معركة جزين (1941)
| Battle of Jezzine (1941) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| جزء من the Syria-Lebanon Campaign of World War II | |||||||
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| المتحاربون | |||||||
 أستراليا | |||||||
| الوحدات المشاركة | |||||||
| 2/31st Battalion | |||||||
The Battle of Jezzine (13 June 1941) was part of the Australian 7th Division's advance on Beirut during the five-week-long Syria-Lebanon campaign by the Allies against Vichy French forces in Syria and Lebanon. Jezzine, Lebanon, is about halfway between the Lebanese border with Mandatory Palestine and Beirut.[1][2]
This battle was one of several hard-fought actions during the Australian advance on Beirut from Mandatory Palestine.[3][4] Australian troops from the 25th Brigade (less the 2/33rd Battalion) attacked Jezzine on 13 June 1941, following the capture of Merdjayoun, which the Allies temporarily captured on 11 June 1941, allowing the commander of the Australian 7th Division, Major General John Lavarack to switch the 25th Brigade's focus north towards Jezzine, leaving a small force to hold Merdjayoun, which was later subjected to a heavy counter-attack.[5]
During the fighting for Jezzine, when his company suffered casualties from intense machine gun fire, Private Jim Gordon, 2/31st Battalion, took it upon himself to crawl forward and neutralise the Vichy position with rifle and bayonet. Gordon, originally from Rockingham, Western Australia, was awarded the Victoria Cross for his actions near Jezzine.[6] Jezzine Barracks in Townsville, Queensland, is named after this battle.[7] Jezzine was later captured on the evening of 14 June.[8]
Further west, on the coast, the Australian 21st Brigade attacked Sidon between 13 and 15 June, as part of the drive on Damour.[9] The day after Sidon fell, the Australians cut the road between Sidon and Jezzine.[10]
References
Citations
- ^ "Battle Honours of the Australian Army: World War II – Syria" (PDF). Army History Unit. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 يونيو 2011. Retrieved 30 أغسطس 2011.
- ^ "Jezzine". Australian War Memorial. Retrieved 3 ديسمبر 2014.
- ^ Dean, Peter J. (2008). "Man of might: Brigadier Berryman and the battles of Merdjayoun and Jezzine, Syria, 1941". Research Online: Arts Papers and Journal Articles. University of Notre Dame Australia. Retrieved 1 فبراير 2017.
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - ^ "2/31st Battalion". Australian War Memorial. Retrieved 26 يناير 2019.
- ^ Coulthard-Clark 1998, p. 191.
- ^ "Road to Damascus". Australia's War 1939–1945. Commonwealth of Australia: Department of Veterans' Affairs. Archived from the original on 18 أبريل 2015. Retrieved 3 ديسمبر 2014.
- ^ "Jezzine Barracks Museum Proposal" (PDF). North Australian Military Heritage Association. 30 نوفمبر 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 مارس 2016. Retrieved 4 مايو 2009.
- ^ Sutton, David (2022). Syria and Lebanon 1941: The Allied Fight against the Vichy French (in English). United Kingdom: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 978-1472843845.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link) - ^ Dennis et al 1995, p. 578.
- ^ Harriott, G.E.W. (17 يونيو 1941). "Australians' Hard Fighting in Battle of Sidon". The Courier Mail (Brisbane, Queensland: 1933–1954). National Library of Australia (Trove). Retrieved 4 فبراير 2017.
Bibliography
- Coulthard-Clark, Chris (1998). Where Australians Fought: The Encyclopaedia of Australia's Battles (1st ed.). St Leonards, New South Wales: Allen & Unwin. ISBN 1-86448-611-2.
- Dennis, Peter; Grey, Jeffrey; Morris, Ewan; Prior, Robin (1995). The Oxford Companion to Australian Military History. Melbourne: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-553227-9.