Pyramids and Fleshpots

The Egyptian, Senussi and Eastern Mediterranean Campaigns, 1914 - 16

Personnel serving in Egypt in World War I often complained that the popular impression of the campaigns, still widely held, was that it was a sideshow, with troops enjoying a holiday among the pyramids and the "fleshpots" of Cairo. Actually they faced appalling heat, abrasive sand, poor rations, and water shortages. In the desolation of the Western Desert they fought the Senussi, an Islamic sect supported by the Ottomans in a reversal of Lawrence's later work with the Arabs, while in the Sinai Desert they countered German-backed moves to dominate this strategically important area. Meanwhile, the Royal Navy fought to keep the supply lines to Gallipoli open, and keep men and material flowing to France from India, Australia, and New Zealand. This book will tell the true story of their experiences and achievements in fighting a determined enemy to protect the Suez Canal—the lifeline of the Empire.