From Gaza to Jerusalem

The Palestine campaign of 1917 saw Britain's armed forces rise from defeat to achieve stunning victory. After two failed attempts in the spring, at the end of the year they broke through the Ottoman line with an innovative mixture of old and new technology and tactics, and managed to advance over 50 miles in only two months, all the way from Gaza to Jerusalem. As well as discussions of military strategy, this gripping narrative of the 1917 campaign gives a broad account of the men on both sides who lived and fought in the harsh desert conditions of Palestine, facing not only brave and determined enemies, but also the environment itself: heat, disease and an ever-present thirst. Involving Ottoman, ANZAC, British and Arab forces, the campaign saw great empires manoeuvring for the coveted Holy Land. It was Britain's victory in 1917, however, that redrew the maps of the Middle East and shaped the political climate for the century to come. The repercussions of the 1917 Palestine campaign continue to be felt today. Stuart Hadaway, in this highly readable book, re-examines this crucial point in time when the fate of the Holy Land was changed beyond recognition.