Dhaid Fort

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Dhaid Fort
Near Dhaid in  Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
Dhaid Fort.jpg
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Dhaid Fort
Coordinates 25°17′N55°53′E / 25.283°N 55.883°E / 25.283; 55.883
Site information
ConditionRestored
Site history
Built1750
MaterialsRock, mudbrick

Dhaid Fort, (Also known as Al Hisn Dhaid) is a restored C18th fortification in the city of Dhaid, Sharjah, in the United Arab Emirates. It has long been an important stronghold for the Ruling families of Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah and a key strategic asset in maintaining a historical Qawasim dominance of the inland areas of the Northern Emirates.

Contents

Heritage

The reconstruction of the ruined fort took place between 2017 and 2021 and was undertaken on the orders of the Ruler of Sharjah and noted historian, Dr Sultan bin Muhammed Al Qasimi. The original fortification dates back to 1750. [1] The reconstruction of the fort and surrounding area involved the demolition of a number of illegal buildings, including labour accommodation. [2] The fort is intended to form the centre of a new heritage area in the city, including a public square, the restoration of the Al-Sharia Mosque, the construction of a folklore market and majlis as well as a wildlife museum. [3]

Dhaid Fort and the city's extensive oasis formed part of Sharjah's 2018 bid for UNESCO World Heritage Status, under the heading 'Sharjah, Gateway to the Trucial States', [4] which also included the Heart of Sharjah; Sharjah Fort; the former barracks of the Trucial Oman Scouts in Mirgab; Al Mahatta Fort, the first airport in the Gulf; the coastal town of Khor Fakkan; the oasis and settlement of Wadi Helo and Fili Fort, all following the Heart of Sharjah theme of a return to the simplicity and natural lifestyles of the late 1950s. [5]

History

The largest inland city in the Emirate of Sharjah and also the oldest, [6] the fertile oasis of Dhaid has long occupied a strategic location in the mouth of the important Wadi Siji. [7] The city has been a centre of human habitation since the Neolithic [8] and is located in an important crossroads between the Hajar Mountains, Jiri Plain and desert of Sharjah. [9] The fort reflects the strategic importance of Dhaid as a Qawasim stronghold. The city was traditionally dominated by the Tanaij, Bani Qitab and Khawatir Bedouin tribes. [10]

Dhaid Fort was a key element in the 1920s power struggle between the deposed Ruler of Sharjah, Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmad Al Qasimi and the Ruler, Sheikh Sultan bin Saqr Al Qasimi. [11] Traditionally held on behalf of the Ruler of Sharjah by a wali , Dhaid was a source of significant revenue (generating some 228 Maria Theresa Dollars annually in water rates, let alone the substantial revenues from dates and other agriculture in the area). An agreement was made between the two men that ceded Dhaid to Khalid bin Ahmad, but the fort was held by Bedouin loyal to Sultan bin Saqr. An agreement was made between the Al Qasimi Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah and the Sheikhs of two Bedouin tribes, the Bani Ka'ab and Na'im, that Dhaid would be held by Ras Al Khaimah on Khalid bin Ahmad's behalf, although the arrangement was never put fully in place, Khalid bin Ahmad taking possession of the fort and oasis in July 1928. [11]

The unusual structure of Dhaid Fort was noted by historian JG Lorimer in his 1915 survey and gazetteer of the region, in which he records a town of some 140 houses dominated by the "four-towered Al Qasimi fort, featuring two round and two square towers." [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dhaid</span> Place in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates

Dhaid, or Al Dhaid, is the capital of the Central Region of the Emirate of Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates. An oasis town, it has extensive irrigated date palm plantations with water channelled from the nearby Hajar mountains, at least in part through ancient tunnels dug for that purpose, known as aflāj in Arabic.

Sheikh Sultan bin Saqr Al Qasimi (1781–1866) was the Sheikh of the Qawasim and ruled the towns of Sharjah, Ras Al Khaimah, Jazirah Al Hamra and Rams; all within the then Trucial States and now part of the United Arab Emirates. Briefly a dependent of the first Saudi Kingdom, his rule over Ras Al Khaimah ran from 1803–1809, when he was deposed by order of the Saudi Amir and restored in 1820, going on to rule until his death in 1866 at the age of 85. He was Ruler of Sharjah from 1814–1866, with a brief disruption to that rule in 1840 by his elder son Saqr. He was a signatory to various treaties with the British, starting with the General Maritime Treaty of 1820 and culminating in the Perpetual Maritime Truce of 1853.

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Sheikh Sultan II bin Saqr Al Qasimi was the Ruler of Sharjah, a Trucial State and now one of the United Arab Emirates, from 1924 to 1951. His father having ceded the rule of Sharjah to Khalid bin Ahmad Al Qasimi, Sultan found himself dispossessed and married the daughter of Abdulrahman bin Shamsi, the headman of Al Heera. Buoyed by Khalid's unpopularity and Abdulrahman's force of personality and arms, Sultan deposed Khalid and became Ruler of Sharjah. However, he found the interior of the country dominated by Bedouin tribes and the East coast increasingly dominated by the former Ruler, Khalid bin Ahmad, leaving Sultan the effective ruler of a cluster of coastal settlements, many of which constantly tried to secede from his rule. He is cited as having presided over a low ebb in the power of the Al Qasimi, formerly a powerful maritime federation.

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The Perpetual Maritime Truce of 1853 was a treaty signed between the British and the Rulers of the Sheikhdoms of the Lower Gulf, later to become known as the Trucial States and today known as the United Arab Emirates. The treaty followed the effective subjugation of the Qawasim maritime federation and other coastal settlements of the Lower Gulf by British forces following the Persian Gulf campaign of 1819, a punitive expedition mounted from Bombay which sailed against Ras Al Khaimah, and which resulted in the signing of the General Maritime Treaty of 1820.

References

  1. ↑ "Sharjah Ruler visits Al Dhaid city, inspects vital projects". wam. Retrieved 2021-04-24.
  2. ↑ "Sharjah starts demolishing illegal structures in Al Dhaid". www.zawya.com. Retrieved 2021-04-24.
  3. ↑ "Sharjah Ruler inspects progress of construction of Al Dhaid Fort". www.sharjah24.ae. Retrieved 2021-04-24.
  4. ↑ "Sharjah: Gateway to the Trucial States – PenguinCube" . Retrieved 2021-04-24.
  5. ↑ "gulftoday.ae | Heart of Sharjah, Khorfakkan, Al Dhaid in the running for Unesco World Heritage Site title". gulftoday.ae. Archived from the original on 2022-12-24. Retrieved 2018-12-03.
  6. ↑ "Shurooq discusses development and investment potentials of Al Dhaid City". Sharjah Investment and Development Authority. 2013-06-09. Retrieved 2021-04-24.
  7. ↑ Heard-Bey, Frauke (2004). From Trucial States to United Arab Emirates. Motivate. pp. 91–96. ISBN   978-1-8606-3167-2.
  8. ↑ Zriqat, Thaer (2015-03-31). "Another ancient Sharjah site found by archaeologists". The National . Retrieved 2018-04-15.
  9. ↑ "Sultan inspects development projects in Al Dhaid at Central Region". The Personal Website of H.H. Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi. Retrieved 2021-04-24.
  10. 1 2 Lorimer, John (1908). The Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf, Oman and Central Arabia. Government of India.
  11. 1 2 Heard-Bey, Frauke (2004). From Trucial States to United Arab Emirates. Motivate. pp. 91–96. ISBN   978-1-8606-3167-2.
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