The History of Saudi Arabia Wayne H. Bowen Greenwood Press THE HISTORY OF SAUDI ARABIA i ADVISORY BOARD John T. Alexander Professor of History and Russian and European Studies, University of Kansas Robert A. Divine George W. Littlefield Professor in American History Emeritus, University of Texas at Austin John V. Lombardi Professor of History, University of Florida ii THE HISTORY OF SAUDI ARABIA Wayne H. Bowen The Greenwood Histories of the Modern Nations Frank W. Thackeray and John E. Findling, Series Editors Greenwood Press Westport, Conn • London iii Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Bowen, Wayne H., 1968– The history of Saudi Arabia / by Wayne H. Bowen. p. cm. — (The greenwood histories of the modern nations) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978–0–313–34012–3 (alk. paper) 1. Saudi Arabia—History. I. Title. DS204.B685 2008 953.8—dc22 2007037493 British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data is available. Copyright © 2008 by Wayne H. Bowen All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, by any process or technique, without the express written consent of the publisher. Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 2007037493 ISBN-13: 978–0-313–34012–3 ISSN: 1096–2905 First published in 2008 Greenwood Press, 88 Post Road West, Westport, CT 06881 An imprint of Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc. www.greenwood.com Printed in the United States of America The paper used in this book complies with the Permanent Paper Standard issued by the National Information Standards Organization (Z39.48–1984). 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 iv Contents Series Foreword vii Timeline of Historical Events ix 1 Introduction: Saudi Arabia Today 1 2 Arabia before Muhammad (to 570 a.d.) 17 3 The Prophet Muhammad and the Arabs (570–700 a.d.) 35 4 Arabia and the Muslim Empires (700–1700) 51 5 The House of Saud (1700–1902) 67 6 The Creation of Saudi Arabia (1902–1932) 83 7 The Kingdom of Ibn Saud (1932–1973) 99 8 Saudi Arabia in the Modern World (1973–2006) 115 Notable People in the History of Saudi Arabia 131 v vi Contents Glossary 139 Annotated Bibliography 143 Index 149 Series Foreword The Greenwood Histories of the Modern Nations series is intended to provide students and interested laypeople with up-to-date, concise, and analytical his- tories of many of the nations of the contemporary world. Not since the 1960s has there been a systematic attempt to publish a series of national histories, and, as editors, we believe that this series will prove to be a valuable contribution to our understanding of other countries in our increasingly interdependent world. Over thirty years ago, at the end of the 1960s, the ColdWar was an accepted reality of global politics, the process of decolonization was still in progress, the idea of a unified Europe with a single currency was unheard of, the United States was mired in a war in Vietnam, and the economic boom of Asia was still years in the future. Richard Nixon was president of the United States, Mao Tse-tung (not yet Mao Zedong) ruled China, Leonid Brezhnev guided the Soviet Union, and Harold Wilson was prime minister of the United King- dom. Authoritarian dictators still ruled most of Latin America, the Middle East was reeling in the wake of the Six-Day War, and Shah Reza Pahlavi was at the height of his power in Iran. Clearly, the past 30 years have been witness to a great deal of historical change, and it is to this change that this series is primarily addressed. With the help of a distinguished advisory board, we have selected nations whose political, economic, and social affairs mark them as among the most vii viii Series Foreword important in the waning years of the twentieth century, and for each nation we have found an author who is recognized as a specialist in the history of that nation. These authors have worked most cooperatively with us and with Greenwood Press to produce volumes that reflect current research on their nations and that are interesting and informative to their prospective readers. The importance of a series such as this cannot be underestimated. As a superpower whose influence is felt all over the world, the United States can claim a “special” relationship with almost every other nation. Yet many Americans know very little about the histories of the nations with which the United States relates. How did they get to be the way they are? What kind of political systems have evolved there? What kind of influence do they have in their own region? What are the dominant political, religious, and cultural forces that move their leaders? These and many other questions are answered in the volumes of this series. The authors who have contributed to this series have written comprehensive histories of their nations, dating back to prehistoric times in some cases. Each of them, however, has devoted a significant portion of the book to events of the last thirty years, because the modern era has contributed the most to contemporary issues that have an impact on U.S. policy. Authors have made an effort to be as up-to-date as possible so that readers can benefit from the most recent scholarship and a narrative that includes very recent events. In addition to the historical narrative, each volume in this series con- tains an introductory overview of the country’s geography, political in- stitutions, economic structure, and cultural attributes. This is designed to give readers a picture of the nation as it exists in the contemporary world. Each volume also contains additional chapters that add interesting and useful detail to the historical narrative. One chapter is a thorough chronol- ogy of important historical events, making it easy for readers to follow the flow of a particular nation’s history. Another chapter features biographical sketches of the nation’s most important figures in order to humanize some of the individuals who have contributed to the historical development of their nation. Each volume also contains a comprehensive bibliography, so that those readers whose interest has been sparked may find out more about the nation and its history. Finally, there is a carefully prepared topic and person index. Readers of these volumes will find them fascinating to read and useful in understanding the contemporary world and the nations that comprise it. As series editors, it is our hope that this series will contribute to a heightened sense of global understanding as we embark on a new century. Frank W. Thackeray and John E. Findling Indiana University Southeast T imeline of Historical Events B.C. ca. 3000 Dilmun civilization emerges in eastern coastal Arabia ca. 750 Rise of Saba state in southern Arabia 670 Assyrians march through northern Arabia en route to the conquest of Syria 350 Founding of Nabataean kingdom in northern Arabia 323 Death of Alexander the Great forestalls planned invasion of Arabia 312 Unsuccessful campaign by Hellenistic general Antigonus against Nabataeans 88 Seleucid King Antiochus XII wages unsuccessful war against Nabataeans 62 Nabataean kingdom becomes Roman client state 40 Nabataeans temporarily ally with Parthians against Ro- mans ix x T imeline of Historical Events 31 Octavian (later Augustus Caesar) wins civil war against Antony and reasserts Roman control over Near East 26 Nabataeans join Roman assault on Sabaeans in southern Arabia 9 Beginning of reign of King Aretas IV in Nabataea A.D. 27–44 Sporadic wars between Nabataeans and Herodian kings in Judea 40 Death of Aretas IV 67–70 Nabataeans assist Romans in repression of Jewish upris- ing in Palestine 106 Incorporation of Nabataean state into Roman Empire 132 Emigration of Jews from Palestine to Arabian Peninsula 225 Persians invade Eastern Arabia 244–249 Reign of Emperor Philip, only Arab Roman ruler ca. 400 Mecca founded 542 Collapse of Marib Dam; closing stages of Sabaean kingdom 570 Birth of Muhammad 575 Persians occupy Yemen 610 Beginning of Muhammad’s public ministry 614 Persians occupy northern border of Arabia, defeating Byzantines 622 Muhammad flees Mecca for Yathrib/Medina 630 Muhammad returns to Mecca 632 Death of Muhammad 638 Arab occupation of Persian capital, Ctesiphon 642 Arab Muslims complete conquest of Egypt 661 Murder of Ali, founder of the Shia sect; founding of Umayyad dynasty T imeline of Historical Events xi 669 Death of Hussein, son of Ali 711 Muslim conquest of Spain 750 Founding of Abbasid dynasty 930 Looting of Mecca by the Qarmati sect of Shias 1096 Beginning of the Crusades 1193 Saladin expels Crusaders from Jerusalem; rules Egypt, Palestine, northern Arabia 1258 Mongols pillage Baghdad; fall of the Abbasid dynasty 1260 Mamluk Turks defeat Mongols and occupy northern Arabia 1446 Precursor to Saudi dynasty rises in Dariyah 1517 Ottoman Turks defeat Mameluks and assert control over Mecca and Medina 1550s Ottomans begin to occupy Eastern Arabia 1720 Establishment of Saudi dynasty in Dariyah 1744 Creation of Saudi alliance with Wahhabism 1790 Saudis consolidate control over Nejd 1793 Saudis complete conquest of Hasa 1802 Saudis loot Karbala, sacred Shia city in southern Iraq 1803 Saudis loot Mecca and begin to consolidate control over Hijaz 1811–1838 Campaigns of Muhammad Ali and Ottomans against Sau- dis in Arabia 1818 Egyptians destroy Dariyah and defeat Saudi state 1824 Saudis occupy Riyadh and begin second Saudi state 1838 Muhammad Ali occupies Riyadh 1843 Faisal ibn Turki reestablishes Saudi state in Riyadh 1847–1897 Rival Rashidi dynasty dominates central Arabia 1870s Ottoman campaigns in Eastern Arabia xii T imeline of Historical Events 1891 Riyadh