Flag of Hejaz | |
Use | National flag and war flag |
---|---|
Proportion | 2:3 |
Adopted | 10 June 1917 |
Design | A red triangle to which three parallel horizontal colours are attached, black at the top, followed by green in the middle and white at the bottom. |
Designed by | Mark Sykes |
The flag of the Arab Revolt, also known as the flag of Hejaz, was a flag used by Hussein bin Ali and his allies, the Arab nationalists, during the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire during World War I, and as the first flag of the Kingdom of Hejaz. It was designed by Mark Sykes but is highly reminiscent of previous Arab flags, such as the flags of the al-Muntada al-Adabi, al-ʽAhd and al-Fatat.[ citation needed ]
The flag consists of three horizontal stripes (black, white, and green) and a red triangle on the hoist side, using Islamic religious tradition, each color has a symbolic meaning: black represents the Abbasid dynasty or the Rashidun caliphs, white represents the Umayyad dynasty, and green represents Islam (or possibly, but it is not certain, the Fatimid dynasty). The red triangle represents the Hashemite dynasty, to which Hussein bin Ali belonged.
The flag became a symbol of Arab nationalism and unity and is still used today in various forms in the flags of Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, Kuwait, Sudan, Syria, the United Arab Emirates, Yemen, Palestine, Somaliland, the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, and Libya.
The horizontal colors stand for the Abbasid Caliphate (black), Umayyad Caliphate (white) and Rashidun Caliphate (green). [1] [2] The red triangle has been described as referring to the Hashemites [3] [2] or the ashraf of Mecca. [1]
According to Tim Marshall, white was the Umayyad colour in memory of Muhammad's first military victory, black was the Abbasid colour to mark a new era and to mourn the dead of the Battle of Karbala, and green was the colour of the Prophet's coat and of his followers as they conquered Mecca. [2] Alternatively, the colours' symbolism has been described as follows: white for the Damascene Umayyad Caliphate, green for Ali, red for the Kharijites, and black for Muhammad, showing the "political use of religion" in opposition to the increasingly secularized Turkish rule. [4]
Similarly, Marshall explains the use of the European tricolor as a sign of the break with the Ottoman past, while the colours are deeply Islamic without using the star and crescent used by the Ottomans. [2] The explanation given in the official note of the ceremony marking the first anniversary of the Revolt, celebrating Hussein's decree on the adoption of the flag, was that black represented the Black Standard of Muhammad (the al-ʿuqāb "eagle"), his companions, and the Abbasid Caliphate, the green represented the Ahl al-Bayt or Prophetic Family, white various Arab rulers, and red the Hashemites. [3]
It has been suggested that the flag was designed by the British diplomat Sir Mark Sykes, in an effort to create a feeling of "Arab-ness" to fuel the revolt. [5] According to Stanford University historian Joshua Teitelbaum, this claim is made both by Sykes' 1923 biographer and by Hussein ibn Ali al-Hashimi, who in 1918 told Woodrow Wilson that it symbolized Hashemite rule over the Arab world. [1] According to one version, Sykes, keen to challenge the French flag being flown in French-controlled Arab territories, offered several designs to Hussein, who chose the one that was then used. [3]
Although the Arab Revolt was limited in scope and supported by the British, the flag influenced the national flags of a number of emerging Arab states after World War I. Flags inspired by that of the Arab revolt include those of Palestine, Jordan, Egypt, Iraq, Kuwait, Sudan, Syria, Yemen, the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic and Libya.[ citation needed ]
The Hashemites were allies of the British in the conflict against the Ottoman Empire. After the war ended, the Hashemites achieved or were granted rule in the Hejaz region of Arabia, Jordan, formally known as the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, Iraq, and briefly in Syria.
The Arab Kingdom of Syria was dissolved after only a few months of existence after the French conquest in 1920. The Hashemites were overthrown in the Hejaz in 1925 by the Sultanate of Najd after the Saudi conquest of Hejaz, and in Iraq in 1958 by a coup d'etat, but retained power in Jordan.
A 60 m × 30 m version of the flag currently flies from the Aqaba Flagpole, currently the seventh tallest freestanding flagpole in the world, located in Aqaba, Jordan. [6]
The flag contains the four Pan-Arab colors: black, white, green and red. There are three horizontal stripes: black, green, and white, going down the flag. There is also a red triangle on the hoist side of the flag.
Faisal I bin Al-Hussein bin Ali Al-Hashemi was King of Iraq from 23 August 1921 until his death in 1933. A member of the Hashemite family, he was a leader of the Great Arab Revolt during the First World War, and ruled as the unrecognized King of the Arab Kingdom of Syria from March to July 1920 when he was expelled by the French.
The Hashemites, also House of Hashim, are the royal family of Jordan, which they have ruled since 1921, and were the royal family of the kingdoms of Hejaz (1916–1925), Syria (1920), and Iraq (1921–1958). The family had ruled the city of Mecca continuously from the 10th century, frequently as vassals of outside powers, and ruled the thrones of the Hejaz, Syria, Iraq, and Jordan following their World War I alliance with the British Empire.
The flag of Iraq is the national flag of Iraq, includes the three equal horizontal red, white, and black stripes of the Arab Liberation flag, with the takbir written in green in the Kufic script in the centre.
The national flag of Saudi Arabia, also known as the al-Alam, is a green background with Arabic inscription and a sword in white. The inscription is the Islamic creed, or shahada: "There is no deity but God; Muhammad is the Messenger of God". The current design has been used by the government of Saudi Arabia since 15 March 1973.
Hussein bin Ali al-Hashimi was an Arab leader from the Banu Qatadah branch of the Banu Hashim clan who was the Sharif and Emir of Mecca from 1908 and, after proclaiming the Great Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire, King of the Hejaz, even if he refused this title, from 1916 to 1924. He proclaimed himself Caliph after the abolition of the Ottoman Caliphate in 1924 and stayed in power until 1925 when Hejaz was invaded by the Saudis. He is usually considered as the father of modern pan-Arabism.
The flag of Jordan, officially adopted on 16 April 1928, is based on the 1916 flag of the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire during World War I. The flag consists of horizontal black, white, and green bands that are connected by a red chevron. The colours are the Pan-Arab Colors, respectively representing the Abbasid, Umayyad, and Fatimid or Rashidun caliphates. The red chevron is for the Hashemite dynasty, and the Arab Revolt.
The Arab Revolt, also known as the Great Arab Revolt, was an armed uprising by the Hashemite-led Arabs of the Hejaz against the Ottoman Empire amidst the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I.
As a result of the Syrian Civil War since 2011, there are at least two flags used to represent Syria, used by different factions in the war. The incumbent government of the Syrian Arab Republic led by the Ba'ath Party uses the red-white-black tricolour originally used by the United Arab Republic, while Syrian opposition factions such as the Syrian National Coalition use the green-white-black tricolour known as the ''Independence flag'', first used by Mandatory Syria.
The pan-Arab colors are black, white, green and red. Individually, each of the four pan-Arab colors were intended to represent a certain aspect of the Arab people and their history.
The flag of Palestine is a tricolor of three equal horizontal stripes overlaid by a red triangle issuing from the hoist. This flag is derived from the Pan-Arab colors and is used to represent the State of Palestine and the Palestinian people.
Ma'an is a city in southern Jordan, 218 kilometres (135 mi) southwest of the capital Amman. It serves as the capital of the Ma'an Governorate. Its population was approximately 41,055 in 2015. Civilizations with the name of Ma'an have existed at least since the Nabatean period—the modern city is just northwest of the ancient town. The city is an important transport hub situated on the ancient King's Highway and also on the modern Desert Highway.
The Hashemite Kingdom of Hejaz was a state in the Hejaz region of Western Asia that included the western portion of the Arabian Peninsula that was ruled by the Hashemite dynasty. It was self-proclaimed as a kingdom in June 1916 during the First World War, to be independent from the Ottoman Empire, on the basis of an alliance with the British Empire to drive the Ottoman Army from the Arabian Peninsula during the Arab Revolt.
An Islamic flag is the flag either representing an Islamic Caliphate, religious order, state, civil society, military force or other entity associated with Islam. Islamic flags have a distinct history due to the Islamic prescription on aniconism, making particular colours, inscriptions or symbols such as crescent-and-star popular choices. Since the time of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, flags with certain colours were associated with Islam according to the traditions. Since then, historical Caliphates, modern nation states, certain denominations as well as religious movements have adopted flags to symbolize their Islamic identity. Some secular states and ethnic or national movements also use symbols of Islamic origin as markers of heritage and identity.
The Damascus Protocol was a document given to Faisal bin Hussein on 23 May 1915 by the Arab secret societies al-Fatat and al-'Ahd on his second visit to Damascus during a mission to consult Turkish officials in Constantinople.
Al-Fatat or the Young Arab Society was an underground Arab nationalist organization in the Ottoman Empire. Its aims were to gain independence and unify various Arab territories that were then under Ottoman rule. It found adherents in areas such as Syria. The organization maintained contacts with the reform movement in the Ottoman Empire and included many radicals and revolutionaries, such as Abd al-Mirzai. They were closely linked to the Al-Ahd, or Covenant Society, who had members in positions within the military, most were quickly dismissed after Enver Pasha gained control in Turkey. This organization's parallel in activism were the Young Turks, who had a similar agenda that pertained to Turkish nationalism.
The Arab Kingdom of Syria was a self-proclaimed, unrecognized constitutional monarchy existing briefly in the territory of historical Syria. It was announced on 5 October 1918 as a fully independent Arab constitutional government with the permission of the British military. It gained de facto independence as an Emirate after the withdrawal of the British forces from OETA East on 26 November 1919, and was proclaimed as a Kingdom on 8 March 1920.
The Sharifate of Mecca or Emirate of Mecca was a state, non-sovereign for much of its existence, ruled by the Sharif of Mecca. A sharif is a descendant of Hasan ibn Ali, Muhammad's grandson. In Western sources, the prince of Mecca was known as Grand Sherif, but Arabs have always used the appellation "Emir".
National symbols of Jordan are the symbols that are used in Jordan and abroad to represent the country and its people.
This is a timeline of major events in the history of the modern state of Jordan.
In 1958, in response to the merger of Egypt and Syria in the United Arab Republic, the two Hashemite kingdoms of Iraq and Jordan established the Arab Federation, a confederation of the two states. According to the 7th article of the Federation convention, the Arab revolt flag was to be the official flag of the Union. The union lasted less than six months, being terminated by the Iraqi Revolution of 1958 in July.