The History of Kuwait
The origins of Kuwait lie in the early 18th century, when clans of the Anaiza tribe migrated north from Qatar and the centre of the Arabian peninsula and came to populate the region. Archaeological discoveries on Kuwait’s Failaka Island have suggested an ancient civilisation inhabited the region prior to this, from around 2800BC, which had trade links with the Sumerians. The island was known to the ancient Greeks and exploited as a supply route for trade, yet appears to have been abandoned as a permanent settlement in the 1st century. In 1718, the settled tribesmen selected their ruler from the Al-Sabah family, Sheikh Sabah al-Awal. He became the Gulf state’s first emir and his successors remain in power today. The country suffered during the latter part of the 18th century, with raids by land and sea that damaged its trade links. But with British assistance in suppressing marine piracy, the emirate became a vital stopover point on international trading routes.
The 19th century saw Kuwait seek closer ties with the British government, to ward off threats from the Ottoman Turks and other powerful forces in the Arabian Peninsula seeking to annex the country into their boundaries. In January 1899, Sheikh Mubarak al-Sabah signed a treaty with Britain pledging that he and his successors would not cede any territory or receive agents or representatives of any foreign power without the consent of the British government.
During Mubarak’s rule, Kuwait’s pearl industry flourished, becoming the primary source of income for the country’s 35,000 inhabitants. Small scale fishing and ship building provided additional sources of revenue. Arabian pearls were traded worldwide during this time, but their value began to decline in the 1920s when Japanese cultured pearls entered the market. The industry was further hit by a fall in demand as a result of the Great Depression, which began in 1929, and the Second World War. Fortunately for Kuwait, this period also marked the establishment of the emirate’s oil industry.
Sheikh Mubarak was succeeded by his two sons, Jaber and Salim, who ruled from 1915-17 and 1917-21 respectively. But it was under the subsequent reign of Jaber’s son, Sheikh Ahmed al-Jaber al-Sabah, who held power from 1921 until his death in 1950, that oil was first discovered in Kuwait. The find was preceded by the formation of Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) in 1934, a partnership between the then Anglo-Persian Oil Company, now known as BP, and Gulf Oil Corporation, now known as Chevron. In 1938, oil was discovered in the Burgan field in commercial quantities, laying the path for Kuwait to become a leading oil exporter.
Sheikh Ahmed’s rule also saw the establishment of Kuwait’s first internationally recognised boundaries. In 1922, the Treaty of Uqair fixed Kuwait’s border with Saudi Arabia and determined a Kuwaiti-Saudi Arabia Divided Zone, which comprised a 5,180 square kilometre area adjoining Kuwait’s southern border. Sheikh Ahmed was succeeded by his cousin and son of former ruler Sheikh Salem, Sheikh Abdullah al-Salem al-Sabah. During his tenure, on 19 June 1961, Kuwait and Great Britain terminated their protective treaty relations and Kuwait declared itself a sovereign and independent nation.
Sheikh Abdullah’s death in 1965 ushered in the rule of his half-brother, Sheikh Sabah al-Salem al-Sabah. Kuwait witnessed unprecedented prosperity during his reign, driven by its burgeoning oil trade. The state took full control of KOC in 1975 under efforts to nationalise Kuwait’s oil resources, a pivotal point in the country’s history. Sheikh Sabah’s government also signed an agreement with Saudi Arabia that split the Divided Zone and demarcated new international boundaries. The nations share the onshore and offshore petroleum of the Divided Zone equally. Kuwait was transformed during this period into a highly developed welfare state with a free market economy.