Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1917-11-01
gen. MANDES' !.
ADMIRABLE \. !.
STRATEGY j !
Mesopotarpia Victory Was
Result Of Thanking Move
ment Of British Troops.
ENTIRE
LAID DOWN. ARMS
Capture Of Ramadie Robbed
Turks Of Last Free
Line Of Retreat

-E4-"T .T- -- .H.Nra.l. . --.-#ar. .EtEaMErgl
London, Nov. General MaAfSs4s
victory at Ramadie in Mesopotanlla
was the result Of q battle Of the Old
picturesque style. before the "waI5lo Of
inaction'' swept the spectacular 1e-
ment out Of modetn warfare.
The movement which determined
the whole action was the SUDDEN
swinging around Of the British rtt'ht
until 1t became the left, and the an
circling movement of the cavaj ",
which robbed the Turkish garrison Of
its last free line of retreat. The idea
was admirably executed, but even the
staff strategists of the British army
scarcely anticipated the ~surrendeF OF
the whole Turkish force witho1s .
blow by the waiting cavalry. R
The British eyewitness" writing
from Ramadie,. says in his account OF
the battle:
I'VE captured Ra1nadie today, ana
with 1t the whole Turkish garrison,
including it's commander, Ahmed Boy,
and q number of field guns, pom
poms, machine guns and rifles. /,
"Our force moved in two columns,
on the night Of September ~ from
ian advanced camp on the Euphrates,
right, the other on the left, and at
dawn they attacked Mushaid Ridge.
a low line Of dunes running north
and south from the Euphratee to the
Habbaniyah canal.
ITO clear the ridge and cross the
canal was u first objective. The
first knobs were quickly occupied. At
dawn we bombarded the main crest
Of the ridge, but the Turks had evac-
uated it. Il
1--WE then changed our line Of at
| too< The riOhf column woS Nth.
drawn and swinging round west be-
hind the left column became the left
wing of the force. Our front, three
and a half miles in breadth, row lay
between the Habbaniyah canal on the
right and Aziziyah canal on the left,
at a point nine miles from the
Euphrates.
ing movement cross the desert
round the right flank Of the Turks
and occupied a line five miles west
Of Ramadie. By this move the Turks
were cornered. Their only chance
was to drive in determined counter
attacks and to break through before
we drew the ring in closer.
1.-THE expected attack began sitter
3 o'clock this >netx morning when the
Turks tried to break through between
the cavalry and the river. The action
continued for two houfs-tM dawn,
when it degenerated into casuafE ~
ing. The nearest Turkish dead Y 20
found within fifty yards Of the cavEEF
trenches.
Soon after .daybreak the infe atiy
column took up the attack again.. and
Icarrted the aSk1oIelytng ,defencef OF
the Turks on our LETT. An intense
bombardment was opened on the
Turkish trenches.
"Our line of cavalry, far away west,
soon saw the darkf masses Of the en-
envy approaching, IN apparently r-e-
pared for bloody battle. The Turk 4
runs were silent, and white flags vet
up all along the line. It was a gen-
eral surrender. Ahmed Bey, tho
Turkish commander. who has h,en
on the Euphrates all through The
campaign from the Battle Of ShaSba,
in March, 1915, and whose troops pn-
fronted us at Nasaravah all last s1m-
mer and autumn, came out and ,ur.
rendered with his whole force"