Beersheba

The Australian Light Horse had been fighting the Turks in the deserts of Sinai and Palestine. Lighthorsemen helped defend the Suez Canal against Turkish forces in 1916 before advancing across the Sinai desert.

Beersheba, a heavily fortified town 43 km from the Turkish bastion of Gaza, was the scene of an historic charge by the 4th Light Horse Brigade on 31 October 1917. Beersheba anchored the right end of a defensive line that stretched all the way from Gaza on the Mediterranean coast. After two failed attempts to attack Gaza frontally it was decided to outflank it by turning the Turkish line around Beersheba.

During 1917 the Australian Light Horse fought with British forces to drive the Turks out of their defences between Gaza and Beersheba. This advance included a dramatic charge at Beersheba on 31 October. By December, Jerusalem had been captured.

The Australian Royal Air Force
The Australian Flying Corps provided four squadrons in the air war; one served in the Middle East and three others on the Western Front. Australians also flew with the British Royal Flying Corps.