'WAR DIARY. ARMY HEADQUARTERS, INDIA. […] I.E.F. “D”. Volume 25. PART I. (From 1st to 15th August 1916.)'

IOR/L/MIL/17/5/3258

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The record is made up of 1 volume (163 folios). It was created in 27 Jul 1916-15 Aug 1916. It was written in English. The original is part of the British Library: India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. Records and Private Papers Documents collected in a private capacity. .

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Content

The volume contains a chronological list of brief summaries of papers relating to the activities of the Indian Expeditionary Force D (also known as the Mesopotamia Expeditionary Force) between 1 and 15 August 1916. This is accompanied by appendices containing copies and extracts of these papers, which include letters, telegrams, and appreciations [reports] from the Directorate of Military Operations.

A summary of the contents of this volume can be found at folio 16. The volume mostly relates to:

  • Updates from the Tigris and Euphrates lines, southern Persia [Iran], and the Russo-Turkish front
  • Reinforcements for Force D, including personnel requirements, appointments of officers, and changes in the chief command
  • Plans for the relief of various regiments, and arrangements for those going on leave
  • River craft: details of craft available, efforts to procure more, the re-erection of craft on arrival, the storage of drinking water on board river craft, and the overall administration of river transport
  • Supplies and equipment for Force D, including ice machines, hospital ships, mosquito nets, and slipways for dockyards
  • Ration requirements for Force D
  • Turkish [Ottoman] forces: estimates of troop numbers, and details of their location and movements
  • Proposals for the establishment of machine gun companies
  • Progress of railway construction in Mesopotamia
  • Reports of German activities
  • The whereabouts of Khalil Pasha An Ottoman title used after the names of certain provincial governors, high-ranking officials and military commanders. [Halil (Kut) Pāshā]
  • Proposals for a prisoner exchange.

The volume also includes:

  • Distribution of Force D (ff 3-6, ff 24-26)
  • General Organisation of Force D (f 7)
  • Composition of Force D (ff 8-13)
  • Units of Force D captured at Kut-al-Amarah [Al-Kut] (f 14)
  • Names of General Officers with Force D (f 14)
  • List of General Officers and Brigade Commanders with Force D (f 15)
  • Statements giving the number of guns in use and the numbers of complete rounds up to 30 July (f 21) and 6 August (f 107)
  • Returns of the sick and wounded for weeks ending 15 July (f 55), 22 July (f 137)
  • Reports of the Royal Flying Corps (f 60 and ff 126-127)
  • Statement of the hospitals supplied and under supply for Force D (ff 78-79)
  • Strength of Bushire [Bushehr] garrison attached to Force D (f 109)
  • Report on the explosion of three ammunition barges on 10 June (ff 109-110)
  • A copy of a despatch from the Government of India on the defence of Kut-al-Amarah under Major General Townshend from 3 December 1915 to 29 April 1916 (ff 137-138).

The vast majority of material in the volume dates from August 1916, but there is also a small amount of material which dates from July 1916.

Extent and format
1 volume (163 folios)
Arrangement

The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the front to the rear of the volume.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the front cover with 1 and terminates at the inside back cover with 165; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. side of each folio. An additional foliation sequence is also present in parallel between ff 3-163; these numbers are printed and are located in the bottom centre of the recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. side of each folio.

Dimensions: 21 x 33 cm

Written in
English in Latin script
Type
Archival file

Archive information for this record

Access & Reference

Original held at
British Library: India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. Records and Private Papers Documents collected in a private capacity.
Access conditions

Unrestricted

Archive reference
IOR/L/MIL/17/5/3258
Former external reference(s)
Volume 25. Part I.

History of this record

Date(s)
27 Jul 1916-15 Aug 1916 (CE, Gregorian)

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'WAR DIARY. ARMY HEADQUARTERS, INDIA. […] I.E.F. “D”. Volume 25. PART I. (From 1st to 15th August 1916.)', British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/MIL/17/5/3258, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100000000112.0x0001f0> [accessed 27 August 2024]

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