Mannequin Display - Ottoman Soldier, Palestine, 1917

When the Ottoman Empire entered the war, the potential Middle Eastern theater of operations was regarded as a mere sideshow. Widely viewed as an inferior fighting force, the Ottoman Army was simply tasked with drawing on itself as many enemy forces as possible; thus relieiving Germany on the Western Front, where the decisive battles would eventually take place. Throughout the war, the Ottoman Army, not only drew on itself a considerable British and Russian force, it also helped its allies by sending expeditionary corps to the campaigns in Eastern Europe. The army sustained itself throughout the war and by November 1918, though heavily battered, it was still fighting on.