Corporal Cecil C P Lawson, 2nd County of London (Westminster Dragoons) in Palestine, 1917 (c)

Oil on board by Cecil Constant Philip Lawson (1881-1967), 1917 (c).

Corporal Cecil Constant Philip Lawson (second from right) saw action at Beersheba during World War One (1914-1918). He rides his favourite charger 'Old Top', who was killed in the battle.

General Sir Edmund Allenby attacked at Beersheba on 31 October 1917, outflanking the Turks and forcing them from Gaza. His forces then pushed north, taking Jerusalem in December. By then, the Allies outnumbered the Turks eight-to-one in cavalry in one of the few war theatres where mounted troops could still be used effectively.