THE STRUGGLE FOR THE MIDDLE EAST 1914-1924

by Howard M. Sachar ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 31, 1969

Sachar, a George Washington University professor, begins with the textbook concepts of Young Turks and sick-man Turkey, filling them in rather than notably amplifying the fall of the Ottoman Empire. The book proceeds on the level of military, diplomatic and para-diplomatic developments in Western Asia, striking sharper chords as Sachar traces European imperial bonds and clashes. The Armenian genocide is described if not very satisfactorily explained; the even lesser-known issue of an American protectorate in Armenia is detailed. Gallipoli, Palestinian spies for Britain, Allenby's anti-Turk campaign decorate the World War I chronicle, which deals most substantively with secret treaties, the background of the Balfour Declaration, and postwar hassles. The ""Greek Empire"" rises and collapses, Turkey revives; Iraq moves into the British sphere; hopes fade of an Arab-Zionist modus vivendi. The book is probably of greater interest to regional specialists and students of World War I than to the readers who may be attracted by the title plus Sachar's authorship of The Peoples of Israel (1961) and The Course of Modern Jewish History (1958).

Pub Date: Oct. 31, 1969

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Knopf

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1969

Categories: NONFICTION