Subhi Bey Barakat al-Khalidi (; ; 1889–1939) was a Turkish-born Syrian politician who served as the first

president of Syria The president of Syria (), officially the president of the Syrian Arab Republic, is the head of state and head of government of Syria. The president directs the executive branch and serves as the commander-in-chief of the Syrian Army and Syrian ...

from 1922 until his resignation in 1925. He served 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 ...

where the French controlled the country. He also served as the fourth

prime minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

during his tenure as president. Part of the reason the French supported his candidacy as president of the Syrian Federation was because as neither a native of

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 ...

nor a very strong

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 ...

speaker ( Turkish was his mother tongue), he did not seem to pose a nationalist threat to French rule. Initially, he was a partner of Ibrahim Hanano in his revolt. He played a major role in merging the States of

Aleppo Aleppo is a city in Syria, which serves as the capital of the Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Governorates of Syria, governorate of Syria. With an estimated population of 2,098,000 residents it is Syria's largest city by urban area, and ...

and

into one state, and he quit the presidency of Syria in 1925 in protest to the French position regarding the fate of the

Alawite Alawites () are an Arabs, Arab ethnoreligious group who live primarily in the Levant region in West Asia and follow Alawism, a sect of Islam that splintered from early Shia as a ''ghulat'' branch during the ninth century. Alawites venerate A ...

and Druze States, which France refused to add to Syria because it feared that might endanger the independence of the newly created

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 ...

Personal life

Barakat was married to Halide; They had three sons (named Rıfat, Halit, and Selahattin) and three daughters (Süheyla Mukbile, Zehra, and Saniye). Süheyla Mukbile married

Refik Koraltan Refik Koraltan (1889 – 17 June 1974) was a Turkish politician, having served as the Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM) from 22 May 1950 to 27 May 1960. Biography Koraltan was born in Divriği, Sivas Province, in 1 ...

's son Oğuzhan Koraltan. Zehra married Turkish diplomat

Vahit Melih Halefoğlu Vahit Melih Halefoğlu (19 November 1919 – 20 January 2017) was a Turkish politician and diplomat. Following his education at the School of Political Science in Ankara University in 1942 he entered the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Between ...

. Saniye married to Turkish businessman Fazıl Tüzemen.

References

Turks from the Ottoman Empire History of Hatay Province Deputies of Hatay Syrian people of Turkish descent Presidents of Syria Prime ministers of Syria 1889 births 1939 deaths 20th-century Syrian politicians 20th-century presidents in Asia Speakers of the People's Assembly of Syria {{Turkey-politician-stub

Personal life

See also

References