Three Pledges, Essay Example

Prior to World War, I the position of European diplomatic relations was good. This was a reflection of the successfully settlements concerning colonial issues and other matters. However, there were groups which could realize only in war the probable means was to further their interests and frustrate their rival’s ambitions. With the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, who was heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Europe saw the rise of possible conflicts within its territory. The mounting tension between Russia, Germany and France gave rise to pledges by Britain to other nations concerning the future of the territories of the Ottoman Middle East.

The First Pledge

The first pledge was between the Arab and the British. The sultan in turkey had taken the title of Khalif-al-IsIam, which means the supreme religious leader of Muslims everywhere. The sultan dispatched instructions to all Arab chiefs that if Turkey were to be involved in European hostilities the Arabs were to declare jihad war. The Kitchener of Khartoum understood this message well, and he planned to wage the jihad war which would substantially affect the British- Indian forces and the rule in the east. The war could affect these forces as it could see the rise of the Arab revolt which was led by Hussein who had been allowed by the Turks to resume his hereditary position as Sherif of Mecca and the king of Hejaz.

The preposition in the first pledge was that if the Arab nation provided assistance to England in the war then England would guarantee that there would be no internal intervention in Arabia. England would further give assistance to the Arabs against external aggression. A series of communications between Hussein and the British high commission were facilitated by Sir Henry McMahon who was the High commissioner for Egypt. These communications were designed to secure Arab support for the British during the Great War.

The motivation of the Arabs in pursuing this agreement was to gain support of the British especially in regard to protection against external aggression. The Arabs also saw this as an opportunity to assert their authority in the region and required the British to desist from interfering with the internal affairs of the Arabs. The British, on the other hand, would benefit from the agreement by gaining the support of the Arabs in the Great War and increasing their power during the war. The agreement is likely to cause future conflicts because the British, in essence, agreed to leave the Arabs to conduct their affairs. As long as the British were still interested in the concept of imperialism they were not likely to practice the hands off approach to the affairs of the Arabs.

The Second Pledge

Because France was a major ally, its preference to parts of Syria could not be overlooked. Sir Edward Grey, who was the British Foreign Minister, confided in the French ambassador of the exchanges in communication with Sherif Hussein. He suggested that the two countries enter an understanding with the Russian ally regarding the future prospects in the Ottoman Empire. M. Picot a representative of the French together with Sir Mark Sykes was to set out the interests of their countries and approach Russia to include its views in the agreement. In later agreements with Russia, Russia was given the occupation of Constantinople and some parts of the Turkish Armenia. The French claimed both Lebanon and Syria eastwards toward Mosul. Russia claimed a right to the area of Palestine, but this was countered by Sykes-Picot.

The second pledge was the Sykes-Picot Agreement which was a secret agreement between the British and France with the consent of Russia. The agreement proposed a formula to share the spheres of control and influence in the Middle East if the members of the agreement succeeded in defeating the Ottoman Empire during the First World War. The agreement divided the provinces in the Arab territory among the British, and the French and Russia was only a minor member.

The Sykes-Picot Agreement was, however, faced with multiple challenges. Among these challenges was the exposure of the agreement after the Russian revolt, which mortified the British and dismayed the Arabs. This exposure triggered mistrust between the British and the Arabs. The agreement was likely to cause problems to the members of the agreement since this second pledge was inconsistent with the first one made to the Arabs. After the Arabs learned of this later agreement Hussein made a formal repudiation of the agreement with the British. Another issue that was likely to cause problems was the concessions to Zionism. Although this was not included in the agreement the plans the concession was discussed during that period. The concept of Zionism in Palestine was a major issue that was likely to cause problems to the parties in the administration of the territory.

The Third Pledge

The third pledge was contained in the Balfour Declaration of 1917 and involved the concept of Zionism. During this time the aspirations and claims were secondary to the British policy towards the Arabs and Russia. However, France, Britain and Germany committed considerable prominence to the attitudes of Jewry towards them since money and credit were required for the war. The British were motivated by three factors in adopting the agreement.
These factors were the fact that they were unsure of Americas position that required hostilities to accept peace without victory. The British, therefore, adopted this approach towards Russia who was involved in the revolution. This understanding was aimed at appealing at Russia’s Jewishness while trying to appeal to them to continue their support. Additionally the British were tangled in making promises and this position was seen as favorable in advancing propaganda both in Russia and in America. Moreover, Britain’s position would appeal to the Jews in Germany and those in America which would in turn help the war effort. The main proponent of the agreement was Chaim Weizmann who was the leading spokesperson for organized Zionism within Britain. Weizmann had developed a process for the synthesis of acetone which was used as a propellant explosive during the war. In order to ensure that Weizmann was on the side of Britain, it was imperative to support his Zionist aspirations to guarantee the supply of the propellant from Weizmann.

This agreement was likely to cause problems in the future since the motivations of Britain to enter into the agreement were only necessary to further its interests. When the factors that motivate the British were no longer existent then the British were not likely to hold their end of the agreement.