A History of Stability and Change in Lebanon: Foreign Interventions and International Relations

Description

Lebanon is a country whose domestic politics have, even more than others in the region, been at the mercy of changes on the international stage. Having been under Ottoman and French rule in the nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries, the post-World War II era has seen Lebanon subjected to Israeli, Syrian and American interventions which have all threatened the county's stability as a state. Joseph Bayeh argues that it is this international dimension which holds the key to an in-depth understanding of the country. In support of this argument, Bayeh examines Lebanese history from its early days under the Ottomans to the present day in order to show how international shifts and conflicts have had their impact on Lebanon. With changes such as the fall of the Ottoman empire, the rise of US power after World War II, the end of the Cold War and the new focus on the region in the aftermath of 9/11, Lebanon has at various junctures been bolstered or undermined. Bayeh tracks all of this, offering insights into the workings of Lebanon's domestic politics which will appeal to researchers of the international relations of the Middle East and Lebanon's political history. Cover Author Biography Title Copyright Contents Introduction 1. The European System and Pre-State Lebanon The European Connection and Change to Christian Emirate The Concert of Europe and Change to Kaymakamate Franco-British Polarisation and the Change to Mutesarrifate 2. The Fall of the Ottoman Empire and the First Republic World War I and Greater Lebanon World War II and Independence 3. Bipolarity and Status-Quo Lebanon Containment and the 1958 Crisis Détente and the 1975 War 4. Unipolarity and the ‘Second Republic’ The ‘New World Order’ and the Syrian Mandate 11 September and the Restoration of Political Autonomy Conclusion Notes Bibliography Index