Institutional Forms of British Colonial Policy towards Christian Communities in the Holy Land in the Mandate Period, 1920s — 1930s

In this article, the author seeks to delineate the fundamental tenets of British policy towards the Christian communities of Palestine and to elucidate the mandate administration's role in facilitating their autonomous development. He provides a concise yet insightful overview of this policy, demonstrating the British aspiration to maintain a semblance of continuity with the socio-religious policies of the Ottoman authorities on the one hand, and to transform them by extending the autonomous rights of the millets on the other. The author provides a concise analysis of the circumstances surrounding four religious establishments within the specified jurisdiction, namely, the Anglican Diocese of Jerusalem, the Latin and Greek Orthodox Patriarchates of Jerusalem, and the Orthodox communities of the Russian tradition. He emphasises that the British administration had reservations about the majority of Christian communities in the area, perceiving them as conduits for external political influences in the Holy Land. The Greek and Russian Orthodox communities were subjected to financial control by the Mandate administration for reasons pertaining to both economics and politics. The Mandate authorities sought to prevent foreign governments, namely those of Greece and the atheist Bolshevik regime, from interfering in the internal affairs of these communities. The Appendix contains the first Russian translation of the 1921 Orthodox Patriarchate Ordinance.

Keywords

Holy Land, Land of Israel, Palestine, British Mandate, millet, Christianity, religious courts, Anglicanism, Church of England, Orthodoxy, Catholicism

Acknowledgment

The research was carried out in accordance with the state assignment of the Institute of World History of the Russian Academy of Sciences within the framework of the Program of Fundamental Scientific Research in the thematic research field “Russia and the Middle East: Historical, Political and Cultural Contacts and Interrelations” of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation and IPPO in 2024.

Received

11.04.2024

Publication date

30.09.2024

Number of characters

55696

Cite

GOST	Fadeyev I. Institutional Forms of British Colonial Policy towards Christian Communities in the Holy Land in the Mandate Period, 1920s — 1930s // ISTORIYA – 2024. – V. 15. – Issue 9 (143) [Electronic resource]. URL: https://history.jes.su/S207987840032485-2-1 (circulation date: 02.10.2024). DOI: 10.18254/S207987840032485-2
MLA	Fadeyev, Ivan "Institutional Forms of British Colonial Policy towards Christian Communities in the Holy Land in the Mandate Period, 1920s — 1930s." ISTORIYA 15.9 (143) (2024) DOI: 10.18254/S207987840032485-2
APA	Fadeyev I. (2024). Institutional Forms of British Colonial Policy towards Christian Communities in the Holy Land in the Mandate Period, 1920s — 1930s. ISTORIYA 15(9 (143)) DOI: 10.18254/S207987840032485-2

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