Reclaiming Iraq: The 1920 Revolution and the Founding of the Modern State

224 Pages·2012·4.891 MB·English

by  Abbas Kadhim

Reclaiming Iraq
Map 1.1. Iraq in 1920. Times (London), 3 September 1920.
Reclaiming Iraq
The 1920 RevoluTion and The
Founding oF The ModeRn STaTe
By Abbas Kadhim
University of Texas Press    Austin
Copyright © 2012 by the University of Texas Press
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First edition, 2012
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♾ The paper used in this book meets the minimum requirements
of anSi/niSo Z39.48- 1992 (R1997) (Permanence of Paper).
libRaRy oF CongReSS CaTaloging- in- publiCaTion daTa
Kadhim, Abbas K.
Reclaiming Iraq : the 1920 revolution and the founding of the modern
state / by Abbas K. Kadhim. — 1st ed.
  p.  cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
iSbn 978-0-292-73924-6 (cloth : alk. paper)
1. Iraq—History—Revolt, 1920. 2. Iraq—History—Autonomy and
independence movements. I. Title.
dS79.K34 2012
956.704′1—dc23
2012016104
To Bushra, Ali, Huda, and Hussein
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Contents
Acknowledgments ix
inTRoduCTion 1
ChapTeR 1: The 1920 Revolution in History 19
ChapTeR 2: The Causes of the Revolution 43
ChapTeR 3: Th e Revolution in the Middle Euphrates
and Beyond 69
ChapTeR 4: The Journalism of the Revolution 97
ChapTeR 5: The Revolutionary Networks 113
ChapTeR 6: The Revolution’s Aftermath 135
ConCluSion 161
Notes 171
Bibliography 197
Index 205
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Acknowledgments
In wRiTing ThiS booK, i Fell in debT To Many
people who made my undertaking fruitful. Dr. Muham-
mad Abu Ṭabīkh and the late Dr. Ali Abu Ṭabīkh, sons of Sayyid
Muḥsin Abu Ṭabīkh, kindly provided me with much- needed access
to personal information about their father’s struggle during the 1920s
and 1930s, including many previously untold stories. Our many tele-
phone interviews were often taxing, and they generously accepted the
burden. I also owe special gratitude to Dr. Jamil Abu Ṭabīkh, who
made available many documents, including a copy of the unedited
version of his father’s memoirs, and provided much help during my
September 2006 research trip to London.
Many thanks are owed also to all the authors whose previous works
on the history of Iraq and the era covered by this book were tremen-
dously helpful for me, for both the insight they provided and the ap-
proaches they used in examining the events leading to and accom-
panying the revolution.
Professor Robert Gregg of Stanford University facilitated my ac-
cess to materials held there. Also, I owe a great debt of gratitude to
my colleague Professor Robert Looney, who read and commented on
earlier versions of the manuscript or parts of it. My lifelong friend
Dr. Hassan Nadhem was with me throughout the research and writing
and provided tremendous help and advice.
The Center for Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Cali-
fornia, Berkeley, and the Center for Comparative Studies in Race and