Jihad: The Ottomans and the Allies 1914–1922

by Andrew P. Hyde

The tragic news of the ISIS-inspired massacres in Paris, Brussels, Nice, Orlando, and countless other locations throughout the Middle East, in conjunction with the recent failed political coup against Erdogan in Turkey, have raised the spectre of an ideological struggle that is more than a century old. As the West struggles with the consequences and implications of its 'War on Terror', parallels with the 'First Jihad' become increasingly manifest. The sprawling Ottoman Empire was at its nadir by November 1914, when she declared a jihad - Holy War - against the Allied Powers and threw in her lot with Germany, a disastrous decision that set in chain a series of cataclysmic events that culminated in the final demise of an ancient regime and the emergence of a modern secular republic. The first jihad in the Arab world since the Crusades was to continue long after the official Armistice of 1918, as a prostrate and defeated empire faced a renascent Greece - supported only by Britain - seeking to re-establish hegemony over Anatolia; a Holy War which caused outrage throughout the Muslim World, threatened British paramountcy in India, diplomatic relations with close allies and the political unity of her empire. Confronted with the indefatigable resistance of one man, Kemal Ataturk, Greek dreams ended in ashes, whilst the stubborn support of Lloyd George for his ally resulted in his own political extinction. It is a warning from history, unheeded today, with tales of ethnic cleansing, pogroms, regime change, political hubris and national survival. It is the story of steely determination against expediency, and of dogged bravery in the face of brazen territorial expansionism. It is the history of the first truly modern jihad.

304 pages, Hardcover

Published February 15, 2017

About the author

Andrew Hyde is a history writer and researcher based in the UK. He was a major contributor to the three volume work 'The Blitz - Then and Now' , a detailed, day-by-day account of the German air campaign against Britain during the Second World War. He is also the author of 'Pearl Harbor - Then and Now'. In 2007 he appeared in a Timewatch programme, 'The First Blitz', based upon his book. Andrew has been researching the history of modern jihad for five years in preparation for his latest project. He is also engaged in studies for a degree at the Open University.

Reviews

[Daniel Zadravec · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting read about an under appreciated and talked about part of the post WW1/interwar period, which deals with many events, that while taken on their own are interesting reads, the combination of them into a single topic is fascinating.
Some of these ideas include the decline in British foreign power, which includes greater Dominion power in the empire, the triumph of an Asiatic power when fighting and negotiating with a great power, as well as the creation of modern Turkey and the fall of the Ottamans.

[Thomas B · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating, progressively structured, with a driving narrative. A LOT happened from 1914-22, but the author picks out the ottoman thread and ensures it’s importance and relevance is understood in its own right, and with background context to the wider, more popularly educated WW1 history. Definitely worth investing time in.

[CASPER HILEMAN · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mr. Hyde does an admirable job of covering the last eight years of the Ottoman Empire in a concise way while still providing nuanced and salient points to the reader. From the duplicitous actions of the allies to the ethnic cleansing on both sides during the war and after. This is an excellent book for a general overview of the situation with a fairly comprehensive bibliography for a book of its size.