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Saudi Arabia History
EARLY 20TH CENTURY
RISE OF KING ABDUL-AZIZ
FOUNDER OF THE MODERN STATE OF SAUDI ARABIA
Early Years
King Abdulaziz in later years
Rise of Abdul-Aziz
Beginning of the modern state
Saudi Arabia
Born 26 November 1876
(9 Dhu al-Qi'da 1293 AH)
In the traditional Saud homeland Najd in the city
of Riyadh
In 1890 the army of Muhammad ibn Rashid took
control of Riyadh
Forced the Saud family out of Najd to the support
of the Amir of Kuwait
Territory of Najd superimposed
over map of Saudi Arabia
Re-conquering of Riyadh After living much of his early life in exile,
Abdul-Aziz will re-take Najd
Spring of 1901 Abdul-Aziz with his half-
brother Muhammad
Successful raiding expedition into Najd
Decision was made to attempt to capture
Riyadh.
During Ramadan on 15 Jan, 1902
leading a small group of supporters, he
successfully capture the city
Beginning of the Third Saudi State
Rise to Power and Consolidation
Now that a member of the Saud Family was
back in Riyadh
Abdul-Aziz used the former supporters of the House of
Saud to begin a re-conquest of Najd
1904 Ibn Rashid appealed to the Ottoman Empire to
help
Troops were sent into Arabia 15 June 1904
The Saud forces suffered a major defeat to the Rashidi
forces with the Ottoman empire.
Rise to Power continued
They resorted to a successful guerrilla warfare
Over the next couple of years Ottoman supply roots
were disrupted
The Turks fell back to better defensible positions north of the Arabian Peninsula
1905 Ottoman accepted Abdul-Aziz’s as an Ottoman
client in Najd
But Najd was still under Ottoman control.
Conquering of Arabia and the Ikhwan
Abdul-Aziz took what he could to gain local
political strength
Finally without any British help Abdul-Aziz
forced the Turks out of Najd
1913 Most of the Arabian peninsula was under
Abdul-Aziz control
Among the Bedouin a new brother-hood
emerges, the Ikhwan.
Ikhwan continued
The movement spreads quickly all over the peninsula spreading
Wahhabi Islam among the nomads
Many give up their nomadic life in
the desert to move into agricultural settlements
Hijra (pl. hijar)
The Ikhwan was a two-edged
sword for Abdul-Aziz
One hand they were successful warriors following Abdul-Aziz an
imam for the Wahhabism
Ikhwan raiding in early 1910’s
Ikhwan continued
The other hand
political discretion required Abdul-Aziz to walk a fine line with
some of the more radical members of the Brotherhood
A form of Wahhabism
Willing to fight all who did not prescribe a strict/correct form
of Islamic practice
Tried to convert Muslims to Wahhabism
Even by force if necessary
Willing to fight any non-Wahhabi Muslims and non-
Muslims
The Ikhwan was a powerful weapon which grew
to over 100,000 by the outbreak of World War I.
Willing to fight for Abdul-Aziz
Western influence in the desert with World War I
will force Abdul-Aziz to try and control his warriors
More than anything else Abdul-Aziz wants to take
Hail from the Al Rashid
British Involvement in the Gulf And to take over the Hijaz and the Persian Gulf
Coast.
British prevented the Al Saud expansion in to the rest of the Gulf
Did establish diplomatic relation with the Al Saud
Recognizing Abdul-Aziz as de-facto leader of the Bedouin
Treaty of Darin
Made the lands of the House of Saud a British protectorate
Defined boundaries of the Saudi state
World War I
Ibn Saud was to make war with Ibn
Rashid
Ally to the Ottoman Turks
Ikhwan had problem with this
They had no love for Ibn Rashid but no
real problem with them either
Treaty remained in effect until 1927
British supported Sharif Hussein bin Ali
in 1915
Emir of the Hejaz
Lawrence of Arabia was the Emir’s second
Saudi Ikhwan began conflict with Emir Feisal
1917 as Abdullah ibn Abdul-Aziz and Feisal ibn Hussein entered Damascus
Ikhwan begin problems with Emir Feisal
Abn al Aziz’s Goal for Saudi Saudi began to achieve the various Abdul-Aziz’s goals
The taking of Ha’il form the Al Rashid
Expand control into the Syrian and Jordanian deserts
Take over the Hijaz and the Persian Gulf
British block nearly every one of these moves
After World War I they became more involved in the
Arabia
After the war
Politics changed
Conditions from the Treaty of Darin
Tribute from British for support for British interests in
Middle East
£5,000 per month
Guns and surplus munitions
The Ha’il
Attack into Jordan or Bahrain or Iraqi was
impractical and politically suicidal
Looked to his enemy, al Rashid
1920, With the Ikhwan help
They began a campaign into the Ha’il
By 1922 they were all but destroyed
Saudi territory doubled with the conquering of
the Ha’il
Leverage to renegotiate a treaty with the
British
New Treaty
1922, Britain recognized the territorial gains of ibn Saud
In exchange for recognition for the British territory gains in Persia and Iraq
Vital as a coaling station for trade from India through Suez
Straits of Hormuz
Focus now for British is elsewhere
Support for former allies, the Sharif family had waned with the lack of military power
The Ikhwan took advantage
Hijaz Great dislike for the Sharif had grown as
the Sharif family continued to oppose
the Wahhabi movement
Hussein had even gone so far as to
forbid the Ikhwan to make their
pilgrimage to the Holy Mosques
In 1919, Hussein sent an army which had
been sent to Turabah
Border town between Najd and Hijaz
the Ikhwan completely destroyed the
Hussein army
Hussein was left with only a skeleton army
No one was left to defend Hijaz and the Two Holy Mosques in Mecca and Medina
Abdul-Aziz did not press his advantage
Focused on consolidating power in Ha’il and Najd
1924, Hussein had not been able to recover after attacks by the Ikhwan
Politically he was weakened
To the Muslim world there was no political leader protecting Mecca and Medina
British support for the Sharif family was waning
Ottoman sultan, called himself the caliph
Deposed
Hussein took on the title of caliph
Most of the Muslim world angry over the ego of
Hussein
British needed a strong leader in the Hijaz
Didn’t support Abdul-Aziz
The Protector of the Two Holy Mosques
Didn’t oppose him.
1924, Hussein had not been able to recover after attacks by the
Ikhwan
Politically he was weakened
To the Muslim world there was no political leader protecting Mecca and
Medina
1924, Hussein had not been able to recover after attacks by the
Ikhwan
Politically he was weakened
To the Muslim world there was no political leader protecting Mecca and Medina
The Protector of the Two Holy Mosques
Abdul-Aziz takes on the responsibility of Khadim al
Haramayn
Hijaz solidified the Saudi rule
The respect which was owed to him
He was a traditional Bedouin tribal leader with extraordinary capabilities to build on many success
Mainly his position as imam to the Ikhwan
Held the loyalty of the Ikhwan
The Protector of the Two Holy Mosques
With taking on the responsibility of the Holy Mosques
He was the only truly independent Arab leader after World
War I
He was now the focus of international respect as leader of the only stable Middle-Eastern country.
The State of Saudi Arabia will be established on 23 September
1932
The Rule of Abdul-Aziz
Ruling
The Hijaz complicated Abdul-Aziz rule
Al Saud ruler was a traditional Arab Clan leader
With assuming the position of Khadim al Haramayn
Now larger leader to the Muslim world
Also the de-facto leader of the Arab world to the West
Specifically Britain
Establishment of an Arab State was problematic at best
Many constituencies to serve
Very important to keep the Muslim approval for Saud management of Hijaz
Thus he asked the leadership of Hijaz for advice on ruling
No response
1926 Held a referendum which that leadership voted Abdul-Aziz as king
In Hijaz
Abdul-Aziz had to keep the Wahhabi followers restrained
He won support of the local religious leaders, ulama
No other countries were in a position to challenge the ibn Saud
Establishment of State Most states still were under foreign control
Persia and Turkey in midst of secular reforms
Problems in Najd
Ikhwan had no tolerance for anything Western
Especially modern Western 20th century
Objected to machines specifically used for communication
Telegraph, telephone
And the presence of non-Muslin foreigners in the Najd
Ikhwan continued to be the major problem in the Najd and Ha’il
They began attacking every non-believer
Even Wahhabi Muslims
Establishment of the State continued
Attacked within Saud territory and began pushing beyond is
borders into Iraq and Jordan
Attack threatened Abdul-Aziz authority
And his position with the British
Also attacked British control of the non-Saud region
20 May 1927
Abdul-Aziz and British government signed the Treaty of
Jeddah
Abolished the Darin protection agreement
Establishment of the State continued
Recognized the independence of the Hejaz and Najd
Ibn Saud as its ruler
Problem with Ikhwan escalated
1927-1929 raiding continued
Finally in 1929
In March 1929, Ikhwan were suppressed
by Ibn Saud in the Battle of Sabilla
Last battle which camels were used in
battle by one of the combatants.
Ibn Saud used modern weaponry and
vehicles
Defeat of the Ikhwan demonstrated his ability to
assemble a domestic constituency
1920’s majority of Saudi’s sided with Aziz against the
Ikhwan
He used the ulama for advise
Fight for radio communication
Ulama originally against it.
Abdul-Aziz used radio to broadcast the Quran by
radio
Building Consensus
No Bedouin tribes had standing armies
When battles were needed the leader, ibn Saud,
would put the call out for fighters
Such as Ikhwan
Defeat of the Ikhwan was achieved by the same
process
Many fighters from other parts of Bedouin society came to fight for Abdul-Aziz
Late 1920’s
This was the way Abdul-Aziz consolidated power
Building a foundation to solidify his hold on Arabia
Carefully not creating any more enemies than necessary
Abdul-Aziz
Example:
Rashidi of Ha’il
Married 3 of the Rashidi widows into his family
Sharif of Mecca
Gave to the Sharif family large tracts of land to keep
them in power
Enemies into Friends Allies from the beginning
Gave them what he could
Not much money
Najd was prosperious
Depression of the 1920’s – 1930’s greatly affected Middle East
Money from the Hijaz and from pilgrimages dropped
off
Even though, more than 2,000 people ate at the
Abdul-Aziz table daily
Oil in the Middle
East
Saudi Oil First found in Persia 1908
Demand for oil during World War I increases
1922 King Abdul-Aziz met with Major Frank
Holmes because of his work in Ethiopia and
Gallipoli
Holmes had heard word of seeps all over
the Eastern Province
He was convinced that oil was available over the whole area
1923 the king signed with Holmes’ company
Eastern and General Syndicate Ltd.
He evaluated the possibility of oil in eastern Saudi Arabia
Swiss geologist stated in report it was a “pure gamble” to
try and find oil in Saudi Arabia
Banks and oil companies back out from investing in
Arabian Oil
1925 sheikh of Bahrain gave permission to search for oil
New Zealand engineer
Major Frank Holmes got the lease to drill
Known as the “father of oil” in the Middle East
OIL!
In 1927 Gulf Oil Co agreed to do the drilling, they took the concession
Agreement with Iraq Oil who was partnered with Royal Dutch Shell, Anglo Persian Oil
They could not drill in Bahrain
Lease was transferred to Standard Oil of California
King Abdul-Aziz, frustrated by the Holmes company report and the fact that Holmes
owed the Kingdom well over £6,000
Finance minister, Abdullah Suleiman, convinced Holmes to leave the kingdom and not
returned without paying debt
Contracted with American mining engineer Karl Twitchell
Oil, continued
Karl Twitchell
Had been in Kingdom for many years doing surveys for everything from Water to Gold.
Not successful finding water around Medina and Mecca
Ancient gold mines were all played out
Was involved with survey of al-Hasa
More successful
Geology similar to Bahrain
SoCal was drilling in Bahrain
He suggested to the Abdul-Aziz to wait for the results from Bahrain drilling
Bahrain Oil
SoCal’s search for Bahrain Oil was a complete success
