When the Tsar abdicated in 1917, the Allies realised that the dynamics of their fight
against the axis powers of Germany, Austria the Ottoman Empire had shifted. Many
Russian soldiers simply made their way home – they had a revolution to attend to.
The new situation left politicians and generals facing many problems – not least, the
future of Baku (then in Russia on the Caspian Sea now the capital of Azerbaijan) and
its extensive oilfield which supplied half of the world’s oil. They feared a power
vacuum would develop, and the Ottoman Turks would simply move in and seize this
valuable resource.
In his second HHS lecture, Nick Higham told the extraordinary story of the top-secret plan that involved assembling a motley collection of soldiers and adventurers to travel to Central Asia with a hoard of cash and gold. They had instructions to recruit and train an army to fight off the expected Turkish assualt.
The Dunsterforce
Nick’s narrative (delivered with no notes and nearly 100 slides) reminded one of a Boy’s Own story from the period – daring deeds, treachery, unspeakable acts of betrayal and violence with astonishing feats of travel and endurance.
The characters involved (known as The Dunsterforce and named after the expedition leader General Lionel Dunsterville) were as eccentric as anything the Empire had ever produced. One drove into battle in France in his own sports car which he had customised with a machine gun mounted over the bonnet!
Many thanks to Nick for a hugely entertaining evening.
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Image credits
Nick Higham and Mavericks via Speaker’s collection
Nick Higham, via Author’s collection