Yusuf al-Azma | |
|---|---|
یوسف العظمة | |
 Al-Azma as Minister of War in 1920 | |
| Minister of War and Chief of General Staff of Syria | |
| In office January 1920 – 24 July 1920 | |
| Monarch | Faisal I |
| Prime Minister | Hashim al-Atassi |
| Preceded by | Office established (Minister of War) Yasin al-Hashimi (Chief of General Staff) |
| Succeeded by | Offices abolished |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1883 Damascus, Ottoman Empire |
| Died | 24 July 1920 (aged 36–37) Maysalun, Arab Kingdom of Syria |
| Nationality | Syrian |
| Political party | Al-Fatat |
| Children | Laila |
| Alma mater | Ottoman Military Academy |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  Ottoman Empire (1909-1918).svg){kind=small} Arab Kingdom of Syria (1918-1920) |
| Branch/service | Ottoman Army (1909–18) Arab Army (1920) |
| Years of service | 1909–1920 |
| Battles/wars | |
Yusuf al-Azma (Arabic: يوسف العظمة, Turkish: Yusuf el-Azma; ALA-LC: Yūsuf al-ʻAẓmah; 1883 – 24 July 1920) was a Syrian military figure and revolutionary who was the minister of war of the Arab Kingdom of Syria under the governments of prime ministers Rida al-Rikabi and Hashim al-Atassi, and the Arab Army's chief of general staff under King Faisal. He served as minister of war from January 1920 until his death while commanding Syrian forces at the Battle of Maysalun during the Franco-Syrian War.
Al-Azma hailed from a wealthy Damascene landowning family. He became an officer in the Ottoman Army and fought on multiple fronts in the First World War. After the defeated Ottomans withdrew from Damascus, al-Azma served Emir Faisal, the leader of the Arab Revolt, and was appointed minister of war upon the establishment of the Arab government in Damascus in January 1920. He was tasked with building the nascent Arab Army of Syria. The country, meanwhile, had been designated as a mandatory territory of France, which did not recognize Faisal's government. Al-Azma was among the more vociferous opponents of French rule and as their troops advanced toward Damascus from Lebanon, he was authorized to confront them. Leading a motley army of civilian volunteers, ex-Ottoman officers and Bedouin cavalrymen, al-Azma engaged the French at Maysalun Pass but was killed in action and his soldiers dispersed, which allowed the French to occupy Damascus on 25 July 1920. Though his army was defeated, al-Azma became a national hero in Syria for his insistence on confronting the French despite their clear military superiority and his ultimate death in the ensuing battle.