Turkish-Arab Confrontation in the Hijaz and Nejd and Russia in Early 20th Century (According to Russian Diplomatic and Military Intelligence Sources)

Abstract

Through the lens of its analysis, the article reveals the most entangled relationships, reaching the highest degree of tension at times, between the Turkish authorities and the Arab people inhabiting two regions of the Arabian Peninsula, incorporated into the Ottoman Empire – the Hejaz (West Arabia) and Najd (Central Arabia) – in the late 19th – early 20th centuries. It also sheds light on the activities undertaken by the Russian diplomats and military intelligence officers seeking to establish more details about the situation in those regions. The article is primarily based on a body of little-known documents stored in the records of the Archive of Foreign Policy of the Russian Empire and Russian State Military-Historical Archive, as well as some archives outside Russia. It is shown that within the period in question, both the Bedouin tribes and the urban notables rose in rebellions against the Turkish stranglehold, that were suppressed with military force. The Turkish-Arab relationships, especially the Turkish military expeditions into the Arabian regions, were the focus of intense interest of the Russian diplomacy, as well as military intelligence, given the possibility of an armed conflict between Russia and Turkey. Staff members of the Russian consulate in Jeddah, founded in 1890, who were entrusted with the task of gaining knowledge on the use of pilgrimage by the Turkish authorities to influence the Russian Muslims who arrived in the Hejaz, were exposed to dangers that threatened their lives and health. They assessed the British policy in these areas as aimed at destabilizing the situation, given the smuggling of arms destined for the local tribes. The author also looks at the way how the difference in visions and preferences among the high-ranking Russian officials, in charge of various departments within the Russian Empire, impacted the Russian policies in the area.