Political Intrigue and Suppression in Lebanon During World War I

Nicholas Z. Ajay Jr.

doi:10.1017/S0020743800027793

Political Intrigue and Suppression in Lebanon During World War I

Published online by Cambridge University Press: 29 January 2009

Nicholas Z. Ajay Jr.

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Nicholas Z. Ajay Jr.: Affiliation:
Alexandria, Virginia

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At the outbreak of World War I, Lebanon was a part of the Ottoman Empire and comprised mainly the Mutasarrifîyah, or Independent Sanjaq, of Mount Lebanon and the Wilâyah, or province, of Beirut. Because of its position in international power politics, Lebanon was not under as strict Ottoman control as other provinces, with Mount Lebanon enjoying a considerable degree of local autonomy. Turkish involvement in the war, however, resulted in military occupation of Lebanon, which comprised part of the Fourth Army Command under Jamâl Pâsha, in prosecution of the war effort against the British in Egypt.

Type: Articles
Information: International Journal of Middle East Studies , Volume 5 , Issue 2 , April 1974 , pp. 140 - 160

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0020743800027793 [Opens in a new window]
Copyright: Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1974

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^{page 140 note 1} Yalman, Ahmed Emin, Turkey in the World War (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1930), p. 200.Google Scholar

^{page 141 note 1} Ibid. p. 84.

^{page 141 note 2} Both the Arabs and Turks recognized the lack of identity with one another. Halidé Edib, the Turkish feminist leader, travelled to Syria in 1916. En route she passed through Aleppo, which she described as being ‘on the border of the Turko-Arab lands’. (Adib, Halidah, Memoirs of Halidé Edib (New York: The Century Co., 1926), pp. 395–6.)Google Scholar

^{page 141 note 3} Antonius, George, The Arab Awakening (London: Hamish Hamilton, 1938), pp. 112–13.Google Scholar

^{page 142 note 1} McGilvary, Margaret, The Dawn of a New Era in Syria (New York: Fleming H. Revell Co., 1920), p. 57.Google Scholar

^{page 142 note 2} CaptainWeldon, Lewen B., Hard Lying: Eastern Mediterranean 1914–1919 (London: Herbert Jenkins Ltd, 1926), pp. 9–52.Google Scholar

^{page 142 note 3} Ibid.

^{page 142 note 4} Ibid. pp. 113–16.

^{page 142 note 5} Ibid. p. 210.

^{page 142 note 6} Ibid. p. 161.

^{page 142 note 7} Ibid. p. 188.

^{page 143 note 1} Ibid. pp. 162–4.

^{page 143 note 2} Ibid. p. 195.

^{page 143 note 3} Ibid. p. 203. This is the only instance where any source indicated that agents were being landed for other than intelligence-gathering purposes. While there is a paucity of information on the scope and nature of Allied intelligence activities along the Syrian coast during the war, there is little doubt on this writer's part that most of the agents were sent in for information and not for sabotage.

^{page 143 note 4} Yammine, Antoine, Quatre Ans de Misère: Le Liban et la Syrie Pendant La Guerre (Caire: Imprimerie Emin Hindie, 1922), p. 168.Google Scholar Trabaud, who was destined to become the first governor-general of Greater Lebanon during the mandate, also became actively engaged in channeling aid into the war-stricken Lebanese. It was Trabaud who went to Paris and pleaded Lebanon's case and returned with a million francs for relief which were smuggled in through the church. (Khuwayrî, B., Al-Rihlah al-Surîyah fî al-Harb al‚Ammûmîyah 1917 [The Syrian Journey in the Great War, 1917] (Cairo: al-Yûsufiyah Babân Press, 1921), pp. 72–73 n.)Google Scholar

^{page 144 note 1} Op. cit. p. 103.Google Scholar The Turks, realizing the motive behind the occupation of Arwâd, began moving away from the coast, shortly after the French took the island, certain leading Christian families which might have been contacted by the Allies. (al-Maqdisî, Jirjis al-Khûrî, A'zam Harb fî al-Tarîkh [The Greatest War in History] (Beirut: al-'Ilmiyah Press, 1927), p. 54.Google Scholar) Only on one occasion did the Turks try to do something about Arwâd. On 4 October 1917 their gun positions on the Syrian coast opposite Arwâd subjected the island to a brief but heavy bombardment. The only result was that the French moved the native women, children and old people to Cyprus for safety. (al-Buwârî, Bishârah, Arba' Sinîy al-Harb [Four Years of the War] (New York: al-Hûda Press, 1926), pp. 361–2.)Google Scholar

^{page 144 note 2} While it is difficult to substantiate because of the lack of corroborating information, it appears that the British and French may have had a division of labor when it came to who was responsible for what area of the Syrian littoral. It seems that the British were responsible for those areas which became part of their theatre-of-war operations (including the Sinai coastline and the Palestine littoral up to around Sayda ard Sûr), while France, ever jealous of her historical interests, covered what is now the coast of Lebanon and Syria.Google Scholar

^{page 144 note 3} Al-Buwârî, loc. cit. pp. 10–16.Google Scholar

^{page 144 note 4} Ibid. pp. 405–6.

^{page 144 note 5} Ibid. p. 105.

^{page 145 note 1} Ibid. pp. 105–8.

^{page 145 note 2} Khuwayrî, loc. cit. pp. 9–10.Google Scholar

^{page 145 note 3} Ibid. pp. 16–17.

^{page 145 note 4} Ibid. p. 33.

^{page 145 note 5} Ibid. pp. 17–18.

^{page 145 note 6} Ibid. p. 67.

^{page 145 note 7} Ibid. pp. 38–41.

^{page 146 note 1} Ibid. pp. 76–7. The indigenous contacts used by the Allies for collecting and reporting information were, almost without exception, untrained and generally ill-equipped for performing such tasks. The information they provided at times was really nothing spectacular but just common knowledge or that culled from the local rumor mills. Their strong feelings about the Turks undoubtedly influenced their judgement when reporting on the plight of the local populace. Being inclined to accept the worst about anything connected with the Turks, they would report in a highly exaggerated or dramatic manner without really substantiating it. As to the ultimate value of the information supplied the Allies on the Turks' position in Syria during the war, none of the sources consulted revealed just how good or worthwhile was the whole intelligence operation.

^{page 146 note 2} Interview with Miss 'Âqilah 'Aqil. This is one of approximately thirty interviews with persons who lived through the period in question; they were conducted in Lebanon between 1964 and 1965. I plan to include the text of them in the appendices of my dissertation.Google Scholar

^{page 146 note 3} Al-Buwârî, loc. cit. pp. 200–1.Google Scholar

^{page 147 note 1} None of the sources consulted give a clear account of the full extent of Allied intelligence operations conducted in Lebanon during World War I. The treatment presented here is at best an attempt to show how it was started and operated. Buwârî, probably the best source on certain aspects of this subject, includes in his book three series of letters covering his dealings with Bishop Daryân (pp. 320–453), the Karam brothers (pp. 453–77) and Bulûs 'Aqil (pp. 177–353). The time period covered in the correspondence is between August 1916 and August 1917, possibly indicating that, while they were possibly active before and after this date, the high period of the intelligence operation was within this date span.Google Scholar

^{page 147 note 2} Khuwayrî, loc. cit. pp. 4–5.Google Scholar

^{page 147 note 3} Al-Buwârî, loc. cit. pp. 184–5.Google Scholar The people of Zaghartâ and Bisharrî, two towns located in northern Lebanon near Tripoli, are predominantly Maronite and are known, even down to today, for their quick and fierce resort to arms in support of what they consider their legitimate interests. This letter of Buwârî's was the only evidence found indicating that the local populace might be used for some kind of internal uprising or resistance against the Turks, a move perhaps aimed at coinciding with a French coastal landing. There is no evidence to indicate one way or the other whether. Bulûs ′Aqil provided such information. The fact that nothing came of such a military venture by the French may be attributed to the exigencies of wartime strategy.

^{page 148 note 1} The Wartime Diaries of Archibald S. Crawford, entry of 15 08 1915. Mr Crawford, the son of a missionary family in Beirut during the war and a young lad at that time, kept a very detailed diary from the beginning of the war until they were evacuated in 1917. He was kind enough to give me access to his diaries for my dissertation.Google Scholar

^{page 148 note 2} Op. cit. p. 205.Google Scholar

^{page 148 note 3} Khuwayrî, loc. cit. pp. 74–5.Google Scholar

^{page 148 note 4} Crawford Diaries, entry of 14 March 1916.Google Scholar

^{page 148 note 5} Al-Buwârî, op. cit. pp. 91–4.Google Scholar

^{page 149 note 1} Crawford Diaries, entry of March 1916.Google Scholar

^{page 149 note 2} Ibid., entry of 11 August 1916.

^{page 149 note 3} McGilvary, loc. cit. pp. 180–2.Google Scholar

^{page 149 note 4} Interview with Mr Bayard Dodge. Unlike the other interviews, this one was conducted at Princeton, New Jersey, in 1966.Google Scholar

^{page 149 note 5} Op. cit. p. 181.Google Scholar Interview with Mr Bayard Dodge. Even before Turkey entered the war, the foreign community was pressured regarding the presence of wireless sets. On 4 August 1914. American Consul General Hollis in Beirut stated the following in a letter to President Bliss of SPC: ‘I have just had a talk with my French Colleague and he informs me that the Jesuit College has already taken down its wireless outfit; so, under these circumstances, and in order to give no grounds upon which the local authorities can make what perhaps would be an inconvenient incident, I am of the opinion that you would be well advised to immediately take down the aerials, or antennae, or whatever they are called, or, in other words, that part of your wireless installation which is in the air and is exposed to view.’ (Letter to Rev. Howard Bliss, 4. August 1914, in the archives of the American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon.)

^{page 150 note 1} Al-Ittihâd al-′ Uthmânî (Beirut), 12 11 1914, p. 3. This was a daily newspaper published in Beirut at the outbreak of the war and copies of it, from October 1914 through 1915, are in my possession.Google Scholar

^{page 150 note 2} McGilvary, loc. cit. pp. 181–3.Google Scholar

^{page 150 note 3} Interview with Dr Ra'if Abî al-Lam′.Google Scholar

^{page 150 note 4} Interview with Dr Nabîh Shâb.Google Scholar

^{page 150 note 5} Nicolai, Colonel Walter, The German Secret Service, trans. Renwick, George (London: Stanley Paul and Co., Ltd., 1924), p. 101. Nicolai was head of the German intelligence service during the war.Google Scholar

^{page 150 note 6} Ibid. p. 138.

^{page 151 note 1} Ibid. p. 136.

^{page 151 note 2} A1-Ittih^d al-'Uthmânî, 17 December 1914.Google Scholar

^{page 151 note 3} Ibid., 10 February 1915, p. 2.

^{page 151 note 4} Ibid., 25 February 1915, p. 2.

^{page 152 note 1} Interview with Mr Yûsuf Rufâyil.Google Scholar

^{page 152 note 2} Khuwayrî, loc. cit. p. 67.Google Scholar

^{page 152 note 3} Yammine, loc. cit. pp. 99–200.Google Scholar

^{page 152 note 4} Interview with Mr Halîm Mûsa Ashqar.Google Scholar

^{page 152 note 5} Gerard, James W., My Four Years in Germany (New York: George H. Doran Co., 1917), p. 420.Google Scholar

^{page 153 note 1} Dawson, Warrington (ed.), The War Memoirs of William Graves Sharp, American Ambassador to France, 1914–1919 (London: Constable and Co., Ltd, 1931), p. 98.Google Scholar

^{page 153 note 2} Ibid. p. 141.

^{page 153 note 3} Hankey, Lord M. P. A., The Supreme Command 1914–1918 (London: George Allen and Unwin Ltd, 1961), p. 220.Google Scholar

^{page 153 note 4} Al-Ittihâd al-'Uthmânî, 20 November 1914, p.3.Google Scholar

^{page 153 note 5} Pasha, Djemal, Memories of a Turkish Statesman, 1913–1919 (New York: George H. Doran, Co., 1922), p. 198.Google Scholar The ingenuous and totally abrupt manner in which Jamâl Pâsha treats Nakhlah Mutrân Pâsha's death raises more questions than it answers.

^{page 153 note 6} Yammine, loc. cit. pp. 149–51.Google Scholar Nakhlah Mutrân Pâsha's death apparently occurred some time in early 1915, perhaps in the first three months. If so, then he may have been one of the very first to have suffered fatally from the Turks' crackdown on political dissidence.

^{page 154 note 1} The Wartime Diaries of Mrs Gerald F. Dale, entry of 16 February 1916. Mrs Dale was the head nurse of the SPC hospital at that time and daughter of President Bliss. Her diaries were made available to me by her granddaughter, Mrs Douglas Rugh.Google Scholar

^{page 154 note 2} Al-Ittihâd al-'Uthmânî, 16 March 1915, p. 2.Google Scholar

^{page 154 note 3} Ibid., 25 March 1915, p. 2. While there seems little doubt that Hâyik was executed because of some kind of contacts with the enemy after the war started, there is doubt as to the exact reason for the conviction of Mutân Pâsha. No sources, including Jamâl Pâsha, ever specified whether he was guilty of wartime activities or of pre-war political subversion, in collusion with the French.

^{page 154 note 4} Yammine, loc. cit. p. 104.Google Scholar The exact circumstances surrounding the arrest, trial and execution of the eleven and, apparently, of others connected with the case are at best vague and confusing, especially if one follows, Jamâl Pâsha's apologia. He states the trial of these men occurred in June and July 2925. The Cairo daily, al-Muqattam, reported on 27 July 1925 that ‘the Turkish government arrested some of the Islamic leaders in Beirut, accusing them of taking part in a big Arab society, with headquarters in Damascus, aiming at the independence of the Arabs’.

^{page 154 note 5} Pasha, loc. cit. pp. 212–13.Google Scholar

^{page 154 note 6} Op. cit. pp. 10–8.Google Scholar The site of the executions, ‘Place des Canons’, is also known as ‘Martyrs’ Square', or, more commonly, the ‘Burj’.

^{page 155 note 1} Ibid. p. 110.

^{page 155 note 2} Interview with Dr Ra'îf Abî al-Lam'.Google Scholar

^{page 155 note 3} Op. cit. p. 106.Google Scholar

^{page 155 note 4} Interview with Mr Yûsuf Nakhle. According to Mr Nakhle, a gendarme at the time, similar precautions were also applied at the time of the even larger mass hangings in May 1916.Google Scholar

^{page 155 note 5} U.S. Department of State, Papers Relating to the Foreign Policy of the United States, 1914 Suppl., The World War (Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1928), 748.Google Scholar

^{page 156 note 1} U.S. Department of State, Papers Relating to the Foreign Policy of the United States, 1916 Suppl., The World War (Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1929), p. 815.Google Scholar

^{page 156 note 2} Ibid. p. 818.

^{page 156 note 3} Ibid. pp. 822–3.

^{page 156 note 4} McGilvary, loc. cit. p. 143.Google Scholar

^{page 157 note 1} al-Khûrî, Bishârah Khalîl, Haqâ'iq Lubnânîyah, min 10 Ab 1890 ila 20 Aylul 1943 [Lebanese Documents, From 10 August 1890 to 20 September 1943] (1st ed.; Harrisa: Basil Aûhwan Press, 1960), p. 35.Google Scholar

^{page 157 note 2} al-Hakûm, Yúsuf, Bayrût wa Lubnân fî 'Ahd ul 'Uthmân [Beirut and Lebanon in the Ottoman Era] (Beirut: Catholic Press, 1964), pp. 233–4.Google Scholar

^{page 157 note 3} Ibid. pp. 236–7.

^{page 157 note 4} The Wartime Diaries of Mrs Harry Dorman, entry of 26 February 1916. Mrs Dorman was the wife of Dr Dorman who was attached to the SPC hospital at that time. I was given access to her diaries by her daughter, Mrs Rugh.Google Scholar

^{page 157 note 5} Pasha, loc. cit. p. 214.Google Scholar

^{page 157 note 6} Al-Maqdisî, loc. cit. pp. 71–2.Google ScholarAl-Sharq (Damascus), 6 May 1916, p. 2.Google Scholar On 6 May 1916, Mrs Dale noted in her diary: ‘14 men hanged at Burj - 10 of them Moslems.’ Today, the Republic of Lebanon officially commemorates 6 May as Martyrs' Day.

^{page 158 note 1} Al-Hakîm, loc. cit. p. 239.Google Scholar

^{page 158 note 2} Dale Diaries, entry of 6 June 1916. Yammine, loc. cit. p. 146.Google Scholar The al-Khâzin brothers, if not the last, were close to the last of those executed on the basis of incriminating information from the archives of the French consulate.

^{page 158 note 3} The title of this work is La Vérité sur la question Syrienne (Stamboul: Imprimerie Tanine, 1916).Google Scholar The title in Arabic is probably Haqîqah al-Qadiyah Suriyah. For some time after the May 1916 execution, the Damascus daily, al-Sharq, continued to run advertisements periodically for the sale of this publication. It is interesting to note that simultaneous with the 1916 publication of the above work, the Turks also published a similar work on the Armenian situation: Vérité sur le mouvement révobutiornzaire arménien et les mesures gouvernementales.

^{page 158 note 4} Pasha, Djemal, Haqîqah al-Qadiyah Suriyah (Stamboul: Imprimerie Tanine, 1916).Google Scholar This observation is based on a general survey of the source as a whole and, in particular, on the basis of pages 115–24, which contain a list of those executed and a summary of the charges against them.

^{page 158 note 5} von Sanders, Liman, Five Years in Turkey (Annapolis: The U.S. Naval Institute, 1927), p. 140.Google Scholar

^{page 159 note 1} von Bernstorff, Count J., The Memoirs of Count Bernstorff, trans. Sutton, Eric (London: William Heinemann Ltd., 1936), pp. 177–8.Google Scholar

^{page 159 note 2} Pasha, loc. cit. p. 229.Google Scholar

^{page 159 note 3} Ibid.

^{page 159 note 4} Interview with Mr George Ashqar.Google Scholar

^{page 160 note 1} McGilvary, , loc. cit. pp. 243–4.Google Scholar

^{page 160 note 2} Zeine, Zeine N., Arab-Turkish Relations and the Emergence of Arab Nationalism (Beirut: Khayyats, 1958), pp. 203–4.Google Scholar

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Political Intrigue and Suppression in Lebanon During World War I

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