Sarah D. Shields. Fezzes in the River

Diplomatic history, once considered the pinnacle of historical studies, has long been brushed aside and characterized as an insignificant field that deals only with elites. Indeed, detailed diplomatic reports and correspondence rarely provide insight into the lives of average individuals. But while A. J. P. Taylor-style diplomatic history has very little chance of revival, new approaches advocating a marriage between the Primat der Innenpolitik school and the use of diplomatic history as a tool to understand social developments have gained considerable popularity since the fall of communist regimes in Eastern Europe. Obviously, the modern Middle East, the boundaries of which were drawn by the Western victors of the Great War, is fertile ground for exploring the impact of diplomacy on the lives of ordinary individuals. Sarah D. Shields's book is a solid example of the use of diplomatic history to understand identity formation and migration. This study meticulously examines the incorporation of the Sancak/Sanjak (sub-province) of İskenderun/Alexandretta into the new Turkish nation-state, and in the process moves beyond a narrow diplomatic history to tell us much about the drawing of a new boundary between Turkey and Syria.

Ancient history · Diplomacy · Diplomatic history · Economic history · International relations · Middle East · Political science · Politics · African Studies and Geopolitics · Historical Studies and Socio-cultural Analysis · History · Law · Multiculturalism, Politics, Migration, Gender