Mar'i Pasha Al Mallah
Encyclopedia
Mar'i Pasha Al Mallah (1856-1930) : Syria
n political
leader and Statesman. Born in Aleppo
(1856). Graduated from the Galatasaray Mekteb-i Sultanisi (Galatasaray Imperial School), Constantinople
, 1876.
Al Mallah held major positions in Aleppo
under the Ottoman (Turks), including:
And he was Privy to Sultan Abdulhamid II.
Represented Aleppo
in the Ottoman Parliament of 1908, and served as the last Ottoman Interim Governor of the Province of Aleppo
.
Following the Ottoman collapse, Al Mallah contributed to the foundation of the first modern Arab state in Syria under King Faysal I, and was elected Deputy Speaker of the Syrian National Congress
(1919-1920).
Finally, he was named Governor General of the State of Aleppo
(1924-1926) under the French Mandate of Syria
.
Al Mallah acquired the rank of Beylerbey
, which corresponds to the rank of "Lieutenant General," from Sultan Abdulhamid II and was awarded several Ottoman , French
and Syria
n decorations.
Al Mallah was a man of liberal views, open to western ideas and thought, proficient in Turkish, Persian, Arminian and French. He particularly loved photography, and used to keep massive albums featuring Ottoman and European royalty, politicians, writers and musicians. He was also noted for his collection of rare and antiquarian books and manuscripts, which he made available to scholars and researchers by dedicating them to the "Islamic Endowments Library of Aleppo," and the "Library of the Arab Academy" in Damascus.
Al Mallah was described by a fellow historian Sheikh Kamil Al Ghazzi as "the leading notable of Aleppo." Moreover, his biography appeared in a number of books, and was also cited in a dozens of historical works on Aleppo and modern Syria written by noted Arab and western scholars. His name also appeared in the memoirs of Syrian politicians as well as the accounts of Arab and western travelers, including the late Crown Prince Mohammed Ali Tewfik
of Egypt
, who visited Syria
before the outbreak of World War I, and the memoirs of Lady Gertrude Bell
.
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
n political
Politics
Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
leader and Statesman. Born in Aleppo
Aleppo
Aleppo is the largest city in Syria and the capital of Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Syrian governorate. With an official population of 2,301,570 , expanding to over 2.5 million in the metropolitan area, it is also one of the largest cities in the Levant...
(1856). Graduated from the Galatasaray Mekteb-i Sultanisi (Galatasaray Imperial School), Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
, 1876.
Al Mallah held major positions in Aleppo
Aleppo
Aleppo is the largest city in Syria and the capital of Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Syrian governorate. With an official population of 2,301,570 , expanding to over 2.5 million in the metropolitan area, it is also one of the largest cities in the Levant...
under the Ottoman (Turks), including:
- President of the Mixed Commercial Court (1885-1897);
- Mayor of AleppoAleppoAleppo is the largest city in Syria and the capital of Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Syrian governorate. With an official population of 2,301,570 , expanding to over 2.5 million in the metropolitan area, it is also one of the largest cities in the Levant...
(1899-1900); - District Attorney (1905-1906);
- Cahirman of the Agro-Bank (1906-1907);
- Director of Endowments (1909-1911).
And he was Privy to Sultan Abdulhamid II.
Represented Aleppo
Aleppo
Aleppo is the largest city in Syria and the capital of Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Syrian governorate. With an official population of 2,301,570 , expanding to over 2.5 million in the metropolitan area, it is also one of the largest cities in the Levant...
in the Ottoman Parliament of 1908, and served as the last Ottoman Interim Governor of the Province of Aleppo
Aleppo
Aleppo is the largest city in Syria and the capital of Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Syrian governorate. With an official population of 2,301,570 , expanding to over 2.5 million in the metropolitan area, it is also one of the largest cities in the Levant...
.
Following the Ottoman collapse, Al Mallah contributed to the foundation of the first modern Arab state in Syria under King Faysal I, and was elected Deputy Speaker of the Syrian National Congress
Syrian National Congress
The Syrian National Congress was convened in July 1919 in Damascus, Syria to prepare for the King-Crane Commission of inquiry on the future of Greater Syria after the fall of the Ottoman Empire. The congress was attended by representative from all parts of Syria. The participants showed...
(1919-1920).
Finally, he was named Governor General of the State of Aleppo
State of Aleppo
The State of Aleppo was one of the five states that were established by the French High Commissioner in Syria and Lebanon General Henri Gouraud in the French Mandate of Syria which followed the San Remo conference and the collapse of King Faisal I's short-lived monarchy in Syria.The other states...
(1924-1926) under the French Mandate of Syria
French Mandate of Syria
Officially the French Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon was a League of Nations mandate founded after the First World War and the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire...
.
Beylerbey
Beylerbey is the Ottoman and Safavid title used for the highest rank in the hierarchy of provincial administrators It is in western terms a Governor-general, with authority...
, which corresponds to the rank of "Lieutenant General," from Sultan Abdulhamid II and was awarded several Ottoman , French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
n decorations.
Al Mallah was a man of liberal views, open to western ideas and thought, proficient in Turkish, Persian, Arminian and French. He particularly loved photography, and used to keep massive albums featuring Ottoman and European royalty, politicians, writers and musicians. He was also noted for his collection of rare and antiquarian books and manuscripts, which he made available to scholars and researchers by dedicating them to the "Islamic Endowments Library of Aleppo," and the "Library of the Arab Academy" in Damascus.
Al Mallah was described by a fellow historian Sheikh Kamil Al Ghazzi as "the leading notable of Aleppo." Moreover, his biography appeared in a number of books, and was also cited in a dozens of historical works on Aleppo and modern Syria written by noted Arab and western scholars. His name also appeared in the memoirs of Syrian politicians as well as the accounts of Arab and western travelers, including the late Crown Prince Mohammed Ali Tewfik
Mohammed Ali Tewfik
Prince Mohammed Ali Tewfik was the heir presumptive of Egypt and Sudan from 1892-1899 and 1936-1952.-Regent:...
of Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, who visited Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
before the outbreak of World War I, and the memoirs of Lady Gertrude Bell
Gertrude Bell
Gertrude Margaret Lowthian Bell, CBE was an English writer, traveller, political officer, administrator, and archaeologist who explored, mapped, and became highly influential to British imperial policy-making due to her extensive travels in Greater Syria, Mesopotamia, Asia Minor, and Arabia. Along...
.
Sources
- http://www.gerty.ncl.ac.uk/diaries/d2136.htm
- Malcolm B. Russel, The First Modern Arab State: Syria under Faysal, 1918-1920, Bibliotheca Islamica, Minneapolis, 1985, p. 148.
- Eliezer Tauber, The Formation of Modern Syria and Iraq, Frank Cass, 1995, pp. 226-228.
- Sabine Prätor, Der arabische Faktor in der jungtürkischen Politik: Eine Studie zum osmanischen Parlament der II. Konstitution (1908–1918), (Berlin: Klaus Schwarz Verlag, 1993), p. 238, 266.
- Ahmet Ali Gazel, Osmanlı Meclis-i Mebusanı'nda parlamenter denetim, 1908-1920, Çizgi Kitabevi, 2007, p. 124, 219