Charge at Khan Ayash The Charge at Khan Ayash occurred on 2 October 1918 about north of Damascus after the pursuit to , and capture of Damascus , which followed the decisive Egyptian Expeditionary Force victory at the Battle of Megiddo on 25 September during the Sinai and Palestine Campaign of World War I . After Damascus had been encircled by Desert Mounted Corps on 30 September , the 3rd Light Horse Brigade advanced through the city on 1 October to charge and capture remnants of the Ottoman Yildirim Army Group withdrawing along the road north to Rayak and Homs . Following the victories at the Battle of Sharon and Battle of Nablus during the Battle of Megiddo , and the Capture of Damascus , remnants of the Seventh and Eighth Armies retreated in columns towards Damascus from the Judean Hills . Rearguards at Samakh , at Tiberias and at Jisr Benat Yakub were captured by the Australian Mounted Division . Remnants of the Fourth Army also retreated in columns towards Damascus along the Pilgrims ' Road from Amman . The rearguard at Irbid was attacked by the 4th Cavalry Division and Deraa was captured by the Sherifial Army . The last formation to leave Damascus , the 146th Regiment ( Fourth Army ) left during the night of 30 September , was followed early the next morning ; 1 October by the 10th Light Horse Regiment ( 3rd Light Horse Brigade ) , in the process accepting the surrender of the city . The Australian light horsemen followed the retreating columns north along the road to Homs during the day , encountering numerous rearguards which were attacked and captured , until they we were stopped by strong defences protecting a 2 , 000 - strong column near Khan Ayash . Early the next morning a large column of retreating German and Ottoman combatants was seen moving towards a pass just north of Khan Ayash . Two squadrons of the 9th Light Horse Regiment ( 3rd Light Horse Brigade ) rode north to cut the road in front of the column while the third squadron charged into the column splitting it and forcing its surrendered . Background . The day after the victory at the Battle of Megiddo , the pursuit to Damascus began on 26 September , when the 4th Cavalry Division advanced east across the Jordan River to Irbid and on to Deraa which was captured by Sherifial forces . The pursuit to Damascus away , continued with the cavalry division ' s right flank covered by Sherifial forces . Meanwhile the Australian Mounted Division with the 5th Cavalry Division in reserve , began their pursuit to Damascus on 27 September around the northern end of the Sea of Galilee , also known as Lake Tiberias , via Jisr Benat Yakub and Kuneitra . Yildirim Army Group retreat . By 26 September the Fourth Army ' s Amman garrison ( less the rearguard captured at Amman ) had not been " heavily engaged , " and " was still intact as a fighting force even though it was in rapid retreat " north along the Hejaz railway and Pilgrims Road , some miles to the east of the Jordan River . Between 6 , 000 and 7 , 000 German and Ottoman soldiers from the Ottoman Fourth , Seventh and Eighth Armies had managed to retreat via Tiberias or Deraa , before these places were captured on 25 and 27 September , respectively . At this time , the retreating columns which moved via Deraa were at or north of Muzeirib on their way to Damascus . Two days later , on 29 September , Mustapha Kemal Pasha , commander of the Seventh Army arrived at Kiswe , north of Deraa , and south of Damascus , with his army ' s leading troops . Here Liman von Sanders commanding Yildirim Army Group ordered him to withdraw to the north of Damascus , to Rayak . By the next morning , the leading column of the Fourth Army consisting of an Ottoman cavalry division and some infantry , was approaching Kiswe , followed along the Pilgrims ' Road by the 4th Cavalry Division behind . Australian Mounted Division . During the cavalry phase of the Battle of Sharon the Australian Mounted Division ' s 3rd Light Horse Brigade had captured Jenin in the evening of 20 September 1918 . By the next morning they had captured 8 , 000 remnants of the two Ottoman armies which had been fighting in the Judean Hills . Prelude . Yildirim Army Group . Liman von Sanders had ordered the 24th , 26th and 53rd Infantry Divisions , XX Corps ( Seventh Army ) and the 3rd Cavalry Division , Army Troops Fourth Army , under the command of Colonel Ismet Bey ( commander of the III Corps Seventh Army ) to defend Damascus , while the remaining Ottoman formations were ordered to retreat northwards . The remains of the Tiberias Group which had defended Samakh and Tiberias , commanded by Jemal Pasha , ( commander of the Fourth Army ) had also been ordered to defend Damascus . However , Liman von Sanders realised he could not defend the city and withdrew his Yildirim Army Group headquarters north to Aleppo . Only von Oppen ' s force which had travelled by train direct to Rayak before the Barda Gorge was closed and the 146th Regiment remained " disciplined formations . " The 146th Regiment was the last formation to leave Damascus ; leaving during the night of 30 September . After hearing the Barada Gorge was captured von Hammerstein commanding the 146th Regiment , retreated along the Homs road , following the III Corps , the 24th Division and the 3rd Cavalry Division to concentrate at Rayak with troops which left Damascus at 21 : 00 on the last Ottoman train out of Damascus . These retreating Ottoman army units passed through the outposts established by Colonel von Oppen ' s Asia Corps at Rayak . Desert Mounted Corps 30 September . By midnight on 30 September , the Australian Mounted Division was at El Mezze to the west of the city with orders to block the road to Beirut and the road north to Homs , Hama and Aleppo , the 5th Cavalry Division at Kaukab was ordered to the east of Damascus , while the 4th Cavalry Division was at Zeraqiye 34 miles ( 55 km ) south of Damascus on the Pilgrims ' Road with the 11th Cavalry Brigade at Khan Deinun and Arab Sherifial forces north east of Ashrafiye . 3rd Light Horse Brigade . During the night of 29 / 30 September , the brigade attacked and captured a strong rearguard position at Sa ' sa on the road to Damascus from Kuneitra . Here two regiments advanced on the right and left flanks while a third regiment made a dismounted frontal attack to capture 20 prisoners , two 77mm field guns and two machine guns . The 3rd Light Horse Brigade subsequently bivouacked outside Damascus during the night of 30 September / 1 October , having establishing picket lines to " prevent all troops except Sherifian Regulars from entering the city . " With orders to cut the Homs road , the brigade entered Damascus at 05 : 00 on 1 October 1918 . At the Serai , Hall of Government or Town Hall , Major A . C . N . Olden , commanding the 10th Light Horse Regiment accepted the surrender of the city from Emir Said Abd el Kader . Damascus was in a state of revolt ; both the civil and military administrations had completely broken down and Olden warned that the shooting must stop . He requested a guide to show the Australian light horsemen through the city to the Homs road . Battle . After taking the surrender of Damascus , the 3rd Light Horse Brigade was involved in virtually continual skirmishes throughout the day , in short but severe engagements as they moved north along the Homs road in pursuit of the retreating columns . During these attacks on Ottoman rearguards they captured many prisoners and machine guns . As they were leaving Damascus by the Bab Tuma , the 10th Light Horse Regiment learned that rearguards held the Nahr Ma ' raba about north east of Damascus . The leading squadron supported by the regiment attacked the German machine gunners who were eventually force to abandoned their position " when [ the rearguard ] . . . saw that the attack was about to be pressed home " by a cavalry charge . The Wadi Ma ' raba rearguard was captured by 09 : 00 along with 600 prisoners and about 40 machine guns . The Australian light horse regiment was followed through Damascus and the Bab Tuma gate at 10 : 30 by the 14th Cavalry Brigade ( 5th Cavalry Division ) which established outposts and gained touch with the 13th Cavalry Brigade ( 5th Cavalry Division ) which had advanced round the east side of the city to the Homs road . The 10th Light Horse Regiment continued their advance about north to Duma , from Damascus where they captured about 500 prisoners and 37 machine guns , before continuing on to Khan Kusseir further on . Here , in the evening they were opposed by a German rearguard armed with a number of machine guns . The defenders were broken by a charge " delivered from the cover of some vineyards and olive groves on their right flank , and all of them were killed or captured . " Street fighting with the bayonet captured Khan Kusseir , 160 prisoners and a number of machine guns . Another 50 prisoners were captured after a further attack before another large retreating column of between 1 , 500 and 2 , 000 Ottoman soldiers was seen away moving towards a pass in the hills near Khan Ayash north of Damascus on the Homs road . The column was protected here by a strong fortress defended by a rearguard armed with about 20 machine guns established by the Fourth Army ' s German 146th Regiment . Without the support of field guns several unsuccessful attacks were launched by the Australian light horsemen on the fortress . The rear of the retreating column was also attacked , inflicting some loss and capturing more prisoners and machine guns . At 19 : 00 the 10th Light Horse Regiment withdrew back to Khan Kusseir arriving at 22 : 00 to bivouac with brigade headquarters . At 06 : 15 on 2 October 1918 a long column was reported retreating northwards . The 9th Light Horse Regiment trotted out at 06 : 45 and after several groups of machine gunners failed to delay the light horse , they rode up level with the main body of the column . Two squadrons were then ordered forward to Khan Ayash to cut the road ahead before it entered a pass , while a third squadron charged the left flank of the column , forcing it to surrender . " The brigade galloped on , through a hot fire , and charged clean through the enemy force , killing a large number of them . . . " An advanced guard of cavalry also surrendered to the leading squadrons . The 10th Light Horse Regiment had been ordered to advance in support , to arrived at 07 : 45 after the surrender of 91 officer including a divisional commander , 318 cavalry , 1 , 072 infantry , three guns and 26 machine guns . They had captured over 2 , 000 prisoners including a divisional commander and the 146th Regimental standard , the only enemy colour taken by Australians in the First World War . Aftermath . After their last battle of the war , the 10th Light Horse Regiment occupied the pass and the hills covering the road to Homs while a squadron reconnoitred to the east until they were relieved by the 8th Light Horse Regiment ( 3rd Light Horse Brigade ) and returned to bivouac at Khan Kusseir . The brigade returned to camp south west of Damascus on 4 October 1918 . Since 19 September , Desert Mounted Corps suffered battle casualties of just 500 killed , wounded or missing .