Jamil al-Ulshi (17 January 1883 – 25 March 1951) () was a

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

n politician, two-time

prime minister of Syria The prime minister of Syria (), officially the president of the Council of Ministers of the Syrian Arab Republic, was the head of government of Syria from 1920 to 2025. After the fall of the Assad regime, the prime minister of Syria was the head ...

and acting head of state (17 January – 25 March 1943) during the

French Mandate The Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon (; , also referred to as the Levant States; 1923−1946) was a League of Nations mandate founded in the aftermath of the First World War and the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire, concerning the territori ...

era.

Biography

He was born and raised in

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

, and educated in the Ottoman Military Academy in

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

. He defected from the Ottoman army and joined the

Arab revolt The Arab Revolt ( ), also known as the Great Arab Revolt ( ), was an armed uprising by the Hashemite-led Arabs of the Hejaz against the Ottoman Empire amidst the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I. On the basis of the McMahon–Hussein Co ...

under the leadership of

Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca Hussein bin Ali al-Hashimi ( ; 1 May 18544 June 1931) was an Arab leader from the Banu Qatadah branch of the Banu Hashim clan who was the Sharif and Emir of Mecca from 1908 and, after proclaiming the Great Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Em ...

. After the end of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, he was a member of a six-man committee charged with discharging executive authority in Syria until the Kingdom of Syria was proclaimed under

Faisal I Faisal I bin Hussein bin Ali Al-Hashemi (, ''Fayṣal al-Awwal bin Ḥusayn bin ʻAlī al-Hāshimī''; 20 May 1885 – 8 September 1933) was King of Iraq from 23 August 1921 until his death in 1933. A member of the Hashemites, Hashemite family, ...

, after which, in October 1918, he was appointed private chamberlain to the new monarch. However, the kingdom was dissolved by the

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

, who imposed their mandate on Syria in July 1920 and exiled Faisal (see Sykes-Picot Agreement and

San Remo conference The San Remo conference was an international meeting of the post-World War I Allied Supreme Council as an outgrowth of the Paris Peace Conference, held at Castle Devachan in Sanremo, Italy, from 19 to 26 April 1920. The San Remo Resolution ...

). Ulshi remained behind and participated in successive pro-French and French-appointed puppet governments, occupying several high posts in the cabinet, becoming acting Prime Minister on 6 September 1920. He rapidly gained a reputation for subservience to the French and

nepotism Nepotism is the act of granting an In-group favoritism, advantage, privilege, or position to Kinship, relatives in an occupation or field. These fields can include business, politics, academia, entertainment, sports, religion or health care. In ...

, appointing several family members to high government posts. The French mandate authorities subdivided Syria into independent and semi-independent zones and annexed large areas to

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

, enraging Syrian nationalists, and several revolts broke out across the country. Ulshi became increasingly unpopular when he did nothing to oppose these measures, and raised no objections to the severe French military response to the revolts. He was forced to resign on 30 November 1920. He remained a political outcast until 1928, when he was able to return to the cabinet as

Minister of Finance A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfolio ...

when his longtime ally

Taj al-Din al-Hasani Taj al-Din al-Hasani (; 1885 – 17 January 1943) was a French-appointed Syrian leader and politician who served during the French mandate as Syrian head of state (1928–1931, 1941–1943), prime minister (1928–1932, 1934–1936) and ministe ...

became Prime minister; he held this post until August 1930, when he retired. He came out of retirement in September 1941 to become an advisor to Hasani when the latter assumed the presidency. Hasani asked Ulshi to form a government in January 1943. He did so, giving several posts to nationalist politicians to appease the opposition. However Hasani died that same month, and Ulshi became acting president as well as prime minister. His tenure was marred by widespread public anger and rioting at high prices and taxes imposed to aid the unpopular French war effort in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

. He was again forced to resign, and disappeared from public life until his death eight years later.

References

* Sami Moubayed ''Steel & Silk: Men and Women Who Shaped Syria 1900–2000'' (Cune Press, Seattle, 2005) . {{DEFAULTSORT:Ulshi, Jamil al 1883 births 1951 deaths Arab people from the Ottoman Empire 20th-century Syrian politicians Political people from the Ottoman Empire Presidents of Syria Ottoman Military Academy alumni Prime ministers of Syria Ministers of finance of Syria Ministers of defense of Syria 20th-century presidents in Asia People from Damascus