This paper will examine the construction of the ‘warrior race’ discourse amongst the Assyrian Christian population in mandate Iraq (1919-1932). At the conclusion of the First World War, British colonial officials and the military establishment insisted that the Assyrians were ‘traditional warriors’. Perceived to be direct descendants of the ancient Assyrian Empire. The rich military history of the community, that ostensibly dates to ancient times, qualified Assyrian men to serve alongside the colonial forces in Iraq. The bravery and service the Assyrians had provided to the Allied Forces during the First World War was another factor for recruiting the males of the community for colonial service in the Iraq Levies Force. Militarization and the branding of the Assyrians as a ‘warrior race’ by British colonial officials will be the focus of the first part of this paper. The concept of the ‘warrior race’, a “belief that some groups of men are biologically or culturally predisposed to the arts of war” will be examined in relation to the Assyrian community. The creation of the ‘warrior race’ identity will first be considered from the colonial perspective, more specifically through the lens of British policies towards the Assyrians, and the attitudes and discourses of colonial officials. The British colonial perspective will be examined through the utilization of archival documents from the British National Archives, Lambeth Palace Church of England Archives, and U.S. National Archives. The colonial perspective will help in understanding how the Assyrian community in Iraq dealt with and located themselves within the newly created ‘warrior race’ discourse. I will argue that as a result of colonial pressure the Assyrians were forced to perceive themselves as a separate and distinct community. These perceptions became part of the public discourse of the Assyrian community, religious and political leaders within the community, helped in shaping a public discourse that promoted Assyrian nationalism. These events led to the alienation of the Assyrian community within the newly created Iraqi state. Which eventually fuelled communalist tensions within the modern Iraqi state. Assyrian documents, newspapers, and personal diaries will be used to shed light upon the phenomenon described above.