The Great War and the Middle East

Neville Taylor, RUSI-Vic Library A very readable 'single volume' for any military history buff to gain an excellent overall picture of what most definitely was not a 'minor sideshow' to the Western Front.

Sneha Reddy, RUSI Journal A welcome addition... will be particularly interesting to those looking to study diverse aspects of the First World War in the Middle East, explained within the political context of its time.

Neville Taylor, RUSI-Vic Library A very readable 'single volume' for any military history buff to gain an excellent overall picture of what most definitely was not a 'minor sideshow' to the Western Front.

Martin Bourke, Asian Affairs There are some fascinating passages later in the book about the chaotic situation in the Caucasus and Turkmenistan following the collapse of Imperial Russia.

Martin Bourke, Asian Affairs Mr Johnson has done full justice to a crucial theatre of the Great War which will always merit further examination and analysis.

Professor Margaret MacMillan, Books of the Year 2016, The Times This book is the best sort of military history, combining the big strategic picture with what the struggle meant on the ground.

Keith Robinson, Military History Monthly Book of the month: A powerful, all-encompassing book that gives real insight ... a detailed and comprehensive book covering all of the actions in the Middle East during WWI, giving rich context to the decision-making processes involved, and providing interesting accounts of the major battles. Most importantly, it challenges traditional views on Great Power manipulation, arguing that outcomes were shaped by local actors and events. A very useful for book for serious readers of the period. Recommended.

Rob Johnson is the Director of the Changing Character of War (CCW) research programme at Oxford University (www.history.ox.ac.uk/ccw). The CCW Programme brings together academics, policy makers and armed forces in the study of war, pursuing a variety of research themes including the future character of war; war and the state in a connected world; unconventional warfare; strategy and war, and the moral-legal dimensions of war. Rob's primary interests are in strategy and the history of war, particularly in Asia and the Middle East, and he has examined the problems of strategic decision-making in a variety of contexts and publications.

1: Introduction: The Young Turks: War, Empire and the Nationalist Challenge, 1908-1914 2: The Gulf, Suez and Mesopotamia 1914-1915 3: Operations in Gallipoli and Palestine 1915-1916 4: The Afghanistan Mission and unrest in Persia, 1915-1916 5: The Caucasus, Armenia and the Kurds, 1915-1916 6: The Arab Revolt, 1916-1917 7: The Turkish Crisis in Palestine, 1917-18 8: The Campaign in Mesopotamia, 1917-1918 9: The Defeat of Turkey, 1918 10: The Caucasus: Baku and the Centro-Caspian Dictatorship, 1917-1919 11: Rebellion in Egypt and Iraq 1919-1920 12: Amritsar, The Third Anglo-Afghan War and the Khalifat Movement, 1919-21 13: Enver Pacha, Amir Amanullah and the Basmachi Revolt, 1920-22 14: East Africa in the Great War and Somalia, 1914-1921 15: The Greco-Turkish War, 1919-22 16: Conclusion: The Greater War in the Middle East Notes Bibliography Index