Ruling shaikhs and Her Majesty's government, 1960-1969

"During their final years as guardians of the Gulf, British officials pressed for political progress, cooperation among the shaikhdoms and improvements in education and healthcare. At the same time, of course, Foreign Office officials continued to safeguard specific British economic interests and the political interests of the western alliance. Based on extensive research using British documents from the Public Records Office and selected American documents from the National Archives this book investigates the relationship between British officials and Arab Gulf shaikhs during the 1960s." "At the beginning of the twentieth century the British government had continued to protect the Persian/Arab Gulf and to advise its rulers. In 1903, when both Russian and French warships visited the region, Viceroy of India Lord Curzon proclaimed that any Englishman who allowed a foreign nation to infiltrate the Gulf was a traitor. Later in the century, after oil was discovered in the protected shaikhdoms, the region assumed additional importance. Hence, the loss of Empire after World War II did not diminish Britain's interest in the area." "In 1946, the British Residency was transferred from Bushire on the Iranian coast to Bahrain on the Arab side of the Gulf. Through Political Agents responsible to him the Political Resident continued to maintain close contact with the rulers of Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, the Trucial States and Oman. At the same time, the British navy proceeded to insure the security of the area. In 1956, even Britain's attempt to reoccupy the Suez Canal and to topple Egyptian leader Abdul Gamal Nasser did not alienate Gulf rulers." "The shaikhs of the region now looked to Britain to protect their states from militant Arab nationalism and possible communist infiltration. Yet, as it turned out, the 1960s was Britain's last complete decade in the Gulf. Gulf rulers did not demand that the British go. However, as a result of the economic realities faced by a post-imperial nation state and the changing perception of HMG's appropriate role in world affairs, in 1971, Britain left the region."--Jacket.