'WAR DIARY. ARMY HEADQUARTERS, INDIA […] I.E.F. "D" Volume 28. PART I. (From 1st to 15th November 1916.)'

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 November 1916. This is accompanied by appendices containing copies and extracts of these papers, which include: letters, telegrams, notes, reports, tables, and memoranda. An index to the contents of this volume and a summary of the contents can be found at folios 3-12. The volume concerns:

• The supply of food, equipment (e.g. body armour), and transport for Force D
• Issues concerning Inland Water Transport, in particular transfers of vessels from India for use in Mesopotamia and recruitment of ships’ masters in British colonies
• The movements of supply ships
• The movement and organisation of military units
• Reports from the fronts in Mesopotamia and Persia [Iran]
• Combat and non-combat reinforcements for Force D from India, Egypt, the British Honduras [Belize] Contingent, Fiji, China, and Portuguese East Africa [Mozambique], in particular Labour Corps and Supply and Transport Corps personnel and artillery
• Medical issues, including sickness among troops, sanitation measures, reorganisation of the Force D Medical Administration, the transfer of an ambulance train from Aden, and an inquiry into conditions on board transport ships
• Statistics for personnel, casualties, supplies, and construction materials shipped on the Tigris
• Railway construction
• Movements of Turkish [Ottoman] forces, including in Turkish-occupied areas of Persia
• The defence of British-controlled oil fields in southern Persia, including relations with local Bakhtiari [Bakhtiyārī] tribes
• A Chinese theatre for the entertainment of the Chinese Labour Corps
• Issues concerning prisoners of war, including the release of Turkish prisoners and the escape of prisoners captured by Turkish forces at Kut
• The hostility of tribes on the Shatt-al-Hai [Shatt al-Hayy/Al-Gharraf River]
• Offers from private firms in Karachi to supply additional labour.

The following tables appear:

• Royal Flying Corps (RFC) reports from listing available aircraft and engines at the start of November 1916 (f 29 and f 49)
• Distribution of Turkish forces (ff 40-41, ff 73-74)
• The personnel of the Supply and Transport Corps in Mesopotamia (f 46)
• Casualties for the weeks ending 14 October 1916 (f 55) and 21 October 1916 (ff 110-111)
• Ration requirements for a 60-day period in Mesopotamia (ff 56-57)
• Artillery in use in Mesopotamia (f 66)
• The ration strength of Force D as of 31 October 1916 (ff 87-89 and ff 106-108)
• Additional supplies needed for Force D (f 100)
• The names and strength of hostile tribes on the Shatt-al-Hai (f 105)
• Ammunition held and used by artillery forces in Mesopotamia (ff 116-117)
• The state of supplies on the morning of 11 November 1916 (f 117)
• Transport ships arriving in Basrah [Basra] in November 1916 (f 123).

Also included in the volume are:

• Weekly Diary of Information No. 21 for the week ending 7 October (ff 14-24), covering issues including: climate and flooding in Mesopotamia; political affairs in the Sultanate of Masqat [Muscat]; military construction and engineering works in Mesopotamia and southern Persia such as bases, hospitals, prisons, land reclamation, and water supply; water transport; staffing; the issue of slavery in Iraq; cemeteries; prisoners of war; a copy of ‘The Voice of Truth’ No. 4
• A map of south-eastern Mesopotamia and south-western Persia, indicating Mesopotamian tribal territories (f 25).

Extent and format

1 volume (127 folios)

It is grouped into

'Lower Mesopotamia'

2 images

Ref: IOR/L/MIL/17/5/3264, f 25

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 127; 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 4-125; 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.

Written in

English in Latin script

Type

Archival file

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/17/5/3264

Former external reference(s)

Volume 28. PART I.

History of this record

Date(s)

1 Nov 1916-15 Nov 1916 (CE, Gregorian)

Subjects

Military suppliesLabourMilitary administrationMilitary logistics

Places

PersiaMesopotamia

People & organisations

Mesopotamia Expeditionary ForceWar OfficeGovernment of IndiaCommander-in-Chief, IndiaChief of the General Staff, India

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'WAR DIARY. ARMY HEADQUARTERS, INDIA […] I.E.F. "D" Volume 28. PART I. (From 1st to 15th November 1916.)', British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/MIL/17/5/3264, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100000000112.0x0001f6> [accessed 26 August 2024]

Link to this record

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