THE WAGSTAFF

MISSION
WORLD WAR ONE ADVENTURES IN NORTHERN PERSIA, THE CAUcASUS AND RUSSIA
Words and pictures by Richard Tyndall. Figures from Steve Joness collection

The British interventions in Northern Persia, the Caucasus and Southern Russia in the last year of World War One provide wargamers with a whole range of actions from small scale skirmishes involving a few dozen men to large pitched battles fought out in some of the most desolate and difficult terrain of the whole war.
The troops involved in this theatre represent the armies of half a dozen different nations and at least the same number again of local tribes and factions. In addition the theatre offers far more than the attritional warfare of Flanders or Gallipoli and is more akin to the mobile actions fought in Mesopotamia or East Africa. It also blends seamlessly into both the large scale battles of the Russian Civil War and the more extravagant games of the Pulp Fiction genre. Indeed some of the actions inspired some of the great pulp adventures written in the early 1920s, most notably Greenmantle by John Buchan. The nature of the Caucasian and Central Asian campaigns means that, just as in real life, they can be easily broken down into a series of separate but interlinked missions for wargames purposes. This article looks at a small mission in Northern Persia, but this in turn is linked

to the siege of Baku, the actions against the Jangali on the road to Enzeli and the large battles fought between the AngloTranscaspian forces and the Tashkent Soviet along the South Central Asian Railway a thousand miles to the east. BACKGROUND In early 1918 a mission was dispatched into Northern Persia under General Lionel Dunsterville with the overall aim of protecting British interests in the region and preventing Turkish or German expansion to the Caspian Sea. This mission, which became known as Dunsterforce, was part of a larger operation designed to prevent the development of a threat to India via Persia or Afghanistan. However the operation can be roundly criticised for the incoherence of its objectives, the confused nature of

the planning and the piecemeal way in which men, equipment and resources were assigned to the missions. Persia had always been lukewarm in its support for the Entente and its continued allegiance had only been secured by the presence of British and Russian forces in the country. The withdrawal of the Russians from Northern Persia following the revolution of 1917 left British Imperial interests dangerously exposed to the twin threats of nationalist uprising and Turkish advances. British control of southern Persia, the ongoing military operations against the Turks in Mesopotamia and ultimately the stability of Afghanistan and Northern India were all placed at risk unless the British could replace the Russian forces and stabilise the region. Initially Dunsterville was charged with securing the important road that ran from the Mesopotamian border in the foothills north east of Baghdad, over the mountains of Kurdistan via Hamadan and Kazvin and on to the Caspian sea port of Enzeli. Once this was achieved he was ordered to take the best route available to Baku in the southern Caucasus with the aim of holding that city against German or Turkish advances. The most immediate threat came from Turkish forces of the 6th Mountain Division who were engaged in fighting the Nestorian Christian tribes around Lake Urumia in southern Azerbaijan. Although scoring some notable victories it was clear that eventually the Nestorians would fall to the Turks, leaving the way open for an advance against the British. As well as the regular units, the Turks and Germans had dispatched large numbers of military advisors and political officers into Northern Persia with the aim of developing local nationalist militias and levies which could be used to frustrate any British advance in the region. Lacking the large numbers of men needed to directly threaten the Turkish forces, Dunsterville himself adopted the same tactic of sending small, independent units numbering perhaps 40 or 50 experienced men out into the hills north of Hamadan to raise local levy forces who could be used to secure the area for the British. Meanwhile the road itself would be guarded by regular troops from the 1/4th Hants concentrated at Hamadan and Kasvin.

World War I 1914-1918

THE WAGSTAFF MISSION One such mission was dispatched from Hamadan on 21 May under Major Wagstaff, formerly of the South Persia Rifles. The prospect of forcing the road to Enzeli was looking less and less likely in the face of stern opposition from the well armed, German led Jangali tribesmen. In addition Bolshevik Russians had seized the port and were under orders to prevent the British using it to move forces up to Baku. Instead it was agreed by the High Command that Dunsterville should try and secure a land route through northern Persia to Tabriz from where his forces could not only control important rail and road links to Baku but could also lend military support to the Nestorians. Wagstaff was dispatched to lay the

ground work for this advance. His force consisted of fifteen British and Empire officers, one French officer and 35 NCOs, all mounted on horse back. They were armed with rifles and some also carried cavalry swords. They were supported by a single Lewis gun. Their first target was the small town of Zinjan 115 miles north of Hamadan which lay on the main route to Tabriz and which was occupied by several hundred Turkish regulars under the command of Major Ghalib Bey. The town lay in a wide valley and straddled the Zinjan Rud river and was surrounded by gardens contained within mud brick walls which provided good cover for the defenders. In light of this Wagstaff felt the best chance of success was to seize the town before the Turks had a chance to realise they were under attack and he split his

force into two so that they could attack both to the north and south of the town simultaneously. In the event the British propaganda campaign which had been waged since Wagstaff left Hamadan served them well as the Turks were under the impression they faced a much larger force than was actually in the field. As a result Ghalib Bey ordered his men to retreat as the mission approached and the last Turks were fleeing to the north as the encircling force approached the far side of the town. Zinjan was already provided with a telegraph office and became the base of operations for Wagstaff and his men. They were shortly reinforced by a handful of extra men and an Austin armoured car leading a short column of Ford vans carrying fuel and supplies. The Austin was pushed on almost immediately to scout the road to Mianeh.

This small town was separated from Zinjan by two mountain ranges which were crossed by the Baleshkent and Kuflan Kuh passes. The first pass was surmounted without problem and the armoured car reached the summit of the second pass overlooking Mianeh. It was clear however that the town was occupied by Turks and the switchback nature of the descent meant that if the armoured car advanced any further it was unlikely to be able to regain the heights if it should need to retreat from a superior force. Instead a larger force under Captain Osborne of the 2nd King Edwards Horse was dispatched along with the armoured car to seize the town. Once again the Turks fled the approaching British force and the town was seized without incident. Leaving a portion of his small force at Mianeh, Osborne continued north in pursuit of the Turks and reached the top of the Shibley Pass overlooking Tabriz.

Realising they now faced losing the important city of Tabriz the Turks began moving in more troops from neighbouring provinces and also stepped up their recruitment of local levies. This proved a problem for them since the British offered better pay, better training and a uniform and many of the Turkish levies quickly deserted to head south to join the enemy. Meanwhile Wagstaff had moved his own small force up to Mianeh and had requested reinforcements from

Dunsterville. At the same time he had dispatched Osborne north to Tikmadash where a defensive line was established to block a Turkish advance. Osbornes force consisted of half a dozen British NCOs, half a squadron of newly formed irregular horse and two platoons of poorly trained native levies. In addition an outpost was established at the small town of Karachaman some 14 miles to the south west of Osbornes positions.

Latest news leads me to have another try at Baku, so I leave here on Friday, 31st, join up with Bicherakov and his Cossacks at Kasvin and then make war on the Jangalis on the Enzeli road - if we are not delayed we may get to Baku in time to save the town and oil-wells from falling into the hands of the Turks and Germans, who are racing up from Tiflis to get them. Are we to be always too late? Its not my fault anyway as they refuse me all the troops and aeroplanes I need.
An extract from General Dunstervilles Diary. Read more at: http://www.gwpda.org/Dunsterville/Dunsterville_main.html

26 MaY 1918

Dunsterville was the basis for Rudyard Kiplings famous literary character Stalky who appeared in his 1929 book The Complete Stalky and Co.

THE TURkISH ASSAULT After many delays the High Command also gave permission for the dispatch of limited reinforcements to Wagstaff. These came in the form of C squadron of the 14th Hussars, a platoon of 1/4th Hants, a platoon of Ghurkhas and artillery consisting of a battery of howitzers and a couple of mountain guns. They were rushed up to Mianeh and then immediately on to the forward positions at Tikmadash where Osborne was facing several thousand regular Turkish troops and levies. The Turkish attack finally materialised on 5 September. The previous night they had managed to infiltrate a detachment of infantry into Tikmadash in spite of the presence of a unit of Persian Irregulars who had apparently simply changed sides. The infiltrating unit included a machine gun which was mounted on the flat roof of one of the houses overlooking Osbornes headquarters. At dawn this opened fire on the serai containing the British officers who were forced to evacuate. The British did manage to establish positions from which to defend the road south out of the village, but almost immediately came under artillery fire loaded with shrapnel followed by a charge by some 2000 Turkish infantry. The Persian levies were routed almost immediately the artillery fire began in spite of the efforts of some of the British officers to steady them. The British were unable to respond in kind as the artillery had not yet arrived from Mianeh. This left the regular British forces and the

Ghurkhas to cover the retreat and there was a danger of encirclement as the Turks took advantage of the rout of the levies to try and turn both flanks. The Persian charvadars, responsible for the stores and pack mules, also fled leaving behind the supplies. The Intelligence officer Major Donohoe recounts that some of the British soldiers were so angry that they themselves fired upon the routing Persians. The retreat of the Imperial troops was however carried out in good order and the British re-established a defensive position at Turkmanchai. They were joined there by the troops from Karachaman Here the Hants and Gurkhas dug in on top of a hill overlooking the village, where the Tabriz road passes through a narrow pass. They were reinforced by a section of mountain artillery which had finally arrived from Mianeh and this opened fire on an advancing Turkish cavalry unit which had presumed itself safe, being out of range of the enemy rifles. This drove the Turks off and they did not attempt to launch an attack that day. Whilst the British could prevent a frontal attack on Turkmanchai, they could do little to stop the Turks, who outnumbered them by more than ten to one, working round the flanks and cutting the Mianeh road to their rear. The Turkish cavalry out on the flanks were, alone, larger than the total combined British force. As a result it was decided that the village could not be held. Overnight on 6/7 August Donohoe commanded an advance guard of very flighty Persian irregulars who escorted the wounded south back to Mianeh and

were followed by the main body and rearguard. The Turks did not attempt a night attack but on the morning of the 7th they moved through Turkmanchai and attacked the retreating column, being beaten back by the rearguard. It was decided that Mianeh itself could not be defended and on 8 September the British withdrew to new positions at the Kuflan Kuh Pass some five miles south east of the village where the Zinjan road crossed the ridge of mountains at about 5000 feet. The approach to the pass was across a solid brick bridge over the Karangu River after which the road rose steadily off the Mianeh Plain, becoming steeper and more precipitous as it approached the pass itself. The new headquarters was established in a ruined caravanserai close to a stone bridge crossing the Kizil Uzun River at the southern foot of the pass. If Wagstaff were pushed back past Zinjan then there was a good chance the Turks could advance on Kasvin and cut the road leading from Mesopotamia to Enzeli. With large numbers of British troops now committed to operations at Baku this would result in their supply route and communications being cut. As a result Wagstaff was ordered to hold the Kulflan Kuh Pass at all costs. To achieve this he had a total of some 250 infantry from the Hants and Gurkhas and 50 cavalry from the 14th Hussars. In addition he had a machine gun section, a mountain battery section, two field guns and a howitzer. There were still a few locally raised levies available but these could not be relied upon when the Turkish attack materialised.

Rather than trying to hold the ridge of the pass where their line of sight would have been limited, the British took up position on a line of low hills on the northern slopes of the Kuflan Kuh some three miles from the crest where they could command the approaches to the bridge over the Karangu and the plain between Mianeh and the river. The guns were placed on the southern reverse slope of the pass from where they could be directed onto the river crossing and the approaches to the bridge. It was also noted that the Turks would not necessarily need to use the bridge since the river was shallow enough to be forded in a number of places. Some reinforcements had been dispatched from Hamadan, consisting of a platoon of Worcesters. In addition Colonel Matthews of the 1/4th Hants arrived to take overall command of the force from Wagstaff. At the same time the Turks had begun to build up for their assault on the British positions. Large numbers of troops had been moved into Mianeh and advance parties had moved out into the fields on the northern side of the Karangu, taking advantage of the cover provided by the boundary ditches and bushes to harass the British forward positions with sniper fire. This continued for a number of days until the morning of the 12th when the Turks launched an all out frontal attack on the pass. Just after breakfast some 2000 men of one of the Caucasian divisions crossed the river in extended order and charged the British lines. Whilst the regular troops held, inflicting considerable casualties on the enemy, the Persian irregulars on the right flank broke almost immediately and fled for the top of the pass. More waves

of Turkish attacks were launched against the compromised lines and the British were slowly forced back up the slope to the crest, taking losses all the time. The Hants fought hand-to-hand with the Turks to hold the top of the pass long enough to allow the guns to be withdrawn from the reverse slope, but they were then pushed back down the southern side where their retirement was then covered by the Worcesters who had moved forward to provide suppressing fire. With the loss of the Kuflan Kuh the British now had to continue their retreat over the Baleshkent pass to reform at Jamalabad, just to the north of Zinjan. Here, they were reinforced by the light and heavy armoured car sections under Colonel Crawford and Lieutenant Colonel Smiles. These comprised a total of eight armoured cars with an additional section of four machine guns which had been dispatched from

Hamadan. This proved the turning point of the retreat. The pursuing Turks, who expected to overrun the British and seize Zinjan with little trouble, received a severe mauling at the hands of the armoured cars and their machine guns. As a result they withdrew to the Kuflan Kuh and dug in in expectation of a British counter-attack. This was never to materialise. Even before the Wagstaff mission had been forced into retreat, the British under Dunsterville had secured the road to Enzeli and had transported over a thousand men across the Caspian to Baku where they faced the main Turkish Caucasian army. In addition the Nestorians were routed from their lands around Lake Urumia and fled south to the British lines around Hamadan. The whole point of Wagstaffs expedition was lost and they settled back into defensive positions around Zinjan awaiting a further Turkish assault which never came.

Problems with gaming the Wagstaff Mission

waRgaming tHE CamPaign

artillery support and their extended lines of communication. On the Turkish side it has often been the case to downplay both the abilities and the courage of the Turkish Askers. Whilst perhaps limited in their ability for independent action, when well led these troops were a formidable force. The casualties suffered during their assaults on the British lines at Baku show they lacked nothing for bravery and this courage was also seen in the frontal assault on British positions above Mianeh when they were advancing uphill exposed to continuous fire from well entrenched troops on the pass above. Certainly some of the locally recruited Caucasian regulars lacked experience, but overall these were by no means poor troops. The problem for both sides was the necessity of relying upon locally raised levies. These formed a significant proportion of both the British and Turkish forces during the retreat from Tikmadash and both sides found them profoundly unreliable and unwilling to expose themselves to danger. They were more than willing to receive the training, uniform and equipment, as well as what small pay was available, but would use any means to avoid combat and were not averse to changing sides - even in the middle of a battle. To reflect these characteristics and the effect they had on operations a number of adjustments should be made to any rules set. Firstly the rules should have a well developed set of parameters for morale and should differentiate between regular and elite forces, with the latter being applied only to the volunteer element of Dunsterforce whilst both the Turkish and British regular forces have lower skills and abilities. There should also be some element of leadership, with the Turkish forces suffering reduced effectiveness in

Balance of forces and morale The imbalance of forces involved in the actions, particularly during the retreat towards Zinjan, is probably the most serious problem faced when trying to game the mission. Several thousand Turkish troops were faced by at most a few hundred British. Levies on both sides were of little use and the British suffered badly as a result of units routing almost before they had even come under fire. Representing this in a game whilst still presenting something playable requires the rules to take into account the extreme differences in experience and morale between the various combatants. The core of the British forces were the fifty or so British and Imperial officers and NCOs who accompanied Wagstaff at the start of the mission. Like all the other officers and NCOs with Dunsterforce these men were highly experienced and usually highly decorated volunteers who had either been recruited out of the trenches in Flanders or had long experience fighting Turks and tribesmen in Mesopotamia, Persia and India. It is important when gaming these operations that the rules set takes good account of morale and experience and that the men of Dunsterforce score highly in both accounts. In the later stages of the operation these volunteers were augmented by regular troops from the Hampshires and Worcestershires, as well as Gurkhas and cavalry from India. Again these were experienced troops well used to fighting in these sorts of terrain and conditions. Nor should the impact of the armoured cars be underestimated. Virtually impenetrable to small arms fire these vehicles were vital both in blunting the Turkish assaults and instilling fear in the local levies and restless tribesmen. The biggest problems facing the British were their limited numbers, their lack of

the absence of strong officers. The levies on the other hand should be given the very lowest ratings, which are usually unaffected even by the presence of good leaders. In addition I would suggest that prior to each turn a reaction test is taken for the levies, irrespective of whether or not they are yet in combat, but with negative factors if they are already under fire. Depending on how realistic or harsh one wishes to be regarding the levies the results of the reaction tests should vary from immediately seeking the nearest cover and refusing to advance, to fleeing the battlefield immediately. There should also be factors for changing sides without warning and firing on friendly troops. The chances of the levies actually advancing into combat should be factored as extremely low, with only a slightly higher chance of them defending themselves against attack by using their rifles. The testing at the start of every turn would help to reflect the extremely unpredictable nature of these troops. Finally I would suggest that these levies comprise at least 50% of each force. This would seem to be an accurate reflection of the actual numbers on the ground and would prevent gamers from simply ignoring the effects of such an unpredictable unit in their own ranks. TERRAIN The other major problem in gaming any actions in Northern Persia and the Caucasus is that of terrain. As can be seen from the account above, the high mountain ranges, steep and easily defended passes and deep river valleys were crucial in limiting the operational options of both the British and the Turks. Where possible both sides avoided clashes on open ground unless they could be sure of massive numerical superiority. In addition the terrain allowed relatively few British troops to continually hold up advances by several thousand Turkish troops. The terrain also created problems for communications and the deployment of reinforcements which tended to

restrict the offensive operations of both sides. It also meant that each side was often unaware of the true strength and disposition of their opponent. Representing all of this on the gaming table is problematic. The simulation of height is crucial to the success of recreating the sorts of engagements that characterised the mission. If one has the necessary skills and materials then custom built terrain would of course be ideal, but it has the twin problems of usefulness outside of these specific campaigns and also the ever present concern over storage. Therefore, whilst not the most attractive option, probably the best way to do this on a limited budget would be with the good old blanket over piles of books. Obviously with smaller scales this problem becomes less acute, but personally I feel the actions do lend themselves well to 15mm or 28mm gaming with some element of a small map campaign incorporated to help simulate the problems of communication and intelligence. Figures In 28mm, most of the figures needed to fight the battles in Northern Persia can be found if one is imaginative. The British are of course the easiest to source with Copplestone Castings in the UK, Brigade Games in the US and Eureka Miniatures in Australia all making very fine figures suitable for members of Dunsterforce and the regular British forces. One point worth noting is that the officers and NCOs of Dunsterforce represented at least half a dozen different nationalities from the Empire, including South Africans, Canadians, Australians, New Zealanders, Indians and British, as well as occasional French and White Russian volunteers. There was no specific uniform for the mission and the volunteers generally used their own equipment and uniforms and as a result the opportunity arises for an eclectic mix

of figures, particularly when it comes to headgear. Nor would the volunteers necessarily be outfitted in tropical kit. Whilst a number joined from India, Persia and Mesopotamia, many more were brought over from Flanders and the weather in Northern Persia at the start of the campaign in January and February of 1918 was freezing with extensive snow. So again a mix of Tropical and standard kit would be acceptable for figures. Copplestone, Brigade and Eureka also all make WW1 Turkish figures suitable for the campaigns, including cavalry. Copplestone and Eureka have also recently started producing Gurkhas, and Brigade Games produce a number of ranges of suitable cavalry including figures which could be used for Indians, Australians and British. For artillery both Brigade Games and Renegade produce suitable pieces with special mention being reserved for the Brigade Indian Mountain gun, mule team and crew. The tribesmen and levies are more problematic, but Steve Jones of the Newark

Irregulars has been able to arm himself with a fine collection of suitable figures using selected figures from the Foundry Indian tribesmen and hill tribesman ranges, augmented with some of the Afghan figures from the Mongrel Miniatures range. Although the latter are designed for modern warfare a number of them are armed with old rifles which makes them ideal for use as tribesmen or levies. For the armoured cars I would (of course) suggest my own company of Sloppy Jalopy as we designed our vehicles specifically with this campaign in mind. In 15mm I would suggest heading straight for Peter Pig and talking a look at what they have available in both figures and vehicles. These include both the British and Turkish forces as well as an extensive range of figures suitable for tribesmen. Eureka also do a fine range of figures in 15mm suitable for the campaign, including Turks and Australians.
Figures featured on these two pages are by Copplestone Castings, Foundry and Brigade Games (available from North Star). Vehicles by Sloppy Jalopy.