"The rabble of the dervishes" against the "tigers of the desert"
Arab uprising - the difficult path to difficult freedom
The 1916-1918 Arab uprising was one of the milestone episodes of the Great War outside the European theater of operations, which completed the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. It was based on its results that the foundations of the statehood of some of the present-day countries of the Middle East were laid, and, at the same time, the knots of many conflicts were tied, which are still regularly responding to wars, revolutions and coups. The fate of the leaders of the uprising was also not easy - they could not take full advantage of the victory, and even their names remained in the shadow of the literary and cinematic fame of their friend and ally, British officer Thomas Lawrence, better known as Lawrence of Arabia.
Arab land gatherers
Arabia became part of the Ottoman Empire in the XVI century. Local tribal leaders were constantly at enmity with each other, and the central government in Istanbul did not attempt to strengthen their position, limiting themselves to gifts in exchange for the loyalty of the emirs. Among the latter, the sheriff of Mecca Hussein bin Ali and the emir of Nejd (the emirate that existed in the central part of the Arabian Peninsula - RP) Abdelaziz Ibn Saud stood out in particular.
Hijaz (historical the region in the west of the Arabian Peninsula - RP) has always been of particular importance for Muslims, since here are the holy cities of Mecca and Medina. The sheriff of Mecca, being the direct custodian of the holy cities and the head of the clan of the prophet Muhammad from the Hashemite clan, was an important figure in the Islamic world. The institute of sheriffs goes back to the beginning of the XNUMXth century. After the accession of Syria and Egypt to the Ottoman Empire, the sheriff of Mecca recognized the power of the Sultan of the Ottoman dynasty as a caliph - the ruler of Orthodox Muslims, but had rather broad autonomy in the internal affairs of his principality.
Mecca Sheriff Hussein Bin. Photo: Cornwallis / Imperial War Museums
By 1914, the emir Abdul-Aziz Ibn Saud was able to subjugate the central regions of Arabia. Both Abdulaziz and Sheriff Hussein sought to unite the Arab lands into one state, playing on the contradictions of the Turks and the British, but at the same time they were tough to compete with each other. The only reliable ally of the Ottoman Empire in the region was the ruler of Shammar (the emirate that existed then in the central and eastern part of the Arabian Peninsula - RP) - Ibn Rashid.
Hussein bin Ali was approved by Istanbul as the new Sheriff of Mecca in 1908, and immediately developed vigorous activity, demonstrating loyalty by participating in the struggle against rebellious emirs and tribal leaders. At the same time, he was never a supporter of the Ottoman order in the region and even before the start of the world war he tried to establish contacts with the British. It is known that his son Abdullah in Cairo secretly met with the British Consul General in Egypt, Lord Kitchener. Abdullah told him about the strained relations between the central government in Istanbul and Sheriff Hussein and cautiously asked what the position of the UK would be in the event of an Arab uprising against the Ottoman authorities. Lord Kitchener, being careful, mentioned the traditional friendship between Istanbul and London and declared the absolute neutrality of his country in the event of a similar development of events. However, Kitchener asked to keep him abreast of the situation in Arabia.
The coming of the Young Turks to power in 1908 and the subsequent gradual slide into Pan-Turkism, along with the secularization of public life, only strengthened Hussein ibn Ali’s desire to divorce the decrepit Ottoman Empire. He was convinced that the Ottoman dynasty lost its rights to the Caliphate and now only he - a descendant of the Prophet Muhammad himself - should become a caliph and unite the Arab-Muslim world.
After the Ottoman Empire entered the war, Jemal Pasha, one of the leaders of the ruling Young Turk triumvirate, who usurped all power in the Ottoman Empire in 1913, took command of the 4 army in Damascus and began preparations for a military expedition to the strategically important Suez Canal. Jemal Pasha requested the participation of Sheriff Hussein in this campaign as the commander of the Arab corps. Unable to refuse, Hussein, however, did not take part in it himself, but sent his son Ali and 1500 horsemen.
Abdul Aziz ibn Saud (center), 1916 year
In May, 1915 of the year, failing to succeed in capturing the Suez Canal, Jemal Pasha returned to Damascus, focusing his efforts on defeating the active Arab separatists. The fact is that among the educated strata of the Arab population, the idea of an independent Arab state took root quite seriously. The officers, the clergy and the intelligentsia of the Arab provinces were involved in the creation of secret societies that resembled the organizations of the Young Turks themselves before the overthrow of the regime of Sultan Abdulhamid II. Understanding the power of such organizations, especially in the midst of a difficult war, Jemal Pasha launched unprecedented repression.
It is worth mentioning that initially Jemal Pasha tried to negotiate with the Arab leaders through personal meetings with the most influential nationalists. But the alienation of the latter did not leave the Young Turks a choice - hundreds of arrests and death sentences blew away the anti-Ottoman underground in Syria and Lebanon, the survivors were forced to leave the country, settling in Egypt and European countries.
Sheriff vs Kaiser
Against this background, Sheriff Hussein resumed negotiations with the British, communicating mainly with the High Commissioner for Egypt, Sir Arthur Henry McMahon. In letters to him, Hussein set forth the conditions for the entry of Hijaz and the Arab tribes loyal to him to the war on the side of the Entente countries. In essence, the main thing in their correspondence was the creation of a single Arab state under the leadership of the Hashemite clan from the Arab vilayats (the wilayat - the main military administrative unit in the Ottoman Empire - RP). Using rather vague wording, Makmagon spoke about the readiness of the British Empire to provide the necessary assistance and protection, as well as the right of the Arabs to create their own state. However, Makmagon did not give any specific approval and guarantees of recognition of such a state by the UK.
Moreover, the High Commissioner referred to the need to take into account the interests of France in the future post-war world. Thus, the maximum to which the British agreed was to recognize Hejaz as an independent state, and Hussein as a new caliph. As for the creation of an Arab state, Makmagon allowed its appearance, however, did not give promises to include all the Arab provinces of the Ottoman Empire. The correspondence ended a few months before the uprising, and the parties were satisfied with the agreements reached, which each interpreted differently.
At the same time, the Arab demonstration against the Turks was extremely necessary for the British, and it was not only the opening of the next front that would have forced the Ottoman army to ease the pressure on the Suez Canal. German intelligence agencies have long tried to provoke the Muslims of Great Britain and other Entente powers to revolt. The most dangerous thing is that the Germans had their own “pocket” caliph - Ottoman Sultan Mehmet V, who actually became hostage to the pro-German young Turks and who declared the Entente countries not just war, but jihad, obligatory for execution by all orthodox Muslims. In Britain, it was believed that the voluntary transfer of the noble sheriff, a descendant of the Prophet Muhammad himself, to the side of the Entente powers would deal a serious blow to the German propaganda among the Muslim peoples.
Sykes and Pico Geography
Around the same time, other negotiations took place, between the British and French governments, dedicated to the post-war division of the Ottoman heritage, which will go down in history by the names of the main negotiators - Sykes and Pico. In accordance with the agreement, the entire territory of the Asian part of Turkey was to be divided into several zones indicating the sphere of influence - Great Britain, France - or transfer under international control:
1) The blue zone — Western Syria and Lebanon (west of the Aleppo — Hama — Homs — Damascus line), as well as the Anatolian areas, including Cilicia, Urfu, Mardin, Diyarbekir (south of Van Lake) —with direct control France;
2) the red zone - the southern part of Iraq (including Baghdad and Basra), as well as the Palestinian ports of Haifa and Akka - was transferred under the direct control of Great Britain;
3) brown zone - Palestine, of course, without the above-mentioned Haifa and Akka - passed under international management, the form of which was to be established by agreement with other allies, primarily Russia;
4) zone "A" (Eastern Syria and Mosulsky wilayet) departed into the sphere of influence of France;
5) zone “B” (Transjordan and Central Iraq) was relegated to the sphere of influence of Great Britain.
A map illustrating the Sykes-Pico 1916 Agreement of the Year. Source: British Library
The agreement stipulated that in the "red" and "blue" zones, Great Britain and France act solely at their discretion, and in zones "A" and "B" it was planned to create an Arab state or a federation of Arab states.
It is the Sykes-Picot agreement, and in no way the correspondence between the Sheriff of Mecca Hussein and the High Commissioner of Egypt, Makmagon, that will later have a decisive influence on the geopolitical architecture of the entire Middle East.
Shot after morning prayer
It cannot be said that the Turkish authorities were not aware of the sheriff’s contacts with the British. The Ottoman governor in Medina, Basri Pasha, informed Istanbul about the hostile actions of Hussein, who openly conducted anti-Ottoman propaganda among the tribal leaders. In May 1916, Jemal Pasha was absolutely sure that Hussein would side with the British, but he was no longer able to prevent it. Therefore, in a secret telegram, the commander of the 12 Corps in Medina, Fahreddin Pasha, was instructed to strengthen the defense and pay special attention to the protection of railways, but in order not to provoke a conflict before, it was strictly forbidden to launch Sheriff Hussein.
5 June 1916, the sons of Hussein Faisal and Ali attacked the Ottoman garrison in Medina, but thanks to the skillful actions of General Fahreddin Pasha, their forces were scattered, and the attack choked. A full rebellion began on the morning of June 10, when Sheriff Hussein gave his supporters a prearranged signal - after the end of the call for the morning prayer, standing at the window of his house in Mecca, he made a single shot from a gun.
The bulk of the sheriff's troops were nomadic Arabs with a small number of Egyptian and Syrian Arabs (mostly officers), however, they were a success. Just a few days after their performance, they took Mecca (with the exception of a few well-fortified forts) and Jeddah, a strategically important port on the Red Sea.
During the battle for Mecca, a minor, but subsequently bloated by British propaganda event occurred. In the heat of battle, the Turkish garrison opened fire on the rebels entrenched in the mosque, and the shells lay just a few meters from the Kaaba, almost damaging this Muslim shrine. This case was replicated by the British and supporters of Hussein as another proof of the hostility of the Turks to Islam. At the end of June 1916, the sheriff will issue a manifesto detailing the reasons for the uprising against the “godless regime of the Young Turks”. In addition to neglecting the norms of Islam - and the Young Turks really carried out a gradual secularization (restriction of the role and authority of religious structures) of the Empire, the sheriff would actually accuse the Young Turks of the collapse of the country and the repression against ethnic minorities.
By the end of September, almost the entire Southern Hejaz came under the control of the sheriff, but, despite these successes, the rebels still lacked resources. So, in the presence of approximately 50 thousands of fighters, they had only 10 thousands of outdated systems of guns and there were no artillery at all. It also affected the lack of combat experience and discipline - for example, the rebel army fighters could easily leave the battlefield in the midst of in order to drink coffee or visit relatives. Because of this, the British called the army of Hussein a “rabble of dervishes”, which without outside help would hardly have lasted until the middle of 1917.
Arab troops, 1917 year. Photo: Thomas Edward Lawrence / Imperial War Museums
It is important to note that not all Arab tribes of the Hejaz supported Sheriff Hussein’s uprising. Some remained loyal to Istanbul, such as Sheikh Hussein ibn Mubarak, who acted with his forces in the Medina region. In such cases, the sheriff Hussein and his British advisers usually resolved the loyalty issue by banal bribing oscillating tribal leaders and emirs, acting in the best traditions of the well-known expression attributed to Alexander II of Macedon’s father Philip II: “a donkey loaded with gold will take any stronghold”.
The Ottoman contingent had a smaller number, but was much better armed and trained. In Medina, the Turks had approximately 15 000 soldiers, 60 guns and around 50 machine guns; important for the supply of food and ammunition, the Hejaz railway was guarded by 3000 soldiers. They even had aircraft that had a stunning effect on the rebels, however, the constant shortage of ammunition and fuel forced the Turks to use more defensive rather than offensive tactics. The fighting qualities of the Turkish soldiers were the best demonstrated in the past campaigns in Gallipoli and in Mesopotamia, where the Entente powers suffered very painful losses and failed to achieve their goals. Commanded by the Ottoman corps in Hejaz, Fahreddin Pasha, experienced and loved by soldiers, nicknamed for his valor and nobility as the "tiger of the desert".
As a result, by the end of 1916, the Turks began to push the rebel Arabs in all directions, many tribes began to move to the Ottoman side, or declared neutrality. But the situation has changed dramatically with the arrival of a man who later becomes an icon for adventurers and adventure seekers of all stripes. British intelligence officer Thomas Lawrence better known as Lawrence of Arabia or, as he liked to call himself Emir Dynamite, from October 1916 of the year to the very end of the war will be the main instigator of the Arab uprising.
Emir Dynamite
Thomas Lawrence was the illegitimate son of an impoverished nobleman and a woman of common origin. The father of the future hero, Thomas Robert Chapman, escaped from his lawful wife, Edith Hamilton, with the governess Sarah Lawrence, and subsequently himself and his sons took the name of Sarah.
Thomas Lawrence, 1918 year. Photo: Harry Chase / Imperial War Museums
From an early age, Lawrence showed a craving for foreign languages, history, archeology and independent travel. Lawrence received a brilliant education in Oxford, where he was noticed by a famous archaeologist, Professor Hoggart. The latter was not only an eminent historian, he also had another passion, little known to the learned community — espionage. On the eve of the war, Great Britain sent several archaeological expeditions to the Middle East, the true purpose of which was to collect information on the deployment of Turkish troops, as well as topographic surveys. The permanent head of these expeditions was an employee of British intelligence, Professor Hoggart.
At Oxford, the crusades were of particular interest to Thomas, and not least their material evidence: fortresses, castles, cathedrals. This interest is associated with the choice of topics for his dissertation: “The Influence of Crusades on the Medieval Military Architecture of Europe”. Lawrence decides to visit Syria and to see for himself the remains of the material culture of the Crusaders, in order to compare with what he had seen earlier in France, where he had traveled while still a schoolboy. However, unlike other researchers of that time, he completely plunged into the world of the Arabs - he wore a national Arab dress and lived the ordinary life of ordinary people, which helped him to get acquainted with the life of the Arabs, their culture, mores and especially the language. Arab Lawrence mastered so well that later the Arabs began to take him for his. Lawrence read out the history of military campaigns and battles, which ultimately predetermined the further choice of military career.
Contrary to the cult film image created by Peter O'Toole in the film “Lawrence of Arabia”, the real Thomas Lawrence was not very tall, and in 16-year-old suffered a rather complicated leg fracture.
Before the war, Lawrence took part in the British reconnaissance expedition to the Sinai Peninsula, where he explored the Negev desert in Palestine, which, according to British intelligence, in the event of military conflict was of strategic importance for the transfer of Ottoman or German troops to attack Egypt.
After Britain entered the Great War, Lawrence joined the Arab Bureau in Cairo, the Middle East branch of British intelligence. There is a myth that Lawrence tried to go to serve in the army, but because of his small stature and leg injuries he was not accepted. Anyway, in Cairo, Lawrence was engaged in compiling maps of the Ottoman troops, preparing analytical notes for the high command, and even participated in the negotiations for the liberation of General Townsend, whose army the Turks surrounded and blocked in Mesopotamia. Townsend's rescue mission failed, but in October 1916, Lawrence received a new mission.
Army of dervishes
Lawrence was sent to Arabia as a military adviser to the son of Sheriff Hussein, the emir of Faisal, and in the process was responsible for the supply of British weapons to the rebels. A talented self-taught, self-mastered classic treatises on military affairs, was able to recognize the potential of guerrilla war in the conditions of the Arabian desert.
Realizing that the rebels are not able to resist the regular army, Lawnnes decided to send the main attacks not to destroy enemy troops, but to disable the infrastructure they needed - bridges, warehouses, railway stations. At the same time, Lournes accurately calculated that the weakness of the Ottoman economy would not allow quickly restoring or replacing destroyed objects, and the inability to control the desert would force the Turkish army to move to a deep and, most importantly, passive defense, while the entire initiative would pass to mobile rebel units. After all, with such tactics they will not need to seize well-fortified cities, and blocked troops, deprived of ammunition and food, will not in themselves pose a serious danger.
The first breakthrough was a raid on the railway station, which was under the protection of 400 soldiers. As a result, the station was significantly damaged, the freight train was set on fire, several enemy posts were destroyed and 30 prisoners were taken. Capturing the station in principle did not, because otherwise it should be kept, but it was not part of Lawrence's plans.
Very soon, the tactics began to wear down the Turks - bridges and ammunition depots were destroyed, wagons with food, medicine and ammunition sent to Turkish units were derailed, and after the raids themselves the insurgents “dissolved” in the desert.
Gradually, thanks to British and French aid, the rearmament of the “army of dervishes” began - instead of the guns of the Napoleonic wars, they received Turkish captured rifles, then Japanese rifles of the Arisaka system and the British Lee Enfield systems. Along the way, the Allies began to think about creating a regular army of the rebels along Western lines.
During the campaigns in the Sinai Peninsula, Mesopotamia and Libya, many Ottoman soldiers of Arab origin who were not alien to the ideas of Arab nationalism fell into British captivity. Many of them agreed or even offered to cooperate with the British administration themselves, and by the end of 1916, about a thousand such professional soldiers had been sent to Arabia to help the sheriff’s army. They were well-trained, past war and, most importantly, disciplined fighters, who knew the enemy's army from the inside. It was they who formed the backbone of what would later be called the Regular Arab Army or the Sheriff Army. It will become a truly formidable force at the disposal of which the Allies will give armored cars and even airplanes.
Heroes of the Medina
By the beginning of 1917, as a result of the concerted actions of regular and irregular units, the rebels were able to fully take the initiative. The Turks, who depended on supplies through the blocked Hejaz railway, were in a difficult situation. Enver Pasha and Jemal Pasha, the military and maritime ministers respectively, proposed to start the evacuation of the Ottoman army from Medina, but this idea came up against the categorical disagreement of Sultan Mehmet V, Interior Minister Talat Pasha and commander of the expeditionary corps in Hejaz, General Fahreddin Pasha. The latter insisted that Medina is a holy city for Muslims, the burial place of the Prophet Mohammed, and the Ottoman Empire as a defender of the faith cannot just surrender it. As a result, it was decided to protect Medina at any cost, while only the wounded were allowed to leave her, with whom numerous Islamic relics were sent to Istanbul by order of Fahreddin Pasha.
Soon the garrison of Medina was completely surrounded, unable to replenish stocks of food and ammunition, and Sheriff Hussein even moved his headquarters closer to the city limits. In July, 1917, Aqaba fell - the last Ottoman port on the Red Sea, which simplified the supply of the rebels. Since the Turks in Medina had neither the strength nor the resources for active operations, part of the Arab divisions were redeployed to the north, to Syria and Palestine - to help the British units of General Allenby, who by September 1917 had reached the outskirts of Damascus.
By this time in Medina came a real famine. The troops barely got half the daily minimum, the animals died and went to eat, the soldiers looked like shadows. But salvation unexpectedly came in the form of a locust invasion. Fahreddin Pasha issued an order to catch locusts and eat them; moreover, it even indicated a recipe: boil, after removing the legs and head, mix with the remaining rice and add olive oil. Using similar methods of survival, the Turkish garrison of Medina was able to stretch for almost another year.
Arab troops in front of surrendered Medina, 1919 year. Photo: Hussein Effendi / Imperial War Museums
October 31 The 1918 commanders of all Ottoman garrisons received a telegram from Grand Vizier Ahmet Izzet Pasha, announcing the signing of an armistice with the Entente countries and the end of the war. 6 on November came a personal telegram from Fahreddin Pasha:
“After everything was done to preserve our religion and the honor of our people, who fought these 4 years, we are faced with the fact of complete and unconditional defeat. The Ottoman state is forced to sign a truce with the countries of the Entente, in accordance with this truce all the Ottoman units in Hejaz, Asir and Yemen must lay down weapon the nearest command of the Entente countries. My dear comrades in arms, who have fully redeemed their duty to our country! Execution of this terrible order is necessary for the preservation of our homeland. Your victims and your valor in the performance of military duty are appreciated even by our enemies, and I hope that this order will be executed by you. ”
The order for the surrender of Medina will come again and again, but it will not be executed by Fahreddin Pasha. The inevitability of the surrender of the city split the garrison's officer corps. Some of the officers were ready, together with their commander, to defend the city to the last, others considered it right to execute the order. The Arab rebels were preparing another assault on the city with the help of French troops, but, seeing Fahreddin Pasha’s determination, they took a wait-and-see attitude.
Only 9 on January 1919 of the year, more than a month after the end of the war 2, the 9-thousandth garrison of Medina laid down arms. In the presence of the Arab rebels and the British military, an agreement was signed on the evacuation of the Ottoman army. But even after that, Fahreddin Pasha refused to leave Medina - his own officers, many of whom could not hold back tears, had to arrest the general and hand him over to the British.
Caliph without caliphate
October 1 The Arab rebel units, led by Faisal and Lawrence, triumphantly entered Damascus, and a little later, after receptions and celebrations on the occasion of victory and independence, the epic "dervish uprising" was completed. The further fate of its leaders and heroes will be much more dramatic.
In March, 1920, the Syrian National Congress proclaimed Faisal king of Syria, but in July, after the defeat of the Syrian armed forces, French troops entered Damascus. By the ill-fated Sykes-Picot agreement, Syria and Lebanon passed under the mandate of France, and Faisal was forced to flee to Palestine. Not without the help of Lawrence in August 1921, he became king of the never-before-existing state of Iraq. In spite of the pro-British orientation, King Faisal finally managed to get the country out of the British mandate, and already in 1932, Iraq became formally an independent state.
Subsequently, the Hashemite clan in 1958 will once again try to unite the Arabs, forming the Arab Federation of Iraq and Jordan led by Faisal II, the grandson of Faisal, but the Iraqi Baathists (BAAS - Arab Socialist Revival Party) will carry out a military coup and join with Jordan, Syria and other Arab states will be remembered after the occupation of Iraq by the USA. Now the former Ba'athists themselves will proclaim the creation of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.
The sheriff of Mecca Hussein, having quarreled over Sykes-Picot's agreement with the British, was left alone with the emir Abdulaziz, who was tidying up his hands on Arabia. During the war, the latter, like Hussein, was supported by the British, but accumulated strength, and did not waste it in fights with an obviously stronger opponent.
King Faisal (center) and Thomas Lawrence (third from right), 1919 year. Photo: wikimedia.org
In 1923, Hussein worsened his precarious position by proclaiming himself a caliph. Formally, the Osmanov caliphate still existed, but its days were numbered - the last caliph Abdulmejid II will be removed from power by the first Turkish president Mustafa Kemal Ataturk in the next 1924. Abdulaziz with the help of the radical Islamists ikhvans (not to be confused with the modern movement Ihvan al Muslimin), meanwhile, was able to seize almost all of the Hijaz. And the British agent John Philby (father of the famous Soviet spy Kim Philby), who was something like Lawrence under Faisal under Emir Abdulaziz, managed to convince British intelligence of his reliability. Practical British quickly shifted to the Ibn Saud clan, without objecting to the unification of a significant part of Arabia under the rule of his family and the proclamation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 1932. The emir and his family will draw closer to the West, which will cause rejection of the Ikhvans, whose rebellion will be brutally suppressed with the help of the same British machine guns, artillery and aviation.
As the ruling dynasty, the Hashimites will survive only in Jordan, which the British will pass on to them in the 1920s. It was there that 1931 died in exile Hussein bin Ali, the leader of the Arab uprising and the former sheriff of Mecca, who, in his declining years, was destined to become a “caliph without caliphate”.
As for the protagonist of the Arab uprising, Thomas Lawrence, his life continues to worry many researchers who are trying to answer the basic question: who was actually an idealist who wanted to liberate the Arabs from the Turkish yoke? man "who sought to multiply the influence of the British Empire? In the two years that lasted the Arab uprising, Lawrence rose from lieutenant to colonel, received many awards, and King George V granted him, the illegitimate, the Order of Bani, which Lawrence pointedly refused. Thanks to photographs by an American journalist Lowell Thomas, Lawrence’s name and face became universally known. A lot of books and studies were written about him, films and TV series were shot, and even a Lawrence of Arabia commemorative medal was established. Until now, his biographers argue about the sexual orientation of the hero.
And his early death in 1935 left no fewer questions than life itself. According to official data, Lawrence died as a result of a motorcycle accident, but there is a well-founded version that he was eliminated by the British counterintelligence for trying to negotiate with ... Adolf Hitler. True or not, it is still not known, but just before the demise, Lawrence, a supporter of Germany’s reconciliation, really made contact with the leader of the British fascists, Oswald Mosley. Many important people in the British establishment, such as Lord Halifax, or even the heir to the British throne, Prince Edward, did not want a new war with Germany. Perhaps Lawrence wanted to speak in the unusual role of a peacemaker. Be that as it may, the entire British establishment gathered his funeral, and Winston Churchill called Lawrence "one of the greatest people of our time."
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