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The Battle of Aleppo was fought on 25 October 1918, when Prince Feisal's Sheifial Forces captured the city during the Pursuit to Haritan from Damascus, in the last days of the Sinai and Palestine Campaign in the First World War. After the British Empire's victory at the Battle of Megiddo the remnants of the Ottoman Empire's Yildirim Army Group from Amman was pursued by Prince Feisal's Sherifial Force which captured Deraa on 27 September, on the right flank of the 4th Cavalry Division. Meanwhile, the pursuit by the Australian Mounted Division followed by the 5th Cavalry Division of Yildirim Army Group remnants retreating from the Judean Hills, captured Damascus on 1 October 1918, many thousands of German and Ottoman prisoners and many miles of formerly Ottoman Empire territory. A remnant force of Yildirim Army Group managed to escape Damascus, to concentrate at Rayak before retreating back through Homs and Hama towards Aleppo. Huge losses in Desert Mounted Corps from sickness, delayed and depleted their pursuit from Damascus which was continued by 24 cars in three batteries of armoured cars, and three light car patrols armed with machine guns. They were supported by the 15th Imperial Service Cavalry Brigade of the 5th Cavalry Division with the remainder of the division following. Having covered the right flank of the pursuit to Damascus, Prince Feisal's Sherifial Force continued north along the Hejaz railway to arrive outside Aleppo. After attacking a strong rearguard defence to the south of the city earlier in the day, under cover of darkness bypassed those entrenchments to enter Aleppo, where hand-to-hand fighting in the streets continued for most of the night. The city was captured by the Sherifial forces by morning. == Background == Following the comprehensive success of the Battle of Megiddo, Sir Henry Wilson, Chief of the Imperial General Staff (CIGS) at the War Office encouraged General Allenby commanding the Egyptian Expeditionary Force with the idea that the EEF could do anything and asked him to consider a cavalry raid to Aleppo.〔Wilson to Allenby 24 September 1918 in Hughes 2004 p. 186〕 Wilson added that the War Cabinet was prepared to take full responsibility for any unsuccessful outcomes.〔Wilson to Allenby received 24 September 1918 in Woodward 2006 p. 203〕 About 19,000 Ottoman soldiers had retreated northwards by 1 October, no more than 4,000 of whom were equipped and able to fight.〔Bruce 2002 p. 248〕 Liman von Sanders transferred his headquarters to Baalbek and ordered the remnants of Yildirim Army Group from Haifa and Deraa to concentrate at Rayak. The 146th Regiment was the last formation to leave Damascus on 30 September. After hearing the Barada Gorge was closed von Hammerstein left Damascus by the Homs road, following the III Corps, the 24th Division and the 3rd Cavalry Division to Rayak where even remnants of the 43rd Division of the Second Army which had not been involved in fighting, were "infected with panic." Only the remnants of von Oppen's Asia Corps and the 146th Regiment marching to Homs remained "disciplined formations" by 2 October.〔Falls 1930 Vol. 2 p. 594–5〕 Lieutenant General Harry Chauvel's Desert Mounted Corps at Damascus was already away from its main supply base while Aleppo was a further away. Allenby was prepared to advance only in stages as supply and geography dictated.〔Bruce 2002 pp. 248–9〕 He estimated on 25 September that there were 25,000 enemy troops in the Aleppo and Alexandretta area.〔Allenby to Wilson 25 September 1918 in Hughes 2004 p. 188〕 Aleppo has been in existence since the Hittite era, also known as ''Halab'' since the transition from the Middle to the Late Bronze Age during the second millennium BC. The city had been captured by Arabs in 646, occupied by the Seljuk Turks in 1085 and incorporated into the Ottoman Empire in 1516. By the beginning of the First World War it had a population of 150,000. Situated on the Anatolian frontier, north of Damascus, Aleppo was in 1918 not far from the strategically important railway junction of the Palestine and the Mesopotamian railway systems at Mouslimie Junction.〔Bou 2009 pp. 196–7〕〔Hill 1978 p. 188〕〔Falls 1930 Vol. 2 p. 616〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Battle of Aleppo (1918)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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