The Palestine Campaign, WWI
Dr Sheree Trotter
The capture of Jerusalem in December 1917 held great symbolic meaning for Jewish people and the eventual overthrow of Ottoman rule of Palestine was a monumental step towards the attainment of the Zionist dream. New Zealand was connected to these events through its participation in the British-led campaign against Ottoman forces.
After the evacuation from Gallipoli, the New Zealand Mounted Rifles (NZMR), along with New Zealand companies of the Imperial Camel Corps, joined other units from across the British Empire to form the Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF). While the Main Body moved to the European theatre of war, the New Zealand contingent of the EEF remained in the Middle East to fight ‘little known, unpublicised campaigns in deserts of Egypt & Palestine’.460 The NZMR Brigade was commanded by Brigadier Edward Chaytor, from Motueka and formed part of the ANZAC Mounted Division, led by the Australian commander, Major General Harry Chauvel.
NZ Mounted Rifles
The historian, Terry Kinloch, asserted that the Palestine Campaign received less attention than the other areas of conflict for several reasons. The NZMR Brigade was small and the casualty rate was much lower than the Western Front and Gallipoli due to the different style of desert warfare. Also there was no official war correspondent or historian accompanying them. While there was a fallacy that the Brigade were ‘merely tourists’, historian Christopher Pugsley argued that they were ‘perhaps the finest body of New Zealanders ever to serve overseas’. 462 New Zealand troops participated in the battle of Beersheba, made famous by the movie version of the charge of the Australian light brigade. W.T. Massey, the official war correspondent for London Newspapers wrote that all that occurred on the Gaza-Beersheba line was part and parcel of the taking of Jerusalem. 463
From a Zionist perspective, the taking of Jerusalem was the most significant part of the Palestine campaign, this ancient city being the object of Zionist hopes and dreams. In the Jewish Bible, Jerusalem’s Mount Zion was the centre of King David’s kingdom, the memory of which was kept alive in daily prayers, and annual festivals. Jerusalem was the centre of worship for religious Jews, if not physically, certainly spiritually. Jerusalem was not significant for Jews only. For Christians too, even for nominal Christians, the city was seen as ‘the greatest prize of the campaign’. According to W.T.Massey ‘The Holy City’ was the goal of every officer and man in the army.’ 464
Field Marshal, The Right Honourable,
The Viscount Allenby.
Indeed, General Allenby, who was to lead the campaign, had received instruction from Prime Minister Lloyd George that Jerusalem was wanted ‘as a Christmas present for the British nation’.465 W.T. Massey’s contemporary portrayal captured a sense of the significance of the event.466 He wrote that although the surrender of Jerusalem was a simple affair, the scenes in the streets reflected the feelings of ‘the civilised world’ that this was a world event which ‘gave more satisfaction to countless millions of people than did the winning back for France of any big town on the Western Front’.467 Part of the ‘sentimental equipment’ at play was religious feeling. The Allied victory was seen as bringing to an end the ‘Ottoman dominion over the cradle of Christianity, a place held in reverence by the vast majority of the peoples of the Old and New World’. Four centuries of the ‘blighting influence of the Turk’ had been brought to an end and the ‘Golden city’ was now liberated for all creeds; Christians, Jews and Muslims.468
General Allenby dismounted his horse to enter the old city of Jerusalem.
The official entry into Jerusalem by British General Allenby was, according to Massey, a simple, dignified affair which took no more than fifteen minutes. Massey records that Allenby’s entrance was markedly different to the German emperor’s visit to Jerusalem in 1898, where, in a display of power the Kaiser rode into the city on richly decorated horses, his retinue clothed in white and red, blue and gold. The ancient walls needed to be widened for his entry. In contrast, Allenby, aware of the gravity of the moment dismounted his horse and in an attitude of respect for the ho- liness of Jerusalem, walked through the city.469 The historic Jaffa gate was opened after years of disuse and an Imperial guard of honour stood outside the gate, made up of those who had helped secure the victory. In the British Guard of fifty were English, Scottish, Irish, and Welsh troops. Opposite them were fifty dismounted men of the Australian Light Horse and New Zealand Mounted Rifles.470 Allenby was aware that Jerusalem was important to Muslims as well as Christians and Jews and determined that each religion should be respected. As part of his official statement of marshall law he proclaimed that, ‘...every sacred building, monument, holy spot, shrine, traditional site, endowment, pious bequest, or customary place of prayer of whatsoever form of the three religions will be maintained and protected according to the existing customs and beliefs of those to whose faith they are sacred’.471
The Holy Land, Dominion, Vol 12, Issue 35, 5 November 1918, p3
A New Zealand Zionist element to the story is recorded by Stephen Levine in Wellington’s 150th commemorative volume. Levine tells how Louis Salek, a Jew from Wellington, was given ‘a unique opportunity to make a small, yet symbolically striking contribution to Jewish history...’ 472 Salek found himself in Egypt in 1917 following the Gallipoli campaign, and while attending the local synagogue, the idea was presented to him to take a specially made flag to Jerusalem. This flag, a blue and white banner, was hand cut and sewn in Cairo, placed in a teffillin bag and entrusted to Salek’s care. 473 In December 1917, Salek was one of the number who entered the Old City on foot with General Allenby. The corporal quietly made his way up to the David’s Tower and there tied the flag to the top of the citadel. While it only remained for twenty minutes or so, the symbolism of the act was meaningful for Salek as he believed it represented the hopes and dreams of many Zionists. The story surfaced many decades later, and the flag was presented to the Museum of the History of Jerusalem in a ceremony in 1992. Louis Salek’s son, Arthur Salek commented, ‘The return of this small flag, and its historical significance, is a valued symbol of the link between Israel, the Salek family and this far distant Jewish community in the diaspora... My father hardly knew anything about Zionism, but he felt that was the place where the flag should be hoisted’. 474 This sentiment is consistent with Historian Walter Laqueur’s view that many were ‘instinctive Zionists’ and not ideologically motivated. 475
New Zealand forces fought in the Palestine Campaign under the British flag, providing a connecting link between New Zealand, the Jewish people and Britain. One of the outcomes of the expulsion of Jews from Palestine, by the Ottomans, at the beginning of the war was the establishment of a Jewish fighting force, the first in 2,000 years. Of the 18,000 Palestinian Jews who were expelled, more than 11,000 ended up in Alexandria, Egypt. 476 In March 1915 a committee of refugees put forward a proposal to the British Military establishment to form a Jewish Legion to be deployed in Palestine. The Zion Mule Corps, led by a Christian Zionist, General Patterson, was established with 650 volunteers. Of these, 562 would serve at Gallipoli alongside Anzac forces. 477 Although the force was deactivated 26 May 1916, many joined together to re-form as the 38th Battalion of the Royal Fusiliers in 1917. These regiments became part of Chaytor’s Force. New Zealand commander General Chaytor took responsibility for the taking of the Jordan Valley in September 1918. Under his command were 11,000 troops made up of a disparate range of regiments. In addition to the Anzac Mounted Forces were the 20th Indian Brigade, the 1st and 2nd Battalions of the British West Indies Regiment and the 38th and 39th (Jewish Volunteer) battalions of the Royal Fusiliers. A number of soldiers took the opportunity, while serving in Palestine, to explore sites of Biblical significance armed with their Active Service New Testament or their Soldier’s Handbook, Palestine and Jerusalem. 478 The involvement of New Zealanders in Palestine and camaraderie of fighting together with the Jewish regiment in a common cause, provided a familiarity and context which arguably, in the coming years, contributed to support for Zionism.
The following letter shows the warm relationship that developed between one Jewish community and New Zealanders. One of the fiercest battles in the Palestine campaign took place near Rishon le Zion on 14 November 1917. The NZMR Brigade captured nearby Ayun Kara and held off fierce Turkish counterattacks. It resulted in the heaviest toll of the campaign with 44 killed and 141 wounded. Christopher Archer wrote that the battle of Ayun kara was the ‘most significant and the most costly engagement’ of the New Zealanders during the whole of the Palestine campaign. He recorded that, ‘In the year that followed a firm relationship developed between this Jewish community and the Anzac Troops when they returned to bivouac in this area’. 479 A year later a memorial service was held for fallen comrades. The Jewish inhabitants of Rishon le Zion and Wadi Hanein erected a Memorial Column and planted trees to show their gratitude. On Christmas 1919 the following letter was published in the New Zealand Herald, written by a farmer from the Jewish village of Rishon le Zion,
Signal Post at Ayun Kara, Palestine campaign, World War I. Redpath, Thomas, 1893-1949 : Photographs taken during the Palestine campaign, World War I. Ref: 1/2-066735-F. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. /records/22313747
Receive, gentlemen, testimonies of our highest human gratitude we owe you as our redeemers. How many kindnesses you showed us during your stay at Richonle (sic) Zion. Permit us, you no- blest and brave sons of New Zealand and Australia, to assure you of the sentiments of our hearts and of the esteem and veneration with which we will always hold you. We wish you all well. We wish you a safe and pleasant life. 480
Another example of the friendship that developed between Jews and New Zealanders is found in an essay by a Jewish schoolgirl in Rishon le Zion, recorded in the 1920 account, Mounted Rifle-men in Sinai and Palestine. The student writes of the relief to be liberated by British forces after several fear-filled days of fighting around the village, ‘..it seems that our dream has at last come true, and we can already see visions of a new life free from Turkish mis-rule..’ The spectacle of New Zealanders on horse back entering the village caused quite a stir. She described the attempts to communicate with the New Zealanders and their efforts to learn Hebrew words, writing, ‘So both parties are fraternising and are becoming every day closer friends’. 481
The liberation of Palestine from Turkish rule revealed the true extent of the suffering of the people. In Jerusalem, many thousands of civilians had died from starvation, including Jews, Christians and Moslems. London reporter Massey, blamed the dire situation on the 'insufferable bondage of bad government’. 482 Turkey’s alliance with the Central Powers led to ruthless oppression against Jews in Palestine. The Generalissimo in Palestine, Djemal Pasha had issued a manifesto against ‘the subversive element aiming at the creation of a Jewish government in the Palestinians part of the Ottoman Empire’. 483 Jews who were subjects of Allied Powers could either become Ottoman citizens and serve in the army or leave the country. Some were arrested, tortured and jailed, while others were deported or escaped. Many suffered deprivation, causing death. 484
New Zealand Jews soon became aware of the suffering of their Palestinian co-religionists and, as previously noted, responded generously to their humanitarian needs. In May 1917, a cable was received by His excellency the Governor General from General Sir Francis Wingate, Sirdar of Egypt detailing the ‘sufferings and privations of the Jewish colonists’ in Palestine. 485 An urgent request had been made to the New Zealand Jewish communities for funds for the relief of ‘Jewish victims of Turkish outrages in Palestine’. Over £1,300 was raised in Auckland and it was noted in the AGM Report that more than half of the amount was raised from non-Jewish subscribers. 486 That such a significant amount was raised by non-Jews strengthens the argument that the wider community was interested and concerned about the events in Palestine. An amount of £1100 was also collected in Wellington district. 487
The British-led military campaign to overthrow Turkish rule in Palestine would be instrumental in opening the way for the establishment of a Jewish homeland.
Excerpted from Sheree Trotter’s 2019 PhD Thesis,
”Zionism ‘at the uttermost ends of the earth’: A New Zealand Social History c.1900-1948.”
Footnotes
460 Glyn Harper, Johnny Enzed: The New Zealand Soldier in the First World War 1914-1918, Auckland, 2015, p. 481.
461 Terry Kinloch, Devils on Horses: In the Words of the Anzacs in the Middle East 1916-19, Auckland, 2007, p.24.
462 Ibid.
463 W.T. Massey, How Jerusalem was Won: Being the Record of Allenby’s Campaign in Palestine, New York, 1920, p.v.
464 Ibid.
465 Ibid, p.15. Wavell, Field-Marshal Earl, Allenby, A Study In Greatness: The Biography Of Field-Marshall Viscount Allenby Of Megiddo And Felixstowe, Kindle Edition, Kindle Locations 2619-2621.
466 W.T. Massey, New York, 1920. 467 W.T. Massey, p.158.
468 Ibid.
469 Ibid., p.203.
470 C. Guy Powles, ‘The New Zealanders in Sinai and Palestine’, New Zealand in the First World War 1914–1918, Auckland, 1922. For this occasion the Brigade sent a troop as a bodyguard to General Sir E. Allenby. The troop was commanded by 2nd Lieutenant C.J. Harris, Canterbury Regiment, and was com- posed of 1 sergeant and 10 men from the Auckland Regiment, 9 men from the Canterbury Regiment, and 9 men from the Wellington Regiment, with 3 men from the Machine Gun Squadron and 1 from the Signal Troop—a total of 1 officer and 33 other ranks.
471 Charles Francis Horne, ed., Source Records of the Great War, Vol. V, ed., National Alumni 1923. 472 A Standard for the People, p.113.
473 Tefillin (sometimes called phylacteries) are cubic black leather boxes with leather straps that Orthodox Jewish men wear on their head and their arm during weekday morning prayer.
474 A Standard for the People, p.115.
475 Walter Laqueur, A History of Zionism, New York, 2003, p.162.
476 Eretz Israel Refugees in Alexandria, Egypt, The Israel Genealogical Society, National & University Library, Jerusalem, Israel: http://www.isragen.org.il/siteFiles/1/153/4973.asp
477 Martin Sugarman, ‘Modern Jewish History: The Zion Muleteers of Gallipoli’: http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/the-zion-muleteers-of-gallipoli, Yanky Fachler, The Zion Mule Corps - and its Irish commander, History Ireland: Ireland’s History Magazine, 18th-19th Century History, Fea- tures, Issue 4 (Winter 2003), Volume 11. https://www.historyireland.com/18th-19th-century-history/the- zion-mule-corps-and-its-irish-commander/
478 Kinloch, p.299.
479 Christopher Wilson-Archer, Saviours of Zion: The Anzac Story from Sinai to Palestine, 1916-1918, Tauranga, 2017, p. 130.
480 New Zealand Herald, Vol. LVII, Issue 17397, 18 February 1920, p.8.
481 A. Briscoe Moore, Mounted Riflemen in Sinai & Palestine, Dunedin, 1920, p.93. 482 W.T. Massey, p. 158.