Gocol was a

flying column A flying column is a small, independent, military land unit capable of rapid mobility and usually composed of all arms. It is often an ''ad hoc'' unit, formed during the course of operations. The term is usually, though not necessarily, appl ...

created by the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

shortly after the Anglo–Iraqi War had ended.

Creation and composition

''Gocol'' was a truck-borne flying column created in early June 1941, to pursue and capture Dr. Fritz Grobba, the German Ambassador to the

Kingdom of Iraq The Hashemite Kingdom of Iraq was the Iraqi state located in the Middle East from 1932 to 1958. It was founded on 23 August 1921 as the Kingdom of Iraq, following the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in the Mesopotamian campaign of the First World W ...

. Grobba went on the run after the collapse of the pro-German Rashid Ali government, to flee Iraq and get to Nazi occupied Europe. Two other columns were created in early July, '' Mercol'', commanded by Major E. J. H. Merry, to round up irregular troops under Fawzi al-Qawuqji and '' Harcol'', under Major R. J. Hardy, with the task of securing

Kirkuk Kirkuk (; ; ; ) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of the Kirkuk Governorate. The city is home to a diverse population of Kurds, Iraqi Turkmen, Iraqi Turkmens and Arabs. Kirkuk sits on the ruins of the original Kirkuk Cit ...

. ''Gocol'' was named after its commander, Major R. E. S. Gooch and comprised B Squadron of the Household Cavalry Regiment, six

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...

armoured cars, two 3.7 inch mountain howitzers and

Royal Army Service Corps The Royal Army Service Corps (RASC) was a corps of the British Army responsible for land, coastal and lake transport, air despatch, barracks administration, the Army Fire Service, staffing headquarters' units, supply of food, water, fuel and do ...

(RASC) transport.

Operations

On 3 June 1941, travelling from Habbaniya by road, ''Gocol'' reached

Mosul Mosul ( ; , , ; ; ; ) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. It is the second largest city in Iraq overall after the capital Baghdad. Situated on the banks of Tigris, the city encloses the ruins of the ...

but Dr. Grobba had gone. On the same day, two companies of the 2nd Battalion of the 4th Prince of Wales's Own Gurkha Rifles arrived by air from Habbaniya with a detachment of the RAF. The remainder of the 2nd Battalion reached Mosul by air next day. In addition to ''Gocol'' and the air lifted forces, the 1st Battalion of the King's Own Royal Regiment (Lancaster) left

Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...

on 2 June and arrived in Mosul by road on 3 June. ''Gocol'' drove west from Mosul and illegally entered Vichy French territory just prior to the commencement of the

Syria–Lebanon Campaign The Syria–Lebanon campaign, also known as Operation Exporter, was the invasion of Syria and Lebanon (then controlled by Vichy France, a vassal state of Nazi Germany) in June and July 1941 by British Empire forces, during the Second World War. ...

, which started in the early hours of 8 June. During the week following 7 June, ''Gocol'' made every effort to capture Grobba. The column entered

Qamishli Qamishli is a city in northeastern Syria on the Syria–Turkey border, adjoining the city of Nusaybin in Turkey. The Jaghjagh River flows through the city. With a 2004 census population of 184,231, it is the List of cities in Syria, ninth most-po ...

in Syria fully expecting to capture him there but Grobba had again left in time. In the end, Grobba escaped, ''Gocol'' having been a failure.

Notes

References

* * in

External links

* {{cite web, url=http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/UN/UK/LondonGazette/37685.pdf , title=Despatch on Operations in Iraq, East Syria, and Iran From 10th April, 1941 to 12th January 1942., work=Supplement to the

London Gazette London is the capital and largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Western Europe, with a population of 14.9 million. London stands on the River Tha ...

, Number 37685, date=13 August 1946, access-date=26 September 2009 1941 establishments in the United Kingdom 1941 disestablishments in the United Kingdom Military units and formations established in 1941 Military units and formations disestablished in 1941 Military units and formations of the British Army in World War II Military history of Iraq Ad hoc units and formations of the British Army Iraq–United Kingdom relations Anglo-Iraqi War

Creation and composition

Operations

See also

Notes

References

External links