Fao Landing

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Fao Landing
Part of the Mesopotamian Campaign of World War I
Map showing the initial British attack and capture of Basra, 1914.
Date 6–8 November 1914 Location Al-Faw, Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq) 29°55′41″N 48°27′58″E / 29.928041°N 48.466148°E / 29.928041; 48.466148 Result British victory
Belligerents
British Empire  United Kingdom	Ottoman Empire
Commanders and leaders
Brigadier General W.S. Delamain	Javid Pasha
Units involved
1 Brigade Landing party of Royal Marines	Elements of 38th Division, Iraq Area Command
Casualties and losses
Light, including one officer	300 captured 135 dead

The Fao Landing occurred from 6 November to 8 November 1914 with British forces attacking the Ottoman stronghold of

The landing and capture of Fao was a strategic blunder for the Ottomans from which they would never truly recover as evidenced by the subsequent string of defeats suffered by the Empire at the hands of the British in the following year. The Ottomans also no longer controlled a key access point to the Persian Gulf, and the British facilities were largely safe. However, the British felt that their facilities would not be truly safe until they managed to capture Baghdad. This led to several campaigns against Baghdad that would result in the capture of that city by the British in 1917.^[5]

In popular culture

• The Fao Landing and the subsequent battle for the fortress are featured in the video game Battlefield 1.

References