A Peace to End All Peace: The Fall of the Ottoman Empire and the Creation of the Modern Middle East

Rating:
Summary: Almost unreadable yet incredibly informative.
Review: This is the most difficult book I have ever finished. It moves in a chaotic 1-step forward 2 steps back pattern. It is difficult to extract the main themes. The author did not exercise coherent synthesis of the main facts. The author overwhelms with so much details; it is challenging to distinguish trivia from turning points. I read most books in a week. It took me six to read this one. To make sense of it, I wrote 44 pages of notes and did research the main treaties on the Wikipedia website. I recommend this book only to readers with an intense interest and academic knowledge of the subject. Without these assets, finishing and making sense of this book will be most challenging.

In few words here is what I got. Britain was the main player regarding the 1914 to 1922 period of ongoing conflicts with the Ottoman Empire. But, during this time it experienced the turnover of three different governments who had radically different views about the break up of the Ottoman Empire. In the first period, 1914 to 1916, Britain's objective was to reign in the advance from Russia that was pressing southward through Afghanistan. Britain's concern was to maintain the safety of its vulnerable trading route through the Middle East to India. To do so, Britain was willing to grant significant territories to France (Sykes - Picot Agreement of 1916), to create a buffer against further Russian expansion. By 1918, a change in government results in a change in foreign policy. Britain's goal now is its hegemony over how much of the Ottoman territory it can claim. This caused Britain to renege on the Sykes - Picot Agreement, and experience continued diplomatic tension with France, especially regarding who will occupy Syria. In the later stage (1920 to 1922), Britain suffered from imperial overstretch. It did not have the resources to hang on to the territories it claimed just a couple of years ago. It becomes clear that the British Mandates over Middle Eastern territories will be a difficult and costly experience. Also, the public and British press are dead set against Britain's Middle Eastern occupation.

The British Government supported Zionism for a couple of reasons. First, early in the War the Government believed that the Jews may well support the Central Powers if Germany steps to the plate first in its support of Zionism. Thus, the Brits viewed it as a race to gain the support of the Jewish community both in Europe and the U.S. by offering their political support of the Zionist cause (Balfour Declaration of 1917 is a late stage confirmation of British support). Later, Britain, and more particularly Churchill strongly supported Zionism for another perceived threat. And, that is that Jews would emigrate and join Bolshevik Russia. From Britain's perspective, it was far more advantageous to promote Jewish emigration to Palestine, then watch Jewish emigration swell the Bolshevik ranks. Ironically, Churchill did the most to undermine Zionism, by promoting the cutting off 75% of Palestine territory (Transjordan), which became Jordan, an independent country who rejected Palestinian refugees just as egregiously as the future state of Israel.

What is clear is that the restructuring of the Ottoman Empire into the modern Middle East was a chaotic process. During the 1914 - 1922 period, it was dominated by a dozen conflicting treaties between different countries. The most notorious was the Sykes - Picot Agreement between France and Britain, which was signed in 1916 in secret two full years before the end of the War. This Agreement was agreed, and rebutted by Britain so many times; it gets your head spinning. However, it seemed that its terms directionally prevailed when the Middle Eastern Mandates were offered by the League of Nations to France and Britain.

This period caused incredible economic stress on many countries. Both Russia and Turkey experienced food shortages and increase in prices of over 1,000% between the beginning and end of the War. Britain experienced a severe economic crisis that caused it to become increasingly dependent on American capital.

The Ottoman Empire was in a self-destructing state way before the War. It was also actively split during the War since the Turks joined the Germans, and most of the Arab areas joined Britain (associated with the stories and tales of Lawrence of Arabia).

There were no right or wrong ways to create the various countries. Given communities of Sunnis, Shiites, Wahabists, Kurds who do not cohabitate well, either you respected the various groups separate identities. This would engender inter State wars. Or, you would create states with a mix of these different communities. And, that would create civil unrest and wars. The Middle East has experienced its fair share of both types of conflicts.

The author interestingly concludes that the ongoing formation of the different Middle Eastern governments is a process that may last over a millennium. He compares the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire and the onset of the formation of various Middle Eastern governments to the dissolution of the Roman Empire in the fourth century, and the ultimate crystallization of West European governments after WWII, or over a millennium and a half later.


Rating:
Summary: Fromkin Style: Investigative, Detailed, Fresh, Original.
Review: This book of the late 80's could threaten to be, to the alarmed reader looking the date of its writting, an obsolete piece of scholarship as far as so many things have happened in Middle East since that date, but it is all the contrary. The esential thesis by Fromkin -or better said, conclusion- of being Middle East a zone where religious and sociological particularities makes of it refractary to western kind of state has been, to date, fully reafirmed. The narrative is less theoretical than purely historical, though; it tell us how the specific endeavours compounded of good and bad ideas, administrative and political confusion and/or change in UK elite beetwen 1914-1922 happened and how THAT special mess of artificial countries and very real conflicts was fulfilled, BUT also show clearly that any other path of reconstruction of the zone outside the already fallen Otoman Enpire was equally comdemned to doom. The books also show in the middle of all that the question of arab-jew relationship and somehow permeates us with a sad sense that a conflict was anyway unavaoidable. A great, lucid book.

Rating:
Summary: Detailed Book on How the Midle East Became What it is Today
Review: The origin's of the Middle East's hostility to the west is often referenced back to the fall of the Ottoman Empire and World War I, this book by Fromkin provides all the details and give you a total appreciation for the global political situation involving all the countries at war and their alliances that crave and carve up the Middle East, creating the countries of Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Syria, Jordan and Palestine (Now Israel). England is the major architect of the post WWI changes in the Middle East and the book is dominated by the Prime Ministers of England notably Lloyd George at the latter end of the war and by Churchill who later tries to reduce England's tremendous military responsibilities that are put to great strains by the end of the war. Of course Turkey is the other great center piece of the book and their own political changes starting with the Young Turks and their virtual eclipse of the Sultan who ruled the empire and the emergence of the military strongman Kemal who after the war is lost, rallies his countrymen against victors who try to claim the spoils of victory notably the British and Greeks. Within all this is the roles of France, who want Lebanon but Syria, Germany', and their alliance with Turkey and later Russia, and Russia whose quitting of the war starts an imbalance between the pre-war alliances. The Bolsheviks accession to power also does not negate Russia's continuous desire to expand and actually becomes more of a challenge as they have a secret treaty of support for Germany and expand into weakened countries on their border. In the midst of these activities is England's leading role in taking over responsibilities for countries in the Middle East by supporting kings such as the Hussiens and the Sauds to hopefully become client states or members of the Commonwealth. Also, incorporated in these complexities is the Balfour Declaration that provides a homeland for Zionist Jews. There are notable splits between Jews in Palestine (Israel) that initially support Turkey and then those that support the Western Alliance such as the Jewish legion. Later, after the war, two of the Jewish leaders in Israel split over what the borders of Israel should be and today that is still in dispute from the seeds of this split over 80 years ago. Other that is complicating these issues are George's under the table manipulation to have greater control at the expense of his allies notably France, his failed support of Greece against Turkey and the desire of the Arab countries to become independent and England's failed attempt to manipulate Muslim leaders for political purposes. Every major character in the Middle East is covered in the book from Lawrence of Arabia to the leaders of the Arab countries, France, Turkey, Russia, Germany, Italy and England in great detail. From reading this book you can see how the victor attempted to carve up the world around them that has its parallel in the aftermath of WWII. And of course oil is already an economic and political entity almost 100 years ago. The only thing I would add to this book is a glossary for all the major characters as a reference for this readable book of 567 pages. After reading this book, you will have a greater understanding of how the Middle East resents the west and any occupation no matter temporary as well as the fact that to conquer a country does not mean its easy to occupy.





Rating:
Summary: Important To Understand The World
Review: What a great book for those looking to understand the world. This book goes a long way to help explain the background of the issues at the center stage of the world today in the Middle East. It is important reading for everyone with an interest in the world and our collective future.