Britain And the Middle East - 9781845191641

This book deals with British involvement in the Middle East from the mid-nineteenth to the early twenty-first century. The wide range of topics encompassed here explore both Britain’s imperial legacy and its relationship with the contemporary Middle East, including Palestine, Israel and the Jews, Britain’s role in Egypt, the Levant, the Fertile Crescent, and the Gulf. The twenty contributors to this work are leading scholars, and the original research that makes up this volume fills a lacuna in the literature on Britain’s role in the region. ? Geographically, this book covers the British role in four major areas: the Nile Valley (Egypt and the Sudan), Palestine and Israel, the Fertile Crescent (Iraq, Syria and Lebanon) and the Arab/Persian Gulf. Chronologically, the book commences with the occupation of Egypt in 1882 but focuses principally on the British role in these areas during the period following the First World War. The 1956 Suez débcle and the 1971 withdrawal from the Gulf stand out as two important turning points in British involvement in the region, signaling the end of the de-colonization process. Yet the 1991 and 2003 wars in Iraq attest to the fact that Britain is still an important actor in the Middle East, though its role has certainly changed from hegemony and seniority to that of junior partner of the United States. This, however, has not been the only change: while in the past intervention was a one-sided phenomenon (Britain in the Middle East), the impact in recent years has been mutual, with the Islamic community (partially originating in the Middle East) constituting a profound challenge to British society. Thus the Middle East, in which the British Empire was once the preeminent power, has now come to play a dominant role in Britain. ? This very substantial volume is essential reading for historians, political analysts, and policy-makers.