Egyptian Labour Corps

As part of this protectorate, the British promised to defend Egypt from Ottoman, African and European incursions and never to request their aid in future conflicts.

[6][7] The corps constructed the duplication of the Zagazig to Ismailia section of the railway from Cairo to the Suez Canal, built metalled roads out into the Sinai desert and laid water pipelines.

About 100 miles (200 km) of railway, road and pipelines were laid in a few weeks for the forward defence of the Suez Canal before it was extended eastwards into the Sinai.

[8][9][10][11] Beside the pipelines and the railway, hundreds of miles of wire netting roads were laid across the sand and pegged down, and great reservoirs, to hold huge quantities of water supplied by filters at a rate of 500,000 imperial gallons (2,000 m3) a day, were constructed.

[12][13] Rail was laid at the rate of 15 miles (24 km) a month and the pipeline construction eventually caught up with the railway at El Arish in February 1917.

[17] Near Jericho in 1918 a 600-strong company of the Egyptian Labour Corps worked for two months to suppress mosquitoes breeding in the overflow from the Ain es Sultan spring.

Then the Muidir, Lord Lieutenant or Omdah, mayors of Egyptian towns would organise press gangs and the necessary number of armed guards to watch over the labourers.

[21][22][23] By the first half of 1918 riots, blamed on bad recruitment methods employed to find more workers for the Egyptian Labour Corps, began to occur.

At first Wingate contemplated "some form of compulsory service" but such a step would not be supported by the Sultan of Egypt and cause deep resentment throughout the country.

A meeting at the Residency, in Cairo, decided that requisitioning labour from the villages through the Mudirs, Mamours and Omdas might prove effective.

[28] It was found to be 'practicable and advisable' to recruit different companies from different parts of Egypt and new gangs could be trained in particular types of work required to ensure efficient and rapid handling of stores and materiel.