Abdullah bin Faisal Al Saud (1831–1889)

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Not to be confused with
Abdullah bin Faisal bin Abdulaziz
.
In this
Al Saud
.

Abdullah bin Faisal Al Saud
Emir of Nejd
Reign1876–1889
PredecessorAbdul Rahman bin Faisal
SuccessorAbdul Rahman bin Faisal
Reign1871–1873
PredecessorSaud bin Faisal
SuccessorSaud bin Faisal
Reign1865–1871
PredecessorFaisal bin Turki
SuccessorSaud bin Faisal
Born1831
Died2 December 1889 (aged 57–58)
Riyadh
Spouse
  • Turayfa bint Ubayd Al Rashid
  • Noura bint Abdullah Al Rashid
Names
Abdullah bin Faisal bin Turki bin Abdullah
HouseAl Saud
FatherFaisal bin Turki Al Saud

Abdullah bin Faisal Al Saud (

Al Saud
family which led to turmoil in the region.

Early life

Abdullah was born in 1831.

Faisal bin Turki bin Abdullah, who ruled the Emirate of Najd[2] for 26 years.[3][4] He had three brothers: Saud, Mohammad and Abdul Rahman.[5][6][7] Of them Saud and Abdul Rahman were his half-brothers.[8] The mother of Abdullah and Mohammad was from the Al Saud.[9]

In December 1838 his father was surrendered by Egyptian commander

Khurshid Pasha and sent to Egypt.[9] Abdullah and his brother Mohammad accompanied their father together with their uncle Jiluwi bin Turki.[9] Following his return to Nejd Faisal bin Turki managed to reestablish his rule, and during his reign there occurred a rivalry between his sons, Abdullah and Saud.[10]

In addition, the personality of Abdullah and Saud was very different in that the latter was much more liberal, but the former was a strict religious man.[10] Another difference between them is that Abdullah was a skilled military leader, but an autocratic administrator, whereas Saud was energetic and extrovert.[11]

Heir apparent

In June 1865 Abdullah was made heir apparent by his father, Faisal bin Turki.

Ajman tribe.[12] They rebelled against Faisal bin Turki in 1854 and again challenged his rule in 1860, but Faisal sent a large force against the Ajman tribe led by Abdullah who defeated them.[12] Next year the Ajman tribe reattempted to end the rule of Faisal which led to their total destruction.[12]

William Palgrave, an English priest and traveller, met with heir apparent Abdullah while visiting the region.[13] Palgrave described him as a proud, cruel and fearless politician.[13] Abdullah asked Palgrave to get him strychnine.[13] Palgrave believed that Abdullah wanted it to poison his old father to start his reign before his brother, Saud, would get more power.[13] Palgrave did not accept his offer, and then he was accused by Abdullah of espionage and was almost executed for his Christian beliefs.[13]

Reign

Main article: Attack on Dammam

Faisal died in December 1865, and Abdullah succeeded him.

Wahhabi leaders.[6] Sheikh Abdul Rahman (1779–1868) who was the grandson of Sheikh Mohammad ibn Abdul Wahhab and the son of Hasan bin Mohammad publicly announced that people should support Abdullah due to the fact that his succession had been previously established by Imam Faisal bin Turki.[6][18]

In the first year of his reign Abdullah signed a treaty with the British authorities to get financial assistance and protection.[19] The same year he started the construction of Masmak Fort in Riyadh.[13][20] In 1867 the Ottomans send him a certificate of governance to strengthen his position as a ruler and to support him against the competitors.[21]

Although his succession was not problematic and his brother Saud also declared his allegiance to Abdullah,

Trucial Oman.[15] The Ajman tribe supported Saud in his struggle with Abdullah.[4][1] Abdullah's supporters were the tribes of Subai' and Al Suhul from the Al 'Aridh and the Qahtan of Najd during his struggle with Saud.[4] Abdullah's another brother, Mohammad, also challenged his rule.[23]

Therefore, Abdullah demanded the assistance of the Ottoman forces to defeat Saud and others

qaimmaqam of Nejd in 1871.[26]

Saud won his struggle against Abdullah in the battle of Juda in December 1871, but at the same time a civil war broke out which lasted for more than a decade.[14][15] Abdullah escaped to Al Qasim to take assistance from the Al Rashids.[15] Instead, he was able to get assistance from the Qahtan tribe.[15] Following a brief rule of Saud Abdullah regained the throne, and Sheikh Abdul Latif, great-grandson of Mohammad bin Abdul Wahab,[18] announced his support to Abdullah.[6] The alliance between Abdullah and Ottomans ended in 1872 due to the former's reluctance to continue the cooperation.[24] In fact, Abdullah was regretful of his decision about formation of an alliance with the Ottomans.[25]

Abdullah's second term lasted one more year ending in 1873 when Saud again became the ruler. This time the youngest brother, Abdul Rahman, ended the reign of Saud in 1875,[5] but Abdul Rahman's rule was very brief.[27] Abdullah regained the power the same year when his rival brother Saud died.[22] However, Abdullah's reign also lasted very short.[27]

In 1887 Abdullah bin Faisal was imprisoned by Mohammad bin Saud, son of Saud bin Faisal.

Hail.[5][28] Eventually Al Rashids forced the members of the Al Saud family to leave Riyadh[29] when they were defeated by Mohammad bin Abdullah Al Rashid in the battle of Mulayda in 1891.[30]

Reasons for his failure to consolidate power

Years later King Abdulaziz stated three major reasons for the failure of his uncle, Abdullah bin Faisal, as follows: (1) negative propaganda of Abdullah's nephews in

Al Kharj; (2) Abdullah's support for the Al ‘Ulayyan, the former rulers of Al Qassim, against the Al Muhanna, the rulers of the region and (3) the attempts of Mohammad Al Rashid to capture Najd.[31] Another factor cited by R. Bayly Winder, an expert on the history of Arabia, is that Abdullah tended to appoint non-local administrators to the regions and to his government and made them very powerful.[32] Such practices which caused irritation among the local people had not been followed by the previous Saudi rulers.[32]

In addition to these factors Abdullah bin Faisal did not have any male offsprings who could support him against the contenders such as his half-brother Saud who had six sons.[33] Therefore, Abdullah could not manage to have a large number of supporters in the family.[33]

Personal life and death

One of Abdullah bin Faisal's spouses, Turayfa bint Ubayd, was from the Rashidi dynasty who was the niece of Abdullah bin Ali Al Rashid, emir of Jabal Shammar.[16][34] Abdullah also married another woman from the Rashidi dynasty: Noura, the daughter of Abdullah bin Ali Al Rashid.[32] The marriage took place soon after the beginning of Imam Faisal's second term.[32] Noura's father and brother, Talal bin Abdullah, joined the wedding ceremony in Riyadh.[32]

Abdullah had several daughters and had only one son who died young.[33] His daughter, Noura bint Abdullah, married Talal bin Abdullah.[35] Another, Sara, was one of King Abdulaziz's spouses, and they did not have any child.[9] Abdullah's another daughter wed Sheikh Abdul Latif Al Sheikh.[15]

Abdullah died in Riyadh on 2 December 1889 shortly after he was brought there by his younger brother, Abdul Rahman, from Hail.[5][34][36] Following the exile of his family in 1891 the palace of Abdullah in Riyadh was used by the Al Rashid governr, Ajlan.[37]

References

  1. ^ a b Khalid Abdullah Krairi (2017). John Philby and his political roles in the Arabian Peninsula, 1917-1953 (PhD thesis). University of Birmingham. p. 246.
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  3. ^ "Faisal bin Turki [1834-1834, 1843-1865]". Global Security. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  4. ^ a b c Talal Sha'yfan Muslat Al-Azma' (July 1999). The Role of the Ikhwan under 'Abdul-Aziz Al Sa'ud 1916-1934 (PDF) (PhD thesis). Durham University.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Parvaiz Ahmad Khanday (2009). A Critical Analysis of the Religio-Political Conditions of Modern Saudi Arabia (PDF) (PhD thesis). Aligarh Muslim University.
  6. ^ a b c d e Alejandra Galindo Marines (2001). The relationship between the ulama and the government in the contemporary Saudi Arabian Kingdom: an interdependent relationship (PDF) (PhD thesis). Durham University.
  7. JSTOR 20028652
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  8. ^ Roby C. Barrett (June 2015). "Saudi Arabia: Modernity, Stability, and the Twenty-First Century Monarchy" (Report). Joint Special Operations University. p. 23. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  9. ^
    ProQuest 303295482
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  11. ISBN 978-0-8160-7876-9. Archived from the original
    (PDF) on 26 May 2021.
  12. ^ a b c d e f Bilal Ahmad Kutty (1997). Saudi Arabia under King Faisal (PDF) (PhD thesis). Aligarh Muslim University. pp. 45–46, 49.
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  17. ISBN 978-81-901254-0-6
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  19. ^ Abdullah Mohammad Sindi. "The Direct Instruments of Western Control over the Arabs: The Shining Example of the House of Saud" (PDF). Social sciences and humanities. Retrieved 25 January 2021.
  20. JSTOR 4323104
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  21. doi:10.7827/TurkishStudies.13498
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  22. ^
    doi:10.3917/crii.046.0125
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    doi:10.1017/npt.2017.7
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  25. ^ a b c d Abdulaziz H. Al Fahad (May 2004). "Commentary. From Exclusivism to Accommodation: Doctrinal and Legal Evolution of Wahhabism" (PDF). New York University Law Review. 79 (2).
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  27. ^ a b Odah Sultan Odah (1988). Saudi-American relation 1968-78: A study in ambiguity (PhD thesis). University of Salford.
  28. ISBN 978-0-521-64412-9
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  29. ISBN 978-1-351-76820-7
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  30. S2CID 232245475
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  31. ProQuest 1666383783
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  33. ^
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  34. ^
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  35. ISBN 978-0-8444-0791-3. Archived
    (PDF) from the original on 18 March 2022.
  36. ^ Jerald L. Thompson (December 1981). H. St. John Philby, Ibn Saud and Palestine (MA thesis). University of Kansas.
  37. JSTOR 1780633
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