In 1916, in contradiction of promises both to the Zionists and the Arabs, Britain entered into the secret Sykes-Picot agreement with France (see the next map).Ībove: This map title refers to the secret agreement between Great Britain and France during WWI, made by two diplomats named Sykes (acting on behalf of the British) and Picot (acting on behalf of the French). In 1917, in contradiction of Britain’s promise to the Arabs, the British Foreign Secretary Lord Balfour promised British Zionists that Great Britain would support the establishment of a Jewish homeland in Palestine, which was then a part of the Arab region ruled by the Ottoman Turks. Many readers will be familiar with the film Lawrence of Arabia which shows some of the events of this period, including the Arabs’ expectation of independence from foreign rule if the Ottomans were defeated. In 1915, during WWI, the British High Commissioner in Egypt, Sir Henry McMahon, had corresponded with Prince Hussein of Arabia, and had promised that Britain would support independence for Arabs who lived under Ottoman rule after the war, if the Arabs would help the Allies in fighting the Ottoman Turks, which they did quite successfully. By the end of WWI, the Ottomans, who were allied with the Germans, had been defeated, and the empire was broken up. This empire included Palestine – see the location of Jerusalem. Maps “home page” – includes map of The Middle EastĪbove: This map shows in dark brown the Ottoman Empire’s territory in 1914, at the beginning of WWI.See also the collection of maps in the Palestine Teaching Trunk. To do that, click the printer icon in the vertical Social Media bar on the far left edge of this page. You also can use Print Friendly, which will allow you to save the page as a pdf file. Click on any image below to see it on a new screen where you may be able to download it.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |