A group of bound parliamentary papers, chiefly focused on the McMahon-Hussein correspondence and its aftermath. The correspondence, which consisted of ten letters, saw the Government of the United Kingdom agree to recognise Arab independence in a large part of the Middle East after WWI, in exchange for Hussein bin Ali Al-Hashimi, the Sharif of Mecca beginning the Arab revolt against the Ottoman Empire. This agreement, and its violation, cast a long shadow over the modern history of the region, particularly in relation to the future of Palestine.
The first paper prints the correspondence in full, evidencing how negotiations principally concerned the future limits and boundaries of the proposed Arab state. It is complimented by a folding map showing the pre-war division of Syria and Palestine into Ottoman administrative districts. The following three papers concern political interactions after the agreement and examine its legacy, with a focus on how the course taken (by the British and French) betrayed promises and negatively affected Palestine. They are:
1). Miscellaneous No.4 (1939). Statements made on behalf of His Majesty’s Government during the year 1918 in regard to the Future Status of the Ottoman Empire. 7pp. London, H.M.S.O., 1939.
2). Report of a Committee set up to consider certain correspondence between Sir Henry McMahon (His Majesty’s High Commissioner in Egypt) and the Sharif of Mecca in 1915 and 1916. 51pp. London, H.M.S.O., 1939.
2). Miscellaneous No.8 (1946). Report of the Anglo-American Committee of Enquiry regarding the problems of European Jewry and Palestine. [iv], 80pp. London, H.M.S.O., 1946.
References: Clements, pp.63-5. Khalidi & Khadduri, 1533: “[Describing the first paper:] The first official publication of this correspondence.”
