Battle of Romani

The Battle of Romani (3–5 August 1916) was fought 23 miles (37 km) east of the Suez Canal, near the Egyptian town of Romani and the site of ancient Pelusium on the Sinai Peninsula during the First World War. This British Empire victory over a joint Ottoman and German force marked the end of the Defence of the Suez Canal campaign, also known as the Offensive zur Eroberung des Suezkanals and the İkinci Kanal Harekâtı, which had begun on 26 January 1915. While the Defence of Egypt campaign continued, the end of the Romani operations also marked the beginning of the Sinai and Palestine Campaign.

From late April 1916, after a German-led Ottoman force attacked British yeomanry at Katia, British Empire forces in the region at first doubled from one brigade to two and then grew as rapidly as the developing infrastructure could support them. The construction of the railway and a water pipeline soon enabled an infantry division to join the light horse and mounted rifle brigades at Romani. During the heat of summer, regular mounted patrols and reconnaissance were carried out from their base at Romani, while the infantry constructed an extensive series of defensive redoubts. On 19 July, the advance of a large German, Austrian and Ottoman force across the northern Sinai was reported. From 20 July until the battle began, the Australian 1st and 2nd Light Horse Brigades took turns pushing forward and harassing the advancing column.

During the night of 3/4 August 1916, the advancing force including the German Pasha I formation and the Ottoman 3rd Infantry Division launched an attack from Katia on Romani. Forward troops quickly became engaged with the 1st Light Horse Brigade's screen. During fierce fighting before dawn on 4 August, the light horsemen were forced to slowly retire. At daylight, their line was reinforced by the 2nd Light Horse Brigade, and about mid morning, the 5th Mounted Yeomanry Brigade and the New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade joined the battle. Together these four brigades managed to contain and direct the determined attackers into deep sand which was also within range of the strongly entrenched 52nd (Lowland) Division defending Romani and the railway. Coordinated resistance by all these British Empire formations, the deep sand, the heat and thirst prevailed, and the German, Austrian and Ottoman force's advance was checked. During the next morning, the attacking force fought strongly to maintain its positions, but by nightfall they had been pushed back to their starting point at Katia. The retiring force was pursued by the Anzac Mounted Division From 6 to 9 August, the Ottomans and Germans fought a number of strong rearguard actions against the advancing Australian, British and New Zealand light horse, yeomanry and mounted rifle brigades. The pursuit ended on 12 August, when the German and Ottoman force abandoned their base at Bir el Abd and retreated back to El Arish. This substantial British Empire victory, the first against the Ottoman Empire in the war, ensured the safety for the Suez Canal from ground attacks, and ended the Central Powers' ambitions of disrupting traffic through the canal by gaining control of the strategically important northern approaches to the Suez Canal. Thereafter, the British Empire mounted forces were on the offensive, pursuing the German and Ottoman army many miles across the Sinai Peninsula and reversing in a most emphatic manner the defeat suffered at Katia three months earlier.