The Damascus Seat of Power: Syrias Heads of State, 1918-1946

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While recent scholarship has focused on wartime Syria, this book is dedicated to heads of state in the immediate post-Ottoman era until the end of the French Mandate in 1946. Here, renowned Syrian historian, Sami Moubayed, examines Syrias first eleven heads of state who led the country between 1918 and 1946. With a chapter dedicated to each leader, Moubayed sheds light on the political culture of the time and traces the trajectory of how Syria was governed through colonialism, monarchism and federalism and republicanism. The study draws on numerous archives, political memoirs and first-hand interviews with key figures who were active between the 1930s and 1950s, providing a rich picture of Syrian political culture during this forgotten period.

Reviews

Sami Moubayed, Syrias illustrious historian, has written yet another original book tracing the evolution of its politics from the turn of the twentieth century till the mid-1960s. This book is an indispensable read, setting the stage for the emergence of the Baath Party and its subsequent monopoly of power. -- Hilal Khashan, American University of Beirut, Lebanon

Author Bio

Sami Moubayed is a Syrian historian chairman of The Damascus History Foundation. He was previously a scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and is presently a Mohammad Ali Fellow at Durham University. He has written extensively on the modern history of Syria, including The Makers of Modern Syria (2018), Under the Black Flag (2015), and Syria and the USA (2012).