Colonial and World War I · 1917

Fall of Jerusalem

Allenby walked into the city on 11 December 1917. After four centuries of Ottoman rule, Jerusalem passed to Britain.

The site of the battle on the 1923 map. Shaded: Republic of Turkey, 1923, French mandate, British mandate or occupation, British protection or influence.

Key facts

When: 1917
Where: Jerusalem
Sides: British Empire vs Ottomans
Commanders: Edmund Allenby vs the Ottoman Seventh Army
Result: British victory
Type: Colonial and World War I
Chapter: 5. The Ottomans

The wider picture: The end of the caliphate

The Ottomans entered the First World War on Germany's side and lost. Britain and France divided the Arab lands under the Sykes-Picot agreement and the mandates that followed, and British troops entered Jerusalem in December 1917. In Anatolia, Mustafa Kemal won the war of independence and declared a republic in October 1923.

See the 1923 map Read chapter 5

More colonial and world war i battles

All 14 colonial wars and world war i battles · Battle explorer

Spotted a mistake on this page? Tell us