The London Gazette of TUESDA Y, the 4Th of APRIL, 1916
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29536. 3655 SECOND SUPPLEMENT TO The London Gazette Of TUESDA Y, the 4th of APRIL, 1916. The Gazette is registered at the General Post Office for transmission by Inland Post as a newspaper. The postage rate to places within the United Kingdom, for each copy, is one halfpenny for the first 6 ozs., and an additional halfpenny for each subsequent 6 ozs. or part thereof. For places abroad the rate is a halfpenny for every 2 ounces, except in the case of Canada, to which the Canadian Magazine Postage rate applies. WEDNESDAY, 5 APKEL, 1916. War Office, an inland sea of water and reeds varying from 5t7i April, 1916. two to six feet deep, which extended for 40 miles north of Qurnah, down to Basrah, and The following Despatch from General Sir stretching from Nasiriyah in the west to John Nixon, K.C.B., relative to the operations Hawizeh (50 miles north-east of Qurnah) in in Mesopotamia from the middle of April to the east. Consequently, until the subsidence the end of September, 1915, has been for- of the floods at the end of July, operations in warded by the Government of India for publi- this area were of an amphibious nature. cation : — 2. During the month of April a Brigade at Ahwaz, first under Major-General Davison, General Headquarters, and subsequently under Brigadier-General I.E.F. "D," 1st January, 1916. Lean, had been containing a hostile force con- sisting of .some eight battalions of Turks with From, eight guns and about 10,000 Arab auxiliaries, General Sir John Nixon, K.C.B., A.D.C. which had advanced from Amarah via Bisaitin General, Commanding Indian Expedi- and Khafajiyah (on the Kharkeh Eiver) into tionary Force " D . " Persian Arabistan. To At this time another British Detachment was at Qurnah, where it had been opposed The Chief of the General Staff, Army Head- since January by a Turkish force of some six quarters, India. battalions with 10 guns and the usual follow- Sir,— ing of Arab tribesmen, which had descended I have the honour to forward a report on the Tigris from Amarah. the operations of the Forces under my com- By the defeat of the Turks at Barjisiyah (20 mand for the period from the middle of April, miles south-west of Basrah) on 14th April the 1915, up to the end of September, 1915. hostile forces in the vicinity of Basrah had 1. The floods of last season, which are said been dispersed and driven to Nasiriyah, to have been the highest for 30 years, formed enabling me to take active measures against 3656 SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 5 APKIL, 1916. the enemy detachments on the Karun and on given to General Townshend's advance from the Tigris. Qurnah. I decided to deal first with the former and 7. I consider that General Gorringe showed placed Major-General Gorringe in command marked ability and determination in conduct- of the operation. ing these operations. The successful result is 3. Directly the Turks had been defeated at due to his able leadership and to the zeal and Barjisiyah the concentration of the 12th Divi- energy displayed by all ranks under his com- sion up the (Karun was commenced. The mand. Turkish force near Ahwaz retreated across the The troops were compelled to undergo severe Kharkeh River on hearing of the defeat of exertions, and overcame many obstacles during their army at Barjisiyah. very hot and trying weather with undiminished General Gorringe followed in pursuit. By resolution and zeal that was admirable. the 7th May the 12th Division and the Cavalry 8. While the 12th Division was advancing by Brigade had reached Illah on the Kharkeh. the Karun and Kharkeh Rivers, preparations This river was 250 yards wide with a rapid and were in progress for an advance up the Tigris deep stream, which presented a formidable by the 6th Division under command of Major- obstacle to the passage of troops. General Townshend. Owing to the limited 4. General Gorringe overcame t h e difficulties amount of river transport available at that of passage and skilfully crossed his troops and time the movement and collection of troops was guns to the other bank. The Turks continued a slow and difficult process, and the flooded their retreat towards Amarah on discovering country around Qurnah presented many that our column had crossed the river. problems which required careful attention General Gorringe now found himself under before operations could be commenced. the necessity of dealing with a recalcitrant and 9. "Bellums"—long, narrow boats of the pugnacious branch of the Beni Taruf Arabs, country—were collected and armoured with who had identified themselves very strongly iron plates, to be used for carrying infantry to with the Turkish cause. the assault of the enemy's positions; troops He advanced down the Kharkeh River were trained in punting and boat work; various operating on both banks. types of guns mounted on rafts, barges, tugs Major-General Melliss commanded the and paddlers; floating hospitals had to be im- column on the right bank and Brigadier- provised, and many other details of construc- General Lean that on the left bank. tion and equipment had to be thought out and The occasion of the successful attack on the provided for. Arab stronghold, Kharajiyah, in extremely By the end of May preparations for the hot weather, when the temperature in tents w a s advance were complete. 120 degrees, was a display of- dogged gallantry 10. The Turkish force was entrenched north and devotion on the part of the troops engaged. of Qurnah on islands formed where high ground Among other interpid deeds was the exploit stood out from the inundation which covered of Subadar Major A j a b Khan and 20 men of all lower lying country. the 76th Punjabis, who swam the river under These fortified localities were in two groups, heavy fire, and brought back a boat in which the most southerly group forming an advanced troops were ferried across until sufficient were position some two miles1 from the British lines; collected to assault a stout mud fort which the main position being some three miles was strongly held. further to the north. 5. Afber the defeat and dispersion of the The flooded state of the country rendered it hostile tribesmen who had molested his a position of some strength, necessitating a advance, General Gorringe, in accordance with carefully organised attack in successive phases my instructions, made a series of demonstra- by combined naval and military operations. tions with a portion of his force from Bisaitin General Townshend's plan wasi to capture the against the Turkish force which lay between advanced position by a frontal attack com- him and Amarah. This action was in co-opera- bined with a turning attack against the enemy's tion with the impending advance of our detach- left flank, supported by the naval flotilla and ment from Qurnah (commanded by Major- the artillery afloat, and that on land within the General T'ownshend) on Amarah. It had the Qurnah entrenchments. desired result of preventing reinforcements 11. In the early morning of 31st May, after from joining the Turkish forces on the Tigris a heavy preparatory bombardment, the in- in time to oppose General Townshend's ad- fantry advanced to the attack in the flotilla of vance. It was largely due to these demonstra- improvised war " b e l l u m s 1," supported by tions that the enemy's retreat up the Tigris, admirably directed gunfire. after their defeat on 31st May, was so precipi- The 17th Infantry Brigade, commanded by tate, and that General Townshend was enabled Lieutenant-Colonel Climo, 24th Punjabis, made to enter Amarah practically unopposed. The the frontal attack. The 22nd Punjabis and Turkish force opposing General Gorringe was the Sirmur Sappers and Miners, under Lieu- so delayed in its march to Amarah that when tenant-Colonel Blois Johnson, 22nd Punjabis, it eventually reached there it was surprised captured One Tree Hill,, on the enemy's left by General Townshend, who was already in flank, and enfiladed Norfolk Hill, the first occupation of the town. A * part of the objective of the 17th Infantry Brigade, which advance guard was captured and the remainder was carried at the point of the bayonet by the had to seek safety in dispersion with the loss 1st Battalion, Oxfordshire and Buckingham- of two guns. shire Light Infantry, after poling their boats 6. General Gorringe's operations extended for over a mile through thick reeds and landing over a period of seven weeks. As a result, waist deep in water. Persdan Arabistan had been cleared of the 12. The bold action of the mine-sweepers, enemy, and the Arab tribes forced to submit, which preceded the naval sloops and armed thus enabling the pipe line to be repaired and tugs, enabled the latter to keep pace with the normal conditions to be resumed at the Oil troops, and their fire, combined with that of Fields, and most effective assistance had been the Royal Artillery ashore and afloat, ensured SUPPLEMENT TO T H E LONDON GAZETTE, 5 APRIL, 1910. 3657 the capture of the whole of the enemy's lastly, it was the headquarters of the civil advanced position by noon. administration of a large part of the Basrah It was entirely due to careful preparation Province. and organisation of artillery fire of all kinds 18. To General Gorringe and his troops was that our casualties were very few. allotted this objective. The route from These operations form a good example of the Qurnah to Nasiriyah is by water, through the co-operation of the Royal Navy with infantry low-lying valley of the Old Euphrates Channel and artillery.