Fall of Baghdad (1917) - Consequences

Consequences

This was clearly a victory for the British and yet another defeat for the Ottoman government. The humiliation for the British due to the loss of Kut had been partially rectified. The Ottoman government was forced to end its military operations in Persia and try to build up a new army to prevent the British from moving on to capture Mosul.

The capture of Baghdad, a provincial capital, also meant that the first Ottoman province had fallen under British control. Although this was good news, it caused a great deal of bureaucratic fighting between the British government in London and the British government in India.

Once he captured Baghdad, Maude was the de facto Governor of Mesopotamia from Basra to Baghdad. Sir Percy Cox, the Tigris Corps Political Officer, attempted to issue a proclamation stating that the province was under joint British-Indian administration. But London ordered Cox not to issue his proclamation, and came out with its own proclamation asking Arab leaders to aid the British administration.

At the same time, the Indian colonial government had different ideas. After all, they had been the prime movers behind Mesopotamia in the first place. The British government in India wanted this new area placed under its direct control.

This power struggle led to the creation of the Mesopotamian Administration Committee, under the leadership of Lord Curzon. Its main task was to determine who would govern the Basra and Baghdad provinces. Its ruling was a British, not Anglo-Indian, administration for Basra and an Arab authority for Baghdad.