It would have been entrusted to the United Kingdom but was superseded by the Anglo-Iraqi Treaty, an agreement between Britain and Iraq with some similarities to the proposed mandate.

The proposed mandate was awarded on 25 April 1920 at the San Remo Conference, in Italy, in accordance with the 1916 Sykes–Picot Agreement but was not yet documented or defined.

The proposed mandate faced certain difficulties to be established, as a nationwide Iraqi revolt broke out in 1920 after which it was decided the territory would become the Kingdom of Iraq, via the Anglo-Iraq Treaty of October 1922.

[1] The civil government of British-administered Iraq was headed originally by the High Commissioner, Sir Percy Cox, and his deputy, Colonel Arnold Wilson.

The most striking problem facing the British was the growing anger of the nationalists, who felt betrayed at being accorded mandate status.