Battle of Beersheba (1917) 1917
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Date | 31 October 1917 | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 1917 | Wikidata P585 (point in time) |
| Era | World War I era (1914–1918) | derived from year |
| Location | Israel | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | Asia | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | Sinai and Palestine Campaign | Wikidata P361 |
| Participants | British Empire, German Empire, Ottoman Empire, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland | Wikidata P710 |
| Coordinates | 31.2498, 34.7997 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Battle of Beersheba (Turkish: Birüssebi Muharebesi, German: Schlacht von Beerscheba) was fought on 31 October 1917, when the British Empire's Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF) attacked and captured the Ottoman Empire's Yildirim Army Group garrison at Beersheba, beginning the Southern Palestine Offensive of the Sinai and Palestine campaign of World War I. On 31 October 1917, infantry from the 60th (London) and the 74th (Yeomanry) Divisions of the XX Corps from the southwest conducted limited attacks in the morning, then the Anzac Mounted Division (Desert Mounted Corps) launched a series of attacks against the strong defences, which dominated the eastern side of Beersheba, resulting in their capture during the late afternoon. Shortly afterwards, the Australian Mounted Division's 4th and 12th light horse regiments (4th Light Horse Brigade) conducted a mounted infantry charge with bayonets in their hands, their only weapon for mounted attack, as their rifles were slung across their backs. Part of the two regiments dismounted to attack entrenchments on Tel es Saba defending Beersheba. The remainder of the light horsemen continued their charge into the town, capturing the place and part of the garrison as it was withdrawing.
German general Friedrich Freiherr Kress von Kressenstein was commander of the three divisions of the Ottoman Fourth Army.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Beersheba (1917) (revision 1380619161), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; shortened by selecting paragraphs and trimming at a sentence boundary; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
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Other battles of the Sinai and Palestine Campaign
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- Capture of Damascus (1918) 1918
- Charge at Kaukab 1918
- First Battle of Amman 1918
All 7 battles of the Sinai and Palestine Campaign →
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