The Truce Oman/The Trucial States
The history of UAE goes long back. But critical turnaround started in 1820. The east India Company was being bogged down pirates in Middle East affecting their trade routes. As a result they forced the shaykhs on the coast to stop piracy. This whole story started in 1798. The history maintains that The Qawasim were arch-rivals of the Al-Busaids who were based in Oman and who also sought to assert their control over this part of Arabia. In 1798, the British signed an agreement with the Al-Busaids in an elaborate attempt to keep the French out of the area and so strengthen Britain's claims to paramountcy in the Indian sub-continent. However, this deal with the Al-Busaids made Britain part of the enemy as far as the Qawasim were concerned. This meant that British East India Company ships were fair game and were attacked and pillaged at every opportunity by the Qawasim. This stretch of coast soon came to be known in Britain, India and beyond as the Pirate Coast and the Royal Navy reacted accordingly by launching campaigns and raids against the Qawasim in 1805, 1809 and 1811. Unfortunately for the British, the locals knew the area too well and could quickly escape only to regroup elsewhere.
In 1819, the British decided to try and end the piracy in this area once and for all. A large fleet was dispatched from Bombay and by 1820 it had destroyed and captured every Qawasim ship that it had come across and occupied all the major forts in the area, even going so far as occupying Qawasim hideouts in Persia itself. With the successful outcome of this operation the British imposed a General Treaty of Peace on nine Arab sheikhdoms in the area and installed a garrison in the region. The sheikdoms included:
The treaty did not prevent these princes and sheikhs from continuing to attack each other, which they did with gusto and much to the consternation of the British. In an attempt to reign in the worst excesses of dynastic and tribal rivalry the British imposed a new treaty in 1835. It was named the Maritime Truce and its intended aim was to keep traffic moving in the Gulf region. It was revised in 1839 to include the forceful banning of slavery. In 1853, the truces were upgraded still further to become the Treaty of Peace in Perpetuity. Under which, the British assumed all responsibility for arbitrating in any disputes between the Sheikhs of the area. It was this final truce that gave this part of the Gulf its name for the next 120 years.
The sheikdoms permanently allied themselves with the
United Kingdom by the
Perpetual Maritime Truce of 1853, upon which they were administered as
princely states of
British India. The treaty signed between the shaykhs and the British. The region is given the name of 'Trucial Coast'. The treaty involved a maritime truce, and British assistance to cooperation between the shaykhs. But, finally in 1873 The Trucial Coast became administered by the British.
In the 1890's the British sought to formalise many of their agreements made with Sheikhs and rulers throughout the Gulf region. The reason for this was a way of forestalling renewed interest in the region by the Russians and the French. It is unclear how serious these intentions would have been followed through but for the British their links to India were to be maintained at all costs and the Trucial rulers were to be no exception to this rule. The British would provide protection for the Sheikhs in return for promises by these rulers that they would have no dealings with any foreign rulers without the express permission of the British.
This promise of protection served the rulers in one crucial aspect just after the end of The Great War. At this time in history Ibn Saud was busy uniting the interior of Arabia and sweeping all before him. The British promises of protection made Ibn Saud hesitate and ultimately bypass this region from his series of conquests. In return, this part of the British Empire was to be an extremely quiet and peaceful one. Exactly the way the British wanted it to be.
Despite the formal protectorate status of this stretch of coast the British didn't make much of an effort to control the domestic and commercial activities of these sheikhdoms. As far as the British were concerned, as long as the lines of communication with India were secure, this area was of little strategic or commercial importance. They therefore left the rulers to themselves without any British Political Agent being appointed until the outbreak of the Second World War.
British stakes and interest in the area were to be increased with the discovery of oil. It also had the effect of renewing competition and rivalry between the various sheikhs of the area as they each tried to maximise their territories in the hopes of receiving more wealth from oil.
One interesting anecdote is the way the British tried to resolve these border difficulties by sending a British diplomat out on his camel to ask local village heads, tribal rulers and Bedouins which sheikh they owed allegiance to. However, even this attempt failed, so the British set up a Trucial States Council in 1951 under the direct chairmanship of the British Political Agent in Dubai. This council was the direct ancestor of the present day UAE Supreme Council.
British links to the coast were to remain extremely limited for most of their history with one another. The Indian based British Steamship Line served British, Indian and local traders in the region firstly by serving Linagh but after 1903 transferring their port of call to the up and coming hub of Dubai. The only official British facilities were not to be built in the area until 1932 when Imperial Airways built a rest house in Sharjah for passengers and crew en route between London and India.
Oil and the New Beginning
The discovery of oil was to change the strategic and economic significance of this imperial outpost. The first oil concession was from the poorest of the sheikdoms, Abu Dhabi to the British owned Iraq Petroleum Company in 1939. However, the Saudis would lay claim to the area of this first concession and relations between these states would sour considerably. It was only when Trucial Omani troops, commanded by British officers, drove the Saudis out of the disputed area that the matter was settled. This held up production for some years in this sector, but the importance of these fields were to be eclipsed when an enormous reservoir of oil was discovered off the shore of Abu Dhabi by an Anglo-French consortium. Exports began in 1962 and Abu Dhabi quickly became the leading sheikhdom in the region. Dubai was also fortunate enough to discover some oil, however the other sheikhs were not so lucky and they quickly beat a path to their oil rich neighbors.
The newly found wealth was beyond the financial understanding of the sheikh of Abu Dhabi as he spent his money foolishly and unwisely. In addition, he openly admitted that he did not trust banks and, most worryingly of all for the British, that he distrusted foreigners and foreign companies. The British conspired with his brother and the other sheikhs to have this troublesome ruler removed in 1966. This bloodless coup was to be the last major political undertaking by the British in the area.
In 1968, the British announced that they would completely withdraw from the Gulf region by the year 1971. This sent the Trucial rulers into a frenzied series of negotiations with each other and with the other British protectorates; Qatar and Bahrain. The British tried to join these areas into a single autonomous country but the respective rulers could not agree on boundaries or political representation in the new grouping. Bahrain and Qatar were particularly aggrieved and left to become independent nations. The Trucial sheikhdoms were prepared to enter a federation with Abu Dhabi and Dubai (in that order) as having the heaviest political weighting, representation and most importantly of all for the smaller sheikhdoms, the heaviest financial obligations. With this formula the United Arab Emirates was formed in December 1971.
Overall Timeline
1820: The British force the
shaykhs on the coast to stop piracy.
1853: A treaty signed between the shaykhs and the British. The region is given the name of 'Trucial Coast'. The treaty involved a maritime truce, and British assistance to cooperation between the shaykhs.
1873: The Trucial Coast becomes administered by the British.
1892: A new agreement, the shaykhs gives the British effective control over foreign matters. The British offers military protection in return.
1931: Oil is discovered, and national consciousness increases. Bahrain later joins the neighbouring Trucial States and Qatar in the Federation of Arab Emirates.
1952: The seven emirates establish a Trucial Council.
1960's: Emerging problems between the British and the
emirs, connected to the interests of developing the oil industries and preserving traditional culture. Shaykh Shakbut of Abu Dhabi was the most conservative in this matter, and also in control of some of largest oil reserves.
1966: Shaykh Shakbut is overthrown, and
Zayed bin Sultan an-Nahayan becomes new ruler of Abu Dhabi.
1967: The Trucial States Council is formed, aiming at better coordinating matters between the shaykhs.
1970: Independence is given to the emirates.
1971 September: Bahrain and Qatar becomes independent states.
— December 2: Abu Dhabi and Dubai forms a independent union, inviting the other shaykhs to join. All remaining but Ras al-Khaimah accepts.
1972 Ras al-Khaimah joins the new federation of United Arab Emirates.
An Interesting Fact
Until 1969, the
Indian Rupee remained the de-facto currency of the Trucial states as well as the other Gulf States such as Qatar, Bahrain and Oman until these countries introduced their own currencies in 1969, after the great devaluation of the Indian Rupee.
