Quotulatiousness

April 27, 2020

Spoils of War for Britain and France – Redrawing the Map of the Middle East I THE GREAT WAR 1920

Filed under: Britain, France, History, Middle East, Military, WW1 — Tags: , , , , , , , — Nicholas @ 06:00

The Great War
Published 25 Apr 2020

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100 years ago at the conference of San Remo, one thing became clear: Great Britain and France wanted control over the Middle East. Justified by the fighting in the previous years and painted as “liberators” of the Middle Eastern minorities, the new map of the Middle East emerged – under the cover of the League of Nations Mandate system.

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» SOURCES
Karsh, Efraim & Karsh, Inari, Empires of the Sand: The Struggle for Mastery in the Middle East 1789-1923, (Cambridge, MA : Harvard University Press, 1999)

“Dans Le Levant” Le Temps, August 31, 1919 issue, https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt…

Lloyd George, David, Memoirs of the Peace Conference, (New Haven : Yale University Press, 1939) vol. 2

“Mounted Rifles Units” New Zealand History, https://nzhistory.govt.nz/war/aucklan…

Paris, Timothy J. Britain, The Hashemites and Arab Rule 1920-1925, (London : Frank Cass, 2003)

Provence, Michael, The Last Ottoman Generation and the Making of the Modern Middle East, (Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 2017)

O’Neill, Robert, Official History of Australia in the War of 1914–1918, Volume VII – The Australian Imperial Force in Sinai and Palestine, 1914–1918, (Australian War Memorial, 1941)

“King-Crane Commission Digital Collection” Oberlin College Library. http://dcollections.oberlin.edu/cdm/s…

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March 7, 2020

History Buffs: Lawrence of Arabia

Filed under: Britain, History, Media, Middle East, Military, WW1 — Tags: , , , , , , — Nicholas @ 02:00

History Buffs
Published 17 Apr 2016

BIG THANK YOU TO THE GREAT WAR CHANNEL FOR COLLABORATING WITH ME AND MAKING AWESOME VIDEOS!

Check out their T.E. Lawrence video here –
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqvcjL6ObH0

And the rest of their awesome channel here 🙂
https://www.youtube.com/user/TheGreatWar

And thank you History Buffs so very much for being patient whilst I was in Ireland working on the Vikings podcasts for the History Channel and moving house at the same time. I sincerely hope you guys enjoy this review!

● Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/HistoryBuffsNH

________________________________________­­_________________________________

Lawrence of Arabia is a 1962 epic historical drama film based on the life of T. E. Lawrence. It was directed by David Lean and produced by Sam Spiegel through his British company Horizon Pictures, with the screenplay by Robert Bolt and Michael Wilson. The film stars Peter O’Toole in the title role. It is widely considered one of the greatest and most influential films in the history of cinema. The dramatic score by Maurice Jarre and the Super Panavision 70 cinematography by Freddie Young are also highly acclaimed. The film was nominated for ten Academy Awards and won seven in total including Best Director, Best Sound Editing, Best Film Editing, and Best Picture.

The film depicts Lawrence’s experiences in the Arabian peninsula during World War I, in particular his attacks on Aqaba and Damascus and his involvement in the Arab National Council. Its themes include Lawrence’s emotional struggles with the personal violence inherent in war, his own identity, and his divided allegiance between his native Britain and its army and his new-found comrades within the Arabian desert tribes.

In 1991, Lawrence of Arabia was deemed “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant” and selected for preservation in the United States Library of Congress National Film Registry.

January 17, 2020

Zionism, Arabism & Colonialism in the Middle East | BETWEEN 2 WARS I 1936 Part 1 of 3

Filed under: Britain, France, History, Middle East, Military — Tags: , , , , , , — Nicholas @ 06:00

TimeGhost History
Published 16 Jan 2020

After more than twenty years of colonial management, promises made but few promises kept and ethnic & cultural clashes in the area, unrest in the Middle East erupts in violence. A series of movements originate in this time, with long lasting consequences.

Watch our episode about the Middle east in the 1920s here: https://youtu.be/y6tSvRbvh2s

Join us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TimeGhostHistory

Hosted by: Indy Neidell
Written by: Joram Appel
Directed by: Spartacus Olsson and Astrid Deinhard
Executive Producers: Bodo Rittenauer, Astrid Deinhard, Indy Neidell, Spartacus Olsson
Creative Producer: Joram Appel
Post-Production Director: Wieke Kapteijns
Research by: Joram Appel
Fact-Checking by: Jonas Srouji
Edited by: Daniel Weiss
Sound design: Marek Kaminski

Sources:
Arab by LINECTOR from the Noun Project
Bomb by P Thanga Vignesh from the Noun Project

Colorizations by:
– Dememorabilia – https://www.instagram.com/dememorabilia/
– Adrien.Colorisation – https://instagram.com/adrien.colorisa…
– Norman Stewart

Soundtracks from Epidemic Sound:
– “Dawn Of Civilization” – Jo Wandrini
– “The Inspector 4” – Johannes Bornlöf
– “Easy Target” – Rannar Sillard
– “First Responders” – Skrya
– “Not Safe Yet” – Gunnar Johnsen
– “Deflection” – Reynard Seidel
– “The Charleston 3” – Håkan Eriksson

A TimeGhost chronological documentary produced by OnLion Entertainment GmbH.

From the comments:

TimeGhost History
42 minutes ago (edited)
We have already covered “Carving up the Middle East” in one of our first Between Two Wars episodes (watch here: https://youtu.be/y6tSvRbvh2s), but we felt like we had to return to the area one more time as all that carving had quite some consequences. This means that a large part of this episode is about colonialism, Zionism, Arabism, race and ethnicity. I’m also aware of the complicated modern-day conflict in the area, many of which originate in [the events covered in] this episode. However, we would like the comment section to be reserved for debating the history. We’re not going to engage with people discussing modern-day issues and politics, and we’re going to be quite strict in monitoring any racist or otherwise hateful comments.

Cheers,
Joram

May 10, 2019

“Counterstrike” – The Six-Day War – Sabaton History 014

Filed under: History, Media, Military — Tags: , , , , , , — Nicholas @ 04:00

Sabaton History
Published on 9 May 2019

When Egyptian president Nasser closes an important sea route for their neighbouring state of Israel in May 1967, Israel argues that a military attack on Egypt is justified. During the following six days in June 1967, Israel embarks on a war against Egypt, Syria and Jordan. The Sabaton song “Counterstrike” (on the Primo Victoria album) describes this short but influential and controversial conflict.

Support Sabaton History on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/sabatonhistory

Check out the trailer for Sabaton’s new album The Great War right here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCZP1…

Watch more videos on the Sabaton YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/Sabaton?…
Listen to Sabaton on Spotify: http://smarturl.it/SabatonSpotify
Official Sabaton Merchandise Shop: http://bit.ly/SabatonOfficialShop

Hosted by: Indy Neidell
Written by: Markus Linke and Indy Neidell
Directed by: Astrid Deinhard and Wieke Kapteijns
Produced by: Pär Sundström, Astrid Deinhard and Spartacus Olsson
Creative Producer: Joram Appel
Executive Producers: Pär Sundström, Joakim Broden, Tomas Sunmo, Indy Neidell, Astrid Deinhard, and Spartacus Olsson
Maps by: Eastory
Edited by: Iryna Dulka
Sound Editing by: Marek Kaminski

Eastory YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEly…
Archive by: Reuters/Screenocean https://www.screenocean.com
Music by Sabaton.

Sources:
National Photo Collection of Israel
D326-011
Israel Defence Forces Archives, Ministry of Defence Archives
Goverment Press Office of Israel (Also for Thumbnail)

An OnLion Entertainment GmbH and Raging Beaver Publishing AB co-Production.

© Raging Beaver Publishing AB, 2019 – all rights reserved.

From the comments:

Sabaton History
This might be the most controversial topic we have tackled to this date. We are aware of the many controversies and debate surrounding the Six-Day War, including debates surrounding the justification of the Israeli “preemptive strike”, the role that foreign/western nations played in the conflict and warcrimes that might have been committed by both sides. We decided to stay away from these debates in this video, and stick to the historical narrative. While we highly value (academic) debate and discussion, we don’t allow for racism, xenophobia, anti-semitism and partisan revisionism. Also, please try to stay away from modern partisan politics as far as possible.

Thanks for reading!
Cheers!

March 19, 2019

Last German Panzer Battle – Six Day War 1967

Filed under: Germany, History, Middle East, Military — Tags: , , , , — Nicholas @ 02:00

Mark Felton Productions
Published on 9 Feb 2019

WW2-era German Panzers last saw combat during the Six Day War in 1967, when Syria used them against Israel on the Golan Heights. Discover how Syria was able to acquire so many WW2 German vehicles and how they fared in combat against IDF Shermans and Centurions.

Credits: Bukvoed, Mark Felton Productions, YouTube Creative Commons, Google Commons, Panzers in the Golan Heights – wwiiafterwwii

March 7, 2019

Line Of Fire The Six Day War

Filed under: History, Middle East, Military — Tags: , , , , , , , — Nicholas @ 06:00

sixoctober war
Published on 4 Jul 2013

After the 1956 Suez Crisis, Egypt agreed to the stationing of a United Nations Emergency Force (UNEF) in the Sinai to ensure all parties would comply with the 1949 Armistice Agreements. In the following years there were numerous minor border clashes between Israel and its Arab neighbors, particularly Syria. In early November, 1966, Syria signed a mutual defense agreement with Egypt. Soon thereafter, in response to Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) guerilla activity, including a mine attack that left three dead, the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) attacked the city of as-Samu in the Jordanian-occupied West Bank. Jordanian units that engaged the Israelis were quickly beaten back. King Hussein of Jordan criticized Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser for failing to come to Jordan’s aid, and “hiding behind UNEF skirts”.

In May 1967, Nasser received false reports from the Soviet Union that Israel was massing on the Syrian border. Nasser began massing his troops in the Sinai Peninsula on Israel’s border (May 16), expelled the UNEF force from Gaza and Sinai (May 19), and took up UNEF positions at Sharm el-Sheikh, overlooking the Straits of Tiran. UN Secretary-General U Thant proposed that the UNEF force be redeployed on the Israeli side of the border, but this was rejected by Israel despite U.S. pressure. Israel reiterated declarations made in 1957 that any closure of the Straits would be considered an act of war, or a justification for war. Nasser declared the Straits closed to Israeli shipping on May. 22-23. On 27 May he stated “Our basic objective will be the destruction of Israel. The Arab people want to fight.” On May 30, Jordan and Egypt signed a defense pact. The following day, at Jordan’s invitation, the Iraqi army began deploying troops and armored units in Jordan. They were later reinforced by an Egyptian contingent. On June 1, Israel formed a National Unity Government by widening its cabinet, and on June 4 the decision was made to go to war. The next morning, Israel launched Operation Focus, a large-scale surprise

February 28, 2019

First Crusade Part 2 of 2

Filed under: Europe, History, Middle East, Military, Religion — Tags: , , , , , — Nicholas @ 02:00

Epic History TV
Published on 31 Mar 2017

Part 2 of Epic History TV’s story of the First Crusade continues with the Siege of Antioch. The Crusaders endure immense hardships outside the city walls, but finally take Antioch thanks to a ruse by Bohemond of Taranto. Against the odds, and inspired by their recent discovery of a relic believed to be the ‘Holy Lance’, the Crusaders then defeat the Seljuk army of Kur Burgha. After disagreements within the Crusader camp, the army finally moves on to Jerusalem in the spring of 1099. During a full-scale assault of the city walls, Godfrey of Bouillon’s troops gain a foothold in the defences, and Crusader troops pour into the city. A bloodbath follows. Victory results in the creation of four Crusader states, but their existence is precarious, surrounded by hostile Muslim powers, who will one day return with a vengeance.

Produced in partnership with Osprey Publishing
https://ospreypublishing.com/

Campaign: The First Crusade 1096–99
https://ospreypublishing.com/the-firs…

Essential Histories: The Crusades
https://ospreypublishing.com/the-crus…

The Armies of Islam 7th–11th Centuries
https://ospreypublishing.com/the-armi…

Armies of the Crusades
https://ospreypublishing.com/armies-o…

Music with thanks to Filmstro: https://www.filmstro.com/
Get 20% off an annual license! Use our exclusive coupon code: EPICHISTORYTV_ANN

Image credits – via Flickr under Creative Commons CC-BY-SA 2.0
Sky – Anyul Rivas
Wooded Hills – Alexander Annenkov
Dramatic Fields – Antonio Caiazzo
Twin peaks of Mount Ararat – Adam Jones

Please help me make more videos at Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/EpicHistoryTV

January 14, 2019

QotD: Eisenhower’s Middle East policy about-face

Filed under: History, Middle East, Quotations, USA — Tags: , , , — Nicholas @ 01:00

Unlike some American presidents, however, Eisenhower learned from his mistakes. In 1958, five years after being sworn into office, he reversed course. Rather than suck up to Egypt, Ike deployed American Marines to Lebanon to shore up President Camille Chamoun, who was under siege by Nasser’s local allies.

“In Lebanon,” Eisenhower wrote in his memoirs, “the question was whether it would be better to incur the deep resentment of nearly all of the Arab world (and some of the rest of the Free World) and in doing so risk general war with the Soviet Union or to do something worse — which was to do nothing.” That is almost verbatim what the British said to justify their own war against Nasser when Eisenhower slapped them with crippling sanctions.

Reality forced the United States into a total about-face. Ike’s entire Middle Eastern worldview collapsed. Even before sending the Marines to Lebanon he announced that America was taking Britain’s place as the pre-eminent power in the Middle East. He had to start over even if he didn’t want to. “Nasser,” Doran writes, “the giant who rose from the Suez Crisis, crushed Eisenhower’s doctrine like a cigarette under his shoe.”

What happened between the Suez Crisis and Eisenhower’s intervention in Lebanon? A couple of things.

Ike’s hope to bring Syria into the American orbit alongside Turkey and Pakistan collapsed in spectacular fashion. So many Syrians swooned over Nasser after Egypt’s victory in the Suez Canal that Syria, astonishingly, allowed itself to be annexed by Cairo. Egypt and Syria became one country—the United Arab Republic—with Nasser as the dictator of both.

Washington’s attempt to groom Saudi Arabia as a regional counterbalance to Egypt also hit the skids when Nasser accused the Saudis of trying to assassinate him and foment a military coup in Damascus. The Saudis responded by shoving King Saud aside and replacing him with his Nasserist younger brother, Crown Prince Faisal.

The final blow came with the brutal overthrow of the pro-Western Hashemite monarchy in Iraq and the mutilation of the royal family’s corpses in public, thus toppling the last pillar of America’s anti-Soviet alliance in the Middle East. Eisenhower had no choice but to stop being clever and return to the first rule of foreign policy: reward your friends and punish your enemies.

Michael J. Totten, “We Are Still Living With Eisenhower’s Biggest Mistake”, The Tower Magazine, 2017-02.

January 1, 2019

The Greatest Ancient Empire you have never heard of … The Mitanni

Filed under: History, Middle East — Tags: , , , , , — Nicholas @ 02:00

Epimetheus
Published on 4 Oct 2018

The Greatest Ancient Empire you have never heard of … The Mitanni

The Mitanni capital city of Washukanni has never been identified although there are a few locations “mounds” where the city is most likely located. It will be one of the most exciting and illuminating discoveries when this ancient capital is unearthed — (I hope it happens in my lifetime) — if there are tablets there (maybe even a library!) that could very much rewrite the history of the middle east and civilization. I have been fascinated by the Mitanni for quite some time and I am very happy to share this video with you all 😊 I hope you enjoy, and it stirs your curiosity!

Support new videos from Epimetheus on Patreon! 😀
https://www.patreon.com/Epimetheus1776

Mitanni, Hurrians, Mitanni empire, Egyptian empire, Hittite empire, Babylon, bronze age, bronze age collapse, bronze age empires, bronze age great kings, Mesopotamia, ancient middle east, ancient Mesopotamia, Mesopotamia documentary, Mitanni documentary, greatest ancient empire, most powerful ancient empire, Babylonian empire, bronze age diplomacy, Nefertiti, tushratta, Akhenaten, Suppiluliuma, Assyria, Assyrian empire, Washukanni, Kurtiwaza, Shattiwaza, Shaushtatar, chariots, chariot warfare, the Mitanni, Babylonian empire, ancient near east, Hurrian migration, documentary Mitanni, lost empires, ancient egypt, bronze age chariots, ancient civilization, lost civilization, lost empire, discovered civilization, most powerful ancient empire

November 20, 2018

Book Review: Desert Sniper, by Ed Nash

Filed under: Books, Middle East, Military, Weapons — Tags: , , , , — Nicholas @ 02:00

Forgotten Weapons
Published on 30 Oct 2018

Available from Amazon: https://amzn.to/2yy2zRf

Desert Sniper is an autobiographical account of Ed Nash’s time fighting as a volunteer with Kurdish forces against ISIS in Syria in 2015 and 2016. Nash had been working as a volunteer with the Free Burma Rangers when he decided in 2015 that the growing list of ISIS atrocities demanded action. With his background in journalism and experience as a liaison for the FBR, he thought he could do some good helping to fight one of the most starkly evil groups the 21st century has yet seen. So, he boarded a plane to the middle east.

Kurdish organization being somewhat subpar, his skills as a journalist were not exploited, and instead he went to a sniper tabor (fighting unit) with a Dragunov, which would be his primary weapon for the rest of his time in country. His book describes the experience from start to finish, including insight into Kurdish culture and politics, training, tactics, and more. He worked with both Kurdish men and women (a substantial fraction of the Kurdish fighters and commanders were female) and with other foreign volunteers like himself and various Special Forces teams from coalition nations like France, the UK, and the US.

There are several things that I particularly appreciate about Nash’s work. First is its honesty and lack of either bravado or squeamishness. Today’s popular sensibilities insist that doing violence must inevitably damage a person psychologically, but this is not true. When one believes in the rightness of one’s actions, one can survive combat without becoming a psychological victim of it. There are certainly physiological exceptions like the prolonged shelling experienced by many in WW1 and the brain injuries caused by pressure waves associated with bomb blasts, but if we are to believe Nash (and I do), one can engage in lethal violence for a just cause and sleep well at night afterward.

On a more technical side, Nash’s journalism experience shows in his writing. The book is engaging and informative, and never left me bored. He gives the reader a feel for the wide variety of situations that he found himself in and the many people we developed relationships with during his time.

Finally, Nash has a good familiarity with firearms, and writings clearly and rationally about them. The guns themselves are not the focus of the book, but when they are relevant they are explained in a way that gun nerds will appreciate. As a sniper, Nash used a Dragunov primarily, but also carried an AK as a secondary rifle. He also had experience with the Zagros and Ser heavy rifles, and cogently explains their use. His descriptions of the range limitations of his SVD will certainly spark interest in readers who are shooters. In fact, Nash provided me with the photo and video material for a video about these Kurdish arms a while back, although I did not identify him by name at that time.

Anyway, this is an inexpensive book and I found it to be an excellent read. Men and women who volunteer to fight like Nash did ought to have their stories more widely known, and recognized for seeing a bad situation and doing something extremely concrete about it, despite often facing daunting legal situations upon their return home as a result.

http://www.patreon.com/ForgottenWeapons

If you enjoy Forgotten Weapons, check out its sister channel, InRangeTV! http://www.youtube.com/InRangeTVShow

Contact: Forgotten Weapons
PO Box 87647
Tucson, AZ 85754

October 5, 2018

Germany’s Reckoning – Bulgarian Armistice I THE GREAT WAR Week 219

Filed under: Europe, Germany, History, Military, WW1 — Tags: , , , , , — Nicholas @ 04:00

The Great War
Published on 4 Oct 2018

The 14 Points: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fourtee…

While Bulgaria signs the Armistice of Salonika and effectively exits the war as the first of the Central Powers, the Hindenburg Line is broken on the Western Front. It dawns among the German leadership, that an armistice is necessary and in a desperate attempt to secure a more favourable position at the negotiations table, the Kaiser agrees to a “revolution from the top” that gives more political say to the Reichstag.

July 29, 2018

Carving up the Middle East and Preempting Rommel I BETWEEN 2 WARS I 1920 Part 3 of 4

Filed under: Britain, France, History, Middle East — Tags: , , , , , — Nicholas @ 04:00

TimeGhost History
Published on 27 Jul 2018

In 1920 the colonial powers of the British Empire and France reverse course on their commitment to grant independence to the peoples of the Middle East. In a game to grab the oil fields of Arabia, Syria and Mesopotamia, and to control the Suez Canal they tighten their grip on the region, with far ranging consequences that will shape the world well into the 21st century.

Join us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TimeGhostHistory

Hosted by: Indy Neidell
Written and directed by: Spartacus Olsson
Research Contributed by: Jonas Yazo Srouji
Produced by: Astrid Deinhard
Executive Producers: Bodo Rittenauer, Astrid Deinhard, Indy Neidell, Spartacus Olsson

A TimeGhost chronological documentary produced by OnLion Entertainment GmbH

June 27, 2018

Canada’s euphemistically named “High Risk Returnees”

Filed under: Cancon, Middle East, Politics, Religion — Tags: , , , , , , — Nicholas @ 05:00

Judith Bergman on the Canadian government’s kid-gloves approach to dealing with Canadian citizens who return to Canada after volunteering to serve with terrorist organizations:

Canadians who go abroad to commit terrorism – predominantly jihadists, in other words – have a “right to return” according to government documents obtained by Global News. They not only have a right of return, but “… even if a Canadian engaged in terrorist activity abroad, the government must facilitate their return to Canada,” as one document says.

According to the government, there are still around 190 Canadian citizens volunteering as terrorists abroad. The majority are in Syria and Iraq, and 60 have returned. Police are reportedly expecting a new influx of returnees over the next couple of months.

The Canadian government is willing to go to great (and presumably costly) lengths to “facilitate” the return of Canadian jihadists, unlike the UK, for example, which has revoked the citizenship of ISIS fighters so they cannot return. The Canadian government has established a taskforce, the High Risk Returnee Interdepartmental Taskforce, that, according to government documents:

    “… allows us to collectively identify what measures can mitigate the threat these individuals may pose during their return to Canada. This could include sending officers overseas to collect evidence before they depart, or their detention by police upon arrival in Canada.”

Undercover officers may also be used “to engage with the HRT [High Risk Traveler] to collect evidence, or monitor them during their flight home.”

In the sanitizing Orwellian newspeak employed by the Canadian government, the terrorists are not jihadis who left Canada to commit the most heinous crimes, such as torture, rape and murder, while fighting for ISIS in Syria and Iraq, but “High Risk Travelers” and “High Risk Returnees”.

The government is fully aware of the security risk to which it is subjecting Canadians: According to the documents, “HRRs [High Risk Returnees] can pose a significant threat to the national security of Canada”. This fact raises the question of why the government of Canada is keen to facilitate these people’s “right of return” — when presumably the primary obligation of the government is to safeguard the security of law-abiding Canadian citizens.

January 15, 2018

Khosrau Anushirawan: Trolling Justinian – Extra History – #4

Filed under: History, Middle East — Tags: , , , , , — Nicholas @ 06:00

Extra Credits
Published on 13 Jan 2018

Iran and Rome had agreed to an Eternal Peace, but tensions between them proved too great and Khosrau decided to invade while Justinian’s guard was down. His army swept into Rome practically unopposed, and he made a mockery of Justinian at every opportunity while treating himself to a grand old time pillaging and parading across the Roman border.

November 23, 2017

Transport regression

Filed under: Economics, History, Middle East, Technology — Tags: , , , , — Nicholas @ 03:00

ESR linked to this article, saying “This is hands-down the most interesting article on history of technology I’ve read in a very long time. It seems the Middle East, the cradle of the wheeled cart, completely gave up on wheeled transport for 1500 years – it was displaced by, of all things, camels. Among other things, this explains the mazelike layout of old Arab cities – they’re like that because they’re optimized for walking and animal-riding, not wheeled transport.”:

When the first motor car chugged defiantly off the road and into the desert an entire epoch in world history began to pass away, the epoch of the camel. After centuries of supremacy as a transport animal, centuries that had seen it become for millions of people the romantic symbol of the entire Middle East, the stalwart camel was at last facing unbeatable competition.

Yet once before this homely drama of competition between the camel and the wheel had been played out in nearly identical fashion, only in reverse. Once, in ancient times, the Middle East teemed with carts and wagons and chariots, but they were totally driven out by the coming of the camel.

For all the discussion there has been among archeologists about why advanced societies such as those in pre-Colombian Central and South America never invented wheeled transport, there has been little notice taken of the amazing fact that Middle Eastern society wilfully abandoned the use of the wheel, one of mankind’s greatest inventions.

It did not, of course, abandon the wheel in all of its many forms. The potter’s wheel remained, and so did the huge, picturesque norias, or waterwheels of Syria. But gradually over the course of the first four or five centuries of the Christian era, and perhaps even earlier, all wheeled transport in the area, from the grandest chariot to the humblest farm wagon, passed out of existence.

As late as the 1780’s the French traveler Volney could still note, “It is remarkable that in all of Syria one does not see a single cart or wagon.” Moreover, in the Arabic and Persian languages one is hard pressed to find any vocabulary proper to either the use or construction of carts and wagons.

The most common explanation of this phenomenon is lack of, or deterioration of, roads in the Middle East, and to be sure the old Royal Road of the Persians and the whole network of Roman roads at some time fell out of repair and then passed out of use. However, roads are built for wheels and not vice versa. Their decline paralleled that of the wheel; it did not cause it.

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