'PAPERS RELATING TO THE MESOPOTAMIAN COMMISSION from SIR E. BARROW'S ROOM' [‎41v] (82/1386)

i la* War Commitloe decided on the 1 Ith October that the combined
,1U! ;u ' Oiliee and Admiralty shonld pn'pare a paper on the subject.
» his. u:as submitted on tlie-19tli October.
, Ot the rc(]U' v st of the •Prime .Minister an Interdepartmental Committee
110 (1 at die India Ollice also reported on the situation. Their report was
sn I mu i ted on the 1 (ith October, ride Committee of Imperial Defence Paper,
‘ ! 1 lL t. O. -.8, of October P)lo, eatilleu Report of an Inter-Departmental
( onill!It tee on the Strateoical Situation in Alesopotamia.”
1 he conclusions of the Inter-Departmental Committee are at pa^e 3 of
tlie paper quoted. °
( hi the same date (IGtli October) the Military Secretary, 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.
submitted a supplementary minute in consequence of the information
received from India and from General Nixon subsequent to the date on
[' UHn t ie ommittee had dratted its Report, vide Committee of Imperial
Defence 1 aper, S-cret, G. 81, of October Pd lb.
die following extracts indicate a certain modification of the views he had
previously expressed : —
n„ l ""'‘ " Ji !' m l ,r °""' se "f '«■<’ divitiom, I «m entirely in farm,,- of non,a to
» h,)e, it get only one division added to l■'o 1 •ce - I).’ we n igl.t still consider the
vtsalnld v ol a ,;a„l and retirement. That is to say. (leneral Nixon, wdlMwo divb R d
-oh o , at airy regunents m the Baghdad area, will be able, whatever the Turks n.av do-
' >aSe ^ rem ° Vin!; ° r attd transport now
" < - ) T lZd hr fl ' 0m :l " , '" ,nmu,,, ' catlo n With Persia for at least two or three
" ('■>) To postjione trouble from Afghanistan for that period,
f < P To keep the Basra vilayet and the oil Helds quiet for a like period.”
I have described the advantages of offensive action but I -.i.. rsi r ■ , • ,
I lie political effect of eventual retirement will be bad but there will h-ive l° US ° 1 s ^ :n ’^ ers -
advantages.^and -rover, wo should have born ' iven lin!, o . .
\ odras al knl-ol-A mara, and some of our gunboats will be ready to gluml the r'ivm'.’■'''
‘>lsl r nlfr I 1 ' 1 Wt!r f ConsldRred b .v Hie War Council on the
- o OetolK , and their conclusions were embodied in the Secretary of
hrnte 8 private telegram of the same date, which was also in rcnlv to tl e
foE':- I,m ' at ° U ' h8nan oi t,lat Th " telegrams in question were as
From Mccroy, 2Lst October 1915.
Private, "l our jinvate telegram of 18th instant. IWlidad.
(tovernmont of India are in entire agreement witiCffis l\r'n'ncfxv’„ r
political 'ami strategic advantages of the capture and oTpation'of B-ordTiT-l T
■ i ° k '; 1 ;. 7 - » a xr“i
bom India to Alesonotanna cngin or a division of
<1.
troops from India to .Mesopotamia.
U8 :" Af,e '' C °" SUl,i " a <!o ” m »“ d “- i -CI>i«f 1 oo-Mc.- that 11,ere are three alternatives before
we a,!e gmwam^d J Wnbli^^ ^foully whaler, provided that
' 1 V "P ; 10 '!;-. J 1 "* will I*, he »iw»ctorv Jut:on g e80potaffi,a within
rolrasingb';,;"' EnglillmS' rifdnrs ' ’'T TT «<*<*•
doiinnatmg the rily hy river patrols from a eanipwaa', ,,f Ihol I ''l ’'ri h ° f l 5“S hdaci “ Iltl
political effect, and the fact that we were not in •ictiml ^ • ' 1 j n ^ AVOU D luive a good
precipitate the despatch of Turkish reinforcements to ‘recapS ^ mi » hfc not
l) )int of view, would be only the second best alternative bni it «• u ] 1LS ’ fr ! )m a political
a whole division to carry it out. ' ’ would not require addition of
prrrmf'.iih'er'ii'i'or'( 0 )""' Hr fonsiderr'lmt' Bmh 1 f i il: '" ,,islikcs lllis “lltion, and would
r.,r Whirl,eve; side is f.Vls'tsimioP'i - d *
keep well awav fj-om it. He docs not 11 ,ii,L- it .+ n • i i cithci liold it ourselves or
AVe should have to be camped close to the suburbs 'i U - t() b( (,lni y ate t) it from south,
disadvantages and none of'the " 0 P n,, ; m S'™ us all the
b iglxlad. I urkish reinforcements will he gradually dribbled int ''( L " f lat un Dss we hold
llaglidad than anywhere south of .t.and CommandeiGmChier;^ greaV^es" on' tlm