Saqr bin Mohammad Al Qasimi

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Sheikh Saqr bin Moḥammad Al Qasimi

Sheikh Saqr of Ras al-Khaimah.jpg

Emîr (Arabic: أمير‎) (Ruler) of Ras Al Khaimah, His Highness Sheikh Saqr bin Muhammad Al Qasimi
"Emir" (monarch) of Ras Al Khaimah
Reign 17 July 1948 – 27 October 2010
Predecessor Sulṭân bin Salim Al Qasimi
Successor Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi
Born c. 1918–1920 [a]
Ras Al Khaimah,
Died 27 October 2010
Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates
Issue Khalid bin Saqr Al Qasimi
Sultan bin Saqr Al Qasimi
Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi
Mohammed bin Saqr Al Qasimi
Omar bin Saqr Al Qasimi
Talib bin Saqr Al Qasimi
Faisal bin Saqr Al Qasimi
Ahmed bin Saqr Al Qasimi

Sheikh Saqr bin Moḥammad Al Qasimi (c. 1918–1920 [a]  – 27 October 2010) was the Emîr (Arabic : أمير‎) (Ruler) of Ras Al Khaimah, an emirate on the Persian Gulf, from 1948 to 2010. On the 10th February 1972, under his leadership, Ras Al Khaimah become the seventh Trucial State to join the United Arab Emirates.

An emirate is a political territory that is ruled by a dynastic Arabic or Islamic monarch styled emir. It also means "kingdom".

Persian Gulf An arm of the Indian Ocean in western Asia

The Persian Gulf, is a mediterranean sea in Western Asia. The body of water is an extension of the Indian Ocean through the Strait of Hormuz and lies between Iran to the northeast and the Arabian Peninsula to the southwest. The Shatt al-Arab river delta forms the northwest shoreline.

Trucial States British protectorate 1820–1971, precursor to United Arab Emirates

The Trucial Coast were a group of tribal confederations in the south-eastern Persian Gulf, previously known to the British as the "Pirate Coast", which were signatories to treaties with the British Government. These treaties established an informal protectorate by the United Kingdom, and the sheikhdoms, or emirates, were a British protectorate from 1820 until 1 December 1971, when the seven principal trucial sheikhdoms became independent. Six were to form the United Arab Emirates the next day; the seventh – Ras Al Khaimah – joined the Federation on 10 February 1972.

Contents

He became the Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah on 17 July 1948, when he overthrew his paternal uncle and father-in-law [b] Sheikh Sultan bin Salim Al Qasimi in a bloodless coup d'etat. [1] Sheikh Saqr exiled Sultan to Sharjah. At the time of his death in 2010, Sheikh Saqr was the world's oldest reigning monarch at age ~90. [2]

Early life and education

Sheikh Saqr was born in the city of Ras Al Khaimah, where he was brought up in the care of his father, Sheikh Mohammad bin Salim, who ruled the emirate as regent for his ailing and paralysed father Salim bin Sultan Al Qasimi between 1917 and 1919. However, upon Mohammad bin Salim's death, his younger brother Sultan bin Salim took power. [3] Sultan bin Salim Al Qasimi was recognised by the British as the Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah in 1921. [4] :(pages 86-88)

Sheikh Saqr received a religious and primary education. He learned to read from regionally renowned clerics as a youth, [ who? ] and later joined a semi-regular school in Ras Al Khaimah to further study reading and writing, as well as principles of mathematics. He studied oratory and Arabic arts.[ citation needed ]

Rise to power


Sheikh Saqr bin Muhammad Al Qasimi became the Ruler of the emirate of Ras Al Khaimah on 17 July 1948, after a bloodless coup against Sultan bin Salim Al Qasimi, who had allegedly neglected his subjects and alienated them by secretly signing oil concessions with British company PCL (Petroleum Concessions Ltd). [4] :(pages 86-88)

His early years in power necessitated meeting the challenge posed by the Shihuh, a tribe affiliated to the Sultan of Muscat, who nevertheless lived and had holdings and customary rights in both the mountainous and coastal areas of Ras Al Khaimah, for instance the previously rebellious village of Sha'am. Both these and the oft-secessionist tribes of Za'ab in Jazirat Al Hamra and the Tanaij of Rams were brought under Ras Al Khaimah or, as in the example of the Za'ab, exiled militarily. [4] :(pages 86-88) It should be noted that the ruler of the Za'ab (Jazirat Al Hamra) was among the only 4 independent rulers who signed the first treaty with the British in 1820, while Ras Al Khaimah town was burned by the British and the capital was at Khatt. Also, the current state of Ras Al Khaimah was only recognised in 1921. A British general travelling in 1925 also speaks about the Za'ab (Jazirat Al Hamra) as a state independent of any other sheikhdom.[ citation needed ]

General Maritime Treaty of 1820

The General Maritime Treaty of 1820 was a treaty initially signed between the rulers of Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm al-Quwain and Ras Al Khaimah and the British in January 1820, with the nearby island state of Bahrain acceding to the treaty in the following February. Its full title was, "General Treaty for the Cessation of Plunder and Piracy by Land and Sea, Dated February 5, 1820".

Khatt Place in Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates

Khatt is a mountainous village south-east of the city of Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates. Famous for its hot springs, and latterly home to a spa hotel, there is evidence that Khatt has been a site of constant human settlement since the stone age – a record of over 5,000 years of occupation.

Politics and accession to UAE

After Sheikh Saqr gained complete control of Ras Al Khaimah, he began to delegate power through tribal leaders in order to avoid further bloodshed and to facilitate cooperation with the tribes. These tribal leaders functioned as middlemen between Sheikh Saqr and the people of Ras Al Khaimah; no tribal member could meet with the Emir without the permission of his respective Wali, or Sheikh.

Sheikh Saqr initially refused to support Ras Al Khaimah's accession to the UAE when it was formed on 2 December 1971, due to a dispute with Iran over Persian Gulf islands that had prior to British domination of the region been administered by the Rulers of Ras Al Khaimah and Sharjah. Following the evacuation of the British and prior to the establishment of the UAE, an Iranian naval expeditionary force landed on the islands on 30 November 1970. [4] :(pages 366-370) Sheikh Saqr made his approval of Ras Al Khaimah joining the UAE contingent on the promise by Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan of Abu Dhabi and Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum of Dubai that the new UAE Federal Government would support Ras Al Khaimah's claim to the islands. Having obtained this promise, Ras Al Khaimah joined the UAE on 10 February 1972. [4] :(pages 366-370)

Sheikh Saqr appointed his oldest son, Khalid bin Saqr Al Qasimi, as the Crown Prince of Ras Al Khaimah in 1974. Sheikh Khalid was replaced by another of Sheikh Saqr's sons, Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, on 28 April 2003, [5] and Khalid chose the Omani capital Muscat for his unconditional exile. The transfer of power marked the first time in the UAE (there were regicidal coups in Sharjah, however) that a Crown Prince had been removed in such a manner; and, at the time of the decree, UAE Army soldiers and tanks were deployed around sensitive sites in Ras Al Khaimah in case of unrest. [3]

Khalid had a reputation as a supporter of women's rights and a Western reformer, and his wife, Sheikha Fawqai Al Qasimi, was a playwright and an active campaigner for women's issues.

Sheikh Saud, however, was latterly seen by his father as a more appropriate choice as his successor, with one local official saying he was deemed "more suitable to implementing the interests of the UAE and its people". [6] Sheikh Saud has gone on to prove himself to be a leader with a keen focus on developing the emirate. [7]

Death and succession

Sheikh Saqr died on on 27 October 2010 after being ill for several months. [8] [9] The Crown Prince, Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, is his successor. Khalid bin Saqr Al Qasimi posted a web video proclaiming himself ruler of Ras Al Khaimah shortly after Sheikh Saqr's death. [10] The video was part of a broader campaign Khalid had launched to gain the support of the U.S. and regional power brokers. [3] [11]

Khalid reportedly had little support among the tribes of Ras Al Khaimah or the leaders of the other six emirates. The Federal Supreme Council, made up of the rulers of each of the UAE's seven emirates, quickly declared its support for Sheikh Saud's succession. [12] Sheikh Saud declared 40 days of mourning following his appointment. [2]

Notes

a 1 2 : A few sources such as The Daily Telegraph [3] and the Khaleej Times [13] gave 9 April 1918 as Sheikh Saqr's birth date at a time when this date was in Wikipedia. However, given the absence of a record-keeping administration in the Trucial States at the time, it is unlikely that his birth can be dated with such precision. For instance, Reuters states that Sheikh Saqr was "believed to be in his late 90s" at the time of his death, [14] while the BBC asserts that he "was in his early 90s" when he died. [12] Many reputable sources (such as the Library of Congress Country Studies, [15] reports from the British Foreign Office, [16] and Burke's Peerage [17] ) give 1920 as Sheikh Saqr's year of birth.
b 1 He married his paternal first cousin, Sheikha Nora bint Sultan Al Qasimi. [18]

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Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmad Al Qasimi was the Ruler of Sharjah from 1914–1924 and Ras Al Khaimah from 1914–1921. He acceded on the death of Saqr bin Khalid Al Qasimi. His rule was tumultuous and unpopular, marked by internecine conflicts and public discontent and saw the final disintegration of the Al Qasimi's joint rule over Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah. Deposed as Ruler of Sharjah in 1924, he went on to become ruler of Dhaid and Kalba and a highly influential figure in the Shamaliyah.

Sheikh Sultan bin Saqr Al Qasimi was the Ruler of Sharjah from 1924–1951. 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, a secessionist troublemaker from 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 was increasingly dominated by the former Ruler, Khalid bin Ahmed, 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.

Sheikh Humaid bin Abdullah Al Qasimi was Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah from 1869–1900. He survived an attempt to unseat him by the Ruler of Sharjah, with whom he later allied. He re-united Ras Al Khaimah with its secessionist dependencies.

Sheikh Sultan bin Salim Al Qasimi was Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah from 1921–1948. His long and turbulent rule was characterised by internecine family and tribal disputes and he was finally removed as Ruler in a 1948 coup.

Sheikh Hamad bin Ibrahim Al Mualla was Ruler of Umm Al Quwain from 1923–1929, one of the Trucial States which today forms part of the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Sheikh Rashid bin Humaid Al Nuaimi was the Ruler of Ajman, one of the Trucial States which today form the United Arab Emirates (UAE), from 1816–1838, leading a force of 50 men to take control of the town from members of the Al Bu Shamis tribe who had settled there and also at Al Heera. At the time, Ajman was a dependency of Sharjah. Five years after his establishment at Ajman, the fort was taken by the Darawisha Bedouin who were removed by the action of the Ruler of Sharjah, Sheikh Saqr bin Sultan Al Qasimi.

Sheikh Hamad bin Abdullah Al Sharqi is the first recognised leader of the Al Sharqi Ruling family of Fujairah, one of the Trucial States and today one of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). He led Fujairah in a number of insurrections against Al Qasimi rule, presiding over a turbulent time when the emirate was practically independent but denied recognition of status as a Trucial State in its own right by the British.

References

  1. ↑ Fryer, Jonathon (1 November 2010). "Sheikh Saqr bin Mohammed Al Qasimi". The Guardian. Retrieved November 30, 2014.
  2. 1 2 "AFP: UAE recognises new ruler of strategic northern emirate". 24 January 2013. Archived from the original on 24 January 2013.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Sheikh Saqr bin Mohammad al Qasimi". The Daily Telegraph . 27 October 2010. Retrieved 28 October 2010.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Heard-Bey, Frauke (1996). From Trucial States to United Arab Emirates. London: Longman. ISBN   0582277280.
  5. ↑ "Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah dies" . Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  6. ↑ Habboush, Mahmoud. "Ruler of UAE's Ras al-Khaimah emirate dies". U.S. Retrieved 2018-06-24.
  7. ↑ "OBG talks to Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah". Oxford Business Group. 2013-10-22. Retrieved 2018-06-24.
  8. ↑ (WAM). "Mourning across UAE after RAK ruler dies - Khaleej Times" . Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  9. ↑ "Sheikh Saqr bin Mohammad al Qasimi". The Daily Telegraph . London. ISSN   0307-1235. OCLC   49632006 . Retrieved 26 June 2012.
  10. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 26 January 2010. Retrieved 2010-02-04.
  11. ↑ http://www.spiegel.de/spiegel/0,1518,704728,00.html Spiegel Online, 5 July 2010
  12. 1 2 "Ruler of UAE emirate of Ras al-Khaimah dies". BBC News . 27 October 2010. Retrieved 28 October 2010.
  13. ↑ "A national loss". Khaleej Times . 28 October 2010. Retrieved 2010-10-28.
  14. ↑ "Ruler of UAE's Ras Al Khaimah emirate dies". Reuters. 27 October 2010. Retrieved 2010-10-28.
  15. ↑ Eric Hooglund; Anthony Toth (December 1992). Helen Chapin Metz, ed. "United Arab Emirates: A country study". Federal Research Division. Ruling Families.
  16. ↑ Preston, Paul; Partridge, Michael, eds. (2005). British Documents on Foreign Affairs: Reports and Papers from the Foreign Office Confidential Print. Part V, From 1951 through 1956. Series B, Near and Middle East, 1951. Bethesda, MD: LexisNexis. p. 140. ISBN   978-0-88692-720-2.
  17. ↑ Montgomery-Massingberd, Hugh, ed. (1980). "United Arab Emirates". Burke's Royal Families of the World. Volume II: Africa & the Middle East. London: Burke's Peerage. p. 116. ISBN   978-0-85011-029-6.
  18. ↑ "Ruling Family of Ras Al-Khaimah: Al Qasimi dynasty - Page 2 - The Royal Forums". www.theroyalforums.com.

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