Sykes-Picot: Lines in the Sand

A hundred years ago, World War I saw Britain, France and Russia locked in combat with Germany, Austro-Hungary and the Ottomans. As the war in Europe fought itself almost to a standstill, Britain cast a strategic eye towards key areas of the Ottoman Empire. Should the allies be victorious, it would be important to claim the most strategically valuable territory - Greater Syria and Mesopotamia - particularly in relation to the French.

The prime minister, Herbert Asquith, turned to a young British politician, Sir Mark Sykes, who'd become chief government adviser on the "Near East". In late 1915 and early 1916, he and the French lawyer-turned-diplomat, Francois Georges-Picot, would negotiate the terms of a secret agreement with potentially far-reaching consequences. But this is also a story of intrigue and double-dealing. At the same time as the British were negotiating with the French, they also made promises to two other separate interest groups - and these three deals all seemed to contradict one another.