Establishment of the Emirate of Transjordan
Establishment of the Emirate of Transjordan refers to the government that was set up in Transjordan on 11 April 1921, following a brief interregnum period.
Abdullah, the second son of Sharif Hussein (leader of the 1916 Great Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire), arrived from Hejaz by train in Ma'an in southern Transjordan on 21 November 1920. His stated aim was fighting the French in Syria, after they had defeated the short-lived Arab Kingdom of Syria during the Battle of Maysalun on 24 July 1920.[1]
Transjordan then was in disarray and widely considered to be ungovernable with its dysfunctional local governments.[2] Abdullah spent almost four months with his base in Ma'an, which he left in late February arriving in Amman on 2 March 1921.[3] Following the Cairo Conference and Abdullah's meeting with Colonial Secretary Winston Churchill in Jerusalem, the Emirate of Transjordan was established on 11 April 1921.[4]
Background[edit]
Four centuries of Ottoman rule over the Levant and the Hejaz came to an end during World War I by the 1916 Arab Revolt; driven by long-term resentment towards the Ottoman authorities, and growing Arab nationalism.[5] The revolt was led by Sharif Hussein of Mecca, and his sons Abdullah, Faisal and Ali, members of the Hashemite family of the Hejaz, descendants of Muhammad.[5] Locally, the revolt garnered the support of the Transjordanian tribes, including Bedouins, Circassians and Christians.[6] The Allies of World War I, including Britain and France, whose imperial interests converged with the Arabist cause, offered support.[7] The revolt started on 5 June 1916 from Medina and pushed northwards until the fighting reached Transjordan in the Battle of Aqaba on 6 July 1917.[8] The revolt reached its climax when Faisal entered Damascus in October 1918, and established an Arab-led military administration in OETA East, later declared as the Arab Kingdom of Syria, both of which Transjordan was part of.[6] During this period, the southernmost region of the country, including Ma'an and Aqaba, was also claimed by the neighboring Kingdom of Hejaz.
The nascent Hashemite Kingdom over Greater Syria was forced to surrender to French troops on 24 July 1920 during the Battle of Maysalun;[9] the French occupied only the northern part of the Syrian Kingdom, leaving Transjordan in a period of interregnum. Arab aspirations failed to gain international recognition, due mainly to the secret 1916 Sykes–Picot Agreement, which divided the region into French and British spheres of influence, and the 1917 Balfour Declaration, which promised Palestine to Jews.[10] This was seen by the Hashemites and the Arabs as a betrayal of their previous agreements with the British,[11] including the 1915 McMahon–Hussein Correspondence, in which the British stated their willingness to recognize the independence of a unified Arab state stretching from Aleppo to Aden under the rule of the Hashemites.[12]: 55
Umm Qais conference[edit]
The second meeting between British officials and the notables of Transjordan occurred in Umm Qais nearly a month later on 2 September. Major Fitzroy Somerset received a petition from the local residents who demanded an independent Arab government in Transjordan to be led by an Arab prince (emir), and a representative body which would have the power to enact legislation and administer the country's affairs. They also demanded that land sale in Transjordan to Jews be stopped as well as preventing Jewish immigration there; that Britain fund and establish a national army; and that free trade be maintained between Transjordan and the rest of the region.[13]
Jerusalem meeting[edit]
Abdullah then headed to Jerusalem to meet with Winston Churchill on 28 March 1921.
Proclamation of the Emirate of Transjordan[edit]
Following agreement with Colonial Secretary Winston Churchill, the Emirate of Transjordan was established on 11 April 1921.[4]