Sultan al-Atrash

portrait

During the uprising against the French mandate

Atrasch in the 1980s

Sultan Pasha al-Atrash ( Arabic سلطان الأطرش; * March 5, 1891 in al-Qurayya , Vilâyet Syria ; † March 26, 1982 ibid) was a famous Arab - Druze leader, Syrian nationalist and general commander of the Syrian Revolution (1925–1927). He fought against the Ottomans , the French and even the Syrian government during the dictatorship. As one of the most influential figures in Syrian and Druze history, he played an important role in determining the fate of the Druze Mountains , the Druze state, and Syria in general.

family

Sultan al-Atrash was born in al-Qurayya, a town about 20 km south of Suwaida , into the famous Druze family al-Atrash , who nominally ruled the region since 1879. His father Zuqan led the Druze uprising of Hauran in 1910 in al-Kefr against the Ottomans. He was captured and later, in 1911, executed. His son Mansur al-Atrash was an active member of the Syrian regional branch of the Ba'ath Party until the neo-Ba'athist military coup of 1966 led to the overthrow of Michel Aflaq , Salah ad-Din al-Bitar , Munif al-Razzaz and the Atlt-Ba'athists .

Life

Sultan al-Atrasch himself also fought against the Ottoman Empire. During the First World War he hoisted the Arab flag during the capture of Damascus by France in September 1918. When the French established their own mandate rule in Syria, Atrasch led the Syrian Revolution against France from 1925 , but after the bloody suppression of the uprising and the Massacre of thousands of members of the Druze religious minority banished to Jordan . He returned to Syria in 1937, but this time he did not receive much political influence.

Sultan al-Atrash died of a heart attack on March 26, 1982. His funeral was attended by over a million people, and the President of the Syrian Arab Republic Hafiz al-Assad wrote a letter designating al-Atrash as Supreme Commander of the Great Syrian Revolution.

Individual evidence

↑ Michael Provence: The great Syrian Revolt and the Rise of Arab Nationalism (= Modern Middle East Series. Vol. 22). University of Texas Press, Austin TX 2005, ISBN 0-292-70680-4 , p. 153.
↑ Michael Provence: The great Syrian Revolt and the Rise of Arab Nationalism (= Modern Middle East Series. Vol. 22). University of Texas Press, Austin TX 2005, ISBN 0-292-70680-4 .

personal data
SURNAME	Atrasch, Sultan al-
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	سلطان الأطرش (Arabic)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	Syrian revolutionary
DATE OF BIRTH	March 5, 1891
PLACE OF BIRTH	al-Qurayya , Vilayet Syria
DATE OF DEATH	March 26, 1982
Place of death	al-Qurayya , Vilayet Syria

[1] Michael Provence: The great Syrian Revolt and the Rise of Arab Nationalism (= Modern Middle East Series. Vol. 22). University of Texas Press, Austin TX 2005, ISBN 0-292-70680-4 , p. 153.

[2] Michael Provence: The great Syrian Revolt and the Rise of Arab Nationalism (= Modern Middle East Series. Vol. 22). University of Texas Press, Austin TX 2005, ISBN 0-292-70680-4 .