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Yusuf al-Azma
یوسف العظمة‎
Al-Azma as Minister of War in 1920
Minister of Warand Chief of General Staff of Syria
In office
January 1920 – 24 July 1920
MonarchFaisal I
Prime MinisterHashim al-Atassi
Preceded byOffice established(Minister of War)
Yasin al-Hashimi(Chief of General Staff)
Succeeded byOffices abolished
Personal details
Born1883
Damascus,Ottoman Empire
Died24 July 1920(1920-07-24)(aged 36–37)
Maysalun,Arab Kingdom of Syria
NationalitySyrian
Political partyAl-Fatat
ChildrenLaila
Alma materOttoman Military Academy
Military service
AllegianceOttoman Empire(1909-1918)
Arab Kingdom of Syria(1918-1920)
Branch/serviceOttoman Army(1909–18)
Arab Army(1920)
Years of service1909–1920
Battles/wars

Yusuf al-Azma(Arabic:يوسف العظمة,Turkish:Yusuf el-Azma;ALA-LC:Yūsuf al-ʻAẓmah;1883 – 24 July 1920) was aSyrianmilitary figure and revolutionary who was the minister of war of theArab Kingdom of Syriaunder the governments of prime ministersRida al-RikabiandHashim al-Atassi,and theArab Army's chief of general staff under KingFaisal.He served as minister of war from January 1920 until his death while commanding Syrian forces at theBattle of Maysalunduring theFranco-Syrian War.

Al-Azma hailed from a wealthyDamascenelandowning family. He became an officer in theOttoman Armyand fought on multiple fronts in theFirst World War.After the defeated Ottomans withdrew from Damascus, al-Azma served EmirFaisal,the leader of theArab Revolt,and was appointed minister of war upon the establishment of the Arab government in Damascus in January 1920. He was tasked with building the nascent Arab Army of Syria. The country, meanwhile, had been designated as amandatory territory of France,which did not recognize Faisal's government. Al-Azma was among the more vociferous opponents of French rule and as their troops advanced toward Damascus from Lebanon, he was authorized to confront them. Leading a motley army of civilian volunteers, ex-Ottoman officers and Bedouin cavalrymen, al-Azma engaged the French atMaysalun Passbut was killed in action and his soldiers dispersed, which allowed the French to occupy Damascus on 25 July 1920. Though his army was defeated, al-Azma became a national hero inSyriafor his insistence on confronting the French despite their clear military superiority and his ultimate death in the ensuing battle.

Early life and family[edit]

Al-Azma was born to a prominent mercantile and landowningDamascenefamily ofTurkmendescent in 1883.[1][2]Members of his family formed part of the Ottoman Syrian establishment;[2]al-Azma's brother Aziz Bey served as a district governor while many of his relatives were Ottoman officers, including al-Azma's nephew Nabih Bey.[2][3]Al-Azma was married to aTurkishwoman, with whom he had a daughter named Laila. Laila was a young child when al-Azma died, married Cevad Asar, anIstanbul-based Turkish merchant with whom she had a son named Celal.[4][5]Many members of the al-Azma family in Syria later became bankers, landowners and merchants in post-Mandatory Syria and one member,Bashir al-Azma,served asprime minister of Syriain 1962.[3]

Military career with the Ottomans[edit]

Portrait of al-Azma in uniform after his graduation from theOttoman Military Academyin 1906

Al-Azma graduated from the Istanbul-basedOttoman Military Academyin 1906 and was a member of the underground reformistCommittee of Union and Progress.[6]After graduating, he underwent additional military training in Germany until returning to Istanbul in 1909.[6][1]From there he was promptly assigned as a military attaché toCairo,Egypt.[1]In 1914, al-Azma was commander of theOttoman Army‘s25th Infantry Divisionduring World War I.[1]Later during the war, he was reassigned as a deputy of War MinisterEnver Pashain Istanbul.[1]

Toward the war's end, al-Azma was appointed chief of staff of the Istanbul-basedFirst Ottoman Armyaccording to historian Phillip S. Khoury,[7]or chief of staff of the Ottoman army in theCaucasusaccording to historian Ruth Roded.[3]According to historian Michael Provence, it is "widely believed" that soon after this post, al-Azma joined theArab Revoltagainst the Ottomans launched bySharif HusseinofMeccain 1916, "but he actually served as a decorated Ottoman frontline officer until October 1918".[6]That month, Damascus was captured by the Arab Revolt'sBritish-backedSharifian Armyled by Hussein's sonEmir Faisal.[1]Al-Azma subsequently returned to Damascus.[1]He joinedal-Fatat,anArab nationalistsecret society founded in 1911,[8]though it is not apparent when, and became a personal chamberlain of Emir Faisal.[1]Unlike other ex-Ottoman officers from the empire's Arab lands who had hailed almost exclusively from modest upbringings, al-Azma came from the upper urban class.[9]In January 1919, Faisal appointed al-Azma as Damascus' military delegate toBeirut.[1]

Minister of War[edit]

Appointment[edit]

Al-Azma saluting KingFaisal(center), 1920

In Prime MinisterRida al-Rikabi's government, al-Azma was promoted to minister of war and on 26 January 1920 was also appointed Chief of General Staff by Emir Faisal to replaceYasin al-Hashimi,who had been arrested by British forces and detained inPalestine.[10]Al-Azma's Damascene roots and reputation as a local and decorated Ottoman wartime general made him "an obvious choice for minister of war", according to Provence, despite having fought against the Arab Revolt months prior.[9]During his time in office, al-Azma established the foundations and hierarchy of the modern-daySyrian Army,according to historianSami Moubayed.[1]He gathered arms and ammunition left behind by the Ottoman Army in Syria, raised funds for new weaponry and by mid-1920, had created a military force of some 10,000 men, primarily consisting ofBedouinvolunteers and former Ottoman officers.[1]

Opposition to the French Mandate[edit]

Faisal declared theArab Kingdom of Syriain March 1920. However, in the secret 1916Sykes–Picot Agreementbetween the United Kingdom and France, the two powers negotiated the division of the Ottomans' Arab territories between themselves, and theLeague of Nationsgave France aMandate over Syriain April 1920. Afterwards, two principal camps emerged in the Syrian government; the minority faction favored a compromise with France due to its military superiority over the Arab forces (especially since the British withdrew their backing for King Faisal), while the majority faction rejected French rule by all means. Al-Rikabi led the minority faction while the majority camp was led by al-Azma and supported by other young former Ottoman officers.[11][12]Most of the Syrian government, including Foreign MinisterAbd al-Rahman Shahbandar,backed al-Azma's faction.[11]

Al-Azma in military uniform as Syria's minister of war

French forces commanded by GeneralHenri Gouraudhad landed in Beirut on 18 November 1919. Gouraud was determined to bring all of Syria under French control and demanded the immediate deployment of French forces to theBeqaa Valleybetween Beirut and Damascus.[13]Against King Faisal's wishes, his delegate to General Gouraud,Nuri al-Said,agreed to the French deployment.[13]However, when a French officer was assaulted byShia Muslimrebels opposed to the French presence, Gouraud violated his agreement with al-Said and occupied the large town ofBaalbek.[13]The French deployment along the Syrian coast and the Beqaa Valley contributed to unrest throughout Syria and sharpened political divisions between al-Azma's camp and those who sought compromise with the French.[13]

In northern Syria, anAlawite revoltled bySaleh al-Aliand arevolt in the Aleppo regionled byIbrahim Hananuwere launched in response to the French presence. On 10 December 1919, Prime Minister al-Rikabi resigned amid pressure by the nationalists and popular opinion.[13]The revolts derived military support fromMustafa Kemal's insurgents inAnatoliaand from Faisal's government.[9]In June 1920, al-Azma toured northern Syria to recruit more soldiers into the nascent Arab Army and establish connections with the Anatolian insurgency.[9][14]Al-Azma sensed resistance to his conscription campaign, particularly in Aleppo, but managed to gather some troops.[14]French forces later occupied parts of northern Syria in early July 1920.[13]

On 13 July, al-Azma declared emergency measures in theSyrian National Congress,including press censorship, the power to seize civilian vehicles for military use and a call for militias across the country to support the army.[15]Inspired by Kemal's successes against the French inTurkey,al-Azma sought to follow in the latter's path in Syria. Meanwhile, al-Hashimi had returned to the country from Palestine and was tasked with inspecting al-Azma's troops.[15]He concluded that the Arab Army was woefully unprepared and under-equipped for a serious confrontation against theFrench Army.[15]In a meeting of King Faisal's war cabinet, al-'Azma was visibly upset with al-Hashimi's conclusions.[15]Regardless, he ultimately conceded that the army was in a precarious situation when informed that the lack of ammunition meant that each soldier would only be allotted 270 bullets for their rifle and each artillery piece could only be allotted eight shells.[15]Despite this, all of the officers in the meeting declared their willingness to fight.[15]According to Provence, both al-Azma and al-Hashimi "complained bitterly that they faced an impossible task in organizing defense, made all the more difficult by Faisal's refusal to seriously contemplate and prepare for military confrontation".[16]In the struggle against France, both officers sought to implement the model of Kemal's Anatolian insurgency while Faisal continued, in vain, to seek an intervention by his erstwhile British allies.[16]

On 14 July, France issued an ultimatum to the Syrian government to disband its army and submit to French control.[1]On 18 July, King Faisal and the Syrian cabinet met and all ministers except for al-Azma agreed not to enter into war with the French.[17]After King Faisal ratified the cabinet's decision, al-Azma withdrew his troops fromAnjar,the hills overlooking the Beqaa Valley from the east, and the Beirut-Damascus road.[17]On 20 July, six hours prior to the ultimatum's deadline, King Faisal informed the French liaison in Damascus of his acceptance of Gouraud's terms.[18]However, for unclear reasons, Faisal's notification did not reach Gouraud until 21 July.[18]Sources suspicious of French intentions accused them of intentionally delaying delivery of the notice to give Gouraud a legitimate excuse for advancing on Damascus.[18]However, there has been no evidence or indication of French sabotage.[18]When news of Faisal's submission to the French and his disbandment of Arab Army barracks in Damascus reached the populace, outrage ensued.[17]A riot by soldiers and residents angry at King Faisal's decision was violently put down by EmirZeid,resulting in some 200 deaths.[19]Al-Azma rejected demands to disband the army and implored King Faisal for an opportunity to confront French forces.[20]

Battle of Maysalun and death[edit]

Main article:Battle of Maysalun
French General Henri Gouraud inspecting his troops at Maysalun

About 12,000 French troops consisting of ten infantry battalions as well as cavalrymen and artillerymen backed by tanks and fighter bombers, began their advance on Damascus on 21 July.[19]They first captured Anjar in the Beqaa Valley, where General Hassan al-Hindi's brigade had disbanded without a fight.[21][19]The French advance surprised King Faisal who believed that French military action would be avoided by his agreement to the 14 July ultimatum as General Gouraud had promised.[19]In response to Gouraud's action, King Faisal agreed to al-Azma's request for mobilization.[20]About 300 of Hindi's disbanded troops from Anjar were ordered to re-mobilize at theMaysalun Pass,some 12 miles to the west of Damascus. Al-Azma managed to assemble a few hundred regular troops, and around 1,000 volunteers, including Bedouin cavalry.[22]

On 22 July, King Faisal attempted to delay the French advance by dispatching Minister of EducationSati al-Husrito negotiate with General Gouraud, who laid out new conditions to prevent his army's offensive and gave King Faisal one more day to deliberate on the terms. The next day, while the cabinet considered Gouraud's conditions, the French requested entry into Maysalun to access its water. The Syrians interpreted the request to be an excuse for Gouraud's army to enter Damascus without a fight and King Faisal ultimately rejected Gouraud's request and his new conditions.[22]Afterward, al-Azma departed Damascus to confront Gouraud's army in what became known as theBattle of Maysalun.[20]

Al-Azma's troops in Maysalun were mostly equipped with rusted rifles left by Ottoman troops and rifles used by Bedouin irregulars during the 1916 Arab Revolt as well as 15 cannons.[23]The Arab force was composed of northern, central and southern columns with camel cavalry at the head.[23]Al-Azma led the central column which was backed by numerous civilian volunteers.[23]Around dawn, at the approaches of Maysalun, clashes between Arab forces and the French Army took place, but most Arab resistance, which was largely uncoordinated, had collapsed by the first hour of battle.[23]The Syrians had used up the little ammunition they had and the militarily superior French Army broke the Arab lines.[20]

Around 10:30am French forces reached al-Azma's headquarters. The mines that had been laid by the Syrians did not explode or at least did not seriously hinder the incoming French forces.[23]With French troops about 100 meters away from him, al-Azma rushed to an artilleryman and commanded him to fire at the French tanks.[23]Before any shell was fired, al-Azma was fatally shot in the head and chest by machine gun fire from a French tank crew.[23]He was the only Arab officer to die in the battle.[20]Sporadic clashes continued for another three hours. By then, Arab forces had retreated in disarray towards Damascus.[23]The French Armyentered the cityon 25 July. In his memoirs, General Gouraud wrote that after their defeat the Syrian troops left "behind 15 cannons, 40 rifles, and a general... named Yusuf Bey al-'Azma. He died a courageous soldier's death in battle."[20]

Legacy[edit]

Yusuf al-Azma Squarein centralDamascus

Al-Azma's refusal to surrender to the French, his insistence on entering battle with inferior forces and his death commanding the Syrians in Maysalun made him a hero in Syria and theArab world.[7]According to Khoury, al-Azma was "henceforth immortalized by Syrians as the supreme national martyr".[7]Likewise, Provence states al-Azma "became the supreme symbol of interwar Syrian Arab patriotism".[6]His statue stands in amajor square named after himin central Damascus, with streets and schools named in his honor throughout Syria.[24]Statues of al-Azma are also present across the Middle East.[25]According to historian Tareq Y. Ismael, the defeat of al-Azma and the subsequent French takeover of Syria contributed to popular attitudes in the Arab world—that exist to the present day—which hold that "the West is not honorable in its commitments, speaks with a forked tongue about issues of democracy... and will oppress anyone who stands in the way of its imperial designs".[25]

A tomb for al-Azma was erected inside a shaded grove at Maysalun in the 1930s.[26]Though it has been frequently renovated, the original structure of the tomb remains largely intact.[26]It consists of a stone sarcophagus elevated on a platform. One side of the platform has a stairway and the other side is a concrete column which carries a large concrete roof that is further supported by a beam.[26]The sarcophagus has a triangular roof upon which is engraved theZulfiqarsword.[26]The Syrian military annually honors al-Azma at his tomb on Maysalun Day.[26]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^abcdefghijklMoubayed 2006, p.44
  2. ^abcRoded, in Kushner 1986, p.159
  3. ^abcRoded 1983, p. 90.
  4. ^Aziz al-Azma Library; Sami Moubayed (Editor)."Laila, the daughter of Yusuf al-Azma – 1942".Syrian History.Haykal Media.Archivedfrom the original on 2015-09-28.Retrieved2015-09-27.{{cite web}}:|author2=has generic name (help)
  5. ^Aziz al-Azma Library. Sami Moubayed (ed.)."Yusuf al-Azma's daughter Laila with the nationalists Nabih and Adel al-Azma–Istanbul 1942".Syrian History.Haykal Media.Archivedfrom the original on 2015-09-28.Retrieved2015-09-27.
  6. ^abcdProvence 2011, p. 213.
  7. ^abcKhoury 1987, p. 97.
  8. ^Tauber 2013, p.30and p.211
  9. ^abcdProvence 2011, p. 216.
  10. ^Tauber 2013, p.24
  11. ^abAllawi 2014, p. 260.
  12. ^Tauber 2013, p.30
  13. ^abcdefAllawi 2014, p. 285.
  14. ^abKhoury 1987, p. 98.
  15. ^abcdefAllawi 2014 p. 287.
  16. ^abProvence 2011, p. 218.
  17. ^abcAllawi 2014, p. 288.
  18. ^abcdTauber 2013, p.34
  19. ^abcdAllawi 2014, p. 289.
  20. ^abcdefMoubayed 2006, p.45
  21. ^Tauber 2013, p.35
  22. ^abAllawi 2014, p. 290.
  23. ^abcdefghTauber 2013, p.218
  24. ^Herb 2008, p.728
  25. ^abIsmael 2013, p.57
  26. ^abcdeWien 2017, p. 164.

Bibliography[edit]

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