Edmund Allenby | Jerusalem Captured: The Holy City Wrestled From The Turks. [London: 1918-1919]

Edmund Allenby

Jerusalem Captured: The Holy City Wrestled From The Turks. [London: 1918-1919]

Poster (592 x 845 mm.), large panoramic vignette in upper half of the city of Jerusalem, seen from the Mount of Olives, with 4 smaller vignettes including 3 further views of Jerusalem and a portrait of Allenby, mounted on white card, three vertical creases and one horizontal from folding, light marginal staining

The text of the poster narrates the British Empire’s capture of Jerusalem from the Turks, preceded by the conquest of Beersheba, Gaza and Jaffa from October to December 1917, as the British rolled northwards along the Palestine Front.

The news of the capture of Jerusalem was received with great admiration in Britain and was exploited by the press as a romantic victory in contrast to the muddy slaughter of the Western Front. The text in the current poster interprets the victory as one steeped in Biblical history and the romance of the Crusades in order to serve the purpose of uplifting the general morale of a broken nation. Allenby was congratulated by the Prime Minister, David Lloyd George, claiming the momentous moment as an event of historic and world-wide significance.

The present poster survives in several languages - including Spanish - demonstrating the narrative’s appeal to an international audience. Conscious of the city’s special significance for three of the world’s great religions, in a deliberate act of humility and respect, Allenby entered Jerusalem on foot through the Jaffa Gate on 11 December 1917.