L’établissement du mandat fran ais en Syrie et dans le sandjak d’Alexandrette/// Establishment of French Mandate in Syria and Sandjak of Alexandria/// Suriye ve skenderun Sanca 'nda Frans z Mandas n n Kurulmas

After having occupied the formerly Ottoman Middle East during World War I, the Allies decided to establish an administration which would enable them to guarantee their interests in the region. In fact, during the war years they had (already) divided control of the lands of the Middle East in the secret Sykes-Picot Agreement of 1916, and before long they had occupied the region. According to this agreement, Iraq and Palestine were allotted to Great Britain’s dominion while Syria and the Hatay Province were allotted to France’s adminstration. As a matter of fact, two years after the founding of the postwar League of Nations in 1918, the system of judicial administration referred to as the mandate system gained recognition at San Remo, and a legal justification was found for the Allies’ occupation. According to this, France would administer Syria and Lebanon through a H gh Commisioner established in Beirut. Locally the people of the region would also participate in the administration, however the final word would belong to France. The mandate system would continue until the people reached the level where they could governthemselves. At first a 15 year period was projected for this to occur. Consequently, from 1921 France began ruling Syria, the Hatay Province, and Lebanon as a mandatory power responsible to the League of Nations. The independence negotiations in 1936 had produced no outcome, but with the founding of the Hatay state through Turkey’s intervention in 1938, the first break/rupture from the mandate system had begun. The mandate system continued until 1946 when Syria and Lebanon gained independence.