I

CHAPTER XXIV

THE CAMPAIGN IN MESOPOTAMIA

N our previous discussion of the British campaign in Mesopotamia we left the British forces intrenched at Kurna, and also occupying Basra, the port of Bagdad. The object of

the Mesopotamia Expedition was primarily to keep the enemy from the shores of the Gulf of Persia. If the English had been satisfied with that, the misfortune which was to come to them might never have occurred, but the whole expediton was essentially political rather than military in its nature.

The British were defending India. The Germans, unable to attack the British Empire by sea, were hoping to attack her by land. They had already attempted to stir up a Holy War with the full expectation that it would lead to an Indian revolution. In this they had failed, for the millions of Mohammedans in India cared little for the Turkish Sultan or his proclamations. Through Bagdad, however, they hoped to strike a blow at the English influence on the Persian Gulf. The English, therefore, felt strongly that it was not enough to sit safely astride the Tigris, but that a blow at Bagdad would produce a tremendous political effect. It would practically prevent German communication with Persia, and the Indian frontier.

As a matter of fact the Persian Gulf and the oil fields were safe so long as the English held Kurna and Basra, and the Arabs were of no special consequence. The real reason for the expedition was probably that about this time matters were moving badly for the Allies. Serbia was in trouble in the Balkans, Gallipoli was a failure, something it seemed ought to be done to restore the British prestige. Up to this time the Mesopotamia Expedition had been a great success, but it had made no great impression on the world. The little villages in the hands of the British had unknown names, but if Bagdad should be captured Great Britain would have something to boast of; something that would keep up its prestige among its Mohammedan subjects.

Before the expedition to Bagdad was determined on, there had been several lively fights between the English forces and the Turks. On March 3d a Turkish force numbering about twelve thousand appeared at Ahwaz where the British had placed a small garrison to protect the pipe line of the Anglo-Persian Oil Company. The British retirement led to heavy fighting, with severe losses.

A number of lively skirmishes followed, and then came the serious attack against Shaiba. The Turkish army numbered about eighteen thousand men, of whom eleven thousand were regulars. The fighting lasted for several days, the Turks being reinforced. On the 14th of April, however, the English attacked in turn and put the whole enemy force to flight. The British lost about seven hundred officers and men, and reported a Turkish loss of about six thousand. In their retreat the Turks were attacked by their Arab allies, and suffered additional losses. From that time till summer there were no serious contests, although there were occasional skirmishes which turned out favorably to the British.

By this time the Turks had collected a considerable army north of Kurna, and on May 31st an expedition was made to disperse it. On June 3d the British captured Amara, seventy-five miles above Kurna, scattering the Turkish army. Early in July a similar expedition was sent against Nasiriyeh, which led to serious fighting, the Turks being badly defeated with a loss of over two thousand five hundred men.

Kut-el-Amara still remained, and early in August an expedition was directed against that point. The Turks were found in great force, well intrenched, and directed by German officers. The battle lasted for four days. The English suffered great hardship on account of the scarcity of water and the blinding heat, but on September 29th they drove the enemy from the city and took possession. More than two thousand prisoners were taken. The town was found thoroughly fortified, with an elaborate system of trenches extending for miles, built in the true German fashion. Its capture was the end of the summer campaign.

The British now had at last made up their minds to push on to Bagdad. General Townshend, whose work so far had been admirable, protested, but Sir John Nixon, and the Indian military authorities, were strongly in favor of the expedition. By October, Turkey was able to gather a large army. She was fighting in

Little was

Transcaucasia, Egypt, Gallipoli and Mesopotamia. going on in the first three of these fronts, and she was able therefore to send to Mesopotamia almost a quarter of a million men.

To meet these, General Townshend had barely fifteen thousand men, of whom only one-third were white soldiers. He was backed by a flotilla of boats of almost every kind,-river boats, motor launches, paddle steamers, native punts. The British army was almost worn out by the fighting during the intense heat of the previous summer. But their success had given them confidence. In the early days of October the advance began. For some days it proceeded with no serious

fighting. On the 23d of October it reached Azizie, and was halted by a Turkish force numbering about four thousand. These were soon routed, and the advance continued until General Townshend arrived at Lajj, about seven miles from Ctesiphon, where the Turks were found heavily intrenched and in great numbers. Ctesiphon was a famous old city which had been the battle ground of Romans and Parthians, but was now mainly ruins. In these ruins, however, the Turks found admirable

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English Miles Telegraphe Tracks

ATTACK ON KUT-EL-AMARA

shelter for nests of machine guns. MAP OF GEN. TOWNSHEND'S LINES OF On the 21st of November General Townshend made his attack.

The Turks occupied two lines of intrenchments, and had about twenty thousand men, the English about twelve thousand. General Townshend's plan was to divide his army into three columns. The first was to attack the center of the first Turkish position. A second was directed at the left of that position, and a third was to swing widely around and come in on the rear of the Turkish force. This plan was entirely successful, but the Turkish army was not routed, and retreated fighting desperately to its second line. There it was reinforced and counter-attacked with such vigor that it drove the British back to its old first trenches.

The next day the Turks were further reinforced and attacked again. The British drove them back over and over, but found themselves unable to advance. The Turks had lost enormously but the English had lost about one-third of their strength, and were compelled to fall back. They therefore returned on the 26th to Lajj, and ultimately, after continual rear-guard actions, to Kut. There they found themselves surrounded, and there was nothing to do but to wait for help.

By this time the eyes of the world were upon the beleaguered British army. Help was being hurried to them from India, but Germany also was awake and Marshal von Der Goltz, who had been military instructor in the Turkish army, was sent down to take command of the Turkish forces. The town of Kut lies in the loop of the Tigris, making it almost an island. There was an intrenched line across the neck of land on the north, and the place could resist any ordinary assault. The great difficulty was one of supplies. However, as the relieving force was on the way, no great anxiety was felt. For some days there was constant bombardment, which did no great damage. On the 23d an attempt was made to carry the place by assault, but this too failed. The relieving force, however, was having its troubles. These were the days of floods, and progress was slow and at times almost impossible. Moreover, the Turks were constantly resisting.

The relief expedition was composed of thirty thousand Indian troops, two Anglo-Indian divisions, and the remnants of Townshend's expedition, a total of about ninety thousand men. General Sir Percy Lake was in command of the entire force. The march began on January 6th. By January 8th the British had reached Sheikh Saad, where the Turks were defeated in two pitched battles. On January 22d he had arrived at Umm-el-Hanna, where the Turks had intrenched themselves.

After artillery bombardment the Turkish positions were attacked, but heavy rains had converted the ground into a sea of mud, rendering rapid movement impossible. The enemy's fire was heavy and effective, inflicting severe losses, and though every effort was made, the assault failed.

For weeks the British troops bivouacked in driving rain on soaked and sodden ground. Three times they were called upon to advance over a perfectly flat country, deep in mud, and abso