September 1918), which finally broke the Turkish resistance. To support the breakthrough, 161st Brigade was to secure the Ez Zakur line and then form a defensive flank. The brigade formed up before dawn on 19 September; covered by an overhead barrage from the machine gun companies, it took its objectives successfully. The main assault completely broke through the Turkish lines and opened the way for the cavalry to pursue the defeated enemy. 161st Brigade was left behind for a week on battlefield clearance before joining the pursuit. By the time the Armistice with Turkey was signed on 30 October 1918, 54th Division had reached Beirut. Home Defence The four Second Line TF battalions (2/4th–2/7th) constituted the 206th (2/1st Essex) Brigade in 69th (2nd East Anglian) Division, which remained on Home Defence throughout the war. The Third Line battalions (3/4th–3/7th) were formed as reserve battalions to provide drafts to the TF units overseas. By September 1916, they had been merged into 4th Reserve Battalion. Irish War of Independence (1919-1921) The 1st Battalion was stationed in Kinsale in County Cork during the Irish War of Independence. Major Percival From 1920, Major Arthur Ernest Percival (later a Lieutenant-General) served first as a company commander, then as the battalion's intelligence officer. During the First World War, Percival became renowned for his "power of command and knowledge of tactics". As such, he and his fellow Essex regimental colleagues were trained in counter-insurgency tactics. Combining both intelligence and rapid response teams in mobile squads, Percival and his Essex veterans staged numerous operations to demoralise and defeat the IRA. Consequently, he and his fellow Essex men were regarded by Irish loyalists as an efficient force. This opinion of their effectiveness appears to have been seconded by the Republicans, who came to regard Percival and the Essex men as one of its primary foes. As the IRA guerrilla war intensified and IRA assassinations were met with reprisals, a large bounty was placed on Percival's and the Essex men's death. The IRA eventually increased its bounty on Percival to £1,000, a significant sum of money for the period. Although other Essex officers were assassinated by the IRA, all attempts to assassinate Percival failed. In July 1920, the Essex Regiment captured Tom Hales, commander of the IRA's 3rd Cork Brigade, and Patrick Harte, quartermaster of the West Cork Brigade. Both men were severely beaten during interrogation - Harte suffered brain