FRENCH MANDATE OF SYRIA AND LEBANON 1920s

With whatever is going on in the region, its hard to believe that Syria was once a peaceful and quiet nation with a political stability. Home to ancient towns such as Apamea, Margat (Marghab), Amrit (Marathus) etc.,Syria is one of those nations who never actually had an empire or a kingdom of its own. Since 3rd millennia BC, it has always been 'a part' of various kingdoms. Be it the ancient Egyptian Empire (2nd millennia BC) to the Roman era; from the Palmyrene Empire (3rd century AD) to the 7th century Arabian conquests, Syria has always been a name visible on most of the historical maps.

But Syria as a nation is quite recent. It wasn't till the 1920s when the downfall of Ottoman Empire lead to deciding fate of various new countries in the Middle East, including Syria. Post 1920s, countries like Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Jordan, Iraq and Kuwait were slowly taking shapes into independent nations which were previously Ottoman provinces for nearly 600 years. The concept of independent identities were pretty new to them and thus, the Europeans intervened.

There is a difference between a colony and a mandate. Middle East was bifurcated between France and UK forming various mandates so that till the time these new countries stand up on their own, they get assistance in some or the other form. While the British took responsibility to form mandates in Iraq (known as Mandate of Mesopotamia) and Palestine (which gave birth to Jordan and Israel), the French took control of Syria and Lebanon.

The French Mandate of Syria and Lebanon existed from 1923 to 1946 and consisted of Syria, Lebanon and a small portion of Turkey in the northwest corner and the Golan Heights (currently in Israel). N.B. in 1920, a United Kingdom of Syria (or Arab Kingdom of Syria) was already formed as an independent sovereign state and soon the territories of Damascus, Aleppo, Alawaites (Alawiya) etc. were created. In 1925, State of Syria was formed while the next year the Lebanese Republic was created.

During the Second World War, these territories were loyal to Vichy France, which after 1945 got reoccupied by Free France. Things got a little messier when in 1946 even UK occupies the Lebanese region. Soon, both the European powers leave the territory and independence is granted to both Lebanon and Syria. In 1967, Golan Heights got annexed to Israel during the Six Day War. Between 1958 to 1971, Syria became part of United Arab Republic, which was basically a union of Syria and Egypt.

21st century has since then seen only violence in the region when in 2006, southern Lebanon was reoccupied by Syrian forces. Israeli occupation in Lebanon had been taking place since Israel's formation in 1948. And since 2011, the ongoing war in Syria is quite known to the world.

The below map is when none of the above chaos had happened. The 1920s, birth of Syria and Lebanon under the French Mandate.