'File 10/3 VI Qatar Oil Concession' [‎67r] (145/481)

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on his side destroying a fort which had been built at Derah. In February 1825 the
Resident addressed a strong remonstrance to the Sheikh of Shargah for his delays
in destroying the towers and received an evasive answer. In May l(S25 the
Hosident sent his Native Agent Non-British agents affiliated with the British Government. , armed with authority from the Sheikh to effect the
immediate destruction of the towers, to accompany a Muscat force. Hostilities,
however, broke out between Shargah and Muscat, and the towers remained. In
October 1825 a reconciliation was finally mediated between the two States by the
Resident, in which no word was said about Baraimi, which appears to have
remained in the possession of one or other of the Trucial Chiefs until about 1833.
Wahabi reascendency established.
45. In May 1830, consequent on the defeat of the Beni Khalid of Hasa, the
Wahabi Amir and his policy became a matter of acute importance in Trucial Oman A name used by Britain from the nineteenth century to 1971 to refer to the present-day United Arab Emirates. .
The bulk of the Jowasimis, and especially the Sheikhs of Ajman and Umm al Bo. Sel.,
Qaiwain, appear to have welcomed the prospect of Wahabi reascendency, "the
lower orders anticipating a return to their former piratical habits and the above Lor. I 687-
two chiefs expecting to emancipate themselves from their dependence upon " the 8, 1095.
Sheikh of Shargah. The Sheikh of Shargah. who had in 1821 abjured Wahabi
tenets, now, while outwardly professing sympathy with the Wahabis, wrote to the
Resident in July 1830, "expressing his earnest desire to co-operate with the British
Government in checking their further progress, and went so far as to declare that
he was determined to oppose them even in the event of his not receiving any
support." In reply he was informed that the British Government were solely
interested in the suppression of piracy and could not interfere in the internal
affairs of the Arab States. But the Wahabi Amir soon made it clear that he was
not prepared to encourage any revival of piracy, and that he proposed to look upon
the Sheikh ot" Shargah and the Sultan of Muscat as the heads of all the Arabian ^ ^ j ( . ss
tribes in Oman. The Sheikh of Ajman, who had asked for a body of troops to
enable him to throw off his dependence on Shargah, or even to attain the
ascendancy in Shargah territories, and who had also suggested that he should
cruise against the enemies of the Wahabis in the Gulf, met with a refusal on the
ground inter alia that the English being the masters of the sea, the Wahabi Amir
was not able to contend with so powerful a nation. In 1831 the Sheikh of Ajman
was, however, used by the Amir as his intermediary with the Governor of Bombay
(paragraph 53 below).
Wahahi Claim to Suzerainty over Trucial Oman A name used by Britain from the nineteenth century to 1971 to refer to the present-day United Arab Emirates. , 1833.
40. By 1833 the Wahabi ruler had established his influence throughout the
Trucial Coast A name used by Britain from the nineteenth century to 1971 to refer to the present-day United Arab Emirates. , and in that year a direct demand by the Resident on the Sheikh of
^hargah for redress for a piracy led to an intemperate letter from the Wahabi
Lieutenant at Baraimi to the Residency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, established in the provinces and regions considered part of, or under the influence of, British India. Agent at Shargah. As the Wahabi
representative had written without authority, no direct notice was taken of his
communication, but the Residency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, established in the provinces and regions considered part of, or under the influence of, British India. Agent was instructed to point out the long
delays and great forbearance shown before coercive measures had been resorted to
by H.M. Government, " and further to use other arguments importing the evident Bo. Sel.
existence of our right to demand redress." The Wahabi representative replied XXIV, 442.
that Amir Turki " was now the only authority on the continent of Arabia, and that
both citizens and Bedouins, maritime as well as inland tribes, having all
acknowledged his supremacy, he was in fact the ruler of the country, including
Hajar, Oman, and the coast from Jaalan to Qalif, and that, therefore, on the
occurrence of any piracy it should be reported to the Wahabi Chief, or, in the
«vent of his being at too great a distance, to his Agent at Baraimi."
Aim Dhabi submits to the Wahabis, 1833.
47. Later in the same year the Sheikh of Abu Dhabi was murdered by his
brother, w T ho, anxious to consolidate his position, tendered his allegiance and an
annnal payment of tribute to the Wahabi Amir. The Amir in return informed
nbargah that Abu Dhabi was under his protection and that he would permit of no Bo - Sel -
Aggression upon them. Despite this, and the very categorical assertion of suzerainty ^ IV ' 161,
referred to in paragraph 46 above, the threats of the Wahabi representative at
baraimi proved insufficient to overawe Shargah, and in 1834 peace was concluded
between Shargah and Abu Dhabi, one condition of which was that Debai should Lor. I, 693.
•henceforth be under Shanjah.