"كتيّب سوريا (بما في ذلك فلسطين). لندن: إدارة استخبارات الأركان البحرية، يونيو ١٩١٩" [ظ‎‎٨‎١] (٧٣٨/١٦٧)

156
MILITARY HISTORY
career was open precisely as before. The Pashaliks of
Aleppo, Tripoli, Saida, Damascus, and Palestine could be
won by force as well as by favour, and the pashas raised
their own troops, governed as they pleased, and were free to
wage war with one another. A special feature of the sixteenth
century is the growth of the power of the Druses, whose
principal strongholds were in Lebanon and who exercised
authority over the coast as far as Qaisariyeh. In the early
part of the seventeenth century the chief historical events
are connected with the career of the Druse chief Fakhr ed-Din
(1584-1635). He waged war with the pashas of Tripoli and
Damascus, and, being the most powerful ruler in Syria, con
ducted himself as an independent prince.
The petty wars of the eighteenth century need not be
described in detail, but their value as illustrating the military
resources of Syria, and the conditions under which Syrian
wars have always been carried on, may be emphasized.
The moderate numbers of the fighting men, the lack of
cohesion in the forces employed, the part played by surprise
in seeming victory, the numerous nationalities which divide
the country into factions and their changing combinations—
are all typical of Syrian history generally. Only the weak
fortifications of the towns and the lack of skill in siege warfare
seem to mark a real declension as compared with the days of
the Mamluks and the Tartars. The shifting character of the
population of Syria is also noticeable. The movements of
the Arab tribes continue. The influx of Berbers from North
Africa commences in the beginning of the century. They
became the mercenary infantry of the pashas. About the
middle of the century the Metawileh migrate from Ba‘albek
and anti-Lebanon into the Lebanon hills and strengthen the
resomces of the rulers of ‘Akka, which is now the chief town
on the Syrian coast.
‘Omar ez-Zdhir and Ahmed el-Jezzdr
The careers of two men are specially instructive and of
outstanding interest. ‘Omar ez-Zahir, in European books