The Arab Revolt
The Arab Revolt tends to get most of the glory in this theatre, and is well covered by many other websites and books. It was begun by the Emir of Mecca, Sharif Husein ibn Ali, in the Arab Peninsula in June 1916. It is most famous now as the theatre of T.E. Lawrence ‘of Arabia’, sent out to act as an advisor to the Arabs in January 1917. He masterminded one of the early victories, the capture of the port of Wejh at a time when the whole Revolt was about to fail, but he was still only one of many British advisors and officers involved. In Arabia, the Revolt was little more than a sideshow; a drain on Ottoman military resources and a political embarrassment, but no major threat.
However, Husein wanted to spread his influence north across all of the Arab nations, and Lawrence made this possible by leading a force to capture of the port of Aqaba at the top of the Red Sea in July 1917. This opened the route north to the Arabs. Over the following months they made slow progress in pushing the Ottoman forces back, but once the British offensive in southern Palestine was successful they advanced on the Dead Sea. In early 1918 they fought a few actions around the Dead Sea, but then failed to make any contribution when the British tried to capture Amman. By this time, significant numbers of British troops were helping the Arabs, including detachments from the RFC, armoured cars and camel troops.
One of the problems facing the Arabs was that many of the tribes would only go on campaign when it suited them, or when the fighting was on or near their own lands. Co-ordinating and motivating the tribes was something Lawrence excelled at, and one of the ways that his contribution was invaluable to the Revolt. As time passed, a small core of regular Arab troops was formed, largely led by former Ottoman officers. They were trained, equipped and disciplined as regular troops, and formed a permanent and reliable fighting force.
Only in the final offensive did the Arabs really make a difference to the EEF’s campaigns, attacking north in tandem with the British. They helped keep the Ottoman forces in the Jordan Valley from reinforcing the coastal areas, and then pushed them back north. Later, they swung across into Syria, reaching Aleppo to claim control of the whole region for the Arabs. This claim was later overruled at the Paris Peace Conference, and the region was divided. Britain received the Mandate for governing Palestine, while the French took over Syria.
The Arab Revolt tends to get most of the glory in this theatre, and is well covered by many other websites and books. It was begun by the Emir of Mecca, Sharif Husein ibn Ali, in the Arab Peninsula in June 1916. It is most famous now as the theatre of T.E. Lawrence ‘of Arabia’, sent out to act as an advisor to the Arabs in January 1917. He masterminded one of the early victories, the capture of the port of Wejh at a time when the whole Revolt was about to fail, but he was still only one of many British advisors and officers involved. In Arabia, the Revolt was little more than a sideshow; a drain on Ottoman military resources and a political embarrassment, but no major threat.
However, Husein wanted to spread his influence north across all of the Arab nations, and Lawrence made this possible by leading a force to capture of the port of Aqaba at the top of the Red Sea in July 1917. This opened the route north to the Arabs. Over the following months they made slow progress in pushing the Ottoman forces back, but once the British offensive in southern Palestine was successful they advanced on the Dead Sea. In early 1918 they fought a few actions around the Dead Sea, but then failed to make any contribution when the British tried to capture Amman. By this time, significant numbers of British troops were helping the Arabs, including detachments from the RFC, armoured cars and camel troops.
One of the problems facing the Arabs was that many of the tribes would only go on campaign when it suited them, or when the fighting was on or near their own lands. Co-ordinating and motivating the tribes was something Lawrence excelled at, and one of the ways that his contribution was invaluable to the Revolt. As time passed, a small core of regular Arab troops was formed, largely led by former Ottoman officers. They were trained, equipped and disciplined as regular troops, and formed a permanent and reliable fighting force.
Only in the final offensive did the Arabs really make a difference to the EEF’s campaigns, attacking north in tandem with the British. They helped keep the Ottoman forces in the Jordan Valley from reinforcing the coastal areas, and then pushed them back north. Later, they swung across into Syria, reaching Aleppo to claim control of the whole region for the Arabs. This claim was later overruled at the Paris Peace Conference, and the region was divided. Britain received the Mandate for governing Palestine, while the French took over Syria.