The Second Saudi State: A Nejd Emirate AAR Part Three

Flag of Arabia (1860)
Hello and welcome back to the third installment of The Second Saudi State. In the last part our fearless King Imam Faisal had liberated Hedjaz from the Ottoman Empire, allowing us to create the nation of Arabia. We resume in 1860 - the 26th and last year of Faisal's rule.

King Faisal's health has deteriorated greatly within the last few months just after his 75th birthday. His rule has seen House Saud brought back from the brink of extinction. The population has quadrupled during his rule and the country now seeks to take the final leap towards westernization.

With Bahrain conquered, the army of General Uthman is recalled to the capital. Rumors of armed militias organizing in the south have put the entire nation on alert.

The British Empire has continued to spread their influence in the region. Only our nation and the small trade city of Qatar have held out against the British advances.

On August 3rd, 1860 King Faisal bin Turki bin Abdullah Al Saud dies. His youngest son, Abdul Rahman assumed power in Riyadh. In the south King Faisal's eldest son - Saud, raises an army intent on seizing power for himself.

Loyalists and Rebels meet in Sana'a to settle the question of inheritance. While Saud's rebels fight fiercely they are no match for the professional soldiers of General Uthman and the Loyalists. Saud himself escapes to the British port of Aden, ending the rebellion. Any remaining rebels are captured and executed following the Battle of Mukalla.

Back in Riyadh it is decided to grant statehood to Hedjaz. A heated debated over whether or not to extend slavery to the region engulfs the nation for weeks. It is agreed upon that slavery shall be instated to all areas of Hedjaz except the Holy Cities of Mecca and Medina.

Before returning to the Capital, King Abdul Rahman spends a week in the city of Mecca visiting the birthplace of Muhammad and the Kaaba.

Upon returning he is given a grand welcome by House Saud and other members of his court. King of Arabia Abdul Rahman bin Faisal Al Saud, Protector of the Two Holy Cities has proven himself to be the rightful ruler of House Saud. The question of succession has been settled for now.

One of King Abdul's first actions is the destruction of British opium shipments in Hufuf. This was something his father and other local officials turned a blind eye to in the past but the King will have no part in it. The British Governor in Yemen sends a letter to the King condemning this action.

The first artillery brigade is completed. While its guns are outdated by over 20 years, it will preform well enough for our army.

In a very controversial move General Uthman is removed from his post as commander of the army. He is replaced by a young but promising upstart by the name of Zafir ibn Ahmad. General Uthman is then assigned a post in Northern Hedjaz commanding the Army of Hedjaz.

The first of many Arabian ships are completed. The ships will be used mainly for transporting our troops from one side of the peninsula to the other but serves the dual purpose of controlling the Persian Gulf.

Our Egyptian allies allow a British company to build a canal through their country. This canal will connect the Mediterranean to the Red Sea allowing Arabian shipping to more easily reach European markets.

They expect the canal to be done in 15 years and will include over 1.5 million Egyptian laborers.

A second rebellion breaks out in Hedjaz against King Abdul's rule. The rebels almost manage to seize the city of Mecca but are beaten back by armed citizens and militia.

After the rebellion is out down, King Abdul begins to justify war on Qatar. Qatar is the last free city on the peninsula and must be annexed by our nation to prevent it from falling under British influence.

Our navy is ordered to blockade Doha while the war goes on.

While severely outdated, our ships are better than nothing.

Many European Great Powers meet in Turin to discuss the fate of the Ottoman Empire and the Balkans. Four small Balkan states are given their independence. This is largely irrelevant to us but anything that weakens the Turkish is a very welcome sight in Arabia.

We declare war in September and our army enters Doha.

Oman sends an army into our country to relieve pressue off of their Qatari allies. They pull back to their country before we can engage them.

In a move of hubris and overconfidence, King Abdul decides to expand his war goals to take the port city of Khasab from Oman.

The British issue a declaration of war against our Kingdom to maintain the Status Quo on the peninsula. Instead of surrendering King Adbul decides to fight against the British oppressors.

General Uthman's Army of Hedjaz is ordered to seize the British port of Aden to prevent the British from landing troops in the south.

General Zafir engages the Omani Army in Al-Ahsa. While slightly outnumbered, General Zafir has the advantage of artillery. The battle initially goes well for House Saud but an Omani Cavalry charge shatters our morale and slaughters our infantry by the thousands.

Our army is forced to retreat after losing over 10,000 men. Any hope of Saudi victory in this war has been crushed. This would be the worst Saudi military defeat in recent history.

As if to add insult to injury, the British land an expeditionary army to seize the port city of Qatif.

Over 50,000 soldiers from England, Scotland and Wales march on our capital with not a single Saudi soldier attempting to oppose them.

We are forced to accept a humiliating peace of Status Quo with not a single piece of territory gained for our thousands of dead. A planned coup in Riyadh by some members of House Saud gains traction but is stamped out once the army returns to the capital.

To ensure this never happens again, King Abdul passes reforms allowing French, Belgian and German military officers to settle in Arabia to train our army. Over the next few months dozens of European officers flock to Riyadh to receive a commission in our army.

Almost 2 years after the disastrous Battle of Al-Ahsa, General Zafir ibn Ahmad is found dead in his Al Jawf home. The cause of death is determined to be a self inflicted bullet wound. Many had blamed General Zafir for the loss of 1866. None had blamed him more for this than himself. General Uthman is quickly reinstated as commander of the army.

We continue to bow to some requests made by Western nations in order to further our technological advances. The most recent was the creation of a Legation Quarter in Riyadh.

The nation has suffered 5 revolts of various degrees in the past 11 years. Some have been led by exiled members of House Saud, some have been led by peasants and others have been army mutinies. The citizens have began to question King Abdul's rule.

In the Ottoman Empire, Jacobin Rebels stab the Turkish Army in the back and seize Istanbul during a war with France. They turn the Ottoman Empire into a liberal democracy and declare the new nation of Turkey.

King Abdul sees the weakness of his northern neighbors and chooses now to prove to his people that he is a strong and capable ruler.

A weak secular republic has been established in the place of the once mighty Ottoman Empire that brought our nation to its knees.

Our people rally behind our King as he calls for war with the Turkish to liberate our Bedouin brethren.

The Great Powers of the world sit by as we justify and declare war for Transjordan. In fact many western leaders urge us on to deliver a killing blow to the Turkish menace.

War is declared and our armies march north.

Our Egyptian allies are embroiled in a rebellion of their own. King Abdul decides it would be best to call them into the war later.

Just as our army crosses into Turkish territory General Uthman ibn Abd Allah dies at the age of 72. He was our finest general and much of House Sauds' success is credited to him. He is given a large state funeral in Riyadh and is posthumously awarded the title Hero of Arabia. He is replaced by General Yahya ibn Ja'far.

We call our Egyptian allies into the war but they refuse. We reform the alliance and wait to call them into the war later.

Just as we finish occupying much of Transjordan, reactionary rebels rise in the South to repel the Turkish invaders and oust King Abdul.

We fight our first battle against the Turkish forces. They crumble after a cavalry charge and heavy artillery bombardment.

We notice a large Turkish army of 14,000 marching south against our 13,500 men. We call the Egyptians in one last time and miraculously they accept.

The Egyptians assemble an army of 67,000 to defeat the Turkish and aid us in our conquest.

Arabian Infantry (1872)
Our modernized equipment and tactics acquired by Faisal's reforms have proved to be invaluable.

The Egyptian Army quickly halts the Turkish counterattack and begins to push up through Palestine towards Anatolia.

The Turkish Government surrenders to our demands on February 28th. After a decade of turmoil this victory has been eagerly awaited.

We continue to pass reforms now reaching 70% westernization.

Knowing that we cannot hold against British influence forever, King Abdul agrees to meet a British delegation in Riyadh.

Eventually British influence has grown enough in the region to sphere Arabia. While still fiercely independent, many government officials now speak English and send their children to Britain for schooling. British trading posts are common throughout coastal cities. Even British officers advise our Army in the latest military tactics learned in Britain's most recent colonial wars.

With a weakened Turkish state to the North and friendly British to our South, it is time to consolidate power once and for all.

Qatar remains the last nation not under British influence. We shall bring an end to that and incorporate it into our own Kingdom.

We declare war in March and Oman joins on the side of our enemies again. We will not make the same mistake we did in the last war.

We siege Qatar and end the war. The Omani offer us a white peace which we gladly accept.

A Bahraini Harbor (1876)
The cities of Qatar and Bahrain will soon become the richest cities in the region. Their strategic location allows us to control a large portion of shipping coming in and out of the Persian Gulf.

Kingdom of Arabia (1876)
The age of Ironclads and Machine Guns has forced our nation closer to Britain out of necessity. Our leaders of old are no more and our new leaders are ready to take Arabia down the path towards civilization. House Saud and the Second Saudi State will prevail! Allāhu Akbar!