Description for Shemlan
Paperback. Series: St Antony's. Num Pages: 217 pages, biography. BIC Classification: HBAH; HBJF; JPSN. Category: (G) General (US: Trade). Dimension: 210 x 140 x 12. Weight in Grams: 279.
Shemlan, a small, once unknown village in the hills overlooking Beirut, became notorious throughout the Middle East when Bertram Thomas chose it as the location for the Middle East Centre for Arab Studies (MECAS) in 1947. The knowledge that a western government was taking pains to teach its citizens Arabic and inform them of Arab history, society and religion made the Arabs suspicious. The success of MECAS in producing specialists who were the envy of other governments produced doubt and anxiety. The power of MECAS to attract British but also foreign diplomats and businessmen should have made ... Read more
Shemlan, a small, once unknown village in the hills overlooking Beirut, became notorious throughout the Middle East when Bertram Thomas chose it as the location for the Middle East Centre for Arab Studies (MECAS) in 1947. The knowledge that a western government was taking pains to teach its citizens Arabic and inform them of Arab history, society and religion made the Arabs suspicious. The success of MECAS in producing specialists who were the envy of other governments produced doubt and anxiety. The power of MECAS to attract British but also foreign diplomats and businessmen should have made ... Read more
Product Details
Format
Paperback
Publication date
1998
Publisher
Palgrave Macmillan United Kingdom
Number of pages
217
Condition
New
Series
St Antony's
Number of Pages
203
Place of Publication
Basingstoke, United Kingdom
ISBN
9781349144150
SKU
V9781349144150
Shipping Time
Usually ships in 15 to 20 working days
Ref
99-15
About James Craig
SIR JAMES CRAIG graduated in Oriental languages at Oxford and was then Lecturer in Arabic at Durham University for seven years. After three years as Principal Instructor at MECAS he joined HM Diplomatic Service and served in various Middle Eastern posts, ending as Ambassador to Syria, 1976-79, and to Saudi Arabia, 1979-84. After retirement he was Visiting Professor in Arabic ... Read more
Reviews for Shemlan
'In his lively, comprehensive and often humorous account, Sir James Craig describes how a good idea was turned into a unique and highly successful enterprise, despite doubts at home and political tensions and conflicts in the region.' - Sir Donald Maitland 'From personal knowledge, the memories of students, and from official documents, [Sir James Craig] has put ... Read more