The Battle of Megiddo Palestine 1918

The Battle of Megiddo was not only the last large cavalry offensive in world history, but also a tribute to combined arms operations fostered over the course of the First World War. Fought between 19-25 September 1918, it was the final Allied offensive of the Sinai and Palestine Campaign. The contending forces were the British Empire’s EEF (Egyptian Expeditionary Force) of three infantry and one mounted corps pitted against the Ottoman-German Yildirim Army Group which numbered three weak armies with the approximate total strength of a single enemy corps. Comparable to what General Erich von Ludendorff called the ‘Black Day’ of the German Army (opening of the Battle of Amiens, 8 August 1918) on the Western Front, the complete Ottoman defeat would have been impossible without the application of superior logistics. Whilst Megiddo did not determine the outcome of the war in the Middle East, the ramifications of the victory decisively shaped the post-war world in the region.

"This is an interesting book....The summaries of the political and military background to the outbreak of the First World War in the Middle East, and the build-up to the summer of 1918, are extremely good....overall the summaries are succinct, well-written, and cover some broad and complicated issues in a clear and concise manner. While I would have liked to have seen more space given to the actual Battle of Megiddo in a book ostensibly on that subject, I can still recommend those chapters to anyone looking for an overview of the early campaigns. Likewise, the short following chapter is also one of the best summaries of the subject that you will find in so few pages." Lines in the Sand, Newsletter of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force in WW1

"I enjoyed the book....I certainly found it interesting." The Douglas Haig Fellowaship Records, Issue 26, Dec 2023

"The Battle of Megiddo is not the best known of all Great War battles but significant because it marked the effective end of the war with the Ottoman Empire and represents the culmination of a campaign of open warfare in Palestine, which contrasts with the static warfare fought on the Western Front. Eric W Osborne sets out to explain the significance of the victory and how it was achieved. As a history faculty member at the Virginia Military Academy his expertise covers both British history and the Great War.." Stand To! Issue 133 Mar 2024