Kingdom of Iraq

The Kingdom of Iraq was the Hashemite state established in Mesopotamia after the collapse of Ottoman rule in the First World War. It was founded in August 1921 under King Faisal I, while Britain administered the country through a mandate that was never fully implemented. The Anglo-Iraqi Treaty of 1930 ended British formal control, and Iraq became a fully independent kingdom in 1932. Its history was marked by instability: the first military coup took place in 1936, and further coups culminated in 1941, when the Golden Square officers installed a pro-Axis government under Rashid Ali. British and Allied forces defeated that government in the Anglo-Iraqi War and occupied the country. After the war Iraq joined the United Nations and the Arab League, fought in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War and experienced the Al-Wathbah protests. The monarchy ended in July 1958, when Abdul-Karim Qasim overthrew King Faisal II and established a republic.