Desert Mounted Corps

Desert Mounted Corps
Frank Hurley · Public domain · source
Unit name	Desert Mounted Corps
Dates	1917–1919
Country	United Kingdom
Allegiance	Allies
Branch	British Army
Type	Cavalry
Size	Corps
Notable commanders	Sir Harry Chauvel

Desert Mounted Corps was a corps-sized British Army formation composed predominantly of mounted troops that operated in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign of World War I. It coordinated Australian Imperial Force light horse, New Zealand Expeditionary Force mounted rifles, and Indian Army cavalry brigades to pursue Ottoman forces across the Sinai Peninsula, Palestine and into Syria. The corps played a decisive role in the series of offensives culminating in the collapse of the Ottoman Empire's defensive line in 1917–1918 and in shaping the postwar settlement in the Middle Eastern theatre.

Formation and Organizational Structure

Formed in 1917 under higher command of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force, the corps unified disparate mounted formations including the ANZAC Mounted Division, the Yeomanry Mounted Division, and later the Imperial Mounted Division and Australian Mounted Division. Its order of battle evolved, integrating brigades from the Australian Light Horse, New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade, and British Yeomanry as well as units from the Indian Cavalry Corps and attached Royal Horse Artillery batteries. Administrative control and corps headquarters coordinated with the Desert Column's antecedents, linking logistics from bases at Cairo, Suez Canal, and forward depots at El Arish and Beersheba. Command relationships linked the corps to the EE Force headquarters under commanders such as General Sir Edmund Allenby.

Campaigns and Major Battles

The corps participated in major operations including the Third Battle of Gaza, the breakthrough at Battle of Beersheba, and the pursuit operations leading to the Capture of Jerusalem and the Battle of Megiddo (1918). In the 1917 Gaza–Beersheba operations, mounted brigades executed flanking maneuvers during the Battle of Hareira and Sheria and exploited breaches created by infantry of the XX Corps and XXI Corps. In 1918 the corps spearheaded rapid advances in the Battle of Sharon and the cavalry exploitation through the Jordan Valley against remnants of the Ottoman Seventh Army and German Asia Corps. Pursuits reached Damascus, where elements of the corps linked operations to Arab Revolt forces under Faisal bin Hussein and to the strategic collapse that led to the Armistice of Mudros.

Command and Leadership

Operational command was vested in senior cavalry officers including Sir Harry Chauvel, the first Australian to command a corps, whose leadership integrated colonial and imperial formations. Chauvel worked alongside General Sir Edmund Allenby at the EE Force level, while corps and divisional commanders such as leaders of the ANZAC Mounted Division and the Imperial Mounted Division coordinated mounted brigades. Staff officers included members from the British Staff College, officers seconded from the Indian Army, and liaison officers attached to Arab irregular units allied with T. E. Lawrence's influence. Command decisions balanced offensive exploitation, reconnaissance, and cooperation with infantry commanders like those of the XX Corps and artillery commanders from the Royal Garrison Artillery.

Equipment, Units, and Tactics

Units comprised Australian Light Horse regiments, New Zealand Mounted Rifles, British Yeomanry regiments, and Indian Lancers, supported by Royal Horse Artillery batteries and Machine Gun Corps detachments. Horses, saddlery, and camel transport were supplemented by Royal Army Service Corps supply wagons and improvised motor transport such as motor lorries and captured Ottoman vehicles. Tactically, the corps combined mounted charges, dismounted rifle fire, and rapid envelopments; it emphasized shock action during breakthroughs, reconnaissance-in-force, and deep penetration to sever enemy lines of communication and supply, coordinating with Royal Flying Corps reconnaissance and Royal Air Force bombing once the air arm was established.

Logistics, Mobility, and Support

Sustaining mounted operations across arid environments required integration of water supply from wells and the Palestine Railways and maintenance of forage for horses. Logistics drew on base depots at Deir al-Balah and supply lines via Suez Canal ports, while the Royal Army Medical Corps established forward dressing stations for mounted casualties and the Army Veterinary Corps maintained equine health. Mobility depended on routes such as the coastal road, the road to Beersheba, and desert tracks enabling rapid corps-level advances; engineers from the Royal Engineers repaired bridges, improvised water points, and constructed light railheads to extend operational reach.

Casualties and Legacy

Casualty figures included killed, wounded, and sick across Australian, New Zealand, British, and Indian formations, with attrition from combat, disease, and the strain on horses recorded in unit war diaries and official histories like those produced by the Australian War Memorial and the Imperial War Museum. The corps' success influenced postwar mandates such as the British Mandate for Palestine and informed cavalry doctrine debates in the Interwar period, affecting mechanization policies in the British Army and dominion forces. Memorials in Beersheba, Jerusalem, and national cemeteries commemorate the mounted troops' role, and historiography addresses links to nationalist movements involving figures like Faisal bin Hussein and the geopolitical consequences formalized at the Treaty of Sèvres and subsequent conferences.

Category:Corps of the British Army Category:Military units and formations of World War I