--- title: Syria in 1940: Rare Photos From Aleppo, Homs, Damascus During WWII description: LIFE.com photos recall Damascus, Homs, Aleppo and other Syrian cities and towns as they appeared in the middle part of the last century. canonical: https://time.com/3722358/syria-in-1940-crossroads-of-the-middle-east-during-wwii/ author: Ben Cosgrove article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2013-02-25T17:45:53.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T05:05:23.991Z og:title: Crossroads of the Middle East: A Look Back at Syria in 1940 og:description: LIFE.com photos recall Damascus, Homs, Aleppo and other Syrian cities and towns as they appeared in the middle part of the last century. og:url: https://time.com/3722358/syria-in-1940-crossroads-of-the-middle-east-during-wwii/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9a4afaf2c40272d0/698780f48e060175f145a7bc/150225-syria-04.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Syria 1940 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Crossroads of the Middle East: A Look Back at Syria in 1940 twitter:description: LIFE.com photos recall Damascus, Homs, Aleppo and other Syrian cities and towns as they appeared in the middle part of the last century. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9a4afaf2c40272d0/698780f48e060175f145a7bc/150225-syria-04.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Syria in 1940: Crossroads of the Middle East During WWII by [Ben Cosgrove](/author/ben-cosgrove/) ## Ben Cosgrove Feb 25, 2013 5:45 PM CUT  Members of the Bedouin "camel cavalry" near Damascus, Syria, 1940. Members of the Bedouin "camel cavalry" near Damascus, Syria, 1940.Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images by [Ben Cosgrove](/author/ben-cosgrove/) ## Ben Cosgrove Feb 25, 2013 5:45 PM CUT The ongoing chaos and violence that have come to define the Syrian civil war have not only pushed the names of ancient cities (Aleppo, Homs) back into today’s headlines, but have also served as a reminder that Syria has long been a major player not merely in the Middle East, but on the global stage. [\[See the TIME article, “Brief History of Aleppo: A Great World City Now in the Grip of War”\]](http://world.time.com/2012/07/27/brief-history-of-aleppo-a-great-world-city-now-in-the-grip-of-war/ "undefined") In 1940, seven months before the United States entered World War II and nine months after Germany invade Poland, LIFE sent photographer Margaret Bourke-White to the young (and, as it turned out, short-lived) republic in order to document Syria’s pivotal role—cultural, geographical, military—in the region. More than seven decades later, in photographs that ran in LIFE and many more that did not, LIFE.com recalls Damascus, Homs, Aleppo and other Syrian cities and towns as they appeared in the middle part of the last century. This is how LIFE described the situation to its readers in the magazine’s May 20, 1940, issue, published mere weeks before Paris fell to the Germans, leaving Syria (briefly) under the rule of Vichy France: --- > “” --- As it happened, of course, Syria and neighboring Lebanon did see action in WWII, during a month-long Allied campaign in June and July of 1941\. The Free French took control of both countries after a rout of mainly Vichy French and German troops, and before the war was over, both Lebanon and Syria had become free states—and had declared war on both Imperial Japan and Nazi Germany. _Liz Ronk, who edited this gallery, is the Photo Editor for LIFE.com. Follow her on Twitter at_ [_@LizabethRonk_](https://twitter.com/LizabethRonk "undefined")_._  A view of Damascus, Syria, 1940. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Raising the French flag at Aleppo, Syria, 1940. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Women carry water containers on their heads as they lead mules along a road in a desert village near Damascus, Syria, 1940. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Members of the Bedouin "camel cavalry" near Damascus, Syria, 1940. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Street scene, Damascus, Syria, 1940. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  View of the downtown area of Aleppo from atop the ramparts of the great citadel built in the 4th century B.C. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  View from above Aleppo, Syria, 1940. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Soldiers urge a mule up the steps of the citadel at Aleppo, Syria, 1940. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Scene in Aleppo, Syria, 1940. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Inside the garrison of the French expeditionary force in the great citadel at Aleppo, Syria, 1940. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Street scene, Aleppo, 1940. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A narrow street in downtown Aleppo, Syria, 1940. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A Moroccan soldier of the French expeditionary force holds an officer's Arabian horse inside the great citadel at Aleppo, 1940. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Engineers relax on the grounds of the great citadel, Aleppo, 1940. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  French Foreign Legion soldiers at their outpost at Homs, Syria, 1940. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  French Foreign Legion soldiers gather around newly erected tents as they set up their outpost near Homs, Syria, 1940. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  South of Homs, men of the Tunisian infantry prepare to eat. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Archaeological ruins with modern homes in background, Syria, 1940. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A family walks past the walled town and beehive-shaped homes of Tell Bisse, Syria, 1940. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  View of the walled town of Tell Bisse, Syria, 1940. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Syrian children outside the walled town of Tell Bisse, Syria, 1940. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  LIFE magazine, May 20, 1940. LIFE Magazine  LIFE magazine, May 20, 1940. LIFE Magazine  LIFE magazine, May 20, 1940. LIFE Magazine  LIFE magazine, May 20, 1940. 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