J. Priestland – författare

The definitive document collection comprising some 10,000 pages of detailed British Government records on Jordanian relations with neighbour states providing invaluable background for study of the modern Middle East. Records of Jordan 1919-1965 provides documentary evidence of key events and issues in the first forty-five years of Jordanian history including: the creation of Transjordan; the formation of boundaries with Syria and Iraq; boundaries with Hijaz and Nejd and relations with Ibn Saud; the reigns of Abdullah and Talal, and later the reign of King Hussein; post-war relations with Arab states, US and Britain; the relationship between King Hussein and President Nasser; the status of Jerusalem; Jordan Valley water problems; concerns with the Baghdad Pact, the Arab League and the United Nations; the role of King Hussein in the Arab-Israel conflict; issues concerning the creation of the PLO; regular detailed information on King Hussein´s administration and personal survival.

The documents in this collection recall the decisive events in the historical record and provide evidence of the shaping of Islamic relations and policies. The contents include diplomatic correspondence and reports describing the following: the Young Turks movement and political events in Turkey before WWI; affairs of the Caliphate and the Sherif of Mecca; the rise to power of Ibn Saud, subsequently King Abdul Aziz; affairs of Islamic groups, including the Akhwan; the Senoussi; the Druses; etc; 1919 Peace Conference arrangements and implications for the Muslim world; the fall of Hejaz and Mecca to Ibn Saud, 1925; 'first Moslem Congress,' 1926; pan-Islamic movements in the 1920s, and others, including Wahhabism, Mahdism; the Palestine question and the Arab cause, 1930s; the Muslim Brotherhood after World War Two; India-Pakistan relations, 1940s et seq and events in Algeria, 1956 et seq. Notes on Shia relations are found for various places and periods.

These eight volumes present a documentary history of the city of Jerusalem, concentrating on the half-century from 1917 to 1971, with some reference to earlier circumstances. The starting point of this collection accompanies the end of Ottoman rule in the Near East and the establishment of British military control in Jerusalem in the eventful year of 1917. As far as possible an attempt has been made to provide research resources specific to Jerusalem and excluding material relating to Palestine in general. Broader questions including the territorial limits and administration of Palestine and the origins of the state of Israel are covered in other related titles. However, it is impossible to disentangle such material entirely and after 1917 the echoes of the Arab-Jewish struggle form a continuous background to the development of the city.

This companion work to the Archive Editions' publication The Buraimi Memorials provides the evidence of the original historical and contemporary political files to set alongside the official government submissions of the Memorials. With one volume summarising the historical background from earlier records, key documents are assembled providing a broad perspective on events and conditions in the Buraimi Region in the post-war period. The chronological presentation of original records shows the cumulative build-up in the late 1940s and early 1950s of local incidents, tribal unrest, intrigue and political tension; including details of Saudi and British manoeuvres and diplomacy. The set is illustrated with a box of contemporary maps including Ibn Saud's map of Arabia.

Records of the Hashimites is a rare and valuable publication, an encyclopaedia of authentic historical documents, tracing in detail the destiny of the Hashimites, the most ancient and distinguished family in the Middle East. The editors have located diaries, secret reports and a wealth of previously unpublished correspondence - some of it ancient, much of it normally hidden or scattered in obscure archives, some of great political importance and all of historic interest. Records of the Hashimites focuses on the 20th century and provides the reader with a detailed study of the convergence of Hashimite and British interests that led to the Arab Revolt in the First World War and the establishment of Hashimite rule in Iraq, Jordan and, briefly, Syria following the defeat of Turkey.