Contemporary 1922 map showing the borders between the Syrian states
The Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon (French: Mandat pour la Syrie et le Liban; Arabic: الانتداب الفرنسي على سوريا ولبنان al-intidāb al-fransi 'ala suriya wa-lubnān) (1923−1946)[1] was a League of Nations mandate[2] founded after the First World War and the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire concerning Syria and Lebanon. The mandate system was supposed to differ from colonialism, with the governing country acting as a trustee until the inhabitants would be able to stand on their own. At that point, the mandate would terminate and an independent state would be born.[3]
During the two years that followed the end of the war in 1918—and in accordance with the Sykes-Picot Agreement signed by Britain and France during the war—the British held control of most of Ottoman Mesopotamia (modern Iraq) and the southern part of Ottoman Syria (Palestine and Transjordan), while the French controlled the rest of Ottoman Syria, Lebanon, Alexandretta (Hatay) and other portions of southeastern Turkey.[2] In the early 1920s, British and French control of these territories became formalized by the League of Nations' mandate system, and on 29 September 1923 France was assigned the League of Nations mandate of Syria, which included the territory of present-day Lebanon and Alexandretta in addition to Syria proper.[4]
The administration of the region under the French was carried out through a number of different governments and territories, including the Syrian Federation (1922–24), the State of Syria (1924–30) and the Syrian Republic (1930–1958), as well as smaller states: the State of Greater Lebanon, the Alawite State and Jabal Druze State. Hatay was annexed by Turkey in 1939. The French mandate lasted until 1943, when two independent countries emerged, Syria and Lebanon. French troops completely left Syria and Lebanon in 1946.[5]
The new Arab administration formed local governments in the major Syrian cities, and the pan-Arab flag was raised all over Syria. The Arabs hoped, with faith in earlier British promises, that the new Arab state would include all the Arab lands stretching from Aleppo in northern Syria to Aden in southern Yemen.
However, in accordance with the secret Sykes–Picot Agreement between Britain and France,[7] General Allenby assigned to the Arab administration only the interior regions of Syria (the eastern zone). Palestine (the southern zone) was reserved for the British. On 8 October, French troops disembarked in Beirut[8] and occupied the Lebanese coastal region south to Naqoura (the western zone), replacing British troops there. The French immediately dissolved the local Arab governments in the region.
France demanded full implementation of the Sykes–Picot Agreement, with Syria under its control. On 26 November 1919, British forces withdrew from Damascus to avoid confrontation with the French, leaving the Arab government to face France.[9] Faisal had travelled several times to Europe, since November 1918, trying to convince France and Britain to change their positions, but without success. France's determination to intervene in Syria was shown by the naming of General Henri Gouraud as high commissioner in Syria and Cilicia. At the Paris Peace Conference, Faisal found himself in an even weaker position when the European powers decided to ignore the Arab demands.
In June 1919, the American King–Crane Commission arrived in Syria to inquire into local public opinion about the future of the country. The commission's remit extended from Aleppo to Beersheba. They visited 36 major cities, met with more than 2,000 delegations from more than 300 villages, and received more than 3,000 petitions. Their conclusions confirmed the opposition of Syrians to the mandate in their country as well as to the Balfour Declaration, and their demand for a unified Greater Syria encompassing Palestine.[10] The conclusions of the commission were ignored by both Britain and France.[11]
Seal of the states under French mandate after WWI (among them Syria) around 1925. The text is 'DOUANE DES ÉTATS SOUS MANDAT FRANÇAIS' (Customs of the states under French mandate)
Unrest erupted in Syria when Faisal accepted a compromise with French Prime Minister Clemenceau.[12][13] Anti-Hashemite demonstrations broke out, and Muslim inhabitants in and around Mount Lebanon revolted in fear of being incorporated into a new, mainly Christian, state of Greater Lebanon. A part of France's claim to these territories in the Levant was that France was a protector of the minority Christian communities.[citation needed]
In March 1920, the Congress in Damascus adopted a resolution rejecting the Faisal-Clemenceau accords. The congress declared the independence of Syria in her natural borders (including Southern Syria or Palestine), and proclaimed Faisal the king of all Arabs. Faisal invited Ali Rida al-Rikabi to form a government.[14] The congress also proclaimed political and economic union with neighboring Iraq and demanded its independence as well.
On 25 April, the supreme inter-Allied council, which was formulating the Treaty of Sèvres, granted France the mandate of Syria (including Lebanon), and granted Britain the Mandate of Palestine (including Jordan), and Iraq. Syrians reacted with violent demonstrations, and a new government headed by Hashim al-Atassi was formed on 7 May 1920.[15] The new government decided to organize general conscription and began forming an army.
These decisions provoked adverse reactions by France as well as by the Maronite patriarchate of Mount Lebanon, which denounced the decisions as a "coup d'état". In Beirut, the Christian press expressed its hostility to the decisions of Faisal's government. Lebanese nationalists used the crisis to convene a council of Christian figures in Baabda that proclaimed the independence of Lebanon on 22 March 1920.[16]
On 14 July 1920, General Gouraud issued an ultimatum to Faisal, giving him the choice between submission or abdication.[17] Realizing that the power balance was not in his favor, Faisal chose to cooperate. However, the young minister of war, Youssef al-Azmeh, refused to comply. In the resulting Franco-Syrian War, Syrian troops under al-Azmeh, composed of the little remaining troops of the Arab army and Bedouin horsemen and civilian volunteers met the better trained 12,000 strong French forces under General Mariano Goybet at the Battle of Maysaloun. The French won the battle in less than a day and Azmeh died on the battlefield along with many of the Syrian troops,[18] while the remaining troops possibly defected. General Goybet captured Damascus faced with little resistance on 24 July 1920, and the mandate was written in London two years later on 24 July 1922.[3]
Bulletin Officiel des Actes Administratifs du Haut Commissariat, 14 May 1930, announcing the constitutions of the states within the French Mandate of Syria and Lebanon
Map showing the states of the French Mandate from 1921 to 1922
Arriving in Lebanon, the French were received as liberators by the Christian community, but entering Syria, they were faced with strong resistance.[citation needed]
The drawing of those states was based in part on the sectarian makeup on the ground in Syria. However, nearly all the Syrian sects were hostile to the French mandate and to the division it created. This was best demonstrated by the numerous revolts that the French encountered in all of the Syrian states. Maronite Christians of Mount Lebanon, on the other hand, were a community with a dream of independence that was being realized under the French; therefore, Greater Lebanon was the exception among the newly formed states.[citation needed]
It took France three years from 1920 to 1923 to gain full control over Syria and to quell all the insurgencies that broke out, notably in the Alawite territories, Mount Druze and Aleppo.
Although there were uprisings in the different states, the French deliberately gave different ethnic and religious groups in the Levant their own lands in the hopes of prolonging their rule. The French hoped to focus on fragmenting the various groups in the region, so that the local population would not focus on the larger nationalist movement seeking to end colonial rule. In addition, the administration of the state governments was heavily dominated by the French. Local authorities were given very little power and did not have the authority to independently decide policy. The small amount of power that local leaders had could easily be overruled by French officials. The French did everything in their power to prevent people in the Levant from developing self-sufficient governing bodies. In 1930, France extended their constitution on to Syria.[19][clarification needed]
The first map, drawn by the French in 1862, was used as a template for the 1920 borders of Greater Lebanon.[20] The second map shows the borders of the 1861–1918 Mount Lebanon Mutasarrifate, overlaid on a map of modern day Lebanon showing religious groups distribution
On August 3, 1920, Arrêté 299 of the Haut-commissariat de la République française en Syrie et au Liban linked the cazas of Hasbaya, Rachaya, Maallaka and Baalbeck to what was then known as the Autonomous Territory of Lebanon. Then on 31 August 1920, General Gouraud signed Arrêté 318 delimiting the State of Greater Lebanon, with explanatory notes stating that Lebanon would be treated separately from the rest of Syria.[22] On 1 September 1920, General Gouraud publicly proclaimed the creation of the State of Greater Lebanon (French: État du Grand Liban, Arabic: دولة لبنان الكبير) at a ceremony in Beirut.[23]
General Gourard proclaims the creation of the State of Greater Lebanon
Greater Lebanon was created by France to be a "safe haven" for the Maronite population of the mutasarrifia (Ottoman administrative unit) of Mount Lebanon. Mt. Lebanon, an area with a Maronite majority, had enjoyed varying degrees of autonomy during the Ottoman era. However, in addition to the Maronite Mutasarrifia other, mainly Muslim, regions were added, forming "Greater" Lebanon. Those regions correspond today to North Lebanon, south Lebanon, Biqa' valley, and Beirut.[24] The capital of Greater Lebanon was Beirut. The new state was granted a flag merging the French flag with the cedar of Lebanon.[25]
Maronites were the majority in Lebanon and managed to preserve its independence; an independence that created a unique precedent in the Arab world as Lebanon was the first Arab country in which Christians were not a minority. The State of Greater Lebanon existed until 23 May 1926, after which it became the Lebanese Republic.[26]
Most Muslims in Greater Lebanon rejected the new state upon its creation. Some believe that the continuous Muslim demand for reunification with Syria eventually brought about an armed conflict between Muslims and Christians in 1958 when Lebanese Muslims wanted to join the newly proclaimed United Arab Republic, while Lebanese Christians were strongly opposed.[27] However, most members of the Lebanese Muslim communities and their political elites were committed to the idea of being Lebanese citizens by the late 1930s, even though they also tended to nurture Arab nationalist sentiments.
On 19 August 1920, General Gouraud signed Arrêté 314 which added to the autonomous sandjak of Alexandretta the cazas of Jisr el-Choughour, the madriyehs of Baher and Bujack (caza of Latakia), the moudiriyeh of Kinsaba (caza of Sahyoun) "with a view to the formation of the territories of Greater Lebanon and the Ansarieh Mountains"; where the "Ansarieh Mountains" area was to become the Alawite State.[28] On 31 August 1920, the same day that the decree creating Greater Lebanon was signed, General Gouraud signed Arrêté 319 delimiting the State of Alawites, and Arrêté 317 adding the caza of Massyaf (Omranie) into the new State.[29][30]
A 10-piastre Syrian stamp used in the Alawite State, bearing an overprint overprinted "ALAOUITES"
The State of Alawites (French: État des Alaouites, Arabic: دولة العلويين) was located on the Syrian coast and incorporated a majority of Alawites, a branch of ShiaIslam. The port city of Latakia was the capital of this state. Initially it was an autonomous territory under French rule known as the "Alawite Territories". It became part of the Syrian Federation in 1922, but left the federation again in 1924 and became the "State of Alawites". On 22 September 1930, it was renamed the "Independent Government of Latakia".[31] The population at this time was 278,000. The government of Latakia finally joined the Syrian Republic on 5 December 1936. This state witnessed several rebellions against the French, including that of Salih al-Ali (1918-1920).
On 28 June 1922 Arrêté 1459 created a "Federation of the Autonomous States of Syria" which included the State of Aleppo, the State of Damascus and the State of the Alawis. However, two and a half years later on 5 December 1924 Arrêté 2979 and Arrêté 2980 establishing the Alawite State as an independent state with Latakia as its capital, and separately unified the States of Aleppo and Damascus as from 1 January 1925 into a single State, renamed "d'État de Syrie" ("State of Syria").
In 1936, both Jebel Druze and the Alawite State were incorporated into the State of Syria.[32]
On 1 September 1920, the day after the creation of Greater Lebanon and the Alawite State, Arrêté 330 separated out of the previous "Gouvernement de Damas" ("Government of Damascus") an independent government known as the "Gouvernement d'Alep" ("Government of Aleppo"), including the autonomous sandjak of Alexandretta, which retained its administrative autonomy.[33] The terms "Gouvernement d'Alep" "Gouvernement de Damas" were used interchangeably with "l'Etat d'Alep" and "l'Etat de Damas" – for example, Arrete 279 1 October 1920 stated in its preamble: "Vu l'arrêté No 330 du 1er Septembre 1920 créant l'Etat d'Alep".
The State of Aleppo (1920–1925, French: État d'Alep, Arabic: دولة حلب) included a majority of SunniMuslims. It covered northern Syria in addition to the entire fertile basin of river Euphrates of eastern Syria. These regions represented much of the agricultural and mineral wealth of Syria. The autonomous Sanjak of Alexandretta was added to the state of Aleppo in 1923. The capital was the northern city of Aleppo, which had large Christian and Jewish communities in addition to the Sunni Muslims. The state also incorporated minorities of Shiites and Alawites. Ethnic Kurds and Assyrians inhabited the eastern regions alongside the Arabs.
The State of Damascus was a French mandate from 1920[34] to 1925. The capital was Damascus.
The primarily Sunni population of the states of Aleppo and Damascus were strongly opposed to the division of Syria. This resulted in its quick end in 1925, when France united the states of Aleppo and Damascus into the State of Syria.
Ethnographical map of Syria and Lebanon in a pre-World War I ethnographical map. The brown area around Alexandretta represents Turkish-speaking peoples.
The Sanjak of Alexandretta became an autonomous province of Syria under Article 7 of the French-Turkish treaty of 20 October 1921: "A special administrative regime shall be established for the district of Alexandretta. The Turkish inhabitants of this district shall enjoy facility for their cultural development. The Turkish language shall have official recognition".[35]
In 1923, Alexandretta was attached to the State of Aleppo, and in 1925 it was directly attached to the French mandate of Syria, still with special administrative status. The sanjak was given autonomy in November 1937 in an arrangement brokered by the League. Under its new statute, the sanjak became 'distinct but not separated' from the French Mandate of Syria on the diplomatic level, linked to both France and Turkey for defence matters.
In 1938, the Turkish military went into the Syrian province and expelled most of its Arab and Armenian inhabitants.[36] Before this, Alawi Arabs and Armenians were the majority of Alexandretta's population.[36]
The allocation of seats in the sanjak assembly was based on the 1938 census held by the French authorities under international supervision. The assembly was appointed in the summer of 1938, and the French-Turkish treaty settling the status of the Sanjak was signed on 4 July 1938.[citation needed]
On 2 September 1938, the assembly proclaimed the Sanjak of Alexandretta as the Hatay State.[37] The republic lasted for one year under joint French and Turkish military supervision. The name Hatay itself was proposed by Atatürk and the government was under Turkish control.
In 1939, following a popular referendum, the Hatay State became a Turkish province.
In 1936–1937, there was some autonomist agitation among Assyrians and Kurds, supported by some Bedouins, in the province of Al-Jazira. Its partisans wanted the French troops to stay in the province in the event of a Syrian independence, as they feared the nationalist Damascus government would replace minority officials by Muslim Arabs from the capital. The French authorities refused to consider any new status of autonomy inside Syria.[40][41][42]
In Quneitra and the Golan Region, there was a sizeable Circassian community. For the same reasons as their Assyrian, Kurdish and Bedouin counterparts in Al-Jazira province in 1936–1937, several Circassian leaders wanted a special autonomy status for their region in 1938, as they feared the prospect of living in an independent Syrian republic under a nationalist Arab government hostile towards the minorities. They also wanted the Golan region to become a national homeland for Circassian refugees from the Caucasus. A Circassian battalion served in the French Army of the Levant and had helped it against the Arab nationalist uprisings. As in Al-Jazira Province, the French authorities refused to grant any autonomy status to the Golan Circassians.[43]
^Haut-commissariat de la République française en Syrie et au Liban, Arrete 318: "Attendu que la France en venant en Syrie n'a poursuivi d'autre but que celui de permettre aux populations de la Syrie et du Liban de réaliser leurs aspirations les plus légitimes de liberté et d'autonomie; Considérant qu'il importe, pour le faire, de restituer au Liban ses frontières naturelles telles qu'elles ont été définies par ses représentants et réclamées par les vœux unanimes de ses populations; Que le Grand Liban, ainsi fixé dans ses limites naturelles, pourra poursuivre en tant qu'État indépendant, au mieux de ses intérêts politiques et économiques, avec l'aide de la France le programme qu'il s'est tracé." [Translation: "Whereas France on coming to Syria has pursued no other aim than to enable the populations of Syria and Lebanon to realize their most legitimate aspirations for freedom and autonomy; Considering that it is important, in order to do so, to restore to Lebanon its natural boundaries as defined by its representatives and demanded by the unanimous wishes of its peoples; That Great Lebanon, so set within its natural limits, will be able to pursue, as an independent State, in the best interests of its political and economic interests, with the help of France the program it has drawn up."]
^Engin Akarli, The Long Peace: Ottoman Lebanon, 1861-1920, University of California Press 1993 p. 180
^R. Rabin, Religion, National Identity, and Confessional Politics in Lebanon: The Challenge of Islamism, Springer, 2011 p. 11
^Arrêté 314, 19 August 1920: "...des modifications territoriales apportées aux diverses circonscriptions administratives de la wilayet de Beyrouth en vue de la formation des territoires du Grand Liban et des monts Ansarieh" [Translation: "territorial changes made to the various administrative districts of the wilayet of Beirut with a view to the formation of the territories of Greater Lebanon and the Ansarieh Mountains"]
^Arrêté 317, 31 August 1920: "que le caza d'Omranié (Massyaf), dépendance de la wilayet de Damas, est peuplé en très grande majorité de populations alaouites et que ce caza doit en conséquence faire partie du groupement Ansarieh actuellement en voie d'organisation" [Translation: "the caza of Omranie (Massyaf), a dependency of the wilayet of Damascus, is overwhelmingly populated by Alaouite populations and that this caza must consequently be part of the Ansarieh grouping currently in the process of organization"].
^Arrêté 319, 31 August 1920: "Attendu que la France en venant en Syrie n'a poursuivi d'autre but que celui de permettre aux populations de réaliser leurs aspirations les plus légitimes de liberté et d'autonomie. Considérant que les populations alaouites et les minorités qu'elles renferment ont nettement exprimé à maintes reprises leur désir d'avoir une administration autonome sous l'égide de la France. Que, pour ce faire, il importe de constituer un territoire groupant la majorité de ces populations pour leur permettre de poursuivre leur développement au mieux de leurs intérêts politiques et économiques selon les vœux qu'elles ont exprimés." [Translation: "Whereas France on coming to Syria has pursued no other goal than to enable the populations to realize their most legitimate aspirations for freedom and autonomy. Considering that the Alawite populations and the minorities they contain have clearly expressed their desire to have an autonomous administration under the auspices of France. That it is important to establish a territory for the majority of these populations to enable them to pursue their development in the best interests of their political and economic interests in accordance with the wishes expressed by them."]
^Trudy Ring, Noelle Watson, Paul Schellinger, Middle East and Africa: International Dictionary of Historic Places, Routledge, 2014 p.454
^ abArrêté 265/LR of 2 December 1936 and Arrêté 274/LR of December 5, 1936 incorporated Jebel Druze and the Alawite State into Syria. Both used similar wording: "le territoire du Djebel Druze fait partie de l'État de Syrie... ce territoire bénéficie, au sein de l'État de Syrie, d'un régime spécial administratif et financier... sous réserve des dispositions de ce règlement, le territoire du Djebel Druze est régi par la Constitution, les lois et les règlements généraux de la République syrienne... le présent arrêté... entreront en vigueur... dès ratification du traité franco-syrien" [Translate: "The territory of Djebel Druze is part of the State of Syria ... this territory enjoys, within the State of Syria, a special administrative and financial regime ... subject to the provisions of this territory of Djebel Druze is governed by the Constitution, the laws and general regulations of the Syrian Republic ... this Order ... shall enter into force ... upon ratification of the Franco-Syrian Treaty ".]
^Arrêté 330, 1 September 1920: "...les territories de l'ancien Vilayet d'Alep, précédemment rattachés au Gouvernement de Damas, constitueront un Gouvernement indépendant dénomm "Gouvernement d'Alep"" [Translate: "...the territories of the former Vilayet of Aleppo, formerly attached to the Government of Damascus, will constitute an independent Government called "Government of Aleppo""]
"Attendu que la France en acceptant le mandat sur la Syrie n'a poursuivi d'autre but que celui de permettre aux populations de réaliser leurs aspirations légitimes de liberté et d'autonomie, tout en assurant la libre jeu et le développement des intérêts économiques communs. Attendu qu'il importe, pour ce faire, de respecter, conformément aux engagements du gouvernement de la République française, les volontés populaires librement exprimées et, en conséquence, de prendre en considération les vœux des populations des régions de la wilayet d'Alep et encore rattachées au gouvernement de Damas; Attendu qu'il est nécessaire de mettre fin, en même temps, à une situation de fait qui, par une centralisation excessive et désormais inutile, complique l'administration du gouvernement de Damas et entrave la bonne marche des affaire de la circonscription administratives d'Alep." [Translate: "Whereas France accepting the mandate over Syria has pursued no other aim than to enable the people to realize their legitimate aspirations for freedom and autonomy, while ensuring the free play and development of economic interests common. Whereas it is important, in order to do so, to respect, in accordance with the commitments of the Government of the French Republic, the freely expressed popular will, and consequently to take into consideration the wishes of the populations of the wilayet regions of Aleppo, still attached to the government of Damascus; Whereas it is necessary at the same time to put an end to a situation which, by excessive and unnecessary centralization, complicates the administration of the Government of Damascus and hampers the smooth running of the affairs of the administrative district of Aleppo."
^Umut Uzer, Identity and Turkish Foreign Policy: The Kemalist Influence in Cyprus and the Caucasus, I.B.Tauris, 18 Dec 2010 p.100
^Arrêté 1641, 24 October 1922: "le vœu nettement exprimé par les habitants du Djebel Druze au Houran de former dans le cadre de leurs limites ethniques un gouvernement autonome" [Translation:
"the wish clearly expressed by the inhabitants of Djebel Druze of the Houran to form within their ethnic limits an autonomous government"]
^James Minahan, Encyclopedia of the Stateless Nations, Greenwood Publishing Group 2002 vol,2 p.547
^La situation des chrétiens de Syrie après les affaires de Djézireh, November 1937, Centre d'Études et d'Administration Musulmanes (CHEAM), Paris
^Virginia Vacca, "La questione dell'el-Ǧezīrah secondo il memoriale del Partito Comunista Siriano", Oriente Moderno, 1938, 18, pp. 197–211
The Alawite State, officially named the Territory of the Alawites —after the locally-dominant Alawites—from its inception until its integration to the Syrian Federation in 1922, was a French mandate territory on the coast of present-day Syria after World War I. The French Mandate from the League of Nations lasted from 1920 to 1946.
Henri Gouraud (general)
Henri Joseph Eugène Gouraud was a French general, best known for his leadership of the French Fourth Army at the end of the First World War.
Battle of Maysalun
The Battle of Maysalun, also called the Battle of Maysalun Pass or the Battle of Khan Maysalun, was a four-hour battle fought between the forces of the Arab Kingdom of Syria and the French Army of the Levant on 24 July 1920 near Khan Maysalun in the Anti-Lebanon Mountains, about 25 kilometres (16 mi) west of Damascus.
Great Syrian Revolt
The Great Syrian Revolt or Great Druze Revolt (1925–1927) was a general uprising across Mandatory Syria and Lebanon aimed at getting rid of the French, who had been in control of the region since the end of World War I. The uprising was not centrally coordinated; rather, it was attempted by multiple factions – among them Sunni, Druze, Alawite, Christian, and Shia – with the common goal of ending French rule. The revolt was ultimately put down by French forces.
Franco-Syrian War
The Franco-Syrian War took place during 1920 between the Hashemite rulers of the newly established Arab Kingdom of Syria and France. During a series of engagements, which climaxed in the Battle of Maysalun, French forces defeated the forces of the Hashemite monarch King Faisal, and his supporters, entering Damascus on July 24, 1920. A new pro-French government was declared in Syria on July 25, headed by 'Alaa al-Din al-Darubi. and eventually Syria was divided into several client states under the French Mandate of Syria and Lebanon. The British government, concerned for their position in the new mandate in Iraq, agreed to declare the fugitive Faisal as the new king of Iraq.
State of Aleppo
The State of Aleppo was one of the five states that were established by the French High Commissioner in Syria and Lebanon General Henri Gouraud in the French Mandate of Syria which followed the San Remo conference and the collapse of King Faisal I's short-lived monarchy in Syria.
State of Damascus
The State of Damascus was one of the six states established by the French General Henri Gouraud in the French Mandate of Syria which followed the San Remo conference and the defeat of King Faisal's short-lived monarchy in Syria.
Postage stamps and postal history of Syria
This is a survey of the postage stamps and postal history of Syria.
Subhi Bey Barakat
Subhi Bey Barakat al-Khalidi or Suphi Bereket was a Syrian politician from Antakya, born into a family of Turkish origin. During the French Mandate of Syria, he was the president of the Syrian Federation and the State of Syria.
Syrian Republic (1946–1963)
The Syrian Republic was recognized as a sovereign state in 1945 and became de facto independent in April 1946 from the French Mandate of Syria and Lebanon. In 1958, Syria joined with the Republic of Egypt in forming the United Arab Republic, though Syria withdrew from the union in 1961 and adopted the name Syrian Arab Republic. In 1963, the Syrian Ba'athist Party came to power in a bloody military coup, which laid foundations for the political structure in Syria for the next decades.
Modern history of Syria
The Modern History of Syria spans from termination of Ottoman control of Syria by French forces and establishment of the Occupied Enemy Territory Administration during World War I. The short-lived Arab Kingdom of Syria emerged in 1920, which was however soon committed under French Mandate, which produced short-living autonomous State of Aleppo, State of Damascus, Alawite State and Jabal al-Druze (state); the autonomies were transformed into the Mandatory Syrian Republic in 1930. Syrian Republic gained independence in April 1946. The Republic took part in the Arab-Israeli War, and remaining in a state of political instability during the 1950s and 1960s.
Occupied Enemy Territory Administration
The Occupied Enemy Territory Administration (OETA) was a joint British and French military administration over Levantine provinces of the former Ottoman Empire between 1918 and 1920, set up on 23 October 1918 following the Sinai and Palestine Campaign of World War I. Although it was declared by the British military, who were in control of the region, it was preceded on 30 September 1918 by the 1918 Anglo–French Modus Vivendi, in which it was agreed that the British would give the French control in certain areas.
Syrian Federation
The Syrian Federation, officially the Federation of the Autonomous States of Syria, was constituted on 28 June 1922 by High Commissary Gouraud. It comprised the States of Aleppo, Damascus and of the Alawites, spanning an area of 190,000 to 200,000 km2. It was officially dissolved by decree of 5 december 1924, "which received its application starting from 1 January 1925".
State of Syria (1925–1930)
The State of Syria was a French Mandate state declared on 1 December 1924, with effect from 1 January 1925, from the union of the State of Aleppo and the State of Damascus. It was the successor of the Syrian Federation (1922–1924) which had been created by providing a central assembly for the State of Aleppo, the State of Damascus and the Alawite State. The Alawite State did not join the State of Syria.
Hananu Revolt
The Hananu Revolt occurred in 1920–1921 in the western countryside of Aleppo and its purpose was to drive out French military forces from northern Syria. Support for the revolt was driven by opposition to the establishment of a French Mandate in the country. The revolt was named after its leading commander, Ibrahim Hananu, and mainly consisted of four allied revolts in the areas of Jabal Harim, Jabal Qusayr, Jabal Zawiya and Jabal Sahyun. The rebels were led by rural leaders and mostly engaged in guerrilla attacks against French forces or the sabotage of key infrastructure.
Beit Achiqbash
Beit Achiqbash is an old Aleppine courtyard mansion built in the mid 18th Century by Qarah Ali (Karaly), a wealthy Christian merchant.
France–Syria relations
Relations between France and Syria have a long, rich historical background. Syria was a French League of Nations Mandate for two decades following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire after World War I, before the last French troops were evacuated from Syria and Syrian independence was officially recognized and diplomatic relations between France and the newly created Syrian state were established.
Mandatory Syrian Republic
The Syrian Republic, known as Mandatory Syrian Republic, or simply Mandatory Syria was formed in 1930 as a component of the French Mandate of Syria and Lebanon, succeeding the State of Syria. A treaty of independence was made in 1936 to grant independence to Syria and end official French rule, but the French parliament refused to accept the agreement. From 1940 to 1941, the Syrian Republic was under the control of Vichy France, and after the Allied invasion in 1941 gradually went on the path towards independence. The proclamation of independence took place in 1944, but only in October 1945 Syrian Republic was de jure recognized by the United Nations; it became a de facto sovereign state on 17 April 1946, with the withdrawal of French troops.
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