Edmund Allenby, 1st Viscount Allenby
The British field marshal whose decisive cavalry capture of Jerusalem in 1917 reshaped the modern Middle East.
1861–1936 (age 75)·British Field Marshal·Birthday: April 23·The Gilded Age
Biography
Edmund Allenby was a soldier of the old empire who fought a modern war. A cavalryman by training, he initially struggled with the stagnant brutality of the Western Front during World War I. His legacy, however, was forged in the desert. Transferred to command the Egyptian Expeditionary Force, he revitalized a demoralized campaign against the Ottoman Empire. Allenby combined traditional military aggression with a new appreciation for logistics, intelligence, and combined arms—aided significantly by the guerrilla tactics of T.E. Lawrence's Arab forces. His masterstroke was the Battle of Megiddo in 1918, a rapid, sweeping offensive that shattered Ottoman lines. Yet it was his entry into Jerusalem on foot in December 1917, a gesture of respect for the holy city, that captured the world's imagination. His campaigns effectively ended Ottoman rule in Palestine, redrawing the map with consequences that echo to this day.
The Gilded Age
1860–1882
Born during or after the Civil War, they built industrial America — the railroads, the steel mills, the first skyscrapers. An era of massive wealth, massive inequality, and the belief that the future belonged to whoever could build it fastest.
Edmund was born in 1861, placing them squarely in The Gilded Age. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Edmund Was Born
The biggest hits of 1861
Edmund's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1861Born
President: Abraham Lincoln
1866Started school
President: Andrew Johnson
1874Became a teenager
President: Ulysses S. Grant
1877Could drive
President: Rutherford B. Hayes
1879Could vote
President: Rutherford B. Hayes
1882Turned 21
First electrical power plant opens in New York
President: Chester A. Arthur
1891Turned 30
President: Benjamin Harrison
1901Turned 40
Queen Victoria dies, ending the Victorian era
President: Theodore Roosevelt
1911Turned 50
Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire kills 146 in New York
President: William Howard Taft
1921Turned 60
First commercial radio broadcasts
President: Warren G. Harding"My Man" — Fanny Brice
1931Turned 70
The Empire State Building opens as the world's tallest
Gas: $0.17/galPresident: Herbert Hoover"Minnie the Moocher" — Cab CallowayBest Picture: Cimarron
1936Died at 75
Jesse Owens wins four golds at the Berlin Olympics
Gas: $0.19/galPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"The Way You Look Tonight" — Fred AstaireBest Picture: The Great Ziegfeld
Key Achievements
- Led the British Egyptian Expeditionary Force to a decisive victory in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign, capturing Jerusalem and Damascus.
- Planned and executed the Battle of Megiddo in 1918, considered one of the most complete military victories in history.
- Served as the High Commissioner for Egypt and the Sudan from 1919 to 1925, during a period of intense nationalist unrest.
- Was promoted to Field Marshal, the British Army's highest rank, in recognition of his service.
Did You Know?
He was famously nicknamed 'The Bull' for his forceful personality and imposing physical presence.
Allenby made a conscious decision to enter Jerusalem on foot out of respect, contrasting with Kaiser Wilhelm II's grandiose mounted entry in 1898.
An avid ornithologist, he had a species of shrike (Lanius senatorius) named after him.
“The last crusade has ended. Jerusalem is delivered.”
