Kingdom of Hejaz

Origins

In June 1916 Hussein ibn Ali, head of the Sharifate of Mecca, launched the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire with British support, encouraged by the Hussein-McMahon correspondence. He proclaimed himself King of the Arab Lands; the Allies recognised him as King of the Hejaz. His sons Faisal and Abdullah led Arab forces north.

Rule and society

The kingdom controlled the Hejaz, its holy cities, the pilgrimage and the port of Jeddah, financed largely by British subsidies and pilgrim fees. Hussein refused to accept the post-war mandates in Syria, Palestine and Iraq, quarrelled with Britain and declined to sign the Treaty of Versailles. In March 1924, after Turkey abolished the caliphate, he declared himself caliph.

Decline and legacy

Ibn Saud's Ikhwan took Ta'if and then Mecca in late 1924. Hussein abdicated in favour of his son Ali, who surrendered Jeddah in December 1925. The Hejaz became part of the Kingdom of Hejaz and Nejd, while Hussein's sons ruled the Kingdom of Iraq and the Emirate of Transjordan.