The First World War in the Middle East
The single case study on this theme,“British Forces in the Middle East”, utilizes a variety of resources, mainly drawn from the World War I collection. The campaigns in Mesopotamia, the Dardanelles, Egypt and Palestine are all reflected in McMaster's archival holdings which, as the case study illustrates, contain first hand observations from the soldiers involved.
Some of the archives used in this theme pertain to other themes as well. For example, some of the William Bailey materials (when he was not in the Middle East) appear in other themes. Album 36, “Mesopotamia and Bombay”, contains some photographs which have been digitized for the sub-theme Life Away from the Front in The Soldier’s Life.
The section on British Forces in the Middle East is really interesting. It is really fascinating to see the vast geographic scale that Wolrd War One was fought on. Usually, the Western Front is given more prominence in the study of WWI, but this material provides another perspective. This material will beneficially for understanding the current situation of the Middle East.
This is a fantastic history lesson! It's interesting to see from various aspects of the wars in the past and really draw from the experience. Regardless of the reason, personally I believe wars should be the last thing on anyone's minds.
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