The formation of the alawite state through demarcation lines during the French mandate for Syria

Abstract

This thesis aims to present a cross-section on the political-social relations of the mandate period, by considering an administrative border change that takes place between the State of Damascus and Alawite State in Syria, in 1922, during the French mandate period. The purpose of this study is to shed light on how the border change resonates between the negotiating parties in the context of national, class, religious, and sectarian affiliations; on different geographical, economic, and administrative levels; and at colonial, regional and local scales. In accordance with these purposes, some official correspondence between the French and Syrian political and bureaucratic actors and the notable people living in the territory that the border change takes place is examined. By considering these deliberations on border change, two fundamental conclusions were reached regarding the nature of the political arena in Syria at that time. In this study, the idea that the demarcation process is a process that develops entirely between states and state officials is being questioned. The process itself, sometimes by transcending national, class, religious and sectarian differences, brings different actors side by side or against each other, and thus sheds light on the multi-layered relationships between actors that take part in the process.