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1918: the Road to Damascus September T. E Lawrence in September 1918 The road to General Allenby was building up for his great push 1918: the road towards Damascus while Arab activity kept the opposing Damascus Ottoman forces focused east, away from his planned Marking the extraordinary assault. trials, triumphs and to Damascus tribulations of T. E. Lawrence 1 September – Aba el Lissan [Abu al-Lissan] in the last year of the First Lawrence set out for Azrak by car, where Emir Feisal was World War, month by month, to join him with the main Arab force. ‘We were never out in the British army alongside September: an unexpected of sight of men; of tenuous camel columns of troops and the Arabs fighting in the tribesmen and baggage moving slowly northward over the deserts of the Middle East; triumph interminable Jefer flat. Past this activity … we roared, my when the legend of Lawrence excellent driver, Green, once achieving 67 miles an hour.’ of Arabia was born. 5 September – Bair The British Empire, with support ‘At Bair we heard … that the Turks, on the preceding day, from many Arabs, was fighting The Arabs keep the Turks distracted. had launched suddenly westwards from Hesa into Tafileh.’ against the Turkish Ottoman Allenby launches his final battle to Lawrence comments that if this had happened four days Empire, allies of the Germans drive the Ottomans out of northern sooner, the Azrak expedition would have been stopped. and the Austro-Hungarians. 6 September – Azrak, etc. This series of leaflets covers Palestine, with Lawrence and the The first night in Azrak was plagued by mosquitoes: ‘at the months leading up to the Arab forces co-operating in a tightly dawn we changed camp to the height of the Mejaber capture of Damascus from the ridge, a mile to the west of the water and a hundred feet Turkish army at the beginning integrated plan. It is a brilliant above.’ of October 1918, which success, beyond wildest dreams; by Plans were for ‘a feint against Amman and a real cutting effectively signalled the end of the Deraa railways.’ ‘Peake, with the Egyptian Camel of the war in the Middle East: 30 September Damascus lay in their the formal Armistice with the Corps ... went off to cut the railway by Ifdein. … We, the A Jiddah street scene grasp. main body, would be marching north from Azrak for Ottoman Turks was signed at Umtaiye … our advanced base.’ ‘Affairs with Nuri and the end of October. Feisal held me the whole day in Azrak: but Joyce had left Some dramatic reversals of me a tender, the Blue Mist, by which on the following fortune in the final year of the morning I overtook the army [at] the Giaan el Khunna.’ campaign took their toll on Lawrence’s already strained 13 September – Gian Khunna [Qa` Khanna] nerves. This, and his feelings Peake rejoined, having failed to reach the line. Lawrence of guilt around what he saw took a camel and pushed on ahead of the force. ‘As as the betrayal of his dreams soon as our beasts had had a drink we struck off to the of a pan-Arab empire during railway, … before us were two good bridges.’ He retired the complex post-war peace to Umtaiye, to come back in the morning ‘to abolish the negotiations, eventually caused larger, four-arched bridge.’ the breakdown that brought 14 September – Umtaiye, etc. [Muta’iyah] Entering Damascus him in due course to seek ‘It was determined that two armoured cars should run solitude at Clouds Hill. down to the bridge and attack it, while the main body continued their march to Tell Arar.’ The cars approached a garrison and took it ‘in five minutes without loss.’ ‘Hastily Copyright © 2018 National Trust we set about the bridge … 80 feet long and 15 feet high Map, quotes and photos: Seven Pillars of Wisdom, published in 1926; Lawrence’s personal account of his role in the Great Arab Revolt … of shining white marble.’ The demolition left the bridge against the Ottoman Empire. Bust photo © John Hammond. intact, but tottering, so the Turks would have to destroy it The National Trust is a registered charity no. 205846. before rebuilding; a textbook piece of sabotage. Design by Pure Glow Media Next day, he overtook the Arab Army at 8am as it was then Deraa. In carrying this out, Lawrence and the Arabs attacking the Tell Arar bridge. ‘The southern ten miles moved northwards, to attack the railway at Tell Arar, but of the Damascus line were freely ours by [9am]. … Our 30 Sept were delayed capturing hundreds of Turks. soldiers could see Deraa, Mezerib and Ghazale, the three Mediterranean Sea 25 September – Nueime [Nu’aymah] key-stations, with their naked eyes. I was seeing further Midday, they found a train on the newly-repaired line. than this: northwards to Damascus ...’ 25 Sept 27 Sept 26 Sept They took great joy in blowing it again. Auda then set 16 September – Mezerib [Musayrib] out for Ghazala, the next station to the south, while Nuri 16 Sept A young chief from Tell el Shahab (the location of a key headed for Deraa to rout straggling Turkish forces, and bridge) agreed to get them past the Turks during the night. 17 Sept Lawrence went to the ruined colony of Sheikh Miskin. Lawrence and his bodyguard prepared gelatine, and crept 28-29 Sept Megiddo 26 September – Sheikh Miskin forwards in the dark, but the plan failed, as a train with 14-15, 18, 24 Sept While the Arab columns rested, Lawrence and his German officers and Turkish reserves arrived. 22 Sept bodyguard pressed on to Sheikh Saad (village) by dawn. Next day, on to Nasib. Several hours of artillery attack 19 Sept Later, Auda and Nuri joined them after their successes. against the station left it abandoned, and they piled gun- 13 Sept That afternoon they rode to Tafas, Tallal’s home village, cotton against the great bridge to the north – Lawrence 21 Sept 6-12, 20 Sept which 2000 retreating Turks were expected to pass. claimed it was his ‘seventy-ninth’. To their horror, they found the village silent, littered 17 September – Nasib [Nisib] with grotesquely murdered men, women and children. Success at Mezerib and Nasib brought local Arabs Whether or not Lawrence gave his notorious order for ‘no streaming in and pledging support and that ‘we were their prisoners’ as he claimed, the Arabs took bloody revenge highest lords and they our deepest servants.’ Lawrence for Tafas. complains they were keeping him awake! 27 September – Sheikh Saad After breakfast, Lawrence and Junor took two cars to a Lawrence arrived after midnight, his ‘fourth night of makeshift Turkish aerodrome. They disabled one plane, riding; but my mind would not let me feel how tired while two others hastily took off. Although these bombed my body was, so about [2am] I mounted a third camel (unsuccessfully) Lawrence and Junor, they had made the 5 Sept and splashed out to Deraa.’ Hearing the British were aerodrome unusable. approaching from the west, believing Deraa still in 18 September – Umtaiye Turkish hands, he rode out to meet General Barrow, who Strategically, Umtaiye gave them ‘command at will of wasn’t pleased to hear that his orders to take the town Deraa’s three railways’, yet tactically Umtaiye ‘was a had been pre-empted. However, Barrow complimented dangerous place’ due to Turkish aircraft. ‘Clearly our first the Arabs by saluting their flag in the town square. Fiesal 1 - 4 Sept duty was to get air reinforcement from Allenby.’ Lawrence arrived the next day. decided to travel to Azrak, then fly to GHQ to speak with 28 September – Deraa Allenby in person. Never missing an opportunity, on his Barrow and his men headed for Damascus. ‘I still had way to Azrak he helped blow another bridge at Mafrak. much to do, and therefore waited in Deraa another 19 September – Ifdein [Mafrak]; 20 September – Azrak night.’ The plane arriving to take Lawrence gave them ‘the ‘Before light, I woke Stirling and my drivers, and we four amazing first chronicle of Allenby’s victory’ at Megiddo climbed into the Blue Mist, our Rolls tender, and set out launched at dawn, 19 September. At GHQ, Allenby was for Damascus.’ Ahead, Lawrence saw his bodyguard and ‘unmoved, except for the light in his eye, as every fifteen Barrow’s troops. Lawrence quickly transferred to a camel, Map and quotations are taken from minutes [came] news of some wider success.’ More thrusts Seven Pillars of then astonished Barrow: he couldn’t believe Lawrence , chapters 106 to 119. were planned across the Jordan: to Amman; to Deraa; and Wisdom had travelled that morning from Deraa by camel! Back in to Kuneitra. Meanwhile, Allenby arranged the air cover. The dates and places in bold [with modern the car, they drove on to Kiswe, just outside Damascus, transliterations where it helps] are taken from Appendix where they paused ‘for … the roads were dangerous, and 21 September – Ramleh [GHQ, Bir Salem]; 2 of Seven Pillars, in which Lawrence records from his I had no wish to die stupidly in the dark at the gate of 22 September – Um el Surab; 24 September – Umtaiye diary where he was overnight. Damascus. I wanted to sleep, but I could not. Damascus Allenby assigned to the Arabs the harassment of the was the climax of our two years’ uncertainty, and my Not all places mentioned remain visible today. Turkish Fourth Army on their retreat from Amman and mind was distracted.’ 30 September – Kiswe [Kiswah].
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