Legacies of the Anglo-Hashemite Relationship in Jordan
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Legacies of the Anglo-Hashemite Relationship in Jordan: How this symbiotic alliance established the legitimacy and political longevity of the regime in the process of state-formation, 1914-1946 An Honors Thesis for the Department of Middle Eastern Studies Julie Murray Tufts University, 2018 Acknowledgements The writing of this thesis was not a unilateral effort, and I would be remiss not to acknowledge those who have helped me along the way. First of all, I would like to thank my advisor, Professor Thomas Abowd, for his encouragement of my academic curiosity this past year, and for all his help in first, making this project a reality, and second, shaping it into (what I hope is) a coherent and meaningful project. His class provided me with a new lens through which to examine political history, and gave me with the impetus to start this paper. I must also acknowledge the role my abroad experience played in shaping this thesis. It was a research project conducted with CET that sparked my interest in political stability in Jordan, so thank you to Ines and Dr. Saif, and of course, my classmates, Lensa, Matthew, and Jackie, for first empowering me to explore this topic. I would also like to thank my parents and my brother, Jonathan, for their continuous support. I feel so lucky to have such a caring family that has given me the opportunity to pursue my passions. Finally, a shout-out to the gals that have been my emotional bedrock and inspiration through this process: Annie, Maya, Miranda, Rachel – I love y’all; thanks for listening to me rant about this all year. I cannot mention everyone here, but thank you to everyone else who offered support, critiques, guidance, and love – I am so appreciative to you all. 2 Table of Contents Acknowledgements ....................................................................................................................... 2 Abstract .......................................................................................................................................... 5 Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 6 Theories of State and Nation Formation ................................................................................................. 11 Chapter 1: Historical Context.................................................................................................... 18 Ottoman Jordan ....................................................................................................................................... 18 World War I............................................................................................................................................. 22 The Hussein-McMahon Correspondence............................................................................................................ 22 British Strategy and the Sykes-Picot Agreement ............................................................................................ 25 The Arab Revolt ............................................................................................................................................................. 29 After the Great War ................................................................................................................................. 31 The Mandate System ................................................................................................................................................... 31 Interregnum in Jordan ................................................................................................................................................ 34 Abdullah Enters ............................................................................................................................................................. 35 Early Mandatory Transjordan ................................................................................................................................. 38 Moving into the Mandate Period ............................................................................................................. 40 Chapter 2: Geographical State-Formation ............................................................................... 43 Carving up the Middle East ..................................................................................................................... 44 Border Delineation .................................................................................................................................. 47 Israel/Palestine.............................................................................................................................................................. 47 Iraq ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 50 Syria .................................................................................................................................................................................... 54 Saudi Arabia .................................................................................................................................................................... 56 Chapter 3: Political State-Formation ........................................................................................ 62 Modes of Legitimacy............................................................................................................................... 64 The Hashemite Claim: Muslim and Arab ............................................................................................................ 65 The British Case: The Agreement of 1928 ......................................................................................................... 69 Consolidating the State ............................................................................................................................ 72 Infrastructure and Development ........................................................................................................................... 73 Governance and Representation ............................................................................................................................ 79 An Instrument of Force and Identity .................................................................................................................... 82 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................... 94 Bibliography ................................................................................................................................ 97 Primary Sources .................................................................................................................................... 101 Appendix A. Hussein-McMahon Correspondence, 1915-1916 ............................................. 103 No. 1 ...................................................................................................................................................... 103 No. 2 ...................................................................................................................................................... 104 No. 3 ...................................................................................................................................................... 104 No. 4 ...................................................................................................................................................... 106 No. 5 ...................................................................................................................................................... 107 No. 6 ...................................................................................................................................................... 109 No. 7 ...................................................................................................................................................... 110 No. 8 ...................................................................................................................................................... 111 No. 9 ...................................................................................................................................................... 112 3 No. 10 .................................................................................................................................................... 113 Appendix B. Sykes-Picot Agreement....................................................................................... 115 Appendix C. Anglo-Transjordanian Agreement of 1928. ..................................................... 117 List of Maps Map 1 Current political map of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. ........................................... 10 Map 2 Ottoman administrative division of Jordan. Railway marked by ticked line running north- south (northwards split at Aleppo to Istanbul and Baghdad, southwards to Medina). ......... 19 Map 3 Empires between Turkey and India, 1912; Ottoman Empire is outlined in dark green. Insert provided to focus on the imperial control over the Levant and northern Arabia. ....... 20 Map 4 Possible conception of the Arab state outlined in the Hussein-McMahon Correspondence. ..............................................................................................................................................