1915 uprising in Karbala
{{Short description|Arab uprising against the Ottoman Empire}}
{{Infobox military conflict
| conflict =
| width =
| partof = the Mesopotamian Campaign
| image = Karbala City 1918.jpg
| image_size =
| alt =
| caption = Aerial view of Karbala, 1918
| date = 27 June 1915
| place = Karbala
| coordinates = {{Coord|32.616667|44.033333|display=title}}
| map_type = Iraq
| map_relief = Yes
| map_size =
| map_marksize =
| map_caption =
| map_label =
| territory = Ottomans ousted from Karbala
| result =Rebel victory
| status =
| combatants_header =
| combatant1 = Rebels
- Bani Hasan tribe
- Ottoman deserters
| combatant2 = {{flag|Ottoman Empire}}
| combatant3 =
| commander1 = No centralized leadership
| commander2 = {{flagicon|Ottoman Empire}} Unknown
| commander3 =
| units1 =
| units2 =
| units3 =
| strength1 =
| strength2 =
| strength3 =
| casualties1 =
| casualties2 =
| casualties3 =
| notes =
| campaignbox = {{Campaignbox Mesopotamian}}
}}
The 1915 uprising in Karbala was an Arab uprising against the Ottoman Empire that took place in June 1915.
Background
Earlier, the Ottoman defeat in the Battle of Shaiba had damaged the authority of the Ottomans in the eyes of the Arabs,Charles Townsend, Desert Hell, The British Invasion of Mesopotamia (Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 2010), 90-91. and this was exacerbated by the successful ousting of the Ottomans in an uprising in Najaf, which showed the residents of Karbala the potency of a revolt, which they were willing to participate in since the Ottomans had been plundering food, money, and possessions from Karbalans to support the war effort.{{Cite web|url=http://ww1blog.osborneink.com/?p=7281|title=27 June 1915 - Karbala|date=2015-06-27|website=The Great War Blog|language=en-US|access-date=2019-11-19|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150922223820/http://ww1blog.osborneink.com/?p=7281|archive-date=22 September 2015|url-status=live}} Emissaries from Najaf had also begun encouraging an uprising in Karbala.{{Cite book|last1=Kramer|first1=Martin|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yK2bDwAAQBAJ|title=Shi'ism, Resistance, And Revolution|last2=Bakhash|first2=Shaul|last3=Bailey|first3=Clinton|last4=Fischer|first4=Michael M. J.|date=2019-05-28|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-000-31143-3|language=en|chapter=Chapter 7 - The Iraqi Shi'is and their fate|quote=emissaries from Najaf encouraged similar rebellions in Karbala and nearby Hilla, also predominantly Shi'i.}} The successful ousting of the Ottomans in Najaf had also turned a potential revolt into a matter of civic pride: popular rhetoric included questions such as "Are the people of Najaf better than us, or braver, or more manly?".{{Cite book|last=Rogan|first=Eugene|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tP-4BAAAQBAJ&dq=1915%20Karbala&pg=PT257|title=The Fall of the Ottomans: The Great War in the Middle East, 1914-1920|date=2015-02-26|publisher=Penguin UK|isbn=978-0-14-196870-4|language=en}}
Uprising
The uprising began on 27 June 1915,{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tP-4BAAAQBAJ|title=The Fall of the Ottomans: The Great War in the Middle East, 1914-1920|last=Rogan|first=Eugene|date=2015-02-26|publisher=Penguin Books Limited|isbn=978-0-14-196870-4|language=en|chapter=Chapter 9 - The Invasion of Mesopotamia}} when the Bani Hasan tribe attacked government buildings in Karbala.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zZgAAwAAQBAJ|title=The Arab Movements in World War I|last=Tauber|first=Eliezer|date=2014-03-05|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9781135199784|pages=30|language=en}} Ottoman deserters were also amongst the rebels. The rebel tribesmen, lacking any centralized leadership, burned municipal buildings, government schools, a hospital, and 200 dwellings in the suburbs, most of them belonging to Persians living and trading in the Arab community. Charles R. H. Tripp notes that although the uprising was anti-Ottoman in a broad sense, it was not in support of the British war effort and instead intended to grant the city higher administrative autonomy.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WR-Cnw1UCJEC|title=A History of Iraq|last1=Tripp|first1=Charles|last2=Tripp|first2=Professor of Middle East Politics Charles|date=2002-05-27|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=9780521529006|pages=33|language=en}} The uprising ended with an Ottoman withdrawal, securing a rebel victory and Karbala's independence from the Ottoman Empire.
Aftermath
After becoming independent from the Ottoman Empire, Karbala turned into a place of refuge for Ottoman deserters. However, Karbala suffered from a lack of centralized leadership, and was unable to establish contact with the British forces to the south due to tribes still loyal to the Ottoman Empire separating them. The Ottoman Empire re-established control of Karbala in 1916 following their victory in the Siege of Kut.