Captain Cyril Falls

Military Operations Egypt & Palestine Vol II. Part I Official History of the Great War Other Theatres Captain Cyril Falls

It was originally planned to complete the Official History of the Egypt and Palestine campaign in two volumes, with this second volume taking the story from the appointment of Allenby to the command of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF) in June 1917, to the conclusion of the armistice with Turkey. But it was only after Allenby's arrival that the campaign really took off, with all the major offensives and battles taking place during his period of command. It thus became clear that Volume II would need to be in two parts. This part covers the offensive at Gaza and Beersheba and the subsequent battles in the Judaean Hills for the capture and defence of Jerusalem, which lasted from the end of October to the end of December 1917 without a break. It continues into 1918 with the operations in the Jordan Valley in February 1918; first the capture of Jericho, then the two raids into Trans-Jordan with the important engagements between them, lasting until 4 May. At this point there was a real break in the campaign for the first time and it is here that Part I ends. The contents list includes Parts I and II and all the appendices are at the end of Part II.