- French Mandate of Syria
Infobox Former Country
native_name = Mandat français en Syrie
conventional_long_name = French Mandate of Syria
common_name = Syria|
continent = moved from Category:Asia to the Middle East
region = the Middle East
country = Syria
era = Interwar period
status = League of Nations Mandate
empire = France
year_start = 1920
year_end = 1946|
event_start = Mandate granted
date_start =April 25 ,1920
event_end =Independence
date_end =April 17 ,1946
event1 =Battle of Maysalun
date_event1 =July 23 ,1920
event2 = Federation established
date_event2 = June, 1922
event3 = Unification ofDamascus andAleppo
date_event3 =December 1 ,1924
event4 = Franco-Syrian Treaty of Independence
date_event4 = March-September, 1936
event5 = Addition of Jabal el Druze
year_event5 = 1936
event6 = Addition ofAlawite State
year_event6 = 1937
event7 =Alexandretta given toTurkey
year_event7 = 1939|
p1 = Ottoman Empire
flag_p1 = Ottoman Flag.svg
s1 = Syria
flag_s1 = Syria-flag 1932-58 1961-63.svg
s2 = Lebanon
flag_s2 = Flag of Lebanon.svg
s3 = Turkey
flag_s3 = Flag of Turkey.svg
flag_type = Flag of the French Mandate of Syria (1920-1922)
capital = Damascus
currency =
common_languages = Arabic, FrenchThe French Mandate of Syria was a
League of Nations Mandate created after theFirst World War and thepartitioning of the Ottoman Empire . During the two years that followed the end of the war in 1918, and according to theSykes-Picot Agreement which was signed between Britain and France during the war, the British held control of the Ottoman province ofMesopotamia (Iraq ) and the southern part of the Ottoman province of Syria (Palestine andJordan ), while the French controlled the rest of Ottoman Syria (modernSyria ,Lebanon , andHatay province ofTurkey ).During the first years of the 1920s, the British and French control of these territories became formalized by the
League of Nations ' mandate system, andFrance was assigned themandate of Syria inSeptember 29 ,1923 , which included modernLebanon and Hatay (Alexandretta) in addition to modernSyria . The French mandate of Syria lasted until 1943, when two independent countries emerged from the mandate period, Syria and Lebanon, in addition to Hatay which had joined Turkey in 1939 following a referendum. French troops left Syria and Lebanon finally in 1946.The Arab Kingdom of Syria
With the defeat of Ottomans in Syria, British troops under Marshal Edmund Henry Allenby entered Damascus in 1918 accompanied by troops of the
Arab Revolt led by Faisal, son ofSharif Hussein ofMecca .Faisal established the first Arab government in Damascus in October 1918, and named Ali Rida Pasha ar-Rikabi a military governor. 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 toAden in southernYemen .However, General Allenby, and in accordance with the secret
Sykes-Picot Agreement between Britain andFrance , assigned to the Arab administration only the interior regions of Syria (the eastern zone).Palestine (the southern zone) was reserved for the British, and onOctober 8 , French troops debarked inBeirut and occupied all the Syrian coastal region untilNaqoura (the western zone) replacing British troops there. The French immediately dissolved the local Arab governments in the region.The French demanded full implementation of the Sykes-Picot agreement and the placement of Syria under their influence. On
November 26 ,1919 , the British withdrew from Damascus to avoid confrontation with the French, leaving the Arab government face to face with the French.Faisal had voyaged several times in Europe, beginning in November 1918, trying to convince Paris and London to change their positions, but without success. Signifying the determination of France on its intervention in Syria was the naming of General
Henri Gouraud as a high commissioner in Syria-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 about the local public opinion regarding the future of the country. The commission's workspace extended fromAleppo toBeersheba . They visited 36 major cities, met with over than 2000 delegations from more than 300 villages, and received more than 3000 petitions. Their conclusions confirmed the opposition of Syrians to the mandate in their country as well as to theBalfour declaration , and their demand of a unifiedGreater Syria encompassing Palestine. The conclusions of the commission were rejected by France and ignored by Britain.In May 1919, elections were held for the General Syrian Congress. 80% of seats went to conservatives. However, the minority included dynamic Arab nationalist figures such as
Jamil Mardam-Bey ,Shukri al-Kuwatli ,Ahmad al-Qadri ,Ibrahim Hanano , and Riyad as-Solh.Unrest erupted in Syria when Faisal accepted a compromise with the French Prime Minister
Clemenceau and with theZionist leaderWeizmann over the issue ofJewish immigration to Palestine. Anti-Hashemite manifestations broke out, andMuslim inhabitants in and aroundMount Lebanon revolted with fear of being incorporated into a new, mainlyChristian , state ofGreater Lebanon .In March 1920, the Syrian national congress in Damascus, headed by
Hashim al-Atassi , adopted a resolution rejecting the Faisal-Clemenceau accords. The congress declared the independence of Syria in her natural borders (including Palestine), and proclaimed Faisal the king of Arabs. The congress also proclaimed political and economic union with neighboringIraq and demanded its independence as well. A new government headed by Ali Rida ar-Rikabi was formed onMay 9 ,1920 .On
April 25 , and in the course of theTreaty of Sevres , the supreme inter-allied council granted France the mandate of Syria (including Lebanon), and granted the UK the mandate of Palestine (including Jordan) and Iraq. Syrians reacted with violent demonstrations, and with the formation of a new government under Hashim al-Atassi onMay 7 ,1920 . The new government decided to organize general conscription and began financing an army.These decisions provoked adverse reactions by the French as well as by the
Maronite patriarchate ofMount Lebanon , which denounced the decisions as a "coup d'état." InBeirut , the Christian press expressed its hostility to the decisions of Faisal's government. Lebanese nationalists profited of the crisis to convene a council of Christian figures inBaabda onMarch 22 ,1920 , that proclaimed the independence ofLebanon .On
July 14 ,1920 , General Gouraud issued an ultimatum to Faisal giving him the choice between submission or abdication. 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 and faced the French at thebattle of Maysaloun which was won by the French under GeneralMariano Goybet in less than a day. Azmeh died in the battlefield along with most of those who were with him, and General Goybet entered Damascus onJuly 24 ,1920 .When first arriving in Lebanon, the French were received as liberators by the Christian community, but as they were entering Syria they were faced with a strong resistance. It took France three years from 1920 to 1923 to hold full control over Syria and to quell all the insurgencies that broke out, notably in the
Alawite territories, Mount Druze andAleppo .The Mandate
Following the
San Remo conference and the defeat ofKing Faisal 's short-lived monarchy in Syria at theBattle of Maysalun , the French genralHenri Gouraud subdivided the mandate of Syria into six states. They were the states of Damascus (1920), Aleppo (1920), Alawites (1920), Jabal Druze (1921), the autonomous Sanjak of Alexandretta (1921) (modern-dayHatay ), and theState of Greater Lebanon (1920) which became later the modern country ofLebanon .In July 1922, France established a loose
federation between three of the states: Damascus, Aleppo, and the Alawite under the name of the Syrian Federation (Fédération syrienne). Jabal Druze, Sanjak of Alexandretta, and Greater Lebanon were not parts of this federation, which adopted a new federal flag (green-white-green with French canton). OnDecember 1 ,1924 , the Alawite state seceded from the federation when the states of Aleppo and Damascus were united into the State of Syria.In 1925, a revolt in Jabal Druze led by
Sultan Pasha el Atrash spread to other Syrian states and became a general rebellion in Syria. France tried to retaliate by having the parliament of Aleppo declare secession from the union with Damascus, but the voting was foiled by Syrian patriots. OnMay 14 ,1930 , the State of Syria was declared the Republic of Syria and a new constitution was drafted. Two years later, in 1932, a new flag for the republic was adopted. The flag carried three red stars that represented the three districts of the republic (Damascus, Aleppo, andDeir ez Zor ).In 1936, the
Franco-Syrian Treaty of Independence was signed, a treaty that would not be ratified by the French legislature. However, the treaty allowed Jabal Druze, the Alawite (now calledLatakia ), and Alexandretta to be incorporated into the Syrian republic within the following two years. Greater Lebanon (now the Lebanese Republic) was the only state that did not join the Syrian Republic.Hashim al-Atassi , who was Prime Minister under King Faisal's brief reign (1918-1920), was the first president to be elected under a new constitution adopted after the independence treaty.In September 1938, France again separated the Syrian district of Alexandretta and transformed it into the
Republic of Hatay . The Republic of Hatay joined Turkey in the following year, in June 1939. Syria did not recognize the incorporation of Hatay into Turkey and the issue is still disputed until the present time.With the fall of France in 1940 during
World War II , Syria came under the control of theVichy Government until the British andFree French occupied the country in July 1941. Syria proclaimed its independence again in 1941 but it wasn't untilJanuary 1 ,1944 , that it was recognized as an independent republic. Continuing pressure from Syrian nationalist groups and British pressure forced the French to evacuate their last troops inApril 17 ,1946 .tates created during the French Mandate
During the French mandate, several states were created in the once united Greater Syria. The drawing of those states was based primarily on exploiting the diverse sectarian make up of 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 numerosity of 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, Lebanon was the exception between the newly formed states.
tate of Greater Lebanon
On
September 1 ,1920 , General Gouraud proclaimed the establishment of theState of Greater Lebanon (French: État de Grand Liban) (Arabic: دولة لبنان الكبير).Greater Lebanon was created by France to be a "safe haven" for the
Maronite population of the Mutasarrifia (Ottoman administrative unit) ofMount Lebanon . Mt. Lebanon, an area with a Maronite majority, had enjoyed variable degrees of unofficialautonomy during the Ottoman era. However, Greater Lebanon included in addition to Mount Lebanon other mainlyMuslim regions that were not part of the Maronite Mutasarrifia, and hence the word "greater." Those regions correspond today tonorth Lebanon ,south Lebanon ,Biqa' valley , andBeirut . The incorporation ofTripoli , the former major Syrian port, into Greater Lebanon was a big economic loss for Syria.The capital of Greater Lebanon was
Beirut . The new state was granted a flag merging theFrench flag with thecedar of Mt. Lebanon.Muslims in Greater Lebanon rejected the new state upon its creation. They boycotted the general census in 1922, and refused to receive new identity cards before General Gouraud agreed to remove from the cards the part stating the Lebanese citizenship. The Muslim continuous demand for reunification with Syria eventually brought about an armed conflict between Muslims and Christians in 1958 when Muslim Lebanese wanted to join the newly proclaimed
United Arab Republic , while Christians were strongly opposed to that.Although most of the Lebanese sects were not enthusiastic for the new state, Maronites were the majority and they 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
May 23 ,1926 , after which it became theLebanese Republic .tate of Alawites
The
State of Alawites (French: État des Alaouites) (Arabic: دولة العلويين) was located on the Syrian coast and incorporated a majority ofAlawites , a branch ofShia Islam . The port city ofLatakia 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
September 22 ,1930 , it was renamed the "Independent Government of Latakia." The population at this time was 278,000.The government of Latakia finally joined the Syrian Republic onDecember 5 ,1936 .This state witnessed several rebellions against the French. The most prominent of which were under
Salih al-Ali , an Alawite anti-French figure.tate of Jabal Druze
Jabal Druze was a French mandate from 1921 to 1936 created for theDruze population of southernSyria . It had a population of some 50,000 and had its capital inAs Suwayda .tate of Aleppo
The
State of Aleppo (1920-1925) (French: État d'Alep) (Arabic: دولة حلب) included a majority ofSunni Muslims . It covered northern Syria in addition to the entire fertile basin of riverEuphrates of eastern Syria. These regions represented much of the agricultural and mineral wealth of Syria. The autonomousSanjak of Alexandretta was added to the state of Aleppo in 1923.The capital was the northern city of
Aleppo , which had largeChristian andJewish communities in addition to the Sunni Muslims. The state also incorporated minorities ofShiites and Alawites. EthnicKurds ,Syriacs , andAssyrians inhabited the eastern regions alongside the Arabs.The primarily Sunni population of the state of Aleppo was 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.
tate of Damascus
The
State of Damascus was a French mandate from 1920 to 1925. The capital was Damascus.anjak of Alexandretta
The
Sanjak of Alexandretta was autonomous from 1921 to 1923, under the French-Turkish treaty ofOctober 20 ,1921 , due to the presence of an important Turkish community along with Arabs of various religious denominations:Sunni Muslims,Alawites , Syriac Orthodox, Greek Orthodox, Greek Catholics,Maronites . There were also communities ofJew s, Assyrians,Kurd s,Armenians andGreeks . In 1923Alexandretta was attached to the State ofAleppo , and in 1925 it was directly attached to theFrench mandate of Syria , still with special administrative status.The 1936 elections in the sanjak returned two MPs favoring the independence of
Syria from France, and this prompted communal riots as well as passionate articles in the Turkish and Syrian press. This then became the subject of a complaint to theLeague of Nations by the Turkish government underMustafa Kemal Atatürk concerning alleged mistreatment of the area's Turkish populations. Atatürk demanded that Alexandretta become part of Turkey, claiming that the majority of its inhabitants were Turks. 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 theFrench Mandate of Syria on the diplomatic level, linked to both France and Turkey for defence matters.The allocation of seats in the sanjak assembly was based on the 1938 census held by the French authorities under international supervision: out of 40 seats, 22 were given to the Turks, nine for Alawi Arabs, five for Armenians, two for Sunni Arabs, and two for Christian Arabs. The assembly was appointed in the summer of 1938 and the French-Turkish treaty settling the status of the Sanjak was signed on
July 4 ,1938 .On
September 2 ,1938 , the assembly proclaimed the Sanjak of Alexandretta as theRepublic of Hatay , taking as an excuse that rioting had broken out between Turks and Arabs.Fact|date=February 2007 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. The presidentTayfur Sökmen was a member of Turkish parliament elected in 1935 (representingAntalya (Greek: Αττάλεια)) and the prime ministerDr. Abdurrahman Melek , was also elected to the Turkish parliament (representing Gaziantep) in 1939 while still holding the prime-ministerial post.In 1939, following a popular referandum, the
Republic of Hatay became a Turkish province.References
* [http://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/fr/IMG/pdf/III_-_Protmand_modifie_mandat.pdf Mandat Syria-Liban ... (1920-146)]
* [http://maaber.50megs.com/issue_august03/lookout2f.htm La Syrie et le mandat français (1920-1946)]
* [http://www.lebarmy.gov.lb/article.asp?ln=fr&id=1010 Les Relations franco-libanaises dans le cadre des relations Internationales]
* [http://209.85.129.104/search?q=cache:0uumjqryX5YJ:perso.orange.fr/pierre.gay/PagesFra/ColPrOFR+mandat+syrie&hl=fr&gl=fr&ct=clnk&cd=4&client=firefox-a Mandat français au Proche-Orient]See also
*
Sykes-Picot Agreement
*British Mandate of Palestine
*History of Syria
*Ottoman Syria
*Roman Syria
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