The Battle of Merdjayoun took place during the Syria-Lebanon Campaign of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

from 19–24 June 1941 between

Vichy French Vichy France (french: Régime de Vichy; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was the fascist French state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II. Officially independent, but with half of its terr ...

and predominantly

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Au ...

Allied An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

forces in and near the Lebanese town of

Marjayoun Marjayoun ( ar, مرج عيون: Lebanese pronunciation), also Marj 'Ayoun, Marjuyun or Marjeyoun (lit. "meadow of springs") and Jdeideh / Jdeida / Jdeidet Marjeyoun, is a Lebanese town and an administrative district, the Marjeyoun District, in ...

Initial fighting

Australian forces advancing from the

British Mandate of Palestine British Mandate of Palestine or Palestine Mandate most often refers to: * Mandate for Palestine: a League of Nations mandate under which the British controlled an area which included Mandatory Palestine and the Emirate of Transjordan. * Mandatory P ...

entered Marjayoun on 11 June 1941 against badly equipped defenders, after which the majority of the Australian 25th Brigade was diverted north to attack

Jezzine Jezzine ( ''Jizzīn'') is a town in Lebanon, located from Sidon and south of Beirut. It is the capital of Jezzine District. Surrounded by mountain peaks, pine forests (like the Bkassine Pine Forest), and at an average altitude of 950 m (3 ...

, leaving a small force based around the 2/33rd Battalion to hold Merdjayoun. Following a strong Vichy French counterattack, this garrison was forced to withdraw south on 15 June. In the ensuing battle, Allied troops successfully defended the pass leading back to Palestine, and recaptured the town early on 24 June. The 7th Australian Division—commanded by Major-General Arthur "Tubby" Allen—was reinforced by units from the

6th Australian Division The 6th Division was an infantry division of the Australian Army. It was raised briefly in 1917 during World War I, but was broken up to provide reinforcements before seeing action. It was not re-raised until the outbreak of World War II, when ...

. On 20 June, the French Information Office (''Office Francais d'Information'', OFI) of the Vichy French government announced: "Yesterday the British attempted unsuccessfully to attack Damascus and Merjayoun,

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...

. Indian and British troops advanced in the area south and southeast of Damascus, but we succeeded in repulsing them in counterattacks by our armoured units and took 400 prisoners. Yesterday afternoon our troops warded off an enemy attack in the mountainous zone of southern Lebanon. We took 80 prisoners in this operation. Along the coast, the British fleet continued to bombard our positions." The 2/3rd Battalion of the 6th Division was part of the column sent to relieve elements of the

5th Indian Infantry Brigade The 5th Indian Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade formation of the Indian Army during World War II. It was converted from the 9th Indian Infantry Brigade in September 1939, and assigned to the 4th Indian Infantry Division. The brigade fi ...

Group which had been cut off and surrounded in Mezze, a western neighborhood of

Damascus )), is an adjective which means "spacious". , motto = , image_flag = Flag of Damascus.svg , image_seal = Emblem of Damascus.svg , seal_type = Seal , map_caption = , ...

, after the Battle of Damascus. They gallantly stormed the high ground near Mezze but in spite of their efforts the column were only able to fight their way into Mezze a few hours after the Allied defenders, out of ammunition and without food for the previous 50 hours, had been overrun. The 2/5th Australian Field Regiment was also part of the relief column. Lieutenant Arthur Roden (later Sir Roden) Cutler repeatedly engaged enemy tanks, enemy infantry, enemy anti-tank, and enemy machine posts with his 25-pounder field gun, his

Boys anti-tank rifle The Boys anti-tank rifle (officially Rifle, Anti-Tank, .55in, Boys, and sometimes incorrectly spelled "Boyes"), is a British anti-tank rifle used during the Second World War. It was often nicknamed the "elephant gun" by its users due to its si ...

, his

Bren The Bren gun was a series of light machine guns (LMG) made by Britain in the 1930s and used in various roles until 1992. While best known for its role as the British and Commonwealth forces' primary infantry LMG in World War II, it was also used ...

gun, or his .303 rifle. He later lost his leg during the

Battle of Damour The Battle of Damour (5–9 July 1941) was the final major operation of the Australian forces during the Syria-Lebanon Campaign of World War II. Background In 1941, Damour was the French administrative capital. Damour is a large town on the ...

, but was awarded the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

for his actions at both Merdjayoun and

Damour Damour ( ar, الدامور) is a Lebanese Christian town that is south of Beirut. The name of the town is derived from the name of the Phoenician god Damoros who symbolized immortality ( in Arabic). Damour also remained the capital of Mount ...

. Cutler is the only Australian artilleryman to ever been awarded the VC.

Follow-up

On 29 June, the Vichy French government announced in a communique: "The British Fleet has bombed our coastal positions in the Middle East. We have evacuated several of our bases in the mountains of southern Lebanon under cover of artillery fire which inflicted heavy losses on our assailants. Our aerial forces, supported by naval aircraft, repeatedly intervened in the ground fighting, especially around

Palmyra Palmyra (; Palmyrene: () ''Tadmor''; ar, تَدْمُر ''Tadmur'') is an ancient city in present-day Homs Governorate, Syria. Archaeological finds date back to the Neolithic period, and documents first mention the city in the early second ...

(Syria). A British colonel and 40 men were captured." On 30 June, the Headquarters of Lieutenant-General

Henry Maitland Wilson Field Marshal Henry Maitland Wilson, 1st Baron Wilson, (5 September 1881 – 31 December 1964), also known as Jumbo Wilson, was a senior British Army officer of the 20th century. He saw active service in the Second Boer War and then during the ...

(Allied commander in Lebanon and Syria) announced: "The Allied offensive against

Homs Homs ( , , , ; ar, حِمْص / ALA-LC: ; Levantine Arabic: / ''Ḥomṣ'' ), known in pre-Islamic Syria as Emesa ( ; grc, Ἔμεσα, Émesa), is a city in western Syria and the capital of the Homs Governorate. It is Metres above sea level ...

(Syria) is making substantial progress. An Australian squadron flying American-model aircraft, shot down a formation of six Vichy French Glenn Martin bombers in aerial combat. The Australians came back without losses to themselves."

Notes and references

Notes References *

Initial fighting

Follow-up

Notes and references

Further reading