How a British wartime strategy created the modern Hashemite royal family across the Middle East.
In short: Following World War I, the British Empire attempted to stabilize the Middle East through the Sharifian solution. By installing the sons of Sharif Hussein bin Ali as monarchs across newly created states, Britain hoped to secure its interests, leaving a legacy that persists in Jordan but collapsed elsewhere.
The Hashemites, or the House of Hashim, trace their lineage to Hashim ibn Abd Manaf, the great-grandfather of the Prophet Muhammad. For centuries, they held authority in Mecca, serving as hereditary emirs. By the early 20th century, Sharif Hussein bin Ali, appointed by the Ottoman sultan in 1908, sought to transition from regional administration to leading an independent Arab kingdom. His ambitions, fueled by his son Abdullah, eventually aligned with British interests during the Arab Revolt of 1916.
The British government, seeking to dismantle Ottoman power, financed the revolt and provided military support. However, the post-war landscape proved complex. To resolve conflicting territorial promises and manage regional instability, British officials devised the Sharifian solution. This policy placed Hussein’s sons on various thrones: Faisal became King of Iraq in 1921, while Abdullah became the ruler of Transjordan. Ali, the eldest, briefly held the throne of the Hejaz until his defeat by the Saudi family in 1925.
The survival of these dynasties varied drastically. While Faisal’s line in Iraq ended abruptly with the 1958 coup d'état and execution of Faisal II, the Hashemite presence in Jordan proved more resilient. Despite the assassination of Abdullah in 1951, his descendants have maintained their rule to the present day. This longevity stands in contrast to the broader, often turbulent, political shifts that reshaped the Middle East throughout the 20th century, marking the Hashemites as a unique remnant of a colonial-era geopolitical experiment.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Hashemites
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