Veterans retrace Lawrence of Arabia's epic 700-mile trek across Middle East
It was a journey immortalised by Peter O'Toole in the epic 1962 film Lawrence of Arabia – and now four military veterans have become the first people to recreate T E Lawrence's 700-mile (1,126km) trek across the sands of the Middle East.
Howard Leedham, James Calder, Craig Ross and Martin Thompson spent 25 days on camelback crossing the Nafud desert in Saudi Arabia to mark 90 years since Lawrence's death.
The four men, who served in the British special forces, endured 37C heat, sandstorms and sheer cliffs on the trek from Al Wajh in Saudi Arabia to the Aqaba in Jordan.
They collected sand from four significant areas on the journey to spread on Lawrence's grave in Moreton, Dorset.
Lawrence was a First World War hero who led the Arab Revolt against German-supporting Turkey. In 1916 he swept across the desert to Jordan and rewrote the map of the Middle East.
His remarkable feat was described in his autobiographical account Seven Pillars of Wisdom and the classic film Lawrence of Arabia.
The Lawrence Tribute Trek last month was the brainchild of former SBS marine Mr Leedham.
He put out a 'Shackleton-style' advert on social media for special forces veterans, asking for volunteers for the expedition.
He received 40 replies and picked Calder, Ross and Thompson, none of whom had ridden a camel before, to come with him.
After a 10-day camel-riding course, the team set out on Jan 14.
They completed about 30 miles a day on two single-humped camels each alongside a team of medics, cooks and a Bedouin, who looked after the camels.
They travelled for eight hours a day in intense heat, which dropped to below freezing at night.
Along the way, they took sand samples from Fajer, Al Jawari, Bayir and Aqaba – notable stops on Lawrence's journey.
The group were given police camels as a gift upon crossing the Jordanian border, which are much quicker.
On the penultimate day, the group, with 40 locals, re-enacted Lawrence's attack on an Ottoman train that was transporting friends and family who had travelled to celebrate the end of their journey. The staff on the train were aware of the attack, but the tourists were 'somewhat startled'.
Upon arrival in Aqaba on Feb 7, they were honoured by King Abdullah II of Jordan with ceremonial displays, traditional music and a grand parade.
So far the group has raised £430,000 for the Special Forces Club Benevolent Fund and hopes to reach its target of £500,000 before a ceremony at Lawrence's grave in May.
The group will meet members of the Lawrence Society to spread the sand on his grave on May 19 – 90 years after Lawrence died in a motorbike accident.
Mr Leedham, from London, said: 'I think a lot of military guys have some sort of admiration or fascination with Lawrence's story. What he achieved was certainly ahead of his time. The tactics he used have been copied ever since.
'I came up with the idea last May with some friends in the pub, probably over a couple of glasses of red.
'Riding a camel is completely different to riding a horse. There are lots of different saddles and [it] requires a lot of core strength.
'We did have to add a bit onto the journey to find the right place to cross the border from Saudi Arabia to Jordan but we quickly linked back up with the route.'
The trek was named the Nasir, Bekri, Tayi and Lawrence Tribute Trek, after the Arab leaders of the original expedition – Sherif Nasir, Auda abu Tayi and Nesib el-Bekri. It took the original group over two months to complete the route.
The Special Forces Club Benevolent Fund gives funding to ex-special forces soldiers who are suffering personal struggles later in life.
Lawrence was killed in a motorcycle accident near his home at Bovington, Dorset in 1935. He is buried in the graveyard of St Nicholas Church in Moreton.
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