First World War: A Kurdish revolt on the Turkish-Persian Frontier (part 2)
This episode continues with the story of Isma´il Aqa – a Kurdish chieftan known as Simko who set himself up as an independent local ruler in the borderlands of Persia, cooperating with a number of leading Kurdish nationalists and challenging the central government. Even after his ‘rebellion’ was crushed by the modernized Persian army in August 1922 and he had fled from Persian soil, he remained an influential actor in central Kurdistan, and both Turkey and Britain attempted to use him in their interests in the conflict over the status of the Mosul province during the interwar period.
13 Nov 2022
First World War: A Kurdish revolt on the Turkish-Persian Frontier (part 1)
This episode aims to discuss a Kurdish rebellion of Isma´il Aqa – a Kurdish chieftan known as Simko who became a prominent figure during the First World War and the subsequent interwar period in the Middle East theatre. The first part is aiming to provide the listeners with the overall description of the Kurdish clan society and its customs and habits that stood behind the subsequent successful career of the Kurdish chieftain Simko. This episode will dive deeper into the structure of the Kurdish society, its decision-making processes, political role within Persia and the Ottoman empire and also the starting years of Simko´s rebellion.
9 Oct 2022
First World War: Indian Expeditionary Force in the Middle East
This episode discuss the Indian contribution to the British war effort in the Middle East during the First World War. In this matter, the British Egyptian Expeditionary Force went through a dynamic process of Indianization through which Great Britain supplement domestic British soldiers in the Middle East with Indian expeditionary forces due to the need to continually refill its military personnel on the Western Front. As such, the Indian expeditionary force was designed to operate as the strategic imperial reserve of the British army and thanks to this role, Great Britain was able to attain its presence in various theatres of war during the First World War. Within this topic, we shall look upon the historical development of the Indian army under the British rule and its engagement and specific role in the Middle Eastern battlefields of Egypt and Palestine.
2 Oct 2022
First World War: Mesopotamian Campaign
This episode focus on the British campaign in Mesopotamia in which the British Empire suffered one of the worst military defeats when its 6th division surrendered at Kut Al-Amara in 1916. The episode provides political-military background that describes the motives and reasons for opening up the Mesopotamian front as well as the description of which administrative bodies stood behind the Mesopotamian campaign. It also dwells into the overall campaign progress that started with the British success and capture of Basra, continued with the British failure and defeat at Kut Al-Amara until it finally ended with the British victory and capture of Baghdad and Mosul in 1918.
25 Sept 2022
First World War: Ottoman´s Secret Service Activities in Iran
This episode aims to discuss the wartime activities of the Ottoman´s Secrete Service (Teskilat-i Mahsusa) in Iran. We shall look upon the domestic political situation in Iran and its willingness to work with the Ottoman´s Secret Service that aimed to win the support of the local population and politicians and turned them against the British and Russian interests in the region in accordance with the Enver Pasha´s dream to create a pan-Turanian alliance against the Entente powers in the Middle East and with his vision to secure eastern territory for the Ottoman Empire as an compensation for the loss of European territory before the First World War.
18 Sept 2022
First World War: The Domestic Situation in the Ottoman Empire
In the last episode, we were focusing on the political process within the Ottoman Empire and in today´s episode, we are going to dwell deeper into the social and economic background of the Ottoman Empire during the First World War. We shall discuss the major economic shortcomings and problems that people had to encounter during the wartime as well as demographic and societal impacts of the First World War upon the population of the empire.
11 Sept 2022
First World War: The Young Turk Government
In today´s episode, we are going to focus on the political development in the Ottoman Empire during the First World War. This episode provides the overall description of power dynamics within the empire, especially in connection to the so-called “Three Pashas triumvirate” that stood as the leading element in the political and military decision-making in the times of the Great War.
4 Sept 2022
First World War: German Expeditionary Force in the Middle East
This episode builds upon the already discussed political motives of Germany´s engagement in the Middle East. We are going to talk about the so-called Asien-korps – the First World War relative of the more famously known Afrikakorps and its concrete military involvement in the Middle Eastern war theatres such as Palestine or Caucasus. In this matter, the experience of the German expeditionary force is supplemented with concrete memoirs of its participants that managed to return to Germany after the end of the First World War.
28 Aug 2022
First World War: German Policy in the Middle East
This episode will focus on the political motives that stood behind the Germany´s military and political involvement in the Middle East during the Great War. We are going to discuss the historical background of Germany´s presence and intentions in the region, its military mission and last, but not least, its cooperation with the Ottoman Empire.
21 Aug 2022
First World War: Australian and New Zealand Expeditionary Force in the Middle East
This episode aims to describe the involvement of Australian and New Zealand troops in the Middle Eastern battlefield. The so-called ANZAC corps and its present-day identity partially stands upon its battle successes in the Middle East during the Great War since this theatre was the first major battlefield in which the Australian and New Zealand troops participate. We are going to discuss what was so specific about the Australian and New Zealand troops, how they spent their free time and much more.
14 Aug 2022
First World War: The Egyptian and Palestinian Campaign
This episode focusses on the concrete development of the Egyptian and Palestinian campaign which is probably best known thanks to the famous character of Lawrence of Arabia and the Arab revolt which is partially connected to the Egyptian and Palestinian campaign as well.
The Egyptian and Palestinian campaign proved to be crucial for the subsequent ability of Great Britain to secure its influence in the region, especially in relation to the Suez Canal linking the home islands to its most precious dominions of India and Australia and in relation to its influence in Mesopotamia, the present-day Iraq and Iran.
7 Aug 2022
First World War: The Nature of War in Palestine and Syria
This episode shall focus on concrete aspects that affected everyday life on the Middle Eastern battlefield – climate, illnesses, wild animals but also on daily routines of soldiers, their ability to cope with the inhospitable terrain or how they spent their free time. All this from the perspective of the British imperial army and its expeditionary forces.
31 Jul 2022
First World War: The Gallipoli Campaign
The topic of this episode is the first, major battle campaign in the Middle East. We are going to look upon the political motives that stood behind the British decision to launch the campaign on the Gallipoli Peninsula and we are also going to look upon the whole development of this military campaign until its infamous failure and its consequences for the subsequent military development in the Middle East.
24 Jul 2022
First World War: British Policy in the Middle East
In today´s episode we are focusing on the Great Britain´s policy in the Middle East during the Great War. We are going to discuss the historical background of British presence in the Middle East and its policy and goals that were inherently connected with its desire to maintain a large colonial empire. This episode aims to provide a better understanding for the British involvement in the Middle Eastern battlefields of Egypt, Palestine, Syria or Mesopotamia which is subsequently needed to better understand its decision to divide the Middle East region into spheres of influence through the infamous Sykes-Picot treaty.
17 Jul 2022
First World War: Ottoman´s Empire Entry Into the War
This episode focus on the domestical and international development of the Ottoman Empire´s policy before the First World War. This description is subsequently used to gain better understanding about the motives and decision to enter the Great War as an ally of Germany and Austria-Hungary which is subsequently connected to the ultimate downfall of the Ottoman Empire and the creation of modern-day Turkey.
10 Jul 2022
Kuwait, Bahrain and Dubai: From Tribes to States (part 2)
In this episode, we shall continue with the discussion about the initial transformation of the Gulf tribal states.
We will look upon the example of Dubai, its historical development in 19th century, its relationship with Great Britain and also upon the internal power division between the ruling family, its supporting clans and the rising class of merchants that began to play an important role partially due to the economic and societal changes in the era before the First World War.
3 Jul 2022
Kuwait, Bahrain and Dubai: From Tribes to States (part 1)
This episode discusses the dynamic and often turbulent transformation of states in the Persian Gulf.
The first part focus on a general description of a local tribe’s society and its mechanisms and also dwells into the start of the transformation process of Kuwait and Bahrain that started in the beginning of the 20th century.
26 Jun 2022
Greater Syria: Before the Great War
In this episode, we are going to to dwell deeper into the history of the so-called Greater Syria.
The area of Greater Syria is the present-day area of Lebanon, Syria, Israel, Palestine, Jordan and Iraq. The phenomenon of Greater Syria still bears some relevance in today´s world since certain political parties or social movements were throughout the history returning to the idea of a united Greater Syria in their political efforts and aims.
This episode is focusing on a general description of Greater Syria before the First world war that is subsequently needed to understand the emergence of mandate territories that rose from Greater Syria and the subsequent creation of modern-day countries of Palestine, Israel, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Jordan.
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