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'HISTORY OF THE GREAT WAR BASED ON OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS. THE CAMPAIGN IN MESOPOTAMIA 1914-1918. VOLUME II.' [249v] (507/660)
The record is made up of 1 volume (323 folios). It was created in 1924. 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. .
Transcription
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458 HISTORY OF THE WAR : MESOPOTAMIA
In " Mens, Anzac and Kut ” Captain Herbert recounts th P
negotiations carried out by Colonel Beach, Captain Lawrence
and himself. Halil said that the Arabs in Kut were Turkish
subjects, not British, and although he said that he did not
mean to do anything to them he would give no assurance
regarding them. Arrangements were made in regard to
exchanging sick and wounded from Kut with Turkish prisoners
of war ; and Halil asked that General Lake should send shins
which Halil promised to return, to transport General Townshend
and his men to Baghdad. This, however, Colonel Beach
could not agree to without General Lake’s orders, as the
reheving force had, as it was, insufficient steamers to keep
themselves supplied. Halil was angry that General Townshend
had destroyed his guns, and he said he could have prevented
it by bombarding Kut but he did not want to.
On the 1st May Halil sent a letter to General Lake agreeing
to the exchange of the sick and wounded in Kut for an equiva
lent number of Turkish prisoners of war, unwounded and in
good health, of certain units, which he specified* He could
not transport the garrison of Kut to Baghdad by river as he
had not the coal, and he suggested that General Lake should
supply the 2,000 tons he would require. He also said that
General Lake could send rations for the garrison.
General Lake replied saying that he would send vessels to
bring down the sick and wounded, whom he would exchange
as desired. He was unable to supply the coal or send vessels
to transport the prisoners to Baghdad,f and he reminded
Halil of the assurances given to General Townshend that in
case of surrender the Turks would feed, transport to Baghdad
and pay the Kut garrison, which assurance both Generals
Lake and Townshend had accepted as having been given in
good faith.
This practically ended the negotiations.
The surrender of Kut was a sad termination to the project
which had originally contemplated the capture of Baghdad.
From first to last the operations had involved the British
Empire in over 40,000 casualties, including those gone into
captivity ; and it was a bitter blow to British pride, even
* Halil would not accept any Arab soldiers.
f In this connection it is to be noted that Halil had said that in any case
he could not agree to an armistice between his force and that under General
Gorringe. In these circumstances General Lake felt that he would not be
justified in jeopardising the situation of his own force, which was already
suffering, owing to shortage of river transport, from lack of supplies and
stores.
About this item
- Content
The volume is the second volume of an official government publication compiled at the request of the Government of India, and under the direction of the Historical Section of the Committee of Imperial Defence, by Brigadier-General Frederick James Moberly. The volume was printed and published at His Majesty's Stationery Office, London.
The contents provide a narrative of the operations of 1914-1918 in Mesopotamia, based mainly on official documents.
The volume is in one part, entitled, 'Part III. The First Campaign for Baghdad', and consists of the following fourteen chapters:
- The Decision to Advance to Baghdad
- Commencement of the Advance Towards Baghdad
- The Battle of Ctesiphon - the First Day's Operations
- Battle of Ctesiphon (Continued) and the British Retirement to Kut
- The Decision to Hold Kut and British Policy Consequent on the Failure to Reach Baghdad
- The Siege of Kut: First Phase (December 1915)
- Commencement of the Relief Operations
- The Action of Shaikh Saad
- The Action of the Wadi A seasonal or intermittent watercourse, or the valley in which it flows. and the First Attack on Hanna
- Operations up to the End of February, 1916
- The Second Attempt to Relieve Kut; the Attack on the Dujaila Redoubt
- The Third Attempt to Relieve Kut; the Successful Advance to and First and Second Attacks on Sannaiyat
- The Last Attempt at Relief; Bait Isa and Sannaiyat
- The Siege of Kut; the Last Stages
The volume also includes nine maps, entitled:
- The Middle East
- Lower Mesopotamia
- Map 8 - The Tigris from Kut al Amara to Baghdad
- Map 9 - The Battle of Ctesiphon
- Map 10 - The affair of Umm at Tubul
- Map 11 - The defence of Kut al Amara
- Map 12 - The fort at Kut; with special reference to the Turkish attack on 24th December 1915
- Map 13 - River Tigris between Ali Gharbi and Shumran
- Map 14 - The action at Shaikh Saad
- Map 15 - The action of the Wadi A seasonal or intermittent watercourse, or the valley in which it flows.
- Map 16 - The first attack on Hanna; 21st January 1916
- Map 17 - The attack on the Dujaila Redoubt, 8th March 1916
- Map 18 - To illustrate Tigris Corps Operation Order No. 26, dated 6th March 1916
- Map 19 - To illustrate operations between 10th March and end of April 1916
- Map 20 - The action of Bait Isa on 17th and 18th April 1916, and the attack on Sannaiyat 22nd April 1916
- Extent and format
- 1 volume (323 folios)
- Arrangement
The volume contains a list of contents (folios 6-10), a list of maps and illustrations (folio 11), appendices (folios 254-290), an index (folios 291-312), and eleven maps in a pocket attached to the inside back cover (folios 314-324).
- Physical characteristics
Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the inside front cover with 1 and terminates at the inside back cover with 325; 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.
Pagination: the volume also contains an original printed pagination sequence.
- Written in
- English in Latin script View the complete information for this record
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'HISTORY OF THE GREAT WAR BASED ON OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS. THE CAMPAIGN IN MESOPOTAMIA 1914-1918. VOLUME II.' [249v] (507/660), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/MIL/17/15/66/2, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100045738550.0x00006c> [accessed 5 February 2025]
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- Reference
- IOR/L/MIL/17/15/66/2
- Title
- 'HISTORY OF THE GREAT WAR BASED ON OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS. THE CAMPAIGN IN MESOPOTAMIA 1914-1918. VOLUME II.'
- Pages
- front, back, spine, edge, head, tail, front-i, 2r:3r, 3r, 4r:70v, 72r:79r, 160v, 80r:102v, 104r:160r, 161r, 313v, 161v:281v, 283r:313v, back-i
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence