Muhammad Ali Bey al-Abid (, ; 1867 – 22 October 1939; or, as he spelled his own name in French, Mehmed Ali Abed) was a Syrian politician and statesman. He was appointed the president of the

mandatory Syrian Republic The First Syrian Republic, officially the Syrian Republic, was formed in 1930 as a component of the Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon, succeeding the State of Syria. A treaty of independence was made in 1936 to grant independence to Syria and ...

(from 11 June 1932 until 21 December 1936) as a nominee of the nationalist Syrian parliament 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 ...

after the country received partial recognition of sovereignty from

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. France agreed to recognize Syria as a nation under intense nationalist pressure but did not withdraw its troops completely until 1946.

Life

Background and education

Muhammad Ali al-Abid was born in

, then in the Ottoman Empire. His father, Ahmad Izzat al-Abid, the son of Hawlu al-Abid, had initially been brought up in Damascus before pursuing his education in

Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...

Beirut Vilayet The Vilayet of Beirut (; ) was a first-level administrative division (vilayet) of the Ottoman Empire. It was established from the coastal areas of the Syria Vilayet in 1888 as a recognition of the new-found importance of its then-booming capital, ...

. Ahmad Izzat al-Abid, who was fluent in

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

, French, and Turkish, started working in the administration of Damascus Vilayet and was authorized to found a periodical. Muhammad Ali was educated in the primary schools of Damascus then continued his education in 1885 in

. In 1887, Ahmad Izzat al-Abid closed his periodical and moved to Constantinople (now Istanbul). Muhammad Ali moved with his family to Constantinople where he was sent to

Galatasaray High School Galatasaray High School (, ), established in Istanbul in 1481, is the oldest and Selective school, highly selective high school in Turkey. It is also the second-oldest Turkish educational institution after Istanbul University, which was establi ...

, a prestigious Ottoman high school. He would then study law in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, France, and

Islamic jurisprudence ''Fiqh'' (; ) is the term for Islamic jurisprudence.Fiqh
Encyclopædia Britannica ''Fiqh'' is of ...

, graduating in 1905. In the meantime, in 1894, his father had been introduced to Sultan 'Abdu’l-Hamid II and would become the sultan's adviser and serve as the head of his intelligence services, and also govern over the Iraqi city of

Mosul Mosul ( ; , , ; ; ; ) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. It is the second largest city in Iraq overall after the capital Baghdad. Situated on the banks of Tigris, the city encloses the ruins of the ...

Diplomatic and political career

Muhammad Ali al-Abid was fluent in

, French, and Turkish and fond of

French literature French literature () generally speaking, is literature written in the French language, particularly by French people, French citizens; it may also refer to literature written by people living in France who speak traditional languages of Franc ...

and

economics Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...

; he also had a good knowledge of English and

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

. Al-Abid started to work in the Foreign Affairs administration. In 1907, he became the Ottoman Empire's ambassador to Washington. However, he returned to the Ottoman Empire soon, after the declaration of the Ottoman Empire's constitution on 23 July 1908, when the Young Turks revolted against Abdu'l-Hamid II. His father escaped from Constantinople and went to

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. Al-Abid joined his father traveling between England, Switzerland, France, and reached

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

on the eve 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 ...

. Al-Abid moved back to Damascus in the summer of 1920 when Syria came under 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 ...

. In 1922, Al-Abid was appointed Syria's

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 ...

. On 30 April 1932 Al-Abid was elected to the parliament in Damascus as a nominee of the National Bloc (Syria) and then elevated to the

presidency A presidency is an administration or the executive, the collective administrative and governmental entity that exists around an office of president of a state or nation. Although often the executive branch of government, and often personified b ...

on 11 June of the same year. In 1936, after a free parliament was elected in Damascus, he resigned and went to

. He was replaced by Hashim al-Atasi, the nominee of the National Bloc, though Syria would remain in control militarily until full independence in 1946. Al-Abid died on 22 October 1939, from a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

at a hotel in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

. His body was transferred to Beirut, from which the funerary procession left to Damascus on 16 November.

Bahij al-Khatib Bahij al-Khatib (; 1895–1981) was a French Mandate of Syria, French-appointed Syrian Head of State from July 8, 1939 to April 4, 1941. Early life Al-Khatib was born in 1895 in Shheem, Chouf District, Ottoman Empire (modern-day Lebanon). He was ...

had become president a few months before his death.

Distinctions

* Commander of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

(1932)

Notes

References

External links

*
Muhammad Ali al-Abid
{{DEFAULTSORT:Abid, Muhammad Ali 1867 births 1939 deaths Presidents of Syria 20th-century Syrian politicians Arab people from the Ottoman Empire Politicians from Damascus Ministers of finance of Syria Galatasaray High School alumni Ambassadors of the Ottoman Empire to the United States 20th-century people from the Ottoman Empire 20th-century diplomats Commanders of the Legion of Honour 20th-century presidents in Asia