General Sir John Glubb, the last British pro-Consul in the region, could be seen as midwife to the birth of the modern Middle East - a birth as painful and tortuous as its subsequent history. Glubb Pasha was the British commander of the Arab Legion during those crucial years between 1936 and 1956 which were to witness the collapse of Palestine and the final foundation and establishment of the State of Israel. As well as analysing Glubb's personal vision of the Middle East and its peoples - a surprisingly racial vision that would condition his politics - this book examines his reactions to the Arab Revolt in Palestine and the periodic plans to partition Palestine into an Arab and a Jewish state. It offers the first in-depth account of his thinking and actions during 1948, as he led his small army into Palestine and war against Israel. His aims and actions - which lie at the very heart of the controversy between 'Old' and 'New' historians of the Arab-Israeli conflict - are carefully detailed using, for the first time, contemporary British, Arab and Israeli intelligence sources. This masterful account of Glubb the soldier, strategist and pro-Arab mouth-piece, based on hitherto unseen classified documents, will become a vital addition to the literature on this defining period in Middle Eastern history. It is required reading for students, academics and anyone interested in the impasse which has dominated Middle Eastern affairs for over half a century.'an intriguing and valuable contribution to the history of the 1948 conflict' - Times Literary Supplement"This masterful account...will become a vital addition to the literature on this defining period in the Middle Eastern history" Fred Rhodes, Middle East Journal

Abbreviations vi Introduction 1 1 Glubb on Arabs and Jews 9 2 The Arab Revolt 1936-39 33 3 World War II and its Aftermath 56 4 The Road to Jerusalem 91 5 The Invasion 145 6 Border Wars, 1949 - 1956 209 Conclusion (After 1956) 233 Bibliography 243 Notes 247 Index 289