The New Zealand Expeditionary Force in World War I by Wayne Stack

Author:Wayne Stack
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: The New Zealand Expeditionary Force in World War I
ISBN: 9781849088886
Publisher: Osprey Publishing Ltd
Published: 2011-09-02T16:00:00+00:00

1918–19

During much of 1918 the Mounted Rifles carried out patrol and outpost duties in the Jordan Valley, as well as forming part of a number of large raiding forces during efforts to deceive the Turks that this was to be Gen Allenby’s main focus of operations. On 27 March the brigade took part in an unsuccessful attack on Amman. It made a silent dismounted attack on Hill 3039 that led to the capture of this position, but subsequently the force had to withdraw back across the River Jordan.

On 5 September 1918, LtGen Chaytor was given command of an independent corps designated as ‘Chaytor Force’; this included the ANZAC Mounted Division, 20th Indian Inf Bde, two battalions of the West India Regt, and two battalions of the Royal Fusiliers made up from Jewish volunteers. Its purpose was to isolate the 25,000 Turks operating around Amman to prevent them from interfering with the main British thrust towards Damascus. The New Zealand brigade played a significant part in Chaytor’s operations; the Auckland MR Regt destroyed a long section of the strategic Hedjaz Railway on 24 September, after the town of Es Salt had been captured. The following day the 2,563 Turks defending Amman surrendered, after being exposed to a bayonet charge from the NZ Mounted Rifles and Australian Light Horsemen. Amman was taken with relatively light casualties for the brigade, but the New Zealanders were to suffer a significant number of deaths from malaria and the influenza pandemic as the war ended in Palestine in late October 1918.

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