Chaytor's Force
| Chaytor's Force | |
|---|---|
| Active | 13 August – 31 October 1918 |
| Country | British Empire |
| Allegiance | British Crown |
| Type |
Mounted Infantry Infantry Artillery |
| Size | Reinforced Division of 11,000 |
| Part of |
Desert Mounted Corps Egyptian Expeditionary Force |
| Engagements | |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders |
Edward Chaytor |
Chaytor's Force (13 August – 31 October 1918) named after its commander, Major General Edward Chaytor, was a composite division-sized force which served in the British Egyptian Expeditionary Force during the Sinai and Palestine Campaign of the First World War. The force of 11,000 men, consisted of a division headquarters, three mounted and one infantry brigades, four independent infantry battalions and four artillery batteries and was detached from the Desert Mounted Corps for deception operations.
Chaytor's Force was formed to deceive the Ottoman high command into thinking the whole Desert Mounted Corps was positioned on the British right flank. They created dummy camps, guns positions and horses. Mules were used to drag branches along tracks, making dust, imitating the movement of mounted troops. Each day infantry marched into the Jordan Valley, and was driven out by trucks by night, to suggest a buildup of troops. Later it was primary responsible for the defence of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force's right flank, from the northern end of the Dead Sea to a point 8 miles (13 km) north-west of Jericho where the force touched the XX Corps. Chaytor's Force faced the Turkish Fourth Army, until that army was forced to retreat as a consequence of the successes of the Battles of Sharon and Nablus.
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