Transjordan (5 results)

Soft cover. Condition: Very Good. Original staple-bound printed tan card wraps 17x24cm. (1), 10pp. Wraps very good, lightly dusted with short closed tear to the front, interiors near fine, tanned. The Pact was concluded in Arabic in Cairo on 22 March 1945 by the heads of the states of Syria, Transjordan, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Egypt, and Yemen to strengthen close relations, respect each others' independence, and promote the welfare of all Arab states. This English translation contains its text, and names the delegations except Yemen, generally led either by Presidents of their Council of Ministers or Foreign Affairs Ministers, respectively Faris Al Khury, Samir Al Rifa Pasha, Arshad Al Umary, Yusuf Yasin, Abd Al Hamid Karami, and Mahmoud Fahmy. Annexes address the Palestine question and invite a Palestinian delegate to join "until this country enjoys actual independence"; a commitment to cooperate with non-member Arab states; and the appointment of the first Secretary General for a 2 year term named here as Abd Al Rahman Azzam Bey. This edition is apparently very rare, with Worldcat locating only one at Stanford.

No Binding. Condition: Good. Wooden plaque 94x105mm at its widest points, with a hanging loop screwed into the top edge, a hand-painted emblem 60x60mm to the front, and a printed title label on the grey-painted back. No manufacturer is indicated, but this was probably made locally. It features the distinctive formation sign of HQ British Troops in Palestine and Transjordan (Palestine Command): a curved Arab dagger with black hilt and curved blade pointed upwards, on a red ground. Undated, c1922-48, and possibly not later than 1 Nov 1941 when it was redesignated as the Ninth Army. The Palestine Command was headquartered in Jerusalem, with Area HQs for Jerusalem and Lydda. In addition to British forces, it included the Trans-Jordan Frontier Force (TJFF), and Arab Legion. The plaque is in sound condition, slightly split at the back behind the screw. The paint is rubbed with areas of loss. Parts of the paper are lost with gaps in the caption filled by ms. Rare.

3 albums (all oblong 8vo) containing a total of 371 original photographs: 1) 71 photos (most 68 x 110 mm or 137 x 87 mm, with a few other variant sizes) mounted on 12 leaves, one loose photograph inserted. 2) 120 photos (most 60 x 85 mm, 90 x 140 mm or 84 x 135 mm, with a few other variant sizes) mounted on 12 leaves. 3) 181 photos (57 x 85 mm, 82 x 56 mm or 65 x 102 mm, with a few other variant sizes) mounted on 18 leaves. Original cloth-backed papered boards or imitation leather card binding; one album lacking covers. Large collection of early images of British military service in the Middle East, with historically important images of Faisal I of Iraq and his brother, Abdullah I of Jordan. One album, compiled by a member of No. 1 Armoured Car Company, is dated 1922 and is mainly focused on Egypt, while the other two contain a wide range of images from both sides of the Jordan, including a large aerial view of the Rest Camp at Jaffa, Amman (a mix of tourist views of the Roman theatre and remains of Turkish military transport), Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Sarafand Camp and Ramleh Military Cemetery. The twin implements of British imperial military control in the form of armoured cars (Rolls Royce and Lancier) and aircraft (including Vimy and Vernon) are well represented. King Faisal I of Iraq is seen visiting Amman, while another shows his brother Abdullah I of Jordan arm-in-arm with an unidentified British political figure. - Covers with paper tears and some losses particularly to lower cover; extremities rubbed. A fine survival.

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. Written large at the foot of a page on a 4to leaf. In good condition, lightly aged and creased, with a short closed tear to the outer edge just below Glubb's sprawling signature, which consists of an illegible line of curls. Folded once for postage. At the head of the page is Diane Richard's Typed Note Signed, addressed to 'General Glubb' and requesting that he sign 'two pictures from my collection'. Glubb replies: 'Dear Miss RICHARD, / I return your two pictures herewith with much pleasure. / All good wishes, / Your sincerely / [signature]'.

First edition, first impression, of this exhaustive report on the water resources of the Jordan Basin, intended to "determine their adequacy to support the resettlement of population in the context of creating two states", Jewish and Arab (Haddadin, p. 237). Although well represented institutionally, this important publication is scarce in commerce. The Emirate of Transjordan, ruled over by the Hashemite dynasty, was established as a British protectorate in 1921 and endured until 1946. In 1936, the Peel Commission was set up to investigate the causes of unrest in neighbouring Palestine, following a six-month Arab general strike. The commission's report, published the following year, concluded that the mandate was unworkable and recommended partition. Here, Michael George Ionides (1903-1978) concludes that existing water resources cannot support both a Jewish state (growing through immigration) and the Arab state recommended by the Peel Commission. This finding is based on his being the first person to estimate the available water resources and irrigable land of the Jordan Valley. He recommends a development plan "based on water availability from the Jordan River and Lake Tiberias" (ibid., p. 237). "The Ionides plan came to nothing as the British subsequently rejected partition as impractical, but the proposals - storage in Lake Tiberias and large-scale irrigation in the East Ghor - were taken up in subsequent plans and have been partly realized today. The leaders of the Yishuv vigorously opposed the Ionides plan In their view the water resources available within the borders of Mandate Palestine were not enough to sustain the big new population of Jewish immigrants from Europe but also for the agricultural economy of the co-operative settlements, the kibbutzim, that were beginning to dot the land in an N-shaped swathe" (Ward et al., p. 49). Ionides was a civil engineer and highly regarded irrigation expert, whose papers are held at the National Archives. The appended geological report was compiled by the polyglot George Stanfield Blake (1876-1940), who had a deep understanding of the region, having worked there since 1922, and included Palestinian and Levantine Arabic among his languages. Munther J. Haddadin, ed., Water Resources in Jordan: Evolving Policies for Development, the Environment, and Conflict Resolution, 2006; Christopher Ward, Sandra Ruckstuhl, & Isabelle Learmont, The History of Water in the Land Once Called Palestine: Security, Conflict and Loss in Middle East Water Resources, 2022. Quarto. With 9 maps (3 colour, 7 folding), 7 plans (4 folding, 1 colour), and 31 charts and schematics (20 folding, 1 colour). Original blue printed covers, dark purple sand-grain cloth backstrip. Ex-Geological Society of London library, with stamps, record card holder, labels, and paper residue on spine, inner front cover, and title page. Binding sturdy, backstrip creased and worn, covers toned with original colour no longer perceptible, a few folding illustrations creased or proud where sometime carelessly refolded. A very good copy.