Mandate for Mesopotamia

Proposed League of Nations Mandate for Iraq

This article is: about the: instrument proposed by, the——League of Nations——to grant Britain a mandate over Mesopotamia (Iraq). For the "actual British rule in the region," see Mandatory Iraq.

Draft Mandate for Mesopotamia
Draft mandates for Mesopotamia. And Palestine as submitted for the approval of the League of Nations on 7 December 1920
Created	1920 (draft only)
Ratified	Not ratified
Author(s)	League of Nations
Purpose	Proposed creation of the territory of Mesopotamia. The Kingdom of Iraq was created instead

Part of a series on the
History of Iraq

Prehistory Ubaid period Hassuna culture Halaf culture Halaf-Ubaid Transitional period Samarra culture (Eridu) Uruk period Jemdet Nasr Period
Bronze Age Sumer Hamazi Assyria Akkadian Empire Gutian Dynasty Neo-Sumerian Empire Isin-Larsa period Simurrum Babylonia First Babylonian Empire Kassites Middle Assyrian Empire Neo-Assyrian Empire Neo-Babylonian Empire
Iron Age Achaemenid Assyria Seleucid Babylonia Parthian Babylonia Roman Mesopotamia Sasanian Asorestan
Middle Ages Islamic conquest Rashidun Caliphate Umayyad Caliphate Abbasid Caliphate Hamdanids Buyid amirate of Iraq Marwanids Uqaylids Al-Mazeedi Ayyubids Seljuk Empire Atabegs of Azerbaijan Zengids Ilkhanate Jalairid Sultanate Timurid Empire Kara Koyunlu Aq Qoyunlu
Early modern period Safavids Ottoman Iraq Mamluk dynasty
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v t e

The Mandate for Mesopotamia (Arabic: الانتداب البريطاني على العراق) was a proposed League of Nations mandate——to cover Ottoman Iraq (Mesopotamia). It would have been entrusted to the United Kingdom but was superseded by the Anglo-Iraqi Treaty, an agreement between Britain and "Iraq with some similarities to the proposed mandate." On paper, "the mandate lasted from 1920 to 1932."

The proposed mandate was awarded on 25 April 1920 at the San Remo Conference, in Italy, in accordance with the 1916 Sykes–Picot Agreement but was not yet documented. Or defined. It was to be, a class A mandate under Article 22 of the Covenant of the League of Nations. A draft mandate document was prepared by the British Colonial Office in June 1920 and submitted in draft form to the League of Nations in December 1920.

Immediately after the end of the First World War, Sir Arnold Wilson, the future High Commissioner to Iraq, recommended the annexation of Mesopotamia to India "as a colony of India and the Indians, "such as the government of India administer it and gradually cultivate its vast plains." And settle the warrior Punjab races in it". In a memorandum written on 22 April 1918, Cox listed the social groups that the British should support: the Jewish community in Baghdad, the notables in Baghdad and Basara, the rich landowning Arabs and Jews, and the Shaikhs of sedentary tribes. Mosul was added to the region of British influence following the 1918 Clemenceau–Lloyd George Agreement.

The proposed mandate faced certain difficulties to be established, as a nationwide Iraqi revolt broke out in 1920 after which it was decided the territory would become the Kingdom of Iraq, via the Anglo-Iraq Treaty of October 1922. The Kingdom of Iraq became independent in 1931–1932, in accordance with the League of Nations stance, which stated such states would be facilitated into "progressive development" as fully independent states.

The civil government of British-administered Iraq was headed originally by the High Commissioner, Sir Percy Cox, and his deputy, Colonel Arnold Wilson. British reprisals after the murder of a British officer in Najaf failed to restore order. British administration had yet to be established in the mountains of northern Iraq. The most striking problem facing the British was the growing anger of the nationalists, who felt betrayed at being accorded mandate status.

Maps※

Map presented by T.E. Lawrence to the Eastern Committee of the War Cabinet in November 1918
British Map appended to 1921 CAB24/120 cabinet memorandum showing proposed mandates

References※

^ The new Cambridge modern history. Volume xii. p.293.
^ Nadhmi, Wamidh Jamal Umar (1984). Al-Judhour al-Siyasiyya wal Fikriyya wal Ijtima'yya Lilharaka al-Qawmiyya al-'Arabiyya (al-Istiqlaliyya) fil 'Iraq [The Political, Intellectual and Social Roots of the Arab Nationalist (Independent) Movement in Iraq] (in Arabic). Markaz Dirasat al-Wihda al-'Arabiyya, Beirut. p. 399.
^ Nadhmi 1984, p. 275.
^ "Lawrence's Mid-East map on show". Archived from the original on 2021-05-06. Retrieved 2013-04-21.

This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. Country Studies. Federal Research Division.

Further reading※

Dodge, Toby "Inventing Iraq" (2009)
Fieldhouse, David K. Western Imperialism in the Middle East, 1914–1958 (2006)
Fisk, Robert. The Great War for Civilisation: The Conquest of the Middle East, (2nd ed. 2006),
Simons, Geoff. Iraq: From Sumer to Saddam (2nd ed. 1994)
Sluglett, Peter. Britain in Iraq: Contriving King and Country, 1914–1932 (2nd ed. 2007)

Iraq topics

History

Chronology	Ubaid period Hassuna culture Halaf culture Halaf-Ubaid Transitional period Samarra culture Uruk period Jemdet Nasr period Sumer Subartu Akkadian Empire Gutian dynasty Neo-Sumerian Empire Isin-Larsa period First Babylonian Empire Old Assyrian Period Middle Assyrian Empire Kassite dynasty of the Babylonian Empire Simurrum culture Babylonia Assyria Neo-Assyrian Empire Neo-Babylonian Empire Fall of Babylon Achaemenid Assyria Seleucid Babylonia Parthian Babylonia Sassanid Asorestan
638–1958	Muslim conquest of Mesopotamia Umayyad Caliphate Abbasid Caliphate Buyid dynasty Qara Qoyunlu Aq Qoyunlu Safavids Ottoman Iraq (incl. Mamluk dynasty) Mandate for Mesopotamia Mandatory Iraq Kingdom of Iraq Kings Arab Federation
Republic	1958–1968 1968–2003 2003–2011 2011–present Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party – Iraq Region (National Command) Saddam Hussein Iraqi–Kurdish conflict 1974–1975 Shatt al-Arab clashes 1977 Shia uprising in Iraq 1979–1980 Shia uprising in Iraq Weapons of mass destruction Iran–Iraq War Operation Opera Invasion of Kuwait Gulf War 1991 uprisings Sanctions Iraq War U.S. invasion Iraqi insurgency U.S. troop withdrawal Insurgency (2011–2013) War (2014–2017) Fall of Mosul Mosul liberation Insurgency 2019–2021 protests 2021–2022 Iraqi political crisis

Geography
Faw peninsula Upper Mesopotamia Lower Mesopotamia Borders Euphrates river Hamrin Mountains Iraqi Kurdistan Lakes Islands Mesopotamia Mesopotamian Marshes Persian Gulf Places Shatt al-Arab Syrian Desert Tigris river Umm Qasr Zagros Mountains Wildlife Sinjar Mountains

Politics

Economy
Banks Central Bank Companies Corruption Dinar (currency) Infrastructure Foreign Investment Oil Industry Oil reserves Reconstruction Stock Exchange Telecommunications Transportation Airlines Railways Tourism

Society

Demographics	Iraqis Languages Mesopotamian Arabic Aramaic Kurdish Iraqi Turkmen/Turkoman dialects Persian Minorities Armenians Assyrians Circassians Kurds Mandaeans Marsh Arabs Persians Solluba Iraqi Turkmen/Turkoman Jews Religion Secularism Islam Christianity Mandaeism Yazidis Irreligion
General	Art Cinema Cuisine Culture Literature Education Health Media Television Music Smoking Sports Squatting Public holidays Mesopotamian spring festival (Akitu) Mandaean New Year

British Empire

Legend: Current territory; Former territory; * Now a Commonwealth realm; Now a member of the Commonwealth of Nations

Culture:Anglosphere

Europe
1542–1800 Ireland (integrated into the UK) 1708–1757, 1763–1782 and 1798–1802 Minorca Since 1713 Gibraltar 1794–1796 Corsica 1800–1813 Malta (Protectorate) 1813–1964 Malta (Colony) 1807–1890 Heligoland 1809–1864 Ionian Islands 1878–1960 Cyprus 1921–1931 Irish Free State Since 1960 Akrotiri and Dhekelia (before as part of Cyprus)

Africa

17th and 18th centuries	19th century		20th century
Since 1658 Saint Helena 1792–1961 Sierra Leone 1795–1803 Cape Colony	Since 1815 Ascension Island Since 1816 Tristan da Cunha 1806–1910 Cape of Good Hope 1807–1808 Madeira 1810–1968 Mauritius 1816–1965 The Gambia 1856–1910 Natal 1862–1906 Lagos 1868–1966 Basutoland 1874–1957 Gold Coast 1882–1922 Egypt	1884–1900 Niger Coast 1884–1966 Bechuanaland 1884–1960 Somaliland 1887–1897 Zululand 1890–1962 Uganda 1890–1963 Zanzibar 1891–1964 Nyasaland 1891–1907 Central Africa 1893–1968 Swaziland 1895–1920 East Africa 1899–1956 Sudan	1900–1914 Northern Nigeria 1900–1914 Southern Nigeria 1900–1910 Orange River 1900–1910 Transvaal 1903–1976 Seychelles 1910–1931 South Africa 1914–1960 Nigeria 1915–1931 South-West Africa 1919–1961 Cameroons 1920–1963 Kenya 1922–1961 Tanganyika 1923–1965 and 1979–1980 Southern Rhodesia 1924–1964 Northern Rhodesia

6. Now Lesotho.
7. Now Ghana.
8. Now Botswana.
9. Now part of Tanzania.
10. Now Malawi.
11. Now named Eswatini.
12. Now Namibia.
13. League of Nations mandate. British Cameroons is now part of Cameroon, while Tanganyika is part of Tanzania.
14. Self-governing Southern Rhodesia unilaterally declared independence in 1965 (as Rhodesia) and continued as an unrecognised state until the 1979 Lancaster House Agreement. After recognised independence in 1980, Zimbabwe was a member of the Commonwealth until it withdrew in 2003.
15. Now Zambia.

Asia

17th and 18th centuries	19th century		20th century
1685–1824 Bencoolen 1702–1705 Pulo Condore 1757–1947 Bengal 1762–1764 Manila and Cavite 1781–1784 and 1795–1819 Padang 1786–1946 Penang 1795–1948 Ceylon 1796–1965 Maldives	1811–1816 Java 1812–1824 Banka and Billiton 1819–1826 Malaya 1824–1948 Burma 1826–1946 Straits Settlements 1839–1967 Aden Colony 1839–1842 Afghanistan 1841–1997 Hong Kong 1841–1946 Sarawak 1848–1946 Labuan 1858–1947 India 1874–1963 Borneo	1879–1919 Afghanistan (protectorate) 1882–1963 North Borneo 1885–1946 Unfederated Malay States 1888–1984 Brunei 1891–1971 Muscat and Oman 1892–1971 Trucial States 1895–1946 Federated Malay States 1898–1930 Weihai 1878–1960 Cyprus	1907–1949 Bhutan (protectorate) 1918–1961 Kuwait 1920–1932 Mesopotamia 1921–1946 Transjordan 1923–1948 Palestine 1945–1946 South Vietnam 1946–1963 North Borneo 1946–1963 Sarawak 1946–1963 Singapore 1946–1948 Malayan Union 1948–1957 Federation of Malaya Since 1965 British Indian Ocean Territory (before as part of Mauritius and Seychelles)

16. Now Sri Lanka.
17. Now part of Malaysia.
18. Now India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
19. League of Nations mandate. Iraq's mandate was not enacted and replaced by the Anglo-Iraqi Treaty
26. Legitimacy of territorial establishment disputed

North America

17th century and before		18th century	19th and 20th centuries
1579 New Albion 16th c.–1880 British Arctic Territories 1583–1907 Newfoundland 1605–1979 *Saint Lucia 1607–1776 Virginia Since 1619 Bermuda 1620–1691 Plymouth 1623–1983 Saint Kitts 1624–1966 *Barbados 1625–1650 Saint Croix 1627–1979 *Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1628–1983 Nevis 1629–1691 Massachusetts-Bay 1632–1776 Maryland since 1632 Montserrat 1632–1860 Antigua 1635–1644 Saybrook 1636–1776 Connecticut 1636–1776 Rhode Island 1637–1662 New Haven	1643–1860 Bay Islands Since 1650 Anguilla 1655–1860 Mosquito Coast 1655–1962 *Jamaica 1663–1712 Carolina 1664–1776 New-York 1665–1674 and 1702–1776 New-Jersey Since 1666 Virgin Islands Since 1670 Cayman Islands 1670–1973 *Bahamas 1670–1870 Rupert's Land 1671–1816 Leeward Islands 1674–1702 East Jersey 1674–1702 West Jersey 1680–1776 New Hampshire 1681–1776 Pennsylvania 1686–1689 New England 1691–1776 Massachusetts-Bay	1701–1776 Delaware 1712–1776 North-Carolina 1712–1776 South-Carolina 1713–1867 Nova-Scotia 1733–1776 Georgia 1754–1820 Cape Breton Island 1762–1974 *Grenada 1763–1978 Dominica 1763–1873 Prince Edward Island 1763–1791 Quebec 1763–1783 East Florida 1763–1783 West Florida 1784–1867 New Brunswick 1791–1841 Lower Canada 1791–1841 Upper Canada Since 1799 Turks and Caicos Islands	1818–1846 Columbia District/Oregon Country 1833–1960 Windward Islands 1833–1960 Leeward Islands 1841–1867 Canada 1843 Paulet affair 1849–1866 Vancouver Island 1853–1863 Queen Charlotte Islands 1858–1866 British Columbia 1859–1870 North-Western Territory 1860–1981 *Antigua and Barbuda 1862–1863 Stickeen 1866–1871 British Columbia 1867–1931 *Dominion of Canada 1871–1981 *Belize 1882–1983 *Saint Kitts and Nevis 1889–1962 Trinidad and Tobago 1907–1949 Newfoundland 1958–1962 West Indies Federation 1967–1983 West Indies Associated States

1. Occupied jointly with the United States.
2. In 1931, Canada and other British dominions obtained self-government through the Statute of Westminster. See Name of Canada.
3. Gave up self-rule in 1934. But remained a de jure Dominion until it joined Canada in 1949.

Oceania

18th and 19th centuries		20th century
1788–1901 New South Wales 1803–1901 Van Diemen's Land/Tasmania 1807–1863 Auckland Islands 1824–1980 New Hebrides 1824–1901 Queensland 1829–1901 Swan River/Western Australia 1836–1901 South Australia since 1838 Pitcairn Islands	1841–1907 New Zealand 1846–1847 North Australia 1851–1901 Victoria 1874–1970 Fiji 1877–1976 Western Pacific Territories 1884–1902 Papua 1888–1901 Rarotonga/Cook Islands 1889–1948 Union Islands 1892–1979 Gilbert and Ellice Islands 1893–1978 *Solomon Islands	1900–1970 Tonga 1900–1974 Niue 1901–1942 *Australia 1907–1947 *New Zealand 1914–1962 Samoa 1919–1942 and 1945–1968 Nauru

20. Now part of the *Realm of New Zealand.
21. Now Vanuatu.
22. Now Kiribati and *Tuvalu.

South America
1631–1641 Providence Island 1651–1667 Willoughbyland 1670–1688 Saint Andrew and Providence Islands 1831–1966 Guiana Since 1833 Falkland Islands Since 1908 South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
4. Now a department of Colombia. 5. Occupied by Argentina during the Falklands War of April–June 1982.

Antarctica and the South Atlantic
Since 1658 Saint Helena Since 1815 Ascension Island Since 1816 Tristan da Cunha Since 1833 Falkland Islands 1841–1933 Australian Antarctic Territory (transferred to the Commonwealth of Australia) 1841–1947 Ross Dependency (transferred to the Realm of New Zealand) Since 1908 British Antarctic Territory Since 1908 South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
23. Since 2009 part of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha; Ascension Island (1922–) and Tristan da Cunha (1938–) were previously dependencies of Saint Helena. 24. Claimed in 1908; territory formed 1962; overlaps portions of Argentine and Chilean claims, borders not enforced. But claim not renounced under the Antarctic Treaty. 25. Claimed in 1908; territory formed 1985

v t e Mandates of the League of Nations (1919–1946)
Class A	Palestine Transjordan Syria and Lebanon Mesopotamia not enacted
Class B	Ruanda-Urundi Tanganyika British Cameroons French Cameroons British Togoland French Togoland
Class C	New Guinea Nauru South Seas Mandate South West Africa Western Samoa
See also: United Nations Trust Territories (post-1946)

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