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Outline chronology: October-December 1918
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Youth
|1914 |
1915
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1916 | 1917
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1918 | 1919
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1920 | 1921
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1922 | 1923
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1924 | 1925
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1926 | 1927
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1928 | 1929
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1930 | 1931
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1932 | 1933
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1934 | 1935
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For the earlier months of 1918
see
Lawrence in the First World War, 1918
October 1918
Lawrence leaves Egypt for England on 15 October. He takes the SS
Kaiser-i-Hind from Port Said to Taranto, and
travels from there to Le Havre by train, in three
days. He arrives in England around 24 October,
having been absent since autumn 1914. He goes to his
family home in Oxford.
On 28 October, Lawrence begins meeting various Government
officials in an attempt to overturn the Sykes–Picot
Agreement. He argues that the Arabs had remained
Allies even when an agreement with the Turks had
been possible in 1917. On the same day, George
Macdonogh of the War Office circulates a memorandum
'Note on Policy in the Middle East' which
incorporates many of Lawrence's ideas. On 29 October
Lawrence addresses the Eastern Committee of the War
Cabinet.
On 30 October Lawrence has a private audience with King George
V, during which he refuses all honours for his part
in the Arab Revolt.
November 1918
At a meeting of the Eastern Committee on 21 November it is
decided to invite Emir Feisal to the Paris Peace
Conference. Feisal arrives in France on 26 November,
where he is met by Lawrence. However, the French
refuse to recognise the prince as a diplomat and
send him as a distinguished visitor on a long tour
of the French provinces. Lawrence travels with the
party as far as Lyons, then on 29 November leaves,
reaching England on 2 December.
December 1918
There is a major development in British policy early in the
month. Lloyd George and Clemenceau talk privately on
1 December and reach a 'gentleman's agreement' about
the future of the Middle East, under which England
will take the Mandate for Palestine, and France the
Mandate for inland Syria. On 5 December the Eastern
Committee of the cabinet tells Lawrence that it will
not attempt to overturn the Sykes–Picot Agreement.
He is left with the hope that the U.S.A. will demand
the scrapping of all pre-war secret treaties. On 7
December Lawrence travels to Paris to bring Feisal
to England; they arrive three days later in London.
They have meetings with Balfour, King George V, and
the Zionist leader Chaim Weizmann, before heading
north to visit Edinburgh and Glasgow.
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|
Youth
|1914
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1915 |
1916
| 1917
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1918 |
1919
| 1920
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1921 |
1922
| 1923
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1924 |
1925
| 1926
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1927 |
1928
| 1929
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1930 |
1931
| 1932
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1933 |
1934
| 1935
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