The Desert Column was a First World War

British Empire The British Empire comprised the dominions, Crown colony, colonies, protectorates, League of Nations mandate, mandates, and other Dependent territory, territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It bega ...

army corps which operated in the

Sinai and Palestine Campaign The Sinai and Palestine campaign was part of the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I, taking place between January 1915 and October 1918. The British Empire, the French Third Republic, and the Kingdom of Italy fought alongside the Arab Revol ...

from 22 December 1916.There is no war diary for Desert Column for December. See The Column was commanded by Lieutenant General Philip W. Chetwode and formed part of Eastern Force. When Chetwode took command of Eastern Force after the

Second Battle of Gaza The Second Battle of Gaza was fought on 17–19 April 1917, following the defeat of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF) at the First Battle of Gaza in March, during the Sinai and Palestine Campaign of the First World War. Gaza was defended b ...

, Harry Chauvel took command and oversaw the expansion of the column to three divisions. Chetwode was appointed on 7 December 1916 to command the Column which was composed of the 42nd (East Lancashire) Division, the 52nd (Lowland) Division, the Anzac Mounted Division and the Imperial Camel Brigade's eighteen companies, six of which were yeomen. These divisions had been involved in the

Battle of Romani The Battle of Romani was the last ground attack of the Central Powers on the Suez Canal at the beginning of the Sinai and Palestine campaign during the First World War. The battle was fought between 3 and 5 August 1916 near the Egyptian town o ...

in August 1916 and had advanced across the

Sinai Peninsula The Sinai Peninsula, or simply Sinai ( ; ; ; ), is a peninsula in Egypt, and the only part of the country located in Asia. It is between the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Red Sea to the south, and is a land bridge between Asia and Afri ...

. Chetwode arrived at

El Arish ʻArish or el-ʻArīsh ( ' ) is the capital and largest city of the North Sinai Governorate of Egypt, as well as the largest city on the Sinai Peninsula, lying on the Mediterranean coast northeast of Cairo and west of the Egypt–Gaza border ...

to take up his appointment on 22 December 1916. The Battle of Magdhaba was won the next day, and on 9 January 1917 the Battle of Rafa was also won by the Desert Column, before two defeats were suffered during the

First First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...

and Second battles for Gaza in March and April 1917. In mid 1917 when General

Edmund Allenby Field marshal (United Kingdom), Field Marshal Edmund Henry Hynman Allenby, 1st Viscount Allenby, (23 April 1861 – 14 May 1936) was a senior British Army Officer (armed forces), officer and imperial governor. He fought in the Second Boer ...

took command of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force, Desert Column was renamed to become the

Desert Mounted Corps The Desert Mounted Corps was an army corps of the British Army during the First World War, of three mounted divisions renamed in August 1917 by General Edmund Allenby, from Desert Column. These divisions which served in the Sinai and Palestine ...

commanded by Lieutenant General Chauvel.

December 1916

Desert Column Headquarters El Arish (Lieutenant General Sir Philip Chetwode) :42nd (East Lancashire) Division ::

125th (Lancashire Fusiliers) Brigade The 125th (Lancashire Fusiliers) Brigade was an infantry brigade formation of the British Army that saw active service during both the World War I, First and World War II, Second World Wars. It was assigned to the 42nd (East Lancashire) Infantry ...

:: 126th (East Lancashire) Brigade :: 127th (Manchester) Brigade : 52nd (Lowland) Division (Major General W.E.B. Smith) :: 155th (South Scottish) Brigade :: 156th (Scottish Rifles) Brigade ::

157th (Highland Light Infantry) Brigade The 157th (Highland Light Infantry) Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army. The brigade fought in both the World War I, First and the World War II, Second World Wars, assigned to 52nd (Lowland) Infantry Division. Origins The Highland ...

:Anzac Mounted Division (Major General Harry Chauvel) ::

1st Light Horse Brigade The 1st Light Horse Brigade was a mounted infantry brigade of the Australian Imperial Force (AIF), which served in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I. The brigade was initially formed as a part-time militia formation in the early 1900s in ...

2nd Light Horse Brigade The 2nd Light Horse Brigade was a mounted infantry brigade of the Australian Imperial Force (AIF) which served in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I. The brigade was initially formed as a part-time militia formation in the early 1900s i ...

3rd Light Horse Brigade The 3rd Light Horse Brigade was a mounted infantry brigade of the First Australian Imperial Force, Australian Imperial Force (AIF), which served in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I. The brigade was initially formed as a part-time Austra ...

New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade The New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade was a brigade of the New Zealand Army during the First World War. Raised in 1914 as part of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force, it was one of the first New Zealand units to sail for service overseas. T ...

: Imperial Camel Corps Brigade :Royal Flying Corps 5th Wing stationed at Mustabig (Lieutenant Colonel W.G.H Salmond) ::No. 14 (British) Squadron ::(No. 17 Squadron) ::No. 1 Squadron

Australian Flying Corps The Australian Flying Corps (AFC) was the branch of the Australian Army responsible for operating aircraft during World War I, and the forerunner of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). The AFC was established in 1912, though it was not until ...

/ No. 67 (Australian) Squadron Cutlack 1941, pp. 45–9

Order of Battle 9 January 1917

Desert Column (Lieutenant General Chetwode) :Anzac Mounted Division (Major General Chauvel) ::1st Light Horse Brigade (Brigadier General C. F. Cox) ::3rd Light Horse Brigade (Brigadier General J. R. Royston) ::New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade (Brigadier General E. W. C. Chaytor) ::Inverness, Leicestershire and Somerset Territorial Royal Horse Artillery batteries :Imperial Camel Corps Brigade ::1st (Australian) Battalion ::2nd (British) Battalion ::3rd (Australian) Battalion ::4th (Australian and New Zealand) Battalion ::Hong Kong and Singapore Mountain Battery :5th Mounted Yeomanry Brigade ::Honourable Artillery Company (18–pounder) Battery :No. 7 Light Car Patrol (six Ford cars equipped with machine guns) :No. 1 Squadron Australian Flying Corps :No. 14 Squadron Royal Flying Corps

Order of Battle March 1917

:Desert Column (Lieutenant General P. Chetwode) :53rd (Welsh) Division (Major General A.G. Dallas) ::158th (North Wales) Brigade (Brigadier General H. A. Vernon) ::: 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Royal Welch Fusiliers ::: 1/6th (Carnarvonshire & Anglesey) Battalion, Royal Welch Fusiliers :::1/7th (Montgomery) Battalion,

Royal Welch Fusiliers The Royal Welch Fusiliers () was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, and part of the Prince of Wales's Division, that was founded in 1689, shortly after the Glorious Revolution. In 1702, it was designated a fusilier regiment and becam ...

:::1/1st Battalion, Herefordshire Regiment :::158th Brigade Machine Gun Company ::159th (Cheshire) Brigade (Brigadier General N. Money) :::1/4th Battalion,

Cheshire Regiment The Cheshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Prince of Wales' Division. The 22nd Regiment of Foot was raised by the Henry Howard, 7th Duke of Norfolk in 1689 and was able to boast an independent existence ...

:::1/7th Battalion, Cheshire Regiment :::1/4th Battalion,

Welch Regiment The Welch Regiment (or "The Welch", an archaic spelling of "Welsh") was an infantry regiment line infantry, of the line of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1969. The regiment was created in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the am ...

:::1/5th Battalion Welch Regiment :::159th Brigade Machine Gun Company ::160th (Welsh Border) Brigade (Brigadier General V. L. N. Pearson) ::: 2/4th Battalion, Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey) :::1/4th Battalion,

Royal Sussex Regiment The Royal Sussex Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that was in existence from 1881 to 1966. The regiment was formed in 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 35th (Royal Sussex) Regiment of Foo ...

:::2/4th Battalion, Royal West Kent Regiment ::: 2/10th Battalion, Middlesex Regiment :::160th Brigade Machine Gun Company ::Anzac Mounted Division (Major General H. G. Chauvel) :::2nd Australian Light Horse Brigade (Brigadier General G. de L. Ryrie) ::::5th, 6th, 7th Australian Light Horse Regiments :::New Zealand Mounted Rifle Brigade (Brigadier General E. W. C. Chaytor) ::::Auckland, Canterbury and Wellington Mounted Rifle Regiments ::: 22nd Mounted Brigade (Brigadier General F. A. B. Fryer) ::::Stafford, 1/1st Lincolnshire Yeomanry, Sherwood Rangers Yeomanry/East Riding Yeomanry :: Imperial Mounted Division (Major General H.W. Hodgson) :::3rd Australian Light Horse Brigade (Brigadier General L. C. Wilson) ::::8th, 9th, 10th Australian Light Horse Regiments :::

5th Mounted Brigade The 1st South Midland Mounted Brigade (later numbered as the 5th Mounted Brigade) was a yeomanry brigade of the British Army, formed as part of the Territorial Force in 1908. It served dismounted in the Gallipoli Campaign before being remount ...

(Brigadier General Percy Desmond FitzGerald) :::

6th Mounted Brigade The 2nd South Midland Mounted Brigade (later numbered as the 6th Mounted Brigade) was a yeomanry brigade of the British Army, formed as part of the Territorial Force in 1908. It served dismounted in the Gallipoli Campaign before being remounte ...

(Brigadier General C A C. Godwin) :::: Queen's Own Dorset Yeomanry, Buckinghamshire Yeomanry and Berkshire Yeomanry Artillery :Anzac Mounted Division 4 Batteries RHA of 4 18–pdrs = 16 guns :Imperial Mounted Division 4 Batteries RHA of 4 18–pdrs = 16 guns :Imperial Camel Brigade 1 Camel Pack Battery of 6 2.75-inch = 6 guns :53rd (Welsh) Division (3 Brigades RFA 12 18–pdrs=24 guns) 4 of each battery only = 16 guns; 4 4.5-inch howitzers = 8 howitzer :54th (East Anglian) Division (3 Brigades RFA 12 18–pdrs=24 guns) 4 of each battery only = 16 guns; 4 4.5-inch howitzers = 8 howitzer :Army Troops (3 Batteries of 4 60–pdrs=12 guns) one section only = 6 guns The third brigades of 53rd and 54th Divisions were in the Suez Canal Defences with 1st Light Horse Brigade about Bir el Abd, Mazar and Bardawil patrolling the pipeline until moving to El Arish on 20 March. And only four guns of each 18–pounder battery of the 53rd and 54th Divisions, and one section of each heavy battery were brought across the Sinai Peninsula. The guns left behind formed part of the Suez Canal Defences. avell 1968, p. 94, 1st Light Horse Brigade War Diary March 1917 AWM4-10-1-32/ref>

Order of Battle April 1917

General Headquarters Commander in Chief Lieutenant General (temp. General) A. J. Murray Eastern Force GOC Major General (temp. Lieutenant General C. M. Dobell Brigadier General General Staff Brevet Lieutenant Colonel (temp. Brigadier General G. P. Dawnay Desert Column GOC Major General (temp. Lieutenant General P. W. Chetwode :Anzac Mounted Division GOC Colonel (temp. Major General) H. G. Chauvel ::1st Australian Light Horse Brigade nzac Mounted DivisionGOC Lieutenant Colonel C. F. Cox :::1st Light Horse Regiment :::2nd Light Horse Regiment :::3rd Light Horse Regiment :::1st Australian Light Horse Signal Troop :::1st Australian Machine Gun Squadron ::2nd Australian Light Horse Brigade GOC Colonel (temp. Brigadier General G. de L. Ryrie :::5th Light Horse Regiment :::6th Light Horse Regiment :::7th Light Horse Regiment :::2nd Australian Light Horse Signal Troop :::2nd Australian Machine Gun Squadron ::New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade GOC Brigadier General E. W. C. Chaytor) :::Auckland Mounted Rifle Regiment :::Canterbury Mounted Rifle Regiment :::Wellington Mounted Rifle Regiment :::New Zealand Mounted Rifles Signal Troop :::New Zealand Machine Gun Squadron ::22nd Mounted Brigade GOC Colonel (temp. Brigadier General) F. A. B. Fryer :::1/1st Lincolnshire Yeomanry :::1/1st Staffordshire Yeomanry :::1/1st East Riding Yeomanry :::22nd Mounted Brigade Signal Troop :::18th Machine Gun Squadron :Divisional Troops same as April 1916 oob except ::batteries not brigaded ::Mounted Divisional Ammunition Column added ::Nos 26 and 27 Australian Units of Supply substituted for Light Horse Supply Column ::1/1st North Midland Mounted Brigade Field Ambulance substituted for 3rd Light Horse Field Ambulance :Imperial Mounted Division GOC Colonel (temp. Major General) H. W. Hodgson ::3rd Light Horse Brigade GOC Colonel (temp. Brigadier General) J. R. Royston :::8th Light Horse Regiment :::9th Light Horse Regiment :::10th Light Horse Regiment :::3rd Australian Light Horse Signal Troop :::3rd Australian Machine Gun Squadron ::

4th Light Horse Brigade The 4th Light Horse Brigade was a mounted infantry brigade of the First Australian Imperial Force, Australian Imperial Force (AIF) serving in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I. The brigade was initially formed as a part-time Australian Ar ...

GOC Lieutenant Colonel (temp. Brigadier General J. B. Meredith :::4th Light Horse Regiment :::11th Light Horse Regiment :::12th Light Horse Regiment :::4th Australian Light Horse Signal Troop :::4th Australian Machine Gun Squadron ::5th Mounted Brigade GOC Colonel (temp. Brigadier General) E. A. Wiggin :::1/1st Warwick Yeomanry :::1/1st Gloucester Yeomanry :::1/1st Worcester Yeomanry :::5th Mounted Signal Brigade Troop :::16th Machine Gun Squadron ::6th Mounted Brigade GOC Lieutenant Colonel (temp. Brigadier General) T. M. S. Pitt :::1/1st Buckinghamshire Yeomanry :::1/1st Berkshire Yeomanry :::1/1st Dorsetshire Yeomanry :::6th Brigade Signal Troop :::17th Machine Gun Squadron :Divisional Troops ::Artillery :::1/1st Nottinghamshire and 1/1st Berkshire Batteries RHA :::"A" and "B" Batteries, H.A.C. :::Mounted Divisional Ammunition Column ::Engineers :::Imperial Mounted Division Field Squadron ::Signal Service :::Imperial Mounted Division Signal Squadron ::ASC (unidentified) ::Medical Units :::3rd and 4th Light Horse, 1/1st and 1/2nd South Midland Mounted Brigades Field Ambulances.Falls 1930 Vol. 1 pp. 400–2

Notes

; Notes ; Citations

References

* * * * * * * * * * * * * {{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017 World War I orders of battle Expeditionary units and formations Commands of the British Army Military units and formations of the British Army in World War I Egypt in World War I Military units and formations established in 1916 Military units and formations disestablished in 1917