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ISLAM AND THE ARABS IN THE ENGLISH TRAVELOGUES OF THE FIRST HALF OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY
ABSTRACT
THESIS SUBMITTED FOR THE AWARD OF THE DEGREE OF ©Dctor of ^f)iIo£^op()p IN West Asian Studies
BY Ishtiyaque Ahmad
Under the Supervision of Prof. M. R. K. Nadwi r3545 CENTRE OF WEST ASIAN STUDIES ALIGARH MUSLIM UNIVERSITY ALIGARH (INDIA) 199Q *C Ui
ABSTRACT - 4 OCT 1991 The history of cultural, political and economic relationship between the Arabs and the English people is quite old. From cultural point of view the English people came to know about the Arabs from two very ancient sources i.e. works of Greek historians and the Holy Bible, Both the Greek historians and the Bible portrayed Arabs as a strange people who possessed some characteristics which were highly abominable in the West, The Bible especially depicted them as wily politicians and lurking mercenaries. The two ancient sources: Greek works of history and the Holy Bible were confined to a small band of educated people. Thus the common unlettered people remained ignorant of Arab race for quite a long tire. It were infact Crusades which besides being wars of conquest provided both the peoples with opportunities to know each other in a direct ana better way. It is true that after the conquest of Jerusalem most Crusaders returned back to their respective countries. However, a good number of Crusaders decided to settle in the holy land. It were infact these Crusaders who in tines of peace found golden opportunities to study the religion, culture and civi lization of the Arabs who had beccme their conquered neigh bours. These Crusaders not only gave up many of their -infounded prejudices but also adopted the Arabs' living style, especially those aspects of Arab culture and civilization which they found superior to their own.
During the same period some scholars and travellers I also visited the Middle East, '.vhereas the scholars tried to make an objective study of the Arabs, and in this process became highly impressed by some aspects of Islamic civili zation such as the Arab sciences and thier method of learning, the travellers produced superficial, even misleading material about the Arab world. Unfortunately their works v^re more popular than the serious scfiolarly works. As a result a highly disfigured and bad image of the Arabs was created in England.
In the sixteenth century the Arab Muslirs became subservient to the Musliji: Turks, The Turks gave permission to the English merchants to trade in their entire dominion. This paved the way not only for greater commercial activities but also for direct contacts between the two nations. Many English traders sailed to various Oriental port cities which were mainly inhabited by the Arabs, Unfortunately the English merchants proved to be highly unscruplous and as a result produced materials which further distorted the already disfigured picture of Arabs, \teanwhile travellers and scholars continued to visit the Arab world and portrayed the Arab race both favourably and unfavourably, Hcvever, most travellers presented the Arabs as a base and mean people. It was only in the eighteenth century when the English travellers began to study the Arab society seriously The religion of Islar; was still subjected to harsh criticism but the Arabs as a race and nation v/ere praised, even glorified. Infact the eighteenth century saw the rise of nationalise, in Europe which affected not only politicians but also scholars and travellers. Influenced by nationalist ideas thev approaci.eci and saw the Arabs as a freedorr: loving nation who had been subjugated by the Turks, Both travellers and scholars adop:ed a somewhat favourable attitude toy/ards the Arabs, Th?y v rce portrayed as men with many errors and shortcomin.-s but their merits were also generously appreciated and praj^ed
The ninfeteenth-century travellers, barring a _^w, were highly subjective, imperialist and racist. Both iir.pe.-i- alism and racism had emerged as the most dominant .IdeoAooies in the nineteenth century. It was commonly helc that tht Europeans especially the English people were raciall • a.id intellectually superior to Oriental races includino th*» Arabs, Their racist outlook naturally led them to *hj. .k of themselves as being ones who deserved to govern ov>r "^he world's inferior races, V/ith such logics the Englishmen used to justify tr.e expansion of their empire by hn->k or by crcok.
Majority of the English travellers of the oeriod under discussion v/ere influenced by ihe oominant ideoiogies of their age and presented in their works more of their own prejudices and predilections than the reality of the A'iddle East, For instance it was their desire to see Orien tal races including the Arabs as British sub;octsj As a result they found out men who could be presented as being desirous of English rule in their respective countries. Infact it was rr;ore a reflection of tneir own desire than the expressiori of Oriental v.-ill to be ruled by t;.e British.
Along with racist ana imperia-ist travellers there v/ere men who visited the Arab world with o missiorary zeal The missionary-n.'inded travellers saw in tne ex::a.'".ding Europeari empires an oppor. ur.;'ty to convert Oriental races tc Christianity. For ther. Christianity v/es not merely a relinicr. but a suj.'erior civilizaticn y/hich deserved tc oe imposed upon non-Christian nations. Often sucn travellers advised their governments to work for the cause of Christianity.
The travellers of the first half of the ty/entieth century, with the exception of Philby, v^re as much subjecti\'e as the nineteenth-century travellers. They too oortrayed the Arabs as ones who liked to be lorded over by the Eritish.
The First World '.Var proved to be a turning ooint in Anglo-Arab relations, Eefore the outbreak of the :HCX the
T English position was to suppress the Arab desire for freedom and help the Turks to strengthen their control of Arabia, But when the Turks decided to ally themselves with Germany the English started encouraging the nationalist Arabs to revolt with a view to destroying the Ottoman Empire.
The four travellers - tell, Shakespear, Lawrence an<10
Philby - discussed in this thesis were associated^ in one 01" another way, with the British Government, Often they took stands v/hich were different from the official policy3 However, they remained loyal to their Government and served thelv country obediently. But even then they came to be knoy^n as friends of Arabs who struggled and worked hard for .\rab independence,
Since most of the above mentioned travellers v;ere actively engaged in the political drama of their age it is natural that their vi^rks are greatly concerned with the Anglo-Arab as well as international politics of the time. This aspect of their works naturally helps to understand the political history of the period under discussion,
Gertrude Bell travelled in various parts of Arabia mainly in the first decade of the running century, "^n the beginning she was merely a travel enthusiast and had no commitment to any political ideology. However, ^he oeems to have been influenced by the nineteenth-century travellers who liked to see Oriental nttions under British rule. As a result she foundout many a Syrian who, according to hoi, were desirous of British occupation of their country.
In her pre-war works Gertrude portrayed the Arabs as 9 well as the Turks as men who had both virtues and vices. ? However, as a whole, and in keeping with the British policy, she qreatly admixed the Turks and opposed and criticised the nationalist Arabs who wanted to put an end to the Ottoman rule in the Arab world. But she, like many of her contemporaries, changed her outlook after the outbreak of the war.
Gertrude began her political career with the beginning of the First World V/ar, She served her country in many capa cities. She is often referred to as being a friend of Arabs who quarelled even with her Government for their rights. But a close scrutiny of her political activities proves beyond doubt that she was first and foremost loyal to her country and worked assiduously to promote its imperial interests in the Arab world.
Captain Shakespear was Britain's political agent in Kuwait, His primary task was to watch over Shaikh Mubarak, the ruler of the tiny Shaikhdom, Besides, he was required by Simla-based British Intelligence to gather strategic information about tribal Shaikhs living in the Kuwaiti hinterleind. To achieve his goals he made several journeys wr.ich enabled him to get into contact with tribal chiefs and to know their alliances and rivalries on the one hand and to fill in blanks on the Arabian map on the other which was later used by the British army during the First V/orld War,
Captain Shakespear is, however, better known for his friendship with Ibn Saud. It is generally held that Ibn Saud's interests were greatly dear to him. But in reality he was an intelliqent British spy and the purpose of his association with Ibn Saud was to promote the interests of his country. Tl^ere is no denying the fact that he tried hard to change his country's traditional pro-Turkish policies and support Ibn Saud's claims in Central Arabia, On the surface it appears as he wanted to strengthen Ibn Saud's position against his pro-Turkish rival, Ibn Rasnid, But his real intention was some thing else. He had realized well that politically and militarily Ibn Saud wis stronger than Ibn Rashid and the Turks in Central Arabia, Hence he tried to convince his Government" that an alliance with the powerful Desert King was in Britain's interests,
Shakespear's views were not taken seriously by his superiors before the Turkish alliance with Germany, However, the outbreak of the v/ar and Turkish entry in it on the side of Germany made the British Government realize the wisdom of his approach. He was sought by ".Var and Foreign Offices for expert viev/s and comments on various foreign and military 1 * i a a""'"^
1- , /3a^9 ^./^ 8
problems then facing his country.
Because of his friendship v.-ith Ibn Saud Shake spear was sent to the later immediately after the war started in order to gain his support for Britain, He did accomplish his job when he successfully persuaded Ibn Saud not to sign a treaty of alliance with Turkey and take side with Great Britain. Moreover, it was on his suggestion that Ibn Saud refused to endorse and accept the Turkish call for Jihad or the Holy V/ar against infidel Britain.
Thomas Edward Lawrence was also a British spy. However, his true identity was known to the world only in 1969 when some secret records of the British Governroent were made public. As a British spy it was natural for Lav/rence tc serve his country's interests at all cost. But he was not merely a spy working in the field, Infact he had his own views on various problems of his tin.e which were different from official British position. Moreover, on several occasions he took stands which tended to be pro-Arab rather than pro-British, However, his real intention was not to promote the Arab cause but to serve the British Empire,
Lawrence's friendship with Faisal and his projection of himself as a great Arabophile were infact a tool or a means to serve his country. His main intention was to eliminate the so-called Islamic threat by creating rift between the Arabs and the Turks. He rightly judged that a divided Islamic Ummah would never pose any serious problem for the supre macy of the West, It was with this view that he tried to divide Islam against itself by encouraging the Arabs to rise in rebellion against the Turks, He was not content with this alone. He further divided the Arabs and tried to keep them at loggerheads with each other so that they will never become a force to be reckoned with,
Lawrence was not only against Islam but against any power that tended to challenge the British supremacy in the Middle East, I t v;as with this motivation that he criticised and opposed the Sykes-Picot Agreement which had bound his Government to put Syria under French rule. He supported Faisal's claims in Syria not because he wanted to secure a Kingdom for him but because he wanted to use it as a pretext to stop the French from taking Syria whom he considered to b^ the main rival of Britain in the Middle East, Clearly Lawrence was loyal to his count]?y alone and his public p^osture of being an Arabophile was merely a farce
St, John Philby is the last traveller discussed in the present work. He was an opinionated person and had his own peculiar views on every matter. As a school boy he was highly conservative and believed, in the ideals of Christia nity and the British Empire, But he became a socialist and liberal when he joined Cambridge University, However, his lO
socialism was merely intellectual and could not prevent him from becoming a pillar of the British imperialism. He joined Indian Civil Service in 1908,
Although a servant of the British Empire Philby had somewhat liberal views on many issues of his time. He tried to be sympathetic towards the native people while working in India, Mesopotamia and Jordan, He believed that Britain as an advanced nation should help the Arabs to run thiir independent governments under its nominal control, Put he became fiercely anti-imperialist after his resignation from the government service in 1924 and demanded complete freedom for the Arabs, His struggle for the Arab cause brought him so near to the Arabs that in 19X he embraced the faith, of Islam.
Philby's early impressions of Islam ^ere both negative and objective. That he v/as critical of some aspects of Islam and yet described many other aspects with a great deal of objectivity. After his conversion he seems to have deliberately adopted an attitude of indifference towards the religion of Islam, However, he kept on writing about the political problems of the Arabs. I Philby was a friend and great admir-er oof Ibn Saud and helped thje later modernize his country on a tremendous 11
scale. On political front he always supported Ibn Saud, However, there came occasions when he disappointed the Desert King. For instance his views on and activities about the Palestine problem proved too embarrassing for Ibn Saud, Philby infact wanted to establish an exclusively Jewish State in Palestine with the help of Zionist Jews and Ibn Saud. His idea was to transfer the Arab population of Pale-, stine to Saudi Arabia or somewhere else in the Arab world. The programme was to be implemented by Ibn Saud and the cost of its implementation was to be borne by the Jews, Ibn Saud publicly disassociated himself from the so-called Philby plan. '
It cian be reasonably concluded that the foui* travellers discussed in this thesis were associated in one or another capacity with the British Government and excepting Philby they all remained loyal to their country till their last breath. Philby was anti-imperialist but not anti-Britain. He, unlike his contemporaries not only came nearer to under stand the Arabs but also identified himself with them^ Bell, Shakespear and Lawrence, however, were committed imperial agents and always tried to promote the interests of their country, even at the cost of Arabs. Their championing of the Arab cause was merely a public posture or a tactics that thiey successfully employed to hide their real identity on the one hand and to serve the interests of the British Empire on the other. Infact in the heart of their hearts they were imperialist par excellence. ISLAM AND THE ARABS IN THE ENGLISH TRAVELOGUES OF THE FIRST HALF OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY
THESIS SUBMITTED FOR THE AWARD OF THE DEGREE OF JBoctor of ^I)iIos(op()p IN West Asian Studies
BY Ishtiyaque Ahmad
Under the Supervision of Prof. M. R. K. Nadwi
CENTRE OF WEST ASIAN STUDIES ALIGARH MUSLIM UNIVERSITY ALIGARH (INDIA) 1990 -iOA4drq
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'^^.Kj» ^ CONTENTS
1. PREFACE 1
2. INTRODUCTTIOK 4 3. GERTRUDE BELL 67 1, Contact With Turkey 68 2. Visit to Iran 69 3, Safar Kamah 70 4, Divan of Hafiz 71 5, Arabic Lanqucne ana the Arabs 71 6. Her Impression of Islam 75 7. The Turks 75 8. Gertrude and the Great V/ar 79 • 9, Forn.ation of Arab Bureau 82 IC. Bureau's Correspondent and Oriental 88 Secretary
11. Gertrude and the Making of Iraq 89
4. CAPTAIN SHAKESPEAR 103
1. Contact With Persia 10 4 2. Political Agent in Kuwait 10 5 3. Britain's Policy Towards Arabia 106 4. Sho.kespear' s V/orks in Kur.ait 1C9 5. /• Spy Traveller 1C9 6. Frienoship •.vith the Desert King 111 5. LAWENCE OF ARABIA 124 1. Lawrence the Lecerd 125 2. Lawrence the Ar^bochile I2e 3. Lawrence : A Life Sketch 128 4. Seven Pillars of '.Visdom 132 5. Lawrence and the Arabs 138 6. Husain - McA'ahon Correspondence 15C'
6. SAINT JOHN PHILBY 181 1. Philby's Conversion to Islam 188 2. Islam 197 3. Salah or Islamic Prayer 212 4. Ramadhan or the A'.onth of Fasting 217 5. Philby in Iraq 229 6. In TransJordan 235 7. His Political Ideas 241 8. The Palestine Problem 252 9. Philby and His Arab Guides 262
7. CONCLUSIONS 267
8. BIBLI0(31APHY 272
• *•*• PREFACE
The legacy of travel-literature is unique and old in England. Men and Women of English origin have been travelling to other nations since medieval ages and most often t^ey took delight in writing down their experiences or impressions about the countries they visited. Not unoften such travel books proved to be the only source of information about a country or a region rarely visited by common Englishmen, Thus it can be justly argued that travelogues have been playing a vital role in the making of the image of various people and nations in England,
Direct contacts between Arabia and England ware made in the eleventh and twelfth centuries when many crusaders of English origin went to the holy land to deliver Jerusalem, Since then the Englishmen,travellers, scholars, merchantsj> missionaries and politicians, have been frequently travelling to and writing about Arabia. Some of the works produced in various ages were serious and made valuable contributions to the common fund of human knowledge. But unfortunately majority of the -.^-i- ters published superficial materials about the Arab world vrfiich, as can be imagined, created an unrealistic, even fictitious and misleading, image of the Arabs. - 2 -
This thesis aims to deal with some major travel writers of the twentieth century who especially wrote in its first half. The author's approach has been to find out the motivations or the ideologies and world viev« with which the travellers of the period under discussion went to the Arab world. For it were theii* personal ideologies or, at least, their individual predilections which greatly influenced their view and vision of the Arabs. Thus it can be reasonably concluded that the Arab society or 'realities' they presented in their works, to a great extent, were not objectively studied or comprehended the way the Arabs themselves liked and saw them. Exceptions, however,can not be denied.
In writing this thesis I have received generous help from various quarters which I wish to acknowledge from the core of my heart. First of all I wish to express my sincere gratitude to Prof. M.R.K, Nadwi, ifiy thesis advisor and supervisor, who helped me with concrete and objective criticism to widen the scope and references of this work. My thanks are also due to Prof, X'.ahmudul Haq, Chairman, Centre of West Asian Studies, Professor Emerit us S. Maqbool Ahmad, and Prof. M.A. Saleem Khan for their valuable suggestions and encouragen:ent, I also wish to thank the teachers and research scholars of the Centre, - 3 -
particularly Dr. Mohd. Iqbal, who helped me in a variety of ways. The staff rr.en±)ers of the Centre's library deserve a special word of thank for their kind cooperation.
I owe a special thank to Dr. M.M.Ahsan, Director, The Islamic Foundation, Leicester, U.K., Mr. Ataullah Siddiqi, Research Fellow in the said institution and Dr. A.R, Kidwai, Lecturer, Department of English, A.M.U.Aligarh for various kinds of help they generously ejftended to me, I wish also to thank my friends, Tariq, Zahid, Zubair, Rashmi, Zafar, Asmer, Asim, Abrar, Noorullah, Faizan, Rashid, Sami, Ovais, Qamruddin, Javed A. Khan, Sabahuddin and Abdul Rasheed who helped me at various stages of research with advice and interest in the subject.
Finally I am thankful to Vx. O.P.Sharr.a for excellently typing this work. UTTRODUCTION
Past helps unaerstand the present and the future in a better way. It is in this perspective that one is prompted to touch on the reflections of the writers and travellers who wrote about the Arabs in bygone ages. That, in order to have a fuller and proper understanding of the Arabs' image as depicted in the travel literature of the first halt of the twentieth century it would be useful to get acquaintance with the literature that in the past contributea considerably to the making of the image of the Arabs in the English speaking world in one or another way. Naturally such an attempt would also provide a histt^ri- cal background to fully grasp the subject that will be thoroughly discussed in this thesis,
perhaps one of the most ancient writers who made a crystal clear reference to Arabia was the Greek historian Herodotus( 484 B.C? 430-420), In his book Herodotus who wrote in the tifth century B,C,, described Arabia as a strange land which was filled with perils and fantasies, and produced frankincense, myrrh, cassia, cinnamon, and ladanuro'. Herodotus has further described that how these items were procured by the Arabs, According to him it was not easy to obtain any of the above mentioned items except
1, Herodotus, The History of Herodotus Vol,II(Trans, George Hawlinson), London, 1875, P, 497, - 5 - the myrrh. The Frankincense, according to Herodotus, was procured by burning the gum styrax, 'For the trees', writes Herodotus, 'which bear the frankincense are guarded by winged serpents, small in size, and of varied colour, whereof vast numbers hang about every tree... and there is nothing but the smoke of the Styrax which will drive them from the trees,'^ ^
Cassia was another product of Arabia that, according to Herodotus grew in shallow lakes and was collected with some difficulty. For cassia or the lakes where it grew, was surrounded by 'winged animals, much resembling bats, which screech horribly, and are very valiant,^ '' Hence in order to obtain cassia one had to cover all his body and his face except the eyes, with the hides of oxen and other skins.
The Arabs used to employ a creative method in order to procure cinnamon. According to "erodotus the Arabs had no idea as to which country proauceo cinnamon. However, it used to be brought to Arabia by some Dig birds for making their nests on some inaccessable cliffs. To obtain cinnamon the Arabs used to cut dead animals, like oxen, asses and beasts, into pieces, to scatter them around the place where
1, Ibid, P. 498. 2. Ibid, P, 500» - 6 -
the biras had built their nests and, then, to withdraw from the scene. . The big birds would naturally swoop down to take the pieces of meat to their nests which being unable to bear the weight would break off and fall to the ground The Arabs would then emerge from their hideouts and collect the fallen cinnamon which used to be exported to many countries including Greece,
Ladanum was another thing which the Arabs used to 0 procure in an equally strange fashion. According to Herodotu s ledanum was the 1, Ibid. pp. 501-502. 2. Ibid, p, 502. - 7 - occupation, rather they used to raise herds of all kinds particularly Ccfmels. Strabo has handed down a detailed account of Gerrah (a coastal town on the Gulf) ana its inhabitants. The soil of Gerrah. according to him, contained salt and the people lived in houses made of salt which were freque ntly watered by their occupants in order to prevent them from melting away due to the scorching heat of the sun, Strabo's Arabia besides being rich with spices was replete with a variety of herbs whose fragrant smell was sweet and pleasant, Strabo has also made a mention of some *sweet smelling palms and reeds', Moreover, like Heroaotus, he has depicted Arabia as a land filled with venomous serpents 'which are aark-red in colour, can leap even as far as a hare, and inflict an incurable bite*. ^ ' Besides the description of the Arab land and its physical features Strabo has also left an account of his impressions about the Arabs whom he sometimes referred to as Sabaeans, He believed that *on account of fruits people are lazy and easy going in their modes of life.»^ (2 ) Moreover they^ according to Strabo,were extrerely sensual 1, Strabo, The Geography of Strabo (trans, H,L, Jones) London, l96l, p. 347, 2. Ibid, - 8 - people who spent their lives in effeminate luxury. They also used to become drowsy by sweet odours wh^ch they overcame by 'inhaling the incense of asphaltus and goats' T bearc/^^ Nevertheless the Arabs of Strabo*s time were prosperous traders. As portrayed by him, 'from their trafficking both the Sabaeans(Arabs) and the Gerraheans have become richest of all, and they have a vast equipment of both gold and silver articles, such as couches and tripods and bowls, together with drinking vessels ana very costly houses, tor doors and walls and ceilings are variegated with ivory and gold and silver set with precious stonesi^^ Another ancient source which contributed greatly to the Arabs' image is the Christians' holy book, the Bible, There are numerous references, both direct and indirect, to the Arabs in the Bible. For instance in Qenesis, 37:25 Arabs are referred to as Ishmaelite traders who used to go to Egypt for commercial pur poses,The word 'Arab' however, first appeared in Isaiah 13:20: There no Arab shall pitch his tent', ^ ' Obviously prophet Isaiah depicted the Arabs as a Bedouin, without any good or bad attributes. But 1. Ibid. p. 347. 2. Ibid. 3. All biblical quotations in tnis thesis, unless otherwise indicated are from The New English Bible jointly trans lated and published by the Oxford and Cambridge Univer sity Presses. - 9 - in other places in the Bible the Arabs have been referred to as raiders and lurking mercenaries. Such a remark first r appeared in Jeremiah 3:2 You sat by the wayside to catch lovers, like an Arab lurking in the desert.' In Maccabees 5:39 the Arabs are again described as a mercenary. It can be reasonably concluded that the aible, being the corner stone of Christian faith, must have created a bad image of the Arabs in the minas of the people who oecame its believers. There is no sufficient written record to show if there was any contact between the people of Western Europe and the Arabs in early Christian centuries. However, there is a reason to believe that the common European opinion about the Arabs might have been greatly prejudiced, tisher, in his A History of Europe writes that the turopean view of Arabia as prevalent in A.U, 500 was that it was a remote and inhospitable country. 'Nothing is likely to be reported', he wrote, 'trom this scorching, wilderness.... Arabian Society was still in the tribal stage and the hawk-eyed Bedouen tribes might be confidently expected to rob and massacre each other till the crack of doom.' Fisher further opined that *the Arabs were poets, dreamers, fighters, traders; tney were not politicians.'^^ ! : 1. Fisher, H.A.L. A History of Europe. Londc^n, 1940. p. 137. - 10 - Such images were to last long, even after the err,er- gence of Islarrj in early seventh century. The advent of Islam intact opened a new phase of relationship between the Latinate Christian West and the Arabs, As commonly known the Prophet Muhammad(s) was an Arab and the early converts to his faith were also of the same race. Moreover, it is also a historical fact that within a century of its advent Islam carved for itself a big empire which was'greater than that of Rome at its zenith, an empire extending trom the Bay of Biscay to the Indies and the confines of China and from the Aral Sea to the upper cataracts or the Nile, ihe name of the Prophet-son of Arabia, joinea with the name of Almighty Allah, was being called five times a day trom thousand of minarets scattered over South Western turope, Northern Africa and Western and Central Asia,*^^ Many countries conquered by Muslims and thus included in the flourishing Islamic kmpire were earlier Christian, Moreover, not only Christian territories were Drought under Islamic control, but also a vast number of Christians began to embrace the Islamic faith. This was a disturbing moment of history for Christian leadership. Church leaaers, especia lly those living in the Muslim lands, began, mainly out of anger and frustration, to criticise the faith of Islam. to Later on their unfounded criticism was passed oiV the chris tian V/est which were readily accepted as golden pillars of truth i. Hitti, Philip, The Arabs. Princeton, 1943, P.I, - 11 - Initial reaction against Islam and the Prophet came from a number of christian scholars and church leaders. However, the most prominent among them was St. John of Damascus who popularized a numoer of faoricated stories about Islam and its messenger. Ihe core of his criticism was that Muhammad(s) was a pseudo prophet, inspired and guiaed by a Christian heretic or the Arian^ -^ Monk, bahira who taught him the Old and New Testaments from which he picked up ideas and stories that he used as a source for manufacturing a socalied divine dock, the Holy Quran in order to tulfil his personal ambitions. 'St John,' writes Norman Daniel, falso introducea other elements that would long survive, he descended to ridicule, for example, of what he mistakenly took to be Quranic belief,^he Ca^iel o: (iod, in a petty way, and he oegan the long tradition of Arius was a presbyter in the Church of Alexandria, txtremely learned and intelligent he held views which were riitferent from commonly held Christian beliefs. His ideas can be summed up as 'an absolute monotheism, according to which the son can not be an emanation of the Father, or a part of his substance or another being similar to the Father, for any of these three possibilities would deny either the immaterial nature of God or His unity', Arianism as expounded by Gonzalez implies that 'although all things were maoe by him, he himself was made by the Father, and Is therefore a creature, and not God in the strict sense of the word." (Gonzalez, J.L. A History of Christian Thought vol I. pp. 270-71), Arius' theology is known as Arianism and his fellwwers as Arians. Arianism was condemned as heresy by the Council of Nicea in A.D. 325. - 12 - attacking Muhammad for bringing in Goa simulating revela tion in order to justity his own sexual indulgence',^ ' It was under the influence of such unsavoury writings of St, John that the meaieval Europe came to view Muhammad(s) as a cunning pseudo prophet' and the Arabs as pagans and idolaters who were gullible enough to be deceived by Muha mmad's (s) 'false claims', AVjreover the medieval huropean accounts Depicted Mecca, the Holy City of Islam as a 'city of prostitutes', and the Muslims as extremely sensuous and lecherous. But most dangerously the Church leaders widely spread an exaggeratea and unfounaed story that the 'heathen Arabs' were profaning and polluting churches in Jerusalem and elsewhere and that Islam was a potential menace " -poisoned to the Christian West.Such a propaganda naturally the minds f of European Christians and ultimately led to the emergence of the Crusading Movement which aimed at fighting the Arab 'infidels'and freeing Jerusalem from their occupation. Whatever the political consequences of the socalled holy crusades they opened the door for cultural interpene- tration and airect contact between the Arabs and the Europ eans.The crusaaers were told by their Church leaders that the Arabs were an inferior race who worshipped Muhammad as God and took pride in persecuting Christians every where in the Muslim world, hor instance pope Urban II who 1, Daniel, Norman, Islam and the West, tdinburgh, 1966.P.4^ - 13 - launched and preached the first crusade 'apparently stressea the plight of Eastern Christians, the molestation of pil grims ana the aesecration of the holy places. Other baseless stories widely circulatea throughout hurope were that the Crucifix was insulted by forcing Christian children to spit upon it, that the Golden Cross was thrown down from the Dome of the Rock and that the defenceless Christians were being regularly massacrea by Muslims on wide scales. But when the Crusaders met their Arab enemies in the battle fields they tound that they (Arabs) were not barbarous as they had been led to believe. Rather they possessed chivalry, mercy and nobility of spirit, qualities which they aamireo very much. Sultan balah al Uin (1137/38-1193) known as Saladin in hnglish literature especially impressed the Crusaders, It was through verbal stories of the Crusaders that Saladin became extremely popular in Europe mainly tor his chivalrous dealings with his defeated enemies. The Crusades, inspite of oe ing wars or conquest and associated with ignominious plunder and destruction, were important in the sense that they provided an opportunity for direct relationship between European Christians and Arab Muslims, Once the war was over many crusaders, instead ot returning back to their homeland, decided to settle 1, Enc xlopaeaia britannica (Vol,b), London, 1986. pp, 299. - 14 - in the holy land. This inevitably gave them an opportunity to remove or correct many ot their untoundea prejudices about the Arabs, their religion and culture. Moreover, with the passacie of time, they came to realize the cultural superi ority of the Arabs and were so much impressed oy it that they begento discard their European aress in tavour of the more comtortable and more suitable native clothing. They also'acquired new tastes in fooa, especially those varieties involving the generous use of sugar and spices,' and began to like 'oriental houses, witn their spacious open courts and running water'. ^ ^ But the Crusaders who went back to their countries, instead ot carrying rich experiences and new iaeas, took with them stories, probably taken from the Araoian Nights, which they circulatea through the length ana breatha of Europe and thus provided tresh material to reinforce old Christian prejudices and polemic about the Islamic taith and culture. Along with the stories and legenas that the L.rusa- ders took to Europe, particularly Englana, there were pro duced some serious 'scholarly works v^icn unfortunately couid not become popular as source booKs, Tnere •,<(ere three great scholars in the tv,eiitn century wno knew the Arabic iangu£.ge and were niahly impressed oy Arab .T.etnod of learning. 1. Hitti, Tne Arabs op, cit. p. 188. - 15 - They v.'ere, Robert of Chester, Daniel of Morley who, ais- satistiea with the irankish universities, vjent to the Arabs to learn philosophy, anc Aoelard of Bath who was most learned of the three ana was regardeo as the pioneer of Arab learning in the VIest, Adelara visited many Arab unive rsities in byria ana Spain in early twelfth century in oraer to learn Arab sciences, because of his wide knowledge and experience he v/as appointed royal tutor to king Henry 11. But his worth remembering contribution was hi« translation of many Arabic works into Latin as well as his own works, I'he Natural Questions in which he tried to prove the super iority of the Arab method of learning, but Aoelard's views could not get v/ice currency. The cor.jrion people were more interested in soicy and juicy accounts of travellers like V.andeville who visited the Arab world in the later part of the twelfth century. In his book. The Travels Manoeville portrayed the Arabs as evil, wicked and malicious. According to him most Arabs were bedouin, though some of them haa settled in small towns and villages. The only admirable guality Mandeville could see in the Arabs was their strong sense ol freeaom and resentment of outside authority which not unoften led them to take arrr.s against the 5ultan, The Venetian Voyager h'arco Polo's travelogue, which was puLlishea at the end of the thirteenth century and - 16 - became widely popular in Europe, also contriouted its bit to malign the image of Islam. In his accounts Folo narrated a strange story entitled the'oia Man of the Mountain' which apnears to have been a figment of his own imagination. According to Polo there was an old ^Saracen* prince, namely Alo-eddin and Muslim by faith, who lived in a paradise like valley in which he had built beautiful gardens and palaces with streams of honey, milk and wine flowing around and youthful girls entertaining the dwellers with song and dance. Polo further says that the ola prince was not only lecherous but also a aangerous man. ^or he haa hired young assassins to kill anyone he wishea. His method it of functioning was unique ano/was oelioerately given a reli- gious colour by Polo, that the Old Man vwuld rirst give opium to his young assassins ano throw them out of the para dise after they fell asleep. Then he would oraer them to assassinate anyone he likea, promising them a place in the paradise, *We have the assurances of our prophet that he who defends his lord shall inherit paraaise, and it you s' ow yourselves aevoted to the obedience of mv orders, that happy lot awaits you'. ^ •^ It is not hard to imagine that what a Dad image of Muslims and Islam such baseless stories of widely reao fanciful travelogues would have created in European minds.. 1, Polo, Marco, fhe lave is of Marco Polo, London, 1946, P. 76. - 17 - As noted earlier direct contact between tnr^land and the Arab world was estaDlisheo in the twelfth century when some scholars ot English origin visited Arab universities for the sake of knowledge. In the subsequent thirteenth to Seventeenth centuries information about the Arabs, mostly baseless and fictitious, continued to reach hngiand througn various sources such as the accounts of merchants, trave llers and the works of Arabic knowing scholars. The English merchants began their traoe with the Arabs in early fifteenth century. Cog Anne, commanded by Robert Sturmy of bristol was one of the earliest vasseis to recich the port oi Jaffa, In 1^57 Sturmy sailed another vessel, namely. The Katherine Sturmy, and reportea on various ports of the Levant, In 1511 the farr.ous Hakluyt recorded that numerous big and tall ships were engaged in trade with the Araos of tne Levant countries;^ In the sixteenth century the Arab countries were conquorea Dy the Ottomans who in 1553 grantea permission to the English merchants to trade in all Turkish dominions, incluaing the Arab territories such as Tunis, Algeria, Tripoli (all'three known in England as pirate states), Syria, Palestine and the Araoian Peninsula, 1./.Hakluyt, Richard, The Principall Navigations Voyages Tratf ioues and Discoveries ot the English Nation (12 VoU. ) Glasgow, 1904 Vol, b, P. 62. - 18 - irade between two nations or peoples involves not only exchange ot comrrioaities but also provides opportunities for intercultural unaerstc.naing. And if the travelling merchants are honestly eager to icnow about tne host commu nity with a view to disseminating knowledge arr.ong their countrymen they can richly contribute to the common fund of human knowledge and promote international understanding, but uniortunately the merchants of the sixteenth-century hngland wfio had little knowledge of Arabic language provea bad servants of knowledge. In the 'Aoras of Samuel Purcnas they brought home irom their foreign journeys nothing but 'a few smattering terms, tlattering garbs, Apish cringes, top[iish lancies, toolish guises anc uisguises, the vanities of Ncicrhbour Nations,., .without furthering of their knowleage of (iod, the world or their.se Ive s', ^"^ • The seventeenth century saw more Enclish merchants travelling to the Arab world whose accounts -.vere eagerly read in tnqland. However, in the sarre century some serious studies '^re also maae to unravel the wealth of Arabic tnought and the ^raos' intellectual richness. William bedwell (1961-1632) who oecare known as lather of nr/j^bic stuoies in tngiar.c of his t ir.e was a 1, pxiTchas, Samuel. Hakluvtus cft?^t^un:.u<^^p: f^j^^as His PilgrlHis. Glasgow, 1905. (Vol. I) P.XIIV. - 19 - great admlr^T of the Areoic language. He hela that Araoic w. s the Snly language oi reiiqion ano the chier languaqe o: diplomacy and business fron. the Fortunate Isles and the China Seas*. ^''"^ Bedwell is creaited with having written a Lexicon, namely, Ihe Arabian irudgman in which he incorpor- ted and explained mainly those Arhbic woras wnich coula be usea by English merchants ano travellers in their aay to day dealings with the Arabs. Despite being highly- impressed by the Arabic langua ge Bedwell was not tavourably disposed to Islam, the religion of the Arabs. His missionary connectior compeliea him to refer to the Prophet /v'.uham!7.ad(s) as •impostor' and 'inventor' of the Holy Quran. hamund Castell .;i606-1685) was another AraDlst of the era. He became the first oam.brioge Professor of Arabic Studies, ''le produced a userul oictionary of seritic lar.guaaes which was greatly aomirec in .-is time. He is also creaiteo with having iranslatea sone /^rrbic poe-s in English which he dedicdfted to king Charles il^ Edward Pococke (1604-1691) was probaDly the most prominent Arabist of his time. '.Vioely read and missionary 1. Quotea in Nasir, Sari J. Tne Arabs er.d the t;nqlish. Lonaon, 1979 P. 26» See 2./ Lewis, Bernard, British Ucntributicn to Arabic Stucies. London, 1941 P, 12. - 20 - minded, ne was well-vexsea in AraDic language, history and culture. He spent five yeers in Aleppo where ne made lire- long triendship with a certain Sheikh Fathaliah in order to learn Arabic and the AraDs' contributior. to knowleage. t^ococke wrote numerous books. His pioneering Aor.<, however, was The Specimen of the history of tne Arabs .v:. i c h was printed m Uxfora in 1649. The oook dealt with various aspe cts of Arab culture ana history, ihere were many other /-.r-oists m the seventeenth century. However, their contr iout ion to the rria-cing ot tht- imaqe of the Araos in cncland was negligible. Intact, it '/yere stili travellers' accounts wnich were populcir with the coriJTion reaoers ana tnus re.r.ained the main source o: informati n aoout the Arab ptople, -.r. ^n:; numerous trave llers of the period William Lithgow, George Sandy ana Henry Blount were rr.ost prominent. Naturally their trr.velogues played a vital role in -.op larising a oac anc -aligned imaae oi the Arabs, Lithgow traveiiea in tr.e ^^rao territories ot tne Ottoman timpire in early years of the seventeer.tn century. In nis travelogue, Peregrin at lon^"^' he portrayea the Araos 1, The lull tit e o; the oook, v.T.icn was puolisned in 1614, is as rollows : A .'>':ost Delectable c.ro True Dis course ot a Painiul Peregrination, - 21 - as wiiu, savage, biooa thirsty, robD-^r, cruel ana unniana- cei.ble who not unotten annoyea even theix Ottoman masters, Ihe reason behina Lithgov;'s hatrea of the Arabs was tnet they v'/ere V.uslim by taith, b.- the same token he also conce- mned the Turks as untrustworthy. His aistrust of the '.'uslirr lurks and Arabs led him to hire a Christian cuiae on his journey to Lioda who, however, proved to oe in connivance with some three huncreo A^TCD rccoers and iniormed them in advance about the routes Lithgow's caravan v.v.s to follow and the valuable rich-s tney possessec. In : is traveloaue Lithgow also depictt^a tne Mraos, tf.e iurKS, e.ra tne ,','oors, all /. uslim, as avowed enemy of Christ, Vfner. comparat ivei-,- viewea the lurks in his eye v^re aangerous cut some-.vnat tolerable. But the Arabs ana tne .V.oors v/ere •-itner thi-;ves or robbers, even barbarous ana inhuman, hence completely intolercible , George bandy journeyea among the Arabs ot t-gypt anc Palestine in 1610, He reccilected nis experirpces in i.is He 1 at ion of ^a Journey, he exijressea ooth favourable ana unfavourable views c.cout tne Arabs, On the one nara ne ciescribea them as roi^bers one on the other as noblemen w/io k.'ep their promise anc accomplisn tneir outies faitn- rully wiiL'n ti.e- ii.akt any ccntr ct '.itr. -oreian travciI.rE. Sanuy i ouna Arabia ootn :trti_e ar.c Darren. E-ut most /-.r rs. :2 - according to him were nomaas wno ust-'d to c-.s'eii in mov-oie tent houses. 5anoy turther aescri-.es the'sor.s or tne n-sert' as riercoiy inceoeneent arc. nrouo pec^le . ,V:IL '.ere fully consci'jus of their nooiiit.' or o: hivma o-i-er. emanatea trom pure stocks, i he rr.cin cr.i'ession o-' th. -c-sert /^^-JTabs, accoruing to Sandy, was to raise ca:..els anc hercs, the mainstay or their econony. Ihe camel, Sanay ooined, was vitally im ortant -.or tne r^rs. s, es-ecially :cr carrvinq lorcis '.vner. their masters •.-'••..-r-o ir. fe -'-5--rt in sec-rc of pastures ana sprinas o: •'.et^-r. Sanay haa ;ct t.-e point wtien he alludea the Airaoian ca.-:,el tc a ship b-^.a the cesert as a sea. Henry blount, a conte;. L or ary of Sanay anc Litr gow, v.'as another important traveller of the severtenth centur-. In his Voyage into the Levant he maae a comc^r :tive st',.Gy at the /'>ra05 anc tj-it lurks. He was all praise : or the Turks, impressed es^-ecialiy cy their good Ean.-fers ana by their Dig empire. But he portrayed the Arabs as unruly, ralicious, trecherous and erfer.inate who can oe rulea over only '.vith an iron hana, Blount also recordec tne metr.cos ol torture suchi as 'impaling, gauncing, fla-.-ing ali^/e, cuttina oif the waist, h.-.nqinc cy tne loot, olanting in burning lime anc the li^e'. ^ •' v/.-.icr. the iurks used to 1, Quotea in Nasir, Sari J. c:, cit. r. 3C. - 23 - employ in order to keep the AraLs under their control, blount was not disturbed by these terrible tactics of torture b..t approved ot them and was happy to witness two such torturing sessions. In the later part ot the seventeenth century the Arabs began to be aepicted in tne accounts of the English travellers and merchants, even in the works of poet wno hao never left Englano to visit a foreign country, as cruel pirates and sla.-ve-traders, Joseph Pitts who clamed to have been captured by Algerian pirates in 1678 was ci.cr.g the rirst writers who popularizea this theme. In his so- called Faithful Account^ ^' he recollected th^t how he w. s captured, sold twice and ultimc.tely forced by nis Algerian niastt-r to embrace Islam. The same master took Pitts to Ar^iDia in oraer to perform the holy Pilgrimage. In his later life Pitts managed to escape, PiLts aescribed at length his experiences of Ar^ioia, hgypt, and of other countries in nis oook, the Faithful Account. His portrayal o: the Aracs, the Egyptians and the Algerians, as expected, was not tavourable. He was esp-:-da ily bitter towaras the Algerians and conaemend them as pirates, slave tracers, beggars, homo-sexuaisanc roobers. ijor.e of Pitts' accounts, nowever, v.ere :'jll or 1. The full title of the boo^ is as follows: A Faithful Account of tne helicion and /. ar.r.ers of the /.'.ahome tans. With an Account of the Autnor's Having Been laken py !'js >.'»?st r on the Pilqrim.ege tc '.fecca. The oook ?/c;S lirst publisheo in 1704. - 24 - kno wledge, For instance his ct-scripticn ot the inhabitants or the Arabian desert who were utterly poor, thinly struc- turea, lean ana swarthy, Besic.es, Fitts also T.et some travelling Dervishes whose entire possession wes a sh«ep or a goat skin on which they lay -.vhen the time came for slceo or rest. He rurther claimed to have attendee some discour ses ot the religious scholars who, sitting in nigh chairs, used to expound out the holy Quran, He, like Italian tra veller, Vartnema dismissoa the legend prevalent in Europe that ^'uhamrr.ad • s tomb was suspencea in the air, out, as a whole, nis attituae towarcs lsi< IT. was hostile. He decicteo the Arabs as natural mischie: r. ongers and Isla.-^ as a raise religion inventea by a'vile ana cebauchea impostor'. He even accused Muslims of ^ecca to oe idolaters. Pitts' socalled i-aith: ul Account becarr.e very populex in hngland m the tirst naif of tr.e eignteentr. century, Meanwhile in 1712 the tarn us tales o: the Axaoian Nights were rendered into tnglish rrom a rrench translation. The tales of i'ne -Nights not only reiniorced previous images of the Arabs as presented in tne accounts or the travellers but also introduced new themes, For instance Arabs began to be portrayed as inhaoitants of a mysterious cr\Q magical world wt.ich was tuil oi (.-enies, rlying horses, supernatural biras ana replete with exotic scenes of r.arems, princesses, - 25 - slaves, eunuchs, along witn tne unoe lie vaole stories of aancing dervishes, SinabaC the Sailor and y-ili baDa's tan- us i-orty Thieves. Throughout the eighteenth century the /.rciDian Nights WdS rc-,a oy corr on Enclishmen not as a oook of entertainment, but cs a taitrrul account c: the y-OToD history. The Nights not only rr.ce a lastin • i-oressic^ on Englisli literature cjt -Iso riayea a vital role in sn:-'-in-i the menttl attitudes of cc .on £n;_ishnnen to.v.-ras tr e /.Zcbs. ihe^' hcC D c (me so mucr. mf atuatea '.Mtr. the talos o: the i\;i hts vh t vhcn Simon uclc-y (lo7fc-i72C, Prcfesscr o APcOic in Uc'iuriooe, /^rotc ^ serious woriCj fne History of the Sgrosen (i ir st pu;.lisf,cc m I'^CS) whic oresenteo ti ^ c.iturcil ana political nistory of tne ^jrabs „s c mcl t^_\ aifl'^rent rror. that in tiie r-ToLic-n '.'lonts it ^as recei\-eQ Ly riis contempcraries v.ith t.e ,-, ^ errert anc -isoeli-r. ^n his book UcKley Dortrc;\to thf MX DS son-ev-tiat r or -rt ' ~ - llv, d V)i^i JU ',,:th a i>ooi: c-i . s,,ci- v. o:.e ac it \ ^-s, i in in thL I ie la o: Knowleaoe c-- on t e oattle nround s, .'^rt: srectdcular Dy any stcr arc. „ut sucn accourts ot tne ,-.r ^ history scer. to have surorisec ^any, snockec -iven the serious minaed hnglishmen, Descrioing tne gtn-ral oe 'ilccr- ment and disbelief Ockley wrote in nis introcuction to the secona taition oi nis D ok tn?t *a revereno aignit r^ rSi-d rue, ii , v.nen i \Mote t;.^t oook 1 had not lately oeer - 26 - reaOing the history of Oliver Cromweil^^ ' Th® implica tion was obvious. That the e But insr.'ite of being impressed by the Arrbs as a race Oc.-.ley coula not free himselt :rom the prevalent prejudices of his age against Islam ana J.'.uhammad (s), He -ismissed Islam as a religion or sup^erst it ion and Muhar - .a (s) as impostor. However, he gave lull credit to isla... for era- aicatinc-; loolatry tror ana uniting the warlike and jarring tribes of Arabia who later on oecarrie the'tirst ruin of the eastern church', ^"'^ Although unfavourably aisposea to the prophet Muhan.maQ Ockiey was highly impressed by one o: his succes ors, Al Mamun : 1. (^uoteo in Nasir, Sari,J, op. cit. p, 41, 2. Ockiey, Simon, History of the Saracer.s, Loncon, 1S74, p. XI, • " 3. Ibio. p, X. - 27 At lust, in /^Imamoun's reign, who was the twenty seventn after Mahomet, ana >,vas inaugurated Caliph in 108 year of the Hegirah (A.U.813), learning began to be cultivatea to a very great degree, mathematicks especially, and astronomy: And in orcer to promote it, thot noble Caliph spared no cost, either to procure such Greek books as were serviceable to that purpose, or to encourage learned me n to the stuay ot them,*" ^ « It was at Almamun's behest, Uckley rurther states, that the works of Greek philosophers, mathematicians, astronomers, botanists anc physicians were translated in Arabic. Later the Araos took their intellectual riches to Ai irca and Spain where many great universities were establishea in the subseouent centuries, Accoraing to Ockiey the Arab*' achievements m the field of knowledge , Co) were 'no less wonaerfui than that of their conquests, "-^ Ockiey haa, nowever, cne complaint, tnou^i not wholly true, against the Ar-Ds, That they v,ere little int(;restea in history ana historlograpny : Haa tney,., appiiea themselves to the Historians, as they cio to the pnilosophers, and stuaied Her.oaotus, inucyoiaes, )fenophon. 1. Ibid, p, XI. 2. Ibid. - 28 - and such other masters of correct writing as that language coula have aiforded them, we might have expectea from them a succession of historians worthy to write those great actions which have oeen cerformea airong them,'' George Sale (169/.-1736) v.as another imoortant Arabist of the eight enth century. His greatest contribu tion we»s his translation of the Holy uuran in Englisn which was rirst published in 1734, Untortunately it did not prove as much an important event as die tne publication of the Arabian Nights ano, cue to little interest snown by the then Englishmen to scnolcrly things ana partly owing to their bigotry, it mace little impression en English literature and sensibilities, A%S a result majority of Englishmen continued to holo wrong opinions aoout the A raDs. Sale's translation was pretaceo Dy a learned introQuction, Preliminary Uiscourse to the Korcn. in '.vhich he elaborated the religion, learning ano custorr.s of the Araos, bale very Intelli.jer.tly explained thr.t why foreign Civilizations, esp'-cialiy Islerr. neeo to De ocjectiveiy stuaied. If the religious anc civil institution of foreign 1. Ibid. P. XII, - 29 - nations are worth our knowledge', he wrote, those of A'uha- triTiaci, the luw giver or tne AraLians, anc founcer or an e-piie which in less than a century spread itself over a greater part of the world tr.cn tr.e Rorrans were ever rncsttrs of, niust neec oe sol^' bale wc" s first to point out that why tne Arabs came to oe known as Sarccen? in his opinion tr.e wora, Saracen wi s inf act aeri\-ed iron tne /^rabic v.crc Shcric n^e<-jninq the hast wnere the /-,r:-os n,a b en rolma elite -c: ni, ny centuries. Sale .^so ..:i<.cxea ~c,ny a rr i. rcf'-^ti '• p. co.i i.^tea riijQut /-a- Di- :jy ^nciert travellers .nc writ is. Ht- riv,ntly poiitta out tn. t c,rtr-r,' tc tne ; on tjelie Mjrioia wds not c-. rich c^untr in olcen tines, -.ntact r iny riches associcitt a 'Ait;, or S^DDOS'-Q t. ce the prccuce of Arabia were urouyht irc Incia anc the coasts of Africa which the /%raDs tracers ropularisea In Egypt . nd Syria. Scile 1 urther stated th^-t alt.nougn ^raDian scciety was primarily tribal, ar.d n.ost trioes aiwa\'s fouant with edch uthi I , tht A'.rabs es c A.'.oit nr\tr alio'Aed foieigners to iritruue ana rule over tnem. Notr. inq nes been .xore de^r to them thc-.n liberty ot which lew n ticns can oroduce so ancient monun.tnts, with very little intt rrupt ion, iror 1. bclc , (ieoige, The Korc." , (tr rsl^ti^n) Lorco.-, 1 , r . V. - 30 - the very Ueluge'.^^ Often great arrcitrs 'A^re sent against them but such efforts eitner themselves proved abortive or were frustrated by joint Arab action. The Turks, in Sale's opinion, succeeaed to subaue the Arabs only when tr.e Apabs hac ;)ecome weak ana terribly aiviced because ot their unenainq tribal warfare. Along with virtues ana merits or the Arabs, Sale also enumeratea their vices ana sr:ortcomings. t-irst, the const.nt inter-tribal fighting wnich the travellers and scholars nave been writing aown in their works since ancient cays, has cultivated a notion among the people that the ^rabs have a natural aisposition tor war cna olooashea. Next ana no less important is the fact that 'frequent robberies conr.ittea by these people on merchants and travellers have renderea the narre of an Arab almost infamous in turope*'' Sale's writing i iqht n^ ve inrluenced ana promptea Thomas Uarlyle (1795-1861) to ceclcre that the Proohet Muha::]maa w.:S not an impostor. Cariyle, though critical of some aspects of Islam, is well Known ror his somewhat good opinion about the Prophet, t-or instance he oismissea the nation of Muhammao being an hypocrite and oolaly pronounced that the 'man's (Prophet J.'uharrjr.aa) words -were not 1. Ibid. P. 10. 2. Ibid. P. 22. - 31 - false... no Inanity ana Similacrum, a fiery mass of lite cost-up from the great bosom of Nature itself,^ ' Sir V/illiam Jones w..s another important orientalist of the eighteenth century. He learnt Arabic from an Arab whom he had brought to London from Aleppo on his own expense. He was first to translate Almoallaqat, the seven''odes written by the poets of the pre-lslamic period, ana saio to have been inscribea in gold ana hung at the door of Kaoah in recognition of their literary excellence. He seer.s to have been yrt-atly influenced by the beauty and precision of the language of the seven odes ana as a result praised the Arab speech to be voluble ana articulate. Moreover, he portrayed the Arabs as n.anly, dignified and freecom loving whose minds v^re alv/cvs c^lert, attentive and cuick to apcre- hena.^^' Eawara Gibbon, the lar.ous e iqr.teenth —cent ury historian was not an Araoist. However, he learnt aoout the Arabs rrom Lctin, trench ana English sources. He was greatly inrluencea by the Arabs' love for treeaom ana tor tnis season alone eAJlogizea them in the following manner : The slaves of aomestic tyranny may vainly exult in their national inae penaence, but the Arab is personally tree, ana he enjoys, in sorr,e degree, 1. Larlyle, Ihomas, On Hero. Hero Worship and the Heroic in History. London, 1897. P. 46. 2. See, Jones, W. Disccurse on tne Arabs in the Works of Sir '.Villiajn Jones. Loncon, 1/99 (Vol. I)P. 37. - 32 - the benetit of society, without, forfeiting the prerogcit ive s of nature.... Iheir s'^irit, their steps are unconiined, the aesert is Of-€n, anc the tribes and tamilies are held together by iriutuai and voluntary compact... In tne more simple state ot the ArcDs the nation is tree, oecause, eacn of her sons aisoains a oase suo-issicn to tne will of a master... .Ihe grcvity ana firmness of the mind is conspicuous in nis outward aereanour, nis speech is slow, weianty, anc concise. (1 ' In the same perioc, thet is, the eighteenth century, travellers also continued to visit the Arab provinces of the ottoman hmpire, In comparison with the travellers ot the pr* vious centuries the eionteenth-century trav'e^xers seem to hr ve acJoot' a a more serious approach to Arabia end the Arats* Vainly there '.vere three such travellers, Hich<.rd Pococke, a wealthy clergyman, Aiexanoer F.ussel, a coctoi, and Jamf s ujuce, an explorer who cl^iirta t ncve s'--ce ss • uily disco vered the souice ox tne ri-er .'lie. Pococke spent tnree veers, i737-^74Cj in the r'.rai. worlo stud-.'ino /-.raD society arc ijeoole. In t.is ->escricticn of the East ouclished m 1743^ oesiaes reoeatir.a some old stereotvpt-'s such c.s tntfts er.c roDr,eries, he introduced sorre nL w t).en.es like tne .'vr-ijs' :;reeG : or monev. Ci. sevei -.1 occasions, hie claim' d, ; is . i: t- •, s tr.re -tenec Lecause h'^ r lusfo to pay money or any t; ir.c, e.^e cemancec oy the c cS.' s 1. bioD on, fc. Ihe History ottne- iJeclir.e -.nc t-, . 1 of tr-- /.or!,,.n hnipire , London, 1^3^, P. 31.. - 33 - of raiding Arabs, as ransor;.. However, every t irr.e he succeeaea to sive his life ana, proTitaoly for nim, he learnt by such experiences how to handle the greedy Arab folks. In the : irst place he cautioned the travellers that they sJ.ould not aive in to threats and ret use to pay any ransom under any circums tance. Next, they should trv to cissuade the A^aos frorr. getting hostile by offering oi coffee, a sign or hospitality ana courtesy which was and is sti.l widely res,::ected in the Arab worlG, PococKe, however, did not ccnaemn all tr.e Araos as evil or qreeay, Jnere were nocouot thieves, ro-C^rs ana xenophobes but a good many Arabs were brave, nonest, trust worthy and hospitable whom ne appreciatea very much, Pococke, unlike many of his predecessors, v/as net inimical to'.vards the beaoL>ins '.vnom he aescriLed as ones w.'.c lived in tent houses earning tneir livelihooc rrom the cattle thev grazea. He, however, hbo no woro of prais^ for the Egyptians whom he ccnaemned as lethargic, idle and gooa tor nothing. They aelight', he wrote, 'in sitting still hearing tales and inaeed seem alleys to have ceen more fit for the quiet life'. ^-'•^ Alexancer I^^ussell wr:s first tnaiish traveller w: o, instead ot writing aoout a peo:)Ie or a oiace suoer ficidiy, 1, Quoted in Nasir, Sari j. o . cit. P. 45. - 34 - maae an exhaustive survey of the society ana people ot the ijyrian city called Aleppo. In r.is work, Natural History of Aleppo published in 1757 he did not aescribe the inhabitants of the city and of the surrouncing areas as one entity out mdoe clear cut distinctions between Vcrious aroups, the Turks, the Attendees ina the Aghas. He aivicea the people of Aleppo, not merely on racial ground but also in Socio economic terms : The Bashaw with his retinue, and all other immediately in the service of the Porte are called Osmanli, and eitner speak or affect to speak the Turkish language. The Effendees compose the t.ody of the Ullana, or learnedmen. Their coixnon language is th-^ Art Die, for most of them being natives or Aleppo, but tew can speak the Turkish with tolerable purity, ihe Agas or (in a restricteo sense) those wr.o rent the lanas, have still some influence in the Diwan, or Council of the city, out tneir pov<^r anc Splenaour have been long on the aecline, and most of the old famij.ies are now extinct.^ ^ Ihe Arabs, accoroing to Hussell,'^ere :he p£»orest class in the city. The Arab community consistea mainly of manual labourers and their women folk, in oroer to earn their livelihood, workeo as house servants in the Harer^ Q 1. Quoted in Nasir, Sari J, op. c it. pp, 46-47, - 35 - of affluent Turks ano Aghas. Fiowever, inspite of their ooverty, they maintained their identity intact. Moreover they married Dut among themselves ana thus preserved the purity ot their race, Russell rurther oescribea tne living style and dresses of the AraD nenfolk ana the jewels and the cosmetics ot which their women were fond ot , such as the powder useo for giving the lips a aark oluish colour and the ring of gold ana silver put on noses. The Arabs, according to Russell, lived in two separate ana aistinct groups: the cedouins, who claimeo to be the true arabs, lived in movaole tent-houses ana still wanaerec in the desert; the city oweilers who were despicably called the Moor by the Bedouins for having oegeneratea rrom gooa Arab virtues by settling In towns anc adopting mean proressions like trade and agriculture. Russell also referred to the Arabian Nights, then widely oopular in tnglana out scarcely available in Aleppo where husseli could trace out only two copies with great dif i iculty. -. J&mes Bruce, another traveller ot the period, jour- neyea in several countries, Ethiopia, Lebanon and Egypt. He re-counted nis experiences in his work Trave 1 s wnich w-s rirst published in 1/90. i he purpose ot r.is aaventurous journey was to oiscover the source or Nile wr.ich, accoraing to him, flowed trom Lake Tana in Ethiooia to the sea. ~ 36 In his iravels Bruce has narratea a particular incioent that shows both gooa and bad aspects of Arab character. According to his own accounts once his ship was broken, leaving him almost drownea. But somehow he managed to reach the shore where some Arab roDoers w^re waiting tor him» They beat him mercilessly and left the scene thin- king he was aeaa. He lay there almost unconscious when another group of Arabs arrived there. '(Vhen tola in Arabic by Bruce thrt he y/as a Christian Dervish, out in Search ot truth aoout God, they showed compassion and tooK r. im to their tents. Later in 1968 bruce safely reachea Cairo. in Cairo Bruce founo people utterly poor but of qooc manners, Ihe Cairoites were passive anc extremely tolerant tt their rulers whom Bruce described as tyr-.nt ana oppre ssive set of rciscreants^ In Egyptian villages life .ves ever wort St, ihe people were of poor iteaizr. ana in a state of e xtrc ni joverty, ine v;crr,en s Ctc es ecially struck by povert and lookeo sixty yc-Mrs old at the age of sixteen. bruce haa little respect tor :.slair. anc tr.e Holy Our an anc was oisgusteo with certain stuaies or r.is age which tenaed to appreciate the fait:, of the V.usli.t.s,'In my time,* he wrote, *I have seer, m nritain a spirit of enthusiasm for this book (the Curan), in preference to all others, not interior to tnct w! ich possesseo ?,anonet's lolli^wers. ^'opern unbe^itvers (Stle er.c r.is aiscio_es) h<-ve qone every len ti-, out to sa-- cirectly tr.at it :s cictut.'Ci - 37 - by the Spirit of God'/ ^ Carsten Niebuhr, a aane, was another treveiler of the ptriod. He was the mernber o: a tragic expedition which w;.s airr.ed at exploring ana sti aying so ient if ical-y the interior of Arabia. The other rr.emoers o: tne expeoiti.n 'Aere proresscr Friedrick Von Haven, a Danish philologist anc the leader of the tean:, Peter torssKal, a Sweoish botanist, Christian Carl Kramer, a Danish ooctor ana the expedition's meaical officer, George Wilhelr. Baurenfdio, a German artist and engraver. Niebuhr hiir.selt was included in tne team as a Ic'r.a surveyor ana mau maker. 9 The purpose of the expedition as mentioned above was to explore Arabian inland as v^il as to collect Orien tal n.cnuscripts on Arabian nistory and Geography, anc t;.e copies of the Holy Bible written in Hebrew ar.c Arabic in ancient tin.t-s. Besicc-s t:.ii., : 11 irx-niers c: the excecitio wt re ii oivicually assigned secara'e tasxs ir a"^cordane yvitr ttieir par ticular fielas of interest. The expedition set out frcr: Denr.ark in 1761 anc reachea Jiddah in 1762. Niebuhr, contre-xy to his expec tations, found the Arabs frier.cly wJ.o e,llo',',ec h in, to sur\-e-- the Ic.nd as well as to in\'estigate the imports and ex' i: ts o: the town. Froir, Jdccan Meicuhr anc ;.is ccr.ir-r.icns .-.•t-r.t to 1. Bruce, James, Iravels to Discover the Sources of the Nile in the Years 1766.1769. 1770. 1771. 1-^:2111 anc 1773. Lonaon, 1813,(Vol.11) P. 436. - 38 - Yemen where they were strucK hara by malaria. Ail, except ing Niebuhr and Kramer, oieo one by one either in Yemen itself or on a their wty to bomoay. In Bombay Kramer elso oiea leavina Niebuhr alone to tulril the purpose of the expedition. In December 1764 Keibuhr cecioed to sail to V.uscat where he changed his name to Abdullah pretenoing to be a A'uslim. He, then, travelled in Iraq, c>vria and Asia Minor ana ultimc3tely returned Dc'Ck to his homeland in 1767. Niebuhr recoilt-ctea his experiences in his Dook, Travels in Arabia, ihe image f tne Arabs he portrayea in the book was comparatively favourc.Dle. The Araos, acccr. inc to him, were an ancient people wno held their age old customs very dear to them. Ihe AraDs' love ror.ireedom and their good simple manners especially appealed to NieDuhr. If any people in the world ariord in tne ir history an influence of nigh antiquity, and ot great simplicity of manner, the Araos surely 00.,., Havirg never oeen conquered, Arabia has scarcely knc .vn any chanc;es, but those proauced by the hand of nature,^~-' Explaining further the Arabs' 'Spirit of freedom* which rendered them'incapable of servituoe' Niebuhr wrote that the wiae spreaa poverty in Arabia woS oue to their love lor moepenaence and voluntary prererence of liberty to wealth' . 1. Niebuhr, C, Travels m AroDia. in J. Pinkertcn, Gener,1 Collection of Voyages and Travels (Voi.iC), London, 1811, p. 79. - 39 - Niebuhr tried to dispel many a misconception widely spread in Europe regarairg A'uslimi' treatment of women aS slaves or Inferior species. He inforrred his European reooers theit the Arab women were niqhly influential in the family and enjoyed a good deal ot lioerty in the society. N'oreover, they haa right to property, Polygairy was, noacubt, in existence but not to tne extent it was believed to oe in Europe, Niebuhr was greatly tc the point when ne wrote : Polygamy is perrritted, inaeeo, among K'ahometans and the delicacy of cur ladies is shocked at this iaea, out the Arabians rarely avail them.selves of the privileae of marrying four lawful wives, ana entertaining at the same time any number of female slc:ves. None b^t voluptuaries marry so m,any wives, and their concuct is olamed by ail sober men, f.'en of sense, inceeo, think of this privilege rather trouDleso~e than convenient. A husbano is, by law, ocliaed to treat his wives suitably to their conaition end to dispense his sources among them with perfect equality.^(1 ' By the end of the eighteentn century the Arao worla, especially '^^YP''^ assumed increased political importance for Britain. Infact, until the invasion of tgypt by Napolean in 1798 the British were least interestea in tne region, but 1. Ibi>.. p. 149. - 40 - the occupation of E-gypt made them realize that ^their traae route to India was under threat, besioes this, the british also realized the weakness of the oeterio- r Britain's political interest anc involverent in tne Arab world, Particularly Egypt at the end of tne eighteenth century is best reflectec in William ct-n's oook, A Survey of the Turkish^mpire which was published in 1799. Eton was nostile to ooth the Turks ana the AraJDs because ootn races were Muslims, hence, in nis opinion, eneir.ies of Christianity. Ho'^rever, he portrayed the Arabs somewhat tavourably. The Arabs, accoraing to him, patronized Knowlecge v.crld at a time - the Middle Ages - when entire/was immersed in ignorance. His praise or the -.raos, nov.ever, >vas not : or notiiina. Inract he wantea to use tne rO-aos, esoecially tr o ^e 1, Cuoted in Searight, Sarc, >he rritish in tne .'iouje cr.st. Lonoon, l96y. P. 86. - 41 - segments of the Arab society who cia not accept or greatly resented Ottoman sovereignty over thei selves in order to disintegrate the Turkish Empire. He even aavised the British Government to send an agent to watch over the French in Egypt and at the same tire try to raise the Araos Doth against the t-rench and the lurks. He also aelineated the qualifica tions that such agents were to acquire before embarking upon their mission, That they ^sr.oulo be well accainted with the manners and way of thinking of the Arabs and have such a command of temper ana pliancy of Character as to adopt his language to their prejudices and to be able to conciliate and persuadei^ Over a century later Eton's agent wts perso nified in Lawrence of Arabia wno played an impcrt^nt role in destroying the Ottoman Empire, /\s a whole the image of the ^rabs as portrayed v by majority of the eighteenth-century scholars and trave llers was considerably r av. urabie. .Veaicnesses were p; inteo ' ut but virtues vv'ere more hiqhligntea, Arabs as a nation, not as A/uslim believers, were especially aopreciateo. both tne scholars and the travellers were fascinatea by the Arabs' love for treeoom or theii spirit of liberty. This was probaoly due to the concept of nat-onaiism or national treecom which emerged and consolicatea itself in Europe in the 1, Quoted in Uaniel, Norrran, islam, tiurope eno Empire. Edinburgh, 1966. p-, 103,104. - 42 - same age. The presence of the icea of national rreedom in other ancient peoples was highlighted by Cc.kley, Sale anc others with a view to vindicating tne concept ot nationalisir in Europe . ihe nineteenth-centur-. travellers excepting Burck- hardt, however, reversea the prevalent trend o: the eionteentr, century. As a result the image of the Arabs as a treeaom loving nation who were 'incapable of servitude' cisapr^ -ec from the nineteenth-century travel literature. John Luawig Burckhardt,, a Swiss who stuaiea Araoic in hnglana and visitea many parts of the Arab worlo inducing V.ecca sng V.aoina in the tirst aecaoe of tne nineteenth century uncer the guise of bhaikh Ibrahim Ibn Abdullah, however, roilowed the eighteenth-century tradition ana wrote about tne Arabs on the pattern ot his itiinieaiate preaecessors. The Arabs, according to him, were tree ana r.ospitoDle. Burc/.hardt -ACS especially tascinatea uy the beaouins whom he called the pure AraDs and regardeo them as an inceoendent nation.*The com,>l^te indepencence the beduins enjoy*, he wrote, has alone enabled them to sustain a national charccter'. ^ ^ burknarat, infact, vie-Ared the Bedouins as a cistinct social group ana made a atep study of the structure o: their society. He tried to rationalize or fino out tne riecouins' peculiar 1. burckharot, J.L. Notes on tr.e Becouins ana tne Wahabys, Lonacn, 1831, Vol. I. P. 359. - 43 - reascns or rationale behind their various in st it Lit ions and practices including raids or highway robberies. Raids, as explained by Barckhardt, //ere a condexnable crime according to European ethical coae but for the bedouins they were not an abominable or punishable offence but a part of their life, almost a widely accepted institution. It was on this ground that instead of punisning a good young raider the concerned tribe' used to take priae in him. Another exception, though in a cifferent sense, was Williani I-.ne (1801-1876) whom oernarci Lewis aescribed as the greatest Arabist of the nineteenth century, not only in tnqland but in entire Europe,^ ' Lane,Known as V.ansour Effendi arronI G his Egyptian triends, was passionately interested in Egyptoloay, He first went to Egypt in 1825 and stayed there upto 1828. ll^e apparent aim of his journey was tc learn Arabic language ^nd literature as well as the mores ana manners of the Egyptian people , Lane made a second visit to Egvpt in 1833 and closely studied the Egyptian society tor about three years. Ihe metr.oa of xesQ^TCh that he adopted was near to that of rr.ociern anthro pologists, especially • in the sense that he triea r.is best to understand the Egyptians as they understood themselves. To achieve this purpose Lane, as n.enticned earlier, stayed lor See, 1. / Lewis, csernard, op, cit P, 20. - 44 - years in Eq.pt trying to live as an Egyptian Kreo, In his own worcs, I have associated, almost exclusively, with Muslims, of various ranks in society, I nave Uvea as they live, conforr^ing witf. t;,eir genf-ral nabits, and, in order to maki- them fam.iliar and unreservea towards me on every subject, have always avowed rr.y agreement with tner, in ooinion whenever my concience wi.'Uld allow me, anc in most other cases refrained 1 rom the cxpressior: of my aissent, as v,<^ii as f r ~n ( vrry action which : ight give them aisoust, aDsta- ining iron, eating fooa : -roioaen Dv their reiici'-.n, anc or "inking wine etc., ar.a t ven rrom hfCits merely disagiee^le to them, such as tht- use of knives and lorks at meals. ' By applying such a scientific mietboo of research Lane succeeded in presenting a realistic stuay of bcyctian society in his \'iOdern Egyptians. Inract nis Modern EgyDtians. unlike the ciccounts of ma.'^y of nis conten.corary trave iiers, is not a subjective discourse on religion, culture and civilization of the Egyptian people it is rather an account or socio- religious and cultural realities ot the then Eoyptian society, 'Arab culture and religion,' writes Muhamjriad Al-^aha, 'were presented not as a set oi oeiieis to be intellectucilly appre hended, analysed, rejectee, as an assortment ot siciai 1. Lane, William, An Account of tne /.'cnners ar.u Customs of th f/ooern Egyptian" London, 1£36 (Pre: ace ) . " ' - 45 - and political modes to be ae-inea ana criticisec, out as a lived exoerience. In ^'ode^n Eg^'ptians the authorial identity is subordinated to the aertiand of the subject matteri^ Lane's todern hQ-/ptians, however, is not tree from detects. In his enthusiasm to present exactly what the Egyptians think and say aoout themselves he often acceptec irrational thinqs or increoiole claims maae oy certain persons 'without having subjectea them to intellectual ana critical scrutiny. As a result his j^ocern Egyptians contains thinqs which tail unaer the category of the Mrabian Nigr.ts. Nevertheless, despite some shortcomings. Lane's Wodern Egyptianswas a valuable contriouticn to /^rabic stuaies and rightly came to be regarded .s a reliaole historical docum.ent of the first importance^ - on tgyptian /-.r-:bs. Lane's V.odern Egypt ian$,£s -entioned earlier, was an expression of Arab realities, but other nineteenth century travellers to the Arab world presentea, in varying degree, either their own world view or the peculiar ideologies of their age in their works, and not the socio-economic and religio-political realities of the Viddle East.Their approach, as wiJl be seen later on, was subjective rather t^.an objectiv-e. 1. Al-Tahc, Muher;,maa, The Orient rnd Three Victorian Travellers, Palmer-, Burton, and Palqrave. Ph.D. Thesis. University of Leicester- England, 1989, P. 22. 2. Ley/is, Bernard, op, cit. p. 21. - 46 - As aiscussed earlier the eighteenth-century travellers were intluenced by the prevalent trena of their age, that is, nationalism, and under its spell most of therr. tended to niqhlioh.t the Arabs as a separate national group m the uttoman Empire, cut the nineteenth-century England was a different world where new ideas such as racisn. ana imperialism were in circulation. The travellers ot the perioa were greatly influenced by the ideologies of their age which in turn naturally arfecteo their aporoach to the Arabs or the natives of the Orient as a whole. The nineteenth-century Europe witnessed rapid progress both in natural ana social sciences. Equipped with the weapon of knowledge and compare-.tively aovanced milite.ry technology many European countries such as England, France and Holland acquired large colonial empires in ^rrica and Asia. The people of the above mentioned countries were conscious of their bel onging to the n^itions which had become imperial powers. Ihe feeling of belonging to an imperial power gradually gave rise to racist ideas about Euiopt's superiority over the Orient. As a result thure arose a consciousness of'we anc they' thdt ultimately lea to an erroneous prcn^uncement: *'//e the civilized'anc *they the baroarians* which wiaely oecame acceptable in Europe, c^nce the iciea of Cxientcl irr'eriority, coth on racial and intellectual planes, was tstci^lisheo there cevelopec a - 47 - philosophy in Europe that it was the whiteman's buraen to civilize the backward races of the Orient. According to the said philosophy the crient was to be civilized ooth politicaly and religiously. The religious oac.-.wardness was to be reniovea by Christian missionaries and the political baCf.i.^ardness by the iinperial rulers. The idea was that by adopting Christi anity and by accepting the imperial rule as a permanent phenomenon the Orientals would become civilizea. Literature is the mirror of the age in which it is born. This philosophy of liter ture can oe fully appliea, at least, to the travel as ;vell ^s irr.aginat ive literature of the nineteenth^century Englana, tror instance, exhiciting the religious trend of his age Sir Welter Scott, in nis the Talis man recreated the m.edieval scene of the LrLsades or the strucjcjle oetween A'lUslim'oarbar iar. s' ana the 'cisilized, holy' crusaaers. Ihe m.essa ^e ne wanted to convey was tn t ?''usiirrs by virtue of their raith were avcv.'ed enemy of Ch: ist ana Christian civilization. Disraeli's i ancreg. ii^e•,•ise, expr-ssec the com.mon political trenc of nis age m form cf Crientai desire to oe occupied and ruled oy tne British. Tne iaea of tr.e orient's willingness to welcome ana accept the ar;tish occupa tion was 1 urther strengthened Dy Kingi2Ke, Burton, Warjaurton, Dougnty ana Palgrave . Lven nlunt .\ o journeyea a' ong the Arabs in loeos with avowee anti-impci : alisni ana a missi^n tcr arab ino'etjenc'ence couic not wish av-as- th-i- iaea of :^ritish - 48 - protection ot the Arab Caliphate which he recomry.ended to rule in Arabia. But was it really the cesire of the Qriert to be conquerea and ruled by the Britisn or was it merely a rigrr.ent of the imagination ot oritisn writers ana trev^lie rs or Br;trir ' own imperialist plan to rule the Orient which r-rund expression in their works? Infact in the rr.ineteenth century deliberate and concerteo eiforts were maae by the British travellers to justify Britain's imperialist designs on the Orient as well as to popularise the idea that the ::ritish were capaole of managmn the affairs of alien nctions includinc the Arabs. The same mentality was at work behina their criticism of the Ottoman rule in the Arab worla, Arparently these A-ere their own iaeas or sheer creation of tneir ultra imaginative mines which hr;d little or nothing to co with the actual realities of the Mioale Ldst. Muhamrr.aa /.1-teha rightly points out th^.t 'most nineteenth-century writers on the Crient, whether travellers, imaginative writers or politicians expressed in their texts most ot their iaeology in relation to non-huropean than the reality of the Orient. ^•'•' AlTaha turth-. r says thr.t 'almost all victoric-n travellers ore sent us with ramiliar 1. AlTaha, /v'uhairm.cd, op. c it. F. 4. - 49 - Oriental themes but with variations .supplied by the authors' different inclinations, psychological crises ano class renk in society. They used the East as a meansof self expression, a means of maKing heroes out ot themselves, a mirror through which they see their superiority, and a means ot giving credibility-to their narrative .ITiey went to the Last with European ideological concepts of themselves and 'Others'* which they contirmed with the slightest contact with Oriental populations, ^ Al-Taha's view that the nineteenth-century travellers were little concerned with the real conditions of the then Arab world can be further expounded Dy focusing on the spec it ic ideas ot certain important travellers of the period. The nineteenth-century saw a spate of travellers going to the A/^iodle East with their peculiar ideas, prejudices and varying intentions ranging from imperial and missionary zeal to sincere love of knowledge and adventure. However, those who really contributed to the image of the Arabs in England were Warburton, f Burton, Blunt, Uoughty, Palgrave and Kinglake. Eliot Warburton went to the Midale East in 1844 and visited many countries including Syria and Egypt, He was typical nineteenth-century traveller cind approached the 1. Jbid, p.20. - 50 - Arabs with preconcieved r^otions which promptea him to interpret the Arab realities accoraingly rather than to aepict them as they existea at that time. Moreover, he ccnsice- red himsell: to oe tacialy and religiously superior to the Arabs and as a result looked oown upon them as inferior ana people backward^, Infact he had some respect :or the Arecs of history who lighted up tbe canole ot knowleoge in Spain or elsewhere but held a very poor opinion about the present inhabitants of the Arab world. He dislikea both the Bedouins and the city Arabs and referred to them as impervious to chance. Immuta bility', he wrote, 'is the most striking cnaracteristic of the East trom the ancient strite of Cain and Abel, to the present struggle between the Crescent ana the Cross, its people remain in their habits ot thought and action less chanqed than the countries they inhabit.' IVarburton turther says tnat the material things in Egypt including the valley of Nile have chanqed drastically down the ages but «the Egyptian still cultivates his river-given soil in the manner practised oy the subjects of Pharaohs*.^ ' In his book the Crescent ana the Cross he expounded the racist iaeology of his age thdt the English were superior to the Arabs and that the Christian civilization was more advanced than the Islamic one. Jubilant ana happy with tne" British 1. Warburton, Eliot, The Crescent end the Cross. London. 1644, P. I. - 51 - occupation of E-gypt and her growing influence in other parts of the Fertile crescent he described the then chenomenon as a victory march of Christian faitn ana British ixperialisr destined to conquer the Arab woulc, which in 'larburton' s opinior , was highly desirous of British occupation.^ ^ Clearly he was little concerned v;ith a faithful presentation of Arab realities and extremely eager to see his personal preju dices and ideas prevail in the Arab world. Sir Richard Francis Burton (1£-21-1590) as probably the most important Victorian traveller v.-no contributed more than any one of his contenporaries to the making of Arab image in hngland. His book, A Persor.al Narrative of a pil cjrimage to Al Madinah and Mecca was widely reac in England and becam.e a reliable source of information abc^t the Ar-bs in his time. Burton's attitude tov/ards the Arabs was one of ambi valence. On the one hano he eulogized the desert and idolized her sons, the Bedouins, as hospitable, manly and freedom lovin , especially hiqhli ;htinQ their desire for indeper.dence from tne Turks and on tne other advisee his government to occupy the Arab countries. He even suggested the ,vays as to how tne Ar^Ds were to be placeted and nled over. Burton's nypocrisy could not remain hiaden from the eye of his contemporary, V/ilfrid 1. See Ibid. pp. and 3e4-55. - &2 - Scawen blunt wno criticised him as having little true symp athy with the Arabs he haa came to know so v^ll. He would at any time, 1 an, sure*, Blunt wi ote r urther,'have •.•.iilingly betrayed therr to turther Enqlisn or his own pr,fessioral interests. ' There is no aenying the ract that occasionally burton ioolized the beaoain Arabs ana portrayea the Islamic faith in a somewhat realistic manner though without Having uncer- stooa its inner meaning ana oenetrated its spiritual ce-th. but a careful stuay of his works reveals oeyonc suspicion that he was 'a racist, imperialist ana arch conservative, who was for ever developing ludicrous theories to sojpport his prejudices. .Burton oelievea that the fcuropeans or the white- men were superior to non-turopeans anc tne coloured people, and it was with this view that he justifiea Britain's imoerial designs on the Orient in general anc the Arab world in parti cular. *It requires,* he wrote, not the Ken of a prophet to foresee the day when political necessity...will compel us (the British) to occupy the tountain heac of al-Islam.'*^ ' Burton often gave, pcth direct and indirect reasons tor his belief in Occicental superiority and LTiental inreri- ority. He even orfered a phycnioqical explanation tor Orientei inferiority by misintt-roreting tr.e /-wrab numan r..-.ture as ceir, • Y, Bluht,.V.S. Vy Qiaries. New York. 1-'^21. D5^r<5 . 2., Kiely, Rooert, Heview ot Recent-BooKs on Burton and other Iraveilers' in Victorian Stuaies. 1565-66. Vol. p. F. 61. o» Burton, R.F. Pilgrimage to /-.1-J,'ac in ah ano /.ecca. Loncon, 1H93. P. - 53 - well fitted, even eager and aesixous of European rule ; Yet Egyptian human nature is, like human nature everywhere, contradictory. Hating and aespising Europeans, they still long for European rule. This people aomire an iron,- handed and lion-hearteo despotism, they hate a timid and grinding tyranny. Of all foreigners, they would prefer the French yoke, a circumstance ^ which 1 attribute to the diplomatic skill and national aignity of our neighbour across the Channel. ^^ Burton, thus intact, expressed in his works, not the Arab or Oriental realities, but two very common ideologies of his age, racism and imperialisrr.. He was greatly influenced by both the saia ideologies which naturally prejuaiced his outlook and attitude towards the Arabs and forced him to look down upon then: as an inferior race that, according to him,oeserved to be ruleo oy the superior races of Europe and with an iron hand. Wilfrid Scawen Blunt (1840-1922), a contemporary of burton, however, had quite different views acout the Arabs. Blunt had thoroughly journeyed arr^ng the Arabs of Egypt ana ot Najd and found the inhabitants of the two countries different 1. Ibid (Vol. I) pp. 111-112. - 54 - from each other in nature ana character. The Egyptians, especially the peasants, accroding to blunt were good ana honest people having'every virtue which would make a happy, well-to-ao society', blunt further describee the Egyptian peasants as ^cheeriul, incustrious, obedient to law and pre-eminently sober', Moreover, they A^re 'neither gam.blers nor brawlers, nor licentious livers, (1 •^ They loved their homes, their wives and children and were extremely kinc to their oldmen, beggars, even durrb animals. A people with so many virtues were brutally rulea and iil~treatea for ages by the Ottomans, Long oppressed, impoverished anc over-taxea they had aeveloped a submissive character and lost all ambi tions to aspire for political inaepencence or revolt against o the cruel system imposed upon them. Hence to put an end to the Ottoman oppression he advised his Government to occupy Egypt. But he soon realized that the british v^re even v/orse impe rialists who had no regard ana programme for Ecyp-cs political indepencience, As a result he startea criticisinq tne British imperial policies, and championec the cause of Arab independence throughout his life . Unlike the Egyptian populeticn the Arabs of Najd v\ere independent and treedom loving, clunt lound the Arab society of Naja blessed with three great virtues, liLerty, ecuelitv and Drotherhooc, The Najdis, accorcir.g to niir., '.vtre freeren' 1, Blunt, Wilrria Scawen, Secret History of tr.e English Uccupatior. of Egypt. Lonccn, i9C7, p. ^3. - 55 - ana enjoyed true aemocxccy.'here was a cor.nunity' he wxute, 'living as our idealists have arearr.ec, without taxes, witt.out police, without conscription, wirhcut compulsion of any kind, whose only law was public opinion, ana whose only oraer a principle ot honour'i ^ Blunt pinnea his hopes en these Araos of Naja whom he expecteo to tree the fellow Araos oppressed by the Ottomans and the British in Egypt or elsewhere ana, thus, regain their ancient glory. Although a uhristian by taith Blunt believed in regene ration of Islam, k-or a revitalized Isiait', in his opinion, would help the Arabs attain tneir political freeaom. In his book. The i-uture of Islarr he urgea the ',Vest to view Islam as a positive force which like its glorious-past cc uld still make rich contrioutions to human knowledge and civilization. Depending on the premise that Christendom has pretty well abanoonea her hopeless task o: converting Islar., as Islarr has abandoned hers of conquering hurope', he arcued that it was ^surely time that moral sympatny should unite the two great bodies ot men who believe in ana worship the sa.Te God,^ ' V/hat blunt expected trom tnis hypothetical comprcmise was that the West particularly Englana should help the Arab nationalist movements in their struggle against the Cttomans. Furthermore she should try to restore the Calipnate to *^cca under her 1. Ibid. P. 58. 2. Blunt, V/.S.- The Future of Islam, Loncon, 1862 P. 172. - 56 - own protection. *lhe Loiiohote no lonaer an er.cire', Blunt wrote, 'but still an inaepencent sovereignty rrust oe taken unaer British protection, ana oublicly guaranteed its ^olitical existence, undistuxoeo oy rurtner aggression trcm burope. It is really surprising tc see Blunt advocating oritish protection for the caliphate while ne himselt was highly disa^^ipointea with the pert ornicnce ot nis Goverrrrent in Egypt where the so-callea British protection had beccre a misnomer. He too was probaLly intluencea, although to a 1*-sser extent, by the orevalent ioeoloiy of his a>:::e that the gritish //ere superior to the Arabs, atleast intellectually ir not racially, and it .vc s with this view that he su gestea to tne British Government to educate and pre are the Arabs tor self rule. Charles A',. Doughty (184J-1926) was anotner victorain trc^veMer who visitea Syria, Palestine, hgypt, the Sinai desert and the ancient city of Petra. His visit to tne J.'iddle East was motivatea by biblical researcn. He was a missionary zealot ano travelled in the A'iccle East, net under anyodisguise, but as a christian and British national. Doughty recounted his experiences m nis Dook Tr a ye 1 s in /^rabia Deserta. His own impression of his tra'.elogue was that : 1. Ibid. P. 44. - 57 - I have set Gown that which I saw with my eyes and hearo with my ears and thought in ir.y heart, neither more or less,^ But, in reality, his work is fraught with affectation^. prejudices and misjudgements. He was not only influenced Dy the racist ,nd imperialist ideologies of his time but also tired with a missionary zeal ana bias that prompted him, in the words of Al-Taha, to call'on the Christian countries to take the necessary steps whatever they be, inducing the occupation of the Islamic heat of h^cca to fulril their missior which was, in his opinion, the stamping out of the Arab slave trade and in ensuring the safety oi the Christians of Araoia.^ ' Intact Uoughty saw the Arabs as an 'outgroup' wno practisea a aiiferent culture and religion which he not only detested but even desired either to eliminate from the face of the earth or subjugate it torever : The Arabian religion of the Swora must be tempered by the sword: ano were the oaughters of Mecca ana Meoina led caotive, the f.toslemin should become as Jews , (3^ ) Doughty was, inlact, a racist, an imperialist and above ail a missionary zealot. He believed in the racial superiority of the British ana supportec their imperialistic 1. Doughty,Charles-, h'. Travels in /-.rc-oia Desertf: (^/ol. I) Loncon 1936.P.33. 2. Al-Taha, Vuhamra'o op, cit. op, 18-19. 3. Doughty, Charles, V. (Vol.11) op. cit. P. 406. - 58 - « design on the Arab world. However, his iriiperialism was not merely political, it was cultural and religious as well. In his view political imperialism was appreciable only when it aimed at imoosing '/Vestern culture and religion on the Orient. Alexander V/illiam Kinglaxe was prooably the most SUD- jective travel writer of the nineteer.th-century Englana. He journeyed among the Arabs of Lebanon, Syria, Palestine and Egypt and recoL-ntea his experiences or more aptly gave expre ssion to his preconceived notions aocut the Araos in his Eothe n. He travelled in the r^rao worla mainly through tne routes which i.ad alreaay been trcaaec Ly European travellers and there wos noth;ing left i cr nim to cescribe as far the landscape, geoqrapny, maps of the region ne visitea, and manners and customs of thepecple were concerned. He, then, decided to present humorously in his Eothen the Arab realities in accordance with tne then Lnclish attitude anc with the ice as he had conceived berore coming into actual contact with them, by the time he wrote his travelooue, the Epthen. the british parliament was deoating, for tr.e first tiipe,the se-called East* rn Question or the possiole csritish oolicy ana attituce towaras ifie Ottoman t-mpire. Ihere wr s a common reeling in Englana th In other parts or the ^^rab worla also r.e tracea out people wno wished to be conquered by the oirtish. The Lady Hester episode was introaucea in Eothen with a view to giving expression to Kinglake's own mine tnat the Syrians were excited oy the idea ana'possiciiity of their lend being occupied by the English, and many of tnem lookea upon Ladv Hester as a Princess who carne to prepare the wa^ for the expf'ctea crnquest.'^ ^ Likewise in Leoanon Kinglake found an Arab chief in whose mouth he put his own woras. He presen ted the chief as having ^sagacity to foresee th-t turope would intervene authoritatively in the arfiirs o: SyriaV Kinglake had no wora of praise for Islar., the reliqion of the niajority of the /^rabs. Islam, ooth as a religion er.a as a civilizatitn, accoroing to him, was inferior to Christi anity. He, like countless Enc;lishmen of his time, believed in the superiority ana overall goocness of british institutions and Wanted to impose them on Oriental nations wr.ich, accorcir to him, were highly bcCf.waro. It wc. s with tr.is view tnat be wishec. islarr, wither awciy ana aisappear trcm tr.e race of the earthi^' William Girforo Palgrave occupies a unicue place among the nineteenth-century travellers tc Arcbia, He w-s an bnglish 1. Kinglake, A.W. Eothen. Lonacn, 1S44. P. 124. 2. Ibid. P. 403. 3. See Ibia. P. ll'Z, - 60 - national but accepts a to be an agent of the French Govern ment, the arch rival ot the British Empire in the East. The French Government, infact, had funded Palgrave's journey with a view to getting political information about eastern and central Arabia which they aid not want to occupy but only to bring unoer their sphere of influence. Palgrave, however, had different views. He wanted the French to occupy Arabia in oraer to advance its political and his (Palgrave's) missionary interests, Infact Palgrave, besides being a political agent of the French, was a devout missionary comjnissioned by the Society of Jesuits to embark upon his Arcibian journey in oroer to fulfil a religious purpose. Thus Palgrave can be held as a glaring^example of not a too rare cooperation between the missionaries and the European imperialists. As a political agent of the French Government Palgrave studied the Arabs as a race different rroir. anc superior to other Oriental races inducing th^ Turks, In his opinion the French, in orcer to promote tr.'. ir own imperial interests, needed to raise the Arabs as a nation, encourage them to revolt aoainst the Turks and form an independent Arab state, but t;.is Arab nationaiisrr., accoraing to PdlgravejWcS ; jt an eno in itseli, nor dia it aim at establishing a genuin-ely inoepencent Arab state, rather it was a means for the Europeans, especially the French to hc.ve - 61 - access to Arabia to fulfil their political aims. He, however, expected the French more than any other European nation to help Christian missionaries in their Arabian enterprise. Christian mission of the nineteenth century was different from what it is understood today. In today's missionary parlance Christian mission stands for Agape, the love (of God), Kervqma. preaching about Christ and Diakonia^ service extended to those in need which often amounts to coercion and psychotropic induction. But in the nineteenth century missionaries understood Christianity as to be a perfectly superior religion and civilization. To them Christianity was not merely a set of beliefs and rHuals to be believed and practised by Christians, rather it wr.s Christian's World view, a theory of civilization as well as of history according to which they saw themselves, their civilization, culture and religion as superior to those of 'outgroups' or other religious entities. Their complex of religious and cultural superiority was further mixed up with the two dom.inant ideologies of the age : racism and imperialism. As a result they went to the Orient or reached the 'outgroups' with a feeling of racial, cultura»l and religious superiority, AS; members of the same group to which the Euro pean imperialists also belonged they saw Europe's imperialism and expansionist designs on the East as a means for convertinc Oriental nations, the followers of inferior and oackward religions, to superior Christianity, - 62 - Palgrave was a typical nineteenth-century missionary. Naturally his approach to Islam and the rVahhaoee revivalist movement of central Arabia, despite his claims of objectivity, was highly prejudiced and subjective. As noted earlier Palgrave regardea the Arabs as a supt-rior race among the Asian nations. However, the Arabs he admirea -were not the Muslim Arabs of his time but those of pre-Islamic period, ihe Arabs of his time, in his opinion, were degraded anc pushed into a backv.ard situation because of • Hhe Stirling influence of Islam* , and aue to *the Mahometan arug which paralizes whatever it ooe s not kill* • , and has'kept them in intellectual race to be outrun by others mor' favoured Dy circumstances, tnougr. not perhaps by nature' , Having condemnec Islam as to be the main cause ot Arab bacK.vaicncss it v.'os natural for Palgrave to suqgest that thf' Arabs hac still potentials to become a master race in Asia if only they aoanoonea Islam, Naturally the next choice for them, at Itast in Palgrave's imagination, v/as Christianity which coulc help them in oecominc a great nat ion. The first halt of the t'/^ntieth century saw many men and women of hnglish origin travelling to the ;.'idcle East often with pre-conce ived notions or with their peculiar iceas 1, Palgrave, V/.b. Narrative of A Year's Journey Through Central and faster Arabia, .Vacmillan, 1965, (Vol. I) P. 1/5. - 63 - IS about the Arabs. As/well Known this period is of vital political importance because the political map of world, especially of Asia changed drastically owing to the disintegration and dismeinberment of the Ottoman Empire by western nations, Ihe travel-viTiters of the period, more or less, tried to partially mirror political as v?e 11 as social realities of the age in their works, riut in most cases the outlook with which the travellers looked at the Arab Worlo was purely European, h'any writers of the period, following the nineteenth-century imperialist traoiation, often put their own wards in the mo.uth of SOE^ native Arao and, thus, instead of dealing genuinely -.vith the r^raia realities, subtly gave expression to their pre-conceived n.otions ana ideas, Gertrude bell, i or instance, mirrored Kinglake's imperialist mentality on the one nanc and expressed a conmon English aesire of her age on the other when she founo a -Syrian r.rz-.b to say that -^evcn the N'uslirr. population hatea the Cttonr.an (Government, anc would infinitely rather oe ruled by a foreigner, what though he vjere an int idel-preferably by the English, because the prosperity of Egypt had made so aeep an impression on Syrian mines' . ether travellers of the period were also, more or less, like Gertruce Bell, For instance Lav.rence and uaptain •^hc^kespear were oritish political agents and spies, 1, Be.l, Grrti y-.e, The Lescrt anc th- So'An, London, 1907, P, 2C' . - 64 hence JDound to express only what they consicered to be in the interest of Britian, The two travellers who becar-^ famous 1 or their championing of the cause o: Arab incep- ndence were inract racist in the sense that they believed in political and intellectual inferiority of the Arabs who could be managed and manipulated by a few tactful agents to serve the British interests. The theme of the Arabs' political inferiority v/as coii.mon to all travellers of the period. Even Philby, who is well knowfi for his anti-imperialist viev;s, oelieved, in the oeglnning of his political and aarr.inistrative career, that the Arabs were yet not fully prepared for self-rule. iroi example he, by accepting and acvocating the Anglo-rrench Declaration of 8th Kovemoer, 1918, subscribec to the view thc't the Arabs needed Europe's political ana intellectual assistance to stand on their feet ana run their show indepenoently, Infact, it was only after his resignation from the government service tnat ne oegan to support the idea of complete Arab indepencence, ihe twentieth-century British travellers, especially of its first half were nationalist as v,«ll as iperialist in their outlook. In the process of their political and literary career many of them Decam.e 'Araoophile'mainly oy - 65 - advocating the so-called interests of the Arabs, However, a close scrutiny and anatomy of their approach to the ^raDs and their problems would reveal that, with probable exception of Philby, their championing of the Arab cause was essentially a part of their overall strategy to serve the tiritish interests. It is with tnese vi^ws or the above-mentioned approach i'S.the Europe's political superiority and the Arecs* political inferiority, that t is v^riter has dealt with the ideas of some important travellers of the first half of the twentieth century in this work. Obviously, anc naturally it was not possible for him to discuss the views of all travellers of the period; rather one had to oe selective. However, the travellers, Gertruce Bell, Captain Shake spear, Lawrence and Philby, who have oeen selectea for this study were most representative travel-writers of their time and hence it is hoped that this study would cover up and truely represent the common social, political and religious trenris which the travel-writers of the pericc under discu ssion thoroughly discussea in their works. A'ost of the aDove.rrientioneo writers tra\'eiled to the Aacdle East in the first half of the twentieth century, and were connected, in one or another way, v/ith the events of far-reaching consequences that took place in that pcrioc. - 66 - The most important event that changed the map of the Widdle East was the disintegration of tlie Ottoman Empire that the First World War brought about, Ihis led to the creation of many Arab countries most of which were put under British and French mandates. The idea of an exclu sively Jewish State which became a reality in 19^8 was also conceived ano put forwaro in the same period, ihus the present political map of Vfcst Asia was intact carved in the tirst hair of the twentieth century. V.oreover, many of its present political realities are either a reflection of the then events or the consequences of the oliciec aaoptea and practised by the then British anc French governr.' nLs, the Arab leaders one the Zionists, Bell, Shake spear, Lawrence anc Fnilby ail playco a role in the politi' al arama of the period uncer discussion. It is, therefore, expectea that a comprehensive study of their ideas would greatly help to uncerstana not only the past but also the present realities of \1fest Asia. Chapter - I GLRTRUDE_EELL Alongwith male trevellers there heve teen adventurous women of hnglish origin who journeyea amcng the Arabs, lived and conversed with them in order to know their mores ana manners or way of life. Among such travellers Gertrude Margaret Lowthian Bell (1868-1926) occupies a very promi nent place. She w..s the beloved daughter of a rich indus- tridlist, Hugh bell. Hugh spent his personal fortunes rather iovishiy to help his daughter become a scholar, historian, archaeologist, explorer, gardener and mountai neer. Although a historian by formal education Gertrude seems to have a special aptitude for learning various lang uages. 'She wos», writes a biographer of her,*rluent in English, l-rench and German, anc in acdition she could speak and write Arabic and Persian, was passably proficient at Turkish and could hold a tolerable conversation in most part of India, and in China ana Japan'.^ ' She Leoan to learn rr.ost of these langu.:ges at hor^ecut proficiency was aCGi'irec only through tr^ivels in tr.e countries wnere they were spoken. It is hard to say if she trevellea across the 1. Winstone, J^,V.^., Gertruae bell. Loncon,197£. p. 90. Gertrude learned i.Ti.hxc with sorrje oi^'ficulty. She might have been able to sc-ea.-. ana v/rite c.s ivinstone has clciimed. However, her Arcbic accent, acccrding to Ameen Rihani who met her in caghc.a in 1922, was very bad. 'She speaks Arcbic,' wrote Rihcr.i, 'clirost without an accent, of t£ n mixing it with her fnolish, and empha sising it with a aogmctic though gracerul gesture* (P.ihani, Ameen, Ibn Saooo. Lonccn, 1928, P. 6.) - 68 - globe with the sole purpose of learning foreign languages. However, there is no aenying tne fact th t she v/as a-'"travel enthusiast and fortunately ULO dll the means recuired for such an indulgence at her aisposal. Contact with Turkey Gertrude was merely tv.'er.ty years oia When in Uecerr,oer 1888 she ^ mbcrkeo upo'- a tour to see Europe. Travelling across the continent she reached Cons tantinople in May 18l9, It wos in this city where she first came into contact with the believers of the Islar.ic faith and witnessed the Byzantine cS \'^il as the Islariic splen dours which later on became her life-long obsession. Her feelings vjere mixed ana impression niutea.^The oeople' she wrote in one of her letters, 'rre so fearfully sophistica ted, thty ad'-ress you in very Dad tnglish, ana m order to gain your conridence assure you that they recognize you perfectly ano rememjjer having seen often in Glasgow or Liverpool or some other lace you nave never been to'(1". Gertrude, howe-ver, did not pass as otner travellers of the period usually die, any oerogctory or favouracle rerriari*. on the Tf ligif n and oolitics of the Turks. Ihe reason wc'S piob'bly her liberal outlooK that hac freed her fror. Lhristic-n bigotry. Or perhaps it was beceuse of the fact 1. Ctoted in "/instone, Gertruce Soil, OD. cit. P. 25. - 69 - ed that oy the time she visit/C.nsti.ntinople she v,as merely a young and passionate traveller, r.ore concernea with sight-seeing then having .ny interest in rel:9icjs anc uoiitical affairs. Visit to Iran In 1892 ""v rtr'..ae tound an cpport-^nity to bee another Muslim country,Iran which seers to nave fascinatfd her very much. The letters she '^vrcte from vc-ricus cities in Ircn to irienos and relatives in cn-land cont;in vivid pictL.res of Iranian lire end society, She was fasci nated by the viels of women, the flo>/ing robes tnat men wore ana the street beggers wno wore' their rags v/ith a better grace than I niv rc-t LGcor.ing habit'^* The Iranian landscope-luxuriant veget.t-: r, cs .sec Dy the ,v,tc-r of : lowino srrincjs, rose qardens anj corn-flelds-also maae a Drofounc impact on her youthful imagination. It is refreshing) she wrote, *to the s-irit to lie in a hammock strunvT oetween thc- olc.pc trees of Persian garden i r.c re: a the poers of Hatir*'' But even more fc scinatino v/as the Darren aesert.'ch the aescrt b round Tehran, miles and miles of it with noting growing, ringed in with bleak bare mountains snow cronrr,-?c; and furrowec with the deep courses of torrents. I never kfle -"^what desert was till I came here, it i s very wcr.aerfui thir. ^ to se^^ ; /.nd 1. Bell, Lady, The letters of rjertruce he 11^ /ol. I.Lcnoon, PP. 26-27. 2. Ibid. p. 27. 3. Ibjd. p. 26. -vo lt becomes more wonderful and extremely oleesent when in its midst one meets a str<.ncer who proves nimseif to be a mc-gnf.nimous and well-mannered host. Gertruce had rrrny such experiences nnd was moved to wrHet^V/e h ve no hospi tality in the west ;nd no manners'. In sum the cherm of the East worked upon her so much th,t she felt herself a chc.nged personality: Are we the same people I wonder When all our surrounaincs, ac.u- aintances are cr.anged? Here that which is me, which womanlike is an e/r,{:ty jax that the passer oy fills ut pleasure, is filled with such wine as in i nclana I had never heard of. ^ ' Safcir Kameh Before coming over to Iran Gertrude had some kncwledge of Persian language, Ihe visit gave her an op ortunity to brush it up. She hired an ariaole cer.tlerr.an V.T.O insoite of his weak Fiench, the meaium of instruction, tutored her so competently th,t she w. s soon able to speaK and v;rite in Persian. The imnedi te result of liertrude • s journey to Iran was a trc.vGl book, Saf.r K'amen; Persian Pictures that 1. ibio. 2. Ibia. P. 25. -71 - sue .inonymousiy published in 1694. Although the book was faoour^ibiy reviewed it failed to win universc-i acclcirr., even tliough it hid enormous cherr.. Charrr. but r.ot actuei aciiievement^ ^^ com: entec her friend Janet Hogari-h, the sibter 01 famous circhaeoxogist Dr. u.Li, Hogarth. Divan of Hafiz Ihree years i-.ter she orocuced a verse translation of sorr.e poems from the Divan of the famous Persian poet, Hafiz Shir^zi. The .vorK v/as well received and deservedly regnrced cs her first enc foremost literary achi evement. The introducto:y essay that .rainly Ge--is with the lite and works ol Hafiz who has oeen con-ipareo v /jabic Language and the /-JTCDS It was a practice with Ciertrude to try to learn the ianauage of a country she intecea to visit thoroughly. It was in this perspective th t she began tc take lessons in Arabic before embcrking upon a joarney to the .'.'icale East. 1. Caoted in '.Vinstone, Gertruce bell, op. cit. ?. 37. 2. Ibio, " 72 - However, unlike Persian, she found Arabic difticult to learn, especially its pronounciction. After • arauous labour she was somewhat able to write and speak the Icrcucge thouan without any accent. Gertrude first saw the Arab world in 1899 when she visited Jerusalem, From this year onv.ard she spent most ot her life in the Arab world. She travelled widely in Syria, Palestine, Mesopotamia and central Arabia from time to time. In such journeys she met people from all walks of life ana attained enormous knowledge ebout the history of tribes, their relations with the Ottomans, inter-tribal relations, the sect of the Druzes socio-religious conditions and the Ottoman administration etcetera. t-or a shrewd traveller journeys always prove to be keys to invaluable tree sure of knowledge. Gertrude herself wr it e s : To those bred under an elaborate social order few such m.oments of exhilaration can come as thet which stands at the thresnholc of wild travel, Ihe gates of the enclosed garoen c.re ttirov.'n open, tne cnain at the entrance of the sanctuary is lov/ered, with a wary glance to right and left you step forth and behold the immeasurrble world. ^-^ 1. Beii, Gertrude, The Desert .nd the Sewn op. cit. P.I. - 73 - This^imnieasursble world,* as can be imagined, is inhabited by people with their own socio-political order, cultural traditions and religious beliefs, Gertrude saw all these during her journeys among the Arabs and described her experiences in her two travelogues, the Desert and the Sown and Amurath to Amurath. Basides the two books her letters also contain a great deal of information about the Arabs and their rulers, the Turks, Gertrude has recorded many a witty conversation with both ordinary end notc.ble Ar5±>s which provide opportuni ties to look through the minds of the Arabs, For instance at the end of her Syrian journey, her cook, Vikhail, in a moving conversation gives her a piece of Arab wisdom, 'Listen, oh lady', said the cook,' and I will make it clear to you. V,en are short of vision, and they see but th^t for which they look. Son.e look for evil and they find evil, some look for good and it is good that they fina, and moreover soiTte are fortunate and these find always what they want'.^ ' Mikhail's philosophy seems to be true to a great extent, ror most of the English travellers encounterea the East with pre- concieved notions and as a result found only what they had intended to attain. Even Gertrude, who was neither missionary minded nor an ardent imperialist (at least before the 1. Ibid. P, 340. - 74 - First World War), wc-.s not an exception. As a result she saw the Arabs like many of her countrymen, though she differed from them in certain matters. Gertrude founa both merits anc oemerits in the /-x-bs. iThe Oriental,' according to her, *is like a very old chile. He is unacquainted with many branches of Knov/ledqe wt".ich we have come to regard as of elementary necessity, freque ntly, but not always, his mind is little pre-occupieo with the need of .acquiring them, and he concerns himself scarcely at i.ll with what we call practical utility. He is not pract ical, in our acceptation of the wor .d, anymore than a chile is nrcctical^^ Moreover, t^le acts of Arab people are guided by traditions of conouct and morality which are as old as human civilization and have remained so in a.ll ages witr.out having undergone any drastic chana'e. Apart frcr;. these two shortcominos the Arab, accorcing to Gertruce, is like huropean races and it is not impossible for foreigners to win his friendship and sym.pathy. In many respects Gertrude found the Arab better than :iurcpeans. tor instance his manners ana habits are not fettered by artiriciality. More over, he is r;ore tolerant thc^n the dwellers in Europe mcinly Decause he lives in a society of diverse eler.ents. Then "e is no denying the fact that tne /^ao society ,vas still tribal and in n.any regiors tnev are divided on sectarian 1. Ibid (Preface) P. 1 - 75 - lines, ^'.any tribes, ana sometin.es even sects, f-re at lo-^qer- headt with each other. However, despite these drawbacKS the Arabs, according to Gertrude, are basically a law-abiding race, they follow their own law anc like other people to behave tis their law and traditions permit them. Her Impression of Islam Gertrude seems especially impre ssed by the religion of Islam. Once, when she wcs in Dama scus, she went to see the city's Grand K'osque v/here 'men of all kinds, from the learned doctor of Damascus down to the raggedest camel driver'^(1^ /.•ere standing in prayer, 'Allah, he (the Imam) cried, and the Faithful fell with a single movemient upon their faces ana remained for a full minute in silent adoration, till the high chant of the Imam began again,,,.Allah, And as the name of God echoed through the great colonnades,,., the listeners prostrated themselves again, and for a moment all the church (moscue) was silent. ^^' Highly impressed by the scene Gertrude was constrained to 9 declare that 'Islam is the great republic of the world, there is neither class nor race inside the creed, '^ The Turks By the time, that is, the first decade of the running century, Gertrude visited the Arab world the Turks 1. Bell, Lady, The Letter of Gertrude Sell op,cit.P.l98 2. Ibid. 3. Ibid. - 76 - were in control of the land. The Ottoman Enicire was big but weak and hollow. Yet for militc.ry and political refsons its integrity was irr.cortant for Britain and that is why they wanted to maintain friendly relations witr. the Turks. Thns British policy and desire is naturally reflected in the writingsof the period. K'ost travellers who went to the Mioale East in the early years ot the present century nave advocated even eulogized the Turks aespite their numerous weaknesses. On the other hano, the Arabs especially those who aspired tor national treedom have Peen degraded and portrayed as a people unfit for self-rule. For instance Sir Mark Sykes, oefore turning against Turkey after her entry in the First World V/ar, was an ardent ad.Tirer of the Tur.Ks <-,nu wrote passionately of the achievements of the Ottoman Caliphs. Cn the contrary his attitude tcv/ards the Arabs was very harsh. He degraaed them, to the level of animals and wrote of them in such a conte.Tptuous language that is hard to be equalled. For instance he describes the Arabs of the Shammar tribe as *a rapacious, greedy, i.l-mannered set of brutes,.,.These animals are, unluckily, pure Badawin, and have not been tinctured with either Turkish or Kurdish blood, which always has a softening and civilizing effect on these desert tramps'. ^ -^ o 1, Quoted in Winstone, Gertrude Bell, op, cit. P. ill. - 77 - Gertrude who was not as much biased or politically committed as was Mark Sykes and rather went to the Arab world without predilections has also admired the Turks, especially before they allied therr.selves with Uermany in the Great V/ar, Besides being impressed by the common Turks, especially the peasants who know 1. Bell, '.ertrude, Ihe Desert and the Sovm, op, cit, P,14C, See 2./ Ibid. P. 86. 3. Ibid. P. 140. 4. Ibid. 8 4^/ 9I ^ - 78 - But politeness, patience and other qualities of the lurr.s apc.rt her travels in Ar.-Dia enabled her to become fully aware of the weaknesses of the Turkish government. Infact the Ottorr.an adir.inistration was so week that it prompted Gertrude to prophesy thi.t their Err.oire would disintegrate'in the course of next ten years. Uotr pared with her view of the Turks Gertrude's atti tude towcTOs the Arab nationalists //ho v.antea to throve off the yoke of the Turkish rule and push them out of Arabia y;as highily critical, even inimical. 'Of what value are' she wrote, 'the Pan-Zxaoic associations ana inflarr.atory leaflets thc-.t they issue from foreign printing presses? The ansv/er is ecsy. They are worth nothing at all, I'here is no nation of /o-abs, the Syrian merch<.nt is separated by a wiaer gulf from the Bedouin th^n he is fror. the Osmanli, the Syrian country is inhdbitea by /.rabic speakino races all eager to be at each other's throats, ana only prevented from fulfi lling their natural desires by the ragged half-fed solcier who draws at ra.-e intervals the Sultan's pay'^ 1 Quoted-in Winstone, Gertrude. Bell, op^. cit. p. 118 2. Bell, Gertrude, The Desert an J the Sown. <9p. clt. P.140. In a later work, Amurath to Acturath» outllshed frorr London ih 1911, Gertrude expressed mpre or less sirrilcr views in the follov.'ing words J•no^^fhere will the Arab nc.tionalist movement,' she wrote, * if it re:ches the blossoming point, find a more congenial soil, end nowhere will it be watered by fuller streams of lawless vanity. Cruel and blooay as Ottor.an rule has shown itself upon these remote frontiers(the Ottoman province of f/osul, presently in Iraq) it is oetter than the untrarrjnell^ed mastery of Arab Beg or Kurdish Agha, and if the half- exterminated Christian sects, the persecuted Ye2ic;is, the wretched fellahin of every creed, who sow in terror crop:, •.vhich they may never reap, are to win protection and prosperity, it is to the Turk that they must look.He,cnG he only, can control the warring races cf his empire .'(p. 2-".7) 79 - Gertrude and the Great War Just a few months before the outbreak of the First World War in August 1914 Gertrude had concluded an adventurous journey across the central Arabia. She had penetrated to Hail.the capital city of the once powerful but now oecanaent ana strife.>.ridden Shaminar tribe. Since the town was not visited by any Euro pean for over one and a half decaae Gertrude's journey acquired increased irr.portcnce in political circles. For the intormation she had gathered in central Ar^.oia was vital tor Britain's foreign policy makers especially at a time when tliey were engaged in hectic diplomacy to prevent iurkey from allying herself v.ith Germany in the event of a war between the two imperial pov/ers of Europe. In order to achieve this purpose Sir Eoward Grey sent Sir Louis V.allet to Constantinople. He was busy in persuading the Turks when in early V.ay, 1914 Gertrude arrived in the Turkish cafital. Sir Louis seized the opportunity to interview her in order to collect fresh information about rclitical con ditions in central Are-bia. According to Gertrude, Ibn Sauc, both politically and militarily, wcs stronger than Ibn Rashid, hence more important for both the Txirks and the British. Later on she expressed the same view in a letter published in the Times (13th June, 1914) : 80 - Wy belief is that Ibn Saud is now the phief figure in certral Arabia, although the Ottoman Government was still pursuing its traditional policy of subsidising and supplying arms to the Rashids^-"-^ Captain Shakespear, a British spy who travelled across the central Arabia and reached Riyadh, the capital of Ibn Saud, almost by the same time Gertrude visited Hail was in full agreement with the views expressed by Viss Bell. However, the British Government, disregarding the views of Gertrude and Shakespear, decided to support and favour the Sherif Husain of Mecca rather than Ibn Saud in order to ins tigate an Arab uprising against the Turks who had decided to be a war ally of Germany. When the War began Gertrude, exhibiting extretr.e patriotism, volunteerea herself to be available to do any service to her country. She organized and ran successfully an office in London for the missing and woonded civilians. But being an Arabist and having widely tr'ivelled in the Arab world she was needed by the British Government to do some more important works. In September 1914, just before Turkey joined hands with Germany in the War, the British Intelligence 1. Quoted in Winst one. Gertrude Ee n . cp. cit. p. 146. - 81 - office in Cairo requested the Director of Military Opexotiors (D.M.O.) to ask Gertrude to prepare a confidential report on Syria. Gertrude readily complied vtith the request ana on September the 9th sent, through the D.V..O., the required report to Sir Ldward 3rey in Afiich she had clearly stctec that *Syria, especially its southern part •/.nere Egyptian prosperity,' brought about by the competent dritish admini- strcition,'is better known was exceedingly pro-Bitish'. The hrench influence in the region, according to Gertruae, vv^s growing but they v^re disliked by a great majority of the Syrians. In the same report sne also assessed the situetior m Iraq saying that the presence of a large $)ody of (ierran engineers in Bdghdad, for raiiAiay builaino, will be of no J>e advantage to Germany,» and that *Iraq v.-ould not/willirq to see Turkey at war with us (the aritish) and would not take an active part in it*.*- ' 'Ihis was the first of many official reports th;t Gertruae prepared tor her Governr.ent, It is noteworthy th-t even though her journeys drr.ong tr.e Araos, unliKe those of onaKespear and Lauorence, were unofficial (pernaps sne w. s the pol-'tically le st ccr.r itted Enalish trr-velier of the reriod) she hao acc uired consicerable kno-Aieccje about the 1. Ibid. P. 151. - 82 - the political realities of the host countries, ?/oreover by puttinq h.er knovvledqe at the service of the British brr.pire she inairectly accepted the peculiar tradition of •//estern scholarship which w s c^rent in her tiir.e that knovvledue is the obverse siae of pov.er or th t it is suc- servient to the Stc.te, Gertrude was formally enployed by the British Intelliqence in Novemoer 1915 and from that time onv/ard she provea herself to be one cf tne most dedicated servants of the British tn.pire. She reached Cairo on ?:^vember 30, 1915 'vhere she was welcorr.ed oy Dr. D.G, Hogarth and T.c. Lawrence who took her to the Grano Cont inert ai Hotel where her residence was arranged. Her irjmediate assignment wesHo fill in the intelligence files with infor.Tction as to the tribes and Shaikhs'^ ' of /.rabia. Formation of Arab Bureau '.Vhile Gertrude v/as busy in helping Dr. Hogarth her chiefs were preoccupied wit.-, plans to est£- blish a special intelligence bureau which v, s to be respcrsloie for tackling all Arabian affairs. Cn December 13^ 1915, the Director of Civil ana A'.ililsry intelligence in Cairo, Lt . Colonel Gilbert Clayton wrote to Sir A'axk Sykes informino him that he had viev.ed it fit to create a''.'e ar East Office' with the sole purpose of hor.cling the political suspects ona i» Bell, Lady, The Letters of Uertruce bell, op, cit. P.36(\ - 83 - countering the lurks' pan-Islamic propaganda, Clayton also sought Sykes's consent to expand the said office, both its staff ana its functions. In his reply Sykes not only agreed with Clayton's idea but also took laoour to define the functions of the ^Arabian Bureau* , In his view the bureau, first of all, should harmonize Britain's political activities in the north-east of Arabian peninsula and provide inform"ation about Turko-German policies to various departments of the Government - the ;Var Office, Foreign Office, Inaia Office, the Admiralty anu the Governm.ent of India, In the second pl^ce, he proposed, the Bureau should conduct high level propaganda to win the Arab support for Great Britain without hurting the sentiments of Indian ^'uslirs and the interests of the Iriple Entente, Thus the 'Araoian Bureau' was formally created under the headship of Verk Sykes with Lt. Col. Parker as his deputy. The Bureau immediately set covvn to its works, established its separate office with a telegraphic address for which the code name *Intrusive» was chosen. The Bureau also began to establish its o?ji espionage network. But the formation of the Bureau seems to have caused a serious row between various depart.T.ents of the British Government. On December 28, 1915 Sykes telegraphed to - 84 - Clayton informing him that while the War, Foreign and Intelligence offices vjer^ slow, the Admiralty was very quick to react and wantecd to annex the bureau i.s a part of its own network. Later on the Government of India also resented, especially v/hen its activities were extended to ^'esopotamia, To settle the dispute the British Prime Alinister nskefi for an immediate meeting of the Inter departmental Committee to consider the formation of an 'Islamic Bureau' . ihe Committee met on Janurry 6, 1961 under the chairmanship of the Director of Military Intell igence, Brigadier General G./•./•'. /,'acdonogh and approved of Clayton's original idea of the 'Near East Office* and of its aims as defined by X'arK Sykes except that it was henceforth to be called the 'Arab Bureau' . '(Vhile the interdepartmental wranglings vjere going on Geitrude, queitly anc busily, continued to ,vork on Arabia, its tribes, shaikhs ana geography, being at centre of British Intelligence in Cairo she -.vas naturally temptea to involve in ano understand the complexities of Britain's Arab policy. Her grasp of political issues was amply exhibited in a long letter^ that she wrote to Lord Robert 1, The 'Near East Office' , 'Arabian oureau'', "Islamic Bureau'' were infact terms useo by various cepartments or officers of the British Government to indicate what finally came to be known as ''/'VTCD Bureau''. 2. See the relevant part of the letter in V.instone, Gertruce bell, op. cit. PF. 16^-6. - 85 - Cecil on 20th December 1915 just after a month she had joined the Arab Bureau, In the letter she had, intcralla, referred to the nationalist aspirations of the r.rabs '^om Britain was encouraging through //.cJ.'ahon to rise against the Turks. Suprisingly she did not criticise the British stanu on and support to the Ar-b nationalism v^ile in an earlier work. The Desert and the Sovyn she had clearly stated that there existed no such thing as Arab nation; '^The reason is not hrrd to find. In The Desert and the Sown she had criticised the Syrian nationalists because they v/ere aspiring for freedom from the iurkish kmpire, then an ally of Great Britain which she wanteci to prev^-nt from disintegration for its own reasons, but in 191^^-15 the situation hac drastically changed. The iurks were no more Britain's ally, rather had turned against her and become War-ally of Ciermany, ihe new circumstances brought about a change in uertrude's ov.n outlook. She had already picked the strings of an Arab reoellion ^ auring her wandering in Syria ano Iraq and no-.v along^vith other members of the Arab Bureau, notably Hogarth and Lawrence, wanted 'to make them articulate, • ihus it can oe justly concluded thcX her support to the so-called Arab awakening, 1. See, Bell, Gertruce, The Desert and the Soy.Ti. oo. cit. P. 1^'. 2. In her preface to Amur at h to Ar.urath. publishcc in 1911 She had v/ritten the followina. ''ihe sense of ch:.n-:e, uneasy and bewildered, hung over the whole Cttor.an Empire; it was rarely unalloyed v-ath anxiety; there v.-es, it must be .,-dmitted, little to encourage uncuaiifiec conficence in the immediate future, but on^- thine -.ves certain; the movinc linger Yu-.O inscribed a fresh title'upon the pa'jt-.» (?, ^/Iil). - 86 - contrary to the common belief, was aimed at serving the British interest rather than the Arab cause, Gertrude's growing political uncerstandinc naturally impressed upon her superior officers at the Arab Bureau that instead of merely working on Arabian geography she was capable of being entrusted with greater political responsibilities. It has alreacy been noted that the Government of India had objected to the formation of the Arab tiuroau in Cairo and that its suspicions v^re somewhat removed only after the meeting of the Interdepartmental Committee held on January 6, 1?16. However, India revived its opposition to the Bureau when the later decided to set up a branch in Iraq, The Government of Inaia v.c s aware of, and consequently thoroughly opposed to the Bureau's plan for the post-lVar Arab World : an independent Arab state as explained in Husain-A'c?,'ahon correspondence;"^ According to their approach it was irrational to include Irao in the proposed Arab State mainly because the country was conciuere by the Indian troops, India, infact, wanted to form and run the future government in Irac as an irr.perial pO',,er, The /urab ijureau , on its pert, was contemptuous of the Government of India approach and branded them as being 1, The contents of llusain - /,'crahon corresponcen ce will be discussed in detail in a later chapter. - 87 - ignorant of Arab realities. However, India was not to be written off so easily. She y/as to be cajoled in to agreeing with the Bureau's approach to J/esopotamia and its plan to set up a branch office in Basra. For this purpose Gertrude was asked to move to India, Gertrude reached Karachi on 6th February 1916 c^nd immediately moved on to Delhi to allay the fee-.rs of the Indiam Government about the Arab bureau. She played her role successfully in persuading the Government of India to agree with the setting up of a branch office of the Arab Bureau in Basra, Hov/ever, the Incian Governirent had conceded only after securing the right of being represented at the Arab Bureau in Cairo by an officer appointed by them, A'oreover, they persuaded Qertruoe to be inchaxge of the Basra branch of bureau. It appeals as the Indian Government was still suspicious about the bureau's oranch office in Basra, especially if it was to ue headed by La.vrence or by some other staff member of the Lureau other than Gertrude, Obviously she was happy over her growing iinportance, 'It is interesting, deeply interesting, bu't oh, it,s an anxious job, I wish, I wish, I knew more - and was more. And I am overwhelmed at meeting with so much Kindness anc ccnficence,' she wrote exultantly. 1, Quoted in V.'instone, Geitruac Lell. op, cit, F, 1?;. - 88 - bureau's Corre sponc-ent and Orient;:! Secretary Gertruae arrived in hasrc. on znc first cay of /.arch 1916. With the mutual consent of the /-irab ^ureau anc Sir Percy Cox, the Chief political Rcpresentati^/e in Iraq she was appointed the Bureau's Corr-^scon ent in 2acra, She carritd out her responsibilities so skillfully ^nj v/orkcc so energetically that cox w.iS prompted to appoint her as his Oriental Secretary in oraer to deal with local notables. Moreover, *She began to make tne first of ner major contri- butions to Hogarth's Arab Bulletin,' the secret organ of the Arab bureau,*to assemble intellience information from briefings with the army authorities anc interviews with tribal shaikhs, to translate the /^raoic corresponoence of the oft ice, and as was to oeconie ner increasino haoit - to take on tasks ',v;.ich some of i.er colleagues considered to be the proper preserve of the Chief of the civil admini stration', ^^such as writing a letter to l£>n Hasnic, an ally of the lurKs in central Araoia to win him to the oritish side, besir^es, Gertruce also oegan tc corr.cile a uazetteer in which she tried to put toqeth.er relevant and leliaole Information about the -"-raci trices, in tr.is re .arc she received re<.oy ana valuaole nelp rroir. Heverenc john Van hss, a missionary wfio he.a aCQUirec enorr.ous knowledge about 1. Ibic. P. 17^. - 89 - the iraqi tribes by having travelled widely in the desert and marshes. Religion ana missioncry zeal were thus brought in to action to serve the oritish tunpire, Gertrude and the Making of Iraq ,Vith the fall of Baghdad on March 1917 the war in Iraq was alr.ost over. For the Turks vyere in retreat on every front leaving oehind a vast terri tory to administer. Cox acceptea the challenge ana began to organize the British aaministration slowly cut conficently He gatherea arounc him men of areat aoiiities such as Pr.ilby and Arnold Wilson who, fortunately or unfortunately, had diveruent ioeas and the aoiiity to stick to anc pursue their res.::)ective policies, it v;as natural that such men will oe sooner or later at logger neaas -.vith each other. However, for the moment the war on other fronts ooth in Arabia and Europe prompted them to work as a coherent and united body. Between the fall of baghaao in March 1917 and the General Armistice of November 1518 Gertruce continued to perform her usual and routine works, gathering intelligence information helping the dritish acministration in tbe country writing propaganaa articles ana treatises on trioal shaikhs and Araoian geography etcetera. Besides she took it upon herself to lecture and couch vitupercti\« ana opinionated young oificers such as Philoy in 'right iceas', Sne even - 90 - ventured to give advice to the future rulers of the newly occupiec Arab countries : ,..men who nave kept the tradition of a personal inoepen'-ence, v.-hich was limited only Dy their own customs, entirely ignorant oi a world which lay out sice thetr swamps anc: pastures, and as entirely indirferent to its interests as to the opportunities it offers, will not in a day fall into steo with turooean ambitior^s, nor welcone turopean methods. ^ Only on one occasion she nerself got out ot numour. In November 1917 NJ . Artnur call our mace his faT.ous announce ment^ "^ roqfrcinq the creation of a Jewish national home in Palestine, For uertrude it was an outrageous as v/ell as an unworkable plan, because palestine was a'poor lana, incapaole of qieat development,' Moreover, since two-thiros of Pales tinian population was /.'.uslim it was oifficult, according to uertrude, to implement the oal: our Ueclajration •.•,'r:ich was completely artificial and'aivorceo frorr. all relation to facts.'^^^ However, she seems to have compromisea on an equally serious matter, the Sykes-Picot Agreement^ •' whi^h was signed secretly by the Triple tntente in 1916 to aivide the 1. Quoted in Ibid. p. 194. 2. bee the text of the i^alfour ^' cl^.raticn in turopa. PUD., The h^lQtile East ana North Africa. X9c8. Lor.con, 1987, F. 6. 3. Burgoyne, Elizabeth, (jertruce cell, tram Her Personal Papers. London, 1961. P. 7^. ^' ,^o/r T!"^' °' *^' Sykes-.icct ..reerrent in .ntcnius, '^^01 qe, Ine ..rab AwoKenm-. Lor.ccr,, 1533, -o.32b-30. - 91 - Arab world oetween i-rance and Britain according to their imperial interests. As per the Agreement Iraq was to be given to britain as a war booty in the event of an Allied victory. With the tall of uagnaao in March 191/ it was clear that Britain would rule over the country. Hcvever, as time went on, there arose dirferences amonc the officers on the spot with regard to the form of future government in irat(. The main actors in the controversy, as will oe discussec later on, were Gertrude Bell and Arnold '.Vilson '.vno had oecome Acting Civil Commissioner after Cox was sent to lehran in 191B. It has alreaa ceen oiscussed that Gertruce was tno- roughly opposed to Arab nationalism ana oelievec that the idea of nation-states in the European sense was roreign to the Araos. It was with tnis view that she criticised the Anglo-French Uelaration of i«oven-l)er 5, 1916 AT. ich promised the Arai.s the right to sell determination.'The Declaration wfiatever may nave oeen its noliticel sicnificance elsev/here, was at best a regretddle necessity in Iraq'^ ^rie ATote, in a rr.omoranoum, 'Self-Ueterminct ion in .'.tesopotar.ia' tr.et sne submittea to tne Biitish Government in Feoruary 1919. In the same memorandum she furthei claimed, though erroneously, 1, See the text of the Anglo-French Ueclarstion in The /.'.iddle East and North Africa 1988. op, cit, p. 64. 2, Quoted in Win stone, Gertruae Bell, op,cit, p. 207, - 92 - that the common Iraqis were content with the British rule. But the Declaration gave an opportunity to the politically ambitious and religiously 'fanatical^ elements in the country to foment agitation and disrupt public tranquility. These men, according to Gertrude, v/ere Araos 'who hrC been in Turkish Civil or /.'.ilitary employment ana throv/n in their lot with the Turks after the occupation, active members of the Committee of Union and Progress (the party to whom the entrance of Turkey into the War against Great critain was directly due) and others who haa not ventured to remain in Baghdad on account of their well-known Turkish sympathies came back from V.osul early in November*^ ' in accoroance with the terms of the General Armistice,Tnese soceilec 'anti social elements' were further greatly encouraged to look forwara to an ambitious political future when they learnt that i-oisal haa been invited to Paris to attena the Paris peace Conference as a representative of an inde-endent Ar?.D state, 'rVilsun had gone through Gertruae's memorandum before it was sent to the India office in oroer to oe subritted to Lonaon, He had no douot certain reservations out in main his views at this stai;e v^re in agreement with those of 1. Ibia. pp. 207-208, - 93 - Gertrude. As a result he aispatchecS her to irrence to present his as well as her views in the Paris Peace Conrerence. Later he also joined her to canvass for tne retention of direct British rule in Iraq, Hovsever, Gertruce's views that she had expressed in her menioianaum of 1919, Dey&n to change curing the Paris Conference-. Inf act her discussions with Lawrence and Hogarth causea a volte face in her thinking ana aporocch to the Arab question. She began to think to torn in Iraq a national govern ment consisting of the former Turkish officials anc iraoi merchants loyal to britain. ProOacly the rationale behinc her approach was thit such a government would either itself take care of or will oe manipuietec to serve Britain's impe rial interests without invitino people's indignation to them or to the brJtish, But V/ilson was thoroughly opposed to any such idea. He believed that the Arabs of Mesopotamia haa no experience of government. Moreover they were not a coherent uroup rather divided between'townsfolk who sought no greater freedom than that which allowed them to v/rangle and douole-ceal to tneir heart-content, and tribesmen who asked nothing more than to be left alorje to wage their leuds. ' He further argued tnat 1, Ibic. p, 206. - 94 - the Iraqi society consisted of the Sunni Arabs, the Kurds, the Arab-Iranian Shias and none of therr, was wiliinn to accept any one's rule or heqemcny. hence, in his view, nritain v/iil be well advised not to corr.mit trie folly of entrusting the Iraqi araDs with self-rule but take the rational step of governinq them in her own interest. Obviously '.Vilson's ettituce and approach was purely imperialistic. However, ceinq the Acting Civil Co.Timissioner he was oetter placed than Gertrude or anyone else to implement his ideas. He began to rule the Iracis with an iron hand anc in a luthless autnoritarian manner. Contrary to the assessment of Gertrude as expressed in her memoranaum of 1919 the Iraqis -.vere not content with the british occupation of their country. She herself was lat.?r to realize, especially after tne Iraqi Revolt of 1920, 1, The ir>!qi Heoelliun startea as spontaneous protests and agi tations by the people of Iraq, roth iunnis ano Sr.ias, against the gradual consolidation o: Biitish rule with nominal Arab representation. These agitations oec^.^-.e more frequent and wide sproao atter the announcerr.er: of tre San Remo Conference decisions. In the oeginning the '.e.^:Llion was lea rv the memoers of the pre-War al/%ha. a secret society of the Arab oiricers ot the lu'kish army who nac supported anc participa- tea in the Arab Hcvolt, out it was later'joinec by the Shia Ulema or A'.u.jtahids wno issuec a rat .,e. a religious edict, cailinn people to wage a Holy \'iLr, Jihad, against the british rule. Tow;.ros the enc of June i92C the protests oecame rr,cre serious ano in the loilowing ir.onth turnea out into an open revolt which the British orutaly suppressea in Seotember of the same year after spenoin- over £ 40,CCX.',000, Killing ten thousand Iraqis ana havinr lost 40C British lives. (See the detils in Antonius Georoe, Ihe /vrao Awaken inc. oc, cit, PP. 312-316. ~ • - 95 - thaft, in her opinion, was a rising against Wilson i autho ritarian rule. Although the Revolt was crusheo by the suoerior might of Britain the policy makers in Lonaon were shaken and subsequently forceo to adopt a new policy, Tne first step was to reinstate Cox, Cox arrived in Basra in October 1920 and together with Gertrude and Philoy embarked upon establishing a Provisional Government. Tne main problem before them was to select ^suitable* men tor various ministeries, who will be acceptable to the Iraqi people on the one herd and serve the Diitish interest on the ot/:er. The 'suitable' men they picked Uf. were t.oose who had remained loyal t: Britain in her hour of trial, that is, in the July-Septerr.c«r Rebellion of 1920. This meant that the Shias who formed the majority^ - 1, Gertrude knew well as ia evident from her letter of October 3, 1920 thet the Shias were in a majority in Iraq ana that the election for a truely re present r.tive asse.i.cly, if fairly held, will result in a Shia-doroirated governrrent. Tne relevant part of the letter is as follows : •The Shia problen. is proocoly the most formidable in t;.is country.. .. If you are going to have anything like really representative institutions you would have a majority of Shias. For that reason you can never na\^e three completely autonomous provinces, Sunni A'usul must oe retained as a part of the K'fisopotamian State in order to adjust the oalance. To my mino it is one of the main arguments i or giving Mesopotamia a responsible government. We as outsiaers can't differentiate between Sunni and Shia, out lea\'e it to them anc they will aet over the diificulty by sorrje kino of hanky-panky just as th*^ lurks dio ana for the present it is the only way of getting over it. The final authority rust le in the nands of the Sunnis, inspite of their numerical infer iority, otherwise you will have a .V.ujtahic-run State,' which is the very devil,' (Burgoyne, b, oo, cit, 'Vol. I) p. 169). - 96 - in Iraq and a good number of Sunn is v;ho had taken part in the Rebellion would not be properly represented m the government, Tlie Provisi' nal Govern:r,ent consisting of loyal Arfos- Dritain's favourites and suirogates - was sorriehow forir.ed on 25th October 1920.^^ But this aid not put an eno to Britain's problems. Tne dilemma confronting r^ritain in tr.e later part of 1920 and the tewer cnoices that were before r.er have been well depicted in the following letter that Gertruoe wrote on 4t]i Novemoer 1920 : We are badly in need of the Iraqis whc served <> with t-'aisal in Syria - men v/r.o have the solid Arab nationalism in them, if v.e can't get them as allies 1 brlieve we sna.l founder betv/een a Shiah theocracy and a pro-Turkish Duieaicracy. The menace of the iur. 1, A Shia minister was also induced in the rrcvisional Government, However ,a s a'whole the Shia corr.-jrity was discriminated against oy the (Jovernment, Gertruoe's lollowing letter is a testimony:'The present 'Government wliich is predominantly Sunni, is n't coing anything to conciliate the Shiahs, Tr.ey are now consi'jering a mn.ber of administrative appoir.tments for provinces, almost all the names t);ey put up are Sunris, even for the wr. ;liy Shiah province on the tupjirates v/i-:' --e excecticn ot Karbc la and NejG(Ka:;af) wnere evei- they have't the face to propose Sunnis'. (i.-fcll, L^ay, op. c it. F. DB5). •^. r^uraoyne, H,, op. cit. D. 1-2. -97 _ Over two nionths later Gertruae wrote another letter (Janudry 10,1921) in which she mentioned the assessment of jafar Pasha regarding the wishes of the Iraqi people ana their Shaikhs,'V.ost of the shaikhs', she wrote,'didn't care a- outton what sort of goverr,ir If public discontent is to be judged by the public slotians ana folk songs the cieneral Iraqi attituce towarcs Britain and the P rovisicnal Government v/as one of nostility and animosity. In early 1921 tne wails of Bagncac i^re not unoften aecorutea with sucr. slo::ans: ;Voe betide you O //inisters - rotten C prisoners Does your conscience not trouble you?^"' Some of the slo )an5 were even wcritten in Urau express ing oewilderment on the Indian armymen, ooth Hincus ana Vuslirrs, who haa conquered Iraq for nritain ana were loyal to ner even after having been treatea like anin-.als by their arrogant masters, ' but the British haa not fou-j^t the OttOT.ans to esta- olish a government in accorcance -Aith tne wishes of the Iraci 1. Ibid, P, 2aj. 2. IVinstone, Gertruce bell, op. cit. 232, - 98- people. Their main intention, as inaicated earlier, was to serve their imperial interests unoer the cover of a farcical native government. The ^Provisional Government provea shortlived even thouqh it was performing well the role the British had assigned to it. Just within two and a half month it was able to draft an electoral law which was finally passed on bth January 1921 and sent to the High Commissioner's ollice for his approval. Soon after his approval the elec tions v/ere to be neld to convene a represent - ti\'e assembly, but this did never happen. On 10th January 1921 Cjertruce was surrmonea to the Hicih Commissioner^ Office where she was inforrred by Cox about a telegram irom Winston Cnurchil (who had been recently appointed the Colonial Secretary) -.shich contained a new policy thot was shortly to oe follas-ed in Iraq, Ihe new oolicy in a nutshell was to instal Faisal King of Iraq, The decision to establish Faisal as King of Iraq under british mandate was taken by Churchil and Lawrence v/eil before they came to atteno the Cairo Conference held in M^rch 1921 details of which will be discussed in a later chapter. The Conference was infact nelo to acopt a strategy in order to smooth Faisal's way to power. The strategy they - 99 - decif^ed to follow was that Faisal will contest an election for the Iraqi throne, Hoivever, such an election was never held mainly because Faisal cid not want it for rear of being rejected by the people. Cox, then, persuaded the Council of Ministers of the Provisicnal Governr.ent to proclairr t-aisal King of Iraq. This was duly done in July 1921. Later on a farcical referendum was held in which Faisal was declared to have secured 96 percent of the total votes ano eventu ally crowned on August 23, 1921, Faisal's ascent to power in Iraq opened a new chapter in uertruoe's life. Years ago in March 1917 she nao written about Iraq: '.Ve shi.ll, I trust, make it a centre of Arab civilization anc prosperity, th< t will be my job partly, I hooe, (\\ and I never lose sioht of it; ' Now, in 1921 she was personal friend of raisal the King of Iraq advising him on his corr.estic proolerr.s and looking forward to a cireat future for nis country, *'.Vhen we hod made Mesopotamia a mocel Arab State,' shg told the King, ' there .was not an Arab of Syria ana Palestine who wouldn't want to ue part ot it, anc oefore I cied I lookeo to see Faisal ruling from the Persian frontier to the 1. Bell, Lady, op. cit. p, ACC. - lOO - (i) Kf.editerranean... .'^ ^' If Gertrude was really serious to Duild up a rr.odern Arab hmpire under f-aisal she was aeomed to disappointment from the beginning, Infact iHaisal was not picked up by Churchil and Lawrence becai-se he wos a great leacer able to command the following of his fellavArabs and create a big country but because he was incompetent and had the ability to play the rale of the puppet ruler perfectly in order to serve the british interests, cjertruce soon aiscoverea it, in less than a year time after Faisal's coronation, that he was a weak administrator H'T. Cornwallis and I\ She wrote on 4th June 1922,'had a long talk (with Faisal), I told him I was very unhappy over the King's indecisive attituae, his refusal to contradict the statements of the extremist papers and the backing he was giving to the most ignoole extremists.^ There was much more to corr.e in later cays. She discove- reo that Feisal v^/as vain, feeole, timid, hardly depenoaole and above all a master aouble oecler who sometimes even die not hesitate to conspire against his own ministers. Dismayed by the King's mischievous activities she was iorceo to tell him : 1 had formed a beautiful ano gracious snow image to which I r.ac given allegiance i. Quoted in Winstone, Gertruae Bell, op, cit. D. 241. 2. Bur(5oyne, E., op, cit, pp. 270-27i, - 101 - and I saw it melting oetore nr.y eyes. Before every noule line hao oeen obliteratea, Iireferrea to go, inspite of rny love for the Arab nation and my sense of responsibility for its future, I dia not think I could bear to see the evaporation oi the dream which hao guided me day oy aay.^ ^ To escape from the frightening aisappoinflt-ent Gertrude sought refuge,in Baghdad Museum that she had begun to bulla in her last years in order to preserve Iraq's archaeolocical heritage. Her relotions with haisal renained coraial cespite her aisillusicnment withi nim, nut there is reason to believe that in her Ifst cays she hcc cor..e tc realize thct King- making was as difficult, even impossible, as ouilcing a castle in the air. However, her co:;.mitment to taisai was one thing ana r.er aedicati n to her country another. She never swirled in her loyalty to 'ireat critain as '.Vinstone, her bioaraoner has proved it quoting from, the records of Britain's Foreic-n Office. That she never f'ailec in senaing 1. Ibid. pp. 271-272. 2. Winstone, Gertruce ::eil. op. cit. pp. 253-2o4, - 102 - What her intelliqence reports and propaganda articles were meant for except that she wanted to serve her country? She wrtS, in sum, a traveller-scr.olar v.^*o used ner intellectual atjilities to promote the cause of the british Empire in the /urab World. •«**« Chapter - II QAHIAIN.SHAKESPEAR Throughout the 19th century the Arabian desert, not only being arid and barren, but also from strategic point of view, had been of little importance for the competing colonial powers of Europe, Of course the British had won, through bribes and treaties, the small Arab states of-the Persian Gulf, to their side in order to safeguard their sea route to India, But the tribes living in the hinter land were left free to run their show as per their wishes. However, with the beginning of the 20th centiiry the British, mainly due to military reasons included in their area of interest the Kuwaiti hinterland as well as central Arabia, As a result numerous explorers were dispatched- to gather military intelligence from tne Bedouin Shaikhs or tribal chiefs, to discover, if* possible, new routes in the desert and fill in blanks on the Arabian map. Among such travellers William Henry Irvine Shakespear (1878-1915) stands prominent mainly owing to his audacious journeys in the Arabian desert ana military and political services that he rendered to the British Empire, Shakespear began his career as a military officer in 189^.-. He served the British army in various ca-acities - 104 - before embarking upon a political career in 1904. While serving the British army and administration in India Shakespear learnt many oriental languages including Urdu, Arabic, Pushtu and Persian, What persuaded Shakespsear to abandon his military career and switch to a political one is not clear. He was a captain in the army and was all set for rapid promotion when he decided to apply for transfer to the Viceroy's political Department, His biographer, 'tinstone has tried to rationalize his decision saying that he *was not given to the contemplation of such matters. His attitudes were instinctive rather than rational. He was intelligent but not intellectual, his skills and accomplishments were in the fields of travel and enterprise',^ •' Contact With Persia Shakespear was first posted to the Persian port of Bandar Abbas, He was to work as a consul and assistant to the Political Resident in Bushire. Immedia tely after his arrival to Bandar Abbas he settled to his works. However the office routine and file works bored him. To escape the boredom he began to make frequent journeys and as a result visited many Iranian islands such as Horrauz, Larak and Hen jam. 1, Winstone, H.V.t-, Captain Shakespear JA Portrait, London , 1976. P. 35. - 105 - Before coming to Bandar Abbas Shakespear had acqui- inted himself with the political realities of Iran, The dominant position of Britain in the region was unquestiona ble. However, the Russians had also their stakes in Iran, Their most important need was to have access to the warm waters. Since mititarially they were not strong enough to challenge Britain's dominant position they resorted to diplomatic offensive to secure concessions in order to safeguard their interests. They disputed Britain's exclu sive claims on many important ports including Bandar Abbas and sent their men to the disputed areas without having secured Britain's prior permission. The Rusiar^ representati ve for Bandar Abbas came in 1906. He and Shakespear developed immediate dislike to each other. Sensing the undesirable development the British authorities promptly shifted Shakespear to Muscut, a well-established British protectorate. Within a year of Shakespear's departure Britain and Russia reached a compromise and signed an agreement which divided Iran into Anglo-Russian Spheres of influence. In principle Iran was a sovereign country but in the colonial bargain conducted by Britain and Russia she was not consulted. Political Agent in Kuwait In 1908 Shakespear became first assistant to Cox who was Britain's Resicent in Iran, By the time Cox was thinking to appoint a new political Agent in Kuwait, Kuwait was then, as is today, a small Shaikhdom, However, politically and strategically it was of vital - 10 6 - importance for Britain, Infact it was a British post, not only to deal with the intricate ruler of Kuwait, Shaikh Mubarak, but also to spy on and gather intelligence about the tribal chiefs of the Kuwaiti hinterland and the two rulers of central Arabia, Ibn Saud and Ibn Rashid, Obviously in order to accomplish his duties Shakespear had to fami liarise himself with the history and politics of volatile Arabia, with the histories of ruling families, the desert princes, the rivalries and alliances of significant tribes and above all with the policies of his own country which were not free from contradictions, Shakespear aid take such lessons before taking up his office as political Agent in Kuwait in 1909, Besides working as a Political A^nt he was also required to act as an agent of the Simla-based British Intelligence.^^ Britain's policy Toy.rards Arabia Kuwait was nominally a part of the Ottoman hmpire, But in reality its ruleis had always enjoyed a good deal of independence. Shaikh Wubarak al Sabah, the ruler of the Shaikhdpm in Shakespear*s time was unwi lling to accept even nominal iurkish suzPrainty. He had snatched power by murdering his half brother in 19S6. By _ _— — —- ___ 1./ Ibid, P. 94. - lo7 - that time Kuwait was in a state of chaos and disorder and vulnerable to raids and subsequent plunders by the Bedouins from neighbourhood. The Turks did not help the ruling family to improve the law ano order conditions hoping that its collapse might open the door for imposing their direct rule on Kuv/ait, Wubarak, unlike his preaecessor, was bjtterly hostile towards lurkey. He either imprisoned or exiled those Kuwaiti inhabitants who were known or even suspected for their sympathy or any kind of connection with the Turks, Such an anti-Turk ruler would not have pleased Britain a few years ago when their policy was to keep cordial relations with Cons tantinople at any cost. But in the last decade of the 19th century the political climate had changed. For the Germans had won confidence of the Turks through active and intelligent diplomacy and by promising financial and technical assistance for constructing the Berlin-Bagndad Railways, This virtually forced Britain to conclude a treaty of friendship with Kuwait in early 1899 so that they will be able to counter the German threat to British interests in the Persian Gulf which had become a British lake. Five years later, in 1904, Britain set up a political Agency in Kuwait to strengthen its position in the Gulf.- Bit the British were an accomplished double dealer. Within two years of their treaty with A'ubarak they signed in 1901 a secret pact with the TUTKS according to which Britain was required to follow a policy of neutrality - 108 - as well as to prevent Mubarak from ettacking the Turkish ally, Ibn Rashid of central Arabia. The same agreement (which they called Anglo-Turkish Accord) required Turkey to persuade Ibn Rashid to cease hostilities against Kuwait, It was this agreement that prompted Britain time and again to warn Mubarak whenever he decided to take hostile actions against the Turks. And it was the same Anglo-Turkish pact that led Britain to adopt a lukewarm attituae towards Ibn Saud who was very keen to win British friendship and assistance in his battles with the Turks and Ibn Reshid. Knox whom Shakespear succeeded cs political Agent in 1909 had once replied to Ibn Saud in response to a plea made by the later : You say "that you are under the protection of the British Government, But it is as well for me to remind you, 0 my friend that the Greet Government does not accord its protection rashly or without much fore thought. It is not-praise be to God'-of those who promise much and do not perform. Hitherto no reply hes been vouchsafed by the Great Government to your petition,^^ Such werethe political conditions of Kuwait and central Arabia and the British policy towards them which later on Shakespear v/as to oppose vehemently. 1. Quoted in ibid, pp. 67-68, - lo9 - Shakespear's Works in Kuwait Shake spear's work at the Political Agency was to carefully watch over the Shaikh of Kuwait, Mubarak who was a man of implacable determination and of great strength of character, hence difficult to be manipulated or handled in day to day affairs. Shakespear was thus rightly advised by his su-^erio- rs to leave the Shaikh alone to run the Kuwaiti affairs and to avoid interference as much as possible, V^ubarak, too, seenis to have had little interest in the v/orks of Political Agency. But inspite of such arrangements they were frequently at loggerhedOs v.ith each other and in most cases they both were to oe blair.ec for their tense relations. But Shakespear's foremost task was to explore the Kuwaiti hinterland in order to establish relations with the tribal chiefs, and know their rivalries, loyalties and alliances. He was also expected to gather intelligence about the Amir of Najd, Ibn Saud who by then hec emerged as a torce to be reckonea with ir eastern and central Arabia. The Political Agency was thus covertly converted into an intelligence centre, A spy Traveller As a British spy Shakespear made several journeys in Kuwaiti hinterland. But by far the most adventu rous journey he uncertook ,v:-s his crossino of Araoia from - 110 - Kuwait to hgypt. Douglas Carruthers aptly describes his achievement in the following words : Shakespear's trans-Arabian journey covered about 12CD miles of unknown country. Only for one-third of the -^ole traverse between Kuwait on the Persian Gulf and Kontilla, the first Egyption outpost on Sinai, was he on ground already covered by Europeans, For the whole distance, 1810 miles, Shakespear kept up a continuous route-traverse , checked at intervals by observations for latitude... routes which had hitherto been merely conjecture could now be drawn more or less correctly, many errors put right, and many a problem solved.^-^^ Shakespear was not a gifted writer nor had he any literary ambition. It is therefore not surprising that he did not produce any travelogue and thus left no literary legacy. But in all his journeys he had made it a point to prepare intelligence report and take e)ftensive notes which were vitally important from geographical and strategi point of view. The notes he had taken during his last and longest journey of 1914 were later handed over to the War Office whose experts used them, to construct maps of the 1. Quoted in Ibid. pp. 183-84. - Ill - desert routes which were later to be proved of strategic significance for the British army's campaign in Ajrabia. Unlike other British travellers Shakespear, while journeying among the Arabs, did not wear Arab dress nor did he pretend to be a Wuslim, Instead he always put on the uniform of the Indian army, Infact he approached the desertmen in a direct and straight forward manner, without diffidence and disguise. Contrary to the common conception prevalent in England of his time he rarely encoi^tered any hostility, rather he was accorded warm receptions by the Bedouins probably due to the fact that he had 'learnt and observed the strict etiquette of the desert, never imposing himself on them unless invited, ana speaking to them about the things that were of importance to them - the weather, their flocks and herds, the gnazu or desert raids, their sport and their proof of manliness*,^ •' Further, unlike many European travellers, he did not see the Bedouins as inferior, rather liked them because in his opinion 'they were men*,^'^^ Friendship With the Desert King Besides being an intrepid spy-rtraveller Shakespear is knon-n for his friendship with and support for Ibn Saud, He met the Desert Kino in 1910 1. Ibid, P. 75, 2. Quoted in Ibid. P, 76. - 112 - in Kuwait where the later had come to pay a visit to his old patron, Shaikh Mubarak, Shakespear's report to Cox reaveled that he was highly impressed by Ibn Saud. 'Abdul Aziz, now in his 31st year,' he wrote, *is fair, handsome and considerably above average Arab height,,. He has a frank, open face, and after initial reserve, is of genial and court eous manner, ' Of Ibn Saud's character Shakespear further wrote that he *is a broadminded and straight man,.. His reputation is that of a noble and generous man who does not descend to mean actions*.^(7) Apparently the two men did not discuss politics in their first meeting, Ho»*ever, Ibn Saud conveyed, though indirectly, nis willingness to enter an alliance with Britain when he remaked that 'the hnglish, as friends and brothers of Mubarak, were themselves his brothers and friends'. ^^^ But the most important result of their meeting, as Holden and Johns put it,*wds a cordial meeting of minds. Henceforth Shakespear never wavered in respect, affection and support for Ibn Saud, and his feelings seemed to be reciprocated!^ ' For he was most cordially invited to pay a visit to Riyadh, the capital city of the Wahhabee king. 1. Ibid. p. 84. 2. Ibid. P. 85, 3. Ibid. 4. Holden, David and Richard Johns, House of Saud, London, 1981. P. -113 - An ambitious traveller like Shakespear must have desired very much to travel in Najd and visit Riyadh, But the Foreign office whose declared policy at that tirre was to keep friendly relations with the Turks, stood as an obstacle On his way. Their fear was that any visit to Riyadh by an English official would invite strong protests from the Turks who, with full British connivance, were actively busy with plans to bring Ibn Saud to the heel and force him to accept atleast nominal Turkish suzerainty. But Shakespear had quite contrary views. He sent reports after reports to Cox and other high officials urging them to fully realize the Arab politics and review their policy towards Arabia. In nis opinion Ibn Saud was the strongest ruler in Arabia hence Britain VX>U1G oe well-advised to esta blish an alliance with him rather than the Turks who were disliked by all. In a report that he sent to his superiors in April 1911 and that he had written after his fourth major desert journey during which he had a chance to see Ibn Saud, he penned the following alarming passage. All reports (hailing from central Arabia) point to increasing unrest and hatred of Turkish pretentions. If a combination were to take place between the principal leaders in Arabia-and the fact of a serious discussion of a simultaneous revolt between men of such diverjent religious - 114 - tenets as the Imam Yahya and the Wahhabi ruler make such a union at'lejist possible - I am inclined to the opinion that a revolt is not only orobable but would be welcome by every tribe throughout the peninsula, i-rom all I can learn hatred of the Turk seems to be the one idea common to all the tribes and the only one for which they would sink their differences. The strength of the Turk has always been his ability to play off one tribe against another. Now this cardinal fact has begun to penetrate the unsophisticated brain of the Arab.^^ As it appears Shake spear had foreseen the Arab revolt, an idea which became a reality a few years later in the First World War, In a later report written in June 1914 after his longest journey from Kuwait to Egypt he even predicted the fall of the Turkish hmpire, i I am convinced that present Turkish methods in Arabia, if persisted in, will end in disaster - Turkey has net the pov^r to coerce Arabia ana shoulc matters,., come to a head the probable result will be a combination of all Arab tribes, the expulsion of Turkish troops and officials... and the establish ment of an inaepen .ent Arabia with a loose form of confedration of which ibn Saud will be the he ad..., I can not avoid 1. Quoted in Winstone, Captain ShakesoeartA Portrait, op. cit. p, 106. - 115 - the conclusion that the Turkish Government is riding for a fall... '' But Shakespear's vigourous arguments in favour of the Desert King as 'ACII as Ibn Saud's own zealous efforts bore no fruits. The British Government remained bound with its traditional policy of supporting the Turks, However, a few months later Britain was at war with Germany and from all the reports coming from Constantinople it was evident that Turkey would ally herself with the Germans, Anticipating a Turko-German threat to Britain's sea route to India the Whitehall summoned Shakespear in September 1914 who by then was in Englana in order to dispatch him to Ibn Saud, For many years Shakespear had fought a lone battle, though without success, to change Britain's traditional policy of detente with Turkey in order to further his cherished scheme for a British alliance with the Desert King, His views were rejecteo as irr.mature. But now the British Government had been forced to realize the wisdom of his scheme. He was sought by War, India and Foreign Offices for views and comments on Arabian affairs. He repeated his long- held opinion that Britain should recognize the independence of Ibn Saud under her suzerainty and give him sufficient 1. Ibid. pp.190-91 -il6 - arms and money to deal eifectiveiy with- Ion Rashid who had allied himself with the Turks and nad received generous military and -linancial assistance from them, /.'oreover, in the liqht of his personal knowledge of J-bn Seud's personality and approach to world affairs Shake spear rightly pointed out that it would be hard to persuaoe him to pursue a pro-3ritisn policy unless he is offered a treaty of alliance. For such an alliance would give Ion S£ud a sense of security ana encourage him to rise in rebellion against the Turks who, inspite of being widely aespised in Arabia, v.ere the keeper of the Caliphate anc the holy cities of ^fecca and '^dina. respite Snakespear's clear views Britain could not make her mine to introduce a radical change in her policy towards Arabia mainly because the newly appointed British ambassador to Constantinople, Sir Louis V.allet vmo was working hard to keep the Turks neutral in the ,/ar, had advised causion, Shakespear -rS thus autnorized to negotiate only a non-com/nital treaty of friendsnip with the Desert King and send the draft for acproval by the Government. Shakespear arrived ana met the Desert King on L'ecenber, 31» 1914, Ibn Saud was not in a gooc mood ana received his old friend with lukewarmth. Soon tr.e cause of the King's anaer was known to Shakespear. Thot a few mortr.s ago the British Goverrrr.ent through its political Agent in Kuwait, - 117 - Grey who had succeeded Shakespear, had put irjnense pressure on Ibn Saud to accept Turkish suzerainty, Infact when Shake spear was journeying in the desert to cross Arabia from Kuwait to Egypt, and thus away frorr, the Political Agency in Kuwait, Ibn Saud received an urgent message from his old patron, Mubarak to reach Subaihiyah, a place near Kuwait, Ibn Saud expected to meet Mubarak and some British officials. But he was surprised to discover that instead of Mubarak and British officials Syed Talib, a Basra-based merchant and politician, was waiting for him with an entourage of Turkish officials. The Turks had brought a draft of treaty for cooperation and promised to give Ibn Saud an annual pension if he signed it there and then. The king refused to oblige until he had consulted Grey. The political Agent was informed of the King's request. Grey reluctantly arrived at Subaihiyah ana told the Arriir in a terse manner that he can expect no help from Britain if he refused to sign the treaty with the Turks, Ibn Saua tnen obliged. He was obyiously to the point if he felt tricked and deserted both by Grey and Mubarak. And v/hen Shakespear arriveo seeking his coooeratio' he immediately sensed his growing importance and decided to capitalize on it. He demanded money and weapons as price of his cooperation with Britain. Shakespear was also greatly angereo when r.e came to know what Grey had done in his absence, A few oays after - 118 - his arrival on January the fourth, he wrote in a report to his superiors that Ibn Saud'who is animated by an intense pat riotism for his country, a profound veneration for his religion and a single minded desire to do his best for his people by obtaining for them lasting peace and security,' was bitterly angry with britain for forcing hiir. to accept Turkish suzerainty. In the same report he further wrote that inspite of having been deserted by the British ibn Saud'trusted the British Government as no other' and 'as evidence of his desire to assist the British Government without hopelessly compromising himself he has kept Ibn Rashid to his ground ana by his example and leao induced in the Arab world an attitude., .distinctly sympathetic towards Great Britain .-»^•'•' But Shake'spear wcs not oeputea to Ibn Saud just to report that in what mood the Amir was? Rather he was on a special mission to pursuade him to help Britain against the lurks. He did so successfully and prepared a draft treaty in which Ibn Saud was recognized as 'independent ruler' of *Najd, alHasa, Katif and their surrounds and the ports appertaining to them on the Persian Gulf.^ -' The draft of the treaty with a covering note from Shake spear wcS sent early in January 1915 for the approval of the British Government. In his note Shakespear had written 1. Ibid P. 201. 2. Ibio. P. 202. - 119 - that Ibn baud will not 'move a step further towards making matters either easier for us or more aifficult for the Turks as far as the present war is concerned, until he obtains in that treaty some very solid guarantee of his position, with Great Britain practically as his Suzerain.'^"'^ Aftc-r securing such a guarantee, bhakespear further wrote t'at the Desert King will not only use all his resources and influence in Arabia on Britain's side auring the war time but also in the post war period. Shakespear, while waiting for an answer from his Government went on talking with Ibn Saua of Arab freedom and of the ambitions of the Amir who wanted to arive the Turks from central Arabia anc restore the Kingdom of his forefathers which wdS once stretched over the wr.ole of the Arabian peninsula. In such conversations Ibn Seuo often spoke of the two hundreo years old history of the House of Saud, the spread of its power anc influence anc the inter vention of the Turks which brought about the fall of the Saudi dynasty in the nineteenth century, Shakespear reported ail these secretly to his superiors along with V^e news about the preparations of the Saudi army which was getting ready to attack Ibn Rashid. The war eventually took place at a 1. Ibid. - 120 - place called Jaxab on January 24, 191b in which not only the Saudi army was defeated but Shakespear was also killed. Con.menting on Shakespe =^r' s death, St. John Philby has written that* it was a great disaster to the Arab cause,'^•' Philby further opines that 'had he survived to continue a work for which he was so eminently fitted it is extremely doubtful whether the suosequent campaigns of (2) Lawrence would ever hove taken piece', ^ •' Phiiby was prompted to make the above rerr.ark because of Ibn Saud's military prowess and superiority over his rivals. He further believed thct had Ibn Saud received enough British support in the early pnase of the wax he would have eliminatec Turkish ally Ibn Rashid and moved on to destroy the Hijaz Railway er to Syria to harass the Turks in order to relieve pressure on Kut in ^^opotamia where the British army was under siege, Philby seeiis to undermine the iir.cortance of Britain's alliance with Sherif Husain of h'ecca. But his was a wrong stand, Hao Pnilby access to Shakesoeax's secret dispatches he would not have meae such a remark. There is no 1, Philby, H, St. J,, /jabia. Lonoon, 1930. P. 233. 2. Ibid. P. 234. David Howarth ir, his The uesert King (London, 1964) has exoressed more or less sirr.ilar views. See p. 87. - 121 - denyinq the fact that Ibn Saud w£.s milit£:rily stronger than Husain, and if viewed in this perspective alone, one is thorouohly right to say that Britain had backed the wrong horse. But, as Antonius George has pointed out, '••usain, both militarily and politically, was oetter placed than any other Arab leader of the time to rencer a great service to Great Britain.^ ^ Shakespear also appears to have been conscious of atleast political ana religious importance of the Sherif as is evident from some of his dispatches sent from Arabia to the British Government. Infect while Shakespear in early January 1915 was working hard to win Ibn Saud's support for Britain there came an emissary with a letter from Abaullah, the son of the Sherif of h'ecca, Abdullah had sought Ibn Saud's opinion regarding Turkish pressure on his father to endorse the call for Jihao or the holy v/ar. Ibn Saud promptly consulted Shakespear v^-ho, having been fully conscious of the dangers of Jihad for Britain, expressed the following coinion; Jihad, proclaimed by the Sharif, by the man believed by millions to be the descendant of the Prophet, would have the most terrible consequences. You, Abcul Aziz, must work for England's victory as the best way to secure Arab freedom,^^' 1. See for details Antonius, George, The Arab Awakening. London, 1938 pp, 139-40, 2. Quoted in Wlnstone, Captain ShaKesoear A Portrait o- cit. p. 21. ' • — -• - 122 - Shakespear further explained to ibn Saud that Britain had no designs on the holy places of Islam and advised him to Hell Abdullah to bide his time, to promise as little as possible, until the wishes ofthe Great Government are made clear J^^ Clearly Shakespear not only foresaw the dangers that might have resulted from the proclamation of Jihad but also tried to use Ibn Saud's influence to the oenefit of Britain as is evident from a secret dispatch that he sent to the Political Resident in Persia. Jihad,., is a contingency of which the consequences are unforese^ble and incalculable. Such a proclamation would at least raise the -//hole Arab world and Bin Sauo himself would be compelled by the circuir.star.ces of his faith, his prestige and position as an Arab leader to follow with all his tribes..,.Fortunately through Bin SauQ' s coiT;manding influence in Arabia...we are in a position so to lin.it the danger as to make it negligible,^^^ Shakespeeir, of course, su^ceeaed to do so. For it is on the record that some of the Wahnaoee Ulema ,vr.o were in favour of accepting the iurkish cell for Jihac and were 1. Ibid. P, 22. 2. loid. -153 - openly preaching the holy war were put behind the bars by Ibn Saud, probably on the advice of Shakespear. There is a reason to believe that haa Shakespear failed in his mission or had Ibn Saud participated in the holy war proclaimed by lurkey the British plan for the disintegrrtion anc subsequent aismemberment of the Ottoman Empire would have oeen foiled, lo sun up the discussion it can be said thot altnough Shakes pear died at an early aoe he aio render areat services to his country, not only throuqn his extensive travels for spyzna on the tribes in eastern ana central Arabia bui most importcn- tly by preventing Ibn Sauo to join hands with tne Turks. It is also clear that he was priir.arily and finally aedicateo and loyal to the British Government anc that his support for Arab national independence was nothing but a means foB* promoting his country's ipte-iests in the Arab world, Moreover, he seens to have been influenced by the racist and imperialistic ideologies of the nineteenth century that were in currency in his time as well and regarded the Arabs as incaple of self-rule. It was only because of this that he envisaged an /urab indepen dence conaitioned by their acceptance of British suzerainty or protection. (?h?pter -III UWRENCE OF ARABIA Thomas hdward Lewrence, cor.-only known as Lavwrence of Arabia, became a leend as well as an enigmatic persona- litv in his life tire. Works about his life and career beoan to be produced when he v/as still alive and since then there has been a spate of volumes representinc a wide divergence of opinion about his literary, political ar^c military aciiieverr.ents. Lewrence hijrseif, as will oe dis cussed later on, indulged in activities or issued statements which, it appears, '//ere intentionally done in oroer to surrouna his personality with an aura of misticue. His acr.iring bioqrap.'.ers loter on proved rr.ore unscrupulous and published materials without having sub ected them to critical scrutiny. As a result facts and fictior a^-out Lawrence oecare so rruch indistinquishably nixed ana closely interwoven that Marry Brouqiiton was promptea to write Ori the 16t> A',:.:i,st IcSS Tnoir.as Eoward Lawrence was oorn. This is one of the facts we can be sure of among the legion of legenas that have been written and told aoout him.^"(} ') • I'owever, in 1969 Knight ley and Si~.pson .vere able 1. Broughton, Harr,-, Lawrence of Aracia. The Fact V/it.-.out The t^iction. Dorset, 1969. P. I. - 125 - to uring Lawrence's re.;l ^"ace in to r'ocus when they produced their illuminating study: The Secret Lives of Lawrence of Arabia. Ihe two writers have proved beyona doubt that Lawrence in reality was a British spy. But inspite of this incontrovertible revelation Lawrence enigma continues to exist. Lawrence the Leqeno Like all legencary men Lawrence has both his adr.irers as well as detractors, Ihe list of his critics is headed by Uicharo Alaington who in his Lawrence of Arabia; A biographical Enquiry has ie:t no stone unturned to prove him merely an orcinary person wr.o tactruily manc-fiea, mainly thenksto his unscruoulous biographers rather than his ^marvellous* achie\ er-ents, to become a legend. But on the other hand there are a nuroer of writers who ha\e portrayea Lawrence as an 'Arabian Knight'ora 'King without Crown'. However, it was Lowell ihorr.as, dn American journalist wno first idolizec Lawrence trirouc;,out the cnglish speaking world. In 1917 he was spons ored by a group of pro-Aliieo Ar,.ericans to write propaganda articles which could be publisneo in the American press with a view to winning public opinion in favour of the Allies and thus putting pressure on the reluctant American governn:ent to enter the war a'.ainst Germany. Tr.or^as rirst went to France where ne saw neir raising scenes of pillage - 126 - and plunder which were scarcely suitable to serve his purpose. He was, then, advised to go to the Palestine front where General Allenby's campaign, well, supported by the Arab Revolt, was in full swing. Thomas was intro duced to Lawrence by Fionald Storrs, then Governor of newly occupied Jerusalem, In Lawrence and the Arab Kevolt Thorr.as in found what he really wanted to write/his pro-V/ar articles. Fortunately for him Lawrence was cooperative and told him somewhat e^iocierated stories of the Arab Revolt and of course a highly coloured account of his own role in it, Thomas was creoolous enouch to believe all that Lawrence put in his ears. He returned to America ana not only wrote his pro-War articles but also, after the general armistice, organized a series of lectures, first in New York and then across the United States, cnglanc, Australia and New Zeaianti The lectures were maoe to appear more impressi\e and convin- T cinq with the help of lantern slides and a cinematograph film entitled 'With Aiienby in Palestine and Lawrence in Arabia'. In the lectures, as can oe imagined, Lawrence was projected as a sMning hero, pure, perfect, and withcut bleriish. In England alone these lectures were attended by over a million people including politicians, diplomates, men of letters ano obove t.ii by King George tt.e Fifth for whose convenience a pri-ate show was arrnaged.^ •• 1. Ste Nutting Anthony, Lawrence of Arabia, the Man and tne rotive. London, 1961, P. 201. - 127 - Lawrence is also reported to have watched some of Thomas's shows, but later on he became disgusted with the *wild Arr.erican,' Lawrence's own appellation for Thomas who had turned him into a matinee idol r.aunted by the press and fair ladies proposinc marriage. It is puzzling that why Lawrence became disgusted with the man whom he himself had encouraged to propaqate his'heroic exploits'in Arabia. His eamiring oiographers have offered many explanations. However, one palusible reason seems to be his habit of mystifying thincs about hin.self. In the following passage Kathryn Tidrick seems to subscribe, thougn partly, to the same explanation ; Lawrence was, firstly, a liar and secondly, a mystic wiiose talent for introspection led him to believe that a man can never know his own soul. He sometime did things for no other reason than to see what rjis action mignt reveal about hiiT,self. His own discussions of nis motives, wnile of the greatest interest, are dangerous props for a biographer to lean on: they are all tooli-ely to be the product either of a desire for ir.istification or of an effort to impose some sort of intellectual coherence en the oast,^ ' 1. Tidrick, Kath.ryn, Heart-pequilinc Araby. C^rr.bridae, 1981, p,170. - 128 - Lawrence the Arabophlle To many people Lawrence was a great Arabophlle, But ti is claim has been disputea by others. As tar Lawrence's own depiction of f.is personality in the Seven Pillars of Wisdom is concerned it is eitner spurious or atleast doubt ful. Intact he portrays himself as one who is servinc two masters: the British and the Arabs. Moreover he has depicted his inner self as a battleground where the feelings of loyalty to his national cause were pitted aoainst his sense of betrayal to the Arabs. But whenever such a conflict arose in his mind or in the actual life he prefereo ^to remain loyal to the British tmpire rather tnan the Arab people. This speaks out the whole truth. That ne was less an Araoophile ano more an imglish, a faithful servant of the British Crown. His friendship witn reisal enc involvement in the Arab Hevolt, as will be discussed later on, was merely a tool to advance the interests of the British empire by disintegrating the Ottoman empire, an ally of Britain's hated enemy, the Nazi Germany, Lawrence ; A Life Sketch Lawrence was illegitimate by birth and can.e to know about it when he was ten year old. Illegitimacy was highly scandalous ano disgraceful according to Victorian Social morality, Lawrence was naturally purtu- bed by this fact of nis life. However, instead of oeina - 129 - frustrated for ever he decided to secure a respectable place in the society oy doing extraordinary and noval things, which were oenerally of no or little interest ror the students of r.is age. Fie began to take interest in medieval miiit.ry arcnaeology when he was merely a school boy at Oxford High School. He also becarr.e notorious a-ong his friends for his omnivorous reaaing. His unquenchable thirst for knowledge and interest in navel subjects led him to study /g-abia Deserta. a well written classic of Charles bouqhty who explored Artbia in the 19th century. The book, infact played a significant role in the shaping of Lawrence's future outlook, but it wes infact D.G, Hogarth, a celebrated arcna- eoloqist and Oriental scholar-let-r on Lawrence's life long friend and principal guide - wr.o directec nis attention towards the architecture of the Crusaders' castles, in Syria and Palestine, As a result he decioea to -^ite a thesis on the same subject in oraer to recei.e his bachelor deciree from the Oxford University, He acquirec worf.ing knowledge of Arabic and went to Palestine and Syria in 1909. Throughout his stay in the land he made it a habit to lodge with local Arab inhabitants. The iir.ir.ediate results of the journey Wcs his thesis for getting his B.A. degree wnich was later published under the title: Crusader "astles. During the sanie journey, mainly because of his lodging - 130 - with the locai Arabs, he elso came to know the then Arab realities. Apparently he was pained at the miserable Arab conditiors and, as his biographers say, de.eloped a sense of sympathy for them ana a strong feelinq of hatred for the lurks, the oppressive rulers of the >nrabs. After having passed his B.A, examination Lawrence, on the recommendation of O.G, Hogarth, was granted a small research stipend (which was barely sufficient to bear his living expenses) in order to Join the British f'useum's mission at Carchiemish on the bank of Euphrates to excavate an ancient Ffittite city, Lawrence first went to Lebanon to attend an American missionary scr.ool at Jebeil in order to improve his knowledge of Arabic, It is not clear if he was impressed by the religious zeal of Americc.n missionarie s by It was, iiowever, at Jebaij that ne was joined/D.G,Hogarth and together with him embarkea upon another journey across Syria, They reached Carchemish in V.arch 1911. Lawrence worked there for three years. His main work was to direct and supervise the Arab and Kurd workmen. He freely mingled with them, learnt their customs, various Arabic aialects and the history of various Syrian Tribes, Just before tne outbreak of the rirst •Vorld War Lawrence joined anotiier exploration expeoition in the Sinai oeninsula which infact was a spy mission. In early 1914, sensing that lurkey, long exploited by tne i- perialist Britain, might take side with Germany in the event of war, -131- Lord Kitchener, the British Resident in Egypt, preoccupiea with the defence of the Suez Canal, decided to spy out and gather information about the activities of the Turks and the Germans along with the Hijaz Railway m Sinai peninsula which wcs virtually unmapped till then. To cover up the espionage mission the Palestine exploration Funa wos asked to seno an expeditionary party consisting of Woolley, Lawrence (both archaeologists with working Knowledge of map-making) and c-aptain S.F, Newcombe, a military engineer, to discover the routes the biblical of Israelites had used in their famous forty years^.vandering in the wilderness, hvidently politics, scholarship and military intelligence were brougnt together to serve the imperial interests of Great Britain. Lawrence and his two companions completed their exoeaition successfully and were preparing their report when the World War First broke out. Lawrence rushed to ugypt end put his services at the aisposal o: the Army's InforiT'.ation Sei vice in Cairo. Initially he had three main functions to perform:to extract information oy interrogating Turkish war prisoners regarainc the position and distribu tion of Turkish troops, to write a manual for tr.e benefit of the British officers end to craw up military maps for the use of the army. - 132 - Lawrence was later shifteo, mainly because of r.is impish behaviour, lack of respect tor autnority and constant refusal to wear full military uniform, to the Arab bureau, a brc.nch of the British Intellicence Service which vas specially set up to aeal with and look after the Arab affairs, particularly the /^rao F\fcvolt, It was the Arab bureau that, actina on oraer from the righ authorities, sent Lawrence to join Faisal's Arab Army in October. 1916. Ihie story of the Arab Revolt and Lawrence's role in it has been described at length, though not always with accuracy, in the Seven Pillars of WisQom. Seven Pillars of Wisdom 'Tne story of the production of Seven Pillars of Wisaom,* writes Richard Ale inaton, 'is long ana complicated, and highly cf.cr£;Cterist ic of Lawrence's pretentious egotism. ^ Aldington further describes the book uS a 'Kind of verbal docginc* wfiich according to hirr. is the *virtue of politician anc intriguer',ana conduces t;.at Lawrence 'i: ight have writeen mucn better if he had 1. Aldington, H. Lawrence of Arabia; A Blogreonical :JiQuirv. London, 195^, p. 313. " Lawrence himself has left a detainee note as to how the Seven Pillars of Wisdom was written, revised and redraftea time and again. The note was sent by the autho: to those wf.o haa either bouc;ht or were uiven cift copies of the 1926 edition, Tr.is note can :.e seen in the preface of the final edition of the Seven pillars of Wisdom, published after Lawrence's oeath i.y his younger brother, /vrnold Wilson Lawrence. - 133 - not striven so painfully to write toowell,^"'-^ Stanley Weintraub refers to Lawrence's masterpiece as not a very good piece ot literature. *Seven Pillars of Wisdotn - as literature -/ he wrote in 1963, 'does not approach so great a work as the Iliaa, but rather has the inaccuracies, extravagances, diffusenc-ss, artificiality - and sustained genius for language - of a J/,iltonic epic, mispalaced in tin.e'(2) But there are other writers wt.o regard the Se\en pillars of Wisdom as a great literary work. For Robert Graves *it is, beyond dispute, a great book, ' V/inston Uhurciiil ranked it 'with the greatest books ever written in the hnglish languagel^ ' He furtner calls it an [I'epic, a prodigy, a tale of torrr.ent, and in tr.e heart of it - a h'.nn'.^"'' Anthony Nutting refers to it as an'epic and a classic'/ '' He furtr.er acduces his point by cuoting J.B. Villars : The profundity of the intrcspeccion and the nakedness of the confessions make one think 1. Ibid. P. 330. 2. Weintraub, S. Private Snew anc Public Shaw. New York, 1963. p. 129. J. Graves, R. Lawrence and tr.e Arabs. London, 1927, P. 4C7, 4. Churchil W. Great Contemporaries. London, 1947, P. 12b. 5. Ibid. P. 127. 6. Nutting, Antr.ony, op. c it. P. 216. - 134 - of Rousseau or rather of Proust or Gide. Though a book on war it contributes to our researches in to the obscurities of the human heart. In the course of a painful quest into a rent and complex self, and behind a screen of dignity and gravity can be perceived some very danoerous problems, few authors have described the troubled twistinos of the serpent with so much penetration and sincerity.^ ^ Whatever trie literary merit or demerit of the Seven Pillars of Wisdom, it seems appropriate to make at least one observation. That Lawrence first began to write his book during the Paris Peace Conference in 1919, probably after having foreseen his failure to defeat the French by pushing them out of Syria and get a *fair deal* for his Arab friends. It may be reasonably concluded that the circumstances in which he decided to write his mind /.•ould not have been objective. He was oi^viously corr.Titted to a cause and as a result produced only what was suitable to serve his puroose, that is, eulogizinq his role in tne Arab Revolt ana that of the Revolt itself in the final victory of Britain in the First World War, This point is further vindicated by the fact of many revisions and redrafting of the Seven Pillars of Wisdom which do not only show Lawrence•s preoccupation witr. producing a literary masterpiece but also speak of 1, Quoted in Ibio. pp, 216-217. - 135 - his concern about what be included in and what oe left out from the final text of the book, Tnis is not a mere figment of .iniagination, rather a fact which becomes crystal clear when one makes a cooperative stuay of the Oxford as well as the final edition of the book published by Arnold Wilson after Lawrence's death in 1935, Besides the evidence inherent in the book ^^^niqhtley and Simpson have proved it beyond sus picion that Lawrence, being a member of British Intelligence, was bound by the Official Serects Act not to write the whole truth. ^' As a result he either exaggerated or twisted some events and suppressed some inconvenient facts of his life and of the Arab Revolt, The title Seven Pillars of Wisdom is somewhat puzz ling. It seems to have been derivea from a Biblical verse: Wisdom has built her house, She has hewn her seven pillars. -^ In a letter to H.H, Banbury Lawrence triea to unravel the mystery saying that the phrase means *a complete edifice of i^nowledge,' for'the figure seven ijnplies completeness in Semitic languages*. ^-^^ But there is certainly more than »^at Lawrence has offered as a possible explanation. The phrase. 1. See Knightley and Simpson, The Secret Lives of Lawrence of /vTabia, London, 1969. P. 154. 2. Proverbes 9:1. 3. (jarnett, Ddvio (,ed) Selecteo Letters of T. £,Lawrence, London, 19D2, P. 236. - 136 - infact, deserves to be interpreted in the light of two other biblical verses, Deuteronomy 1:3 and Exocius 18:21^ ^ which enumerate seven qualities of the leaders of the people of Israel: fear of God, Wisdom, honesty, understanding, good reputation, ability and incorruptibility. Perhaps Lawrence wanted to suqgest that great leaaers must possess the above qualities in order to achieve success in their mission. This, on the one hand, partly explains the cause of Lawrence's own failure to prevent the injustice cone to the Arabs as a result of which he portrays himself as a failea prophet between the covers of the Seven Pillars of Wisdom, and, on the other, conspires to su.gest tnat the Arabs and other eastern nations can be controlled and lorded over only by leaders equipped with the above mentioned seven qualities. Besides the title of the oook there are other things which are equally puzzling, even confusing. For instance it is not easy to decide the genre of the book. Is it an auto biography, fictionalized or real one, a memoir, a travel book or a history of the Arab Revolt? To a lay reader it appears as the book is about all tnese but experts have discussed it either as an autobiogrophy or as a cook of histcry. However "n The two Biblical verses respecti\ely read as follows T" a) 'Cheose men of wisdom, U'cerstancing, anc repute for each of your tribes, ana 1 wi^l set them in authority over you.• b) 'But you must yourself search for capable,God fearing men among all tne people, honest CHG incorruptible ; an , and appoint tiiein over the people as officers.,,' -137- in reality it is both: an account of the Arab Revolt as Lawrence viewed it and his role in it which occasionally has been highly exaggerated. '.Vinston Churchil appears to express the sanie opinion when he says that *as a narrative of war and adventure, as a portrayal of all that the Arabs mean to the world, it is unsurpassed,'^ ^' In the Seven Pillars of Wisdom Lawrence has also subscribed to the same view : It seeiT,ed to me historically needful to reproduce the tale, as perhaps no one but myself in Feisal's army had tbugnt of writinc down at the time what we felt, wr.dt we hoped, what we tried. ^' Apparently what the Arabs including Lawrence felt, hoped and tried v;as nothing but the Arab Revolt which in the author's own words was •wacec and led by Arabs for an Arab aim in /arable. But just after a few lines Lawrence sten.s to contradict this conclusion : In these pages (of the Seven Pillars of Wisdom), the history is not of the Arab movement out of me in it.^^ The contradiction seers to have been deliberately crea ted or it might be regarded as yet another excrrple of Lawrence's habit of mistificaticn. Infact the book, as 1. Churchil,W. op. cit. f, 12b. 2. Lawrence, T.E. Seven Pillars of Wisooa. London, 1966.P.21. All quotations of the Seven Pillars of Wisdom in t; is tiiesis, unless otherwise inoicated, are from the above mentioned, that is, i^enguin Book Ltd. edition, 3. Ibid. 4. ibid. p. 22. - 138 - stated earlier, is both a history ana an autcoioaraphy, Lawrence and the Arabs Seven Pillars of Wisdom is a mirror in which various faces of the Arabs, their history, culture, and their struggle for freedom from the Turks are well reflected. Understandably they have been portrayed as Lawrence liked or viewed them. Europeans - intellectuals, writers, travellers and politicians - have always teit privileged and regarded it as their inaliffiable right to discourse upon Oriental peoples, their religion, civilization and history. In all such discourses they, by and lar-:e, have been prisoners of an ethnocentric outlook. That Europeans, racially and intellectually, are superior to other races, especially the Arabic speaking Asians. As a result it ratner becomes natural for them to regard their civilization and reliaion as normative of otner civilizations and faiths. They further believe that their Eurocentric standards - religi ous and cultural - are not only a fitting scale to judge other people but also universally a-plicable. Obsessed witii this erroneous attitude and approach they have always failed to fully understano 'other people* in an ou-ective as manner. As far/Islam is concerned they have not only failed -139 - to apprehend it but also impudently disfigured and distor ted its own image, Lawrence's view of the hxab race, like those of countless European travellers and explorers of Arabia, is purely ethnocentric. Moreover, it is racial and divides humanity into inferior and superior classes. His approach to /urab civilization is not objective, rather ne tries to understand it with priori norn.s, prejudices end precon ceived notions. Moreover, many of his staterrents axe mere assertions, with.out any argument or proper and rational justification. Besides beino ethnocentric and fully conscious of his racial superiority Lawrence, while discoursing upon Semitic religiosity, apoears to represent a typical spiri tual dilemmathat the englishmen of Victorian era were confronted with, mainly because of some scientific disco veries which had greatly disturbed the calmness of the •Sea of faith'. This faith versus science conflict was a problem peculiar with the Romanized, Hellenized and paganized Christianity of Europe, But the people taking side with the claims of modern science were eager to propagate this controversy as a universal phenomenon, Lawrence seems to have been sornew.' at influenced oy the doubts raised by science and as a result feels free to critici^ the Semites as a simple believing folk, 'oespising doubt, the modern - 140 - crown of thorns'^^ It is quite incomprehensible that why Lawrence, or anyone for that matter, should oecome cri tical of a people whose beliefs are free from metaphysical complexities and far away fron. shaaows of douDts. Lawrence is sympathetic, to some extent, towards the Arabs with whom he worked durino the Arab Revolt and is bitter towards his own nation, faritain, for betraying them by breaking the promises made to Sherif Husain of V.ecca. But as a whole he haa a very poor opinion of the Arab race, their place in history, their faith and civili zation, ana their achievements in art, liter,ture, philoso phy and metaphysics. The Arabs,according to him,had no half-tones in tneir register of vision. They -were a people of primary colours, or rether of olack and wnite, who saw the world always in contour. They were a dogratic people,... Tney dia not understand our metaphysical difficulties, our introspective questioninos. They knew only trutn ana untruth, belief and unoelief, witr.out our hesitating retinue of finer sheaes,^ ' Tr.is is not/end. La'.vrence further portrays the Arabs as a narrow-rrainded people wnose 'ifiiaginotions were vivid out not creative,^ ' h'e accepts th,e fact th>:t in their time of glory the Ara:.s patronized 1. Ibid, p, 36. 2. luid. 3. Ibid. - 141 - art e^nd literature but insists tr.at they then,selves made no worthwhile or original contribution. Nor did they handle great industries: they had no organizations of mind or body. They invented no systems of prilosophy, nor complex mythologies!^ ' Moreover, they were either fanatics or sheer materialists; they 'hovered between lust and self-denial, ^' Their'belief s were mere assertions, no arguments, so they required a prophet to set them forth,^ In sun.'they were incorrigibly children of the idea, feckless and colour-blind, to whom body ana spirit v»ere forever and inevitably opposed. Their mind was strange and dark, full of depressions and exaltations, lacking in rule, but with rrore of ardour and more fertile in belief tran anyother in the world', ^''^ Lawrence's perceotion of Arab civilization was almost negative. He depicts it as of 'abstract* nature, moral and intellectual^ but unpragmatic ana non-applied, Arab civilizations undoubtealy produced excellent qualified individuals but they ended- in futility for tr.ey had no public spirit or sense to put their finer abilities at the 1, Ibid. PP 36-37, 2, Ibia, p. 40, 3, Ibid, P, 37, 4, Ibid, P. 41, b. Ibid, P, 42, - 142 - service of humanity at large, A^oreover, the Arab civili zations, according to Lawrence, 'were fortunate in their epoch, Europe had fallen barbarous, and the memory of Greek and Latin learning was fading from men's minds. By contrast the imitative exercise (and no original cont ribution?) of the Arabs seemed cultured, their mental activity progressive, tneir state prosperous'.^ •' The only real and worthwhile service they rendered to huir.an kind was that they ably preserved 'something of a classical past for 6 medieval future'^ •' Such were Lawrence's Areos of history and so sterile and colourless their civilization which produced no original tfiinkers, philosophers and writers but only imitators. And the Arabs he was sent to work with were even worst, long oppressed by the Turks and waiting for a propnet to deli ver them. However, their ordeal of waiting was about to end for the lone awaited prophet haa emerqeo on the Arabian scene in the person of Lawrence, A prophet, accoroinq to Lawrence, must do some thino extraoroinary and wonderful. And things look more astonishing if done in a greatly difficult situation, it was with this view that, before portraying himself as a 1. Ibid, 2. Ibid, - 143 - prophet of the Arabs, he felt it necessary to degrade, as he has done in the passages quoted above, the Arabs to a level of unmanagable numanity. For raising such a primitive people to the status of a civilized "nation, instelling in them a sense of 'freedom',^^ self respect, and preparainq them for self-rule was so splendid and extra ordinary as to perform a neax miracle. Indeed such was the great dispensation that Lawrence felt he was summoned to administer in Arabia; I meant to make a new nation, to restore a lost influence, to give twenty millions of Semites the foundations on which to build an inspired dream-palace of their (2) national thoughts, ' But the Arabs, accoroing to Saint John Pnilby, were a xenophobic people, (3)' hence can not accept an infioel as trieir prophet, Lav/rence must have been aware of this reality since his wanderina in Syria and Palestine during the summer of 1909. Moreover, he himself had seen the Arabs and the Turl.s who, before the outoreak of a war, used to accuse each other of oeing friends of Christian infidels, the Biglish and the Germans, who had their 1. By freedom Lawrence never meant what the term implies in our tiiie. He simply wanted to ena the Turkish rule and bring the Arabs under British control. See Knightley and Simpsan, op, cit, P,62, 2. Lawrence, l.c,. Seven Pillars of iVisaom.op.cit. P, 23. 3. See, Philby, H. St, J,B,, Saudi Arabia. London, 1953, P. 294. Also see, Philby, H.St.J.B.. Ar^oian Jubilee. London, 1952. P. 204, - 144 - own colonial designs and were infect serving tr.eir imperial interests by helping the Arabs and the Turks respectively. Besides, he was once reminded of the same fact wlen he^ in a discussion with Faisal and his men, indiscreetly extended his regards to the Arab nationalist leaders executed by Jafnal Pasha in UaTiascus, He was taken up sharply by Faisal's men for sympathysing with those le&ders who, in their eyes, had disgraceo themselves by agreeing to'accept Frenci or British suzerainty as the price of help'^ ^ On the same occasion Faisal made it clear to him that We are,,.of necessity tiea to the British. We are delighted to be their friends, grateful for their help, expectant of our future profit, but we are not British subjects, IVe would be more at ease if trey were ^ (21 not so much disproportionate allies, ' Apparently in such circun^^stances Lawrence would not have exoectea to accomplish openly r.is self proclaimed prophetic mission in AraDia. Ratner, in order to achieve his purpose,ne, inlact, neeaea an Arab leader or a puopet prophet, subfnii^sive ana amenaDle wr.o could be easily manipulated whenever neeaed to serve Britain's in-.perial interests. This point eecores furtner clear when one cores 1. Lawrence, T.^,., Seven Fil.Lcrs of .Yisaom. op. cit. P. ICl. 2. Ibin. -145 - across Lawrence's criteria for selecting an Ajrabian prophet. He rejected Sherit Husain, the founder, initiator and undisputed leader of the Arab Revolt as oeing too aged to lead a rebellion. He then met Abdull^^ and within minutes 'began to suspect him of constant cheerfulness. In the eyes of the Arabs ADdullah was a 'far-seeinc state sman...an astute politician,' and was widely regard-d ^s to be*the brain of his fatner and the Arab revoltC^ even Lawrence seems to have been iiripressed by his astuteness and political wisdom but doubts his sincerity, for he, though as eager as anyone else in the Arab /.rmy, to make the rebellicn a success and establish thereafter an indep endent Arab State, wanted nis family to be recognized as the rulino Arab House, ^'oreo• er, he lacked the enthusiasm that can 'set the desert on fire'^ ^ In SU.T. ne did not fulfil Lawrence's criteria to become tr.e leacer of the Arab Revolt. As our conversation continued, I becar.ie more and more sure that AJDdullah was too balanced, too cool, too humorous to be a prophet, especially the armed prophet who, if history oetrue, succeeded in revolutions, (4^; 1. Ibid. P. 67 2. Ibid. . 3. Ibid. p. 68. 4. Ibid. -146- Lawrence then interviewed Ali, another son of the Grand Sherif, at habigh ana lound him a pleasant centle- man, conscientious, direct and aianified in manners. But he also fell short of Lawrence's high standara . because he was 'without areat force of character, nervous and rather tiredl^^ t-urtherrr.ore he was a religious scholar, literal ana bookish, pious but fanatical, concious of his high heritage hence, according to Lawrence's standard, unfit to be ambitious or to be a great leaaer. But inspite of all these there was something in him that promSted Lawrence to consider hijn at least a choice of necessity. If Feisal should turn out to be no propr.et, the revolt would make shift well enough with Ali for its lead,^^ Zaid, Husain's fourth son from a Turkish mother 'was a shy, v/hite, beardless lad of perhaps nineteen, calm, flippant, no zeolot for the revolt'.^ ^' Hence there was no question of making him the leader of the Revolt. Lawrence then went to V/adi Safra to meet Faisal. He was impre;. sed by the later at first sight. : I felt at first glance that this v.as the man 1 had com.e to Arcbia to seek the leader ws.o would brino the /j-ab revolt to full glory.^'^^ 1. Ibid. P. 76. 2. ibid. P. 77. 3. Ibid. 4. Ibid. P.92. - 147 - It is not clear from Lawrence's portrayal of Faisal that what impressed him so much. He describes him as 'tail and pillar like and very slender.'^ ^ He is not depicted as possessing any of the seven qualities of the leaders of the Biblical jewery wnich have ceen stated elsewhere in this chapter. Nor is he portrayed as 'learned in law and religion' as was Ali, nor as a far-sighted statesr.an and astute politician as was Aocullah, He is rather presen ted as a simple soul, a plain personality, without a thinkin'-; brain, in sum, a perfectly suitaole puppet tz play the game of the real prophet that was Lawrence. Perhaps it would not be im.pertinent here to enquire that what motivated Lawrence to search for an 'Arabian Knight' or an *armed Prophet*, The Arab Revolt was started well before Lawrence's coming to Araoia • by Kina f^usain. He was undisputed leader of the Revolt with his sons fully loyal and dedicated to him. Was Lawrence's gesture aimed at sowing differences amona them as the later events such as Faisal's indepenaent military and political initiatives at his advice which resulteo in a rift oetween him (Faisal) and I,is father proved it? There is reason to believe that Lawrence might have done it deliberately in oraer to help Britain play its imperial gaiiie in post war period thinking 1. lb id . - 148 - that a divided Sharifian House would be easy to handle than a well-united Arab leadership. Lawrence praises Faisal occasionally, sometimes of course in a highly flowery and exaggerated language. However, after a careful stuay of the Seven Pillars of Wisdom the reader is left with no choice but to regard Lawrence as the real protagonist of the Arab Revolt. Not only laymen but even clever and well-inforrred readers, such as Winston Churchil, have been prompted to believe that it was not Faisal or anyone else in his army but Lawrence who ably accomplished the prophetic mission of *rousinq the fierce peoples of the desert, penetrating the mysteries of their thought, leaaing them to the selected points of action and as often as not firing the mine himself'(^^ Besides the medium of the Seven Pillars of Wisdom Lawrence seems to have adopted other means to promote his self-image. In an article written in 191? for the Arab Bulletin, an intelligence newsletter circulated 1. Churchil, W. op. cit. P. 161. An Arau historian, Cieorge Antonius has disputed, not only Lawrence's accounts of the Arao Revolt as presented in the Seven Pillars of Wisdom^ L;ut also his projection of himself as the real leader of the rebellion. See the details in his valus le oook. The Arab Awakening. PP. 319 - 324. - 149 - among Uairo-based British oificers, he conceived of hin.self as the main brain oehind the Arab mo •ement. After explaininq a technicue that he believed he had perfected in order to control the Arabs and bend them to his end, he indirectly suggests that he was rr.ore than a mere adviser to Faisal, that is, the real leader of the Arab Army.: Wave a Sherif infront of you like a banner and r.ide your own mind ana person. If you succeed, you will have nundreas of niiles of country ar.d thousancs,. of men under your orders, and for t;,i5 it is worth i^artering the outv/aro show. ' Naturally there- arises a question thct what purpose Lawrence wanted to serve by participating in and leedinq the Arab P'^evolt to full glory and success, Oio his iaeas tally with those of King Husain ana his sons who had raisea the banner of rebellion anainst Turkey? it is difficult to answer this question in 'tv;o plus two is four' terms, ror Lawrence as '//ell as his D^O rE-^hers he\e successfully created a leuion of legends mystifying his oersonality. 1. Lawrence, T.H, 'Twenty S-ven Articles' in Fiart, Liccell, i.£,Lawrence in Araoia ana /^:t€r. Loncon, l94ti),P,l44. -150 - and have written so many contradictory thinns about him as to make it difficult for investigators to findout the real truth. However, as will oe shown later on, the real prophet', that is, Lawrence, contrary to the corrjnon belief, had no special passion for Arab inaependence. Rather his aim was to bring the Arabs of the bertile Urescent under British suzerainty. but, contrary to Lawrence's intention, the Arabs who participated in the Arab Revolt, especially those ?/ho led it, were miqhty clear in tneir perception, as is evident from tne Husain - Mc^'.ahon correspondence, that it was a national movement to get independence from the lurks. To have a better undtrstancing of the Arab case it is necessary to fully understand the ijnplicat ions of the HuSiiin-WcVahon correspondence. Husain-Mcfi^ahon Correspondence Any discussion on Husain McMahon Correspondence will be incomplete unless the circumstances which led to it are briefly ta.en into accouit- Ihe British felt the need for an Arab uprising only when they Decided to breakup the Ottrman Empire after the laser's entry in the Fiirst Vtorid War which had started in August 1914. Infect with the outbreak of the War Turkey though weak and degeneratea, had oecOme strategically - 151 important for the warring European countries. The Germans, well before the flare-up of the war, were trying hard to win the lurks on their side. The british however, wanted to keep them netural. The factors behind Britain's desire or policy were numerous, rirst by neutralizing Turkey, they thou-ht, they will be in a position to concentrate their whole strenctn on the German front, second to safeguard and keep the Black Se& Straits open in order to enaole the Russians to continue their grain trade which was inr.ensely vital or their economic solvency, third they feared that a war 'with the Caliph of Islam would overtax India's loyalty and disturb bgypt;^"""^ fourth they were afraia that the Turko-German cooperation in the war would enaancer their military and economic interests in the Persian Uilf and pose a potentia threat to ihe Suez Canal which was not only vital fox a (2) •quick passd'ie of Indian troops'^ ^ to the war fronts In hurope, especially France bat also to defend India, the Jewel of the British Empire, Tne price the British were willing to pay for "iurkish neutrality was a mere promise to guarantee and maintain the integt'ity of the Ottoman 1. ^'.onroe, Llizabeth, Brite-in's i'.'over-ent in the ^^icidle East, London, 1963, P. 23. 2, Ibic. - 152 - Snpire during the war. But the Germans, on the other hand, were generous enough and ready to waive, at the expense of Egypt and Greece, the'judicial and financia] privileaes enjoyed by foreigners - tJ-.e Capitulations - a^.ainst wfiichi the Turks had been battlinq for two aenerc'^tions! ^ ' The Turkish cabinet was divided on the cuesticn of the war. IVhereas a few advocated a policy of neutrality others favoured a full fledqed entry on the side of Germany. The reason was simple, they did not trust the Triple hntente. Moreover, their feeling was very strong about the humiliation they had su^'fered tine and again at the hands of the intente. Next, the Turks ;';ere greatly impressed by the fact that Germany had not c-cupied any territory of their empire w^ ile, on the contrary. The British had taken Egypt and Cyprus, the French Aloeria and lunisia and the Russians Crimea and portions of Caucasus. Turkey's mistrust was further strenothened when Britain, just belore the outbreak of the war, imoounoed for casti two cruisers built in her shipyaros on an order olaced by Turkey, The Germans were guick to capitalize on this hasty British action and generously o^'fered two of ti e ir cruisers, Goeben and Breslau to Turkey and ttius -ucceeded to persuade them to side with them in the war. 1. Ibid. - 153 - Turkey entered the war on 29, i^ctober 1914. It was certainly not a happy news for Britain. However, they were not perturbed greatly, for they had anticipated it and were making secret plans for an Arab uprising to counter it effectively. Tliey knew the activities of alFatat and Al-*Ahd, the secret societies of the nationalist Arabs working in Syria and Iraq respecti\'ely. But ti^ey were not strong enough to cause any potential threat to Turkey, However, they were also awar •• thiat a strong Arab leader, Sherif' Husain of ^lecca whose relations with the Sublime Porte were not cordial, " was thinking for some time to revolt aoainst the Turks in order to assert his authority in the Hijaz. '-.is son, Abculla:., v/hile on nis way to Turkey, had met Lord Kitchener, the British Agent in Egypt in the first week of February, 1914. His aim was to know whether Britain would supnort an Arab uprising against Turkey? Kitchener discourfned the idea sayinq that Britain's policy was to mainuain fjiendly relations with Turkey. Two months later, in April 1914, Abdullah met Ronald Storrs, the then secretary at the British Agency in Egypt and souoht British help for an Arab revolt. But he was aor-jn oiscouraged on the old ground of Britain's frienos ip •••'itli Turkey, Although kitchener and Storrs hcd discouraned Abdullah's ideas because Britain's official nolicy did - 154 - not permit them to do otherwise, their individual thinking was more or less similar. They became more inclined to the idea of an Arab Revolt when the war broke out in August 191^' and it became imminent that Turkay would become 4 , war ally of Germany. As a result Kitchener, now Secretary of State for War, instructed Storrs to enquire from Abdullah whether his father would take side with Britain in case Turkey joins hands with Germany. Storrs irrjncdiately conveyed this message to Sherif Husain through Abdullah. Storrs' letter put Sherif Husain in a delicate position. There were only two options open for him and the Arabs: 'to stand by Turkey in her hour of trial and earn her grateful recognition, or to rise against her and seek their freedom at the point of the Sword' , He consulted his two sons, Faisal and Abdullah, Faisal was in favour of remaining loyal to Turkey and cautioned his father about French and bnglish designs on Syria and Iraq respectively. Moreover, ho feared that the Arabs were unprepared fox a revolt against Turkey, But Abdullah, already a member of a secret nationalist society, favoured an alliance with Britain and assured his father of support from the nationalist elements in Syria and Iraq. He suggested further negotiations in order to seek an absolute and clear-cut guarantee of Arab independence.from Britain, 1. Antonius, George, op. cit. p. 131. - 155 - After hearing*the views of his sons Sherif Husain decided to play his game cautiously. On the one hand he would try to know the State of national feeling and Arab preparedness for a general revolt by writing letters to principal Arab rulers and sending emissaries to nationalist leaders in Syria and, one the other, he would keep Kitchener in the play by expressing his willingness, through a letter to Storrs, to reach an understanding with England and hinting at a possible Arab uprising in the Hijaz on the condition that England wou^d give him a firm promise to support it. o storrs received the letter before the end of October f 1914 and immediately conveyed its contf^ut'^. to Kitchener in London, Kitchener wasted no time and, on 31 October, 191^ ordered the British Agency in Cairo to write back to Abdullah informing him that if his father alongwith his followers was ready to ally himself with Britain against the Turks he would get all the support from Britain and that his claims in the Hijaz would be duly recognized. The letter contained a further promise of support as well as encouragement for a general Arab uprising and hinted at Britain's ready recognition of Sherif»s Caliphate in case he proclaimed it. It was November the sixteenth of 1914 when Abdullah received Kitchener's message. He was happy and satisfied i. In a later declaration made by Sir Henry Ji.'cVahon in June 1915 Great Britain promised to make Arabia fully independent and expressed her willingness to welcome and recoanize the proclaimation of an Arab Caliphate. See Antonius, George, op. cit, P, 160, - 156 - for it not only promised what his father had demanded : the recognition of his autonomous position in the Hijaz but also opened the prospect of liberating other Arab provinces such as Syria and Palestine from the Turks. He Immediately informed his father who, after a careful study of the letter, directed him to write back to f'itchener through the British Agency in Cairo that he (Husain) was willing to enter into an alliance with Great Britain, Husain, however, expressed his inability to raise tr.e banner of revolt immed iately. V/ith this letter the first round of Anclo-Arab conspiracy against the Turks was over. The second phase was to begin in July 1915 when Sherif Husain sent first of the ten ii^portant letters to Henry WcA'ahon, the then British High Commissioner in Egypt. During the ensuing eight months, between December 191^ and July 1915, Sherif Husain, as mentioned already, was engaged in secret correspondence with the principal riiiers of the Arabian Peninsula and the nationalist societies of the Arabs in Syria and Iraq. Besides Husain, there were five other rulers in the Arabian peninsula. Shaikh Mubarak Ibn Sabah was the ruler of Kuwait. He was in alliance with Great Britain since 1899 and had concluded a fresh treaty after the Turks had entered the Great War, Another ruler was al-Idrisi, fieieely anti-Turk, hence a natural ally of Husain. Moreover, he had signed a treaty of friendship v/ith the - 157 - Government of India in April 1915, Ibn Saud of Majd was also approached by the Government of India in 1915 and consequently was assured of his independence. Ibn Saud was a far-sighted statesman. He saw in Husain's overture an ambitious plan to rule over entire Arabia, As a result his answer to Husain was cautious. He commended his luke warm attitude towards, and his abstention from endorsing the Turkish call to Jihad but refused to extend his unconditional support to him. The two other rulers, Ibn Rashid and Imam Yahya, however, decided to stand by Turkey in her hour of need. But by far the most encouraging response Husain received was from al-Fatat and alrvhd. The two societies had their reservations about the intentions of the Triple entente; they were especially suspicious of the French designs on Syria, In this regard their rode of thinking and approach were near to that of Faisal, That although very eager to throw off the Turkish domination they were unwilling to accept Europe's occupation of the Arab lands. Their aims and intentions are well-reflectec in the resolution passed by a IF at at Society just before Turkey's entry in the '.Var : In consequence of Turkey's entry into the V/ar, the fate of the Arab provinces of the Ottoman Empire is seriously imperillec^ and every effort is to be made to secure their' liberation and independence; it being also resolved that, in the event of tiuropean designs appearing to materialize, the society shall be bound to v/ork on the side of Turkey - i58 - in order to resist foieign penetration of whcftever kind or form,^ However, the members of alFatat. after intramural deliberations, drew up the famous document known as the Damascus Protocol in which they defined the conditions on which they were prepared to cooperate with Great Britain. The Protocol not only reflects Arab desire for freedom from all kinds of foreign influence and domination, Turkish or European, but also delineates the boundaries of a future independentArab state, AlFatat sent this Protocol to Sherif Husain for his kind perusal. It was this Protocol that later formed the nexus of Husain's correspondence with Henry McA'.ahon, Thus after having known the inclinations and intentions of the main rulers of the Arabian peninsula through his emissaries and received the Damuscus Protocol from AlFatat Husain was now (July 1915) in a better position to resume his correspondence with the British High Commission in Egypt, This time, instead of using Abdullah as a tool, Husain wrote directly to Henry WcWahon. They exchanged among themselves ten letters,^ ^ which later became famous as Husain-A'cVahon correspondence, 1, Quoted in Antonius, George, op, cit. P. 153. 2, See the text of Husain-McMahon correspondence in Antonius, George, op. cit. PP. 414-427, - 159 - Husain was straightforward in his very first letter. He spelled out his terms and conditions for waging a revolt against Turkey in order to prcniote the Allied cause. That Great Britain, in event of victory in the war, would support the creation of an independent Arab State as well as recognize the declaration, of an Arab Caliphate for Islam, But McA.ahon, unlike Husain, was evasive on the question of the boundaries of the proposed /orab State, However, when Husain in his second letter corr.plained of hesitancy and lukewarmth on the part of the British Govrrnment /,!cMahon, in his reply to this letter, accepted Husain's proposal subject to certain modifications in the boundaries demarcated by him. In WcMahon's view •'the districts of Mersin and Alexand- retta, and portions of Syria lying to the west of the districts of Damascus, Horns, Hama and Aleppo' , were not purely Arab, hence can not form a part of the proposed Arab State, V.cMahon also clarified that the territories of the Arab chiefs with whom Britain had concluded treaties of friendship will also be excluded from the Arab State, McA'.ahon's reservations regarding 'certain areas' later on caused a great deal of controversy. To be brief, two diametrically opposed interpretations are offered. The British Government as well as the Zionists interpret J/cf/ahon's reservations as to exclude Palestine froc the proposed /jrab 1, Antonius, George, op, cit, P, 419, - 160 - State, But objective and unprejudiced historians have categorically rejected the Anglo Zionist interpretation. For instance Arnold J. 1oynbee: who,on a recuest by the Foreign Office in 1918, prepared a memoranauir., namely, •British Commitments to King Husain' , wrote the following With regard to Palestine, His Majesty's Government are committed by Sir H. l.'cVahon's letter to the Sherif on tne 24th October, 1915, to its inclusion in the bouncaries of Arab independence, Toynbee further wrote in the same memorandum : Palestine was implicitly included in King Husain's Original demands and was not explicitly excluded in Sir H, /.'.cMahon's letter of 24.10.IS), i'/e are g therefore presumably pledged to King Husain by this letter that Palestine should be 'Arab' and 'independent'. The controversy, infact, arose because of Britain's contradictory pledges, first made to the Arabs through McMahon's letter of October 24, 1915 and second, to the 3 Jews through the Balfour Declaration.- of 1917 which precisely meant to establish a Jewish state in Palestine thcit according to Arnolo Toynbee, as explainer, above, was 1, Quoted in Kedourie, Elie, In the An":lo--Arcb Labyrinth. Cambridge, 1976, P. 210, 2, Ibid. p. 211. 3, See the text of the Balfour Declaretion in Luropa, pub,. The f.'icdle East and '.'orth Africa 19^G. London, 198 7, P, 64. - 161 - already included, as per TcMahon's promise, in the Arab State, Added to these contradictory promises was the Sykes-Picot Agreement secretly sicned by the Entente which precisely aimed at dividing the Ottoman empire among themselves after its disintegration, Britain's treacherous dealing with the Arabs is obvious and open for all to see, !'ed the Arabs come to know it before they started their revolt.they, as is evident from the resolution passed by alFatat Society, might not have sided with Great Britain, Instead it is possible that they would have supported the Turks making it difficult for General Allenby to conquer Palestine and Syria. Since the Sykes-Picot Agreement was secret hence unknown to the Arabs untill 1917 when the Bolsheviks, after seizure of pov/er in Russia, made it public the Arabs on the basis of A^cMahon's promise were justifiably right to understand that in event of an allied victory there will emerge an independent Arab State, Having no semblance of doubt about Britain's sincerity they began their revolt on June 5, 1916 in ?.'.adina. Five d^yi later, on June 10, 1916 the rebellion was started in ,Vecca. The Arabs quickly occupied /.'ecca, Jiddah, Rabigh and Yenbo, 1. See the text of the Sykes-Picot Acreenent in Antonius, George-, op. c it. pp. 42r-430. - 162 - However, the revolt afterward began to falter. Several attempts to capture Madina were successfully reversed by the Turks that demoralized the Arab Army. The situation further deteriorated from bad to worse, raising the fear that the Turks might march on >'ecca and put the revolt to an end by hanging its leader, Sherif Husain. Infact the Turks had made such a plan and were all prepared to act accordingly. But fortunately for F-usain the British discovered the plan and acted swiftly to counter it. Ronald Storrs was immediately dispatched to Jicdah to nieet the Arab leaders and get first hand knowledge of their difficulties and requirements, Storrs^ was accompanied by Lawrence who frankly as well as critically talked with Abdullah, Faisal and two other sons of Husain. Later he personally got involved in the Revolt, What was Lawrence's intention behind his involvement in the Arao Revolt? Was he really a champion of Arab freedom or a prophet bent on delivering the Arabs from the yoke of the Turkish oppression,? The answer, if one is ready to believe his accounts of the Revolt as recoroec in the Seven pillars of V/isdom. is in affirma".ivo. Husain had raised the banner of Revolt for an 'Arab aim in Arabia' , and the purpose of Lawrence's participation in it was to help him restore the lost Arab glory. And when he (Lav;rence) discovered his country's double- The Arab revolt had begun on false pretences» To gain the Sherif's help our Cabinet had offered, through Sir Henry WcMahon, to support the establi shment of native governments in parts of Syria and ^'esopotamia. Saving the interests of our ally, France. The last modest clause concealed a treaty (Kept secret, till too late, from ?.'c?/,ahon, and therefore from the Sherif) by which France, Hngland and Russia agreed to annex some of these promised areas, and to establish their respective spheres of influence over all the rest, Lawrence, then, proceeds to say that v/hen the 'rumours of fraud reached the Arab ears' , they 'asked me a free agent to endorse the promises of the British government' . He also claims that he 'had no previous or inner knowledge of the >,'cf,'ahon pledges and the Sykes-Picot treaty' . However, he was not a 'perfect fool' as not to understand that after the victory the promises would become meaningless like a 'dead paper' , He also accepts 1. Lawrence, T.E. Seven pillars of VH.sdom. op. cit, P. 282. 2. Lawrence, T.E., Seven Pillars of V/isdom. op, cit. p. 83, Lawrence might not have oeen aware of the SyKes-Pi'cot Agreement, at least until Henry Mc/;.ahon was kept in "che dark, I'owever, his protestation of ignorance about f/.cA'ahon correspondence seems impiausiole. Kjiightly anc bimpson have proved beyond suspicion that he was not only aware of but even . 'nad been involved in th^ corr-s- pondence between Hussain and Cairo''.' (See The Secret Lives of Lav/rence of Arcbia. op, cit. p, 607"^ - 164 - that had he revealed the v/hole truth the Arabs would have parted corroany with Great Britain and real icncd themselves vAth the Turks, but to rerr.ein loyal to his countr-^ he spoke a blctant lie to reassure his Arab friencs that his Government was sincere in its promise; Mhc Arabs \v«re thus reassured and 'performed their fine thincjs, but' , scys Lawrence, 'instead of being proud of v/hat ;ve did together, 1 was continually and bitterly ashamed' A ^Fe, ho.;ever, 'vowed to make the Arab revolt the engine of its own success as well as a handmaid to our :igyptian conpaian and vowod to lead it so madly in the final victory that expeciency shoulc counsel the powers a fair settlement of the Arab's moral claim' P^ The overall picture that emerges from Lawrence's self-portrayal in the Seven Pillars of '.Vlsdcr is that he was a conscientious man and fully committed to the cause of Arab independence. But in reality he was a political intelligence officer of Great Britain and as much insincere and double- faced as his Government, His double-dealing has been provec beyond doubt by Knightley anc Simpson who have quoted extensively from the records of the Foreign Cffice to clarify their stand-point. According to the two writer § Lawrence 1, Not only Lawrence but the British Government also made false statements to reassure King Husain that Britain was bound to keep her word. See the details in fCniahtley end Simpson, op, cit, pp, 70-71, 2, Lawrence, i .u. Seven Fillers of ..'isdom. op. cit, p. 28'^. 3, Ibid. - 165 - was attached to Faisal in order to watch over his activities and advise him to lead the Arab Revolt the British way and not to let it run in France's favour, so that his country's interests in Arabia will be easily served in the post war period, Lawrence, infact, contrary to his protestations In the Seven Pillars of Wisdom or elsewhere, never intended an independent Arab State, Rather, as is evident from The Politics of Mecca, (a confidential paper that Lawrence as a member of Cairo-based General Staff Intelligence prepared in January, 1916) his purpose behind instigating an Arab insurrection was, on the one hand, to break the Ottoman Bnpire which even in its decadent state was a power to be reckoned with, and, on the other, to establish numerous Arab States under British tutelage and keep them constantly at logger heads with each other through a policy of divide and rule and by promoting jealousy and rivalry among them (Husain's) activity seems beneficial to us, because it marches with our iimneaiate aims, the break up of the Islamic 'bloc' and the defeat and disruption of the Ottoman Empire, and because the State he would set up to succeed the Turks would be as harmless to ourselves as Turkey was before she became a tool in German hands. The Arabs are even less stable than the lurks. If properly handlea they would remain in a state of - 166 - political mosaic, a t ssue of small jealous principalities, incapable of cohesion, and yet always riady to combine against an outsicic force. The altornativo to this seems to be the control and colonization by a Huropecn power other than ourselves which would inevitably come into conflict with the interests v/e already possess in the !'ear cast. In the same p&p'r L?v.'renc'- further su.xcsts to create two Caliphates and keep them embroiled in rivalry and hostility towards each other : (Husain) has a mine to takinn the place of the Turkish Government in the Hejaz himself. If v/e can only arrange thc'^t this political change shall be a violent one, v.-e will have abolished the threat of Islam, by dividing it against itself, in its very heart, Thore will ^hen be a Khalifa in Turkey and a Khalifa in Arabia, in thooloical warfare, and Islam will be as little formidable as the papacy when popes lived in Avignon, Lawrence not only proposed to divide Islam against itself but also suggeseted ways and means to achieve 1, i^uoted in Knightley and i>lr.pson, op, cit, r?. o2-o3. 2. Ibid, PP. 62-63. - 167 - this purpose. In a secret memorandum : The Conquest of Syria If Complete that he prepared in early 1916, nearly a year before he practically got involved in the Arab Revolt, he urged the British Government ^o utilize the opportunity that the war with Turkey had offered to end the religicus supremacy of the Ottoman Caliph. According to his analysis it was not possible for Britain to appoint a Caliph on her own as she had installed a Sultan in iZgypt, The Sultan of Hgypt, in his view, was •loose-mouthed'• and because of his special relationship with Britain was unlikely to be accepted or proclaimed as Caliph by Arab Muslims, Hov;ever, Sherif Husain, he opined, would be Britain's best choice. The Sherif had considerable influence in the Hijaz and Syria, But his relations with the Turks were tense. He was even suspected by many as being disloyal to the Ottoman Caliphate, Infect, he v/as being held down by the Turks with the help of a Turkish corps and money, Lawrence proposed to buy the Sherif either through the Government of Incia or of Egypt, And to free him from the clutches of the Turkish army, he chalked out a detailed programme to destroy the Hijaz Railv/ay that was used by the Turks for civil and military purposes and upon which they were heavily dependent for maintaining their control over Arabia, In the said paper Lav/rence also evolved the tactics that he v/as later to use in order to cut the Pilgrim Railway, - 168 - It should, however, be clear that Lawrence's aim was not to install the Sherif as ruler or Caliph of entire Arabia as the later had demanded to be in his first letter to ^'.c^',ahon. Syria and A'.esopotair.ia, in his view, should certainly be excluded from Hugain's domain or Kingdom, In 'The Conquest of Syria' he emphatically states : If we wish to be at peace in S(cuthcrn) Syria and S (outhern) /.'esopotamia as well, and to control the .lioly cities, it is essential that the ovvner of Damascus should either be ourselves or some non-Muhammad an power friendly to It is thus crystal clear that La\'ffence's aim, quite contrary to Arab expectation and .VcMahon's promise, was, first of all, to eliminate the Ottoman rqJLe from Arabia and, second, to replace the Turks by various Arab rulers hostile to each other and, third, to establish British rule in Syria and f'esopotemia or put them under control of some friendly non-Islamic nation, f'owever, Lcwrenc.'s ideas underwent a crastic change when, after the publication of the Syl-'.es-Ficot Agreement by the Bolshewiks, he intelligently realized that Britain was more than ready to hanc over Syria to 1, Cuoted in Knightlcy and Sirpson, op. cit, F. 62. - 169 - the French, an idea that he hcteo.^ ^ It was this realization that le. d him to think of an Arab government in Damascus under British tutelage. And to strengthen the Arab position or their 'norLl claim' > (not their right) as he referred to it in the Seven Pillars of Wisdom (P, 283) he exhausted all his energy toolead the Arab forces %o occupy Damascus before General Allenby's ermy could do the same. He succeeded in his plan, entered Damascus triumphantly and established an Arab government under Shukri Pasha hoping that his country would appreciate the Arab contribution and, as a result, renounce the hated Sykes-Picot Agreement, But '.Vhen Allenby, inspite of this great Arab cont ribution to the Allied Victory, told Faisal at a conference not to do anything with the civil administration of Damascus, Lawrence realized at once that he hca l:.st. Bitter and frustrated he exchanged hard worcs with Allenby. But, realizing that it would not v/ork, he, all of*sudden, left for London, Lawrence's sudden and abrupt departure from Damascus has been thoroughly misunderstood by many of his biographers as having been a result of his disgust with 1. For Lawrence's hatred of the French and his endeavours to keep them out of Syria See Ibid, PP 4-L 39, 75 and 228. - 170 - the Arabs and himself, especially with his role of double-dealing;^This is quite untrue, Infact his move was well-calculated. After his conversations with Allenby he had come to the conclusion that Britain meant to implement the Sykes-Picot Agreement in spirit and letter. This precisely meant his defeat. But he was not the sort of person v,/ho could accept his defeat, so easily. The battle for post-wax settlement, he realized, would be now fought on negotiation tables in London or elsewhere in Europe, And he decided to be there in order to get into contact with men who v/ere to fight the political battle. 1, Infact there is a passage in the Seven pillars of '//isdom that appears to have misled some of Lawrence's biographers to reach at such a conclusion. But v^en carefully studied the same passage seems to justify our stand. That with the fall of Damascus Lawrence felt his work in Arabia was finished and the sceae of battle for deciding the future of Arabia was certain to be shifted from Arabia to London, The passage is quoted here in full : 'I was tired to death of these Arabs J petty incarnate Semites who attained heights and depths beyond our reach, though not beyond our sight. They realized our absolute in their unrestrained capacity for good and eviljand for two years I had profitably shammed to be their companion. To-day it came to me v/ith finality that my patience as regards the false position I had been led into was finished, A week, two weeks, three, and I vould insist upon relief, /,'.y nerve had broken J and I would bo lucky if the ruin of it could be hidden so long' . (P, 607), - 171 - A few days after his arrival in London, Lawrence became active, devised a plan and submitted it to the British Government. The plan urged Britain, first, to abandon the Sykcs-Picot Agreement and, second, to divide Arabia into four states. The Hijaz was to be fully independent under Kino Husain, But Syria and //esopotomic were to be cut into three states : Syria under Faisal, upper Mesopotamia under Zaid and lov.'er /.'esopotaniia under Abdullah. Although Faisal, /^bduliah and Zaic were to be installed Kings of their respective domains they were to have limited freedom and work under British control and tutelage. As can be seen this plan reflects more of Lawrence's super patriotism than his love for Arabs' right to self- determination, ?,'oreover, it was in complete consonance with his pre-war plan about Arabia that he had first formulated in The Politics of }.fecca and The Conquest of Syria : instead of creating one Arab nation he proposed to set up four states. Strikingly Lawrence's plan was similar to the Sykes-picot Agreement in the sense that it also did not take into account the Arabs' desire for full independence and self-determination. Naturally the pro-French elements were quick to attack him saying that his championship of the Arab cause was dubious. But he remained unperturbed and replied bluntly : - 172 _ Self-determination has been a great deal talked about, I think it is a foolish idea in many ways. V/e might allow the people who have fought v/ith us to determine themselves, people like the ^lesopotamian Arabs, who have fought against us, deserve nothing from us in the way of self-determination )• ^ But inspite of Lawrence's best efforts, the plan could not be pushed through. Lawrence, undeterred by his failure, then switched to a new scheme. He successfully convinced his country that a pro-British government in Syria and Palestine would be in Britain's favour, especially to safeguard her interests in the Suez Canal end Hgypt. It was with this viev/ that while speaking before the Eastern Committee of the ".Var Cabinet he proposed to install Faisal in Syria and Palestine under British tutelscc. As rogrrds the Balfour I>eclaration he inforr.^;d the Cornmittep that American Zionist Jews will b° acceptable to the Arabs as adviser and financier. Convinced about the utility of the scheme the British Government asked Lawrence to persuade the Arabs and the Jews to sign an agreement oi understanding and cooperation, Lawrence had always viev^ed the Balfour Declaration as favourable to, the Arabs and Britain, V/ith this very vicv/ 1.. Quoted in Knight ley and Simpson, op, cit, F. 99, - 173 - he had arranged a meeting between Faisal and Chaiir. Weizmann on June 4, 191c near Aqaba, nov/ a pOrt city in Jordan, 'Veizmann had offered Faisal the Je-./ish help, financial and technichal, in order to build a prosperous Arab Kingdom provided he would riase no objection to the Jewish immigration into Palestine. Faisal is reported to have agreed with Weizmann's idea in principle. They remained in contact with each other till the final agreem nt was reached gt around tv/o weeks before the Paris Peace Conference. By the time Faisal was in London, Qn II7 December 1918 Lav/rence arranged a meeting between Faisal and Weizmann at Carlton Hotel and helped them sign the document which later ceme to be known as Faisal'V/eizmann Agreement . According to the Agreement the British were accepted as trustee power over Palestine; the Jews were given the right to settle in Palestine and to have a say in the government^ 1. See the text of Faisal-V/eizraann Agreement in Antonius George, op. cit, PP. 437-39. It is interesting to note thtt in the Carlton Hotel only the outlines of the agreement v/ere discussed. The final draft was to be prepared later on, Ho.vever, when the final document reached Faisal on January 4, 1919 for his signature he found that certain nev/ words - Jewish state and Jewish government - were included in it which Faisal refused to accept and insisted that they be altered to Palestine and Palestine government. This was done accordingly. 3ut Faisal became a little more Cautious and inscribed a stipulation on the draft document in Arabic which was inimediately translated by Lav/rence. (See Lawrence's translation in Knightley and Simpson, op. cit, p, 118). But the translation was faulty even misleading. There is remarkable difference betv/een Lawrence's translation and or.3 that was later done by George Antonius. (See the Arab Awakeninc, P. 43^). Sor- historians have accused Lawrence of misleading both, Faisal and Weizmann, to aspire for and believe v.-hat they never intended to. It is possible that Lav^rence might have deliberately kept them in the dark bv not telling them the whole truth, for he needed their'full cooperation at the Paris peace Conference- to counter Fr--nch designs on Syria. - 174 - and Faisal v;as to get money and financial advice from the Jews in order to keep his government solvent and initiate development programmes in his country. This was precisely the policy which Faisal, The Zionists and the British were to pursue at the Paris Peace Conference, But this plan, as v.fell known now, did not work, liov^ever, what is more pertinent is knowing the fact if Lawrence was really interested in promoting the Arab cause ? If one goes by his so-called pro-Z-jrab activities the answer is assuredly in affirmative. But his real intention, as revealed in a letter to Allan Dawnay that he wrote on 2c? September 1919, (and obviously after the signing of the Anglo-French Agreement in this very month which, infact, aimed at ir:plem.enting the Sykes-Picot Agreement. In accordance with the Agreement the French troops replaced the British army in Syria giving the indication that they wanted to rule the country at any cost) was not to help the Arabs achieve their goal of indfependence but to push the French out of Syria : The French will be on th:ir best behaviour for months, and give Faisal his money unconditionally. Then they will try to turn the Screw, He '11 say he doesn't want their money, because by then the Zionists will have a centre in Jerusalem, and for concessions they will finance him. (This - 175 - is all in writing, and fixed, but don't put it in the press for God»s sake and the French). Zionists are not a Govern ment, and not British, and thejr action does not infringe the Sykes-picot agreement; ' On the surface it was a cunning but ir. reality a foolish scheme. Cunning because it aimed at abolishing the Sykes- Picot Agreement without involving Britain, and foolish because it failed to comprehend France's emotional as well as ir.-.perialist attachment with Syria. Infact, it was superficial for Lawrence to think that the French would readily leave Syria on just having been told by Faisal that they were no longer needed in his country. However, historically speaking, such an occasion did not arise, Lawrence's plan, as indicated earlier, was successfully frustrated by consumate, clever and somewhat aggressive French diplomacy. The San Remo Conference, held in April 1920, ratified the Anglo-French Agreement of September 1919.'As a result Britain was proclaimed mandatory power over Iraq, Palestine and Transjordan and France over Syria. Lawrence, depressed and disheartened, had already retired to Oxford and got engaged in completing his unfinished Seven Pillars of Wisdom. Likewise Faisal, after 1. Quoted in Knight ley and Simpson, op, cit, P. 120. - 176 - the Paris Peace Conference, had gone to Damascul to rule his country. But a few months after the San Remo Conference, in July 1920 France o.-Usted hisri at gunpoint. Neither Lawrence nor Great Britain came to his res cue, On 28, July 1920 he passed through Pelestine which had come under the British mandate, Ronald Storrs who had been involved in the Arab Revolt since its beginning v/as present on the oecasion to describe the pathos of the r.oment; IVe mounted him (Faisal) a guard of honour a hundred strong. He carried himself with dignity and the noble resigns.tion of IsIc-rn,,.,though tears stood in his eyes as he was wounded to the soul. The Egyotian Sultanate (under British protection) did not recognize him, and at Cuantara Station he awaited his train sitting on his luggage,^ ^ Lawrence's activities at the Paris Peace Conference and after have led many people to believe that he was an Arab partisan. On the contrary he was a British through and through, Infact he was associated with Faisal in order to use his influence v;ith him to serve the interests of his country. This is evident from the remark that Arthur Balfour made about hiir. in rcspons'^ to a concerted effort made by the Pro-French elements in the Fcreigp Office to get rid of him : 1, Storrs F-.onald, Orientations. London, 1937, FP, bOb-ZC'':, - 177 - If there is a settlement, the only way of reaching it - Without bloodshed - is through Faisal., and if it would be a mistake to keep him from here, I consider it would be an equal mistake to keep Lawrence from Faisal.V As regards his media ca>mpaic/i against Britain's high handed rule in Mesopotamia it is pertinent to note that it was mainly aimed at criticising certain policies and had nothing to do with Arab aspiration for establishing an independent State, This is anply clear from the secret records (now made public) of the British Government. That he had volunteerily offered his services and free advice to quell the Iraqi rebellion against British irSperialism. His one suggestion, interalia, was to establish 'a native (but not fully independent) state with English advisers only' .^ It is interesting to note that while on the one hand Lawrence, the so-called champion of Arab cause, was giving the impression, especially through his media campaign, that he was sympathetic towards the Iraqi people and on the other, he was secretly engaged in devising a scheme to frustrate the Arab aspiration and desire for complete freedom. 1. Ouotecl in Knight ley and Sir.pson, op, cit. F, 126, 2, Quoted in Ibid. p^ j_39^ - 178 - Lawrence, with his expertise and insight in the Arab affairs, was a great asset for the British. Viewing his renewed interest V/inston Churchil, who by then had become the Colonial Secretary, asked him to join his staff as his personal adviser. Lawrence accepted the offer seeing in it an opportunity to actualize his old dreaxr. : to bring Arabia under British control and suzerainty. But the fir^t problem was to suppress the rebellion. On his advice the Royal Air Force carried a series of brutal bombings and brought the rebellion to an end, Lawrence's next step was to find out an amenable Arab ruler and devise a system of government that, v/ithout hurting the Arab nationalist feelings, would ensure the British domination and safeguard her interests in the region. In complete harmony with Churchil he devised a plan which conceived of establishing Faisal in Iraq and Abdullah in Transjordan as King and Amir respectively. Both the brothers were coerced into accepting their respective thrones through •fast, brilliant and cynical diplomacy, complete with promises, threats and pay offs' , However, their father. King Husain refused to toe the line. Lawrence tried hard to persuade him to ratify the Treaty of Versailles, accept French and British mandate over 1. Knightley and Sirpson, op, cit, P, 144, 179 - Syria and Palestine respectively and approve of the new arrangements in Iraq and Transjordan in return for a subsidy of ^ 100,000 a year that v/ill enable him to rule in the Hijaz, Bui Husain refused to budge, insisting on British withdrawal from Palestine, lamenting on their betrayal and bitterly regretting to having raised the Arab Revolt. King Husain was, nodoubt, nonplussed and betrayed by the British, But Lawrence had quite a different view. Having installed Faisal in Iraq and Abdullah in Transjordan he was satisfied and declared that Britain was 'quit of the War-time Hastern adventure, with clean hands* .^ 'Was it really true or a travestical assertion ? Indeed it was ridiculous for Lav/rence to make such a claiin, especially in view of the fact that the British had made many a pledge- to the Arabs and fulfilled none of them. For instance tr.ey had promised them an independent Arab state but created three petty Kingdoms, one in the Hijaz, second in Transjordan, third in Iraq and imposed an undesirable mandatory system'upon Syria and Palestine, Ji'oreover in the Anglo-French Declarati they had recognized the Arabs' 1, Ibid. P. 151, 2, This declaration was announced by France and Britain a few days before the general armistice with Germany, See the text of the Declaration in i^uropa PUD, The A'lddle bast and North Africa 1958. op. cit. p. 64. - 180 - right to self-determination. But instead of doing so they placed men of their own choice in Transjordan and Iraq, Viewed in this perspective Lavffenc€*s claim of having ful filled all Arab promises appears to be hig-zly absurd. However, he had reason to feel satisfaction. Well before the beginning of the Arab Revolt he had dreanpt of dividing islam against itself, to weaken the world Islamic ummah beyond recovery and by ooing so to eliminate the so-calied threat of Islam to Europe, With the Ottoman mpire having been broken, the /.rabs divided and pitted against each other (such as the contlict between Husain and fbn Saud) Lawrence had indeea achieved his purpose. His aream had really come true. •*•<»•• Chapter IV SAir.T ^Qi'M PHILBY /•\ix. ou fi ret ,: 9' r. : .- 1 : _,i iiut it j u :,t so • - r<-ns tTi^t r- n ."'th t c-nti ic < '. iliti s o.i ' nostly :;; : n 'n 'raintrUs vv:i.:e conl ' rrriisr is ci--i - i u( u:-. xt xc, tr,. r( t • ,r,-t L,i.rD: i- sin tri^t jnqIar;G,a cruni^v nctoilous tor its '' r. ir-iis", estM'Ciaiiy in tri" pdC-t, r.i.s ..-fen norc ft.Ttil tl.. n .my ottr-r sinr;ie ciwntry in pr-ouu' in^- ei centric ii.<-n and wom'-'n, a oit'ea which s-ers to have (ie..arteci lorever aftci th-' death of Pnilby in i960, ihese e•c^'nt.ic personalities oenerally volt 'O M .'inst th 'r>l-ui i :,(. v. way '.f li.inkirid, soeinl norms or u'-nerai rule ol tt.eli time, Philby (1;.L!J-1960) IS O; ten lunkcd -vith /.'ilfrici o cawcn blunt (L'-4(.)-l9: 2^ 'or th-y ooth ioatlu*ri imp'-rialism .srid su;.!porte(i tht.' Crii;^'' )t Hr^.ti inc;ep(>nd •nc'. . Hf is .•. ! so conipai eci ,itr. T.L. Luwi'-nu > (^ lo r-L:^Jb) t oi t; ey i-oth na'i a unic.'ue t ^sscinat idn i oi thn? A-: abs ana w irk-^n to oromote their ^_Arabs) • ipt^-res : s ' in tii ] y peculiar stylo. But in many respects, e-s will oe s^-en later on, Philoy was different irc^m the ether two, H^ was ini act a clabS oy himself or, as "many people would prefer to say that r.e .vas a cjiaiinn exap.cle by of a paraooxical person alit /''anv stancard. For, ";hiie claimir.j to oe c soriaiist ne often *lirt'-c .vitn cons^r\'ativ- s or aes- oite beir : a declared pacifist iic aoproved of er at 1 -ast showea inuifrerence to iLn Sauo's oloooy -ars. - 182 - It is, however, undisputed that ne wos hiqhly adventurous, studious, intelligent and a proliric writer. Moreover, he was an excellent Arabist and knew the Arab realities from primary source^-tut inspite thes^' qualities he was not a suitable nan from the stana point of British imperialism, hor he was an opinionated person, a non-confir- mist and lacked tne tact ana poise of Lawrence and Miss bell to win the favour of the men in power ana persuade them to act as he liked or advised. As a result he, unlike Lawrence and Bell, coula not perform well on Britain's political stage. Bell, Lawrence and Philby all have written extensively about the history and civilization of the Arab people. But their aims and intensions were different. Bell and Lawrence were committed imperial aoents and the purpose of tneir aca demic career was to provide information to the British imperialists in order to exploit the economically poor and politically backward nations and prolong their imperial presence in the Arab world. Philby, however, was made of a different stuff. Ke criticised imperialism as out dated which in his opinion was inimical not only towaros the colonized people but also old a real disservice to Britain's image abroad. His image of Britain as a world power was that it should help unaeraeveloped or less advanced nations - 183 - to achieve and enjoy independence and stand firmly on their feet. Ho further ppined that such a gesture of British generosity would enhance its international imagl on the one hand and serve its economic and political interest on the other. In sum he was anti-iinperialist and not anti-Britain. Philby, unlike Bell and Lawrence, has not been given due scholarly attention mainly owing to his anti-irrperialist stand. His contribution to Arab stucies, however, is enormous. He has written on a variety of subjects such as 'history and the classics, the literature of several modern languages, archaeology and the sciences, politics, economics and finance, geology and the animal Kingdom?^^ But mainly h--- was concerned with cultural and political aspirations of the Arab people and presented their case in a pruoent intellectual manner. His aim, unlike tnat of Lawrence arc Bell, in knowing the Arabs was not to rule them, Infact due to his long association with the Araos of all kind, especially with one of tr.eir most powerful leaders, Ibn Saud which ultimately loa him to embrace the faith of Islam he was more fitted and better placed than others to underst and write about the Arab aspirations for unity and their desire to throw off the yoke of infidel imperial rule. He also showed courage and 1, A'.onroe, Elizabeth, Philbv of Arabia. Lonocn, 1973, p. 9. - 184 - candour to conderrin the imperial policies and tne orutalities committed by his country, Great Britain, an outstanding contiibution which is rarely found in the writings of his prominent contemporaries. On the basis of the reasons stated above it would not be improper, rather useful and appropriate, to make a comprehensive study of Philby's ideas and views on va-i-ious Arab issues ard praclerns which -.vere :c"nonly Known in b.is tirr;e and seme of th^m still rem.ain unr«sjl'.--a, Threughtout his career, acaoemic, political and aomini- strativ-r^, Pniloy was bold and outspoken. He never hesitated irom airing his view on any given question and problem even if it went against his own interests, instances of his Doldness are numerous,For example it was not irrpossible for him and ooviously it would have been in his best-? interest to confirm to ingtead of opposing and criticising the official British policy while ne was serving in Iraq ana Joraan, Had he done so no pressure could have been exerted oh him to resign trim his government post and face economic hardship. Likewise it should have oeen possinle ror hia not to criticise the vagaries of the Sauoi recime, as most of his European contemporaries oased in Arabia aic, in orcer to avoid the wratn of King Saud who oanishea him from the country though tor a snort poriod. bit there is another aspect of pr.iloy's cnaracter. Obviously ht was human, nence not tree from shortcominas. - 185 - Whether amidst his family members and friends or in the company of outstanaing personalities he used to make his presence felt and liked, even tried to project himself as being a dominant and extraordinary figure, //oreover, his aversion to opposition or opposite views was so strong and vehement that he used to become almost intolerant when things did not go the way he liked. Any thing that w«nt against his will or tended to challenge his dominant position was bound to irritate- him and invite his indignation, Infact he was th* sort of person who could be easily pleased and even more easily could be incited to grotse and grov.l. This habit seems to have become his second nature. It will be frequently witnessed in this chapter that he was very fond of forming an opinion on every issue ano always triec to play a role accordingly. Independent thinking is an asset, an admirable quality which merits to be appreciated by t>ne and all. However, th- moment it makes one regard himself as an expert par excellence whose opinion or policies must be appreciated and adopted by all it becomes alarmingly dangerous. For 'hjs bloated' ego makes him behave with others in a way as they were academically and intellectually inferior to hir.. Moreover, it is in the nature of such men that they always try to prove themselves to be right and others wrong. Thpy find a - 186 - certain Kind of psychological and emotional satisfaction in doing so that makes them blind even to highly genuine criticism. While going through Philby's works one is often compelled to think that he is engaged in such a business. Sonietime he evtn app^'trs to have indulg-c in s*:-lf-agranciz rr'-r.t. Pnilbv had, however, sorr.e characteristics and virtues which werp shared by the Arabs and henc bound to brlnq hirr closer to the::.. In the first place his approach was highly individualistic and it was probably becuas<: of this that h( became so deeply attached with the Arab p-=ople who are 'individualist in the highest degree', and in their •lands the Trinity of Liberty, Equality and Fraternity is worshiped more frequently than even it was in France'} Similarly, as Freya Star.< has put it, Philby was 'gregarious and pugnacious, open in his enmities and warm in his friendship'.'•^ Stark was probably promptec to pass tr.e above remark after having been inspired by a fanious Ara- saying that infact reflects a peculiar Arab characteristic : the enemy of my friend is my enemy and the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Another characteristic of Philby v/as that he used to see things in black and white and had couraje to call 1. Philby, H.St.J.B. A Pilgrim in Arabia. Loncon, 1946, P. 11. 2. Cuoted in Vionroe, z. Phil:^y of Arabia, op. cit. P. 2^6. - .187 - a spade a spade. It is a quality which is widely appreciated and admir.d by the Arabs, especially by the bedouins. But in his native Britain it was reqaraea as a major flaw in any personality. To a considerable extent it was this aspect of Philby's personality and character that d-prived him of many rewards and marred his chances of success in British politics anc civil service, hlizab-=th V.onroe, Philby's biographr, was to the point when she remarked. Philby is often bracketed with Lawrence becausf they both worked in the AraJo World, but thTy were opposites in their handling of its arbit.rs, '.Vherc Laworenc^ rightly judgea the tempo that suited the men in power, ana was ai-le to cajole th^n into doing as he adviseo, Philby, hectoring, int Gmperatf- and opinionatec, provoked their wrath and lost his case. All through his lif<- he Saw hin.self as acting from the highest motives, and with a right, in a free country, to think what ne liked and say what he tougnt about oroken oritish promises or his conscientious objection to war. The flaw in him was not the creecs he pre.ched but riis immoderation in expounding them,^ ' Jv'ionro' further says that Philoy aftor having failed in achieving fame and succ-ss in his nr.tive country 'sought acroad the fam^' he reckoned he deserved • .^"^^ To a certain 1. A'onroe, ... philby of Arabia, op. c it, p. 256. 2. Ibid. - 188 - extent her remark was not off th- mark, Howev-r, it should also bf- kept in mind that Philby had afterall som-' qualities and characteristics which were similar to those of the Axabs and thus it was natural for him to seek their companionship. Birds of the same feather flocK together, Philby's Conversion to Islam Philby's conversion took place in 1930, His conversion, as expected^became a big news both in Arabia and abroad. Many prominent Muslims including Ibn Saud welcom.Ki nim to the fold of Islam., Hov,«ver, there was no dearth of men who had res^^rvations about nis sincerit> Some of Ibn Saud • s higr. ranki'u-g officials wore also critical of him p-.ud continued to suspect ev_-n after his conversion that he was an agent oi Ureat britain sent to Saudi Arabia for the purpose of espionage, Philby's conversion was not the result of a sucden and he" sty decisi(.n. Intact ne was conterr.plat inc to adopt Islam sincf- his resignation from his government**post in 1924, Wc.ny a time h© felt like aoing it. So w< re many Arabs who exp'.'ctcd that one day h*: wculd surely embrace Islarr, ror instanc'- in 191/-1918 when he was journeying arong the Araos of Najd a c-rtain Ion H.avAvat, when requesteo by Philoy to Consider nim a N'ajci, replica piously that LV the grace of God h., (Philby) will become a A'uslim by aoopting thr- truv- faith.^ '' but that op--ort'.ne t ir.e came only atter twelv^: ;_1) PhilDy, Ai-abia of the ;Va;-j.auis. London, 1928,P,58, - 189 - years in the summer of 1930 when he- was invited by Ibn Saud to Mecca to enter the fold of Islarr.. In .^arly years of the running century Christ end 001 was not as much liberal and irreligious as it appears to be in its closing quarter. Likewise people, not only missionaries but also common f.'olk, were of the opinion mainly owing to their imperialist and racist outlook that their religion, Christianity, was superior to world religions including Islam. :^ven non-rpractising Christians used to become greatly perturbed and upset whenever a Christian gave up his faith in ore or to errxrace an ori :\z-.i relioion. They simply could not understand and faixed to see any merits in the belief systems of their subject races. Obviously for men having such a mentality and outlook Philby's conversion was bound to be a shocking event. His family members and friends were especially upset. After hearing "che 'sad news' Dora, Philby's wife, wrote to the later's mother, i.'.ay : I've had the most disturbing letter from Jack (Philby), So he has taken the step at last. It does not matter really, I suppose, I don't know quite what, to think of it and on the wholc- I am sorry; ' Philby's fri'-'nds and acquaintances such as Percy Cox and Aj:nold .Vilson were also shocked and criticised his 1, Quoted in ];.onroe, H, Philby of Arabia, op. cit, p, 169, - 190 - decision to ernbraco Islam, 3ut frorr. all such accounts it does app er that both his family mombers . s well £.s his close friends, unlike Ibn Saua's officials, had no semblance of doubt aoovt his sine rity, !-!ov,^v-r, -lizcDOth Monroe who in 1973 wrote Philby's biography has expressec the opinion that he had not sincerely converted to Islairi. She has quoted extensively from Philby's unpublished diaricjs and from men close to him in order to prove h-r point. Infcict she was of the opinion that Pr.ilby adopted the Islamic faith, firstly, to have r-adier access to th-" Kino in order to v^et business contracts in tht.' country and, secondly, to fulfil his desixu of boin'-, th.^ first Curop'.-an to cross the- ac sert tr^ct commonly KnoviTi as the Fiub al Khali or the unpty Cuart-r,^ ' Jv'onroe, however, accepts that Philcy's conversion was not unexpected, for he v;as conterr.platin- to embrace islam for quite a long time. According to philby's unpublished diaries from v/hich J.'onroe has extensively quotud he himself diviced his life' into two phas:'^. In his first phase hw was ^ deeply r^.-ligio-us anc aevout Chiistian. Tl.C' ;.-conc' ph s began •ith nis ,'. pission to Trinity Coll ., Cm. - icge -.-i. r- his nind un r.v-jnt a d:...':t;iC ch, n •. V g. ..'...-ily o-car a socialist, anti- 1, See Ibid. p. 163. - 191 - imperialist and even an atheist. The third phase started when he resigned from the British Government and began to think of adopting the Islamic faith. Monroe finds it dilficult to believe that how a rr.an 'to whom the existence of God had been intellectually incredible since 1907* would all of a sudden embrace Islarr. 'a relicion that hung upon His oneness, as if God cotld be sv/itched on and off like a light** '^, In her final opinion Philby embraced Islam not because of some inner or spiritual urge inside hi m but for the sake of convenience. She further supported her stand by quoting the following words of an englishman : • I saw him once alone (wrote Hope Gill, incharqe of the British Legation in the summer of 1930), He made no pretence whatever, tnat his conversion was spiritual. He nad been deliberating the step for years, ever since the first hot moments of his rage against FiMG's Arab policy. This had now cooled, and tie process had left him wit.^out rancour, but his disassociation from Britis!. ideals remained and he felt increasingly cutoff from things British (0) and drawn to tt ings Arabian.^ ^ The main ti.rust of V.onroe's argument, as evident from the above discussion was that there was rto spiritual 1. Ibid. P. 164. :^. pp, 164-165 - 192 - motivation behind Philby's conversion.This might have Deen true to some extent. However, her corrment that how an agnostic person can suddenly become a aevout religious rr,an seems ridiculous, because if it is possible tor a man to abandon his faith ana espouse agnosticism It should not be difficult or impossible for him to give up his agnostic ideas and start believing once again in the existence ot God, It will be unfair if Philby's own explanations and reasons for his conversion that he offerea on various occasions are not taken into account, i>con after his conver sion he was requested Dy Ibn Saua to explain tr.at what pronpted him to embrace tne Islamic faith. Complying witn article the King's request he v/rote a brief/in Umm al Qura in which he categorically statea that 'Allah has opened my heart to the acceptance of Islam and has guioed me to accept this religion in the roott-a belief and full conviction of my conscience,'^ '' But this was, more or less, a declaration of faith rather trian an explanation of the reasons which led him to embrace Islam, However, in another article he offered a somewhat convincing explanation. His main argument was that like Cromwell's puritanism the Wahhaoee movement led by Ibn Saud was a source of strength ana power in Arabia: 1, Ibid. P, 168. - 193 - The present Arabian puritan movement iiarbingers an epoch of future poli tical greatness basea on strong moral and spiritual foundations. Also I regard the Islamic ethical system as a real democratic traternity, ana the general conduct of life, including marriage, divorce and the absence of unjust stigma of bastaroy, resulting in a high standard of Araoian public morality, as oetinitely superior to the European ethical code based on Christianity.... I consider an open declaration ot my sympatny with Ara bian religion and political ioeals as the best met' ods of assisting tne oeve- lopment of Arabian greatness,^ ' Philby's friends, as mentioned earlier, were not happy with nis acceptance of Islam, lo many of them he wrote letters explaining why he had espoused t; e Islamic faith. In his letter to Uonalo nobertson with whom ne was very close and trank he offered probably the most convincing reason, 'My future', he wrote,'is irrevocaoly oound up with Arabia and Ibn Saud,'^ "^ «e further explain=?d that nad he embraced Islam a tew years ago, especially when he resigned from tfie Government he might have oeen accused of acting out of anger and irustration. But he hoped that now 1. Philby, 'V/hy I turned Wahhabi* Egyptian Gazzette.Septemper 26th, 1930,P.1. 2. Quoted in Monroe, c, p.\ilPy ot Araoia. op, cit. P. 170. - 194 - such an Imputation would not oe laid against him for he hao taken the decision after aue aeiiberation. In the same letter philt)y also complained that now his genuine aspiration^ vere trustratea in his native Britain wnil' on the contrary he was warmly welcome by Ibn Saud and his people in Saudi Arabia. At the end of the letter he declared that his decision was well considered and final. Any way the dded is finally and irrevocably done, and 1 s.^all die in pertect equanimity in the Muslim faith lor which (esp cially on its ethical side) 1 r.ave a very real admiration,^^ Apparently Philby seems to have been impressed by the ethical aspect ot Islam and that he was more concerneo with its political aspect, most especially with the political future and greatness of Ibn Saud's Kingdom than anything else. This gives credence to Monroe's charge that his accepta nce of islam was not a result of some spiritual crisis that he was confronted with but he did so for reasons purely ethical, political and material. However, whatever may have been the motivations behind his conversion, material or spiritual, once he adopted the religion of islam ne stood by it till his final breath. Quite understandably 1. Ibid. - 195 - his conversion brought him closer to the Arab people. He now identiried himself with the Arab nation, their Islamic culture and civilization, and shared their hopes and aspirations for political independence and regarded their achievements and failures as his own, Philby's writings, especially his travel books which he produced both in his pre and post conversion life are rich in the sense that they mirror cultural and socio- religious conditions of the Arabian peninsula of the tirst half of the twentieth century, iispecially his two books - The Heart of Arabia (two volumes) and tae Arapia of the Wahhabis , which were written before his conversion, reflect very clearly the Arab realities out accoraing to the vision with which Philby saw them auring his journeys in Naja in 1917-1918, In these travelogues Philby seers to be concerned with a variety of suojects. but more particularly he aeals with the living realities of the then Arabian society. It is this aspects of his travel books that merits a thorough and comprehensive study, Islam In his travelogues Philby frequently refers to Islam, the religion believed and practised oy the Arabs.As his works were written in two phases of his life. Christian and Islamic, naturally they are divided into two kinds ref lecting two different attitudes.The tirst may be described - 196 - as one of interest and the other as one of inaifterence. In his pre-conversion works he seems taking interest in the suuject ot Islam ana his attitude towards it is some times objective and sorr.etimes negative. That he has meti culously anc objectively aescrioed certain aspects of Islam as unaerstood and practised by the followers of Muhammad Ibn Abd al Wahhab, But on many occasions, as will be seen later on, his attitude or approach appears to have been highly negative. As far philby's post conversion travelcaues are con cerned he s^'ems to have deliberately maintained an attitude of indifference. That he does consciously avoid any reference to Islam which might be regarded as negative or derogatory. As a result his post-conversion travelogues, with the sole exception of A Pilgrims in Arabia are little or not at all concerned with the religion of Islam, It is, tnerefore, reasonable to discuss his overall attitude towards Islam, as reflected especially in his travelogues, without dividing it into two : One of his pre-conversion and the other of his post-conversion life, Philby was a prolific writer and produced many Docks about Arabia, However, throughout his long academic career he did not produce even a single intellectual and academic work that specifically dealt with Islajnic thought, its oelief - 197 - system and ethics.Infact it is mainly in his travel books that he wrote about the Islamic faith. His travelogues, as can be ascertained from the above discussion, do not present a completely disfigured picture of Arab realities, nor are blindly hostile towards the Arab people, their religion and aspirations for independence ana progress. Infact his narrative of his experiences in Arabia, as mentioned above, is objective in many respects. But it does not mean that his works are completely free from subjectivity and contain no ill-will towards the Arabs and their religion. Despite a gieat deal of objectivity that he successfully maintained in all his works, travelogues or serious books, his outlook was still ethnocentric and curopean, if not Christian, He seems to be obsessed with a sense of belonging to the superior culture and civilization of the West, Naturally his superiority complex not only affected, here and there, his objectivity but also prejudiced his judgements on many counts. Moreover,this sense of belonging to tho Christian West was aroused^rather heightened to the maximum when he felt that it was threatened by a strange culture,While travelling with the 'Wahhabee fanatics' in Najd, many of whom openly expressed their dislike of him fcr oeingaChristian infidel, Philby intensely felt that his British self and Christian identity were under a serious threat. - 198 - I had scarcely been conscious of the fatigue and worry which had accompanied my task in a land of fanatics who, by studied aversion and often by unconcealed expression of Iheir hatred of the infidel in their midst, had made my life a lonely and depressing one.^ The so-called ".Vahhauee fanaticism' not only made him feel alienated but also helped him regain his Christian identity which he had forgotten since his days at Cambridge, His resurrected Christian identity prompted him even to speak like an over zealous Christian missionary, Irresistably my thoughts carried me back over nineteen hundred years and more to just such a scene (a Christmas occasion which he celebrated anong the Bedouins) as this,when simple herding folk received the first tidings of an event destined to change the history of the world. Should one come tnis night with word that Isa Ibn A 1. Philby.Arabia of the V/ahhaois. London, 1?25,P.335. - 199 - and follow him, believing and fearing not, ^ ^ excessive missionary zeal, whether in a Christian or in the followers of any other faith, makes its upholder look down upon the faith of other people. So happened with philby.His resurrected and revitalized Christianity forced him to raise objections and pass unsavoury remarks on Islam- In doing so he showed little regard for fair ustice. In a balanced criticism the views and arguments of the opposite side which they might offer in defence of their position are duly taken into account. On tne contrary in a lop-sided . criticism this basic principle is completely ignored, hence it amounts to a one sided speech, a monologue which bothers not aoout the opponents' stand and thus involves the risk of verging on folly. Such follies and superficial remarks about Islam and its various tenets and practices are recurrent in Philby's early works : It was a winter month that the Prophet, perhaps scarcely conscious of the inherent defects of the lunar calendar,selected for the first Ramdhan. It was moreover for Arabia that he legislated, little realizing 1. Philby.The Heart of Arabia. (Vol.1) London, 1922.P.lei. - 200 - perhaps that his creed would ever penetrate beyond its frontiers, but certainly ignorant that the span of day light differed at different latitudes/(1^ 'He legislated' clearly implies that Islam according to Philby, was not a divine religion. Apparently he subscri bes to the coi men Christian stand that Muhammad was not a real prophet but a cunning impostor,But even more erroneous is his assertion that the Prophet had no idea and foresight if his teachings would ever cross the frontiers of Arabian peninsula. For scholars well versed in Islamic history and traditions are fully aware of the fact that long before the virtual fall of the Roman and Persian empires the Prophet Muhammad had prophesied of their conquest by his followers. Moreover, had Philby made a serious attempt to comprehend the message of the Prophet he would have fully realized that Islam by its nature was incapable of being confined in boundaries. It is a universalist and missionary religion, hence bound to transcend all frontiers, geographi cal, religious ano cultural. Philby's remark that the Prophet M.uhair.mad was unaware o! the 'inherent defects of the lunar calenaar' is equally 1. Philby.Arabia of the Wahhabis. op. cit, P. I. - 201 - erroneous and smacks of typical Western prejudice against thinos oriental. The West scarcely blames itself for its failure and inability to understand the East, On the contrary it condemns the cast of oeing intricate and incom prehensible. Infact this attitude or mentality stems directly from the superiority complex that the West his always Leen ocsessed with. Philby, though a bitter critic of many Western ideals, was a victim of this common Western m.alady. As a result he failed to see the benefits inherent in the lunar calendar, especially in the case of fasting. Since the span of day light is different at various latitudes it is possible only in this system that the people of various regions would not enjoy the blessings or suffer the hardship of Blind hostility knows no end and can go to any extent. Philby, after having once subjected the Prophet to his bitter criticism seerr.s determined to spare no opportunity that came his way to downgrade and belittle his personality. He even tried to malign anc disfigure his personality throL.gh indirect comriients. For instance in a passage to be quoted - 202 - shortly he stereotyped the Kinsirien of the Pronhet whom he called a 'Primitive' savage race but the target of his ridicule and criticism was the Prophet hixself. Infact a traveller is a highly privileged personality. He describes in his travelogu'-s what he and in many cases only he sees anc comes across. For a common mar, it is difficult, even beyond his capacity^to confirm his accounts which not unoften amount to sirister stereotypes from reliable sources. The poisonous effect of such stereotypes ana impudent portrayal on a lay readership can be easily imagined. The follcwing passage falls in the same category of stereotype : Arabs they doubtless are, but With little in common with the nomads of the desert, with their coarse features,their wild hair and oridge-less noses, they seemed to me to be of some pri;T,itive savage race descending unregenerated by mixture with higher types from the remotest antiquity, and these are the Quraish, the Kinsmen of the Prophet.^^ Occasionally Philby seems to be highly impressed by the simplicity of Ibn Saud's creed ,his hospitality and 1, Philby, The Heart of Arabia (Vol. I) op.cit. P. 203. - 2C3 - generosity and admires his efficient administration that enablea him to give Doth religious and political leadership to his people. But in his discussions with Ibn Saud, his companions and the governors of nis various provinces he trequently makes a mockery of their religious zeal, political inexperience, their ignorance of modern science . ' *"^ their poor knowledge of the worla.for example he narrates in a ridiculous manner that Ibn iaud, the Amir of the Najdi Arabs was ignorant of the fact that the Americans were of English stock and spoke the English language. The King as w^ll as his people still believea that America was inhabitea by the Rec Indians. philDy revealed to ibn baud that how the Red Indians were suDjugateo by European especially British immigrants and asked if there was any mention of the American continent in the Holy Luran, A companion of the King replied in aftirmative. philby ridiculed him saying that how it could be possiole for the said continent had not been oiscovereo in the time of the Prophet to whom the Quran war revealea. However, Ion Saud Came to Ahmad's rescue and said 'God knows everything and the Quran is His Word"*, ^ -^ Philby was not convlnceo by Ibn Saud's answer, 1. Philby, Arabia of the JWahr>abis op. cit; P, 2. • - 204 - Philby narrates another incident as yet another example of Ibn Saud' s ignorance in a sirrdlar mocking tone : uo you know, I askea, that you can reach America both by travelling westward and travelling eastward? Ibn Saud was puzzled, but Ahmad reminded him of the •Kurriyat* or •oroicularity' of the earth, though even that tailed to satisty him or my complete sanity,^ ' However, sometimes Philby engaged in serious conver sations ana discussed various suojects with Ion Saud and other Arab notables, Ihese discussions, to some extent, retiect the socio-religious and cultural realities of Arabia as they existed in Ibn Saud's time. There is no denying the fact that in a truely Islamic society free mixing of men ano women is not permissi ble. However, the fair sex has full right to education and can freely engage in all kinds of intellectual persuit. But in Wahhabee Arabia which proclaimed to be truely Islamic women were not allowed to enjoy this fundamental right, Philby laments that they were thrown behind the closed doors 'without education or training for the service of society:^^^ i. iDid. 2. Ibid. p. 255. - 205 - The coT»'^3tion of /.rabian .•.oren, accorcina to philly's perception,was pathetic anc lamenta:-le on several other scores. For exarr.ple polygamy and divorce, ooth^abomina- ble and greatly de testec in thie '.Vest inthe early years of the running century were wioely practised in Arabia, Philby often Discussed these issues with Arab notables including Ibn Saud, UnoerstancaDly he presents their ar^ju- ments ano his own counter-arguments in a way wnich tenc to substantiate his stand on the one hand and put the Arabs on offensive on the other,A remarkable feature of these discussions whicn Philby nas recorded in his works is that while he hif self felt at liberty to pass a swetrpinc rerrark on Arab culture and criticise their sicio-reli'^ious norn s he asked for concrete evicence if any of his AraD hosts ever ventured to make a generalized comment on English society and tiieir social customs,For instance when a certain Dr. Abdullah remarked that at least ten percent Enalishmen practised biqamy Philby asked him to give a concrete evidence and when his host failed to do so he forced him to take back his words. But when he himself alleged that fornication, adultry and many other social evils were con-.mon in Najdi soceity he felt no need to offer any evidence but did so on the petty pretext that he v/as told so and so cy unknown Arabs.^ ^ 1. See ibid.p.241. - 206 - Pi'.ilby's obiection to the practice of polygamy and divorce was not new but a retleccion of age-old and corrmon also European outlook. However, it is/clear from tfie discussions recorded in nis works that his Arab hosts were intellectuail- incori.petent to satisfy his questioning mina in a rational way, i-oT example Ur.Abdullah, instead of explaining that in what circumstance ana witn what conditions and restric tions the Islamic law allows the practice of polygamy, triec to justity it in the following manner : Europe's losses of men curing the War would compel her to abandon her monogemous basis ooth in order to make good the actual oeficiency in the population anc also in fairness to the women otherwise deprived of all chance of marriage,^ -' Philby's douDts were not to be removed by such hypothetical arguments,Instead he telt embolceneo to raise objections against many other Islamic practices.Soi^e lax Wahhabees of his time also stiengtheneo his oeliet that Islam was h.raly compatible with tne mor^ern age,He has described at length that how some Wahhabees used to malign the image of the Islamic law by their silly and foolish action, tor instance he has cited the case or a certain Ibn Maiman who was very olo ana haa two old wives. As 1. Ibia, - 207- it was not enough he aecided to have a tliira wife ano marriea a prett/ young girl. The new wife ijr.rr.eaiately asserted herself and forced Ibn Maiman to divSrce his two old wives.As a result the two women were divorced and thrown out of the house without having been provided with any provision to spend their life comfortably. Often such divorced women, as Philby has noted, were taken care of by their sons or other close relatives. But ii they were not tortunate enouqh as to have obedient sons and responsible relatives they had to face a miserable future. Probably it were Philby's such experiences which prompted him to raise oL'jections a It is also pertinent, to note that Philby's under standing of the Islamic law of marriage and civorce was pitiably poor. In his defence it might be said that his understanding of the Islamic law was not basec on a study of some relevant scholarly treatise out he had come to know them, as mentioned above,trom the Wahhabee way of living and their observance of Islam. Indeed,it one is ready to believe Philby's accounts, it appears that he was lea to form a poor opinion of the IslaiV.ic law by Ibn Saud himself, Accorcing to Philby once Ibn Saud argued with him in the following manner which clearly suggestea that the Islamic 1. See Ibid. P. 277. - 208 - law of marriage and aivorce was lax ana irrational, •Why is it', askea Ibn Saua,«that you bnglish allow aivorce to be so difficult? Among us when a wife no lonqer pleases we get rid of her by thrice repeating a sir.ple word, laliq, taliq, taliq, that is enough, Wallah, in my life time I have married five and seventy wives and, Inshallah, I have not done with wiving yet, I am yet younq ana strong, Ano now with the great losses caused by the War assuredly the time will come when the people of Europe shall takt more wives than one,^ This was obviously a travestical interpretation of the Islai.ic law which might be considered as Ibn baud's personal opinion. However, it must have maae a bad impress, ion on Philby's mine who belon^ea to a monocainous society. Ne' ertheless Philby appreciates ion Saua for taking proper care of his aivorced wives. Intact according to royal tradition those of the divorcees wTtO bore him children were entitled to special consiaeration. They were proviced with provisions and facilities to lead a somewhat happier 1. Philby.The hleart of AraPia. (Vol, I) op. cit, p.93. - 209 - life. Moreover, they had to bring pp the royal children and were not married away to other men as was the case with the Childless civorcees of the King:^ According to Philby other practices of Ibn Saud pertaining to marriage and divorce were equally disgus ting. Usually he would have tnree wives at a time and *keepthe fourth vacancy open to be filled temporarily by any girl to whom he may take a fancy during his expeditions abroad'. ^'^Such marriages did not last long and were broken at his convenience. Often a newly married girl was returned back to her parents with gift and provisions when he needed her no longer. Although Philby had some misconceptions in his mind either under the influence of age old prijudices against Islam or because he was led to do so by some silly Wahhabee traditions, it is, however,crystal clear that he had a keen desire to understand atleast the Najdi society 1. See Ibid. 2, ibid. It might be pertinent nere to note that in the Arabian tribal society it was a corrjnon practice to establish a political oond between two? tribes through mutual marriages.lt was regarded as highly immoral ana disgraceful to break such a bono by waging war or rising in rebellion against the person concerned, perhaps it will De appropriate to conclude that some of ibn Saud*s marriages were of this nature and were conaucted to serve one or ahother political purpose, -210- and the pristine form of Islam they claimea to practise at the time of his journey. Moreover, he observed a good aeai of objectivity while writing aown some of his experiences in his works,Aitiiough his account of the Wahnaoee creed is not tree from errors his objectivity is beyond suspicion which must have greatly influencea the English reaaers for whose benefit he had primarily produced his travel books, Salah or Islamic prayer Philby's objectivity is at its best when he describes the Wahr.abee mode of prayer and other related practices. Minute and vivid description is especia lly remarkable. However, there are some mistakes in his accounts which will be ppinteo out in their proper place. As well known Islamic prayer, the Salah in Arabic is prefaced by Adhan. the call to prayer. The Wahhabee formula of Adhan, says Philby, is identical with that of other sunnin schools except one additional pnrase —La Ilaha Ilia Allah - which the Wahr.abees pronounce at the end of Adhan.'- •^ It is to be noted that this is not an additional phrase useo by the Wahhaoees alone but is an essential part of Aohan practised by all Sunni Schools. 1. See, Pnilby, The Heart of Arabia. (Vol. II) op.cit. P. 251. - 211 - Aahan is tollowea by Salah or the prayer. According to Philby the congression assemoles in a Masjid, a specific place where prayer; is ofterea.The prayer is usually led by an Imam or the leaaer who is chosen either on account of his age or social standing or because of rfls religious knowledge, Philby is again wrong when he says that the second Adhan (Iqamah) ends at Qad Qamat al Salah (the prayer has Degun)^^Infact tnis phrase is foilowea by two more phrases wl ich imply oneness and greatness of Almignty God. These two phrases are proclaimed by all Sunni schools including the Wahhabees who basically follow the scr.ool of Ahmaa Ion Hanbal, Philby«s oescription of the Muslim prayer is remar kably minute ana meticulous. But as mentioned earlier it does contain a nur:.ber of mistakes or things which might r:iislead a layman, tor example aoout the ena of the sunset prayer (A^aqi'.rib) he writes. The sunset prayer, whici. is almost identical with the Asha is gone through, and at its conclusion the Imam, tirst turning his head to the rignt and then to the left, repeats in eacn direction the formula, Salam Alaikum wa rahmatallah. There follows a slight pause anc a general clearing of throats.^^^ 1, See Ibid 2. Ibid. - 212 - In a similar manner Philby writes that at the end of the Isha prayer also people used to murmur and then recite the ninety nine attributes of God.lhe way philby describes all these, almost in the same breath, one may get the impression, especially those who are not well versed in Islamic theology, that even throat clearing or whatever follows the Salam that mar^s the ena of the prayer are essential part of Muslim prayer. It also neeos to be clarifiea that even the attributes of God whicn many prayer-sayers recite silently after the Salam are not a part of the prayer. However, there is no aenying the tact that it has a religious significance ana is done in accordance with the Sunnah or practice of the Prophet, Philby rightly says that the Wanhabee prayer is almost identical or in consonance with that of other Sunni Muslims, But some of his observations are highly reaiculous and reflect a typical attitude of travellers who generally accept things at their face value and do not realize that one or two incioents that they have come across, may be, instead of being coirjnon, might have been rare inoividual acts. For example once or twice he saw a few individuals who sucoenly rose from their prostration and ran after an unruly camel to oring him oack to his proper place, and then returned to the prayer without any - 213 - hesitation as there haa occurrea no interruption, Fhilby took such' rare inciaents as typical of all tne WahhaDees and, as a result, maoe an erroneous comment that the WatihaDee prayers are conspicuous oy aosence of 'empty lormalities' and of single heartea concentration» thinqs (generally 'lett to individual preoilections'. Equally incorrect is his remark tnat haste, inattention, lack of devotion ano other deviations of tne kind are immaterial in Islamic worships and prayers.^ ' However, Philty nas described some other aspects of the prayer with consiaeraole insight ana accuracy. 'When journeying,' ne wirtes,'they are perr.ittea from motives of convenience to telescope the five appointee times of prayer into three, but not t.ereby to shorten... the prayers themselves J ^-^ Philby has, however, not elaborated whether the numoer of Hakat is reduced by the Wahhabees or not. by Taqsir he understands that a traveller can unite Zuhr and Asr, the miooay ano afternoon prayers respectively, at a tirre roughly midway between the two or at some time oefore the later (Asr) prayer. Likewise he can unite the A^agnrio ano the Isha at a time immediately alter the sun sinks below the horizon or at a tiir.e, as 1. See Ibid. P, 2b3. 2. Ibid . P. 2D1. - 214 - some stricter Wal.habees insist, when the light attribu table to the sun becomes con.pletely invisible. As far the dawn prayer (Fajr)is concerned it will be said at its usual hour, whether the prsyer-sayer is at h one or in a state of journey.^ The Wahhabees of the northern Najd, according to Philby, differed fror those living in the south on certain flatters. For example in southern Najd the Adhan or call to Maghrib prayer was proclaimed i.vjr.edlately after the sunset and for the morning prayer well before the sun was risen. However, in northern Najd the practice was sliahtly diffe rent; the morning call was proclaimed j .st before the actual dawn or at a time when the sun is near to rise, and the sunset call well after the sunset when every vestige of the Sun's light became invisible.^^^Philby says that the northern .Vaniiabees considered their southern coreligionists as having deviated from the right course of things. They viewed strict ti e keeping as being very important in matter of prayers. They were further disgusted with their southern brothers on the question of Qadha (making good an omission to pray at the correct moment). According to them Qadha was permissible only when it was caused by no m.istcke of the individual concerned. It is not meant for those 1. See Ibid, 2. See Ibid, p.178. - 215 - people who deliberately avoid to say prayers at t^heir specitied time. These squabDlings, according to Philby, were infact the beginning of 'theological hair splitting among the simple Arabs of the sesert'/ ^ Ramaohan or the Month of Fasting : besides the crayer Philby has also aeaith with various aspects of Ratr.aahan. the noly month of tasting. His narrative of the holy month liJce that of the S&iah or prayer is minute, objective and reflects his keen power of observation, understanding and insight into various Wanhabee practices. Remarkaoly nis narrative in this regara is free from egreoious mistakes. Moreover, ne is not merely con cerned with theological aspects of the holy month out also he is keenly desirous of knowing that what the Wahnaoees do or v/hat special prayers they say in oroer to achieve spiritual cleansi- ness and success. Viewed in t; is perspective his marrative of the holy month seems to nave uecon^e a mirror of the soiio- religious realities of the then Najdi society. Philby reightly observes that Kamadhan occupies a prominent place in Wahnaoee scheme of things. It is as impor tant tor them as the Passover to the jews or Lent to the followers of Christianity. A fast, as Philby rightly detines, is to abstain fror. eating drin. ing, sr.oking and to avoid sexual 1. Ibid. - 216 - intercourse. He further opines that the Wahhabees are in agreement with the Muslims of other schools regaraing the above matters. However, they, according to philoy, differ trom other Muslims in the sense that they strictly observe ail precepts related with the holy month. Even in the hottest days when the midday's schorching sun makes it almost impossible to perform even normal works, they, instead of sleeping and taking rest, prefer to say aaditional prayers, contemplate and recite verses of the Holy Curan, Most especially they manifest extraordinary religious fervour in the last ten days of the holy month in order to Se fortunate enough to find and subsequently spend in prayer the Lailat al Qadr. the Night of Glory which is better than a thousand months.^ ' Ramadhan is a special month of prayer and its all days and nights are vitally important in the eyes of all A'uslimis including the Wahhabees. But the final ten days,especially the nights of the odd dates are religiously more significant than others. For any of the five ocd nights F.ay happen to be the Night of Glory. Here philby appears to be a typical western Christian whose view of the Prop^jet Vuharrjnad is highly prejudiced and as a result he passed a derogatory comnent on his personality. He wrongly thinks t|)at Muhamjriad could not exactly specify the Night of Glory because he was not able or competent to do it, Philby perhaps wanted to 1. See, Philby, Arabia of the .Vahhabis. op. cit. p. 3. - 217 - suggest that the last messenger, unlike ^'uslirRs' clear claim, was not inspired by God, received no revelation from Hirr- and that he was not a prophet in the class of Jesus and other biblical prophets. Had he been so he rr.ust have specified the exact date. Whatever the reason it shows Philby's disrespect and prejudice against the Prophet, Infact if one studies carefully the sayings and traditions of the prophet which deal with this suDiect, the Night of Lilory, ne would come to a definite conclusion that the purpose ot leaving the aate unspecified was not to keep the believers in suspense but to encourage them to say adaitional prayers in oroer to attain consumate soirituality and win the favour of God. Perhaps the Wahhaueei, of Naja understood this point very \\eli. The uncer tainty pertaining to the exact date of the Hight of Glory meant more prayers and more worship for them. Because this uncertainty is renaered even more uncertain, especially in view of the fact that every month m the lunar calendar begins ,vith the actual sight of the moon. And it is common knowledge that occasionally the sighting of the moon becomes very difficult, even impossible either due to bad weather or because of some other reasons. It m.eans there i^ always a possibility of an error regarding the actual day of the beginning of a lunar month. In plain words it is quite possi ble that the twenthieth in actual fact is t.-^enty first or the vice versa. In such a situation one can not be sure 218 - of the exact date of the Night of Glory which may fall in any of the odd nights of the last ten days. Keeping this possiblity of error or uncertainty in view the v/ahhabees spend rigorously all the nights in prayer and other religious exer cises from twentieth of the month to its end. It ensures that they will not miss the Night of Glory any way.^ '' The Wahhabees spent in prayer not only nights but also devoted a considerable portion of the day to various kinds of religious services. During the whole month of Ranadhan every 'Wahhabee day*, according to Philby, was marked^ besides regular prfiyers, by meditation and extensive reading of the Holy Ouran, He cites the example of a certain Abd al Rahman who had made it a habit to recite the Holy Quran as many as thirty times in as many days. Even Ibn Saud who being ruler of his country had to attend to tne affairs of the State was often able and fortunate enough tc make atleast four or five reading of the whole Curan, These rigorous and stunen- dous religious services of the Wahhabees, according to Philby, were infact a test of their fortitude and capacity, both moral and physicdl, to suffer and endure. Endurance, in h^'s view, is a great quality and the mionth of Ra.Tadhan gives it to those fortunate people vvho ooserve it. Philby richtly observes 1. See Ibid. p. 4. - 219 - that since the purpose of the great fast is sniritual edification or purification of soul it is believed by the Wahhabees that only abstinence from eating and drinking would not work. Rather it should be accompanied by extensive reli gious services such as recitation of the Holy Curan, additional prayers besides the regular ones and by a total distraction from all bad habits, evil deeds and wickedness.^ •' Philby has given a full length account of other practices related with the great fast of Rarr.adhan such as Suhur, Iftar, Trawih and Ciyam etcetera. The •.Vahhabees, according to Philby, woke up well oefore the ti.T.e prescribed for Suhur (pre-down meal). This extra period .'.as usually utilized to say 'private* prayers (probably Taha_M_ud). After this, that is, before the true dawn (al Fajr al Sa^ig) the.y used to tai.e Suhur as enjoined oy the Prophet and t^nt on doing so until the call for morning prayer was proclaimed from the minarets of various mosques. The Adhan as usual was followed by the morning prayer. The prescribed ti-e for Iftar. the breaking of the fast was sunset Adhan or the call to ]l 1. See Ibid. p. 5, 2. See pi.ilby, The ^^eart of f^rouia (Vol.11) op. cit.p. 25C. - 220 - v^ere also soir.e differences between the Shias, known as Rafidhees in Najd,and the Wanhabees regarding the exact timing of the call for Maghrib prayer. According to Philby the Shias proclaimed the Adhan only after the aocearance of the first star on the horizon but the v philby has not mentioned that how the corrjr.on people used to break their fast. The regular practice with Ibn Saud, however, w^s to'repair to the roof of the private apartn-.ents of the palace, where he would oe joined by various rembers of the royal family. Thus assembled they would await theofirst sound of the Adhan announcing sunset, each man holding a date between his forefinger and thumb while repeating the phrase Astaohfir Allah again and again in accordance with the practice and precepts of the Prophet^^). Water, date and sliced melons, interalia, vjere the usual iters of the royal If tar. Irr^.ediately after the 1. Philby, Arabia of the '.Varhapis. op.cit, P. 6. - 221 - Iftar the sunset prayer was said. The evening prayer (Isha) was usually said when the niaht was gone over an hour. The Isha prayer .;&s followed by Trawih. o special supplication or a further course of service. In the last ten nights of Ramadhan, Trawih, after a short interval, was followed oy the Qiyam or the resurrection prayer as Philby called it. The Qiyarr. infact marks the culmi nation of the holy month. This special prayer was said through the whole night until the tirr.e caa.e for Suhur. The Qiyam ^ according to Philby, was not an easy service, out an exhausting one. The inclinations and prostrations along v,ith prolonged standing in this service are terribly long which all men, especially the weak and the old,find very difficult to bear. Hence, keeping in view the hurr.an frialty and v<«ar.ness a few short intervals were observed in which the participants were provided /vith light refreshments such as tea and coffee within the precincts of the mosque. The long 'ordeal' of Ran.adhan, as Philby put it, comes to an end with the sighting of moon for Id al Fitr ..hich is a kind of thanks giving celebration. ^ is a day of happiness and rejoicing,and fasting on this day, according to the Islamic Shariah. is not permissible. However,after the _Id day one may observe six aaditional fasts as the Prophet and his companions used to do it. 'it is heldj writes Pr.ilby, that those whose - 222 - fortitude is equal to this extra penance are -Tactically assured of adnission into paradise in due coursel^ '' Philby accepted Islam in 1930 and from then onward he was very particular in following its various precepts espe cially when he used to live in Arabia, He was, however, little concerned with things spiritual and wrote rarely on spiritual aspect of Islam. Even in his book A Pilotim in Arabia which is a record of the holy pilgrimage, he talks only of the spiritual experiences of other people and gives no nint if he himself underwent any such experience. For example he saw people thoroughly busy in various .eiigious services such as prayer, meditation, recitation of the Curan and often found them weeping out of the fear of God and asking His favour and forgiveness, Moreover, once he found an opportu nity to spend a night in the royal camp. Soon he was asleep. He, however, woke up aroun Although it is not a part of the pilgrirr.age most pilgrims go to the holy city of Madin'a to pay 1. Ibid.P, 14, 2. See, philby, A Pilgrim in Arabia, op. cit, pp, 32-33. - 223 - their homage to the Prophet. The Green Dome of the prophet is special attraction of the holy pilgrirrs. A'orcover, they feel privileged to say prayers in the Grand A'osque of the prophet which is located in the sacred city. The scene in and around the K'^osque is very moving. For the rr.emory of every pilgrim is taken back to those glorious moments of history when his beloved Prophet was alive, struggling day and night against the widely prevalent ignorance of his time and happily suffering mental and physical ordeals to save humanity from falling in the deadly pit of Hell. Naturally his heart is moved and filled with love and devo tion to the Prophet. He is thoroughly enraptured with great delights and undergoes an indescribable spiritual and emo tional experience. But philby's accounts of th^ holy city are presented, in such a way as he did not have any spiritual experience and had no special love for the prophet. It also speaks of his general attitude towards thing spiritual. However, Philby has described the Ha-) rituals with amazing accuracy. Infact, after embracing Islam he had made a thorough study of Islam, its various aspects including the Haj. It placed him in a good position to write a travel book entitled:A pilgrim in Arabia wrtiich, unlike the accounts of Christian travellers, is unprejudiced and free from glaring errors. Moreover, he used his first hand .-vnowledge 224 - to serve his newly adopted faith. For example once v Besides the prayers, the holy pilgrimage and the fast of Ramadhan Philby has also dealt with the Wahhabee attitude towards religious books and their practice to listen to rea ding either from traditional literature or from the Holy Quran after every evening or Isha prayer. The passaoes sele cted for such readings usually dealt with the pangs and torments that the sinners were to suffer in the life here after. Philby has also written that the Hanbali school of thouoht which the Wahhabees follow considered only two cormen- taries of the Holy Quran as authentic : Tafsir Ibn Kathir and Al Baghawi which were in twelve and six volur.es respec tively, philby further says that the Wahhabee position on the succession of persons who are entitled to interprete the divine law is as follows : first the Prophet himself, second the Sahaba or the Prophet's companions, third alTabi'in 1. Philby,'Vecca and Vadina,' RCAS Journal Vol.XX. 1933, P.bOb. - 225 - or the associates of the Pro')het's coET.pan: ons and finally Tab'e Tabi'in, that is, the associates of the associates of the Prophet's companions. Ahmad Ibn Hanbal whose school of thouqht is followed by the Wahhabees was of the last category. ' Philby has also written abo'it Ibn Saud's exposition of the true Isiannic faith which in his opinion remained unchanged or unadultrated in the first three centuries of the Hi1ra calendar. However, in the next thousand years Islarr, according to Ibn Saud, was polluted as a number of heresies were included in it. The purpose of Wahhabism was to eradicate all innovations like paying visit to the tombs of the Saints in order to seek their intercession with God eit^ier to fino salvation or to fulfil soriie wardly needs. As is evident froiu the acove discussion Philby wrote extensi'.ely aoout Wahhabisrr. and various Wahhabee practices, religious, social or cultural. But surprisingly no where in his works he dealt with the n.ain tenets of the ,Vahhabee moven.ent as explained by //uhar, mad Ibn Abd al-Wahhab, the intellectual founder of the movement.Even in his book Arabia which deals, interalia, with ups and downs of the Wahhabee rroverr.ent that 1. See, Philby, Arabia of the iVahhabis. op, cit. p.-6. - 226 - it witnessed at various junctures of its history he refers only in passing to the principles and teachings that Ibn Abdal Wahhab upheld and preachea. For instance the above mentioned book contains a short statement which was infact made by a delegation deputed by Ibn Abd al Wahhab himself to the \'eccan ecclesiastics in order to clear his position and explain the message and philosophy of his reforrr. movement. The statement is quoted here in full : The imputation of heresy to us (the Wahhabis) is a subterfuge and a calunny aaainst us, while the destruction of domes is an act of piety and virtue, as is recorded by other writers and not challenged or questioned by the learned, and the learned Imams (i.e. the Imams of the four orthodox schools of Sunni Islam) have given their verdict on recourse to the Saints for the purpose of intercession, and have condemned those A-no do so as guilty of infidelity, and no one maintains that it is rioht except ignorant infidels.^ ^ Obviously it is mierely a statement of faith and does 1. Philby, Arabia London, 1930. p. 24. - 227 - not sufficiently explain that what Wahhabism really means? Philby ought to have studied all the works of Ibn Abdal Wahhab in order to discuss the '.Yahhabee moveirent in detail. Had he done so, he would have been able to present a more illuminating, as well as interesting, study of the Wahhabee sect and the society that he saw during his journeys in various parts of Najd in central and eastern Arabia. Philby in Iraq Although a civil servant hence a pillar of the British hmpire Philby, as will become evioent from the ensuing discussion, often opposed his country's imperial policies. There is no denying the fact that in the early days of his service in K<.esopotam.ia he was basically a govern ment of India man and believed in the virtue cf Britain's imperial adn.lnistration. However, after hio meeting with Ibn Saud in late 1917 his ideas began to change. 'When in Iraq he had hardly met an Arab of exceptional character, ability and strength, authoritative and ambitious enouoh to impress uoon his rr.ind that the Arabs were comcetent as well as prepared to rule ther.selves witho-t foreign intf'rference. But his desert adventure of 1917-18 brought nim into contact with the Ar^bs who were born and brought up in an atmosphere of freedom and were able to run tneir show without foreign help. He was especially in.pressed by Ibn Saud -.vhom he later - 228 - described as 'beyond all price.•^•'•^ In Ibn Saud's charming and powerful personality he found an ideal Arab who, in his earnest opinion, had the ability to give a dynanr.ic and able leadership to the Arabs. Philby was in such a state of mind when in Novemoer 1918 France and Britain issued a statement about their future policy in respect of the Arab territories occupied by the Allied forces. The staterr.ent which later became known as Anglo-French Declaration was aimed at allaying the Arab fe^r that the gover nments of Britain and France intended to estaDx"^sh their imperial rule in Iraq and Syria respectively. It further promised that future governments in Arab countries will be formed by the free choice of native peoDle v/hich infact was a clear cut promise for Arabs' right to self determination. philby was particularly happy with the declaration and became rather over optimiistic about its consequence, for it not only tallied with but also st:rr.ulated his newly accuired ideas about Arab independence. This so-called Anglo.-French Decla ration later becan.e the bed rock of Philby's bitter but •.-ell founded criticisr. of Europe's imperial designs on ""he Arab world. 1. ^/onroe, L, Philby of /^robia. op. cit. p. 93. - 229 - The Anglo-rrench Declaration was infact a meaning less document and was never intended to be fully impelerrented. This is the reason that the British Government continued with its imperial policies in Iraq ignoring tne Arab desire for independence, a wrong Decision for which they later paid dearly. Because in 1920 the Iraci people rose in rebellion against the British occupation of their country. The rebellion was quelled at a heavy cost. But it forced the British policy makers in the Whitehall to adopt a new policy. As a result Sir Percy Cox was recalled froir. Iran to replace Arnold Wilson. Cox, an admirer of Philby's great energies invited him to join his staff. The new British policy was to grant seriindependence to the Iraqi people. Cox, Philby and Gertrude Bell 'in perfect union and harmony' devised a system in accordance with the new policy. The idea was to 'set up in Baghdad a provisional Government that would meet with universal approval and acceptance ' . The provisional Government was to work with the help of a Council of Ministers, It was decided that suitable as well as amenable Iracis will be selected for various minis- teries and that every minister will be assisted by a competent British adviser. The role of the advt,sers was 1. Philby, Arabian Days. London, 1948, P. 191. - 230 - clearly defined as only to give advice, when nee Cox shared some of Philby's liberal ideas for the time being. Kis main problem, however, wa^ to find out suitable Iraqis for various ministeries and to pick up wise British advisers to help them in administering the affairs of the country. A^oreover he had to prepare a set of guide lines that were needed to maintain a balanced and v/orking relationship between the ;r'inisters and their advisers. Cox, with, the help of Philby and Miss Be 11^overcame these problems - 231 - and at last set up a Council of Ministers with Syed Abd al Rahman, the Naglb of Baghdad as its first and last president. Syed Talib, an arrbitious and Shrewd politician, was appointed the Interior Minister with Philby as his adviser, philby soon started to couch hirr. in right ideas. The main task for which the Provisional Government was set up was to draft an electoral law for holding general election in the country. After much discussior, arguments and controversies the Naqib Government was able to oass such a law and sent it to the High Corriiriissioner, Sir Percy Cox, for prorr ulqation. But it could never be promulgated. Because Winston Churchil, along with Lawrence and other officers of the Colonial Office, was thinking on quite a different line. Infact their intention was to install Faisal King of Iraq, However, most Iraqis, according to Philby, were against the installation of a puopet Hashirr.ite Kingdom in their country. Philby was also against Faisal's insta llation in Iraq. The success of the Provisional Cov^nrnent under the Naqib of Baghdad had furtner strengtnened his long cherished idea that the people of Iraq, if given a chance and properly coucned in right ioeas, will ably run their own independent government. It was in this cerspective -232- that he, more than any other British adviser, had assured the Naqib of Baghdad and Syed Talib who were naturally perturbed at hearing the news of Faisal's installation that Britain had no intention to impose its own man on Iraq and that she sincerely wanted to give a chance to the people of Iraq to decide their destiny. . It had not occurred to him even in his wildest dream that Britain would brea.. its word and betray his as well as the /vrabs' good faith. Naturally he was upset when he learned that the Cairo Conference (held in 1921) had decided to install Faisal in Iraq ignoring the AnglcFr.ench Declaration which had promised the Arabs the right to self-determination. The news of Faisal's installation caused oersonal frustration as well. Since his irieeting with the .Vahhabee monarch, Ibn Saud,in 1917 he had been constantly thinking of an independent Arab government. While working in Iraq as an adviser to the Provosional Government he had often thought that circumistances v;ere probably favourable to realize his dream. But his aspirations we-e frustrated by the Cairo Conference. He upbraided his country for disregarding the Anglo-French Declaration and betraying a 'sacred trust for ci vilization.' Bjt imperialism has no respect for'civilization' for the legitimate aspirations of the subject people. On - 233 - Cox's order Faisal was farcically elected King of Iraq. Philby refused to reconcile with the new arran .enr.ent and as a result had to go. Ke resigned in protest. In Iran si or dan Mowever, he was reemployed and sent to Transjordan as Chief British Representative in November 1921. His main tas.-. was to watch over the Amir Abdullah, prevent his spending spree, establish on independent and efficient administration ard suppress nationalist elements who had come from Syria when the French dismantled Faisal. In a year's time he was able to bring back the country on the right track. The good performance of Abdullah's admini stration promipted the Lritish Covernnent to invite him to London in October 1922 where he was promised to be granted independence. The so-called 'document of independence,' how ever, was handed over to him by Herbet Samuel, the British High Commissioner for Palestine at a function in Am.man in Vay 1923. The main points of the docuicent, according to Philby, were as follows ; That His f/ajesty's Government, subject to the approval of the League of Nations, recognized the existence in Trans-Jordan of an inoependent odministrotior unaer the Airir Abdullah, - 234 - provided that such administration s! ould be conducted on democratic and constitutional lines, and should, by an agreennent to be negotiated thereafter, place His Majesty's Goverrment in a position to discharge its international obligations in respect of the territory in question.^ ' Naturally philby was happy and becarr.e rather sanguine about the consequences of the so-called 'docuir.ent of inde pendence*. But his ha; piness proved short lived. Gradually Abdullah again becarre autocratic, tyrant and extravagant. In keeping with the so-called 'docur.ent of independence' which Philby reaarded as a solemn declaration by the British, and also in the interest of the Mir himself philby advised to convene a representative assembly by holding free election 1. Philby,'Trans-Jordan'in Central Asiatic Society Journal, Vol. XI, 1924. P. 304. - 23b - in the country.^^ He tried to convince Aodullah that such a representctive Governn.ent, on the one hand, will help him run his administration effectively and, on the other, it will dispel the wide spread impression that he (Philby) always collected on his rounds both arr.ong the wandering Bedouins and the sendent^^ry city-dwellers that he (Abdullah) was merely a figurehead appointed by the Christian Britain to serve their purpose and that the old Turkish Government was preferable, not because it was good and effective but because it had not been subordinated to a Christian or any infidel power. He further explained to It is iniportant to note that while Philby w>--s encourag ing Abdullah as well as doing his own bit *.o Win the British support for the independence of Transjordan, he did also advise and encourage the Ainir either to expel or suppress the activities of the Syrian nationa lists who had sought refuge in Abdullah's coimtry after the French dismantled Faisal and occuoied their country in July 1920.These nationalists were of the view that all Arab countries should be freed from the clutches of European imperialism in order to run their independent governments. Philby who clair.ed to be a supporter of the Arab independence never encouraged or extended his support to the nationalist elemients. He never explained that why he did so. However, there are two possible explana tions. First, Philby perhaps did not agree with the aspirations of the nationalists who wanted complete freedom and were not satisfied withthe idea of limited independence under nominal British control 'which he him self favoured. Second, he probably realized that the Syrian nationalists were rr.einly active f.-r and interested in Syria's independence. Moreover, they were n.fc-ely indi- vidials and h£.d little influence with the natives of Tran- jorddn. Next they v.ere an anathema to both, the British aut),orities in palestine and the French Go\-ernm.ent in Syria. Philby perhaps thought that in the given circumstax nces his alliance with er-'"ercouragezent of the Syrian nationalists would not be; helpful to promote Transjordanian independence. For their presence in the country was bound to invite the ATath of the British authorities in Palestine who, he feared, might create obstacles in the way of Abdullah's inoependence. - 236 - to Abdullah that the conveing of a representative and democratic government will benefit hiir. greatly for it will gain the support and favour of those high ranging British officers and politicians who matter most in respect of Britain's colonies in Asia and Africa, But Abdullah was not in a mood to heed to Philby's advice. He went on enjoying his unrestricted and autocratic powers, without showing any desire to curtail it by convening a representative government in the country. His ministers and higher officials were also against the establishment of a democratic government in the country. For they feared that the elected representatives of people will deprive them of their lucrative services, Infact it .v-ere these rjnisters and officers who exploited Abdullah's weaknesses to the maximum in order to serve their personal interests. As a result the treasury of the country, in Philby's words, was 'robbed right and left'. ?,'oreo\'er, 'essential services v\«re allowed to suffer by non-payment of the salaries of their personnel, Government's lands were distributed arr.ong the Amir's favourite Shaikhs without any corresponding advantage to the public exchequer,even orivate owner were expropriated for the benefit of those who coveted their holdin-s, Badawin Shall.hs were allowed to remain, infact, irmune frorr the payment of due taxes, v/h:le the poorer agricultural classes - 237 - and some of them are very poor indeed - v.^re forced to pay not only current taxation, but all uncollected arrears of taxation dating back to 1916.^ ' It was not only Abdullah who con.ir.itted mistakes every time but sometiiTies Philby also acted hastily and foolishly. On one such occasion when he learned that an ancient Byzantine basilica was destroyed on Abdul'^h's order he lost his composure, upbraided the A.Tir in strongest words and even declared that he was unfit to rule his country. The relations between the two became so tense that Herbert Samuel was forced to intervene. But to Philby's annoyance and chaqrin he favoured Abdullah, Pnilby was intelliqent enough to read the writing on the -.vail, Samuel's intervention in favour of Abdullah convinced him that the High Con.missioner was a Zionist Jews and wanted to include Transjordan in the area of Jewish settlement. Realizing that he was no more needed either by Abdullah or by his Govern ment he handed in his resignation in 1924, In a letter to Harold Dickson he explained his reasons for resigning frcm the Governm.ent service : I. have resigned this job for many, very many reasons, the chief of them is that I can no Ion .-er go on 1. Philby, 'Transjordan' op. cit. P. 30b. - 238 - working with the present High Com:iissioner who, being a Zionist jew, can not hold the scales even between Zionist and Arab interests. Besides this, Abdullah has rather let me dov,n by his personal extravagance, which is on such a scale that he is simply inviting interference, and getting it in full rrieasure from H.V..G,, v^ich means the Zionist elerr.ent. So I am off.^^ Before leaving Transjordan Philby warned Abdullah that his (Philby's) successor, however friendly, will be infact his master.^"' His warning v/as proved right by the subsequent events. Cox who succeeded Philby soon realized that Abdullah was not only incompetent but also caanagable. As a result he re^Jorted to his Government that the Amir was a 'disease which was rapidly destroying the country'^(3) ^ Peake, a British officer was earlier asked to prepare a report on the history of Abdullah's administration, Peake's report had indicted Abdullah for many lapses. He i.ad al^so stated that Abdullah was not a good and efficient administra tor and opined that it was advisable t- get rid of him on a suitable occasion. The British authorities knew that 1. Quoted in K'onroe, E. Philby of Arabia, op. cit. p. 132. 2.S^ Philby, Arabian Days, op. cit. p, 236. 3. Wilson, Mary C., Kino Abdullah. Britain and the Making of Jordan. Carr.bridge, 1987, o. 83. - 239 - Abdullah was due to visit the holy city of '.'ecca in June 1924 in order to perforn. tue holy pilgrirriage, They decided to warn the Amir when he was due to return back froir. the holy land. An ultimatum to this effect was duly drafted and delivered to hirr, on August 14 1-24. In the ultirr.atum it ve.s :.-de clear that Aodullah would be allo'.'^d to enter the country and continue as its ruler only when he agreed with certain British demands sich as 'iLilitary inspection and control, the expul sion of undesirables (nationalist elements), the conclusion of an extradition agreen.ent with Syria and the abolition of the department of tribal administratior,;^ ^ Helpless and aejected, Abdullah conceded ail the demands. It is clear that Cox, as Philby hao predicted, was the real ir.aster and thit the so- called inoependent Abdullah was rr.erely a puppet ruler irstalled py the British to play their garr,e, His Political Ideas : After his resignatior. fror, the Governrr.ent service in 1924 Philby becair.e thoroughly engrossed in Arab as well as internatior.al politics, r.ainly through his speecnes and v^itings. His outlooK especially in respect of Arab politics was one of a devoted adr.irer and supporter of Ibn Saud, It is a fact that Ibn Saud nag ably establi 1. Ibid, p, t!4. - 240 - all his books which contain accounts of his travels in various paits of Arabia he paid glowina tributes to the .Var.habee n.onarch for his great contribution to the unity and inteority of his country. He even goes to the extent of sayino that people beyond the Wahhabee don.inion had also real respect ana adJi.iration for Ibn Saud because of his great achievements. For instance he was told in llcdhrar.aut whose inhabitants v/ere sor.ewhat -ontent, ti,ough not ha-ry, /,1th the British Protecto rate th-t tJicy would accept ,.it;. open hands Ibn Saud's coopera tion to estublisi: .eace in their land. Tne inference, accc: jin to Piiilby, was obvious that the so-called Britisn protection hi^d i ailed to put an end to anarcr.y ana disoroer in K^dhran.aut. In rt.ilby's opinion it was only Ibn Soud who could brino peace to Hadhrar.aut as he had achieved it renarkably in his ov/n country. ** ' As reg rds international politics Fhilby al/.ays, espe cially after his resignation fron. the Governinent service sideo v\'ith and supported the cause of '^ra;;; incepedence anainst European, particularly Eritish ir.rrerialis.T. His stand v/as based on the orinciple that every individual as ell as n~. ^icn is eiititltd to freedoii.. Inaepenaence in itself is an inesti;..ar: .e and pricelGis asset which :s a ratter of pride for all pe pie 1. See Philby, Sheba' s DaL.jr.ters, London, 195 5, p. 2o7. - 241 - and is held in high esteen. by every nction in the v/orld. But in Fhilby's aoe or in tne early years of this century imperla lisi;. which airnes at depriving individuals as v;ell as nations of their freedom was in full swin-;; in Asia and Africa. As an Arabophile Philby, however, -.vas concerned v.ith the pre sence, practice and effect of irr.rerialisrr. in the Arab world. He criticised oil thin s and acts ;vhich tended to harrr. the cause of Arab independence. It was, however, only after his resignation that Fnilby becan.e a die-hard critic of Britain's i:..?eriai colicies, J.'ore- over_, he also benan to advocate the i,.ea of coir.rlete Arab independence while earlier when he was in Goverr.jent service he had conditioned it with British protection or wanted sore kind of Anglo-rvrab alliance in order tc realize Arab as^-'ira- tion for freedom. The first tc.:get of Pi. ii-y's criticise after his resiqnotion was British as v^^l as rrench .-r.ancate granted to ther;, oy the League of K'atior.s wr.ich, in the acsence of tiie L'nit€'d Stc^tes, wus unaer full control of the two irr.cer:- alist • o ,ers. Philby's ir.ain cnarge was that the rr.andates v/ere undesirable because tney aeniea the Arabs tneir ineiie- nable right to self deteri inaticn. ^'oreover they deprived the Ai'ob people of their notior.al freedcn". wnic:. ,vas oro:. ised to t;ier. in the Anglo-Frencn Oeclarction of the eiahth f.'ove.Tcer, - 242 - 1918. Philby's Lriticisn., hov.ever, proved tc be a cry in the wilderness and failed to convince and persuade tne policy rrial'.ers of his country to ch^n e tneir irr.rerial -olicies and 'trant inoeiendence to trie /-jTcbs. Philby never spared any ocportunity that ca.T.e his .vay tc criticise British irr.perialisni. And sucn ocportur.ities were not rare to occur, especially at a tirr.e -.vhen Britain was deter mined to consolidate its in.Derial presence in tne newly occupied Arab territories of Irac, -ordan and Palestine, Ke had hordly finished his camcaian acainst the r..5naates ana Ancjlo-French betroyal of laith (which they had committed by refusin'- to imple::;ent their soler.n declaration of eiqnth Noveriber), when in July I92t) tne British Govern-ent annexed to Trans lordan tne districts or i^caoa ana //aan wnic:. •.•.ere a part of kinc,' 1-iusain's Kingdom at tne time of its fall to Ibn Sauc. Infact wrien a conflict started Det.-.een king Kusain and Ibn Saud for domination in Arabia Great Britain categorically announced to follow a oolicy of neutrality. They also beLievea tnat Ibn Saua's irregular army will oe annihildted oy Husair's well trcined soldiers. Bit tne, v.ere jreatly aiarred and consequ' ntly changed their uolicy v,nen they realized that lor Saud, contrary to their expectation, would out clay the Sherif and f.ut an end to the IIasni;;,ite Kincdorr in the riajaz. The reason for Dritaln's volte fcce w. s not ciifficult to unc^r- stund. Iiifdct Trans jo. oar. .as or vital ir. cortance for B; • T ~ 1 - 243 - in order to safeguara its eccr.omic and strategic interests in the Suez Canal and Red Se^ Lor.e. Lut t/.is -.'cs to oe aone effectively orly when Trc-nsjoraan noc free access to tne sea tnrouqh the port of /^caba. Lritdn saw no crooler when its two allies, Husain and Abdullah, v/exe ruling o'.er the Hijaz and Trans Jordan respectively. E^t the ror.ent Ibn 3a ud, who v Governi;ient and refused to give nis recognition to the oriti. Si. nundate in Palestine and Irac, L'jt it proved of no avail. Philby v/as, however, .--.uic.. to ccndemn tne iritish r;overr.ent and flooded tne rc.aical press in Britain with letters and articles in whicn ne criticised the annexation as illegal. The core of his arMt.-ients was "hat tne annexed districts, N'aan and Aqaba, were o -i.rt of Kusain's Kinoccn. wnen it fell to Ibn Saua, hence tne^ belonged invariably to t.is country. In his opinion the British action was yet c:notr.:-r exar.i'le of ac.,,res5ion aoainst a .-.ea.- n-tion. Trr.perialisrr ana exparsicnisr are tv/in sisters. Once Britain took the oecisiun to rr.c e ir:.':erialis3n tne corner itc'o of its foreign nolicy it ,.c.s natural for her to -ursue a -olic - 24L| - of territorial expansion, Expansionisir. means to encroach on the legitirr.ate rights and national independence of unpri vileged people and to subject tner, to sheer economic exploita tion and worst kind of political oppression, Pn^se were the realities that; Pnilby witnessed during his travels in Hadh- raniaut, its valleys, tov.Tis and villages, t Infact in 1935 Philby had travelled in Shabwa which he considered as independent•ana out of the juridiction of the Aden Protectorate, But Britain, on the other hand, regarded it as its own territory, philby hov^ever, disp'^ted their clairr. and competently exposed the /.eakness of their case. In the first place he rightly cuestioned the legitirr.acy of the Aden Protectorates Order of 1937 that enabled Britain to encroach upon tie territories r.'hich were originally inclL-ced in the area where an indepenjent /^jrab state was to be established as defined in the Husain,. he'.'ahon correspondence, Infact the Aden protectorate was stretched over an area of y,000 sc^uare miles only to which, after the impelementation of the Aden Protectorates Order, Britain annexed about 7CXXC scuare miles of the Aden hinterland. Philby*s oDjection was that it was illegal as well as immoral to snatch the areas of Arab indepen- dene under one or another pretext,^* 1. Zee details in Ibid. pp. 231-2.-3. - 245 - Britain's annexation was illegal not only in Philby's .opinion but also in the eyes o:" the people of the annexed territories us is evident fror. tne intervie-^that he had v.ith them, -Vhen journeyinfj in Hadnrar.aut end Shabwa once he -.vas told by a certain Salih that tr.e British claim over his terri tory was ridiculous and without any substance. By the by, I said to Salih, the British authorities in Aaen informed me by telegram v/hen I was at A'ukallah that Shabv/a and the Kardb country lie within tne juri- diction of the Aulaqi Sultan. Tell r.e ^ if that is correct.'Nor sense' he replied, the pack of liars, ti-.is is our cour*try and v.e ov.n no ruler but ourselves'. The Sultan of Shibarr, had also scouted the i.ea, and con sidered Shabwa within his schtre of infU.-ence, though not tr.der his ruie^ ' Philby, then, rightly sco :s at the so-cc:lled British protection that had badly failed to establish cec-ce in the Aden protectorc.tes. Wherever he v.-ent r.e saw but c:.aos and anarchy. The maladirdnistration v.^s especially evicent in the areas under British protection. At thf -tirrie o: philby's journey ihere v.as i.ot a single wireless station in the area, nor \\'..s ti.ere ariy teler;ra h office, nor any post... organisa tion. Toreover the :„ritish ir.aae no sc-ciai effort to brir.f: 1. Ibiri. r,. 236. - 246 - prosperity to the Aden Protectorates. Cf course a few landir.- grounds '.o-ere constructed b;,t tr.ey vN^re not meant for public transport but v/ere used by the hoyal Air Force in order to bomb and terrify tiie so celled 'unruly' trioes so that t:.ey •/.'ill not create law ana order -roblen.^""' Philcy rightly cuesti- oned that howfar legitimate it .vas to en.ploy s'^cn barbarous methods to secure the allegiance of the tribes -.vho detested British occupation and wanted to regain their independent status, lie was right to re. ar.-. : EJritish protection is s.^ely a misnomer. So far as the ^cen Protectorate is concerned, it is Ineffectual even to protect its ov.n nominees from insult or inj'^y if they stray from the beaten paths...,The simple fact is that these /-o-abs, independent since the days of the olc! Hymyarite en.pire, hcve no desire to be lorded over by foreigners - al iens oy race and aliens by :cliair.n. To ther foreign ••enetration is synony:. cus with explo • tation. To them t;,eir //retched hdlt is ricnes, tne antiques Durried in t^leir earth ere a sctrce o: faoulo^i wealth. The foreit:ner ooi^es to spy out tr^eir land and to annex it if it is vvcrt;. his v.r. i le, ^ *' 1. See Ibid.pp, 303-304,Also s-e Phi Iby,'DOC-.D!.-g in the f%aen Protectorates' '.Vorlc Re vie v.-. Lor.con, January )^ I93t.pc. nd ; Iso see Phllby, 'Stop Lo, .b n • in riraoia', V/or 1 d Review, April, 193h. pp. 3t-.-;. 2. Ph.lDy, Sl.epa' s Du'^ .r.ters. c . cit. •;. 237. - 247 - Another instance of Philby's anti-imperiaiism was his outright condemnation of the British, French and Israeli invasion of £gypt on the occasion of Suez Car.al Crisis, f.'asser and his associates brought about their revclution in 1552. Dut to bring about a revelutior, is one thine and to make it a success and harbinger of a nev; era of peace, staioility and prosperity is another. The leadership of the revolution soon realized that the challenges racing their country v/ere not easy to handle, Nasser's major problem was to raise the living standard of the common Egyptians by improving and stabilizing the economy of the country. His mind was teeming with ideas but he could not ;,ut them into action oecause of financial auress. Hard pressea for funds he decided to resort to generous foreign assistance that he hopeu to come only from the Western block. His tirst major progror-'-.e for impro ving the country's economy was to enlarge the Aswan Hi^ih Dam in Upper Egypt in orcer to increase its irrigating capacity so that aaditional lands v/ill oe Drougnt under cultivation. To accomplish this work ne neeaea over a million dollars. The Unitea States and Great t:ritain, in collaboration with the Worla Bank, made arrangements to lend the required luno to Egypt, riut Nasser, instead of accepting the offer, oecioea to use the rivalry betv,«en Russia and the V/est in order to get a oetter ceal for Et^O'pt, As a result he issued a statement saying that the - 248 - Russians had offered him a better deal. In reality the Kussians haa maae no such ofter to Ecrypt, In:^act the purpose of Nasser's statement vv-.s to get more concessions from Arr.erica and Britain, besides this, he took several steps such as arrangerr.ents for training special cornnandos to attaclc Israel, flirtatior v.'ith Russia and China and cultural and cor.rr.erctal pacts v.lth the con--inunist block which irritated the western clock. .Moreover ne inauiged in anti-Americanism w-iiicn seer.incly prorr.ptea the United States to cancel the deal, Hov.^ver, the otain intention behind the cancellation of the deal v/as to huniliate ana lorce Nasser to accept political, econcT.ic ana military hegemony of the '/fest, but Nasser reiused to oucge, nis reaction was swift and bold. He nationalized the Suez Canal and thus gave a direct blow to the eccnon.ic interests of the '.Vest, escecially britcin and France. Their reaction .vas expectedly hostile which also smaci.ed of their iniperialistic mentality. It v/as intolerable lor therr. to allow a third -.vorla country like Egypt to put its tnui.ib on 'Europe's wind pipe'. They complained that Eoypt haa not enough competent personnel to run the Canal ana that it lac/.ed aecoruc: and v/isdom to oehave resoonsioly in the comity of nations. Since the nationali zation had hit hard the econor. ic interests of Britain and - 249 - France they put a heavy pressure on Egypt to toe the line by freezing Egyptian assets m '.Vestern oanks ana oroerina their ships to refuse to pay the regular dues to the Egyptian Government, A'oreover Ifcey oegan to buiid up their forces near Egypt in oraer to invaae it. Viewing the tense situation the Security Council of the Unitea Kations ?/as prompted to intervene in the matter. On October 5, 1956 a resolution was passed to run the Canal properly wnich all the concerned parties ii.;..eaiately acceptea, but inspite of this Britain, France and Israel attached Egypt to topple the Nasser regime, both America ana Russia promptly conaerriT ned the invasion which forcec the aggressors to cease hostilities against and witharaw their forces rrom hgyptian territories. Within a month after the y/ithdrav/al the Egyptian engineers cleared the Canal of the ships sunk in it auring the invasion, Ihus they shoviea the ,',orld and provea their ability to run the oanal properly and ccmnetently, Philby's stand, as expected, was to conoecn the Anglo-French and Israeli invasion on the one hend and to ]ustiiy Nasser's odd stance en the other, he v/rote letters he and articles in Arab ard '.Vestern press in whicV.Sojportea r.asser's right to nationalize tne canal in the ran.e of Egyptian pride ana dignity, anc denounced the tnree cornered - 250 - invasion cb a i,in±oXer iii.perial cesi-n xo er.-:Larrass an independent Arab state. K'oreoN-er he creatly praised the hqyptian enqineers for their aoility to run the Ccml without any foreign help, tecnnical or finarcial. Extrerr.ely happy -nd sanguine he took it as a further vindication of his long cherished stand that the Ar-bs v.'ere competent enouch to run their indepenuent states. The Palestine P^'oblen. Philoy's siand on British i.vperia- lis:, < i^d ^^r^.b inucpendente ,\v-s no doubt '.vort.'-.y of oraice a;.d a preciation, Hc'^ever, sorr.etires nis views .n i.r.d GL roach to some of Avrab prc-ule:rs such as the cuesticr. of Palestine became hiqhly embarrassir.-. r.jt only to hiraself but tc hie Arab ii lends as v^ell. The Palestine problei:,, ^-s .'.ell .nowm, originates from the Balfour Declaration of 1917 in v/hich it was annou - need that the British Governn.ent will view 'v.ith favour tne estciblishment in Palestine of a national horc for the Je.v^sh people'. The Declaration further said that nritain '.vill use its endeavours *to facilitate the achiever ent of this objt'Ct', In the sair.e Dtcicrcticn it was also ::.ad€ clear tiw t 'notiiin;, shall be dene wnici. -ay ccejucice tnc civil a..d ieIi"ious ^i^hts of tno existing r.on-je ,vish ccrr.unities in Palestine,»^-^ But tne subsecu^nt events orc/ed the 1. See the text of the Balfc-r Ekclarati.n in c.uropa :UL. The .'.'iddle £ast anc Torth Africa 19^3. Lor con, IC-S", p. 64. - 251 - re verse,That while nothing -JUS done to prevent the Jews from implementing their unjust plan for estc^blishing a Zionist state in Palestine, every effort was made to harm the interest and suppress the just aspirations of the Arab population living in the land for ceotuiies, Infact the Balfour Declaration rr.anifests the worst kind of colonization, Arthur Koestler had rightly remarked that 'one nation solen.nly promised to a second nation the country of a ti.ird nationl.^ (1 ^' Philby's stand on the pr-blerr. seems to have been inconsistent, Q-i the one hand he conaemned tne Balfour Declaration as an act of betrayal and on the sther tried to justify the Jewish in.r.ig£ation into Palestine, Addressing an English audience once he said : I hope I may be perrr.itted in ail seriousness to dispel the notion tnat 1 an. in any sense hostile to the ioeals of Zionis.-:.. ^' In the san.e aodress he f'jrther said tnat the right of immigration into palestine was open to all persons und that for the jews that right was particularly guaranteea by international engage:i.ents,but surprisingly in a book 1, Koestler, arthur, promise and Fulfilment. London, 1949, p, 4. 2. Pniloy, 'Trans-Jordan', op,cit. p. 299, - 252 - publistied in 1952 he declin-d to have ever Jultified the Jewish ijiimiqration into Palestine ; I have always held, and still hold, that the jews, in whose favour the Balfour Declaration and the rric^ndat were drafted, have no shadov; of le:,al or r;.oral right to yo to Palestine,^^C M' It is difficult to reconcile betv/een the tv/o state- rTients for the contradiction is too obvious to be ignored or refuted. Philby's support to the Jewish clain".s in Palestine steiTicd directly from his failure to understar.c the racist nature of Zionisn as well as tne .-eal ir.tentior. of the Zionist n.oven.ent, It v.as this failure tnat lee him to proclai;; 'that the £d\-ent of the Jev.-s to the scenes of their father's exploits will oe advantageous to theinsel\-es and to their Arab neichoours *^•^'' Infact he v,as thinking on the line that the Jews had coth sKill and fir.c.r.cial resources to bring prosperity to Palestine, But what he failed to realize v.'as that the jev/ish expertise in mooern technique (•no their f:nc>ncial prowess, instead of being a ir.eans for pGdce and prosperity, ir.ay also oecc.e a tool for econorr.ic and pol:'tical exploitation o; the tecr.noiogicaly and 1, Phllby, y-g-abian Jubilee. Lcncon, 1952. p. 209. 2. Phllby,'Trans-Jordan,' op. cit.0.2^5. 253 - politicr.lly backwcjrd Arabs, But the Arab leaders, unlike Philby did not fail to comprehend the real intentions and aiir.s of the Zionist n,ovenient. They understood from the very beginning that the Zionist wanted to esti.blish a Jewish state arc not merely a national home as mentioned in the Balfour Declaration. It was because of this that the then Arab leader. King Husain denounced the Declaration as a breach of promise. Viewing his strong denunciation the British v.ere quick to assure hin that the Zionist state will be created only if it were 'compatible with the freeaoni of ti.e existinq population, both econo:iiic and political'.^ '' b'^t the leaders v.'ho can.e after Husain were consistent in their opposition to the Balfour Declaration and ref>^sed to accept empty British ':r r:ises and assurances. Philby's ov.n friend, Ion Saud v/itfi v;honi he had n^any conversatiors en the suDject >.vas a great critic of the idea of a Jewish state for, in his opinion, it threatened to eliminate the Palestinian /vraos from their homeland. but in Philby's opinion the oasis of Arab oppositio:. to Jewish settlen.ent in Palestine '.vas their xenophobia or their dislike of the people of non-serr.itic ori-in. He riohtly pointed out that the European jews v.ere not Se. ites b'jt 1. Arii.ajani, Yahya, i.'icLle East c3st anc present. New Jersy, p. 232. - 254 - probably those v.'ho had embraced Judaisn. at one or another time, Philby's claim has been supported by otner v^ffiters as well. For instance f/axirr.e Rodinson is of tne opinion that the Arabs of Palestine 'have much core of the ancient Hebrews' 'blood' than most of the jews of i^iaspora' }^ Another i/riter, Thomas Kiernan has also subscribed to the same view : Anthropologists concluded...that the eastern European Jewish inventors of Zionism hao little or no biological connexion to Palestine,^'2) However, Philby's charge that it was Arab xenophobia that led them to oppose Jewish iiriiiigration into Palestine was thoroughly vjrong, Infact it was their feaJ? of being or rendered a minority/of being rooted out from their homelcnd that formed the basis of their opposition to the British and Zionist plan to create an exclusively je.vish state in Palestine . But inspite of Arab opposition the Jev.s, with full support of Britain, continued to coce to and settle in Palestine, Expectedly, with the passage of tir..e, the Arabs and the jev.-s began to clash v.ith each other. Within two decades the problem became so con.plex and serious that the British Government was prompted to set up a cc.-:.inission ir. 1. Rodinson, Vaxime, Israel : A Colonial Settler State, New York, lv73, FP. 7i-t-C. 2. Quoted in (3aurudy, Hoq>-r The Case of Israel. London, lo P. -16, - 255 - 1936 under the chairmanchip of Lord Peel with a view to finding out a just and enduring solution after a compre hensive study of the problem. The Coirjxdssion submitted its report in 1937 in which it had recoi:jr.enQed to terminate the mandate in favour of some other arrangerr.ent. This 'other arrangement' in viev/ of the Corrjr.ission was to create two sovereiqn independent states, one for the Arabs and the other for the Jews, and to institute a new /.'.anaate • to execute the trust of maintaining the sanctity of Jerusalem and Bethlehem and ensuring free ana safe access to them for all the world' , The Comn-iission' s recominendations -.vere rejected both by the Arabs and the jews. Philby, howeve; , accepted them for the Corrjr.ission • s report, in his opinion, was highly favourable to the Arabs, According to him the Arabs, instead of rejecting the Commission's recommendations, should accept them with slight modifications. He presented his arguments with boldness and clarity : The Arabs are bad bargainers. In this© case nine-tenths of their full demanas have' been conceded. They reject the concession in the hope of getting ten- tenths. It is inconceivable that they should get that. It is conceivable that they may lose what is now offered. Yet 1. Quoted in turopa Fub. The /. iddle East and .'.crth Africa 19 8. op. cit, F, 6t. - 256 - they persist in their obstinate refusal. By accepting the scheme in principle they could secure substantial mooifications in their favour. By opposing it tooth and nail they may find themselves confronted with the choice betv.'een the scheme, as it stands and noting at adlP Philby's suggestion, as he himself put it, 'was based on expediency rather than on the legal or moral merits of the Arab case against the admission of jev/s into Palestine' }^^^ In his opinion the '/Western countries, especially Britain and the United States, either did not understand the Arab case or had no sympathy with their cause. And the ATCOS v^ere hardly in a position to chance the minds of the lestern countries. Hence in Fhilby's opinion it v.-as better for them to riccept the compror.ise t..at the peel Ccrrr.ission hao offered to them. But the Arcibs v.ere greatly angered by Philby's stand and accused him of being pro-Zionist and insensiti\'e to their emotional attachment to their n-.other land, the Vi-hole of Palestine. Even Ibn Saud felt eirxarrassed by his activities in this context. y]e made it clear through a press statement that Philby was not authorized by him to speak or .'.Tite on his behalf, 'SoL.e may thin;-.' , he said, 'that Philby's 1. Philby, 'Tne ATCDS ^nc the Future of Palestine' Foreign Ai f dirs, J.'eiv Yori. , (Cctooc-r' l-.-iT, PP. 162.16Z. 1, PhilDy, /u'cbian J^bille. op, cit. p. ..C?, - 257 - opinions reflect our own.... As far his personal opinions, they are his own and do not reflect our thoughts at all*. Philby, too, hastened to issue a statement in which he clarified that he was not a spokesman of Ibn Saud or the Saudi Government. Philby, however, continued to take interest in the Palestine problem. In early 1939 he attended the Pales tine Round Table Conference as interpreter of the Saudi delegation. During the Conference he conceived a so-called 'Philby plan' which, he hoped, would solve the problem for ever. He discussed his scheme with "ift/eizDiann and Fuad Hamza, a Saudi delegate, in a meeting. The main points of his scheme were as follows : I had a secret lunch party at Acal Road - Dr. Weizmann and Bengurian to meet Fuad Hamza. We are to have another meeting at Acol Road to continue the talk, the idea being roughly to get Faisal in as King of Palestine with some quid pro QUO in the way of Jewish imirigration Say^50,000 in the next five years. ' Weizmann supported Philby's scheme as it was obviously in favour of the Jews. Understandly Fuad Hacza was not enthu- 1. Qouted in Monroe, E. Philby of Arabia, op. cit, p.214. 2. Ibid. p. 219. - 258 - siastic probably because the scheme did not take into consideration the main Arab den,and, the prevention of Jewish immigration into Palestine, Due to his lukewarmth no second meeting, unlike Philby's expectation, was held, Philby's opinion of the Arab leaders seems to have been very poor. He believed that they were easily purchasable. With this view in mind he prepared a new 'Philby plan' to solve the Palestine problem. The plan, as he explained in his Arabian Jubilee was that: The whole of Palestine should be left to the Jews. All Arabs displaced therefrom should be resettled elsewhere at the expense of the Jews who would place a sum of ^ 20 millions at the disposal of king Ibn Saud for this purpose. All other Asiatic Arab countries, with the sole exception of Aden should be formally recognized as completely jjidepen dent in the proper sense of the term, these arrangements were to be proposed to king> Ibn Saud, as the principal Arab ruler, by Britain and America, and guaranteed jointly by them in the event of their acceptance by him on behalf of the Arabs,^' 1, Philby, Arabian Jubilee, op cit. pp. 212-213, Dr, Weizmann has also recorded the minutes of his meeting with Philby in his autobiography. Trial and Error, In Arabian Jubilee Philby contradicted some of '.Veizmann' s accounts. But these are minor differences -which figure only in the details and do not affect the mair. content of their discussions. - 259 - Philby discussed his scheme with some important Jewish leaders such as Weizmann, Moshe Shertok and Professor Lewis Namier who readily accepted it. They, then, decided between themselves that while Philby will go to Saudi Arabia to get the approval of Ibn Saud Weizmann would visit the United States to win the support of President Roosevelt. to In January 1940 Philby broached his scheme/King Ibn Saud who did not answer in 'yes' or 'no'. He also asked Philby not to discuss it with any one else. It is not clear that what Ibn Saud had in his mind, wnether he wanted to accept the scheme or did not like it at all, Philby, however, interpreted the King's silence as his consent. Veanwhile Dr. Weizmann discussed the so-called 'Philby plan' with President Roosevelt in the same year, 1940, But he received no encoura ging response from the American President, In 1943 he, however, again raised the matter and suugested to convene a conference to discuss the scheme. The conference was to be attended by America, Britain, Saudi Arabia and the representatives of the Zionist movement. America agreed to dispatch an "^emissary, Colonel Hoskin^, to Saudi Arabia to know their mind. He was, however, rebuked by Ibn Saud who flatly refused to meet Weizmarin for he had tried to bribe him through Philby in 1940. It is now clear that Philby had misintepreted Ibn Saud's the silence as/royal consent to his scheme. - 260 - Thus the so-called 'Philby plan' could not take off the ground. But both Philby and Weizmann continued to believe in the utility and practicability of the scheme. But in reality they both were wide off the mark. The basic flaw with their scheme was that it viewed the Palestine problem as a purely commercial matter while for the Arabs it was an emotional one. It is hard to find a people in the world that can give up their homeland and settle in som,e other country for the sake of money. Infact the so-called 'philby plan' was not only absurd but also humiliating and greatly unfavourable to the Arabs, philby and His Arab Guides Philby was a traveller of great stature. He explored Arabia both on the back of carrels and by car. Understandably a travel by camel in the Arabian desert is a difficult enterprise to undertake. Vost especially a journey across the waterless desert tract, known as P>ubal Kh a1i. the Empty Quarter, is the kind of adventure which can be accomplished only by men endowed with great courage, and with the help of the best of Arabian guides. Philby had both. His adventurous nature, spirit and courage were beyond question. Moreover, he had friends like king Ibn Saud who could provide him with guides, camels, and above all protection from the desert robbers and unruly tribes. - 261 - Journeying with Arab guides, as Philby's experiences reveal, is both pleasant and frightening. In ail his travel books, especially in the Empty Quarter he has recorded events which bring forth the fact that what kind of relationship, cordial or unpleasant, he had with his guides. On the one hand it reveals Fnilby's image of the Arabs and on the other his own unique character and personality as viewoed by the Arabs. It is natural thE,t when two or more persons meet with a view to living together for a considerable period of time, first of all, they try to understand each other, Philby's Arab guides always found him a difficult man to handle with. For he, unlike other travellers, had some habits rather obsessions which were peculiair only with him. A guide is generally supposed (or was held so before the emerqence of mechanized transport in Arabia) to help a trave ller cross the desert from one particular point to another. ' 1) But for Philby a guide should be more than this.^^ He must know and tell the traveller the names of oases, hills and places etcetera they pass by.Moreover, particularly in Philby's case, he must have patience and ability to acconmodate with his habit of mapping or collection and preservation of insects, snakes and birds etcetera found in various parts of Arabia, These were Philby's usual activities on every 1. See, Philby, The Land of Vidian. London, 1957, p, 171. - 262 - desert journey which were of course beyond the comprehension of his companions who regarded such indulgences as useless, something that caused delay and discomfort. But a journey, according to Philby, must serve human knowledge. Hence he never bothered about the resentment of his companions regarding his 'extraordinary obsessions'. However, once he explained to Ali, one of the guides who served him during his adventure across the Empty Quarter : It is knowledge I seek which is better than wealth, I will take them (shells) to my country, where they will put them in treasure houses for peopje to see and study. You see, I too am a tracker like you, V/hen you ride you read the sands and know what men and women have passed upon them a month ago or more or less. But when I see shells like these I understand what was happening a thousand years ago or more. ^ •' Philby was the sort of nan who could pay a glowing tribute to anybody who pleased him or acted as he liked. But when angry, irritated and provoked, he would curse even those people such as the guides whose services were hard to be denied. But Philby, 'hectoring, intemperate' and 1. Philby, The Empty Quarter. Loncon, 1933. p. 62. - 263 - deterniined to dominate and dictate his will angered his men on nunerous occasions during his various explorations in Arabia, As a result there occured serious rows between him and his companions or guides, especially during his journey across the Empty Quarter. At a certain place called Shanna occured the most serious of all squabbles. Philby wanted to go upto Sulalyil. a far away place on the other side of the desert, about 360 miles from Shanna according to Philby, In between the two places lies the famous but frightful and waterless part of the Empty Quarter. By the tin.e Philby* s party was at Shanna, they 47 days out from hoiTie, they were completely exhaustedy'began to show faint heartedness and refused to go ahead with Philby's plan. But Philby enlivened their spirit by distributing the money that he intended to give them at the end of the journey and thus succeeded to make up their mind to try his plan. Oi 22 February 1932 they began their march toward S^laiyiJ.. But within five days they were again exhausted and becan to compalin of Philby's inconsideration, Furtheroiore they wanted to travel in the nights in order to be safe from the schorching sun. But Philby insisted on journeying in the day light so that he could easily dispense with his usual works such as mapping or collecting insects etcetera. Besides these, there was acute shortage of water, rice and - 264 - other eatables. In such an unfavourable circumstance they suggested to get back to Shanna. But Kiilby would not accept their demand. He cursed Zayid , the leader of the party, or •the evil genius...the Devil incarnate^ ^•'•^ Philby got so much out of temper that he criticised not only Zayid but the entire Arab race : In such circumstances the Arab does not show up to advantage. He clings frantically, desperately, to life, hov/ever miserable, and, when that is at risk, loses heart and head....It was the waterless desert, the fear of thirst and death that made women of those men. I could not, would not yield. We had come 140 miles (since Shanna^. A third of the journey was behind us and a steady effort would carry us through if only they would play the man. They were, of course, vN^ak and disheartened with hunger for we had had nothing but dates since Shanna. I felt like Voses in the wilderness when the multitude clamoured against him. ^(2) ^' But Philby had only the above-quoted out burst to offer. 1. Ibid, P. 271 It can be notea that at tne end all was right. As true A'uslims they lorgave each other at Naifawhen some of Philby's companions, in accoraance with his own plan, left for their homes. In his The Em ply Quarter Philby records the event as follows :•'As they rose to follow in the tracks of the baggage train each of them saluted me with a Kiss on the forehead. Forgiveness for our failings J Said Ali. There is nothing to foregive, I rep|!ied, but I thank you for your services. In the keeping of God» And so I parted from eight of the companions of two months of wandering in the wilderness. Tne farewell of the Arab is manly indeed. With fair words on his lips he strides off into the desert and is gone. He never looksback''. (P. 299). * 2. Ibid. P. 261. - 265 - Unlike f/.oses he could not strike on the rock to get water for histhirsty companions and as a result lost his case. They retreated to Naifa for recuperation. At this place Philby decided to send back the baggage train to Hufuf where from they had originally started their journey, and then to cross the desert with a selected band of people. They tried this plan successfully and reached Sulaiyil on 14 March 1932. Just in 9 days they had coverea 3"b miles, from Naifa to Sulajyil, a great achievement indeed. Whatever weaknesses with Philby's character and personality, he'was afterall fair and just for he has recorded faithfully what his companions thought of himself. This gives the reader an opportunity to know that how a foreign traveller was viewed by his Arab hosts : VVe notice (remarked a certain Farraj) two things in you. Firstly you are hot-tempered and easily get angry if vve do not as you please. And secondly you are ever ready to disbelieve what the guides say.,.. Surely you know that the guides do not ii« deliberately, and this is their own country where they know every bush and every hummock^ why then should you suspect their, of lying. ^•' • However, when the journey ended Philby, and his 1, Ibid. P, 221. - 266 - companions, were too happy to 'forget the evils of our strange association in an enterprise.' Pi.ilby thanked every member of his party, men and animal alike, and gave them all the credit for accomplishing the great feat : To thern and the great beasts that boore us - hungering and thirsting but uncomplaininq - the credit of a great adventure.*' '' As it appears Philby had, as a y.-hole, a favourable image of the Arabs, He was especially fascinated by the desert and liked its free and careless inhabitants. Further more unlike many English travellers he avoided, barring a few occasions, to pass a sv/eeping remark on the Arao race, its religion and culture, Infact, owing to many reasons such as his long associati n with Ibn Saud, his early liberalism and later on his conversion to Islar. which enabled him to see the Arab society as an insider, he was better placed than many other Englishr.en to oepict a real and true image of the Arabs. As a matter of fact he stands very prominent among his contemporary English travellers, mainly because he sincerely championed the cause of Arab indepenaence against British imperialism and tried his best through his realistic free writings (which are although not completely /from errors and inconsistencies) to improve the badly tarnished image of the Arabs anong his countrymen. It was really a great contribution, especially when viewed in the perspective of the COJWDOD trend prevalent in Englind in the first half of the running century. T, Ibid, p, 211. ~~" OONCLUSIONS This thesis is concerned with the view«and ideas of four major travel-writers of the first half of the twentieth century. Besides, it is prefaced by an intro duction in which an attempt has been made to provide a historical background to the present study. That how in different ages English men and women came to know about the Arabs and how far their ideas or traditions were inherited and followed by the travel writes discussed in this work. It has been found that rarely any serious and objective attempt was ir^ade to understand the Arabs the way they understood themselves. In most cases they were viewed from V/estern point of view in a highly subject ive manner. There is no denying the fact that a few trave llers admired the Arabs as a noble race highlighting especially their hospitality and love of freedom. But a great majority was unfavouraoly oisposed towards them and portrayed them as a rapacious savage lot who nad no sense of culture and civilization. Islam, the religion of the majority of Arabs has always been a special target of '.Vestern criticism, Wost travellers had a very poor opinion of Islam. Even those who had a somewhat lenient attitude towards tne Arab - 268 - race were highly critical of their religion. Not only the faith of Islam the personality of its messenger, Muhammad has also been subjected to unsavoury and bitter criticism. He was widely believed to be a pseuao prophet, an impostor who laid tne founaation of the heresy of Islan.. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries travel literature undeiwent drastic changes. Vost travel-writers of the two centuries, instead of presenting Arab realities in their works, tried to give expression either to their personal views or to the peculiar ideologies of their age. As well known the eighteenth century saw the rise of nationali. srr in Europe which naturally influenced the aca(^e,T.ic and literary tradition of the ace. As a result the travellers r of the said period who visited the Viadle East viewed tne Arabs as a separate national aroup within the Turkish hmpire. The emphasis on the AraDs' consciousness of their separate national identity was laid with a view to justify ing the concept of nation states in Europe by highlighting the fact that the idea of nationalisn-. was present in other ancient nations as well. The nineteenth-century travellers, like .vise, were influenced by the two dominant iaeo.ogies of their age: imperialism and racism wnich maae tnerr look dov/n uoon the 26 9 - Oriental races who, being inferior and uncivilized, deserved, in the opinion of r.ost travellers, to be sub jugated and lorded over oy superior and civilized races of Europe, The two ideologies, that is, racism ancf imperialiSIT. were passed ©n to the running century and, more or less, continued to exist till the end of the Second V/orld V/ar. Even those travellers who had a liberal outlook were racist and imperialist, at least, in their sub-consciousness. For instance Gertrude Bell and Philoy were outwardly liberal, even atheist, but they both believed in the virtue of impe rial administration wbiich infact was a reflection of their feeling of belonaing to a culturally and politically superior nation. Captain Shakespear ana Lawrence, the two other writers discussed in this wor.<, were dedicated servants of the British Empire, nence imperialist in the highest deqree, Gertrude Bell also became a faithful servant of her imperialist nation when tTie First World Max started and remained so till her death. It was only Philby who criticised imperialism after his resignation from the British Govern ment because the later did not subscribe to his views on the role of imperial powers in the Arab world. Most of the writers discussed in this thesis v.'ere concerned with tr,e politics of the Arab and Islamic world. - 270 - As a result their works reflect the complex political realities of their age. Invariably they all were critical of the Turkish Empire and favoured the concept of Arab national independence under British tutelage. Philby, however, especially after his resignation, became a bitter critic of Anglo-French imperialism and started advocating complete independence for the Arabs, As well known the Palestine problem carr.e up during the First World War when the British Governrrent gave a promise to the Jews to create a Jewish state in Palestine. Gertrude Bell got out of humour when she came to know about the Balfour Declaration. She criticised it as imp ractical, for Jewish immigration in to Palestine, in her opinion, was bound to create problems leading ultimately to open rebellion by the Arabs. However practically she did nothing to correct the wrong policies of her country. Lawrence and Philby, unlike. Bell, ^ere in favour of the Balfour Declaration for they both oelieved that the Eurooean Jews, with their expertise in modern technology and huge financial resources, ,vill be advantageous to tne Arabs in the sense that they will help bring prosperity in the Arab world on a tremendous scale. In his later life Philby, however, denied to have ever supported the Jewish imn.igra- tion in to Palestine. But, as explained in tne fourth - 271 - chapter of trsis thesis, he v;as wrong. Infcict his overall stand on the Palestine problem was nearly scandalous and brought him a bad name. Philby, unlike Shakespear, Bell and Lavirence, wrote extensively on the religion of Islam, His approach to Islaii., especially before his conversion, was both negative and positive. Surprisingly after his conversion he rarely wrote on Islarric subjects. It appears as he had deliberately adopted an attitude of indifference towards Islam. 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