King of Syria

King Faisal I of Syria in July 1920

Military band parade in Aleppo on March 8, 1920, following the coronation of King Faisal I as King of Syria.

The King of Syria was the title used by ancient writers to refer to the Seleucid ruler; it was also briefly used following the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire in the aftermath of World War I. Faysal ibn Husayn of the House of Hashim was proclaimed King of Greater Syria on 8 March 1920 in Damascus, following the Arab revolt against the Ottomans of 1916–1918.

His accession was not recognized by France or the United Kingdom, the two new imperial powers in the region, and on 23 July 1920 the French moved 9,000 troops towards Damascus, resulting in the Battle of Maysalun. Faisal was expelled from Syria on 25 July and took exile in the United Kingdom. On 10 August, the Treaty of Sèvres divided the region into League of Nations mandates governed by France and the United Kingdom.

See also

• Seleucid Empire
• Anglo-French Declaration
• Arab Revolt
• British Mandate of Palestine
• Damascus Protocol
• Declaration to the Seven
• Emirate of Transjordan
• Faisal I of Iraq
• French Mandate of Lebanon
• French Mandate of Syria
• Greater Syria
• McMahon-Hussein Correspondence
• Sykes–Picot Agreement
• Syrian nationalism
• Syrian Social Nationalist Party