The Kingdom of Kurdistan (1921–1924): Sheikh Mahmud's State
- Jamal Latif
- May 26
- 7 min read
What Was the Kingdom of Kurdistan?
The Kingdom of Kurdistan was a short-lived, unrecognised Kurdish state proclaimed in Sulaymaniyah, in British-occupied Mesopotamia, in the early 1920s. Led by Sheikh Mahmud Barzanji — who declared himself King of Kurdistan — it was the first attempt to build a modern Kurdish state out of the wreckage of the Ottoman Empire after the First World War. Defying the British Empire, it survived only a few turbulent years before being crushed by 1924, but it left a lasting mark on the Kurdish national imagination.
Key Takeaways
• The Kingdom of Kurdistan was a short-lived Kurdish state centred on Sulaymaniyah, in what became British-mandate Iraq.
• It was led by Sheikh Mahmud Barzanji, who proclaimed himself King of Kurdistan.
• Britain had appointed him governor of Sulaymaniyah in 1918; he then revolted in pursuit of Kurdish independence.
• The British suppressed the kingdom largely through RAF aerial bombardment — an early use of air power against a colonial revolt.
• It was the first attempt at a modern Kurdish state, a forerunner of the Republic of Ararat (1927) and the Republic of Mahabad (1946).
Quick Facts
Name: The Kingdom of Kurdistan
Type: Short-lived, unrecognised Kurdish state
Capital: Sulaymaniyah (Silêmanî), in British-occupied Mesopotamia / mandate Iraq
Leader: Sheikh Mahmud Barzanji ('King of Kurdistan')
Period: Early 1920s (commonly dated 1921/1922–1924)
Adversary: The British Empire (and the new state of Iraq)
Suppressed By: British forces, including RAF aerial bombardment
Context: Aftermath of WWI; Treaties of Sèvres (1920) and Lausanne (1923)
Significance: The first attempt at a modern Kurdish state
Table of Contents
Aftermath of Empire: Kurdistan after the First World War
The Kingdom of Kurdistan was born out of the wreckage of the First World War. The defeat and collapse of the Ottoman Empire in 1918 left the Kurdish lands divided and uncertain, and the victorious Allied powers — above all Britain — moved to occupy and reshape the former Ottoman provinces of Mesopotamia, including the largely Kurdish region around Sulaymaniyah.
For a brief moment, Kurdish national aspirations seemed within reach. The 1920 Treaty of Sèvres even held out the promise of possible Kurdish autonomy and eventual independence. It was in this charged atmosphere — of imperial collapse, foreign occupation and rising national hope — that a Kurdish bid for statehood took shape in Sulaymaniyah.
Sheikh Mahmud Barzanji
The central figure was Sheikh Mahmud Barzanji (Mahmud Hafid), a powerful religious and tribal leader of the Sulaymaniyah region. Recognising his influence, the British occupying authorities appointed him as their governor of the Sulaymaniyah district in 1918, hoping to rule the Kurdish south of Mesopotamia through him.
But Sheikh Mahmud had ambitions of his own. Far from being a compliant client, he saw himself as the leader of a Kurdish nation, and he soon turned against the British in pursuit of an independent Kurdish state — beginning a struggle that would make him a legend.
The First Rising (1919)
In 1919 Sheikh Mahmud launched his first revolt against British authority, raising the banner of Kurdish self-rule. The rising was suppressed by British forces; Sheikh Mahmud was wounded, captured, and sent into exile in India.
But the underlying problem for the British remained: governing the restive Kurdish region without him proved difficult, and within a few years they brought him back to Sulaymaniyah, hoping he would stabilise the area on their behalf. Instead, he seized the opportunity to proclaim a kingdom.
The Kingdom of Kurdistan (1922–1924)
On his return, Sheikh Mahmud broke with the British once more and, in the early 1920s, proclaimed himself ruler — indeed King — of Kurdistan, with Sulaymaniyah as his capital. The Kingdom of Kurdistan, though never internationally recognised, functioned for a time as a genuine Kurdish government over the region.
Sheikh Mahmud's administration took on the trappings of a state: he formed a cabinet of ministers, issued his own stamps and currency, and published a newspaper to promote the Kurdish national cause. For a brief period, Sulaymaniyah was the seat of an openly Kurdish nationalist government defying one of the world's great empires.
The British Response and the RAF
The British were determined not to allow an independent Kurdish state to take root in the heart of their new Mandate of Mesopotamia. Lacking the troops for a sustained ground campaign, they turned to air power: the Royal Air Force repeatedly bombed Sulaymaniyah and Sheikh Mahmud's forces.
The bombardment of the Kurdish kingdom became one of the early and notorious examples of the use of aerial bombing to suppress a colonial rebellion. Under relentless military pressure, Sheikh Mahmud's hold on Sulaymaniyah was repeatedly broken, though he proved remarkably difficult to defeat for good.
Sèvres, Lausanne, and the Lost Promise
The fate of the Kingdom of Kurdistan was sealed not only on the battlefield but at the negotiating table. The promise of Kurdish statehood held out by the 1920 Treaty of Sèvres was abandoned in the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne, which recognised the new Republic of Turkey and made no provision for an independent Kurdistan.
With the international door to Kurdish statehood firmly closed, and the Kurdish lands divided between Turkey, the British Mandate (soon the Kingdom of Iraq), Persia and the French Mandate in Syria, Sheikh Mahmud's kingdom had no outside support and no diplomatic future. It stood alone.
The Fall and Aftermath
By 1924 the Kingdom of Kurdistan had been crushed, and Sulaymaniyah was brought firmly under the control of the British-backed Iraqi state. Sheikh Mahmud, however, refused to surrender his cause: he continued to mount revolts from the mountains through the 1920s and into the early 1930s before finally being subdued.
He lived on until 1956, remembered ever after as the 'King of Kurdistan'. Though his kingdom had lasted only a few years and won no recognition, it left an enduring mark on the Kurdish national imagination.
Timeline
1918 — The Ottoman Empire collapses; Britain occupies Mesopotamia and appoints Sheikh Mahmud Barzanji governor of Sulaymaniyah. 1919 — Sheikh Mahmud's first revolt is suppressed; he is wounded, captured and exiled. 1920 — The Treaty of Sèvres raises the prospect of Kurdish autonomy. Early 1920s — Sheikh Mahmud returns and proclaims the Kingdom of Kurdistan, with himself as king. 1922–1924 — The kingdom functions in Sulaymaniyah, with a cabinet, currency and newspaper; the RAF repeatedly bombs it. 1923 — The Treaty of Lausanne abandons the promise of Kurdish statehood. 1924 — The Kingdom of Kurdistan is crushed and Sulaymaniyah falls under Iraqi control. 1920s–1930s — Sheikh Mahmud continues sporadic revolts before being subdued. 1956 — Death of Sheikh Mahmud Barzanji.
Ruler and Key Figures
The Kingdom of Kurdistan was, above all, the creation of one man: Sheikh Mahmud Barzanji, who proclaimed himself King of Kurdistan and led both its government and its armed resistance. A religious leader of the Qadiri Sufi order and head of the influential Barzanji family of Sulaymaniyah, he combined spiritual authority, tribal leadership and nationalist ambition. The kingdom rose and fell with him.
Debates and Uncertainties
The Kingdom of Kurdistan is dated variously in the sources, since Sheikh Mahmud's authority waxed and waned through several revolts and brief restorations between 1919 and 1924; the 'kingdom' proper is most often placed in the period around 1922–1924. Historians also debate how far it functioned as a true state versus a rebel administration under near-constant military pressure. What is not in dispute is its symbolic importance as the first attempt at a modern Kurdish state.
Place in Kurdish History
The Kingdom of Kurdistan holds a foundational place in modern Kurdish history as the first serious attempt to build an independent Kurdish state in the modern era. Coming amid the post-war remaking of the Middle East, it embodied both the hope and the frustration of Kurdish national aspirations as the Kurdish lands were partitioned among new states.
Sheikh Mahmud's kingdom anticipated the later Kurdish bids for self-rule, from the Republic of Ararat in the late 1920s to the Republic of Mahabad in 1946. As the first to claim a Kurdish throne, Sheikh Mahmud — the 'King of Kurdistan' — became an enduring symbol of the Kurdish struggle for statehood.
Related People, Places, and Topics
Explore related history on Kurdish-History.com: Sheikh Mahmud Barzanji, the King of Kurdistan (and his defiance of the British Empire), and the wider story of the interwar Kurdish revolts.
Frequently Asked Questions
What was the Kingdom of Kurdistan?
It was a short-lived, unrecognised Kurdish state proclaimed by Sheikh Mahmud Barzanji in Sulaymaniyah, in British-occupied Mesopotamia, in the early 1920s — the first attempt at a modern Kurdish state.
Who was the King of Kurdistan?
Sheikh Mahmud Barzanji, a religious and tribal leader of Sulaymaniyah, who proclaimed himself King of Kurdistan after turning against the British, who had originally appointed him governor in 1918.
When did the Kingdom of Kurdistan exist?
Its dates are given variously, since Sheikh Mahmud revolted several times between 1919 and 1924; the kingdom proper is usually placed around 1922–1924, when it was crushed by British forces.
How did the British defeat the Kingdom of Kurdistan?
Chiefly through air power: the Royal Air Force repeatedly bombed Sulaymaniyah and Sheikh Mahmud's forces — an early and notorious use of aerial bombardment to suppress a colonial revolt.
Why did the Kurds not get a state after World War I?
The 1920 Treaty of Sèvres held out the prospect of Kurdish autonomy, but it was abandoned in the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne, which made no provision for Kurdistan. The Kurdish lands were instead divided among Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Syria.
Why does the Kingdom of Kurdistan matter?
As the first attempt at a modern Kurdish state, it became a powerful symbol of Kurdish national aspirations and a forerunner of later efforts such as the Republic of Ararat and the Republic of Mahabad.
References and Further Reading
Studies of Sheikh Mahmud Barzanji and the British Mandate in Iraq.
Histories of the Treaty of Sèvres (1920), the Treaty of Lausanne (1923), and the Kurdish question after World War I.
Accounts of the RAF's role in suppressing the Sulaymaniyah revolts.
Kurdish-History.com — related reading on Sheikh Mahmud Barzanji and the interwar Kurdish revolts.
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