At the beginning of the 20th century, the Ottoman Empire was quickly losing its former power. The Arabs, sensing the weakness of their long-time enemy, organized the first, then still rather timid, protests for independence. At that moment, the interests of the Arab rebels and Great Britain coincided: the British tried with all their might to weaken the power of the Turks. Encouraged by the support of Great Britain, the Arab leader Sherif Hussein entered the war with the Ottoman Empire. A young British officer and intelligence officer, Thomas Edward Lawrence (1888-1935), was appointed as a military adviser to Prince Faisal and his father, Sherif Hussein, and was tasked with helping the Arabs organize an uprising. Lawrence's further motives remained a mystery: either he was simply carrying out instructions from the command, or he was really sincerely trying to help to the Arabs who lived in the land he knew and loved well. One thing is certain: Lawrence eagerly began to fulfill the mission entrusted to him. The British intelligence officer could well have limited himself to only coordinating the actions of the rebels, directing them at a safe distance from the theater of operations, but Lawrence, even without military experience, was always in the thick of the battle. Dressed in an Arabic burnous and with a rifle in his hand, he, along with other soldiers, shared the hardships of military life and every time he risked himself in battle. Detractors said that such behavior was dictated only by the circumstances of his personal life, overcoming his complexes and thirst for adventure. But, most likely, Lawrence knew that he could earn the respect and love of the Arabs only by constantly being near them, and not giving faceless orders from headquarters. Thus, he tried to appear not as an official British official, but as a true friend of the Bedouins, whom they could completely trust. Lawrence's actions, which military experts never tire of admiring, indicate that he carefully thought through the tactics of waging war in the desert - risky, but at the same time win-win. Lawrence prioritized the task of uniting the scattered Arab tribes scattered across the desert, which would help organize the fight more effectively. Having spent so much effort organizing the struggle, Lawrence truly developed sympathy for these people who were far from European civilization. He knew about Britain's intention to occupy Arab lands and turn them into another colony, but did not share this point of view, considering colonial policy doomed to failure in advance. The young talented British archaeologist and officer, who supported the Arabs in their struggle for independence, received his famous nickname for his services to the Middle East. Lawrence's life was and remains full of mysteries and secrets for its researchers. And it is unlikely that anyone will be able to find out exactly what really motivated this fearless man. Perhaps the answer to this question was given by Lawrence himself in his book Seven Pillars of Wisdom: “For years we lived as we had to, alone with the bare desert... We are an army busy with itself, as if forgotten by everyone, without parades or drills, sacrificially devoted to the idea of freedom, this second symbol of human faith, an all-consuming goal that has absorbed all our strength. As time passes, the insistent need to fight for this ideal turned into an uncompromising obsession that prevailed over all our doubts.”