War by Revolution - Germany and Great Britain in the Middle East in the Era of World War I (1998)

German leaders believed that in the event of a war among European powers, they could organize and exploit a unified Islam. In addition to providing military assistance to the Ottomans, they collaborated with the Turks in appealing to pan-Islamism to stoke the fire of native Muslim revolts against the British in Egypt and India, and they inflamed anti-British passions in the Turkish provinces of Arabia and Mesopotamia and in Libya, Abyssinia, Persia, and Afghanistan. War by Revolution is the first comprehensive study of the World War I rivalry between Germany and Great Britain in the Middle East. Donald M. McKale examines how other countries waged war by revolution, attempting to incite native peoples to revolt against the other. German leaders believed that in the event of a war among European powers, they could organize and exploit a unified Islam. In addition to assisting the Ottomans militarily in the war, they collaborated with the Turks in appealing to pan-Islamism, a doctrine that proclaimed the sultan-caliph's religious authority over all the world's Muslims, to stoke the fire of native Muslim revolts against the British in Egypt and India, and they inflamed anti-British passions in the Turkish provinces of Arabia and Mesopotamia and in Libya, Abyssinia, Persia and Afghanistan. Key British leaders panicked after defeats at Gallipoli and in Mesopotamia. They feared pan-Islamism and a holy war directed against Britain's control of Muslim lands and its rule in India. With the help of T.E. Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia), they assisted the Arab Revolt of 1916 that contributed to the defeat of Turkey. At the war's end, Britain (and France) purposely destroyed the Turkish empire and divided its former lands among themselves and the Arabs. In the long term, however, McKale concludes that the German war in the Middle East helped to weaken Britain's global empire Cover 1 Copyright 5 Contents 8 Preface 10 Acknowledgments 16 Maps 18 Abbreviations 20 1. Introduction: Britain, Germany, and the Middle East, 1871–1904 24 2. The Specter of Muslim Unrest and German Support, 1905–1914 40 3. Germany as Wartime "Revolutionary," Fall 1914 69 4. The Thickening Plot and Holy War, Fall 1914 92 5. Failed Expectations on Both Sides, 1915 120 6. The German Threat on the Periphery, 1915 143 7. A Sense of Crisis on Both Sides, Fall 1915 175 8. Britain as Wartime "Revolutionary": The Arab Revolt, 1916 193 9. Toward an Allied Victory, 1917 223 10. Epilogue: The War's End, 1918 243 Notes 254 Bibliography 316 Index 338 War by Revolution is the first comprehensive study of the World War I rivalry between Germany and Great Britain in the Middle East. Donald M. McKale examines how both countries waged "war by revolution," attempting to incite native peoples to revolt against the other