the General Staff, E.E.F.

X

The men of units forming the XXth Corps were deeply gratified to
receive this commendation from their gallant Corps Commander:

SPECIAL ORDER OF THE DAY

BY

LIEUTENANT-GENERAL SIR PHILIP W. CHETWODE, BT.,
K.C.M.G., C.B., D.S.O., _commanding XXth Corps_

HEADQUARTERS, XXTH CORPS,
_13th December_ 1917.

Now that the efforts of General Sir E.H.H. Allenby's
Army have been crowned by the capture of Jerusalem, I
wish to express to all ranks, services, and departments of the
XXth Army Corps my personal thanks and my admiration
for the soldierly qualities they have displayed.

I have served as a regimental officer in two campaigns,
and no one knows better than I do what the shortness of
food, the fatigue of operating among high mountains, and
the cold and wet has meant to the fighting troops. But in
spite of it all, and at the moment when the weather was
at its worst, they responded to my call and drove the
enemy in one rush through his last defences and beyond
Jerusalem.

A fine performance, and I am intensely proud of having
had the honour of commanding such a body of men.

I wish to give special praise to the Divisional Ammunition
Columns, Divisional Trains A.S.C., Supply Services, Mechanical
Transport personnel, Camel Transport personnel, and to
the Royal Army Medical Corps and all services whose continuous
labour, day and night, almost without rest, alone
enabled the fighting troops to do what they did.

SPECIAL ORDER OF THE DAY

HEADQUARTERS, XXTH CORPS,
31_st December_ 1917.

I have again to thank the XXth Corps and to express to
them my admiration of their bravery and endurance during
the three days' fighting on December 27, 28, and 29.

The enemy made a determined attempt with two corps
to retake Jerusalem, and while their finest assault troops
melted away before the staunch defence of the 53rd and
60th Divisions, the 10th and 74th were pressing forward
over the most precipitous country, brushing aside all opposition
in order to relieve the pressure on our right.

Their efforts were quickly successful, and by the evening
of the 27th we had definitely regained the initiative, and
I was able to order a general advance.

The final result of the three days' fighting was a gain to
us of many miles and extremely heavy losses to the enemy.

A fine three days' work.