• Aboriginals in North America
  • Beast Literature
  • Canadiana.1
  • Dances & Music
  • Fables and Fairy Tales
  • Fables by Jean de La Fontaine
  • Feasts & Liturgy
  • Great Books Online
  • La Princesse de Clèves
  • Middle East
  • Molière
  • Nominations
  • Posts on Love Celebrated
  • Posts on the United States
  • The Art and Music of Russia
  • The French Revolution & Napoleon Bonaparte
  • Ukraine
  • Voyageurs Posts
  • Canadiana.2

Micheline's Blog

~ Art, music, books, history & current events

Micheline's Blog

Tag Archives: Protectorates

The Zykes-Picot Agreement of 1916

11 Thursday Aug 2016

Posted by michelinewalker in Middle East, The Ottoman Empire

≈ 13 Comments

Tags

Britain and France, Chaim Weizmann, Lawrence of Arabia, Mandates, Protectorates, The Balfour Declaration, The League of Nations, The Ottoman Empire, The Zykes-Picot Agreement, Zionism

DP243839

Black bashi-bazouk by Jean-Léon Gérôme (MMA, NY)

The Partition of the Ottoman Empire

In my last post, I mentioned the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire, which occurred during World War II, without referring to the Sykes-Picot Agreement of 1916. If a single event throws light on today’s conflicts in the Middle East, it would probably be the Sykes-Picot Agreement or Convention, also called the Asia Minor Agreement.

The Sykes-Picot Agreements of 1916 (Britannica) (see Sykes-Picot Agreement, Wikipedia), was a secret agreement between England and France, concluded with the assent of Imperial Russia. Its authors drew a map of Asia Minor protecting their “spheres of influence” in the Middle East in the event the Ottoman Empire collapsed, which was expected, as a result of World War I.

Its authors, Mark Sykes for Britain and François Georges-Picot, for France, were in fact partitioning a fallen Ottoman Empire, before its defeat. That would be avant la lettre. As for the map of Asia Minor they drew, it was reflected in the apportioning of protectorates created by the League of Nations (LN), Société des Nations, SdN). The Ottoman Empire was defeated during W.W. I and, given the Bolshevik Revolution (the Russian Revolution) that began in 1917, Asia Minor could not be partitioned taking Imperial Russia’s assent into consideration.

According to Britannica’s entry on the Sykes-Picot Agreements of 1916, it was agreed, that the partition of the Empire would be as follows:

  1. Russia should acquire the Armenian provinces of Erzurum, Trebizond (Trabzon), Van, and Bitlis, with some Kurdish territory to the southeast;
  2. France should acquire Lebanon and the Syrian littoral, Adana, Cilicia, and the hinterland adjacent to Russia’s share, that hinterland including Aintab, Urfa, Mardin, Diyarbakır, and Mosul;
  3. Great Britain should acquire southern Mesopotamia, including Baghdad, and also the Mediterranean ports of Haifa and ʿAkko (Acre);
  4. between the French and the British acquisitions there should be a confederation of Arab states or a single independent Arab state, divided into French and British spheres of influence;
  5.  Alexandretta (İskenderun) should be a free port; and
  6.  Palestine, because of the holy places, should be under an international regime.[1]

The Ottoman Empire would be as drawn below under Britannica’s entry on the Sykes-Picot Agreements. Wikipedia indicates the same divisions.

187391-004-F45D75C6

OttomanEmpireIn1683

The Ottoman Empire at its Greatest Extent, 1863 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Ottoman Empire: History

For our purposes, the Ottoman Empire had seized Byzantium in 1453 and expanded to include several nations we view as European. The Empire lasted until World War I, but date wise, it ended on 29 October 1923, after modern Turkey’s declaration of Independence. (See Turkish War of Independence, 1917-1924.) Constantinople was renamed Istanbul. Its European theatre had begun two centuries earlier and you may remember that Algeria was conquered by the Ottoman Empire, defeated by France in 1830. As the first map indicates, Armenia existed in 1916. The genocide of Armenians started during W.W. I and is imputed to the Ottoman Empire, although other countries claim responsibility for this massacre and some deny it ever happened. (See Armenian Genocide, Wikipedia.) It has been said that the Sykes-Picot agreement ended in 2014, but this date is disputed. (See Sykes-Picot Agreements, Wikipedia.)

The Sykes-Picot Agreement itself has been disputed and altered. Factors would be:

  • the Russian Revolution;
  • prior agreements or other agreements;
  • the question of Palestine and Zionism or the Balfour Declaration.

For our purposes, the Balfour Declaration, 1917, is particularly significant. Speaking on behalf of the Zionists was Chaim Weizmann (27 November 1874 – 9 November 1952). The British were represented by Arthur Balfour, the 1st Earl of Balfour (25 July 1848 – 19 March 1930). Zionism is a product of the 19th century and its father is Theodor Herzl (2 May 1860 – 3 July 1904). Herzl founded the World Zionist Organization, a movement we associate with the Jewish Agency for Israel. Jews have long been persecuted. For instance, the local Jewish population was burned during outbreaks of the plague. Jews were made into scapegoats. The Jewish Agency promoted aliyah, returning to Israel. However, although Palestine had a minority Jewish population since time almost immemorial, in 1917, there had not been a Jewish homeland for two thousand years.

In his negotiations with Lord Balfour, Dr Chaim Weizmann stated the following:

“Mr. Balfour, supposing I was to offer you Paris instead of London, would you take it?” He sat up, looked at me, and answered: “But Dr. Weizmann, we have London.” “That is true,” I said, “but we had Jerusalem when London was a marsh.” He … said two things which I remember vividly. The first was: “Are there many Jews who think like you?” I answered: “I believe I speak the mind of millions of Jews whom you will never see and who cannot speak for themselves.” … To this he said: “If that is so you will one day be a force.”
(Chaim Weizmann and Arthur Balfour)[2]

As a Canadian who spent a year in Regina, Saskatchewan, and loved it, I rather like this other formulation of the same question:

“Would you give up London to live in Saskatchewan?” When Balfour replied that the British had always lived in London, Weizmann responded, “Yes, and we lived in Jerusalem when London was still a marsh.”
(Chaim Weismann to Arthur Balfour, see Chaim Weizmann, Wikipedia.)

The secret Sykes-Picot Agreement (1916) was exposed by the British Guardian on 26  November 1917. It negated the Balfour Declaration, a letter dated 2 November 1917 sent by the United Kingdom’s Foreign Secretary Arthur James Balfour to Walter Rothschild, 2nd Baron Rothschild. It read:

His Majesty’s government view with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavours to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country.
(See Balfour Declaration, Wikipedia.)

There was no mention of a homeland for the Jews in the Sykes-Picot Agreement. It also negated the UK’s “promises to Arabs” through T. E. Lawrence, better known as Lawrence of Arabia. Britain had also promised a “national Arab homeland.” The Arabs revolted against the Ottoman Empire (see Arab Revolt, Wikipedia), which Britain wanted to defeat. In the end, the Mandates partitioning the defeated Ottoman Empire were issued through the League of Nations.

Britain would rule Palestine as a Mandatory Palestine, from 1923 until 1948, as well as a Mandatory Iraq (Mesopotamia) from 1920 until 1932. France would rule a mandatory Syria and Lebanon, referred to as the French Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon (1923 −1946), as well as Alexandretta (İskenderun, now in Turkey).

Sykes-Picot_svg

The Zykes-Picot Agreement (Photo credit: Wikipedia)


Zones of French (blue), British (red) and Russian (green) influence and control established by the
  Sykes–Picot Agreement. At a Downing Street meeting of 16 December 1915 Sykes had declared “I should like to draw a line from the e in Acre to the last k in Kirkuk.” (Caption by Wikipedia, under Sykes-Picot Agreement.)

Conclusion

“‘This is not the first border we will break, we will break other borders,’ a jihadist from ISIL warned in a video titled End of Sykes-Picot.” That quotation was culled from an article published in The Guardian (UK) entitled Isis announces Islamic Caliphate in area straddling Iraq and Syria by Mark Tran and Matthew Weaver, 30 June 2014. (See Sykes-Picot Agreement, Wikipedia.)

It has been a hundred years since the secret Sykes-Picot Agreement was signed, and it remains.

RELATED ARTICLES

  • The Remains of the Past (9  August 2016)
  • The Last Crusades: the Ottoman Empire (12 February 2015)

Sources and Resources

  • Palestine-Israel Journal
  • The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Islamic Art

 

Love to everyone ♥

____________________

[1] “Sykes-Picot Agreement”. Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online.
Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2016. Web. 11 août. 2016
<https://www.britannica.com/event/Sykes-Picot-Agreement>.

[2] Chaim Weizmann, Trial and Error, p.111, as quoted in W. Lacquer, The History of Zionism, 2003, ISBN 978-1-86064-932-5. p.188 (footnote 19, quoted in Balfour Declaration, Wikipedia.)

the-tryst_jpg!PinterestSmall

A Tryst by Gérôme, 1840 (wikiart.org)

© Micheline Walker
11 August 2016
corrected: 11 August 2016
WordPress.

Micheline's Blog

  • Print
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest

Like this:

Like Loading...

The Remains of the Past

09 Tuesday Aug 2016

Posted by michelinewalker in Middle East, Migrant Crisis, Terrorism

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

Bashar al-Assad, Consequences, Protectorates, The Arab Spring, The Creation of Israel, The Fall of the Ottoman Empire, The War in Iraq, Vladimir Putin in Syria

hb_25_83_6

Composite Camel, Bukhara, Islamic Art, 16c (MMA, NY)

A Scam, I think

I believe it was a scam, but I do not leave my apartment unless it is necessary. It offers safety. I’ve had to go out, but my would-be assassin did not have his “boys” at my “doorsteps.” I believe it was a failed attempt to extort money. But the police took the matter seriously.

The Remains of the Past, 1

I have been thinking about the Middle East and North Africa. A nation should never enter a sovereign country. Nor should one people look upon another people as inferior.

Let us be forgiving, but when President George W. Bush entered Iraq, at the instigation of British Prime Minister Tony Blair, he blundered. Iraq is a nation. It may have been a case of ingrained Manifest Destiny (1845), except that expansion was not the motive.

The name was changed for war on Iraq to war on Terror or Terrorism, but the war in Iraq remains an illegal war. The attacks of 9/11, which cost their life to a large number of United States citizens, nearly 3,000 in New York, did not justify invading Iraq and killing an even greater number of people: Iraqis and Americans. I will never forget that American soldiers were prescribed antidepressants so they could carry on.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/george-w-bush-delivers-critique-151600273.html

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3722711/Iraq-families-hit-150-000-target-sue-Blair-just-two-weeks-5-000-members-public-dip-pockets.html

One can understand that panic may have gripped US President George W Bush. President Bush probably felt that he had “to do something.” Those among us who watched the planes fly into the towers of the World Trade Centre and people jumping to a kinder death were shocked. And then one of the towers imploded. Yet, the attack did not warrant entering Iraq. Capturing Osama bin Laden had to be an intelligence operation and it required the special skills of commandos and the sensitive nose of a Malinois dog. His name was Cairo.

Terrorism & the Syrian Civil War

Matters are complicated. On the one side, peace-loving President Obama now leads a coalition fighting terrorism perpetrated by ISIL, the Islamic State. I hate to see President Obama lead the coalition fighting ISIL. He is an unlikely warrior. However, the US was unable to save Jim Foley’s life and, although Jihadi John‘s next victims were not US citizens, there was motivation to fight ISIL. (See ISIL beheading incidents, Wikipedia.) On 5 August 2016, ISIL captured 3,000 Iraqis.

http://www.cnn.com/2016/08/05/middleeast/iraq-isis-captives/

The Syrian Civil War is the other side. Russian President Vladimir Putin is supporting President Bashar al-Assad. But it is my understanding that the US supports neither Assad nor the “rebels.” Assad, however, crushed the Arab Spring, revolts intended to liberalize Arab countries and introduce more democratic measures. Before the Arab Spring, Assad seemed unlikely to commit crimes against humanity, but, at the moment, his regime is looked upon as an authoritarian regime. What happened? I view Assad as an enigma.

The Remains of the Past, 2

  • the Ottoman Empire
  • protectorates
  • a refugee crisis (W. W. II)
  • the creation of Israel
  • the Six-Day War

Let us look at the past once again, a past preceding the wars of the 2000s. It may be useful to note that after the fall of the Ottoman Empire, or Turkish Empire, targeted during World War I, protectorates were formed by the League of Nations (the ancestor to the United Nations). Syria and Lebanon were both protectorates of the French. (See French Mandate for Syria and Lebanon, Wikipedia.) As for Palestine, it was a protectorate of Britain until the creation of a state of Israel, on 14 May 1948. Palestine was partitioned on 29 November 1947, so a home would be given the Israelis.[1]

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/primary-resources/truman-israel/

The partition of Palestine and, a few months later, the creation of Israel were offensive to the Arab world. Moreover, the United States played an important role in granting Zionists their promised land. I believe one can suggest that the partition of Palestine may have tarnished the image of the United States in the Arab world. Ironically, it all began as a refugee crisis. Jews had fled to Israel to escape Hitler’s concentration camps and gas chambers.

At any rate, Jews had been victimized and Britain’s mandate for Palestine was about to expire. Therefore, although the British opposed the partition of Palestine, it had allowed it by virtue of the Balfour Declaration of 1917. Britain itself had promised Zionists a home in Palestine. Consequently, Israel was created. US President Harry Truman supported the Balfour Declaration and recognized the State of Israel almost as soon as it was created.

http://www.trumanlibrary.org/whistlestop/study_collections/israel/large/

https://history.state.gov/milestones/1945-1952/creation-israel

The creation of Israel remains a contentious issue. I noted that the United States’ initial support for the creation of Israel may have fuelled division between the Arab world and the United States. Moreover, in 1967, Israel waged its Six-Day War. The Israeli annexed the Golan Heights, two-thirds of which was Palestinian territory and one-third, Syrian territory. The Golan Heights have yet to be returned to Palestine and Syria. Israel’s failure to leave the territories it has occupied since 1967 is considered disrespectful and it constitutes an obstacle to peace. (See Golan Heights, Wikipedia.)

http://israelipalestinian.procon.org/view.answers.php?questionID=000362

Conclusion

The above does not explain why a person claiming to be a member of al-Qaeda would want to kill me and, if the letter is not a scam, I do not know who would hire anyone to deprive me of the rest of my life. My would-be assassin wrote that he had been paid to kill.

However, this post may serve to illustrate that US President George W Bush could not enter Iraq after the attack of 9/11. Mr Blair’s advice was injudicious. I will emphasize however that although the war in Syria is a Civil War, the United States is not involved, other than indirectly. The Syrian Civil War has led to a refugee crisis which affects the United States. The refugees are mainly Muslims and certain politicians seeking office would like to prevent refugees from entering their country. These politicians believe all Muslims are potential terrorists. Generally speaking, this is not the case, but certain refugees are resorting to violence. An asylum seeker has been convicted of killing a Swedish refugee centre worker. Despair can lead to violence and violence breeds violence.

http://www.news24.com/World/News/teen-asylum-seeker-convicted-of-killing-swedish-refugee-centre-worker-20160808

Former Swedish PM: Coup in Turkey would have led to refugee disaster in Europe

A Solution

There is of course a solution to the migrant problem, which is to end the Syrian Civil War. This would be for Bashar al-Assad and other Middle East leaders to do. Assad is President of Syria, but Assad is … an enigma. He has managed to survive for several years, but I now wonder whether or not Assad is a free man. He seems an unlikely tyrant. He signs orders, but he may be compelled to do so. Yet, peace is the only solution and he is the President of Syria.

Bashar al-Assad is an Alawite (Shia) Muslim, but he is married to the daughter of Sunni Muslims. Asma al-Assad was born, raised, and educated in London. Sunni Islam  opposes Shia Islam and both sides are divided into factions. Assad is a Shia Muslim, but I doubt that he is the enemy of Sunni Muslims. Moreover, he is westernised. Bashar al-Assad is a medical doctor who met his wife when he was in London, furthering his studies in ophthalmology. He was recalled to Syria when his brother died in an accident.

As I wrote in an earlier post, it is for Islam to determine its future and I cannot see how the refugee crisis can end if Assad does not help make Syria safe. He seems to be attacking his people. In certain European countries, the impact of the refugee crisis is devastating. It is taking a toll on the EU, the European Union, and desperate people are resorting to violence. This seems to be the case in Sweden where instances of violence have been reported.

The refugee crisis saddens me enormously.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-36253000

Sources and Resources

  • Palestine-Israel Journal
  • Partition of Palestine; a Lesson in Pressure is an Internet Archive publication
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel
  • Tony Blair has created the Tony Blair Foundation
  • Osama bin Laden, History Channel
  • The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Islamic Art

____________________

[1] Kermit Roosevelt,“Partition of Palestine, a Lesson in Pressure Politics,” The Institute of Arab American Affairs, Pamphlet No 7, 1948. Internet Archive.

It has been a long absence.
Love to everyone. ♥

hb_57_51_27

“Portrait of a Sufi,” Bukhara, Islamic Art,  16c (MMA, NY)

© Micheline Walker
8 August 2016
WordPress

 

 

 

 

 

Micheline's Blog

  • Print
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest

Like this:

Like Loading...

Europa

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 2,469 other followers

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.com

Categories

Recent Posts

  • The Decline of Kievan Rus’
  • Ilya Repin, Ivan IV and his son Ivan on 16 November 1581, Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow
  • Ukraine’s Varangian Princes, its Primary Chronicle, the Russkaya Pravda …
  • Bohdan Khmelnytsky, a Cossack Hetman
  • Ruthenia vs Ukraine
  • Ukraine: … a Genocide?
  • A Brief Disappearance
  • Ukraine: the Battle of Poltava
  • The War in Ukraine: la petite Russie
  • The Art and Music of Russia

Archives

Calendar

May 2022
M T W T F S S
 1
2345678
9101112131415
16171819202122
23242526272829
3031  
« Apr    

Social

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • WordPress.org

micheline.walker@videotron.ca

Micheline Walker

Micheline Walker

Social

Social

  • View belaud44’s profile on Facebook
  • View Follow @mouchette_02’s profile on Twitter
  • View Micheline Walker’s profile on LinkedIn
  • View belaud44’s profile on YouTube
  • View Miicheline Walker’s profile on Google+
  • View michelinewalker’s profile on WordPress.org

Micheline Walker

Micheline Walker
Follow Micheline's Blog on WordPress.com

A WordPress.com Website.

  • Follow Following
    • Micheline's Blog
    • Join 2,469 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • Micheline's Blog
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...
 

    %d bloggers like this: