Empire of Sand - How Britain Shaped the Middle East

At the end of the First World War the modern Middle East was created by Britain and France, who carved up the old Ottoman possessions with scant regard for the wishes of those who lived there. Frontiers were devised and alien dynasties imposed on the populations as arbitrarily as in medieval times. It was destined from the outset to failure. Promises had been made to the Arabs during the War, but were not honored, and brief hopes for Arab unity were dashed, leading to a bitter belief in western perfidy that persists to the present day.

About the author

Walter Reid studied at the universities of Oxford and Edinburgh, and has written a number of highly acclaimed works of military history: Arras, 1917 (new edn. Birlinn 2011), Architect of Victory: Douglas Haig (Birlinn 2006) and Churchill 1940 -1945: Under Friendly Fire (Birlinn, 2008).

Product details

• Authors: Walter Reid
• Publisher: BIRLINN LIMITED
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 15.08.2011
• EAN: 9781843410539
• ISBN: 978-1-84341-053-9
• No. of pages: 416
• Subject: Non-fiction book > History > Miscellaneous