The Second Saudi State: A Nejd Emirate AAR Part Two

Flag of the Emirate of Nejd (1850)
Hello all and welcome back to the second installment of The Second Saudi State. We last left off with the annexation of Zaydi. Our fearless King, Faisal Al Saud, has now set his sights on the twin holy cities of Mecca and Medina.

The Slightly Larger Saudi State
We have annexed the Zaydi Sultanate, the Rashidi Emirate and the Kathiri Sultanate all within 14 years. This has doubled our population and solidified our position on the peninsula.

In addition to expanding geographically King Faisal has also order numerous military expansions. He hopes to have an army of 18,000 soldiers by 1865.

In addition to our French military mission, a Belgian military mission is establish in Qatif. Our troops will need to modernize if we intend to survive the next few decades.

Reactionary revolts are becoming far too common in the Emirate. This one in particular was fueled with ideals of Zaydi liberation. The revolts however, give much needed experience to our otherwise untested troops.

General Uthman has proven to be a very valuable asset to his King and his country.

Our infantry have started to adopt European style uniforms and drill to go with their weaponry. We hope this will also improve their combat ability in the field.

Smallpox breaks out in Sana'a. We contemplate whether or not we should let the disease runs it course to purge those disloyal to the King but ultimately decide to intervene.

Fadhli, one of our former allies, is attacked by the United Kingdom. They move to attack a British port and achieve some success. No British troops are spotted for 4 months giving the Sultan false hope of victory.

Just as hubris sets in, an army of 42,000 Englishmen land on the beaches of Yemen. Fadhli is annexed by the end of April. King Faisal has grown concerned over British interests in the region as this is the second sovereign Sultanate annexed. He just hopes the Nejd Emirate is not next.

Some of the King's advisers propose that the land of the Emirate could be better divvied up to increase farming efficiency. He agrees to the reform hoping it will increase the amount of funds in the state treasury.

In September, a third Sultanate is attacked by the British. This time it is one of our allies - Mahra. King Faisal knows he cannot intervene as his army is too small and weak to defeat the British. In spite of this he does all he can to help his ally, including sending them war subsidies.

British guns shelling the Arabian coastline have become far too commonplace for King Faisal's liking. He vows that the next time Britain declares war on one of the Emirate's allies he will march his army south personally and drive them from Arabia.

The British set up the state of Yemen to control their newly acquired lands. The ruler of this satellite is a Prince taken out of exile from House Kathiri with only nominal power.

In October, both the Austrians and French declare war on the Prussians. Since the Ottoman Empire was allied with Prussia, they too have been dragged into these wars. King Faisal knows the Turks are preoccupied in the North and plans to declare war sometime in February.

A joint French-Papal invasion has been launched through Austria to knock the Ottoman Empire out of the war. The Austrians, Dutch and Southern Germans meanwhile have shifted their entire focus on Prussia. Our army should face little to no resistance on our march to Mecca.

Papal and French Zouves have proved incredibly effective in modern war. The coalition armies have won a series of decisive victories in the Balkans, shattering the Ottoman Army and sending it in a full rout to Istanbul.

Before the war breaks out, a Saudi diplomat is sent to London to help strengthen British-Saudi relations. While our people view them as hostile invaders necessity forces us to maintain cordial relations. Our army cannot fight a two front war.

In February our declaration of war reaches Istanbul and Berlin. General Uthman is given full command over the army and begins the march to Mecca.

The city of Mecca was held by our House from 1803 to 1813 after 300 years of Ottoman control. King Faisal will liberate Mecca and Medina for House Saud!

Even before our armies cross into Turkish territory, Frederick William IV offers us peace on our terms. He offers us not just the cities of Mecca and Medina but the entire region of Hedjaz. We graciously accept the peace. Celebrations break out in Riyadh, Mecca and Qatif and our troops are given a glorious victory parade in the Capital overseen by the King.

King Faisal takes the title of خادم الحرمين الشريفين or Protector of the Two Holy Cities. The Holy Mosques will remain forever Saudi!

Our Kingdom now holds the center of all Islam and must unify for the good of the faith. The Kingdoms of Nejd and Hedjaz are reunited under one King, King Faisal bin Turki bin Abdullah Al Saud!

Strict Islamic Law is implemented across the Kingdom. Arabia shall be a shining beacon of Islam in the world.

In Europe, an Army of Catholics march to deliver the coup de grâce to the sick man of Europe. French and Papal guns open up on the walls of Istanbul, killing hundreds every day. Many civilians flee across the Sea of Marmara and the army slowly begins to crumble. Many draw parallels between this and the Fall of Constantinople only 403 years ago.

After a month of sieing, the city falls. The French tricolour is planted atop the Topkapı Palace and for a brief moment, Constantinople is returned to the Catholics.

With Arabia formed King Faisal decides it is time to incorporate the Gulf States into the fold. British influence has been growing steadily in the region and the King decides it is better to stab his faithful allies in the back for the good of Islam than to allow British expansion in the Gulf States.

War is declared in December and the British continue to issue strong words against our action.

Our Trucial State allies refuse to join our conquest and for good reason. Arabia stands truly alone.

But Arabia will prevail!

The war lasts 6 months and we allow Qatar to remain independent for the time being. We extend slavery to appease our reactionaries.

The city of Bahrain is placed in a near perfect geographical location. Any shipping in or out of the Persian Gulf must go near the cities making them natural trade hubs. We will use this to our advantage as we try to acquire funds for our ever growing military.

During the invasion we manage to capture a number of Bronze Muzzle Loaded Artillery pieces most likely given to the Kingdom by Britain. We incorporate them into our army and begin to create an artillery brigade.

While severely outdated, our artillery will be vastly superior to anything the other Sultanates have assembled in their armies.

With no allies left on the peninsula, Arabia looks West to find an unlikely ally in Egypt. The Egyptians have been Ottoman lap dogs until recently when they won their independence and now are heavily influenced by the United Kingdom. They have a large army and navy and thus we gladly accept their alliance.

In the past 10 years, Nejd has unified with Hedjaz and now looks to complete its conquest of the Arabian peninsula. The twin holy cities of Mecca and Medina have also been annexed by House Saud, making the country the capital of Islam. King Faisal is now 80 years old and his health is rapidly declining. It is now up to his successors to steer Arabia into the 20th century and fight off all enemies, foreign and domestic. Allāhu Akbar!