I remember around 2009 while living with my parents in Fort Wayne I went thru a bit of a classic movie phase. I would rent the movies from the library then usually watch them in the evenings with my dad or on my own. I guess I began this appreciation for classic movies about a year before when I lived in Chicago, however had only scratched the surface. I was ready to hit all the most iconic critically acclaims movies of all time. I'm talking about films that were released in the 1930s-1960s such as Gone with the Wind, Bridge on the River Kwai, Casablanca, Sunset Boulevard, and so forth.
Of all these classics I watched there were some that I really enjoyed and understood how they had become so famous. While there were others that simply did not entice me, perhaps more so due to my personal preferences usually gravitating to the historical epic. However of all these films I watched that year, I specifically remember watching Lawrence of Arabia with my dad. I knew very little of the historical content at the time, only that it was an epic set in the desert. And that is exactly what it felt like when watching the 3 hour film. It felt like we were dying in a desert of boredom. I could not remember a film more drawn out and with such a slow moving plot.
However this concept of Arab Nationalism had emerged by the 1860s and sought to replace the Ottoman Empire with a new unified state across the Mesopotamia. At the turn of the century this fervor had begun to reach a boiling point, especially with the onset of WWI. In 1913 an assembly of influential Arabs met to discuss the future of their region. Even still however this movement was quickly crushed by Ottoman forces with intentions to maintain power. It appeared that although the fervor was there, the movement lacked insufficient funds, organization, and leadership.
Perhaps one of the most famous figures of the Arab Revolt is ironically not an Arab but an Englishmen. TE Lawrence is often credited with organizing and leading the revolt in many key battles against the Ottoman Empire. He was the necessary liaison between the British forces and the Arab revolutionary forces. Yet perhaps his most admirable trait was that he emerged himself into the Arabian culture and fought alongside these men who were seeking a nation of their own. Lawrence was no doubt a romantic historical figure (in the likes of Ghandi or Che Guevara) not out for the power of Britain yet out for the greater good of humanity. Here is a brief description of his bio and his vital role in the Arab revolt.
Following the British defeat at the Siege of Kut in 1916, the British realized the Ottoman Army was not to be underestimated. It was at this point that TE Lawrence was sent as the British Intelligence's focal point to incite a revolution. The early stages of this campaign were quite dire and the city of Mecca was nearly captured by the Ottoman Empire. However TE Lawrence worked with Hussein's son Faisal to organize a strategy of winning back key points around the city of Medina. As well as attacking railways throughout Syria. This campaign essentially became a guerrilla war in which TE Lawrence worked with various factions of militia units throughout Arabia.
The Partitioning of the Ottoman Empire
By 1917 the Arab Revolt began to capture steam under the leadership of Auda ibu Tayi and TE Lawrence with various victories against Ottoman posts. The Battle of Aqaba marked a significant strategic turning point by which the Arabians were able to win the Red Sea port of Jordan. By this point the Arab revolutionaries had established into an organized army known as Sharifian Army heavily aided by Britain and other allied forces. Their defining victory came on October 25th, 1918 at the Battle of Aleppo where Prince Faisal and his army captured the major city of Damascus. This essentially marked the end of the Arab Revolution and the final blow to the Ottoman Empire.
An Arab monarchy was established shortly after with Prince Faisal as it's leader, however this nation was never recognized by the western powers. In fact Britain had chosen to completely renege on their agreement in the McMahon-Hussein Correspondence, and rather worked out a deal with France known as the Sykes-Picot Agreement to partition the Ottoman Empire. This essentially broke up the middle east into mandate territories governed by France and Britain. The territories of Syria and Lebanon were controlled by France, while the territories of Israel, Palestine, Jordan and Iraq were controlled by Britain.
While the vision of a unified Arab state never became a reality, the dismantling of the Ottoman Empire became a major stepping stone for Arab independence. These mandate states of the Middle East eventually established their own national identity that became a reality by the end of WWII. While there may be many Arabs who felt they were wronged by Britain's reneging of their Arab state offer, consider had it not been for British aid and the guidance of TE Lawrence this revolution against the Ottomans may have gone quite differently. At the end of it all the Middle East has become a region of independent states no different than Europe of Asia, yet they are still united in their common beliefs of Islam thus making up a symbolic Arab State.
With my recent emergence into the study of the Ottoman Empire, I figured I would give the film another try. After all it is probably the most famous film regarding the Ottoman Empire and Arabian history. I even went ahead and bought the film this time around for it's iconic status. And despite my heightened desire to watch it, it still could hardly keep my attention. After falling asleep on my first effort, it took me a couple more sittings to complete the full 3 hour epic. While the film offers some big scale desert battles and a very iconic score I still stand by my original view that this movie is overrated. With that said however it inspired me to dive a bit further into the Arab Revolt and the historical figure of TE Lawrence.
The Arab Revolt
As I wrote in my previous blog the Ottoman Empire was in the decline by the mid 1700s, unable to keep up with the military might of the Russian Tsardom and most of Western Europe. A new fervor of nationalism began to surmount in the early 1800s with various nations waging wars of independence against the Ottoman Empire such as Serbia and Greece. In an effort to adapt to modern times, the Ottoman Empire ratified a new constitution in 1876. Furthermore they aligned themselves with Germany at the onset of WWI in a final effort to restore power.
However this concept of Arab Nationalism had emerged by the 1860s and sought to replace the Ottoman Empire with a new unified state across the Mesopotamia. At the turn of the century this fervor had begun to reach a boiling point, especially with the onset of WWI. In 1913 an assembly of influential Arabs met to discuss the future of their region. Even still however this movement was quickly crushed by Ottoman forces with intentions to maintain power. It appeared that although the fervor was there, the movement lacked insufficient funds, organization, and leadership.
In 1915 however with the World War in full swing, the British forces extended an alliance offer with one of the most influential men in the Arabian region, Hussein bin Ali. Hussein was the Sharif of Mecca, considered a steward of the most holy city of Islam. In 1916 he agreed with Britain in a series of letters known as the McMahon-Hussein Correspondence. The deal was that the Arabs would incite a revolution against the Ottoman Empire as long as Britain would recognize their state after the war. Britain agreed to this deal and offered to aid the revolutionaries in their campaign. The British ultimately saw this revolution as the perfect decoy to weaken the Ottoman Empire, so they could send their full might against Germany.
TE Lawrence
Perhaps one of the most famous figures of the Arab Revolt is ironically not an Arab but an Englishmen. TE Lawrence is often credited with organizing and leading the revolt in many key battles against the Ottoman Empire. He was the necessary liaison between the British forces and the Arab revolutionary forces. Yet perhaps his most admirable trait was that he emerged himself into the Arabian culture and fought alongside these men who were seeking a nation of their own. Lawrence was no doubt a romantic historical figure (in the likes of Ghandi or Che Guevara) not out for the power of Britain yet out for the greater good of humanity. Here is a brief description of his bio and his vital role in the Arab revolt.
One thing I learned from the 1962 movie was that TE Lawrence was a very unique character. He was unlike the other soldiers in the British army and had an egocentric intellectual way about him. Perhaps he acquired this unique personality from his upbringing from out of wedlock parents. This lifestyle was very uncommon for Conservative Britain, and perhaps being raised as a bastard would explain TE Lawrence's desire for something great. As a young teenager his family moved to Oxford where he began to study archaeology and later in 1910 he found work for the British Museum located in Syria. This four year experience in Syria made TE Lawrence the ideal person to lead Britain's intelligence mission into Arabia.
Following the British defeat at the Siege of Kut in 1916, the British realized the Ottoman Army was not to be underestimated. It was at this point that TE Lawrence was sent as the British Intelligence's focal point to incite a revolution. The early stages of this campaign were quite dire and the city of Mecca was nearly captured by the Ottoman Empire. However TE Lawrence worked with Hussein's son Faisal to organize a strategy of winning back key points around the city of Medina. As well as attacking railways throughout Syria. This campaign essentially became a guerrilla war in which TE Lawrence worked with various factions of militia units throughout Arabia.
The Partitioning of the Ottoman Empire
By 1917 the Arab Revolt began to capture steam under the leadership of Auda ibu Tayi and TE Lawrence with various victories against Ottoman posts. The Battle of Aqaba marked a significant strategic turning point by which the Arabians were able to win the Red Sea port of Jordan. By this point the Arab revolutionaries had established into an organized army known as Sharifian Army heavily aided by Britain and other allied forces. Their defining victory came on October 25th, 1918 at the Battle of Aleppo where Prince Faisal and his army captured the major city of Damascus. This essentially marked the end of the Arab Revolution and the final blow to the Ottoman Empire.
An Arab monarchy was established shortly after with Prince Faisal as it's leader, however this nation was never recognized by the western powers. In fact Britain had chosen to completely renege on their agreement in the McMahon-Hussein Correspondence, and rather worked out a deal with France known as the Sykes-Picot Agreement to partition the Ottoman Empire. This essentially broke up the middle east into mandate territories governed by France and Britain. The territories of Syria and Lebanon were controlled by France, while the territories of Israel, Palestine, Jordan and Iraq were controlled by Britain.While the vision of a unified Arab state never became a reality, the dismantling of the Ottoman Empire became a major stepping stone for Arab independence. These mandate states of the Middle East eventually established their own national identity that became a reality by the end of WWII. While there may be many Arabs who felt they were wronged by Britain's reneging of their Arab state offer, consider had it not been for British aid and the guidance of TE Lawrence this revolution against the Ottomans may have gone quite differently. At the end of it all the Middle East has become a region of independent states no different than Europe of Asia, yet they are still united in their common beliefs of Islam thus making up a symbolic Arab State.
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