North Persia Force

North Persia Force
Active	1918–1920
Country	British Empire
Allegiance	Allies
Type	Infantry
Role	Detachment
Size	Brigade
Engagements	Anzali Operation
Commanders
Notable commanders	William Montgomery Thomson Hugh Bateman-Champain

Military unit

The North Persia Force (Norper force) was a British military force that operated in Northern Persia from 1918 to 1920. Following the British abandonment of Baku on the night of 14 September 1918, Major General Lionel Dunsterville evacuated the forces under his command, known as the Dunsterforce, in the dead of night, arriving in Bandar-e Anzali the following day. Two days later he was relieved of command, that position being taken by Major General W. M. Thomson.^[1]

Composition

The force was a large brigade which consisted of:^[2]

1st Battalion, Royal Irish Fusiliers
1st Battalion, 42nd Deoli Regiment
122nd Rajputana Infantry
1st Battalion, 2nd Gurkha Rifles
Guides Cavalry
A Battery (The Chestnut Troop) Royal Horse Artillery
No. 30 Squadron RAF
15th Light Armoured Motor Battery
31st Indian Pack Battery
48th Divisional Signal Company
19th Company 3rd Sappers and Miners
Reinforcements sent from Mesopotamia:
- 1st Battalion, Royal Berkshire Regiment
- 2nd Battalion, York and Lancaster Regiment
- 2 platoons of the 1st Battalion, 67th Punjabis were based at Tabriz

The force was commanded by Brigadier General Hugh Bateman-Champain who was based at Kasvin.

Citations

^ Minez, Roland P. Minez (2018). At the Limit of Complexity: British Military Operations in North Persia and the Caucasus 1918. Fort Leavenworth, Kansas: Army University Press.
^ Moberly 1987, pp. 480–481.

General and cited references

Moberly, F. J. (1987) [1929]. Operations in Persia 1914–1919. History of the Great War based on Official Documents by Direction of the Committee of Imperial Defence (Imperial War Museum facsimile of the confidential 1929 printing ed.). London: HMSO. ISBN 0-11-290453-X – via Qatar Digital Library.