“…a land of sand, sun and sorrow…”
In March 1917 Baghdad fell to the British Army.
John Edward Tennant arrived in Mesopotamia (modern day Iraq) in 1916 as a pilot in the Royal Flying Corp, having previously flown on the Western Front.
His dramatic accounts of flying against Turkish and German airmen provide a fantastic insight into the early days of aviation combat: including the day he was shot down and captured by the Turks.
He explains the difficulties found in the Mesopotamian conditions, the unforgiving heat and landscape.
Tennant also recounts the combined operations of the British Army and Royal Navy along the Tigris and Euphrates rivers that finally led to the fall of Baghdad.
Mentioned in dispatches five times, and awarded the Military Cross, Tennant’s First World War was certainly an interesting one.
There are lessons to be found in considering the Mesopotamia of 1916 and modern day Iraq.
Full of bravery and sacrifice, In the Clouds Above Bagdad is an important and engaging piece of history.
Praise for In the Clouds Above Baghdad
“Remarkable account of a little-known campaign” – Naval & Military Press
“Colonel Tennant has written a spirited account of his experiences with the Air Force in Mesopotamia” – The Spectator
Lt-Col. John Edward Tennant DSO MC (1890–1941) served in the Royal Navy as a midshipman before transferring to the army as a Second Lieutenant in the Scots Guards. In 1914 he was seconded to the Royal Flying Corps. In 1926 Tennant ran for as the Liberal candidate for Moray and Nairn. He died in a flying accident in Scotland.
