Page 243 - Life of Gertrude Bell

THE MANDATE 223
warning, but little heed was taken of moderate opinion in the spring
of 1920. In April Britain’s mandate was confirmed at San Remo
and the British administration pursued its plan to govern pro­
visionally with an Arab leader of its own choice, the Naqib, as
President of the Council. Wilson had warned, and so had well-
intentioned Iraqis. The dam was about to burst.
In the summer of 1920 rebellion broke out, beginning with
tribal conflicts on the middle Euphrates and spreading quickly as
religious leaders fanned the hatred of centuries among Shia and
Sunni. It was the districts around the holy cities of Najaf and
Karbala that suffered most. A British peace-keeping force, con­
sisting mostly of raw recruits since the seasoned soldiers of the
British army had been demobilised, finally put down the rebellion.
But there were many casualties, particularly in the Manchester
Regiment which was sent up to the Hillah region on the Euphrates.
The Tigris tribes and the main cities were not greatly affected,
but the outburst cost the British exchequer an estimated £40
million and the public at home was becoming heartily sick of the
Arabian adventure. It was in tills atmosphere of disillusion, with
constant cries from the British Press for the Government to cut
its losses, that the most inspired and persistent public relations
scheme in the country’s history was conceived —‘Lawrence of
Arabia’. Obligingly, an American journalist namedLowell Thomas,
who had seen Lawrence in Syria and had a passing acquaintance­
ship with him, decided to tour the world with the story of the
desert adventure which was largely a figment of his own imagina­
tion and which extended by a good distance Lawrence’s own
somewhat romanticised version of war-time events. Thomas
filled lecture halls and theatres with Ills dramatic story, crowds
waited for hours to obtain tickets for his performances at the
Royal Opera House and the Royal Albert Hall only to find that
every seat was taken. He attracted an audience of more than a
million in a few months. Up to this time, Gertrude Bell was by
common consent the most famous of contemporary English
people in Arabia. Within a year, all previous history, all fact and
sense had been swamped by the Lawrence myth, though Lawrence
was the victim rather than the instigator of the deceit.

The rebellion in Iraq was shortlived, but its consequences were
far-reaching. The British Government determined to find a way
out of its dilemma at the least possible expense to the taxpayer.