Hamad ibn Isa Al Khalifa
KCIE,
CSI (6 February 1872 – 20 February 1942) was the
Hakim (ruler) of
Bahrain
Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...
from the death of his father,
Hakim Isa ibn Ali, on 9 December 1932 until his own death in 1942.
Biography
Hamad was born on 6 February 1872, the second-born son of eight of Sheikh
Isa ibn Ali Al Khalifa
Isa ibn Ali Al Khalifa (1848–9 December 1932) was the ruler of Bahrain from 1869 until his death. His title was Hakim of Bahrain. He is one of the longest reigning monarchs of the region, a reign lasting 63 years. He was forced by the Brit ...
(his elder brother predeceased him in 1893), and received a private education.
On 26 May 1923, Shaikh Hamad was officially proclaimed Deputy Ruler. On 9 December 1932 he succeeded his father on the throne of Bahrain and his appointment was made official on 9 February 1933.
He lived in the
Al-Sakhir Palace from around 1925 until his death.
He died on 20 February 1942 in Al Rumaitha, Bahrain, and was buried in the Al Hunaynya Cemetery next to his ancestor Shaikh Salman bin Ahmed Al Khalifa.
Political training and reign
Hamad and the British advisor
While the
Persian Gulf Residency
The Persian Gulf Residency () was an official colonial subdivision (i.e., residency) of the British Raj from 1763 until 1947 (and remained British protectorates after Indian independence in 1947, up to 1971), whereby the United Kingdom maint ...
was in charge of the external representation of the Emirates in the Gulf, an advisor was assigned to assist the Sheikh in managing the affairs of his Emirate. In 1926,
Charles Belgrave
Sir Charles Dalrymple Belgrave KBE (9 December 1894 – 28 February 1969) was a British citizen and advisor to the rulers of Bahrain from 1926 until 1957, as "Chief Administrator" or "adviserate". He first served under Shaikh Hamad ibn Isa Al Kha ...
was appointed the government advisor due to the unrest prevailing since 1919 over the application in Bahrain of the civil and criminal laws of the
British Raj
The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent;
*
* it is also called Crown rule in India,
*
*
*
*
or Direct rule in India,
* Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...
. Faced with this violence, then Commissioner Sir
Clive Kirkpatrick Daly
Clive is a name. People and fictional characters with the name include:
People Given name
* Clive Allen (born 1961), English football player
* Clive Anderson (born 1952), British television, radio presenter, comedy writer and former barrister
* ...
had forced Sheikh Isa to abdicate in 1923. The Raj withdrew Major Daly from Bahrain in 1926 and invited Hamad to take over as vice-ruler and appoint an advisor. Thus, Belgrave helped establish municipal government. Starting as an economic advisor, he soon became a political, military, and judicial one as well, commanding the police, judiciary, health, customers, public works, and parks departments. Although Belgrave's many duties spread him quite thin, he did manage to produce improvements in education, surveying, and internal security, serving until 1957.
Hamad’s reign and the age of oil
During King Hamad's reign, the search for oil began under the aegis of the
Bahrain Petroleum Company
The Bahrain Petroleum Company (BAPCO) is an integrated national oil company of Bahrain.
History
The BAPCO was established in 1929 in Canada by Standard Oil Company of California for oil exploration activities in Bahrain.
It took over Bahra ...
(Bapco), and in 1932 the
first oil well on the western side of the
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Persis, Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a Mediterranean sea (oceanography), me ...
began production. He had already established the first customs office in
Manama
Manama ( ar, المنامة ', Bahrani Arabic, Bahrani pronunciation: ) is the capital and largest city of Bahrain, with an approximate population of 200,000 people as of 2020. Long an important trading center in the Persian Gulf, Manama is h ...
as crown prince in 1917, and in 1923 he built a port for 5,000 rupees and appointed British customers officer Claude de Grenier as Director. In 1941, a bridge was opened between Manama and
Muharraq Island
Muharraq Island (), formerly known as Moharek, is the second largest island in the archipelago of Bahrain after Bahrain Island. It lies east of the capital, Manama, on Bahrain Island.
History
It is named after Muharraq City, the former capital ...
. Dealing with international conflicts in the region, Hamad developed electricity, water, health, and education in his territory during his reign.
Family
Hamad married four times.
* (first) Shaikha Aisha bint Ali bin Mohamed Al Khalifa, a granddaughter of Bahrain's Ruler Shaikh Mohamed bin Khalifa (1843-1868).
* (second) . Shaikha Lulwa bint Abdulla bin Sulayman Al Jalahma
* (third) Shaikha Aysha bint Rashid bin Mohamed Al Khalifa (her father Shaikh Rashid died in 1947, she died in 1953).
* (fourth) Shaikha Thajba bint Salman bin Duaij Al Khalifa (her father was Shaikh Isa bin Ali's cousin and slain in Dhahran by the Al Murrah tribe in December 1900, her mother is Latifa bint Mubarak Al Fadhel)
From these unions Hamad had a total of ten children:
*
Salman bin Hamad (1894–1961)
* Ali (1896–1997)
* Rashid (?–1916)
* Mubarak (1910–1977)
* Abdullah (1915–23 July 1973)
* Duaij (1917–April 1969)
* Ahmed (1918–1985)
* Khalifa (1912–April 1984)
* Ibrahim (1913–1972)
See also
*
Al Khalifa
The House of Khalifa ( ar, آل خليفة, translit=Āl Khalīfah) is the ruling family of the Kingdom of Bahrain. The Al Khalifas profess Sunni Islam and belong to the Anizah tribe, some members of this tribe joined the Utub alliance which m ...
*
History of Bahrain
Bahrain was a central location of the ancient Dilmun civilization. Bahrain's strategic location in the Arabian Gulf (Omar Ebn Elkhatab gulf) has brought rule and influence from mostly the Persians, Sumerians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Portuguese, ...
*
Bahrain administrative reforms of the 1920s
The administrative reforms of the 1920s were a series of British-led reforms that have laid the foundations of modern Bahrain. They took place between 1919 and 1927, but their background extends to the early 19th century. Britain signed a number o ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hamad Ibn Isa Al Khalifa (1872-1942)
House of Khalifa
Bahraini monarchs
1872 births
1942 deaths
Honorary Knights Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire
Honorary Companions of the Order of the Star of India
20th-century Bahraini people