Iraqforce was a British and

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...

formation that came together in the

Kingdom of Iraq The Hashemite Kingdom of Iraq was the Iraqi state located in the Middle East from 1932 to 1958. It was founded on 23 August 1921 as the Kingdom of Iraq, following the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in the Mesopotamian campaign of the First World W ...

. The formation fought in the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Background

During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

defeated the

Ottoman Army The Military of the Ottoman Empire () was the armed forces of the Ottoman Empire. It was founded in 1299 and dissolved in 1922. Army The Military of the Ottoman Empire can be divided in five main periods. The foundation era covers the years ...

in the

during the

Mesopotamian Campaign The Mesopotamian campaign or Mesopotamian front () was a campaign in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I fought between the British Empire, with troops from United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Britain, Australia and the vast major ...

. Subsequently, the

League of Nations The League of Nations (LN or LoN; , SdN) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference (1919–1920), Paris Peace ...

designated

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia is a historical region of West Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the Fertile Crescent. Today, Mesopotamia is known as present-day Iraq and forms the eastern geographic boundary of ...

as the

British Mandate of Mesopotamia The Mandate for Mesopotamia () was a proposed League of Nations mandate to cover Ottoman Iraq (Mesopotamia). It would have been entrusted to the United Kingdom but was superseded by the Anglo-Iraqi Treaty, an agreement between Britain and Ira ...

. From 1920 to the early 1930s,

RAF Iraq Command Iraq Command was the Royal Air Force (RAF) commanded British Armed Forces, inter-service Command (military formation), command in charge of United Kingdom, British forces in Iraq in the 1920s and early 1930s, during the period of the British Man ...

was created as an inter-service

command Command may refer to: Computing * Command (computing), a statement in a computer language * command (Unix), a Unix command * COMMAND.COM, the default operating system shell and command-line interpreter for DOS * Command key, a modifier key on A ...

in charge of all

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

forces in the mandate-controlled

and was commanded by an RAF officer normally of

Air Vice-Marshal Air vice-marshal (Air Vce Mshl or AVM) is an air officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometime ...

rank. In 1932, the British mandate in Iraq ended and according to the Anglo-Iraqi Treaty of 1930, the United Kingdom was permitted to maintain troops in Iraq. In 1933 or 1934, RAF Iraq Command was renamed the British Forces in Iraq. By the late 1930s, these forces were restricted to two

Royal Air Force station This list of Royal Air Force stations is an overview of all current stations of the Royal Air Force (RAF) throughout the United Kingdom and overseas. This includes front-line and training airbases, support, administrative and training statio ...

s, RAF Shaibah near

Basra Basra () is a port city in Iraq, southern Iraq. It is the capital of the eponymous Basra Governorate, as well as the List of largest cities of Iraq, third largest city in Iraq overall, behind Baghdad and Mosul. Located near the Iran–Iraq bor ...

and RAF Habbaniya west of

Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...

. On 1 April 1941, during World War II, Rashid Ali seized power in Iraq via a

coup d'état A coup d'état (; ; ), or simply a coup , is typically an illegal and overt attempt by a military organization or other government elites to unseat an incumbent leadership. A self-coup is said to take place when a leader, having come to powe ...

. Ali was supported by three senior Royal Iraqi Army officers and one Royal Iraqi Air Force officer, known as the

Golden Square Golden Square, in Soho, the City of Westminster, London, is a mainly hardscaped garden square planted with a few mature trees and raised borders in Central London flanked by classical office buildings. Its four approach ways are north and so ...

. Rashid Ali proclaimed himself Chief of the National Defence Government. His new government was immediately recognised by

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

; it was openly pro-

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

and anti-British.

Nomenclature

The ground forces from

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

that landed in Basra were initially known as Sabine Force ( Major-General William Fraser). From 8 May 1941, Fraser was replaced and the forces in Basra were commanded by Lieutenant-General Edward Quinan. On 18 June, Quinan was placed in command of all ground forces in Iraq which included ''Sabine Force'' and British Forces in Iraq as ''Iraqforce''. From 21 June, ''Iraqforce'' was called Iraq Command.Lyman, p.19 On 1 September 1941, after

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

(modern

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

) was invaded, ''Iraq Command'' was renamed "Persia and Iraq Force" (PAI Force).MacMunn, passim ''PAI Force'' was still commanded by Quinan and he still reported to India Command. ''Iraqforce'' was variously responsible to GHQ India,

Middle East Command Middle East Command, later Middle East Land Forces, was a British Army Command established prior to the Second World War in Egypt. Its primary role was to command British land forces and co-ordinate with the relevant naval and air commands to ...

and then Persia and Iraq Command.

Prelude

''Sabine Force'' was despatched from

Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...

by GHQ India to seize the port of Basra and to supplement the British Forces in Iraq at RAF Shaibah and RAF Habbaniya. British

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...

saw Basra as a major supply base in the future for material from the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. Churchill did not recognise Rashid Ali's "National Defence Government" as legitimate. Churchill also wanted to reinstate a more compliant Iraqi government and to protect British interests in Iraq, notably the oilfields of which the British-owned Anglo-Persian Oil Company was concession holder. On 18 April, a brigade from Karachi landed and captured Basra; on 30 April, a second brigade arrived. The Rashid Ali government demanded that the British forces be removed from Iraq and Iraqi forces took up positions around RAF Habbaniya. On 2 May, British aircraft from Habbaniya launched a surprise attack on Iraqi forces throughout the country.

Military operations

Anglo-Iraqi War

During the ensuing war, a force from the British Mandate of Palestine, known as ''Habbaniya Force'' (shortened to '' Habforce''), advanced into Iraq from Transjordan. ''Habforce'', with '' Kingcol'' in the lead, was to relieve the British garrison forces besieged at the Royal Air Force treaty base at RAF Habbaniya. The threat to Habbaniya was removed by actions of the garrison before any elements of ''Habforce'' arrived. After it arrived, ''Habforce'' and a portion of the Habbaniya garrison then advanced through

Fallujah Fallujah ( ) is a city in Al Anbar Governorate, Iraq. Situated on the Euphrates, Euphrates River, it is located roughly to the west of the capital city of Baghdad and from the neighboring city of Ramadi. The city is located in the region ...

to capture Baghdad. By 31 May, an armistice had been signed and the government collapsed. From early May, the troops in Iraq were under the operational control of Army Headquarters, Middle East Command in Cairo, reverting to India command on 18 June. From 21 June, ''Iraqforce'' became known as the ''Iraq Command''.

Syria-Lebanon Campaign

In June and July 1941, after Iraq was secured, elements of ''Iraqforce''/''Iraq Command'' took part in the Syria–Lebanon campaign and, while active in Syria, they once more came under the authority of the Cairo Headquarters.

Anglo-Soviet Invasion of Persia

PikiWiki Israel 4214 Israel Defense Forces

In late August 1941, ''Iraq Command'' conducted the Anglo-Soviet invasion of Persia, in conjunction with forces advancing from the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

. A new formation, ''Hazelforce'', based on the 2nd Indian Armoured Brigade was formed within ''Iraq Command'' during this effort. On 1 September, after Persia (modern Iran) was secured, ''Iraq Command'' was renamed "Persia and Iraq Force" or ''Paiforce''. ''Paiforce'' was still commanded by Quinan and he still reported to India Command. In January 1942, Persia and Iraq once again came under Middle East Command and, in February 1942, Quinan's headquarters was re-designated as Tenth Army. In 1942, with the growing threat from the German advance in the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...

, it was felt that the area should come under a General Headquarters which could bring a specific focus to the area. Previous experience of controlling the area from Cairo and Delhi had not proved ideal and both these General Headquarters were by this time fully committed in the

Western Desert Campaign The Western Desert campaign (Desert War) took place in the Sahara Desert, deserts of Egypt and Libya and was the main Theater (warfare), theatre in the North African campaign of the Second World War. Military operations began in June 1940 with ...

and to the

Burma Campaign The Burma campaign was a series of battles fought in the British colony of British rule in Burma, Burma as part of the South-East Asian theatre of World War II. It primarily involved forces of the Allies of World War II, Allies (mainly from ...

respectively. In August 1942, it was decided therefore, as part of the changes made bringing in

Alexander Alexander () is a male name of Greek origin. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here ar ...

and Montgomery to Middle East Command and Auchinleck to India Command, to create a new Persia and Iraq Command, to be led by

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

Sir Maitland Wilson and based in Baghdad.

Orders of battle

Iraq, May 1941

Commanded by Major-General William Fraser (until 8 May).

Lieutenant-General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was normall ...

Edward Quinan (from 8 May). * 10th Indian Infantry Division - Major-General W.A.K. Fraser (until 16 May). Major-General William Slim (from 16 May).Mackenzie, p. 101 ** 13th Duke of Connaught's Own Lancers (reconnaissance regiment in armoured cars) ** 3rd Field Regiment

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

** 32nd Field Regiment Royal Artillery ** 157th Field Regiment Royal Artillery ** 20th Indian Infantry Brigade-

Brigadier Brigadier ( ) is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore (rank), commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several t ...

Donald Powell *** 2nd battalion

8th Gurkha Rifles The 8th Gorkha Rifles is a Gorkha regiment of the Indian Army. It was raised in 1824 as part of the British East India Company and later transferred to the British Indian Army after the Indian Rebellion of 1857. The regiment served in World War I ...

*** 2nd battalion 7th Gurkha Rifles *** 3rd battalion 11th Sikh Regiment **

21st Indian Infantry Brigade The 21st Indian Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade formation of the Indian Army during World War II. History It was converted from the Quetta Brigade in September 1940, and assigned to the 9th Indian Infantry Division. In March 1941, ...

- Brigadier Charles Weld *** 4th battalion 13th Frontier Force Rifles *** 2nd battalion 4th Gurkha Rifles *** 2nd battalion 10th Gurkha Rifles **

25th Indian Infantry Brigade The 25th Indian Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade formation of the Indian Army during World War II. It was formed in February 1941 at Ahmednagar in British Raj, India and assigned to the 10th Indian Infantry Division. The brigade was attac ...

- Brigadier Ronald Mountain *** 3rd battalion 9th Jat Regiment *** 2nd Royal battalion 11th Sikh Regiment *** 1st battalion 5th Mahratta Light Infantry * Ground Forces at RAF Habbaniya -

Harry Smart (until 5 May). Colonel Ouvry Roberts (from 5 May). ** 1st battalion

The King's Own Royal Regiment (Lancaster) The King's Own Royal Regiment (Lancaster) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army. It served under various titles and fought in many wars and conflicts, including both the World War I, First and the World War II, Second World Wars, from ...

** 1,200 Assyrian and Iraqi Levies - Lieutenant-Colonel J. A. Brawn ** Number 1 Armoured Car Company RAF * '' Habforce'' commanded by Major-General John ClarkMaritn, p. 44 ** Mechanized squadron of the Transjordan Frontier Force - Refused to enter Iraq and were disarmed. ** Detachment of the

Arab Legion The Arab Legion () was the police force, then regular army, of the Emirate of Transjordan, a British protectorate, in the early part of the 20th century, and then of the Jordan, Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, an independent state, with a final Ar ...

- John Glubb ''"Glubb Pasha"'' ** Striking force '' Kingcol'' - Brigadier James Kingstone *** 4th Cavalry Brigade - Lieutenant-Colonel Andrew Ferguson **** Composite Household Cavalry Regiment **** The Warwickshire Yeomanry **** The Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry *** 237th Battery 60th Field Regiment,

*** A & D Companies, 1st Battalion

Essex Regiment The Essex Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 to 1958. The regiment served in many conflicts such as the Second Boer War and both World War I and World War II, serving with distinction in all three. ...

- Major K. F. May - Accompanied by two Bren gun carriers. Personnel carried in transport of the

Royal Army Service Corps The Royal Army Service Corps (RASC) was a corps of the British Army responsible for land, coastal and lake transport, air despatch, barracks administration, the Army Fire Service, staffing headquarters' units, supply of food, water, fuel and do ...

. *** One anti-tank troop, Royal Artillery *** Number 2 Armoured Car Company RAF *** Two supply companies,

** Main Body - Lieutenant-Colonel John Nichols, MC *** Headquarters 1st Cavalry Division (elements) *** 1st Battalion Essex Regiment *** 60th Field Regiment, Royal Artillery *** One Battery of anti-tank guns, Royal Artillery Formed from existing units in early June: * '' Gocol'' - R. E. S. Gooch * '' Mercol'' - E. J. H. Merry * '' Harcol'' - R. J. Hardy Arriving At Basra on 9 June:Lyman, p. 88 * 17th Indian Infantry Brigade (detached from 8th Indian Infantry Division) - Brigadier Douglas Gracey ** 1st Battalion

Royal Fusiliers The Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in continuous existence for 283 years. It was known as the 7th Regiment of Foot until the Childers Reforms of 1881. The regiment served in many war ...

** 1st Battalion (Prince of Wales Own Sikhs) 12th Frontier Force Regiment ** 1st Battalion 5th Royal Gurkha Rifles Arriving at Basra on 16 June: *

24th Indian Infantry Brigade . The 24th Indian Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade formation of the Indian Army during World War II. The brigade was formed in February 1941, in India and at first assigned to the 10th Indian Infantry Division, and fought in the Anglo-I ...

- Brigadier Roger Le Fleming ** 2nd Battalion

6th Rajputana Rifles The 6th Rajputana Rifles was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. Formed in 1921, it initially consisted of five active battalions and one training battalion. History Formation and class composition In 1921, the British Indian Army ...

** The Kumaon Rifles ** 5th Battalion 5th Mahratta Light Infantry

Syria: June–July 1941

Commanded by Lieutenant General Edward Quinan During the Syria–Lebanon Campaign Iraqforce consisted of: * 10th Indian Infantry Division -Major-General William Slim ** 20th Indian Infantry Brigade - Brigadier Donald Powell ** 21st Indian Infantry Brigade - Brigadier C. J. Weld ** 25th Indian Infantry Brigade - Brigadier Ronald Mountain * 17th Indian Infantry Brigade (detached from 8th Indian Infantry Division) - Brigadier Douglas Gracey * ''Habforce'' - Major-General J. G. W. Clark ** 4th Cavalry Brigade - Brigadier J. J. Kingstone ** 1st Battalion The Essex Regiment **

Mechanized Regiment ** 237th Battery 60th Field Regiment, Royal Artillery ** An Australian battery of 2 pounder anti-tank guns ** 169th Light Anti-aircraft Battery

Iran: August–September 1941

Commanded by Lieutenant General Edward Quinan During the Anglo-Soviet invasion of Persia (Iran) Iraqforce was renamed Paiforce, consisting of: * 10th Indian Infantry Division - Major-General William Slim (took overall command of the ground forces) * 8th Indian Infantry Division - commanded by Major-General Charles Harvey ** 18th Indian Infantry Brigade - Brigadier Rupert Lochner **

19th Indian Infantry Brigade The 19th Indian Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade formation of the Indian Army during World War II. It was formed in 1 October, 1940 at Old Delhi in India and assigned to the 8th Indian Infantry Division. In August 1941, they took part i ...

- Brigadier Charles Ford ** 24th Indian Infantry Brigade (until 11 September) - Brigadier Roger Le Fleming ** 25th Indian Infantry Brigade (detached from 10th Indian Infantry Division) - Brigadier Ronald Mountain ** 13th Duke of Connaught's Own Lancers * ''Hazelforce'' - Brigadier John Aizlewood ** 2nd Indian Armoured Brigade Group - Brigadier John Aizlewood ** 9th Armoured Brigade (formerly the 4th Cavalry Brigade) - Brigadier John Currie ** 21st Indian Infantry Brigade (detached from 10th Indian Infantry Division) - Brigadier C. J. Weld * 6th Indian Infantry Division (from 11 September) - Major-General James Thomson ** 17th Queen Victoria's Own Cavalry (Poona Horse) ** 27th Indian Infantry Brigade - Brigadier Alan Blaxland ** 24th Indian Infantry Brigade (transferred from 8th Indian Infantry Division) - Brigadier Roger Le Fleming

Notes

Footnotes Citations

References

* * * * * * officially published in * in *

External links

* * Ravi Rikhye
India: Paiforce 1942–43
http://www.orbat.com, June 2002 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Iraqforce 1941 establishments in the United Kingdom Military units and formations established in 1941 1942 disestablishments in the United Kingdom Military units and formations disestablished in 1942 Military units and formations of the British Army in World War II Ad hoc units and formations of the British Army Military history of India during World War II Middle East theatre of World War II Iraq in World War II World War II orders of battle Iraq–United Kingdom relations Anglo-Iraqi War