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82-766: The First Syrian Republic , officially the Syrian Republic , was formed in 1930 as a component of the Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon , succeeding the State of Syria . A treaty of independence was made in 1936 to grant independence to Syria and end official French rule, but the French parliament refused to accept the treaty. From 1940 to 1941, the Syrian Republic was under the control of Vichy France , and after

164-788: A ceremony in Beirut. Greater Lebanon was created by France to be a "safe haven" for the Maronite population of the mutasarrifia (Ottoman administrative unit) of Mount Lebanon . Mt. Lebanon, an area with a Maronite majority, had enjoyed varying degrees of autonomy during the Ottoman era. However, in addition to the Maronite Mutasarrifia other, mainly Muslim , regions were added, forming "Greater" Lebanon. Those regions correspond today to North Lebanon , South Lebanon , Biqa' valley , and Beirut . The capital of Greater Lebanon

246-565: A change of direction regarding the Syrian question, and contrary to the general amnesty, the French arrested the three national government ministers in September 1926 and exiled them to Lebanon. The French High Commissioner began a series of discussions in Beirut with the main Syrian national leaders Hashim al-Atassi and Ibrahim Hananu on the future constitution, which failed to reach any agreement. On 15 February 1928, Ahmed Nami resigned, and

328-652: A complete halt to Jewish ambition in Palestine . France and the United States opposed British hegemony in the region, which eventually led to the creation of Israel. On 27 September 1941, Free France proclaimed, by virtue of, and within the framework of the Mandate, the independence and sovereignty of the Syrian State. The proclamation said "the independence and sovereignty of Syria and Lebanon will not affect

410-700: A constitution was drafted but not ratified by the French Chamber of Deputies, and the coming of World War II stopped any progress in Syrian self-determination . Under French administration, the University of Damascus , known then as Syrian University was established in 1923, teaching in Arabic. It was the first university to be founded in Syria, being established through the merger of the School of Medicine and

492-491: A fear of being outflanked by it if France relinquished its colonies in the Middle East. That, coupled with lingering imperialist inclinations in some levels of the French government, led France to reconsider its promises and refuse to ratify the treaty. Riots again broke out, Atassi resigned, and Syrian independence was deferred until after World War II . With the fall of France in 1940 during World War II, Syria came under

574-612: A feasibility study of the Union Economique de Syrie the North-East Syrian and the Alawite State were deemed profitable for the cotton cultivation. Investments began in 1924, but it took until the 1930s to produce more than the level reached in 1925. By 1933, Palestine was the largest importer of Syrian goods, while the French held a share of 7.5% of the imports. Between the two World Wars, France became

656-587: A few months, following the clash between his Syrian Arab forces and regular French forces at the Battle of Maysalun . French troops occupied Syria later that year after the League of Nations put Syria under French mandate. Following the San Remo conference and the defeat of King Faisal 's short-lived monarchy in Syria at the Battle of Maysalun , the French general Henri Gouraud established civil administration in

738-412: A majority of Sunni Muslims . It covered northern Syria in addition to the entire fertile basin of river Euphrates of eastern Syria. These regions represented much of the agricultural and mineral wealth of Syria. The autonomous Sanjak of Alexandretta was added to the state of Aleppo in 1923. The capital was the northern city of Aleppo , which had large Christian and Jewish communities in addition to

820-536: A new constitution was discussed by a Constituent Assembly elected in April 1928, but as the pro-independence National Bloc had won a majority and insisted on the insertion of several articles "that did not preserve the prerogatives of the mandatary power". The Constituent Assembly convened on 9 May 1928, at the Government Premises, and unanimously elected Mr. Hashem al-Atassi as its president, and after

902-508: A new government headed by Hashim al-Atassi was formed on 7 May 1920. The new government decided to organize general conscription and began forming an army. These decisions provoked adverse reactions by France as well as by the Maronite patriarchate of Mount Lebanon, which denounced the decisions as a " coup d'état ". In Beirut , the Christian press expressed its hostility to the decisions of Faisal's government. Lebanese nationalists used

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984-764: A new, mainly Christian, state of Greater Lebanon . A part of France's claim to these territories in the Levant was that France had been acknowledged as a protector of the minority Christian communities by the Ottoman Empire . In March 1920, the Congress in Damascus adopted a resolution rejecting the Faisal-Clemenceau accords. The congress declared the independence of Syria in her natural borders (including Southern Syria or Palestine), and proclaimed Faisal

1066-550: A similar treaty in November. The treaty also promised curtailment of French intervention in Syrian domestic affairs as well as a reduction of French troops, personnel and military bases in Syria. In return, Syria pledged to support France in times of war, including the use of its air space , and to allow France to maintain two military bases on Syrian territory. Other political, economic and cultural provisions were included. Atassi returned to Syria in triumph on 27 September 1936 and

1148-537: A sovereign republic, with full emancipation granted gradually over a 25-year period. In 1936, the Franco-Syrian Treaty of Independence was signed, a treaty that would not be ratified by the French legislature. However, the treaty allowed Jabal Druze, the Alawite region (now called Latakia ), and Alexandretta to be incorporated into the Syrian Republic within the following two years. Greater Lebanon (now

1230-606: A view to the formation of the territories of Greater Lebanon and the Ansarieh Mountains "; where the "Ansarieh Mountains" area was to become the Alawite State. On 31 August 1920, the same day that the decree creating Greater Lebanon was signed, General Gouraud signed Arrêté 319 delimiting the State of Alawites , and Arrêté 317 adding the caza of Massyaf (Omranie) into the new State. The State of Alawites (French: État des Alaouites , Arabic: دولة العلويين )

1312-489: The Balfour Declaration , and their demand for a unified Greater Syria encompassing Palestine. The conclusions of the commission were ignored by both Britain and France. Unrest erupted in Syria when Faisal accepted a compromise with French Prime Minister Clemenceau . Anti- Hashemite demonstrations broke out, and Muslim inhabitants in and around Mount Lebanon revolted in fear of being incorporated into

1394-533: The Golan Region , there was a sizeable Circassian community. For the same reasons as their Assyrian, Kurdish and Bedouin counterparts in Al-Jazira province in 1936–1937, several Circassian leaders wanted a special autonomy status for their region in 1938, as they feared the prospect of living in an independent Syrian republic under a nationalist Arab government hostile towards the minorities. They also wanted

1476-641: The Hatay State became a Turkish province. On 24 October 1922, Arrêté 1641 established the " État autonome du Djebel druze " (" Autonomous State of Jabal Druze ") It was created for the Druze population of southern Syria . It had a population of some 50,000 and its capital in As-Suwayda . In 1936, both Jebel Druze and the Alawite State were incorporated into the State of Syria. In 1936–1937, there

1558-495: The Lebanese Republic ) was the only state that did not join the Syrian Republic. Hashim al-Atassi, who was Prime Minister during King Faisal 's brief reign (1918–1920), was the first president to be elected under a new constitution adopted after the independence treaty. The treaty guaranteed incorporation of previously autonomous Druze and Alawite regions into Greater Syria , but not Lebanon , with which France signed

1640-487: The Lebanese Republic . Most Muslims in Greater Lebanon rejected the new state upon its creation. Some believe that the continuous Muslim demand for reunification with Syria eventually brought about an armed conflict between Muslims and Christians in 1958 when Lebanese Muslims wanted to join the newly proclaimed United Arab Republic , while Lebanese Christians were strongly opposed. However, most members of

1722-593: The Levant States ; 1923−1946) was a League of Nations mandate founded in the aftermath of the First World War and the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire , concerning Syria and Lebanon . The mandate system was supposed to differ from colonialism , with the governing country intended to act as a trustee until the inhabitants were considered eligible for self-government . At that point,

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1804-772: The Alawite State were incorporated into the State of Syria. On 1 September 1920, the day after the creation of Greater Lebanon and the Alawite State, Arrêté 330 separated out of the previous "Gouvernement de Damas" ("Government of Damascus") an independent government known as the "Gouvernement d'Alep" ("Government of Aleppo"), including the autonomous sandjak of Alexandretta, which retained its administrative autonomy. The terms "Gouvernement d'Alep" "Gouvernement de Damas" were used interchangeably with "l'État d'Alep" and "l'État de Damas" – for example, Arrete 279 1 October 1920 stated in its preamble: "Vu l'arrêté No 330 du 1er Septembre 1920 créant l'État d'Alep". The State of Aleppo (1920–1925, French: État d'Alep , Arabic: دولة حلب ) included

1886-719: The Allied invasion in 1941 gradually went on the path towards independence. The proclamation of independence took place in 1944, but only in October 1945 was the Syrian Republic de jure recognized by the United Nations; it became a de facto sovereign state on 17 April 1946, with the withdrawal of French troops. It was succeeded by the Second Syrian Republic upon the adoption of a new constitution on 5 September 1950. On 23 December 1925, Henri de Jouvenel

1968-492: The American King–Crane Commission arrived in Syria to inquire into local public opinion about the future of the country. The commission's remit extended from Aleppo to Beersheba . They visited 36 major cities, met with more than 2,000 delegations from more than 300 villages, and received more than 3,000 petitions. Their conclusions confirmed the opposition of Syrians to the mandate in their country as well as to

2050-634: The European powers decided to renege on the promises made to the Arabs. In May 1919, elections were held for the Syrian National Congress , which convened in Damascus. 80% of seats went to conservatives. However, the minority included dynamic Arab nationalist figures such as Jamil Mardam Bey , Shukri al-Kuwatli , Ahmad al-Qadri , Ibrahim Hanano , and Riyad as-Solh . The head was moderate nationalist Hashim al-Atassi . In June 1919,

2132-690: The French High Commissioner in Syria, Hashim al-Atassi went to Paris heading a senior National Bloc delegation. The new Popular Front -led French government, formed in June 1936 after the April–May elections , had agreed to recognize the National Bloc as the sole legitimate representatives of the Syrian people and invited al-Atassi to independence negotiations. The resulting treaty called for immediate recognition of Syrian independence as

2214-505: The French controlled the rest of Ottoman Syria (including Lebanon , Alexandretta , and portions of Cilicia ). In the early 1920s, British and French control of these territories became formalized by the League of Nations ' mandate system. And on 29 September 1923 France was assigned the League of Nations mandate of Syria, which included the territory of present-day Lebanon and Alexandretta in addition to modern Syria. The administration of

2296-560: The French, leaving the Arab government to face France. Faisal had travelled several times to Europe since November 1918, trying to convince France and Britain to change their positions, but without success. France's determination to intervene in Syria was shown by the naming of General Henri Gouraud as high commissioner in Syria and Cilicia . At the Paris Peace Conference , Faisal found himself in an even weaker position when

2378-524: The French-Turkish treaty settling the status of the Sanjak was signed on 4 July 1938. On 2 September 1938, the assembly proclaimed the Sanjak of Alexandretta as the Hatay State . The republic lasted for one year under joint French and Turkish military supervision. The name Hatay itself was proposed by Atatürk and the government was under Turkish control. In 1939, following a popular referendum,

2460-711: The Golan region to become a national homeland for Circassian refugees from the Caucasus. A Circassian battalion served in the French Army of the Levant and had helped it against the Arab nationalist uprisings. As in Al-Jazira Province, the French authorities refused to grant any autonomy status to the Golan Circassians. Already in 1921, the French wanted to develop the agricultural sector and over

2542-725: The High Commissioner appointed Sheikh Taj al-Din al-Hasani as the new interim head of state. The High Commissioner decreed an amnesty before the elections, terming it a general amnesty but excluding charges related to the great revolution and key Syrian-Lebanese nationalist leaders such as Shukri al-Quwatli , Abdel Rahman Shahbandar , Fawzi Qawukji , Ihsan Jabri (Syria), Amin Rouhaiaha and Mohamed Shureiki ( Alawi region ), Sultan al-Atrash ( Jabal Druze ), as well as Shakib Arslan , and Shaib Whab (Lebanon). Therefore, Syrian armed resistance leaders were unable to participate in

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2624-496: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and pegged its currency to the U.S. dollar at 2.19148 pounds = 1 dollar, a rate which was maintained until 1961. The Lebanese and Syrian currencies split in 1948. The Arab League failed in the 1948 Arab–Israeli War . Husni al-Za'im took power in 1949 but died later that year. He was succeeded by Atassi. A new constitution was drafted and adopted in 1950, marking

2706-509: The Lebanese Muslim communities and their political elites were committed to the idea of being Lebanese citizens by the late 1930s, even though they also tended to nurture Arab nationalist sentiments. On 19 August 1920, General Gouraud signed Arrêté 314 which added to the autonomous sandjak of Alexandretta the cazas of Jisr el-Choughour, the madriyehs of Baher and Bujack (caza of Latakia), the moudiriyeh of Kinsaba (caza of Sahyoun) "with

2788-515: The State of Damascus and the State of the Alawis. However, two and a half years later on 5 December 1924, Arrêté 2979 and Arrêté 2980 established the Alawite State as an independent state with Latakia as its capital, and separately unified the States of Aleppo and Damascus into a single State called "État de Syrie" ("State of Syria"), formally established on 1 January 1925. In 1936, both Jebel Druze and

2870-503: The Sunni Muslims. The state also incorporated minorities of Shiites and Alawites. Ethnic Kurds and Assyrians inhabited the eastern regions alongside the Arabs. The General Governors of the state were Kamil Pasha al-Qudsi (1920–1922) Mustafa Bey Barmada (1923) and Mar'i Pasha Al Mallah (1924-1925). The State of Damascus was a French mandate from 1920 to 1925. The capital was Damascus. The primarily Sunni population of

2952-532: The Syrian states. The Maronite Christians of Mount Lebanon , on the other hand, were a community with a dream of independence that was being realized under the French. Therefore, Greater Lebanon was the exception among the newly formed states. It took France three years from 1920 to 1923 to gain full control over Syria and to quell all the insurgencies that broke out, notably in the Alawite territories, Mount Druze and Aleppo . Although there were uprisings in

3034-456: The Turkish military went into the Syrian province and expelled most of its Alawite Arab and Armenian inhabitants. Before this, Alawi Arabs and Armenians were the majority of Alexandretta's population. The allocation of seats in the sanjak assembly was based on the 1938 census held by the French authorities under international supervision. The assembly was appointed in the summer of 1938, and

3116-712: The United Nations, relationship among which shall be based on respect for the principle of sovereign equality.'" So when the UN officially came into existence on 24 October 1945, after ratification of the United Nations Charter by the five permanent members , as both Syria and Lebanon were founding member states, the French mandate for both was legally terminated on that date and full independence attained. On 29 May 1945, France bombed Damascus and tried to arrest its democratically elected leaders. While French planes were bombing Damascus , Prime Minister Faris al-Khoury

3198-528: The arrival of Henri Ponsott , the High Commissioner, and Taj al-Din al-Hasani , the Prime Minister and his ministers. The Constituent Assembly began to recite of the articles of the Constitution, then the meeting was suspended to the date of 11 August 1928, when the session opened again in the presence of the High Commissioner, the Prime Minister and his ministers, then the rest of the articles of

3280-508: The authority to independently decide policy. The small amount of power that local leaders had could easily be overruled by French officials. The French did everything in their power to prevent people in the Levant from developing self-sufficient governing bodies. On 3 August 1920, Arrêté 299 of the Haut-commissariat de la République française en Syrie et au Liban linked the cazas of Hasbaya, Rachaya, Maallaka and Baalbeck to what

3362-419: The autonomous Sanjak of Alexandretta (1921, modern-day Hatay ), and the State of Greater Lebanon (1920), which became later the modern country of Lebanon. The borders of these states were based in part on the sectarian geography in Syria. Many of the different Syrian sects were hostile to the French mandate and to the division it created, as shown by the numerous revolts that the French encountered in all of

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3444-500: The beginning of the Second Syrian Republic . 35°00′00″N 38°00′00″E  /  35.0000°N 38.0000°E  / 35.0000; 38.0000 Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon The Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon ( French : Mandat pour la Syrie et le Liban ; Arabic : الانتداب الفرنسي على سوريا ولبنان , romanized :  al-intidāb al-faransī ʻalā sūriyā wa-lubnān , also referred to as

3526-595: The constitution were recited, and upon voting on it as a whole, approved by the Constituent Assembly for all its 115 articles, including the six articles (2, 72, 73, 75, 110, 112 and many relate to the authorities of the President and the Army), which was the men of the mandate are expecting for its abolition from the constitution, for inconsistency with the mandate system. The High Commissioner withdrew from

3608-487: The constitution. The National Bloc was in the minority in the new chamber of deputies with only 16 deputies out of 70, due to intensive vote-rigging by the French authorities. Among the deputies were also three members of the Syrian Kurdish nationalist Xoybûn (Khoyboun) party, Khalil bey Ibn Ibrahim Pacha ( Al-Jazira Province ), Mustafa bey Ibn Shahin ( Jarabulus ) and Hassan Aouni ( Kurd Dagh ). There were later in

3690-624: The control of the Vichy Government until the British and Free French invaded and occupied the country in July 1941. Syria proclaimed its independence again in 1941 but it was not until 1 January 1944 that it was recognized as an independent republic. In the 1940s, Britain secretly advocated the creation of a Greater Syrian state that would secure Britain preferential status in military, economic and cultural matters, in return for putting

3772-492: The crisis against Faisal's government to convene a council of Christian figures in Baabda that proclaimed the independence of Lebanon on 22 March 1920. On 14 July 1920, General Gouraud issued an ultimatum to Faisal, giving him the choice between submission or abdication. Realizing that the power balance was not in his favor, Faisal chose to cooperate. However, the young minister of war, Youssef al-Azmeh , refused to comply. In

3854-573: The defeat of the Ottomans in Syria, British troops, under General Sir Edmund Allenby , entered Damascus in 1918 accompanied by troops of the Arab Revolt led by Faisal , son of Hussein bin Ali, King of Hejaz . Faisal established the first new postwar Arab government in Damascus in October 1918, and named Ali Rikabi a military governor . The new Arab administration formed local governments in

3936-455: The different states, the French deliberately gave different ethnic and religious groups in the Levant their own lands in the hopes of prolonging their rule. The French hoped to fragment the various groups in the region, to mitigate support for the Syrian nationalist movement seeking to end colonial rule. The administration of the state governments was heavily dominated by the French. Local authorities were given very little power and did not have

4018-495: The elections. The nationalists formed a new political grouping in preparation for the elections that included the former National Party , some members of the People's Party , and independent figures, most of which are local, and called themselves the National Bloc , and Hashim al-Atassi was elected as its president. Elections were held in April 1928 and 70 members were elected, and the results were not decided, but in favor of urban nationalists and rural moderates. The project of

4100-402: The federation in 1924. The states of Aleppo and Damascus were united into the State of Syria, with effect on 1 January 1925. In 1925, Syrian resistance to French colonial rule broke out in full scale revolt , led by Sultan Pasha el Atrash . The revolt broke out in Jabal Druze but quickly spread to other Syrian states and became a general rebellion in Syria. France tried to retaliate by having

4182-411: The head of the political division of the High Commission surprised them and read to the deputies the High Commissioner's memorandum containing the eliminate the six articles opposing the mandate's policy and declaring the suspension of the Constituent Assembly indefinitely.  On 14 May 1930 the French high commissioner promulgated a constitution for the Syrian State. On 22 May 1930 the State of Syria

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4264-431: The height. It shall contain three bands of equal dimensions, the upper band being green, the middle band white, and the lower band black. The white portion shall bear three red stars in line, having five points each. During 20 December 1931 and 4 January 1932, the first elections under the new constitution were held, under an electoral law providing for "the representation of religious minorities" as imposed by article 37 of

4346-536: The interior regions of Syria (the eastern zone). Palestine (the southern zone) was reserved for the British. On 8 October, French troops disembarked in Beirut and occupied the Lebanese coastal region south to Naqoura (the western zone), replacing British troops there. The French immediately dissolved the local Arab governments in the region. France demanded full implementation of the Sykes–Picot Agreement, with Syria under its control. On 26 November 1919, British forces withdrew from Damascus to avoid confrontation with

4428-431: The juridical situation as it results from the Mandate act. Indeed, this situation could be changed only with the agreement of the Council of the League of Nations , with the consent of the Government of the United States, a signatory of the Franco-American Convention of 4 April 1924, and only after the conclusion between the French Government and the Syrian and Lebanese Governments of treaties duly ratified in accordance with

4510-477: The king of all Arabs. Faisal invited Ali Rikabi to form a government. The congress also proclaimed political and economic union with neighboring Iraq and demanded its independence as well. On 25 April, the supreme inter-Allied council, which was formulating the Treaty of Sèvres , granted France the mandate of Syria (including Lebanon), and granted Britain the Mandate of Palestine (with Trans-Jordan later), and Iraq. Syrians reacted with violent demonstrations, and

4592-408: The largest trader of goods of the French Mandate. From 1933 onwards, Japan was also a large source for imports. State of Syria The State of Syria ( French : État de Syrie , Arabic : دولة سوريا Dawlat Sūriyā ) was a French Mandate state created by decree of 5 December 1924, with effect from 1 January 1925, from the union of the State of Aleppo and the State of Damascus . It

4674-412: The laws of the French Republic. Benqt Broms said that it was important to note that there were several founding members of the United Nations whose statehood was doubtful at the time of the San Francisco Conference and that the Government of France still considered Syria and Lebanon to be mandates. Duncan Hall said "Thus, the Syrian mandate may be said to have been terminated without any formal action on

4756-414: The major Syrian cities, and the pan-Arab flag was raised all over Syria. The Arabs hoped, with faith in earlier British promises, that the new Arab state would include all the Arab lands stretching from Aleppo in northern Syria to Aden in southern Yemen . However, in accordance with the secret Sykes–Picot Agreement between Britain and France, General Allenby assigned to the Arab administration only

4838-400: The mandate would terminate and a sovereign state would be born. During the two years that followed the end of the war in 1918—and in accordance with the Sykes–Picot Agreement signed by the United Kingdom and French Third Republic during the war—the British held control of most of Ottoman Iraq (now Iraq ) and the southern part of Ottoman Syria ( Palestine and Transjordan ), while

4920-650: The parliament of Aleppo declare secession from the union with Damascus, but the voting was foiled by Syrian patriots. Despite French attempts to maintain control by encouraging sectarian divisions and isolating urban and rural areas, the revolt spread from the countryside and united Syrian Druze, Sunnis, Shiites, Alawis, and Christians. Once the rebel forces had besieged Damascus, the French military responded with brutal counter-insurgency techniques that prefigured those that would be used later in Algeria and Indo-China. These techniques included house demolitions, collective punishments of towns, executions, population transfers, and

5002-461: The part of the League or its successor. The mandate was terminated by the declaration of the mandatory power, and of the new states themselves, of their independence, followed by a process of piecemeal unconditional recognition by other powers, culminating in formal admission to the United Nations. Article 78 of the Charter ended the status of tutelage for any member state: 'The trusteeship system shall not apply to territories which have become Members of

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5084-532: The region under the French was carried out through a number of different governments and territories, including the Syrian Federation (1922–1924), the State of Syria (1925–1930) and the Mandatory Syrian Republic (1930–1946) , as well as smaller states: Greater Lebanon , the Alawite State , and the Jabal Druze State . Hatay State was annexed by Turkey in 1939. The French mandate lasted until 1946, when French troops eventually left Syria and Lebanon, which had both declared independence during World War II . With

5166-489: The remaining troops possibly defected. General Goybet captured Damascus with little resistance on 24 July 1920, and the mandate was written in London two years later on 24 July 1922. Arriving in Lebanon , the French were received as liberators by the Christian community, but in the rest of Syria, they faced strong resistance. The mandate region was subdivided into six states. They were the states of Damascus (1920), Aleppo (1920), Alawites (1920), Jabal Druze (1921),

5248-411: The resulting Franco-Syrian War , Syrian troops under al-Azmeh, composed of the little remaining troops of the Arab army along with Bedouin horsemen and civilian volunteers, met the better trained 12,000-strong French forces under General Mariano Goybet at the Battle of Maysaloun . The French won the battle in less than a day and Azmeh died on the battlefield, along with many of the Syrian troops, while

5330-432: The session angry and followed by the Prime Minister and ministers, and he issued a decision to postpone the convening of the Constituent Assembly for a period of three months, hoping that an agreement would be reached on the six articles of the Constitution that contradict the mandate policy, and postponement of the negotiations were repeated to no avail. Then when the Constituent Assembly opened its session on 5 February 1929,

5412-597: The states of Aleppo and Damascus were strongly opposed to the division of Syria. This resulted in its quick end in 1925, when France united the states of Aleppo and Damascus into the State of Syria. The Sanjak of Alexandretta became an autonomous province of Syria under Article 7 of the French-Turkish treaty of 20 October 1921 : "A special administrative regime shall be established for the district of Alexandretta. The Turkish inhabitants of this district shall enjoy facility for their cultural development. The Turkish language shall have official recognition". In 1923, Alexandretta

5494-410: The territory. The mandate region was subdivided into six states. The drawing of those states was based in part on the sectarian make up on the ground in Syria. However, nearly all the Syrian sects were hostile to the French mandate and to the division it created. The primarily Sunni population of Aleppo and Damascus were strongly opposed to the division of Syria. On 28 June 1922, the Syrian Federation

5576-439: The time was a French puppet, Muhammad 'Ali Bay al-'Abid . Fierce opposition to this treaty was spearheaded by senior nationalist and parliamentarian Hashim al-Atassi , who called for a 60-day strike in protest. Atassi's political coalition, the National Bloc , mobilized massive popular support for his call. Riots and demonstrations raged, and the economy came to a standstill. After negotiations in March with Damien de Martel ,

5658-481: The use of heavy armor in urban neighborhoods. The revolt was eventually subdued in 1926-27 via French aerial bombardment of civilian areas, including Damascus. On May 14, 1930, the State of Syria was declared the Republic of Syria and a new constitution was drafted. While the State enjoyed a certain degree of autonomy as a Mandate, France exercised significant authority over the government. The revolt that began in Jabal Druze led to France easing their hold on Syria and

5740-446: The year, from 30 March to 6 April, "complementary elections". On 11 June 1932 the Syrian Chamber of Deputies elected Muhammad 'Ali Bay al-'Abid as president, the Syrian State was renamed the Republi c of Syria in July 1932. In 1933, France attempted to impose a treaty of independence heavily prejudiced in favor of France. It promised gradual independence but kept the Syrian mountains under French control. The Syrian head of state at

5822-406: Was Beirut. The new state was granted a flag, merging the French flag with the cedar of Lebanon . Maronites were the majority in Lebanon and managed to preserve its independence; an independence that created a unique precedent in the Arab world, as Lebanon was the first Arab country in which Christians were not a minority. The State of Greater Lebanon existed until 23 May 1926, after which it became

5904-610: Was appointed as French High Commissioner for Syria , and on 28 April 1926, the High Commissioner appointed Ahmad Nami as Prime Minister and Head of State, who formed a government consisting of six ministers, three of whom were nationalists, and it was agreed with the French High Commissioner on the government's work agenda made known the ten points, the most important points were: The three governments which were formed by Ahmed Nami between May 1926 and February 1928 were unable to fulfill their agenda. High commissioner Henri de Jouvenel ’s replacement by Henri Ponsot in September 1926 with

5986-542: Was at the founding conference of the United Nations in San Francisco, presenting Syria 's claim for independence from the French Mandate . Syrian independence was de jure attained on 24 October 1945. Continuing pressure from Syrian nationalist groups and British pressure forced the French to evacuate their last troops on 17 April 1946. The constitution of 1930 was amended in 1947. In 1947, Syria joined

6068-495: Was attached to the State of Aleppo , and in 1925 it was directly attached to the French mandate of Syria, still with special administrative status. The sanjak was given autonomy in November 1937 in an arrangement brokered by the League. Under its new statute, the sanjak became 'distinct but not separated' from the French Mandate of Syria on the diplomatic level, linked to both France and Turkey for defence matters. In 1938,

6150-427: Was created between three of the states: the State of Damascus , the State of Aleppo and the Alawite State . Jabal Druze and Greater Lebanon were not parts of this federation. The autonomous Sanjak of Alexandretta was added to the state of Aleppo in 1923. The Federation adopted a new federal flag (green-white-green with French canton), which later became the flag of the State of Syria. The Alawite state seceded from

6232-785: Was declared the Republic of Syria and a new Syrian Constitution was promulgated by the French High Commissioner, in the same time as the Lebanese Constitution, the Règlement du Sandjak d'Alexandrette , the Statute of the Alawi Government, the Statute of the Jabal Druze State. A new flag was also mentioned in this constitution: The Syrian flag shall be composed as follows, the length shall be double

6314-503: Was elected President of the Republic in November. In September 1938, France separated the Syrian Sanjak of Alexandretta , despite its territory being guaranteed as part of Syria in the treaty, and transformed it into Hatay State , which joined Turkey in June 1939. Syria did not recognize the incorporation of Hatay into Turkey and the issue is still disputed until the present time. The emerging threat of Nazi Germany induced

6396-471: Was located on the Syrian coast and incorporated a majority of Alawites , a branch of Shia Islam . The port city of Latakia was the capital of this state. Initially it was an autonomous territory under French rule known as the "Alawite Territories". It became part of the Syrian Federation in 1922, but left the federation again in 1924 and became the "State of Alawites". On 22 September 1930, it

6478-477: Was renamed the "Independent Government of Latakia ". The population at this time was 278,000. The government of Latakia finally joined the Syrian Republic on 5 December 1936. This state witnessed several rebellions against the French, including that of Salih al-Ali (1918–1920). On 28 June 1922, Arrêté 1459 created a " Federation of the Autonomous States of Syria " which included the State of Aleppo,

6560-447: Was some autonomist agitation among Assyrians and Kurds , supported by some Bedouins , in the province of Al-Jazira. Its partisans wanted the French troops to stay in the province in the event of a Syrian independence, as they feared the nationalist Damascus government would replace minority officials by Muslim Arabs from the capital. The French authorities refused to consider any new status of autonomy inside Syria. In Quneitra and

6642-608: Was the successor of the Syrian Federation (1922–1924) which had been created by providing a central assembly for the State of Aleppo , the State of Damascus and the Alawite State . The Alawite State did not join the State of Syria. In 1920, an independent Arab Kingdom of Syria was established under King Faisal of the Hashemite family, who later became the King of Iraq . However, his rule over Syria ended after only

6724-492: Was then known as the Autonomous Territory of Lebanon. Then on 31 August 1920, General Gouraud signed Arrêté 318 delimiting the State of Greater Lebanon, with explanatory notes stating that Lebanon would be treated separately from the rest of Syria. On 1 September 1920, General Gouraud publicly proclaimed the creation of the State of Greater Lebanon (French: État du Grand Liban , Arabic: دولة لبنان الكبير ) at

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