Most Christians have heard about the Biblical battle of Jericho. If you know the story, you know that the Israelites marched around the city walls once a day for six days, then seven times on the seventh day, and the walls of Jericho fell after they shouted, and the priests blew their trumpets. That was one of the epic battles that the Israelites were involved in. Jericho took a beating that day, but since then Jericho hasn’t always lived a peaceful life since then either.

On the morning of February 21, 1918, the combined Allied forces of British troops and the Australian mounted cavalry captured the city of Jericho in Palestine. The capture came after a three-day battle with Turkish troops. The Allied troops, commanded by British General Edmund Allenby, began the offensive on Tuesday, February 19th, on the outskirts of Jerusalem. The operation was plagued by adverse weather conditions and the very determined Turkish enemy. Nevertheless, the Allies were able to move nearly 20 miles toward Jericho in just three days.

Despite their determination, it was apparent by the morning of February 21, that the Turkish line had been broken, and the Allied forces entered the holy city of Jericho without much resistance at just after 8am. When they realized that they had lost control of the city, the Turkish troops chose to retreat rather than fight, meaning the three-day battle with the Allied troops ended much like the Biblical battle…Jericho simply surrendered. The Allies captured 46 Turkish prisoners, on that fateful day.

Just as it had been in Biblical times, the capture of Jericho proved to be an important strategic victory for the Allies. They now controlled some of the most important roads in the region, including the main road to the coast and the mountain highway leading to Jerusalem, and they had reached the northern end of the Dead Sea, the lowest point on earth at 1,290 feet below sea level.

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