Three Kings in Baghdad: The Tragedy of Iraq's Monarchy

by Gerald de Gaury, Alan De Lacy Rush (Introduction), Philip Mansel (Preface by)

This is the tragic story of the short-lived Iraqi monarchy. The first king of Iraq, Faisal I, was installed by the British in 1921. Faisal, who had led the Arab Revolt and fought alongside T.E. Lawrence, was a major player in the politics of the Middle East. He was also, most importantly, pro-British and thus 'suitable' to lead an independent Iraq. His son and successor, Ghazi, a strong pan-Arab nationalist, felt very differently. He supported the first military coup in the Arab world and was said to hold German sympathies. Ghazi's suspicious death in a car accident left his son, also named Faisal, King at the age of four. So Iraq was ruled by his uncle, Abdulillah, as regent until the boy came of age. Iraq's artificially-imposed monarchy came to an abrupt and bloody end in July 1958 when Faisal II and Abdulillah, along with the Prime Minister, Nuri al Said, and many members of Faisal's family, were gunned down and the country was declared a republic. Three Kings in Baghdad is a unique and timely account of this portentous moment in Iraq's history.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Middle East, World History

256 pages, Paperback

First published April 15, 2008

About the author

Gerald Simpson Hillairet Rutland Vere de Gaury MC (1 April 1897 – 12 January 1984) was a British military officer, Arabist, explorer, historian and diplomat.

He served in the Hampshire Regiment in the First World War, where he fought at the Somme, and was wounded on several occasions, including in the Gallipoli Campaign. He was awarded the Military Cross in 1917:

"For conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty. He displayed the greatest gallantry and initiative in organising and leading bombing attacks. Although subjected to heavy machine gun and rifle fire he captured an important enemy post. His fine example and disregard of danger were of great value to his men."

De Gaury served as the British political agent in Kuwait in the 1930s, and organized and took part in the official visit of Sir Andrew Ryan to Riyadh in November 1935, to present Ibn Sa'ud with the Order of the Bath. The previous year, while visiting Ibn Sa'ud in Riyadh, he had become one of the first half dozen Britons to enter that city.

He was a fluent speaker of Arabic and spent much time hunting with Ibn Sa'ud during his wartime assignment to the Nejd and Asir. During that time, he became a foremost authority on the region and wrote a number of books on the subject in later life.

An enthusiastic and skilled photographer, de Gaury is responsible for a large proportion of the photographs of the Arabian Peninsula from this period. He was also an accomplished watercolorist and sketch artist, frequently drawing or painting scenes from memory only hours after they had occurred.

He was a close friend of Freya Stark and Lesley Blanch, who said of him:
"He spoke beautiful Arabic, and could talk Arabic lore. Living among, and as one of, the royal household in Arabia, he knew a great deal and could tell you marvellous legends."

For the last twenty years of his life he lived in Sussex Square, Brighton, where he died on 12 January 1984.

Reviews

[Younes Mowafak · Rating 4 out of 5]

الكتاب يسرد الأحداث التي واجهت الملوك الذي حكموا العراق من ذرية الشريف حسين مابين عامي 1921_1958 ويتناول المنعطفات التي شهدوها من انقلابات وعدم الاستقرار السياسي ومراحل بناء العراق الحديث...الكتاب متناسق على عكس بعض الكتب المترجمة من العربية إلى الإنكليزية وهذا النجاح يعزى إلى المترجم سليم طه التكريتي

[Miss Amelia · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author (who was a personal acquaintance of many of the book's subjects) crafts a fascinating narrative around the lives of the Iraqi branch of the Hashemite family, yet so much of their character still remains a mystery. de Gaury excels at details; he is definitely one who majors in the minors, and even though that's fascinating - particularly when acquainting readers with human subjects that no doubt they're not at all familiar with - it's never entirely satisfying. I found the subtitle to be quite accurate: this is definitely a tragedy...but de Gaury steers away from presenting the narrative of the Hashemites as some national tragedy and instead focuses on the personal tragedy of a doomed kingdom: well-intentioned rulers (well, the two Faisals, that is) who were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. The only nitpick I have is that I wish de Gaury had written more (also, because he was the most closely acquainted with the rather controversial regent, it's the regent who gets the most attention in the narrative, which I definitely noticed). Three Kings in Baghdad was first published a mere few years after the coup that overthrew the monarchy, so I imagine de Gaury's intention was to write more of a tribute than a detached account of the monarchy. Regardless, I highly, highly recommend this book for anyone interested in the history of the modern Middle East region, and/or any royal history enthusiasts.

[Lyazzat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant discovery from local library. The addition was before the modern political fashion took place therefore do not be offended on language.

The author tells events in sequence of Iraq establishment after collapse of Ottoman empire and establishment of Iraqi kingdom till it was proclaimed the Republic in 1958.

[Nion · Rating 4 out of 5]

虽然作为历史纪录有欠客观完整，但是私人回忆极富感染力，各种奇闻轶事目不暇接。