'HISTORY OF THE GREAT WAR BASED ON OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS. THE CAMPAIGN IN MESOPOTAMIA 1914-1918. VOLUME I.' [‎149r] (302/454)

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VIEWS ON FURTHER ADVANCE 273
Nasiriya. On the 14th June the total Turkish strength in
Mesopotamia was estimated at fifteen thousand regulars with
thirty-four guns; they were reported to be faced with serious
disorder at Baghdad and Najaf ; and were said to be with
drawing troops from their Caucasus force to defend the Dardan
elles and Constantinople. Against a move to Kut, the main
questions to be considered were the adequacy of General
Nixon’s force and the efficiency of the available river transport
for its maintenance.
To what extent the above opinion influenced Sir Beauchamp
Duff is uncertain, but on the 19th he ordered his Chief of the
General Staff to telegraph to General Nixon asking for a
thorough appreciation, in regard to the advisability of occupy
ing Kut, to be sent to India by post. At the same time,
General Nixon was warned that in this appreciation he must
show clearly whether he was convinced of his ability not only
to hold Kut with the troops then at his disposal, but also to
feed and maintain them there under all conditions of the
river. To this, General Nixon replied on the 24th in a lengthy
memorandum, which will be dealt with later.
Lord Hardinge does not seem to have been aware of this
discussion, for on the 24th he wrote in a private letter to
Mr. Chamberlain that General Nixon had asked for reinforce
ments to enable him to advance to Kut and had been told
at once that he could have no more troops ; since when they
had heard nothing more from him on the subject. Mr. Cham
berlain himself was at this period rather anxious about General
Nixon’s intentions. In a private letter of the 25th to Lord
Hardinge, he wrote: “ I hope that Nixon fully realises how short
you are of troops and the extreme difficulty there would be
in reinforcing him. It is difficult from a distance to say when
a forward movement increases our responsibilities and when it
is in fact the best measure of defence. Provided he under
stands clearly the governing circumstances of the situation
and does not embark on new operations in the belief that he can
call for more troops whenever he wishes, I shall be satisfied to
rely in the main on his judgment. But it would be dangerous
to allow him to suppose that there are large resources on which
he could draw.”
During June the situation in Persia had grown worse ,
and on the 24th General Nixon was informed by India that
he might be called upon to reinforce Bushire at short notice,
as Wassmuss, the German agent, was doing his best to induce
the local tribes to attack the British Residency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, established in the provinces and regions considered part of, or under the influence of, British India. there. On
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