"كتيّب سوريا (بما في ذلك فلسطين). لندن: إدارة استخبارات الأركان البحرية، يونيو ١٩١٩" [ظ‎‎٨‎٢] (٧٣٨/١٦٩)

158
MILITARY HISTORY
possession of the coast of Palestine. This measure, if success
ful, would both deprive the enemy of the resources of Palestine
and simplify the future defence of Egypt. It might, besides,
dispose the Ottoman Government to come to terms with the
French republic. The season was favourable, and Napoleon
hoped to return to Egypt within two months of his departure.
The wider projects of a conquest of all Syria and an invasion
of India by way of Mesopotamia, referred to in his memoirs, as
published by General Bertrand, were not part of his plan
at the time.
The leading events of Napoleon’s invasion were the siege
of ‘Akka and the battle of Mount Tabor. The Ottoman
Government sent munitions and guns and trained gunners
from Constantinople, and these were landed in Jaffa and
‘Akka. Otherwise at first El-Jezzar had only his own troops
for the defence of Palestine. When 1,000-1,800 of them had
been routed on the border, near El-‘Arish, and the garrison
of Jaffa (4,000-5,000 men) had been annihilated, Jezzar’sonly
policy against a French army of about 13,000 men was to
defend himself as best he could in ‘Akka. It is unlikely that
his garrison there exceeded 4,000-5,000 men, but Sir Sidney
Smith’s guns and sailors were a potent backing, and in critical
circumstances the city was reinforced from Turkish ships by
5,000 men under orders from Constantinople.
An army under the command of the other Syrian pashas,
consisting chiefly of troops from Damascus and northern
Syria, moved into Palestine after the siege of ‘Akka had
lasted about three weeks. Of all grades it may possibly
have numbered 10,000 men. It was engaged by a French
division under Kleber (2,000 men) at El-Fuleh, near Mount
Tabor, and kept at bay for nine hours. Possibly the French
field guns, joined to the excellent discipline and superior arms
of the infantry, sufficiently explain the stand which the
French thus made. Possibly the Turkish leaders held off,
expecting victory when the French should be utterly exhausted
by fatigue and thirst. A victory similar to that of Saladin at
Hattin seemed to be within their reach. Suddenly, howeyer,