Emir Majid Toufic Arslan ( ar, الأمير مجيد توفيق أرسلان) (February 1908 — September 18, 1983) was a Lebanese

Druze The Druze (; ar, دَرْزِيٌّ, ' or ', , ') are an Arabic-speaking esoteric ethnoreligious group from Western Asia who adhere to the Druze faith, an Abrahamic, monotheistic, syncretic, and ethnic religion based on the teachings of ...

leader and head of the Arslan feudal Druze ruling family. Arslan was the leader of the Yazbaki (Arslan affiliations) faction. Majid Arslan was a national political figure with a role in Lebanon's independence, a long-running Member of the Lebanese Parliament and a government minister for many times with a number of important ministerial portfolios, most notably Defense, Health, Telecommunications, Agriculture and Justice.

Personal life

Arslan was the son of Emir Toufic Arslan who helped found Greater Lebanon in 1920. He had three brothers (Nouhad, Riad, Melhem) and a sister (Zahia). Emir Majid studied at the famous French school, Mission Laïque Française. In 1932, he married his cousin, Emira Lamiss

Shehab The Shihab dynasty (alternatively spelled Chehab; ar, الشهابيون, ALA-LC: ''al-Shihābiyūn'') was an Arab family whose members served as the paramount tax farmers and local chiefs of Mount Lebanon from the early 18th to mid-19th centu ...

. She bore him two sons: Emir Toufic (1935–2003) and Emir Faysal (1941–2009). In 1956, after his first wife’s death, Emir Majid remarried Khawla

Jumblatt The Jumblatt family (, originally , meaning "steel-bodied" or "soul of steel"), also transliterated as Joumblatt and Junblat) is a prominent Druze family based in the Chouf area of Mount Lebanon that has dominated Druze politics since the 18th centu ...

. She bore him three daughters (Zeina, Rima, and Najwa) and a son,

Talal Talal or Telal ( ar, طلال, ) is an Arabic masculine given name and a surname. People with the name include:: Given name * Talal of Jordan (1909–1972), Jordanian king * Talal Aklan, Yemeni politician * Talal Alkernawi (born 1954), Israeli Ara ...

, current Head of the House of Arslan and a

leader. He was known for his exceptional skills in horsemanship and would often exercise his hobby in a southern village

El Mageedieh EL, El or el may refer to: Religion * El (deity), a Semitic word for "God" People * EL (rapper) (born 1983), stage name of Elorm Adablah, a Ghanaian rapper and sound engineer * El DeBarge, music artist * El Franco Lee (1949–2016), American po ...

(3 km²), named after him.

Political career

Throughout his political career, he had an intense rivalry with Kamal Jumblatt over the leadership amongst the Druze. He has been the longest serving Lebanese politician in a ministerial office and was elected as the Defense Minister for twenty two times.

Parliament

Emir Majid Arslan ran for parliamentary elections in 1931 and won the Druze seat of Aley Cazaa district. His allies also won the elections. From 1931 until his death in 1983, he and his allies would win all the parliamentary elections of 1934, 1937, 1943, 1947, 1951, 1953, 1957, 1960, 1964, 1968 and 1972.

Cabinet

Over a period of 35 years, Emir Majid Arslan held various ministerial posts. October 1937: Minister of Agriculture *September 1943: Minister of Health &

Defense Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense industr ...

*July 1944: Minister of Health &

*May 1946: Minister of Health &

*December 1946: Minister of Telecommunications &

*June 1947: Minister of Telecommunications &

*July 1948: Minister of Agriculture &

*October 1949:

Minister of Defense A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...

*February 1954: Minister of Health &

*July 1955:

*March 1956:

*November 1956: Minister of Health & Minister of Agriculture *August 1957: Minister of Telecommunications &

*March 1958: Minister of Agriculture *August 1960:

*October 1961:

*October 1968:

& Justice *January 1969:

*November 1969:

*May 1969:

*July 1973: Minister of State *October 1974: Minister of Health *July 1975: Minister of Health & Agriculture & Housing

Lebanon's 1943 independence

Emir Majid Arslan was the leader of the independence of Lebanon in 1943 when the president Bechara El Khoury with fellow ministers were taken to prison to Rachaya by the French. After World War I, in 1918, the French established control over Lebanon by virtue of a League of Nations Mandate. In 1943, the leaders of the country together with the ministers held a national convention and drew up a National Pact stating that: #Lebanon is an independent country with an Arab aspect, #Lebanon is to be led by neither East nor West, #No to Colonialism, #Religious sects are to be represented in ministries and all governmental posts, #The Lebanese government should bring under its control customs, railways and the Regie tobacco monopoly. #The Lebanese government should supervise and control its borders. On 10 November 1943, the French retaliated by arresting the Lebanese President Bechara El Khoury, Prime Minister Riad Solh and ministers Camille Chamoun, Adel Osseiran and Abdul Hamid Karami. The French used Senegalese mercenaries to transport these political prisoners to Rashaya Fort in the

Beqaa Valley The Beqaa Valley ( ar, links=no, وادي البقاع, ', Lebanese ), also transliterated as Bekaa, Biqâ, and Becaa and known in classical antiquity as Coele-Syria, is a fertile valley in eastern Lebanon. It is Lebanon's most important ...

. Ministers Majid Arslan, Sabri Hamadeh and

Habib Abi Shahla Habib Abu Shahla ( / ''Ḥabīb Abū Shahlā'', also spelled Abou Chahla) or Abi Shahla ( ar, أبي شهلا / ''Abī Shahlā'', also spelled Abi Chahla; 1902 – 22 March 1957) was a Lebanese politician and public figure, several times membe ...

escaped the arrest because they were not in their homes that night. One of Emir Majid's brothers also escaped to Majdel Baana to seek refuge there among members of the Abdel Khalek family as well as the Abi Jumaa's and Nasr's. Sabrihamadeh2

On 11 November 1943, Arslan, Hamadeh and Abi Shahla created the “Government of Free Lebanon” with Habib Abi Shahla as Prime Minister and Majid Arslan as Head of National Guard 57. Their headquarters were in

Bechamoun Bechamoun ( ar, بشامون), is an area near Beirut in the Mount Lebanon Governorate of Lebanon. It has an elevation between 40 and 580 meters above sea level, 8 kilometers from Beirut airport and Beirut downtown. Bechamoun's population exce ...

, a village 30km from Beirut at the residences of Hussein and Youssef El Halabi (see Lebanese Independence Day). Toufic Hamdan (born February 11, 1927– died August 3, 2009) and his brother Adel Hamdan (born 1924– ) spotted the French Columns marching from the mountains of Aitate, a city on the outskirts of Ain Anoub. Toufic and Adel Hamdan ran back and informed the men of Ain Anoub of the incoming military. The men of Ain Anoub took up arms and blocked the road at the historic landmark, Sindyaneh. When the French forces attempted to remove the road blocks, the battle began led by Adeeb Elbiny (?-?), Naef Soujah (1895–1944), along with his son Najib Soujah (1927 – September 24, 1981), and the only martyr of the battle, Saeed Fakhreddine (?-November 11, 1943), and many more men from Ain Anoub. Saeed Fakhreddine climbed on top of the tank and dropped grenades into the tank, sacrificing his life to achieve victory. The fight ensued and liberators prevailed over the French. At that time Majid Arslan declared a Free Lebanon from the home of the Halabi family in Bechamoun where he sought refuge from the arrests. Meanwhile, disturbances and riots raged all over Lebanon. The Deputies held a secret session during which they drew and signed on a new flag that they handed over to the cabinet of Bechamoun. On 21 November 1943, Due to riots, open strikes, the armed rebellion of Ain Anoub and the interference of Arab and Western states (mainly Britain), the political prisoners were released. 3 The freed prisoners passed by

on their way back home, to thank the rebels. There, they sang the Lebanese National Anthem and Majid Arslan knelt in front of the Lebanese flag and kissed it. On 22 November 1943, Lebanon was proclaimed an independent state.

References

*Najib Soujah and Toufic Hamdan, Eye Witness Accounts *Jibran Jreij, Days in Rayshaya *Julia Makarem, http://www.americandruzeheritage.com/ *Pierre Helou, L'Homme du Dialogue Disparait. http://www.rdl.com.lb/ *Aux Origines du "Pacte National", Contribution a l'histoire de la crise Franco-Libanaise de Novembre 1943, by Maxime Rodinson 1988. *http://www.ingentaconnect.com/ *Lebanon – World War II and Independence. ''Source: U.S. Library of Congress'' *Lebanon's Quest: The Road to Statehood, 1926–1939. ''Meir Zamir''. I.B. Tauris * Ministry of National Defense (Lebanon) *http://www.syrianhistory.com/People/key/Emir+Majid+Arslan
Emir Majid Arslan Pictures
at Katagogi.com

at Allposters *http://www.ldparty.org/new/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=40&Itemid=55 *http://www.fanoos.com/society/amir_majid_arslan.html *http://www.fanoos.com/society/talal_arslan.html *