Origins of the Arab revolt against the Ottoman Empire during WWI. Snouck Hurgronje's account of the origins of the Arab revolt against the Ottoman Empire during World War I. The booklet is a collection of newspaper articles that appeared in the newspaper Nieuwe Rotterdamsche Courant in 1916, after Snouck Hurgronje had spent a year conducting research in Mecca and Jiddah. The first two chapters are a history of the sherifate (governorate) of Mecca and the administration of the Hijaz (southwest Arabia), based on a local dynasty of rulers claiming descent from the Prophet Muhammad, but who had acknowledged Ottoman supremacy since the 16th century. In the third and final chapter, Hurgronje assesses the possibility of the sherifate leading a tribal revolt against the Ottoman Empire, which he held to be extremely unlikely. The appendix is a translation of a 1915 proclamation by Ḥusayn ibn ʻAlī (circa 1853–1931), ruler of Hijaz, explaining his reasons for rebelling against the Ottomans (World Digital Library).

First edition; 8vo, viii, 50 pp., ads at end; original green cloth gilt, light wear, a very good copy.