Franco-Syrian War
Franco-Syrian War | |||||||
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Part of the interwar period | |||||||
Syrian soldiers at Maysalun, 1920 | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Strength | |||||||
70,000 French soldiers[1] | 5,000 Arab militias | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
5,000 killed |
The Franco-Syrian War took place during 1920 between the
Background
Near the end of
Following the implementation of the initially secretive 1916
While events transpired in Europe that would eventually render the Arab Kingdom of Syria into a French mandate, it would also catalyze Syrian nationalist societies like al-Fatat (the Young Arab Society) to make preparations for a national congress. These Syrian nationalist societies advocated complete independence for an Arab Kingdom, uniting the Arab world under the Hashemite ruler Faisal. The first official session of the Syrian Congress was held on June 3, 1919, and al-Fatat member Hashim al-Atassi was elected its president.[8] On June 25, the King-Crane Commission arrived in Damascus to a flurry of leaflets which said “Independence or Death”. On July 2, 1919, the Syrian Congress passed a number of resolutions pertaining to the formation of Syria as a completely independent constitutional monarchy with Faisal as king, asking for assistance from the United States, and the refusal of any rights claimed by the French.[8] The hopes of Faisal that either the British or Americans would come to his aid and intervene against the French quickly faded with what many consider the defining catalyst for the creation and destruction of the Arab Kingdom of Syria: the Anglo-French Agreement. The Anglo-French Agreement provided for the withdrawal of British troops from Syria and signaled the end of the British military involvement in Syria.
Eventually, Faisal would be forced into negotiations with Clemenceau in January 1920 which stipulated that the French would uphold the existence of the Syrian state and would not station troops in Syria as long as the French government remained the only government supplying advisers, counselors and technical experts.[9] News of this compromise did not bode well with Faisal’s vehemently anti-French and independence minded supporters who immediately pressured Faisal to reverse his commitment to France, which he did.
Warfare chronology
Countrywide revolts
In the aftermath of the Clemenceau negotiations in January 1920, violent attacks against French forces occurred sporadically across Syria and effectively the Syrian Congress assembled in March 1920 to declare Faisal the king of Syria, as well as to officially set up the Arab Kingdom of Syria with Hashim al-Atassi as Prime Minister. An independent Arab Kingdom of Syria was proclaimed in Damascus on March 8, 1920, in an apparent dispute with the French over the nature of its rule.
This action was immediately repudiated by the British and French and the
The League of Nations having given the French Mandate of Syria as planned, the French General Gouraud issued an ultimatum to the Syrian Arab government to disband its troops and submit to French control. Worried about the results of a long bloody fight with the French, King Faisal himself surrendered on July 14, 1920,
Battle of Maysalun
In spite of King Faisal's acceptance of France's ultimatum,
Final stages
The final stage of the war took place on July 24, 1920, when the French forces entered Damascus without any resistance. The next day, the Arab Kingdom of Syria was abolished, and French rule officially reinstalled.
Aftermath
Following the San Remo conference and the defeat of King Faisal's short-lived monarchy in Syria at the Battle of Maysalun, the French general Henri Gouraud established civil administration in the territory. The mandate region was subdivided into six states. They were the
See also
Bibliography
References
- ^ ISBN 1860644678, page 15-16
- ISBN 9780872894341– via Google Books.
- ISBN 9780275945756– via Google Books.
- ^ Benny Morris. Victims. the date of the first attack of Arabs against French interest on March, 1st.
- ^ Tom Segev in One Palestine. Complete. the date of the first attack of Arabs against French interest on March, 1st.
- ^ a b Tauber E. The Formation of Modern Syria and Iraq. p.22
- ^ Eliezer Tauber The Formation of Modern Syria and Iraq. p.37
- ^ a b c Eliezer Tauber. The Formation of Modern Syria and Iraq. Frank Cass and Co. Ltd. Portland, Oregon. 1995.
- ^ Elie Kedourie. England and the Middle East: The Destruction of the Ottoman Empire 1914-1921. Mansell Publishing Limited. London, England. 1987.