Annotated by Stephan Guth

Condensed timeline

1915

[1 Towards Constantinople]

Dec 11–27          transport Berlin – Constantinople

strolling through the city, dolce vita, tourism (Hagia Sophia, SMS Goeben and Breslau)

1916

journey continued

[2 Across the Taurus Mountains]

Jan 16:          Haydar-Paşa – Gulf of İzmit, Eskişehir, Karahisar, Konya – Pozantı (Jan 19): reload (Taurus tunnel unfinished) > over Taurus with ox charts > Gülek (> Tarsus Jan 27: Emperor’s birthday > Gülek) > train to Mamore: reload (Amanus Mountains tunnel unfinished) > 2 days with horse-drawn carts > “Gelebek” [sic] (new railway terminus) > train to Aleppo

[3 On the Way to Baghdad]

+Jan 31         Aleppo: beautiful bazaar, often invited by Germans living there, no end to celebrations

Feb 26:         departure of large caravan (7 wagons, 3 covered wagons, 4 trucks) for 17-day journey (long trip, up to 85 km/day): > day3: Euphrates reached > from here along the river > sight of Armenian camps > day5: Dayr al-Zawr > day9: ʿĀna oasis (from afar) > often invited by Bedouins; transport leader falls ill with typhus > pass by Hīt (bitumen wells), (Khān) Baghdādī, Ramādī, Fallūjah > leave Euphrates > after 65 km:

Mar 13          Baghdad

[4 Baghdad]

(6 days)        install oneself, new quarters, clean-up, warm bath, meet comrades, stroll through bazaar, eat and drink well, buy souvernirs, tourism, send picture postcards home

[5 New Destination: Persia]

Mar 19          departure for “Persia” > Banī Saʿd > Baʿqūba (“like paradise”) > bad road, flooded area, wagons stuck, slow progress > “Sharabān” > day6: Khānaqīn (Persian border): “now the adventure really began”:  road Khānaqīn–Qaṣr-e Shirin (Persia) even worse: practically impassable for wagons, a wheel breaks, load has to be distributed among the other wagons, stuck again, night falls > spent in the open > OZ rides back to Qaṣr-e Shirin to get help > (by noon) Qaṣr-e Shirin > (March 26, 7am) journey continued > Pā(y)ṭāq (“Peitack”)

April              Pā(y)ṭāq back area: job as right-hand man of back area lieutenant in communication zone, “fairly quiet, or even very quiet” job, we “felt happy” (pleasant climate), “we could have lived a long time like this” – BUT: Russians advanced through Persia towards Baghdad

May 16         depot cleared > retreat via Qaṣr-e Shirin > Khānaqīn (new front, then held for a long time after that) > Baʿqūba: khān 3 km outside city

unbearable heat, malaria > captain agrees to OZ’s transfer back to Baghdad > with next caravan > OZ delayed (needs signature) > has to ride alone > Banī Saʿd > Baghdad

[6 Back in Baghdad]

(early June)         “too hot to live and too hot to die” + malaria, fever for 3 days > better (thanks quinine) > bazaar, shopping > meets Captain Jordan, who asks for help with transport back from Khānaqīn

(next evening)         with mule caravan > Banī Saʿd > Sharabān (i.e., al-Miqdādiyya) > day 4: arrival at “Chissorobat” (Manṣūriyyat al-Jabal, or al-Saʿdiyya, or Jalawlāʾ/Jalūlāʾ, or Liman von Sanders’ “Kyzylrobat”?) > 1 day rest > (next day) feeling too bad, Zoberbier joins a caravan back to Baghdad (“lying down on the way would have meant certain death”) > march back to Baghdad during day (almost 70 degrees) > Sharabān > Baʿqūba > forced marches >

[Jun 11)        (Pentecost Sunday) Baghdad > military hospital (in Baghdad railway station): slow (and miraculous) recovery after 4 weeks > (altogether 10 weeks in hospital) >

[end Aug]     job as caretaker of commandant’s office

[7 On the Euphrates]         

“Redwanje” (40 km from Baghdad, on Euphrates) back area in the making, for transports from Euphrates to Baghdad on newly built narrow-gauge railway

first in tents > then more solid shelter from shakhtoor planks (Turkish property) > forbidden > permanent house from clay bricks > completed before start of rainy season

(end of October) the first clouds appear >

November – April: rain

quiet time:   2 transports arriving per week, dispatched quickly > time to go hunting (lynx, ducks); shopping in Baghdad

[8 Retreat]

X-mas           spent in Baghdad

New Year     dto.

1917

January          everyday life resumed in Redwanje

(one evening) call from Baghdad: Evacuate Redwanje! Start retreat! Go upstream!

(within 2 days) Fallūjah > wait 2 days for promised money transport > improvised march upstream: Ramādī > Hīt > ʿĀna > Dayr al-Zawr

(one day)     From Dayr al-Zawr with large caravan (96 camels): transport (direction Mosul) > ride through desert by compass > (day 2🙂 Khābūr reached > 1 day rest > + 1 day search for run-away camel > stay 1 day at each waterhole

(Mar/Apr)    (fresh grass in desert)

continued in NE direction (again through area of Armenian genocide)

(day3)           Zoberbier gets severe bout of malaria, but nevertheless rides on

(8 days in desert without seeing a soul) then tents etc: Shammar tribe, peaceful

(stay overnight) we now met Bedouins regularly

(now 10 days in desert) > Tall ʿAfar, as guests of Shammar

(day12)         Mosul…

Nineveh, visit tomb of Prophet Jonah…

total lunar eclipse

[9 New Job: Caravan Guide]

New job:       accompany caravans from Mosul (usually trips of 12–14 days)

(on one occasion:) Kerkuk in Persia, route through Kurdish territory (incident with robbers)

(in between:) necessary shopping, hunting

(one trip:)     Sindjar Mountains (93 camels) to fetch barley > Sindjarnese, fire-worshippers > insurgency area > Sindjar, 1 day rest > load barley until a day later > day 3: set off towards Mosul > accompanied by Turks to Tall ʿAfar (“Telhalief”)

hunting > (Arab) horsemen > hill swarming with people (100 Arabs), war cries > we at a loss  > but not interested (but 1 snatchs a 88-rifle from OZ’s batman)

next day in Tall ʿAfar > warmly welcomed by hancı (innkeeper) (now for the 4^th time)

no new bout of malaria

September           caravan to Aleppo (52 horses, 27 mules, 11 eleven donkeys) > area notorious for Bedouin attacks > but nothing more to fear after Nuṣaybīn (railway > 2 days > journey not smoothly (lack of coal) > wood > burnt > beautiful mattress lost > arrival in Aleppo

[10 Aleppo]

(end-Sept 1917 – Jan 1918): in charge of animal depot (buy horses and mules for the front) > “It was there that I spent the best time during my stay in the Orient” (climate bearable at only 50 degrees, city offers many diversions)

“good place to live” (rides-out, own kitchen, own cook, city life: cinema, concert gardens, ladies’ bands, beer, wine, rakı)

touristic excursion (combined with horse transport to “Rajack”, Biqāʿ vallay): via Baalbeck to Damascus

1918

[11 Duty Leave]

Jan 16           Aleppo > [Jan 17] “Gelebeck” > (Amanus and Taurus tunnels now open) > [Jan 18] Pozantı > > 6-day trip > Haydarpaşa

(3 weeks)     waiting for duty leave pass: excursions in Constantinople, boat trip to Black Sea, evening entertainment (cinema, theatre), meals in German soldiers’ hostel or restaurant

(finally)         leave granted > Orient Express (3 days, via Sofia, Nish, Belgrade, Vienna > day 3: Berlin

back home:          relatives, friends, acquaintances

Mar 31          journey back: Baruth > Dresden > Orient Express (3 days)

with Turkish battalion to Aleppo: Haydarpaşa > day 2: Turkish soldier reports sick with typhus > next day: whole battalion unloaded in Konya, everyone tested for typhus > next day: journey continued > Karapınar > (large tunnels, 8 km long) > (after five days) back to Aleppo, after 4 months

[12 Retreat and End of the War]

back to animal depot, duties resumed

(end of Sept 1918)          British at the gates of Aleppo, soldiers from Damascus already retreating

Oct 16           Zoberbier leaves Aleppo (with small convoy) > Amanus, Adana, Taurus > Pozantı in 16 days without any incident

end-Oct        hand in all equipment to Turkish troups in Pozantı, good-buy to Turkish > wait 10 days in tents for train

Nov 18          arrival Haydarpaşa: whole gulf full of warships (British, French, Italian “fleet parade”), Haydarpaşa occupied by French > Germans in custody

Nov 19          tent camp in Kadıköy > until Boxing Day, assigned to a zone of free movement and shopping

(negotiations with the Allies) > free retreat granted > wait for available ship

Dec 26          leave camp, move on to cargo steamer Akdeniz, then Patmos

[13 Coming Home]

(Christmas, New Year) … waiting

1919

waiting cont., often re-scheduled…

Feb 28           Patmos leaves Haydarpaşa (1150 men), together with Kerkyra: > Dardanelles > Aegean Sea: heavy storm > Mediterranean > (day 11) Gibraltar > (6 days) > Bay of Biscay: storm again > NW France, English Channel: a whale > Dover > mouth of Thames > Rotterdam > North Sea again > floating mine bypassed >

Mar 26          Brunsbüttelkoog > quarantine for 2 days

Mar 28          disembark > Hamburg: delousing, civilian clothing > Mar 29 new passports > train at 5:30 am > Wittenberge > 7pm arrival at Berlin Lehrter Bahnhof