Iraq is medium sized country in the middle east. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Saudi Arabia to the south and Iran to the east. France and United Kingdom borders Iraq to the west via Syria and Jordan. The United Kingdom also borders Iraq via Kuwait. Its terrain is mostly desert.
Before the First World War, Iraq was part of the Ottoman Empire. The Ottomans were defeated and driven from much of the area by the United Kingdom during the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire. On 11 November 1920, Iraq became a League of Nations mandate under British control with the name "State of Iraq". The British installed the Hashemite king, Faisal I to govern the mandate. Britain would then grant independence to the Kingdom of Iraq in 1932, on the urging of King Faisal. King Ghazi ruled as a figurehead after King Faisal's death in 1933, while undermined by attempted military coups, until his death in 1939. Ghazi was followed by his underage son, Faisal II. 'Abd al-Ilah served as Regent during Faisal's minority.
On 1 April 1941, Rashid Ali al-Gaylani and members of the Golden Square staged a coup d'état and overthrew the government of 'Abd al-Ilah. During the subsequent Anglo-Iraqi War, the United Kingdom invaded Iraq for fear that the Rashid Ali government might cut oil supplies to Western nations because of his links to the Axis powers. The war started on the 2nd of May, and the British, defeated the forces of Al-Gaylani, forcing an armistice on the 31st of May.
A military occupation followed the restoration of the pre-coup government of the Hashemite monarchy. The occupation ended on 26 October 1947, although Britain was to retain military bases in Iraq until 1954. The rulers during the occupation and the remainder of the Hashemite monarchy were Nuri as-Said, the autocratic Prime Minister, who also ruled from 1930–1932, and 'Abd al-Ilah, the former Regent who now served as an adviser to King Faisal II.