Iraq Area Command (Ottoman Empire)

Iraq Area Command
Irak ve Havalisi Genel Komutanlığı

Active| August 26, 1914[1] – April 19, 1916[2]
Country|  Ottoman Empire
Type| Corps-Army
Garrison/HQ| Basra, Baghdad
Patron| Sultans of the Ottoman Empire
Engagements| Mesopotamian campaign
Fao Landing
Battle of Basra
Battle of Qurna
Battle of Es Sinn
Battle of Ctesiphon
Siege of Kut
Sheikh Sa'ad
Battle of Wadi
Battle of Hanna
Battle of Dujaila
Commanders
Notable
commanders| Cavit Pasha (August 26, 1914[1] – January 20, 1915[3]
Kaymakam Süleyman Askerî Bey (December 20, 1914[4]/January 20, 1915[3] – April 14, 1915)
Miralay Nureddin Bey (April 20, 1915[5] – January 10, 1916[2])
Miralay Halil Bey (January 10 – April 19, 1916[2])

Military unit

The Iraq Area Command or Iraq Regional Command of the Ottoman Empire (Turkish: Irak ve Havalisi Genel Komutanlığı) was one of the military formation of the Ottoman Army. It was formed in Iraq in the initial stage of World War I.

## Formations

[edit]

### Order of Battle, November 1914

[edit]

In November 1914, the corps was structured as follows:[6]

* Iraq Area Command (Commander: Cavit Pasha)
* 38th Division

### Order of Battle, January 1915

[edit]

In January 1918, the corps was structured as follows:[4]

* Iraq Area Command (Commander: Kaymakam Süleyman Askerî Bey)
* 38th Division
* Sahrıca Detachment (Provisional Dicle Division since January 25, 1915)
* Kerha Group
* Fırat Group

Because Süleyman Askerî Bey committed suicide on April 14, 1915, Nureddin Bey was appointed the commander on April 20. Nureddin Bey arrived in June to take command of the Iraq Area Command and he was appointed the Governor of Basra Province and Baghdad Province at the same time.[5] On December 21, 1915, German Generalfeldmarschall Colmar von der Goltz arrived at Baghdad and changed the name of the Command as the Iraq Army (Irak Ordusu).[2]

### Order of Battle, Late 1915

[edit]

In late 1915, the corps was structured as follows:[7]

* Iraq Area Command (Commander: Miralay Nureddin Bey)
* XIII Corps
* 35th Division, 38th Division
* XVIII Corps (Commander: Miralay Halil Bey)
* 45th Division, 51st Division

## Sources

[edit]

1. ^ a b Birinci Dünya Harbi'nde Türk Harbi: Irak-İran Cephesi, 1914–1918, Vol. III, Part I, Genelkurmay Basım Evi, 1979, p. 42. (in Turkish)
2. ^ a b c d Orhan Avcı, Irak'ta Türk ordusu (1914–1918), Vadi Yayınları, 2004, ISBN 978-975-6768-51-8, p. 30. (in Turkish)
3. ^ a b Emin Demirel, Teşkilat-ı Mahsusa'dan Günümüze Gizli Servisler, IQ Kültür Sanat, 2002, p. 180. (in Turkish)
4. ^ a b Orhan Avcı, Irak'ta Türk Ordusu (1914–1918), Vadi Yayınları, 2004, ISBN 975-6768-51-7, p. 28. (in Turkish)
5. ^ a b T.C. Genelkurmay Harp Tarihi Başkanlığı Yayınları, Türk İstiklâl Harbine Katılan Tümen ve Daha Üst Kademelerdeki Komutanların Biyografileri, Genelkurmay Basım Evi, 1972, p. 32. (in Turkish)
6. ^ Edward J. Erickson, Order to Die: A History of the Ottoman Army in the First World War, Greenwood Press, 2001, ISBN 0-313-31516-7, p. 43.
7. ^ Orhan Avcı, Irak'ta Türk Ordusu (1914–1918), Vadi Yayınları, 2004, ISBN 975-6768-51-7, p. 29. (in Turkish)

* v
* t
* e

Ottoman Forces during World War I

Army groups|

* Yildirim
* Caucasus
* Eastern

Armies|

* 1st
* 2nd
* 3rd
* 4th
* 5th
* 6th
* 7th
* 8th
* 9th

Corps|

* I
* II
* III
* IV
* V
* VI
* VII
* VIII
* IX
* X
* XI
* XII
* XIII
* XIV
* XV
* XVI
* XVII
* XVIII
* XIX
* XX
* XXI
* XXII
* XXV
* Iraq Area
* Halil
* I Caucasian
* II Caucasian
* Hejaz

Fortified areas|

* Dardanelles
* Bosphorus
* Chataldja
* Adrianople
* Smyrna
* Erzurum
* Kars

Infantry divisions|

* 1
* 2
* 3
* 4
* 5
* 6
* 7
* 8
* 9
* 10
* 11
* 12
* 13
* 14
* 15
* 16
* 17
* 18
* 19
* 20
* 21
* 22
* 23
* 24
* 25
* 26
* 27
* 28
* 29
* 30
* 31
* 32
* 33
* 34
* 35
* 36
* 37
* 38
* 39
* 40
* 41
* 42
* 43
* 44
* 45
* 46
* 47
* 48
* 49
* 50
* 51
* 52
* 53
* 54
* 55
* 56
* 57
* 58
* 59
* 60
* 61
* 1 Caucasian
* 2 Caucasian
* 3 Caucasian
* 5 Caucasian
* 9 Caucasian
* 10 Caucasian
* 11 Caucasian
* 36 Caucasian
* 37 Caucasian

Other divisions|

* 1 Cavalry
* 2 Cavalry
* 3 Cavalry
* Van Gendarmerie

Others|

* 1st Expeditionary Force
* 5th Expeditionary Force
* German Asia Corps
* Africa
* Hejaz Expeditionary Force
* 1st Provisional Force
* 2nd Provisional Force
* Islamic Army of the Caucasus
* 57 Rgt.
* 177 Rgt.

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