The King's Own in Mesopotamia 1916-1918

Published by the Kings Own Museum in 2005, 28 pages. A5 size booklet (N4014)

From the rear side cover: The 6th Battalion King's Own Royal Lancaster Regiment was raised in 1914 as a result of Kitchener's appeal for 100,000 volunteers and served in Gallipoli between July and December 1915, when it was withdrawn to Egypt along with the remainder of the Allied force.

In 1914 a British force from India had been sent to Persia and mesopotamia to protect oil supplies, but after initial success the force under General Townshend was defeated at Ctesiphon, near modern day Baghdad and retreated to Kut where, in 1915, it was besieged by the Turks. In February 1916 the 4th Battalion left Egypt as part of a force aiming to relieve Kut.

This booklet is the story of the 6th King's Own in Mesopotamia (modern day Iraq), in the First World War

The King's Own Royal Regiment (Lancaster) was an infantry regiment in the British Army which served under various names for almost three centuries. The regiment was established in 1680 as the Earl of Plymouth's Regiment of Foot, and several years later was reorganised as the 4th (King's Own) Regiment of Foot. The regiment retained this name until the 1880's when it became The King's Own (Royal Lancaster Regiment), and in the period following the First World War it was renamed The King's Own Royal Regiment (Lancaster). In 1959 the Regiment was merged with several others to form the newly created Kings Own Royal Border Regiment.

During it's long and illustrious service the regiment fought in many wars, battles and campaigns, and it's history illustrates the wider history of the British Empire, as Britain and it's army spread around the globe. The regiment fought in the War of the Augsburg League at the end of the 17th century, and saw action at Gibraltar in 1704. At the battle of Culloden the regiment sustained heavy losses, and it also saw action in the Caribbean in the second half of the century. During the Napoleonic Wars the regiment fought in many battles, including Corunna, Badajoz, Salamanca, Vittoria, San Sebastian, Bladensburg, and Waterloo. The regiment was active throughout the 19th century, seeing service in the Crimean War (at Alma, Inkerman and Sevastopol), and during the Boer War.

During the First World War the regiment served on the western front, as well as in Greece, Turkey, and Mesopotamia (which is the subject of this booklet), and during the Second World War, they saw action in several campaigns, including France, the Middle East, North Africa, Italy, and the Far-East.

Condition of the booklet is generally good. The covers have some minor scuffs and wear, but the staple spine is intact, and all pages are intact, unblemished and bound. Their is a price sticker on the rear side cover