<Tr> <Th> Known for </Th> <Td> Writer, traveller, political officer, archaeologist, explorer, cartographer in Greater Syria, Mesopotamia, Asia Minor, and Arabia </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Parent (s) </Th> <Td> Sir Hugh Bell Mary Bell (née Shield) </Td> </Tr> <P> Gertrude Margaret Lowthian Bell, CBE (14 July 1868--12 July 1926) was an English writer, traveller, political officer, administrator, and archaeologist who explored, mapped, and became highly influential to British imperial policy - making due to her knowledge and contacts, built up through extensive travels in Greater Syria, Mesopotamia, Asia Minor, and Arabia . Along with T.E. Lawrence, Bell helped support the Hashemite dynasties in what is today Jordan as well as in Iraq . </P> <P> She played a major role in establishing and helping administer the modern state of Iraq, utilizing her unique perspective from her travels and relations with tribal leaders throughout the Middle East . During her lifetime she was highly esteemed and trusted by British officials and exerted an immense amount of power . She has been described as "one of the few representatives of His Majesty's Government remembered by the Arabs with anything resembling affection". </P>

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