Haifa day in the Indian army memory for first world war - battle of Haifa 1918

Haifa Memorial site in Delhi

Haifa Day

In order to keep his forces moving after the retreating Turks, it was vital to Allenby's 'Megiddo' plan that he secure Haifa with its harbour and railhead. Without Haifa, a lack of viable roads meant that it would be impossible for him to keep his army re-supplied.
From the Despatch dated 31st October 1918, by Gen Sir. E.H.H. Allenby: item 19
"........I ordered the Desert Mounted Corps to occupy Acre and Haifa. The roads leading to Haifa from Tul Keram are only country tracks, which, in the event of rain, might become impassable for motor lorries at any time. Any force, advancing northwestwards from Haifa along the coast, would have to depend on supplies landed at that harbour. It was necessary, therefore, to occupy the town without delay, in order that the harbour could be swept for mines, and the landing of stores could be taken in hand."



A force of 700 Turks from the garrison of Haifa attempted to get to Tiberias, but at 0130 hrs on the morning of the 22nd September it reached the outposts of the 13th Cavalry Brigade and was attacked in moonlight by the 18th Lancers. A large number were killed, and 311 were captured together with 4 machine guns. The next air reconnaissance of Haifa now seemed to indicate that the town was evacuated and at 1330 hrs that afternoon a detachment of Light Armoured Cars under Brig Gen A. D'A. King advanced along the Nazareth road to occupy Haifa. Before the town was reached however they found that the road was barricaded. At this point they were shelled from the slopes of Mount Carmel and subjected to machine gun fire. The column withdrew with slight casualties.

The next day, 23rd September 1918, the 14th and 15th Cavalry Brigades turned over their line to the 3rd Australian Light Horse Brigade and at 0500 hrs commenced their march on Haifa. Their route passed along the foot of the Mount Carmel range and was kept in a confined strip by the boggy ground along the River Kishon and its tributary streams. This left little room in which cavalry could manoeuvre. At 1015 hrs as the 15th Cavalry Brigade approached Haifa they came under fire from 77mm guns on Mount Carmel. The 14th Cavalry Brigade together with the divisional headquarters occupied the Kishon railway bridge and 'Harosheth of the Gentiles' at midday.

At 1400 hrs the Jodhpur Lancers supported by 'B' Battery H.A.C. attacked Haifa and encountered strong resistance, the lancers making a brilliant charge in the face of the enemy's machine guns. A squadron of the Mysore Lancers (supported by a squadron of Sherwood Rangers) had meanwhile gone over Mount Carmel to turn the town from the south. They captured two naval guns on the ridge of the Carmel and also made a gallant charge against the fire of the enemy's machine guns.



After street fighting, the town was captured at about 1500 hrs with 1,352 prisoners, 17 guns and 11 machine guns being taken. Not without cost however. In the main text of his Despatch of 31st October 1918, General Allenby particularly mentioned
"Whilst the Mysore Lancers were clearing the rocky slopes of Mount Carmel, the Jodhpur Lancers charged through the defile, and riding over the enemy's machine guns, galloped into the town, where a number of Turks were speared in the streets. Colonel Thakur Dalpat Singh, M.C., fell gallantly leading the charge."

from the CWGC
THAKUR DALPAT SINGH
Nationality: Indian
Rank: Major
Regiment/Service: Jodhpur (Imperial Service) Lancers
Date of Death: 23/09/1918
Awards: MC
Additional information: Son of Thakur Hari Singh, of Deoli, Pali, Jodhpur, Rajputana.
Casualty Type: Commonwealth War Dead
Memorial: HELIOPOLIS (PORT TEWFIK) MEMORIAL


Colonel Thakur Dalpat Singh, M.C.,

General Sir Pratap Singh had accompanied his Jodhpur Lancers on their 70 mile ride to Nazareth during a night and a day. Just short of 73 years old, the empire's faithful warrior was in Allenby's words "quite knocked up." He also had a fever. Allenby ordered him to rest for a few days, otherwise the old war horse would no doubt have joined his lancers in their action at Haifa. The anonymous author of 'Through Palestine with the 20th Machine Gun Squadron' is I believe mistaken when he refers to the death of Sir Pratap's son in this battle. He can only be referring to Colonel Thakur Dalpat Singh MC., and it may well be that this officer was the son of the same Thakur Hari Singh who had been Sir Pratap's AdC and boon polo companion. If that is so then it would be quite understandable that Sir Pratap was deeply distressed by the death, described as a loss "much regretted by his comrades, and all who knew him."

In his 'History of the British Cavalry' the Marquess of Anglesey concludes his description of this action thus;

"By 3 p.m. the battle was over and victory complete. A vital new supply base had fallen into British hands. Four days later the landing of supplies started. Without a doubt this was the most successful mounted action of its scale in the course of the campaign. It was won by a weak brigade of only two regiments and a single 12-pounder battery pitted against about 1,000 well-armed troops who had so far seen no action. These, skilfully deployed, occupied a naturally formidable defensive position with an impassable river on one side of a narrow defile and a steep hill on the other. That they had already received news of the general rout is certain and this may well have affected their behaviour, but there is little evidence to show that they put up less than a respectable resistance. The speed and daring, dash and boldness of the two Indian Imperial Service regiments, in conjunction with the skilful flanking movements devised by Holden [Lieutenant-Colonel H. N., the senior Special Service Officer] were what made the action such a success. The speed and good order demonstrated by the leading squadron of the Jodhpores when it was forced to change direction under heavy fire, were other vital ingredients in what was almost certainly the only occasion in history when a fortified town was captured by cavalry at the gallop."


Jodphur and Mysore Lancers entering Haifa, 23rd September 1918

India and her army have not forgotten their heroes of the Great War. The two famous regiments which took Haifa have been combined to form the republic's 61st Cavalry Regiment and annually India commemorates the 23rd September 1918 as Haifa Day
[for example see http://www.mod.nic.in/samachar/dec1-20/html/ch10.htm
and http://news.bahai.org/story/69]


Gen Sir Archibald Wavell in his biography 'Allenby – A Study in Greatness' has the following footnote on page 281

"This is probably the only recorded charge of cavalry in which men of the Royal Engineers have ridden. The 15th Field Troop, R.E., happened to be alongside the Jodhpur Lancers just before the charge, and on the invitation of the Lancers' commanding officer armed themselves with lances and swords from casualties and rode in the charge. Though none of them had ever handled such weapons before they claim to have killed at least one Turk with the arme blanche."

Source of most of the above information is from the Great War Forum "Haifa Day 23rd September 1918" thread :

http://1914-1918.invisionzone.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=83044&pid=1477233&st=0&#entry1477233




 Pictures thank to Mr. Arjun Kumar

The Indian Army Cemetery of the World War 1  in Haifa

 pictures by Uri Weiner

On 22.9.2010
A ceremony to commemorate Indian soldiers was observed at the Haifa Cemetery.

Indian Ambassador to Israel H E Navtej Sarna and representatives from Haifa City Council, Israeli Ministry of Defence, Haifa Historical Society, representative of the Commonwealth Graves Commission, Defence Attaches from several countries and a host of other dignitaries attended the ceremony to.

Sarna underlined the important role played by the Indian soldiers during the First World War and thanked the Haifa Historical Society for recognising India's role in the war, An Indian Embassy statement said.

Britain entered the war on 4 Aug 1914 by sending an expeditionary force of four divisions to fight alongside the French. At this time the only regular forces available to the British were their own army and Indian Army. The Indian Army fought in all the major theatres where Britain was engaged.

Indian Army troops were deployed throughout the war for the defence of Suez Canal, operations in Gallipoli and for various campaigns in Africa including that of Kilimanjaro. At the Palestine and Syrian fronts they participated in the battles of Jerusalem, Gaza, Megido, Sharon and Hafia.

During the battle for Haifa in September 1918, the Indian troops exhibited exemplary cavalry skills and bravery in a successful cavalry charge which finally culminated in the liberation of Haifa, the statement said.

Captain Aman Singh Bahadur and Dafadar Jor Singh were awarded the Indian Order of Merit (IOM) and Captain Anop Singh and 2nd Lt Sagat Singh were awarded the Military Cross (MC) as recognition for their bravery in the battle.

A two-member delegation of the Indian Army led by Col MS Jodha, grandson of Captain Aman Singh Bahadur, has especially come from India to attend this ceremony.

Source:Z news
http://www.zeenews.com/news656890.html

Pictures thanks to IRIR  a member of Fresh Forum
http://www.fresh.co.il/vBulletin/showthread.php?t=524058






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Haifa post card over the years גלויות מהעיר חיפה בכל הזמנים

גלויות מהעיר חיפה בכל הזמנים
Haifa post card over the years

1898 the visit of the German Ceasar IN Haifa

Haifa 1918 to 1948 during the British Mandate in Palestine

The railway in Haifa 1929 before the building of the port near the Germqan Colony
A picture taken near Bat Galim junction of our days

History cinema theatres in Haifa בתי קולנוע שאינם עוד

Armon cinema קולנוע ארמון ברחוב הנביאים בהדר

Ron cinema קולנוע רון

ORA CINEMA קולנוע אורה בהדר

May cinema in Haddar קולנוע מאי בהדר

Atzmon cinema in Hddar קולנוע עצמון בהדר

"Bat Galim" neighborhood near the sea

Bat Galim a picture from the 60's

Bat galim (Daughter of the Waves) is a neighborhood of Haifa, Israel, located at the foot of Mt. Carmel on the Mediterranean coast. Bat Galim is known for its promenade and sandy beaches.

Bat Galim was the first point of Jewish settlement in modern Haifa. The neighborhood was established in the 1920s as a garden suburb of private homes designed by the Bauhaus architect Ricard Kaufmann. During the British Mandate, Bat Galim was Haifa's entertainment center. The "Casino," a landmark building on the Bat Galim promenade, housed a cafe patronized by British officers, although it was never used for gambling. A cable car runs between Bat Galim and Stella Maris on the Carmel.

Haifa old pictures from the 20's on

Some rare pictures of Haifa from the Ottoman era and the British Mandate from 1917 on to 1948.
Haifa pps

Haifa Port

Port of Haifa

The Port of Haifa lies on the shores of the Bay of Haifa on northern Israel’s coast on the Mediterranean Sea. On the slopes of Mount Carmel, the Port of Haifa is the third-largest city in Israel and the largest city in northern Israel. The UNESCO World Heritage Site Bahá’í World Center is located in Port of Haifa. Its population is a mix of Jews and Arabs, and in 2006, about 267 thousand people lived in the Port of Haifa.

The Port of Haifa is the country’s main port. First established by the British in 1933, Israel expanded the port substantially after independence. The major industries in today’s Port of Haifa include steel foundries, shipbuilding of smaller vessels, food processing, and the manufacture of chemicals, cement, and textiles. It is also home to oil refineries and a steam-driven power plant. The Port of Haifa also boasts Israel’s only subway.

Port History

During the 14th Century BC, a small port called Tell Abu Hawam was active in the region around the Port of Haifa. Greek explorer Scylax wrote about a city on Mount Carmel in the Persian era between the 6th and 4th Centuries BC. When the ancient port became silted, the port was moved to a new site to the south.

Tulmudic writings first mention the Port of Haifa in the 3rd Century AD when it was the home of some Jewish scholars and a small fishing village. At this time, Greeks were engaged in trade on the coast near the Port of Haifa. The Christian Bible also mentions the Kishon River and Mount Carmel.

At the top of Mount Carmel is the “Cave of Elijah,” a grotto associated with the prophet and Elisha, his apprentice. Mount Carmel’s highest peak is called Muhraka (place of burning) in Arabic, recalling the early Canaanite and Israelite times when burnt offerings were made on the hilltop. Early residents of the Port of Haifa made their living through fishing and agriculture.

Although it was never an important center, the Port of Haifa flourished under Byzantine rule. The Persians conquered the Port of Haifa in the 7th Century AD. When the Rashidun Caliphate dominated the Middle East after the death of the Prophet Muhammad, the Port of Haifa saw new development and expansion. During the 9th Century, the Abbasid Caliphates and Umayyad established trade with ports in Egypt, and the city contained some shipyards.

Under the control of the Caliphate, Arabs and Jews lived and worked together in maritime commerce and trade. By the 11th Century, the Port of Haifa was a prosperous mercantile center. Its most important industries were glass- and dye-making.

In 1100 AD, European Crusaders blockaded the Port of Haifa and besieged the town. After a terrible battle with Muslims and Jews, the Crusaders conquered the Port of Haifa. They reduced it to a small agricultural and fishing village, bringing it into the Principality of Galilee in their Kingdom of Jerusalem. In the 12th Century, the Carmelites built a church on Mount Carmel.

In 1187, the great Sultan Saladin destroyed the Crusader’s fortress. The Mamluks retook the Port of Haifa in 1265 and turned the Mount Carmel church into a mosque and, later, a hospital. The Mamluks destroyed the Port of Haifa’s fortifications and most of its homes to prevent the Crusaders’ return. This left the city more or less desolate during their rule from the 13th to the 16th Centuries.

Bedouin ruler Dhaher al-Omar demolished the old city and rebuilt Haifa in a new location in 1761, protecting it with a city wall. This was the beginning of the modern Port of Haifa. After he died in 1775, the Ottomans continued to rule Haifa until the end of World War I except for two brief times. Napoleon Bonaparte took the Port of Haifa in 1799, also withdrawing that year. Egyptian viceroy Muhammad Ali governed in 1831 and 1840.

After 1840, the Port of Haifa grew in importance and size. By 1854, over 2000 people lived there. More than half of them were Muslim, and over forty percent were Christian. Only 32 Jews lived in the Port of Haifa at that time.

German Templars arrived in the Port of Haifa in 1868 to settle in today’s German Colony of Haifa. This was a turning point for the Port of Haifa. They built a steam-based power plant and factories, and they started a carriage service to nearby cities.

Jews from Romania first came to the Port of Haifa in the late 1800s, purchasing more than a thousand acres of land near the port. Unaccustomed to farming, they hired Arab peasants to cultivate the land. During the 19th Century, the former Muslim mosque on Mount Carmel was re-converted to a Carmelite monastery.

In 1909, the remains of Báb were moved to nearby Acre, and a shrine to him was build on Mount Carmel. Today, the Port of Haifa is still a place of worship and pilgrimage for the Bahá’í faith. The Shrine of the Báb, administrative offices, and terraced gardens make up the Bahá’í World Center on the northern slope of Mount Carmel. The religion’s founder, Bahá’u’lláh, was imprisoned in the Port of Haifa by the Ottomans, making it an important site for the faith. In 2008, the Bahá’í World Center was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

By the early 20th Century, the Port of Haifa was recognized as an important industrial port with a growing population of about 20 thousand people, over 80% of them Muslim Arabs and only 4% Jews. Jewish immigration from Europe during the first half of the 20th Century dramatically changed that balance. By 1945, the Port of Haifa was 47% Jewish, 33% Muslim, and 20% Christian.

In 1947, the UN Partition Plan proposal made the Port of Haifa part of the new Jewish state of Israel. Arab leaders rejected the plan, and Haifa fell victim to the violence that broke out all over the country. When members of the Jewish underground bombed a crowd of Palestinian Arabs, rioting led to the killing of 39 Jewish employees of the Haifa Oil Refinery. Retaliating for the massacre, Jewish forces attacked an Arab village the next day, killing 60 Arab men.

Because it contained an oil refinery port, the Port of Haifa was an important target in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. In 1948 when the British withdrew from the Port of Haifa, a Haganah brigade captured the Port of Haifa, leading to a huge displacement of the Arab residents of The Port of Haifa. By the end of the year, a few thousand Arabs remained in the Port of Haifa after threats from Zionists, encouragement from Arab leaders, and shelling of Arab neighborhoods and villages.

After the 1948 war, the Port of Haifa became an important gateway for immigration. Thousands of Jewish immigrants were given homes that Arabs had abandoned, and new neighborhoods were built. A hospital and new synagogue were established. By 1953, the Port of Haifa had a master plan for transportation and layout.

Tel Aviv eclipsed the Port of Haifa as a regional center in the ensuing years, and the Port of Ashdod was opened, leading to a further decline in the Port of Haifa’s influence. Furthermore, the Israeli Ministry of Tourism focused on developing Tiberias, and the Port of Haifa lost tourist traffic as well.

By the 1970s, the population of the Port of Haifa was about 200 thousand, and immigration of about 35 thousand Jews from the former Soviet Union boosted that number. Over the years, many of the historic Ottoman buildings were destroyed under Israeli rule. In the 1990s, the Old City was demolished to build a new municipal center. In 2006, the conflict with Lebanon resulted in 93 rockets striking the Port of Haifa and killing 11 civilians and damaging the oil refinery.

The modern Port of Haifa is home to one of Israel’s two oil refineries. The refinery processes nine million tons of crude oil each year. The Port of Haifa is also home to the oldest and biggest business park in Israel, Matam containing contains manufacturing and research and development facilities for several high-tech companies including Intel, Microsoft, Google, IBM, and Yahoo, among others.

The Port of Haifa is still the leading passenger port in Israel. It is still an important cargo port, although it is challenged by the new Port of Ashdod in the south. The Port of Haifa contains many shopping malls and centers. The Port of Haifa has many hotels near its 17 kilometers of beaches. The Port of Haifa’s busiest tourist attraction is the Bahá’í World Center, and many tourists also visit the German Colony and Elijah’s Cave on Mount Carmel. The Port of Haifa is home to the Ein Hod artists’ colony and the Mount Carmel National Park containing caves where remains of Neanderthals and early Homo Sapiens have been found.

Port Commerce

The Port of Haifa has long been an important center for trade and shipping in the Mediterranean Sea. Sir Fredrick Palmer first surveyed the area for the British, confirming that it would be a good location for a deep-water port. The British Port of Haifa was opened in late 1933. It then became a gateway for tremendous immigration of Jews before the State of Israel was established. After independence, the Port of Haifa became Israel’s gateway to the world.

The Port of Haifa covers a large area and includes three main ports: the historic port, the eastern container terminal, and the Kishon Zone. The historic port is home to the western container terminal, piers for breakbulk and bulk cargoes, roll-on/roll-off piers, the Dagon grain silos, and a passenger terminal and piers. The eastern container terminal, on the Hof-Shemen coastline, is Israel’s most important container facility. The Kishon Zone contains breakbulk piers, cargo-handling facilities, a fishing wharf, and anchorage for yachts.

Lying on the southern shores of Haifa Bay, two breakwaters protect the Port of Haifa. The main breakwater to the northwest is almost three thousand meters long, and the lee breakwater to the east is 765 meters long. The entrance channel between the breakwaters is 183 meters wide and 13.8 meters deep.

The Port of Haifa’s Historic Port offers a total 3,330 meters of quays. It contains Quays 1-4 for general cargo, roll-on/roll-off cargo, and passengers. These quays are a total 500 meters long with alongside depths from 8 to 10 meters. Quays 5, 6, and 7 are dedicated to passengers. At a total 260 meters long with alongside depths from 10 to 11.5 meters, Quays 5 and 6 receive passenger ships. Quay 7 is 160 meters long with alongside depth of 11.5 meters, and it is dedicated to passengers.

Quays 8 and 9 support the automated grain terminal with a total 230 meters of wharf with alongside depth of 13.8 meters. At a total length of 400 meters with alongside depths from 8.5 to 10.5 meters, Quays 10, 11, and 12 serve the Western Container Terminal and bulk and roll-on/roll-off cargoes. The finger berth and roll-on/roll-off quay offers 400 meters of berthing space and alongside depth of 7.5 meters.

The oil jetty, also a finger berth, offers a total 800 meters of berthing space at 10.7 meters depth. Additional passenger and service ships offer a total of 560 berthing space at from 5.5 to 10 meters depth. The timber berth dolphin is 300 meters long with alongside depths from 10.2 to 10.8 meters. The main port area also contains a grain terminal with nominal storage capacity for 90 thousand tons. “Dagon” Israel Granaries Company Ltd. operates the grain silo.

The Eastern Container Terminal contains a 960-meter quay with alongside depth to 14 meters, and it covers 400 thousand square meters.

The Kishon Zone is east of the main port near the Kishon stream. It includes an external basin protected by two breakwaters and a 1045-meter-long channel. The Kishon Zone contains the fishing wharf and yacht anchorage. The channel is 80 meters wide at the entrance and 12 meters deep. The east Kishon Quay is 580 meters long with alongside depth to 11 meters. It includes a rear area of 20 hectares. The public uses the Kishon stream park as a tourist, recreational, and sports center.

At the Port of Haifa’s Northern and Southern Terminals are specialized facilities for handling and storing chemicals. The Northern Chemical Terminal on the north side of the Kishon Zone can accommodate three tankers at the same time with water depths at the quay ranging from 4.5 to 8.5 meters. At the end of the general cargo quay in the Kishon Zone is the Southern Chemical Terminal. The southern terminal is operated by Gadot Terminals Ltd. and contains about 70 storage tanks.

North of the port in Haifa Bay, an outer multi-buoy anchorage supports unloading of crude oil that is piped to a tank farm by underground pipeline. The storage tanks are located at the tank farm in Kiryat Haim.

Two kinds of travelers use the Port of Haifa: cruise ship and liner passengers. The Port of Haifa has a modern passenger terminal that can accommodate 600 thousand passengers a year. Located adjacent to a quay that allows three vessels to dock at the same time, the passenger terminal offers easy access to the railway, buses, and roads.

The Port of Haifa is home to Israel’s main container terminal that is a modern, efficient facility. Containers are handled at the new eastern quay and the existing western quay. In 2005, the Port of Haifa handled over 1.1 million TEUs of containerized cargo, representing 65% of all containers through Israeli ports. Also an important hub for container transshipments for the Mediterranean and Black seas, the Port of Haifa container terminal handles over 200 thousand TEUs of container transshipments per year.

In 2006, the Port of Haifa handled 19.2 million tons of cargo dominated by 11.5 million tons of containerized cargo. The Port of Haifa also handled 2.9 million tons of oil, 2.4 million tons of bulk grains, 987 thousand tons of liquid chemicals, 922 thousand tons of bulk in grabs, and 557 thousand tons of other cargoes.

Recent develop efforts, which were to have been completed by 2008, included increasing the capacity for container to 1.5 million TEUs per year, adding 25% to the Eastern Terminal storage capacity, adding storage space to the Hof Shemen and Kishon areas, applying TOS software to improve container terminal operations, and adding several new gantry cranes and other handling equipment at the Eastern and Western Terminals and the Kishon East Terminal.