Allah

62377 — Cairo: al-Maktab al-misri al-hadith 1978. FIRST EDITION. Large 8vo. 24.5 x 16.5 cm. pp.334. Text mostly in Arabic with some English. Publisher's original lemon cloth upper cover gilt-lettered in Arabic. With the unclipped dust-jacket showing a map showing the Gulf States. Book with 25 plates and 2 folding maps. Accompanied by 7 loose folding maps and genealogical tables ranging from 70 x 54 cm to 36 x 49 cm. Some light wear to maps and charts the book itself with just some trivial light spotting to edges generally an excellent copy in a well preserved jacket. First edition first printing of this study of the Arabian Peninsula in the late 18th and early 19th centuries examining the early history of the United Arab Emirates and Oman much enhanced by photographs of the forts of the Gulf and reproductions of paintings depicting battles and complete with large loose genealogical charts showing the descent of ruling families of the United Arab Emirates and Oman including the Nahyan Qasimi and Busa'id families. The period between 1793 and 1818 marks a turning point in the history of the Gulf as the First Saudi State expanded and came into conflict with Oman and the British signed treatises with the leaders of the region. The author begins by surveying the history of the Busa'id family in Oman the confederation of Bani Yas and the Qawasim. Next he examines the eastwards expansion of the First Saudi State and the spread of its influence including the alliance between it and Ra's al-Khaima. The British decision to become militarily involved in the Gulf is presented here as the result of a desire to limit the influence of the Saudis and Wahhabism. After studying the conflict between the Saudis and the Omanis the author discusses the fall of the First Saudi State at the hands of the Ottomans and the lasting impact that the alliances formed during this period had on the emirates of the UAE. The author's research is augmented with the text of the treatises signed between the East India Company Oman and the Emirates between 1789 and 1820. The author Muhammad Morsi Abdullah was a leading historian of the emergence of the United Arab Emirates; he was awarded his doctorate at Cambridge for a thesis on the modern history of the UAE after which he returned to his work in Abu Dhabi as Director of the Documentation and Studies Center in the Office of the President of the United Arab Emirates. In 1969 Abdullah published the book "Abu Dhabi Between Yesterday and Today" as well as a map of the emirate of Abu Dhabi. In 1972 he participated in the crucial project of making the first map of the United Arab Emirates itself. Fittingly the present work was issued with seven large maps and charts alongside the book which is itself illustrated with two folding maps and numerous photographic plates providing a visual history of the UAE. Cairo: al-Maktab al-misri al-hadith, 1978. hardcover