Download Mandate Outline Donovan Valtz and Alex Cook Period 6 Iraq: Said

Mandate Outline
Donovan Valtz and Alex Cook
Period 6
Iraq: Said to be the most successful of all the mandatary
Social:
I.
II.
III.
IV.
V.
Has a large and rebellious Kurdish minority
Arabs divided as Shiites and Sunnis
The Shiites were more numerous, yet the Sunnis were politically dominant
Through Feisal’s leadership the Iraq tribal beduin lawlessness
Boundary disputes with Ibn Saud which was somewhat reconciled by British
mediation.
VI. Relationship with Turkey was strained, due to Turkey wanting the land of the
vilayet of Mosul returned to them because of it supposedly being rich in oil. The
conflict was dealt with in the 1923 Lausanne Conference, which later helped
Turkey accept that the land now belonged to Iraq two year later.
VII. So because of the outcome of this decision, Iraq now had land said to be rich in
oil, which could benefit their economy greatly.
VIII. Large portion of the population still dissatisfied with the amount of British
influence they still have placed upon them. Led by the Iraq Petroleum Company
IX. Dislike for the Assyrian population. Army unit massacred 300 Assyrian villagers
and were never punished. Applauded by social opinion.
Economic:
I. Relationship with Turkey was strained, due to Turkey wanting the land of the
vilayet of Mosul returned to them because of it supposedly being rich in oil. The
conflict was dealt with in the 1923 Lausanne Conference, which later helped
Turkey accept that the land now belonged to Iraq two year later.
II. Big power group in Iraq was the Iraq Petroleum Company which had a monopoly
on all of Iraq’s oil resources.
III. Coup in 1936 set a precedent for military coups all across the Middle East.
Political:
I. Mandate system was set up under Article 22 by the League of Nations following
WWI
II. Came under British control after the Treaty of Lausanne passed in August 1924
III. The Shiites were more numerous, yet the Sunnis were politically dominant
IV. King Feisal I proved to be the unifying political force
V. Feisal brought Shiite mujahids under control, keeping relations with Persia not
cordial, but still peaceful.
VI. Boundary disputes with Ibn Saud which was somewhat reconciled by British
mediation.
VII. Relationship with Turkey was strained, due to Turkey wanting the land of the
vilayet of Mosul returned to them because of it supposedly being rich in oil. The
conflict was dealt with in the 1923 Lausanne Conference, which later helped
Turkey accept that the land now belonged to Iraq two year later.
VIII. Iraq pursued liberal policies following denying their interest to be incorporated
into the British Empire
IX. Powers of British Officials were reduced
X. A constitutional assembly formed in 1924 which by 1925 they approved the
Anglo-Iraqi treaty and an Organic Law. This made Iraqi ministers responsible to a
two-party parliament.
XI. The treaty maintained special rights for the British and was passed under heavy
British pressure against the radical opposition, which wanted complete
independence from Britain.
XII. By the late 1920’s, Iraq was prepared to be independent, this worried certain
members of the League of Nations (i.e. France) because they feared that if Iraq
became independent than the rest of the Middle Eastern mandates would strive to
do the same.
XIII. Anglo-Iraq treaty of 1930 provided a 25 year alliance for both Britain and Iraq to
“harmonize their common interests”
XIV. In 1932 the mandate officially ended
XV. In 1933 King Feisal I died. Was succeeded by his son Ghazi.
XVI. In 1936 an alliance of middle-class intellectuals and young nationalist army
officers seized power under General Bakr Sidqi.
XVII. Ended ten months later the same way it began, a military coup and an
assassination.
XVIII. In 1938 “The Seven” bough a civilian named Nuri al-Said to power.
XIX. Nuri would dominate for the next 20 years.
Lebanon
Political
I. Lebanon was placed under French Control as part of the mandate of Syria after
the Ottoman Empire was split up through the Treaty of Sevres.
II. The State of Greater Lebanon was created in 1920, with Beirut as it’s capital.
III. Greater Lebanon’s political structure was geared to help the Maronite Christian
population, roughly 30% of the whole. This resulted in the Maronites relying on
French Support to maintain control.
IV. The constitution of Lebanon set up the government such that the president would
always be a Christian, the prime minister a Sunni Muslim, the speaker of the
house a Shia Muslim. The Druze were entirely left out of any position of power.
V. This caused tension between the different religious groups, especially once the
country achieved independence. The causes of the Lebanese civil war can be
linked back to this division, for the war was fought between these different
groups. It could be argued that had the Christians been willing to share the
massive amounts of power they received the whole civil could have been averted.
Social
I. When the French gained control of the mandate governing Lebanon they felt it
was their duty to protect the Christian population that lived there. This is one of
the main reasons the country of Lebanon was separated from Syria.
II. The French heavily favored the Christian Maronites, however as more land was
added to the mandate a great number of Muslims were added to the population.
This caused the Maronites no longer being the majority, however they were still
the largest single ethnic group.
III. The Lebanese Constitution made religious affiliation the most important of all,
preventing any Lebanese national identity from forming.
IV. A large portion of the Lebanese rejected French rule and thought of themselves as
either part of Syria or the larger Arab nation as a whole. This led to more
tensions, especially after the French left and the Maronites refused to give up any
of the disproportionate amount of power they had. This just furthered the
divisions in Lebanon that led to the 1975 war.
V.
Economic
I. The French felt they would never be a true Mediterranean power until they had
territory in the Levant to go along with their African Empire.
II. The Maronites were obviously favored economically, however after independence
many Muslims rose and formed their own middle class of sorts.
III. Many Muslims and Christians did business together, this was one of a few very
weak ties that held Lebanon together and did not further the divisions that led to
the civil war.
Mansfield, Peter. "The Anglo-French Interregnum, 1918-1939." A History of the
Middle East. N.p.: n.p., n.d. 195-211. Print.