What do you think?
Rate this book
The Last Crusade: The Palestine Campaign in the First World War
This is the first full account of World War I in Palestine since the official history published in the 1920s. It was a tough and fast-moving campaign, fought against a formidable enemy in harsh terrain and sometimes stupefying heat. Its highpoints - T.E. Lawrence's capture of Aqaba with a charge of Arab horsemen, and Allenby's victory march through the walled city of Jerusalem with fighters overhead and volleys of machine-gun fire in the streets - are classic moments in the history of warfare, but there is more that is equally gripping; the battles of Gaza were among the most hard-fought, and the battle of Megiddo among the most brilliant and decisive victories of the entire war.;Hostilities began with the defence of the Suez Canal, Britain's jugular, against the Ottoman Turks and their German allies. The Allies' thrust into Palestine when Allenby took over from the less aggressive Murray, and Lawrence harnessing the irregular forces of Arab nationalism, were much needed victories. In contrast to the failures at Gallipoli and in Mesopotamia, or the inconclusive battles on the Western Front, Palestine's view of movement and dramatic success made an essential contribution to the Allied will to win. Anthony Bruce has produced a comprehensive military history of the campaign, drawing on the full range of sources including the experiences of those who took part.
"Bruce is not only a fine miltary historian but an engaging writer who makes the narrative seems as exciting as T E Lawrence's "Seven Pillars of Wisdom." Norman Stinchcombe. (Birmingham Evening Mail )
"Comprehensive and fascinating." (The Middle East )
"Bruce has a good eye for the telling detail, and ... his account is untainted by the grinding of axes." Gary Sheffield. (Times Literary Supplement )
"Bruce is not only a fine miltary historian but an engaging writer who makes the narrative seems as exciting as T E Lawrence's "Seven Pillars of Wisdom." Norman Stinchcombe. (Birmingham Evening Mail )
"Comprehensive and fascinating." (The Middle East )
"Bruce has a good eye for the telling detail, and ... his account is untainted by the grinding of axes." Gary Sheffield. (Times Literary Supplement )
290 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2002
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
November 14, 2020
A clear and well-researched history of the Palestine campaign.
The narrative is exhaustive, and Bruce also discusses the Arab Revolt, but mainly only in how it affected the course of Allenby’s campaign. Bruce’s writing is informative and intelligent.
The narrative is dry and technical, sometimes dull, and more maps would have helped. Also, at one point Bruce for some reason confuses Frank Stirling with David Stirling, claiming that Frank Stirling founded the SAS in the next world war.
Still, a clear and thorough work.
The narrative is exhaustive, and Bruce also discusses the Arab Revolt, but mainly only in how it affected the course of Allenby’s campaign. Bruce’s writing is informative and intelligent.
The narrative is dry and technical, sometimes dull, and more maps would have helped. Also, at one point Bruce for some reason confuses Frank Stirling with David Stirling, claiming that Frank Stirling founded the SAS in the next world war.
Still, a clear and thorough work.
June 10, 2016
Bruce describes the multi-faceted story of the battle for Palestine in the First World War in a way that is easy to follow and brings this little known campaign to life. Anyone with an interest in this, the first modern war, it’s battles and larger-than-life personalities should have this important book on their shelf.
March 27, 2020
A great account of the First World War in the Middle East, from the allied forces point of view. Paints a really good picture of both the military and political strategies, plus sufficient tactical detail of how the campaign unfolded.
The body count may have been much lower than on the western front, but the battles were keenly fought. My grandfather was in the Imperial Camel Corps, so this book was of great interest - mainly to more clearly understand how his personal story fitted into the overarching narrative.
I came away with a much improved understanding of the war and, perhaps more interestingly, why the political agreements reached during the war continue to shape the chaotic reality in that part of the world.
The body count may have been much lower than on the western front, but the battles were keenly fought. My grandfather was in the Imperial Camel Corps, so this book was of great interest - mainly to more clearly understand how his personal story fitted into the overarching narrative.
I came away with a much improved understanding of the war and, perhaps more interestingly, why the political agreements reached during the war continue to shape the chaotic reality in that part of the world.
August 8, 2021
Overall interesting and useful, but the author seemingly went out of his way to avoid any regerence to contemporary place names or locations. More and better maps were in order, not the seemingly 19th century facsimiles.
December 5, 2013
The topic is good, and there's no other book that covers it squarely. The narrative moves along well, and the author gives just the right amount of context on the war as a whole. I felt like I learned something reading it . However, the book has several serious faults:
1) The maps show the terrain but do not show where any of the troops or fighting were at any point. This makes it unnecessarily hard to follow the narrative.
2) The narrative is almost totally devoid of human interest. We learn nothing about the people or personalities, and almost nothing about the day-to-day experience of the combatants.
3) I wish the author included something about how the local population in Egypt and Palestine responded. The Middle East is an interesting and important place, and the war was the transition from Ottoman Rule to the British Mandate. What was that like? The author doesn't describe it. Nor does he focus nearly enough on how the combatants reacted to the history and holy sites of the region. We have a few offhand remarks to show that many British officers appreciated that they were the first Christian captors of Jerusalem since the Crusades -- but just how aware of it were they?
1) The maps show the terrain but do not show where any of the troops or fighting were at any point. This makes it unnecessarily hard to follow the narrative.
2) The narrative is almost totally devoid of human interest. We learn nothing about the people or personalities, and almost nothing about the day-to-day experience of the combatants.
3) I wish the author included something about how the local population in Egypt and Palestine responded. The Middle East is an interesting and important place, and the war was the transition from Ottoman Rule to the British Mandate. What was that like? The author doesn't describe it. Nor does he focus nearly enough on how the combatants reacted to the history and holy sites of the region. We have a few offhand remarks to show that many British officers appreciated that they were the first Christian captors of Jerusalem since the Crusades -- but just how aware of it were they?
April 24, 2014
Excellent account of the campaign.
Anthony Bruce has achieved an impressive feat in bringing this dramatic theatre of first world war action to wider attention. Like all my favourite works of military history, first hand accounts blend with a higher level view of the fighting which elevates a historical account into an accessible story.
With all the subsequent political and religious controversy in the middle east, it is easy to overlook the strategic importance of the region for the British and their Arab allies and how bitterly the ground was contested in the context of World War One. This book is enormously helpful in detailing the mechanics of that contest, and as an extra bonus also gives a nicely balanced account of TE Lawrence's role in the overall struggle.
Anthony Bruce has achieved an impressive feat in bringing this dramatic theatre of first world war action to wider attention. Like all my favourite works of military history, first hand accounts blend with a higher level view of the fighting which elevates a historical account into an accessible story.
With all the subsequent political and religious controversy in the middle east, it is easy to overlook the strategic importance of the region for the British and their Arab allies and how bitterly the ground was contested in the context of World War One. This book is enormously helpful in detailing the mechanics of that contest, and as an extra bonus also gives a nicely balanced account of TE Lawrence's role in the overall struggle.
July 14, 2016
The Last Crusade is an exhaustive, meticulously researched account of the Palestine campaign during WW1. It's the first to be published for many years and benefits enormously from the wealth of military letters and diaries that the author has unearthed in the archives.
I particularly liked the story of the mayor of Jerusalem with a white flag, trying to surrender the city to some British cooks who had got lost and didn't want to know. Allenby then entered Jerusalem on foot through the Jaffa Gate, which has hardly changed at all since his time. There's a film of it somewhere, with TE Lawrence, dressed as a British officer, trailing along in his wake.
I particularly liked the story of the mayor of Jerusalem with a white flag, trying to surrender the city to some British cooks who had got lost and didn't want to know. Allenby then entered Jerusalem on foot through the Jaffa Gate, which has hardly changed at all since his time. There's a film of it somewhere, with TE Lawrence, dressed as a British officer, trailing along in his wake.
May 13, 2014
More than Lawrence
The Palestine campaign of World War 1 is little remembered today except for the activities and writings of T.E. Lawrence. This is understandable: the campaign was a sideshow and Lawrence is fascinating. Nevertheless, it is worth remembering that Lawrence and the Arab revolt were part of larger military campaign. Mr. Bruce has written a clear, perceptive account of the larger campaign that is well-researched and garnished with first-hand accounts. This is the book one should read before beginning the study of the very interesting Col. Lawrence.
The Palestine campaign of World War 1 is little remembered today except for the activities and writings of T.E. Lawrence. This is understandable: the campaign was a sideshow and Lawrence is fascinating. Nevertheless, it is worth remembering that Lawrence and the Arab revolt were part of larger military campaign. Mr. Bruce has written a clear, perceptive account of the larger campaign that is well-researched and garnished with first-hand accounts. This is the book one should read before beginning the study of the very interesting Col. Lawrence.
July 1, 2016
In this useful antidote to an over-focus on the battles of the Western Front, Anthony Bruce describes the war waged by the Allies against the Turkish Empire in Palestine. It is a fascinating topic, complete with the deadly battles for Gaza, Allenby's advance to Damascus, the final encounter at Megiddo and T E Lawrence's guerrilla war in the Arabian desert. This is a good story which has been expertly told by the author.
June 29, 2016
This tells the important and (I think) little-known story of the battle for Palestine during World War One. Bruce is clearly a terrific writer, who really brings the period and characters to vivid life.
March 28, 2015
A very good, well written analysis of the British involvement in Palestine, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria, and a brief epilogue that touches on the moderate importance of the results that linger today.
June 19, 2016
Excellent read, stays away from the hero worship that other histories have had and is a straight forward telling of the campaign.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews