The Middle East Centre for Arab Studies (MECAS) was an

Arabic language Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...

college created by the British Army during World War II in Jerusalem, and relocated afterwards as a civilian institution to Lebanon near

Beirut Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...

where it functioned between 1947–1978.

History

The Middle East Centre for Arab Studies was established by the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

. Between 1944-1946 it functioned in the requisitioned Austrian Hospice, where it was headed by the English

Arabist An Arabist is someone, often but not always from outside the Arab world, who specialises in the study of the Arabic language and culture (usually including Arabic literature). Origins Arabists began in medieval Muslim Spain, which lay on the ...

Bertram Thomas Bertram Sidney Thomas (13 June 1892 – 27 December 1950) was an English diplomat and explorer who is the first documented Westerner to cross the Rub' al Khali (Empty Quarter). He was also a scientist who practiced craniofacial anthropome ...

. Its purpose was to teach officers

and culture. After a short post-war intermezzo in the town of

Zarqa Zarqa ( ar, الزرقاء) is the capital of Zarqa Governorate in Jordan. Its name means "the blue (city)". It had a population of 635,160 inhabitants in 2015, and is the most populous city in Jordan after Amman. Geography Zarqa is located in t ...

Transjordan Transjordan may refer to: * Transjordan (region), an area to the east of the Jordan River * Oultrejordain, a Crusader lordship (1118–1187), also called Transjordan * Emirate of Transjordan, British protectorate (1921–1946) * Hashemite Kingdom of ...

, in 1947 it moved to its final location in Shemlan, in the

Mount Lebanon Governorate french: Gouvernorat du Mont-Liban , native_name_lang = , image_map = Administrative divisions of Lebanon 2017-08 (Numbered).png , map_caption = The governorates of Lebanon, including Mount Lebanon (in pink, label ...

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...

. In Lebanon the college was reopened by the

Foreign and Commonwealth Office The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, department of the Government of the United Kingdom. Equivalent to other countries' Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ministries of fore ...

of the

British Government ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd , image = HM Government logo.svg , image_size = 220px , image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg , image_size2 = 180px , caption = Royal Arms , date_es ...

. The college gained notoriety as a "spy school" after it was publicly denounced as such by

Kamal Jumblatt Kamal Fouad Jumblatt ( ar, كمال فؤاد جنبلاط; 6 December 1917 – 16 March 1977) was a Lebanese politician who founded the Progressive Socialist Party. He led the National Movement during the civil war against the Lebanese Front. H ...

speaking in the Lebanese Parliament. Official documents affirm MECAS as a civilian institution, though its value and connections to espionage are well documented. An initial note on its pre-1944 function was that the "Centre would be to train Army Officers for military and political intelligence". However, after the handover to Arabist civilians the director of the institution protested such usage, asking for the cancellation of spying orders from

Middle East Land Forces Middle East Command, later Middle East Land Forces, was a British Army Command established prior to the Second World War in Egypt. Its primary role was to command British land forces and co-ordinate with the relevant naval and air commands to ...

involving six students in 1951. The connections to the British establishment remained strong however, with past alumni including the Head of MI6, several senior staff at the

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) is a department of the Government of the United Kingdom. Equivalent to other countries' ministries of foreign affairs, it was created on 2 September 2020 through the merger of the Foreign ...

, and a director general of the

British Council The British Council is a British organisation specialising in international cultural and educational opportunities. It works in over 100 countries: promoting a wider knowledge of the United Kingdom and the English language (and the Welsh lan ...

. The British/Soviet double agent

George Blake George Blake ( Behar; 11 November 1922 – 26 December 2020) was a spy with Britain's Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) and worked as a double agent for the Soviet Union. He became a communist and decided to work for the MGB while a pris ...

, who was a student at the school, was taken from there to

Heathrow Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others bei ...

, where he was formally arrested on espionage charges. The Civil War made the situation increasingly difficult, and in 1976, MECAS was temporarily evacuated before closing altogether in 1978. The property was sold in 1995 and the buildings repurposed for the Shemlan Social Institution, which accommodates "special needs beneficiaries with mental and learning disabilities".

Cultural references

* The name of the village and the story of the college was used by British author Alexander McNabb for a 2013 book, the third of his Middle East cycle: ''Shemlan - A Deadly Tragedy'', the story of a dying retired British diplomat who was taught at Shemlan, who returns to look for an old love.

References

Aley District Educational institutions established in 1947 Arabic language Language schools Arab studies Secret Intelligence Service 1947 establishments in Lebanon 1978 disestablishments in Asia Educational institutions disestablished in 1978 {{arabic-lang-stub