Assyrian RAF Levies. CHAPTER I1. 91. 5- 1. IN 1. 91. 5, Major J. I. Eadie (Later Lieut. Colonel J. I. Eadie, D. S. O.) of the Indian Army, who was then Special Service Officer in the Muntafiq Division in Mesopotamia, recruited forty Mounted Arabs from the tribes round Nasiriyeh, on the Euphrates. For duty under the Intelligence Department. From this small force of forty men was gradually built up a force, which, after various changes of name, were finally called LEVIES; and which from a strength of 4. May 1. 92. 2, after which date the gradual cutting down of units, or transfer to the Iraq Army began. The following is an attempt to give an account of this force, whose organization changed from a small mounted contingent to a mixed force of all arms; whose personnel changed from entirely Arabs, to a mixed force of Arabs, Kurds, Assyrians, Turkomans and Yezidis, and finally to almost entirely Assyrians; and whose area of use was first of all limited entirely to the country south of Baghdad, later entirely to Kurdistan, and now, as their end approaches, they are gradually taking over stations in the South again. Major Eadies forty men, at first known locally as the Muntafiq Horse, were soon increased to sixty, and were called Arab Scouts. Their duties were many of various, and included reconnoitering for British columns which were operating in the area. They were allowed to wear their own form of dress, produced their own horsed, saddlery, rifles, arms and ammunition, and provided their own shelter for themselves and their animals. Chapter II Uncomfortable as the night, with its rocking movement, and salt smells, may have been, and in one case undoubtedly was, for Mr. Pepper had insufficient clothes upon his bed, the breakfast next morning wore a kind of beauty. Cinema can be one of the most empathetic of arts. When done well, its immediacy, its sense of experiencing another life (fictional or not) can bring about an expansion of understanding, an overwhelming telescoping of consciousness. They formed the nucleus of the 5th Euphrates Levy. In March 1. 91. 6, another small mounted force, also sixty strong, was raised by Major Hamilton, the Political Officer at Nasiriyeh. This was called the Political Guard. This force acted as guard to the Political Officer during his tours of the Division, and carried out Police duties in the town and district. Great layout with short walk to beach! It’s always hard to find a house that fits the adult to child ratio and decide who’s getting the master suite versus the shared bathroom. This house has a perfect layout. CHAPTER I 1915-1919 IN 1915, Major J.I.Eadie (Later Lieut.Colonel J.I. Eadie, D.S.O.) of the Indian Army, who was then Special Service Officer in the Muntafiq Division in Mesopotamia, recruited forty Mounted Arabs from the tribes round Nasiriyeh, on the Euphrates. In the Labrador Stud Book, C. Mackay Sanderson records that this line started forty years earlier with Malmesbury's Tramp and culminated in Banchory Bolo. But forty years is only the recorded period; unrecorded, the line goes back via Malmesbury at Heron Court. Instant Term Life Insurance Quotes Now The Advantage One Insurance website helps you find the right insurance policies to best suit your needs. If you're interested in getting a quote first read our brief introduction to the basics of life insurance below, then answer a. They were paid at the same rates, and enlisted under the same conditions of the Arab Scouts. In June 1. 91. 6, after the Fall of Kut, a corps of guards for the river and telegraph line in the Qurnah, Amarah and Basrah areas, was raised. This corps was divided to correspond to Political Divisions, and acted under Assistant Political Officers. These formed the nucleus of the 3rd Tigris Levy, and the Qurnah District Police. In this same month the Arab Scouts and the Political Guard were amalgamated, and renamed the Nasiriyeh Mounted Guard. The strength of this force was raised from 1. A further increase to 3. April 1. 91. 7, and by July, by adding other forces raised by the Civil Commissioners, the force had become 5. In 1. 91. 6 it was decided that the force must have a distinctive uniform, and here a difficulty arose. The only clothing for the legs available was either shorts or riding breeches, and the Arabs refused to wear either, considering that such an exposure of their lower limbs indecent, and against all custom. A compromise was affected by which they wore their Arab robes over the uniform. However, by 1. 91. British soldier, and this was adopted throughout the force. The force continued to grow, and seems to have had different names in different areas. Thus we find on 1. April 1. 91. 8, that the Hillah Shabana or 2nd Euphrates Levy under Major C. A. Boyle (Later Major C. A. Boyle, D. S. O) was used; this being the first operation in which this force is mentioned. This was the Madhatiyah, to destroy towns and forts, collect revenue, and make certain arrests.
They covered one hundred and ten miles on this expedition without any horse casualties, destroyed eighty- four towers, collected some of the revenue and obtained surety for the rest, and brought in eight people who were wanted. On the 2. 1st April the same Levy, seventy mounted men and one hundred dismounted, made an expedition to Jerbonieh and destroyed twenty- seven towers and burned two villages. The expedition lasted three days. The mounted men were eleven hours in the saddle each day. No one in the force fell out. The Great War came to an end; but the work of this force increased. Their name at the end of 1. Shabana, a name in use in Turkish times, and already in use to a certain extent. The duties were now to supply the executive needs of the Civil Administration. The organization, administration, and pay of the force, and strength of 5,4. October 1. 91. 8. It was intended that the Shabana should be a striking force, and should become the nucleus of the future Arab Army. The name Shabana was reminiscent of many abused in Turkish times, and generally unpopular, and the name of the force was again changed to Muntafiq Horse. And this name was again changed, the whole force in March 1. Militia, though the name Muntafiq Horse seems to have continued as the name of the Mounted troops of the area. Major C. A. Boyle was Inspecting Officer of the Militia with Headquarters of Baghdad. It was during this year that a standard uniform for the force as laid down, the force as re- armed with the short British . So far local Sheikhs and headmen had been called on to produce men, and those produced were not exactly voluntary soldiers. This year was fairly eventful, and the force saw a good deal of service, before narrating this, it is best to show the changes in organization, administration, and location of the force. In July 1. 91. 9, the name of the force was changed again from Militia to Levies, in use now for the first time, and on August 1st the Levy and Gendarmerie Orders were published. These orders defined control of the Levies, and the duties of the Inspecting Officer of the Levies, which were limited to Iinspection and administration. Therefore by these Orders, Levies were under the orders of three different people: -1. The Inspecting Officer. The Political Officer of the Area. The local Administrative Commandant. Moreover the budget was dealt with by the Inspecting Officer, except in the Kirkuk, Sulainmani and Mosul Liwas, where Political Officers dealt with it. This division of Control, both financially and in administrative matters, was great disadvantage. The control of the Inspecting Officer of the force over his troops, varied very much with the personality of the Political Officer in whose area they were. Levy headquarters began to expand and A & Q Branch were formed in September. The force was divided into two parts: -(a) A Striking Force at Headquarters of the Administrative Area. This numbered 3,0. Levy Headquarters for training and other purposes. It was split up into detachments of varying sizes, throughout the country.(b) District Police numbering 1,7. Political Officers, and only inspected from time to time by Levy Headquarters. On 1. 2th August, 1. Arab and Kurdish Levies. A memorandum was issued giving administrative details, which were however only brought into effect a year later. The chief point was that three Deputy Inspector- Generals were appointed, and for purposes of command and administration, the country was divided into three Levy areas, each under its respective Inspecting Officer, Deputy Inspecting Officer, or an Assistant Inspecting Officer, with a Staff Captain, and an Orderly Officer to assist him. The areas were- A- Area Headquarters- Hillah. B- Area HQ- Baghdad. C- Area HQ- Mosul. At the time this memorandum was drawn up the Levies were run by an Inspecting Officer and a small staff consisting of an Adjutant and Quartermaster, and no actual change took place in this arrangement for the present, nor was the area system brought into effect for a year. This memorandum also laid down the general circumstances in which the Levies could be called on. For minor operations the Political Officer could call on them; but if the duty for which he wanted them involved absence fro their post for Twenty- four hours, permission from the Inspecting Officer of the area was required. Also no action likely to involve the force in definite hostilities was to be undertaken without reference to the Military Area Commander. The organization of the force was also laid down. Mounted Levies were in Squadrons of 1. Troops of 2. 5. Dismounted in Companies of 1. Platoons of 2. 5. The memorandum gave the names and locations of units as below; but, in certain areas, such as a Samara and Khanaqin, this does not seem to have been carried into effect. Euphrates Levy- Dulaim. Hillah. 3rd- Shamiyah. Diwanyieh. 5th- Nasiriyeh. Tigris Levy at Samara. Kut. 3rd- Amara. Dier- ex- Zor Levy at Deir- ez- Zor. Baqubah Levy- Baqubah. Khanaqin- Khanaqin. Zobeir- Basrah. Kirkuk- Kirkuk. Sulaimani- Sulaimani. Mosul Gendarmerie- Mosul. It was intended also to have a new Levy at Suq es Shuyukh to keep order in the marshes, but this never appears to been raised. The personnel of the force at this time was drawn from: ARABS. Mainly townspeople or from settled tribes. The desert tribes did not take kindly to discipline. A few old Arab officers of the Turkish Army also joined up. KURDS. These joined chiefly the Sulaimani and Arbil Levies, and the Mosul Gendarmerie. KIRKUKLIS. These are Turkoman people and joined the Kut, Baqubah and Kirkuk Levies. The training of the Levies was laid down in a memorandum issued in November 1. They were ordered to be practiced in rapid advances, flank attacks, advanced and rear- guard action, and marsh fighting. For work in the river areas, work with aeroplanes, armored cars, and gunboats. They had also to be trained for mountain warfare for the northern areas, and for desert warfare anywhere to the west of Iraq. One difficulty was to find officers for this force. The Sheikhly class did not take kindly to the discipline required compared with their own free life, and those who did come were found, as a rule, unsuitable. Therefore the majority of officers of the Arab Levies were promoted from the ranks, and they were not far ahead of their own men in training and experience. This affected their prestige and powers of command. I will now give an account of the work of the Levies during this year. The first operation was on February 2. Euphrates Levy under Captain F.
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