Iraq and Rupert Hay's Two Years in Kurdistan
By (author) Paul J. Rich
Publication date:
16 May 2008Length of book:
288 pagesPublisher
Lexington BooksISBN-13: 9780739125632
Detailing two years in the life of a British political officer charged with establishing and maintaining British rule in the Kurdish district of Arbil in Iraq, this personal account provides a thorough discussion of Kurdish society from the viewpoint of Captain William Rupert Hay. Chronicling the British government's desperate attempts to establish a civil administration in Iraq just after World War I, Two Years in Kurdistan shows how, as member of the Indian Political Service, Captain Hay attempted to bring British rule to his corner of Iraq.
Paul Rich has done all of us a favor by bringing this excellent book back into circulation. Hay, a man of considerable erudition, writes with style, wit, charm and great insight. Given the current situation in the Middle East, the words almost jump off the page. In the early years of the 20th century, Hay offered insights and lessons that the world—and especially the Bush administration—had forgotten or ignored by the start of the 21st century. Perhaps Hay's profound insights will help us craft wiser and more successful policies in the near future.