War by Revolution. Germany and Great Britain in the Middle East in the Era of World War I

THETHICKENINGPLOTANDHOLYWAR 81

mostofitsmembershadlittleornoknowledgeofOrientallanguages
andcultures.Consequently,Zimmermann,LangwerthvonSimmern,
Niedermayer,andZugmayerrecruitedmainlyOrientalexpertsfor
workinwesternPersiaandMesopotamia.Theyincludedateamof
Germanarchaeologistswhohadreturnedatthebreakoutofwarfrom
diggingamongancientruinsinMesopotamiaandhadcultivatedclose
relationswithlocalArabtribes(includingtheAnazaandShammar):
ConradPreusser,HansLuhrs,PaulMaresch,andWalterBachmann."
WassmussandhisgroupwaitedinAleppothroughoutOctober
andNovember,whereZugmayerandSchuenemannsoonjoinedthem;
NiedermayerandotherexpeditionmembersremainedinConstan-
tinople,awaitingsupplies,untilyDecember.Duringthattimequar-
rels overleadershipfurtherplaguedtheexpedition;inAleppo,com-
missionmemberscomplainedaboutWassmuss'sauthorityoverthem.
Thegrumblersweredismissedandreplacedbypersonsmoreexperi-
encedinOrientalaffairs,suchasthedragomanEduardSeiler,
GuntherVoigt,andWilhelmWagner. 53
Indecision,moreover,developedatthehighestlevel intheGer-
mangovernment-overwhetherthekaisershouldsendalongwith
thegroupspecialgifts,decorations,andahandwrittenlettertothe
amirofAfghanistan.Zimmermanndraftedaletterthatemphasized
Wilhelm'sdesire"tohelptheMohammedanpeoplesintheirstruggle
forindependence"fromBritishandRussianrule.ButMuslimau-
tonomymatteredlittletotheGermans;theGeneralStaffrejected
sendingeithertheletterordecorations,fearingtheymightfallinto
enemyhands.>
StillanotherreasonforthedelayoftheGermanmissioninvolved
theattemptbytheTurks,whoheldtheultimateauthorityoverthe
expedition,to keepitfromenteringPersia. RaufBey,theTurkish
officialgivenultimatecontrolbythePorteover theGermanand
Turkishexpedition,refusedtocontactWassmussandtheotherGer-
manswaitinginAleppoandConsrantinople."
In fact, asNiedermayerinformedWesendonkon 18 Octoberfrom
Constantinople,theTurkshadsufficientcausefordelayingentering
eithertheworldwarorPersia. NotonlydidtheBritishpossessa
significantnumberofshipsandtroopsinthePersianGulf,butthey
alsohadpaidsubsidiesfor years tothetribesofsouthernPersiato