| This project analyzes the influences that Islamic sectarianism presented upon British
imperial policy towards Iraqi Shias during the modern-nation state development of Iraq. This
project displays the evolutions of British imperial policy towards Iraqi Shias from the
perspective of Islamic sectarianism from late-Ottoman Iraq during Abdulhamid II’s reign to the
end of the Mandate period in 1932. Even though the British experienced Islamic sectarianism in
other areas, particularly with their governance of the Indian subcontinent, the British never
exclusively handled a Shia-majority area such as Iraq. The processes for policy formulation
regarding the Iraqi Shia population became extremely complex due to several factors. The
expansion of the neo-Usuli framework transformed notions of clerical authority, which remained
extremely important to Shia religious adherence at all levels. Mujtahids acquired a bulk of social
influence and authority due to the vacuum left behind in World War One alongside the
enhancement of neo-Usuli ecclesiastical authority. In addition, the presence of varied ethnic
identities (Turkish, Persian, Arab, Indian, Kurdish, Assyrian, etc.) and subsequent transnational
presences provided a complex, and multi-layered framework for examining Islamic sectarianism
in the arena of British imperialism and Iraqi Shi’ism. Next, the Wahhabi raids from Najd fostered
additional policy considerations due to British relations with the Arab Movement for World War
One; the Wahhabi raids showed heavy sectarian influence from outside Iraq. The British
fashioned policy based on their own formative experiences within the British imperial system,
late-Ottoman governance and changes in the geopolitical system due to the Paris Peace
Conference alongside the rise of American imperial and diplomatic power. Policy derived from
Orientalist sources and institutions required an enhanced look at Saidian, postcolonial and
subaltern literature to understand the theoretical discourse surrounding British imperial policy in
the Middle East and Iraq.
Keywords: Iraq, Shi’ism, British Imperialism, First World War, sectarianism |