They started to loot our personal equipment

TCD MS 3416 page 1

TCD MS 3416 page 1

[April 1916]

A Prisoner of War in Turkey.

[Chapter] 1

The British garrison of Kut-el-Amarah, commanded by Major Gen C.V.F Townshend S.S.O. consisted of the 6th (Poona) Division together with the 30th Indian composite brigade & certain attached troops. After a siege of 143 days, during which period they were surrounded by the Turkish forces, the whole garrison was obliged to surrender to Khalil Pasha, on the 29th April 1916, owing to lack of food.

The Turkish troops entered Kut at midday, only to find everything of military value completely destroyed. They therefore started a systematic loot of our personal equipment, money, & clothing in which their officers took an active part; not even the wounded in Hospital were left their boots. We had stopped the Turkish hordes continuing their advance on Amara and Basra after the battle of Ctesiphon, for it was at Kut-el-Amarah that we made our stand after the big retreat, which may ever be coupled with the retreats from Mons & [?C] – The Retreat from Ctesiphon.

Broken hearted as we were that our long & difficult defence was not destined to terminate in a glorious success, we had to resign ourselves