the whole of his front line and had decided the form his offensive
should take. As soon as his force had been made up to seven infantry
divisions and the Desert Mounted Corps, and they had been brought up
to strength and trained, he would attack, making his main offensive
against the enemy's left flank while conducting operations vigorously
and on an extensive scale against the Turkish right-centre and right.
The principal operation against the left was to be conducted by
General Chetwode's XXth Corps, consisting of four infantry divisions
and the Imperial Camel Brigade, and by General Chauvel's Desert
Mounted Corps. General Bulfin's XXIst Corps was to operate against
Gaza and the Turkish right-centre south-east of that ancient town.
If the situation became such as to make it necessary to take the
offensive before the force had been brought up to strength, the XXIst
Corps would have had to undertake its task with only two divisions,
but in those circumstances its operations were to be limited to
demonstrations and raids. By throwing forward his right, the XXIst
Corps Commander was to pin the enemy down in the Atawineh district,
and on the left he would move against the south-western defences of
Gaza so as to lead the Turks to suppose an attack was to come in this
sector. That movement being made, the XXth Corps and Desert Mounted
Corps were to advance against Beersheba, and, having taken it, to
secure the valuable water supply which was known to have existed there
since Abraham dug the well of the oath which gave its name to the
town. Because of water difficulties it was considered vital that
Beersheba should be captured in one day, a formidable undertaking
owing to the situation of the town, the high entrenched hills around
it and the long marches for cavalry and infantry before the attack;
and in drawing up the scheme based on the Commander-in-Chief's plan,
the commanders of XXth Corps and Desert Mounted Corps had always to
work on the assumption that Beersheba would be in their hands by