Lawrence of Arabia

General Biography
(a)
Thomas Edward Lawrence was a british Army soldier and especially known for
his assistance in the Arab Revolt.
(b)
T.E Lawrence was born at Gorphwysfa, Whales on 16 August, 1888. He was the
second oldest in his family of five boys.
(c)
As a kid his father (Thomas Chapman) and mother (Sarah Junner) never actually
got married but instead took on the name of Lawrence.
(d)
As a kid Lawrence attended the city of Oxford University high school for boys
with his brothers.
(e)
In 1907 after running away to serve as a boy soldier, in 1905 he went to school at
Oxford University. During his summers he toured France by bike and explore Europe.
(f)
At the outbreak of WWI, the Ottoman Empire wanted to control Turkey and
Arabia. England still wanted authority over Arabia so they sent people from the Army to
map and claim land. Lawrence volunteered to help England as a spy and mapper.
(g)
While Lawrence as in Arabia, he helped the people with the revolt against the
Ottoman Empire which caused a big controversy because nobody knew what side he
was on. Basically he was a spy for England but also helped Arabs revolt. He was of very
high value in the Arab revolt.
(h)
After the Arab revolt he remained a help to England because he worked at the
foreign Office in 1921.
(j)
In 1922 Lawrence joined the royal Air Force as a aircraftman under the name of
JHON ROSS. He was soon discovered and was forced out in 1923. Then he changed
his name to T.E Shaw and joined the Royal Tank Force. He was unhappy with it and
quit, then in 1925 he was re-admitted to RAF.
(k)
He continued serving in the RAF until his duty was fulfilled in 1935 when he
retired and bought a house and land. His main hobby was motorcycles and owned a lot
of them which now are showcased in museums.

(l)
At the age of 46 Years and 02 months after leaving he was injured in a fatal
motorcycle accident. He was trying to avoid two kids in the street and lost control of the
motorcycle.
(m)
His funeral was very private and was declared dead by one doctor only. It is
possible that he never died and instead went to go spy on Germany because England
was suspecting a war between them, and Lawrence knew German and was already
trained in spying and blending in. The fact that he was only confirmed dead by one
doctor leads to a high suspicion of his actual death occurring.
General verview
1.

Before the start of First World War, there were already foundations of Arab

nationalism being set. One that caused a relatively bigger impact is the Balkan Wars.
Though offshoot, these wars had caused a line of thought akin to that of the Western
Europeans and resulted to devaluation of the varying cultures present in the Ottoman
Empire. One of those devalued cultures is that of the Arabs, which comprised about a
third of the empire. The subjection of the Arabs had gotten more dominating especially
when compared to when the Ottoman Empire had rooted practices of respect for the
different races and religions. It was dangerous that such a huge population of the
empire had succeeding rebellions and was overall dissatisfied. However, the Arabs,
being composed of many tribes, lacked unity, and would seem to rather fight each other
than the Turks.
Myths
2.

Thomas Edward Lawrence, for his knowledge of the Levant and Mesopotamia

through his studying in Oxford University, was one of those stationed in the Intelligence
Staff. He wasnt made popular for this. He was more known to have helped in advising
Prince Faisal in his revolt against the Turks. T. E. Lawrences knowledge of the Middle
East is certainly something to herald but after some researching I found out that he was
never the one to conceive of this plan for the Arabs to fight against the Ottoman Empire.
It was the Arab Bureau that had thought of it and it would really help for the independent
tribes and groups within the Arab community that they be led by outside powers.

However the goal was not as noble as being projected. Their goal was for the Ottoman
Empires complete fall and not really the independence of the Arab people.
3.

Now T. E. Lawrence was just one of the many soldiers from Britain and France

that served in Arabia. It is also acknowledged that the effort from the Allies was only
through him. In fact, T. E. Lawrences well-known successes would not have happened
if it werent for the many other efforts from the Intelligence Staff of the Allies.
4.

Under the command of Prince Faisal, Lawrence contributed in the war as an

advisor. He was the one who thought of not planning a siege of the Ottoman stronghold
in Medina but focus instead on the weak but crucial for the Ottoman troops the Hejaz
Railway. This had caused the Ottomans to spread out their troops rather thinly and
stationed soldiers for the protection and repair of the railway. It was never effective,
being unfamiliar to the deserts and having a battlefield that had grown exponentially
with too little number of soldiers to cover it. Lawrences plan was very effective.
Experiencing victory after victory, one would think that the soldiers under their command
would multiply. The numbers did grow but it was accompanied by some leaving the
army under Lawrence and Faisal as well. Some soldiers came and left after arriving at
towns. The number had only sky-rocketed during the attack at Syria since many Arabs
fought for their homeland there. The thought of the soldiers growing exponentially since
their cause is highly respectable and they prove to be very effective is inviting. However
it simply was not the case. Probably only a few hundred were thought of as to have
remained loyal throughout Lawrences stay in Arabia
Victories
5.

He led this surprise and rather reckless attack to Aqaba. Aqaba was a strategic

port but it was only prepared for naval assaults. Its defense for land attacks was low and
the surprise that Lawrence led to the Turks there inevitably led to their victorious siege
of it. It proved to be most helpful as the British could off-load supplies from there.
Lawrence did not just win the port here, but also Prince Faisals respect and General
Allenbys confidence.

6.

Lawrence was also involved in the fall of Damascus near the end of the war.

Though he was not present at the formal surrender of the city, he had contributed
greatly for making a somewhat Arab government there that was led by Faisal himself.
He had envisioned Damascus as the capital of the Arab state. And it would seem that
his vision would become reality. However, this Arab government in Damascus did not
last long. French forces occupied it under General Gouraud. I is pertenant to mention
that how much the Australian Light Horse and the Indian troops had also helped in the
capture of Damascus. They were the ones who had first arrived there and they had also
successfully defeated the remaining Turkish troops present and the very representatives
of the Arabs have also been left out. The Arabs too had their own leaders that had
shaped the course of the fall of Damascus. Lawrence certainly contributed but the
movie very much failed to give credit to the Australian, Indian and Arab effort there.
After the war
7.

T. E. Lawrence had sought greatly for the independence of Arabia. The Sykes-

Picot Agreement between France and Britain disproved of Arab independence. It was
during these times that he had worked with Lowell Thomas and Harry Chase. They
were war correspondents and he had cooperated with them in the hopes that his ideas
of having a free Arab state would be heard through their work. It was during these times
that he had worn Arab dress (dishdasha) again.
I deem him one of the greatest beings alive in our time we shall never see his like
again. His name will live in history. It will live in the annals of war. It will live in the annals
of Arabia. Winston Churchill
8.

This reaction to T. E. Lawrences accomplishments may sound skeptical and

disbelieving of his achievements and efforts. But I cannot say that I dont recognize him
as one who had gravely influenced a war that had definitely redrawn maps. He had his
pros and cons. His popularity might have caused a little more fiction in his otherwise
very factual accomplishments. But he is indeed a hero and whether completely noble

were his actions or not, hell surely be a name that will not ever be left out in the history
of World War I.