The Damascus Events

Starred review from March 18, 2024
A bloodthirsty mob sweeps through the Christian quarters of 19th-century Damascus, leaving thousands dead, in this propulsive account from historian Rogan (The Fall of the Ottomans). Drawing from firsthand reports of the July 1860 massacre as it was chronicled by U.S. vice-consul Mikhayil Mishaqa, Rogan frames it as the moment when the Ottoman empire’s multicultural coexistence began to break down. He traces developments that led to the violence, including local Muslims’ resistance to Ottoman reforms and their concerns about European influence; regional conflict between Druzes, Muslims, and Christians; and the erratic behavior of Damascus’s governor, Ahmad Pasha. In the blistering July heat, the arrest and punishment of several Muslim youths (they were ordered to sweep the Christian quarters, a particular insult) sparked a mania that engulfed the city for more than a week. Mishaqa himself was brutally beaten amid the frenzy of “plunder, kill, and burn.” Christian survivors were hidden by friendly Muslims until Ottoman reformer and statesman Faud Pasha arrived and restored order, punishing the guilty and rebuilding the devastated city while balancing Muslim and Christian interests and resisting European interference. The city’s resulting peace held for 150 years, even as, according to Rogan, the same pattern of sectarian violence emerged throughout the Middle East. A harrowing piece of storytelling with enormous insight, this is a must-read for Middle East history buffs.