles: The Second Battle of Gaza, 1917." 14 Aug 2002. 13 Apr 2008 <http://firstworldwar.com/battles/gaza3.htm>.
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