Books on the RAF campaign in Iraq 1941
 

Hi,

I have the book Dust Clouds in Middle East by Christopher Shores which includes a chapter about the fight for Iraq in May 1941 but I am looking for a book with complementing information especially about the involved Wellington and Blenheim units.

So far I have found the following books:

• Blood, Oil and Mastery in the Middle East, 1941 Robert Lyman – looking at the other books Robert Lyman has written I suspect this book is mostly focused on the army operations.
• Iraq 1941: The Battles for Basra, Habbaniya, Fallujah and Baghdad (Osprey Campaign) also by Robert Lyman – same comment as above.
• Hidden Victory: The Battle of Habbaniya, May 1941 A.G. Dudgeon – looks promising but seems to focus only on the No.4 Flying Training School.

I would be grateful for comments to the books above or recommendations for other books.

Thanks in advance,
Peter

Re: Books on the RAF campaign in Iraq 1941
 

Have you seen "Hitler's Gulf War - The fight for Iraq 1941" by Barrie G. James?
A good book on the subject even if slightly light on the Axis/enemy side (lack of records?).

Dudgeon's book (or the later version "the War that never was") is also very good but focuses as you rightly quesses on Habbaniya.

Best wishes/Håkan

Re: Books on the RAF campaign in Iraq 1941
 

Bombers over Sand and Snow - 205 Group at War by Alun Granfield has ~ 5 pages covering Wellington actions in the campaign.
For Blenheim actions Graham Warner's book The Bristol Blenheim a Complete History covers their actions in chapter 25 Iraq, Syria and Iran and details the 5 Blenheim losses in Irag from 84 and 203 squadrons.

Re: Books on the RAF campaign in Iraq 1941
 

Thanks for your replies,

"Hitler's Gulf War - The fight for Iraq 1941" is the most promising I have seen. I will include it in the To buy-list but first I will have a look in "The Bristol Blenheim a Complete History" and "Bombers over Sand and Snow". As usual I forgot to check what I have in my own library.

Re: Books on the RAF campaign in Iraq 1941
 

If you read French there's an article in Aéro-Journal No. 40.

Re: Books on the RAF campaign in Iraq 1941
 

First Victory: Britain's Forgotten Struggle in the Middle East, 1941
- The book covers the British & Commonwealth actions in Syria, Iraq and Iran in 1941.

Regards,
...geoff

Re: Books on the RAF campaign in Iraq 1941
 

Thanks for your replies,

Nick: Unfortunately I do not read French.

Geoff: This book really confused me at first. I missed to include the full title of "First Victory: Blood, Oil and Mastery in the Middle East, 1941" in my first post. It is the title used by amazon.com but amazon.co.uk uses the title "First Victory: Britain's Forgotten Struggle in the Middle East, 1941" but it is the same book.

Have you read it? Did it include much on the RAF operations?

Regards,
Peter

Re: Books on the RAF campaign in Iraq 1941
 

Hi Peter.
Yes, I've been caught out once before when the UK and US release of books had different title, different cover and even a different description. I bought both copies thinking they covered different areas of the subject, only to discover that the books had the same table of contents....after they had arrived via post!

In this case, I purchased "First Victory: Britain's Forgotten Struggle in the Middle East, 1941", and read it several years ago. The Battle of Habbaniya coverage (as with the other two campaigns) is more holistic with commentary on political as well as military. The aviation part of it is in relation to the campaign in total, and may not specifically give you the minute details of Blenheim and Wellington operations that you seek. It, however, may give you a more comprehensive background for you to search for more details.

In any case, good luck.
...geoff

Re: Books on the RAF campaign in Iraq 1941
 

Hi Geoff,

Thanks for the info. Based on your comments I will start with "Hitler's Gulf War - The fight for Iraq 1941" but may add "First Victory" later.

Regards,
Peter