Pyramids and Fleshpots: The Egyptian, Senussi and Eastern Mediterranean Campaigns, 1914-16

Description

Personnel serving in Egypt in the Great War often complained that the popular impression of the campaigns, still widely held, was that it was a sideshow, with troops enjoying a holiday among the pyramids and the 'fleshpots' of Cairo. Actually they faced appalling heat, abrasive sand, poor rations and water shortages. In the desolation of the Western Desert they fought the Senussi, an Islamic sect supported by the Ottomans in a reversal of Lawrence's later work with the Arabs, while in the Sinai Desert they countered German-backed moves to dominate this strategically important area. Meanwhile, the Royal Navy fought to keep the supply lines to Gallipoli open, and keep men and material flowing to France from India, Australia and New Zealand. This book tells the true story of their experiences and achievements in fighting a determined enemy to protect the Suez Canal - a lifeline of the Empire. Title -- Dedication -- Acknowledgements -- Contents -- Foreword -- Note on Names, Quotes, Terminology and Foot/End Notes -- Map 1: The Eastern Mediterranean Theatre -- Map 2: Assault on the Suez Canal, February 1915 -- Map 3: The Sinai Desert -- Map 4: The Western Desert -- Map 5: The Battle of Romani, August 1916 -- Map 6: The Action of Rafah, January 1917 -- Prologue Last Stand at Katia -- 1 Egypt in 1914 -- 2 Opening Shots -- 3 Pyramids and Fleshpots -- 4 The Battle of the Suez Canal, February 1915 -- 5 Egypt Base, 1915 -- 6 Sideshows -- 7 The Canal Defence Zone, 1916 -- 8 The Senussi War -- 9 Retaking the Western Desert -- 10 The War at Sea -- 11 The Egyptian Expeditionary Force -- 12 The Battle of Romani -- 13 Advance to Palestine -- Epilogue: Egypt 1917-18 -- Appendix A: British Mediterranean Fleet, 1914 -- Appendix B Note on the Organisation of British and Imperial Forces -- Appendix C Canal Defences Order of Battle, February 1915 -- Appendix D British Flying Services Order of Battle, December 1915 -- Appendix E Cattle Rustlers of the Aegean -- Appendix F Egyptian Expeditionary Force Order of Battle, April 1916 -- Appendix G Imperial Strategic Reserve, 1916 -- Appendix H Battle of Romani Orders of Battle, August 1916 -- Appendix I: Prisoners of War in Turkey -- Glossary -- Bibliography -- Plates -- Copyright.