The Hejaz is a region which includes the majority of the west of Saudi Arabia, covering the cities of Mecca, Medina, Jeddah, Tabuk, Yanbu, Taif and Baljurashi. It is thus known as the "Western Province", and is bordered in the west by the Red Sea, in the north by Jordan, in the east by the Najd, and in the south by the Region of 'Asir. It is the most cosmopolitan region in the Arabian Peninsula. Its largest city is Jeddah, which is the second largest city in Saudi Arabia, with Mecca and Medina respectively being the fourth and fifth largest cities in the country.
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 were given the thrones of the Hejaz, Syria, Iraq, and Jordan following their World War I alliance with the British Empire; this arrangement became known as the "Sharifian solution".
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 Arab Revolt or the Great Arab Revolt was an armed uprising by the Arabs against the Ottoman Empire amidst the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I.
The Ottoman/Egyptian-Wahhabi War also known as the Ottoman/Egyptian-Saudi War (1811–1818) was fought from early 1811 to 1818, between the Ottoman Empire and the Emirate of Diriyah, the First Saudi State, resulting in the destruction of the latter.
The Sharif of Mecca or Hejaz was the title of the leader of the Sharifate of Mecca, traditional steward of the Islamic holy cities of Mecca and Medina and the surrounding Hejaz. The term sharif is Arabic for "noble", "highborn", and is used to describe the descendants of the Islamic prophet Muhammad's grandson al-Hassan ibn Ali.
The Hashemite Kingdom of Hejaz was a state in the Hejaz region of the 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.
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.
Medina, an Islamic holy city in Arabia, underwent the longest siege during First World War. The city of Medina was at the time part of the Ottoman Empire.
The Battle of Mecca occurred in the Muslim holy city of Mecca in June and July 1916. On June 10, the Sharif of Mecca, Hussein bin Ali, the leader of the Banu Hashim clan, started a revolt against the Ottoman Caliphate from this city. The Battle of Mecca was part of the Arab Revolt of World War I.
The Sharifian Army, also known as the Arab Army, or the Hejazi Army was the military force behind the Arab Revolt which was a part of the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I. Sharif Hussein Ibn Ali of the Kingdom of Hejaz, who was proclaimed "Sultan of the Arabs" in 1916, led the Sharifian Army in a rebellion against the Ottoman Empire with the ultimate goal of uniting the Arab people under an independent government. Aided both financially and militarily by the British, Husayn's forces gradually moved north through the Hejaz and, fought alongside the British-controlled Egyptian Expeditionary Force, eventually capturing Damascus. Once there, members of the Sharifian Army set up a short-lived monarchy known as the Arab Kingdom of Syria led by Faisal, a son of Sharif Husayn.
Abu Aziz Qatada ibn Idris al-Hasani al-Alawi al-Yanbu'i al-Makki was the Sharif of Mecca, reigning from 1201 to 1220/1221. He also founded the Banu Qatadah dynasty and established a tradition of sharifs descended from him to rule Mecca which lasted until the office was abolished in 1925. Regarding his sectarian denomination, Qatadah ibn Idris was a Shi'ite.
The Battle of Taif was fought between Ottoman forces and Syed Hussien bin Ali Sharif of Mecca in 1916. The Ottoman Army was in Taif, with Syed's forces besieging the city and after many weeks siege and fiercest struggle Syed's forces were able to capture the Taif. After the fall of Mecca in July 1916 the fall of Taif was a major blow for Turks who were fighting in First World War against Britain. The British helped Syed Hussein's bin Ali's Forces by providing them with guns.
The Sharifian Caliphate was a caliphate proclaimed by the Sharifian rulers of the Hashemite Kingdom of the Hejaz in 1924, in lieu of the recently-abolished Ottoman Caliphate.
The Sharifate of Mecca or Emirate of Mecca was a state, non-sovereign for much of its existence, ruled by the Sharifs 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".
The Taif massacre was an incident that followed the short 1924 Battle of Taif; the entire episode is also known as the al-Taif incident. The battle and resultant massacre comprised the first major standoff of the Second Hashemite-Saudi War. Following a short siege, the city was abandoned by Hashemite forces and then capitulated to the battle-ready Ikhwan force under the command of Abdulaziz Ibn Saud. The Ikhwan troops took out their rage on the residents of the city. In the resulting bloodbath, some 300-400 Ta'if residents were massacred.
The Battle of Wadi Musa was a battle fought between the Arab Army and the Ottoman Empire during the Arab Revolt of 1916–1918.
Major Herbert Garland OBE MC FCS M. Inst. Metals was a British metallurgist and army officer. An Army Ordnance Corps member, in 1906 he was stationed on Guernsey, where he wrote a novel, Diverse Affections: a Romance of Guernsey. Garland rose to become Superintendent of Laboratories at the Cairo Citadel, Egypt by 1913 and received a grant from the Chemical Society, of which he was a fellow, to conduct research into ancient Egyptian alloys. The outbreak of war saw him commissioned as a Special List officer with the Arab Bureau. Garland developed explosives for the army, including the Garland grenade and was, in September 1916, assigned to train T. E. Lawrence and the fighters of the Arab Revolt in explosives. His mines were used against the Hejaz Railway and may have been involved in the first derailing of a moving train by explosives. Garland commanded the desperate defence of Yanbu in which he forced an attacking superior Ottoman force to withdraw with almost no bloodshed. Awarded the Military Cross and appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire, Garland became director of the Arab Bureau after the war and was involved in the post-war negotiations for the future of Arabia. Returning from Egypt because of poor health, Garland died within days of setting foot in England.
ʿAlī Ḥaydar Pāshā ibn Jābir was an Ottoman politician who served as Emir and Grand Sharif of Mecca from 1916 to 1917 during the Arab Revolt and the First World War.
The capture of Wejh took place on 23–24 January 1917 when British-led Arab forces landed by sea and, with the support of naval bombardments, defeated the Ottoman garrison. The attack was intended to threaten the flanks of an Ottoman advance from their garrison in Medina to Mecca, which had been captured by Arab forces in 1916. The sea-based force was to have attacked in co-operation with a larger force under Arab leader Faisal but these men were held up after capturing a quantity of supplies and gold en-route to Wejh. The sea-based force under Royal Navy leadership captured Wejh with naval artillery support, defeating the 1,300-strong Ottoman garrison. The capture of the town safeguarded Mecca, as the Ottoman troops were withdrawn to static defence duties in and around Medina.
Hejazi Arabs
United Kingdom 
Ottoman Empire 
