Middle East
Middle East and its connections with British History
From the birth of Christianity through the Crusades and right up until the current time, the Middle East features and is entangled with British History. Arguably much of the strife in the Middle East today originates from the outcome of historic British policy and involvement when large tracts of the Middle East were either formal or informal parts of the British Empire.
Middle east Interactive Map
[geo_mashup_map map_content=”global” width=610 height=550 zoom=4]
In the decline of that Empire the significance and importance of the relationship between Britain and these oil rich nations has continued to be significant together with maintaining stable counterbalance to the more extreme regimes such as Iran, Iraq and Egypt to name a few in the last 50 years. In fact as we explore the Middle East across our days of imperial influence its the same problems and issues that seem to have come to the fore again almost 100 years later.
Middle East and British History Timeline and Chronology
Key events and connections between British History and the Middle East, search and use as an ongoing reference as we add events dates and notes with links to related pages and articles as they are published.
Regional: British History and the Middle East Events Timeline and Chronology
Date(s) | Event | Parties | Place |
---|---|---|---|
20th Century Middle East | Ottoman Empire major involvement in the Middle East | Turks | Middle East |
1917 | Political: Balfour declaration re homeland for Jewish People in Palestine | BALFOUR Foreign Secretary to Rothschilds and Zionists | Britain , Palestine (See Middle East Map) |
1922 | British Mandate Census quantifies the local population cultural ethnic and religious make-up. it was only repeated in 1931 | Britain Population of Palestine | Palestine Middle East |
1931 | British Mandate 2nd Census, see also 1922, the only quantified census of make-up the population ethnic religios and national origin. | British Mandate | Palestine Middle East |
1933 | Political: Hitler comes to Power in 1933 | Germany, Adolf Hitler, Nazi Party | Berlin Germany |
1933 | Public opinion: King and Country debate in Oxford University Union. Post WW1 interpreted as younger generation are anti-war. | Oxford University Students | Oxford England |
1935 | Political and Military Hitler repudiates/rejects the military restrictions of the Treaty of Versailles | Hitler, Germany, Nazi party | Germany,Europe |
1935 | Military and Political -Anglo-German Naval Agreement enabling Germans to build their naval strength to 1/3rd of British Naval Strength | Germany, Britain, Naval forces | Navy |
1935-1937 | UK Political BALDWIN wins General Electionon policy of no Big Armamens | Stanley BALDWIN ConservativeBritish Prime Minister PM | Britain UK Parliament |
1937-1949 | CHAMBERLAIN elected Prime Minister in Britain pursuing line of 'appeasement.' | Conservative Party Neville Chamberlain | Britain UK |
1938 | Anschluss Austria Capitulates without a fight and absorbed into Third Reich contrary to Treaty of Versailles. Jewish and civilian oppression and persecution commences. | Germany, Austria, Nazi Party | Austria |
1938 | Germany threatens Czechoslovakia over province of German Czechs 'Sudetenland' It is a pretense and excuse for invasion. Britain does not act to protect the Czechs but sues for peace with Hitler. | Czechs, Germans, Hitler, Britain, France | Czechoslovakia, Sundentenland (German Speaking Czechs and non-germans, ) |
1938 | Chamberlain continues appeasement policy and seeks to negotiate with Hitler, believes victory with MUNICH AGREEMENT surrendering Sudetenland to Germany | Britain, Germany, Hitler, Chamberlain (British PM) | Munich Germany |
1938-1939 | Russia is double dealing, negotiates with Britain in Moscow and in parallel with Germans | Soviets do not enter as a World War at this stage/ | Russia/Soviet powers. |
1939-1945 | WW2 2nd World War in the 20th Century, events added during the war as additional lines Germany Italy and Japan largely against the Western Allies | Germany western Allies | Too many to list but starts Czechoslovakia Austria and Poland aggressions by Nazi Germany under Hitler. |
1939 03 MAR | Germany invades and occupies PRAGUE in Czechoslovakia. | Germany Hitler, Czechs | Prague Czechoslovakia |
1939 | Hitler demands Polish frontier adjusted in German favour. | Hitler Germany | Poland Germany |
1939 09 SEP 01st | Nazi Germany stages a Polish act of aggression to justify invasion. It is two full days before Britain responds. | Germans posing in Polish uniforms | Polish/German territories. |
1939 09 SEP 03rd | Britain declares War on Germany but despite Anglo-Polish Agreement does nothing to prevent German advance and invasion of Poland. By the end of September Poland is crushed. | Britain Germany France and Poland | Poland |
1939 09 SEP 17th | Soviet Russian joined attack against Poland. Britain and France do not respond and decalre war on the Russian Soviets. | Russia and Germany | Poland |
1940 05 MAY 08th | Disasterous attempt to defend DENMARK leads to British Prime Minister CHAMBERLAIN resigning replaced by CHURCHILL and Coalition Government. | Denmark and Britain | DENMARK |
1940 05 MAY 10th | Germany invaded the Netherlands. (Holland) powerless to maintain resistance Netherlands surrenders in just 4 days. | Germans, Dutch | Netherlands |
1940 05 MAY 28th | Belgian resistance finally gives way and surrenders to Germany. Anglo-French forces on route to engage Germans are cut off from north by German attack from the Ardennes Forest north of the Maginot Line which reached the English Channel. Allied forces were forced back to Dunkirk. | Belgians, Germans | Belgium |
1940 06 JUN 04th | DUNKIRK 338k troops survived the German onslaught and were evacuated by the British civilian and naval rescue force. | British and German forces | Dunkirk France |
1940 06 JUN 10th | Italy declares war on France and Britain | France Italy and Britain | Italy and Europe |
1940 06 JUN 22nd | France surrenders signing armistice with Germany accepting German occupation of Northern France and appointing a puppet regime at Vichy that would become know as the Vichy. | France Germany | Northern and Vichy France |
1940 07 JUL | British sink French Navy at Mers-El-Kebir to prevent it falling into Geman hands | British forces | Mers-El-Kebir |
1941 06 JUN | British overan French troops in Syria and Lebanon to prevent German occupation as effective opposition had ceased in Jun 1940 with the exception of the French Resistance and Partisans, | British and French forces | Middle East Syria and Lebanon. see Middle East Map, |
1944 06 Jun 06 | D DAY Allied Forces Normandy Landings | Americans British Canadians and Allies | Normandy France |
1945 05 May 08 | VE DAY Victory in Europe 8th May 1945 | Allied Forces and peoples of Europe | Europe London and throughout. |
1945-1946 | Updated report of 67.6% Arab and Jewish population within the palestine Mandate | British American Commission of Inquiry Jewish and Arab Population | Palestine Middle East |