The Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen ( ar, المملكة المتوكلية اليمنية '), also known as the Kingdom of Yemen or simply as Yemen, or, retrospectively, as North Yemen, was a state that existed between 1918 and 1962 in the northwestern part of what is now
Yemen
Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, north and ...
. Its capital was
Sana'a
Sanaa ( ar, صَنْعَاء, ' , Yemeni Arabic: ; Old South Arabian: 𐩮𐩬𐩲𐩥 ''Ṣnʿw''), also spelled Sana'a or Sana, is the capital and largest city in Yemen and the centre of Sanaa Governorate. The city is not part of the Governo ...
until 1948, then
Taiz. From 1962 to 1970, it maintained control over portions of Yemen (frequently most) until its final defeat in the
North Yemen Civil War. Yemen was admitted to the
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
on 30 September 1947.
History
Background
Zaidi religious leaders expelled forces of the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
from what is now northern Yemen by the middle of the 17th century but, within a century, the unity of Yemen was fractured due to the difficulty of governing Yemen's mountainous terrain.
In 1849, the Ottoman Empire occupied the coastal
Tihamah
Tihamah or Tihama ( ar, تِهَامَةُ ') refers to the Red Sea coastal plain of the Arabian Peninsula from the Gulf of Aqaba to the Bab el Mandeb.
Etymology
Tihāmat is the Proto-Semitic language's term for 'sea'. Tiamat (or Tehom, in mas ...
region to put pressure on the Zaiddiyah imam to sign a treaty recognizing Ottoman
suzerainty
Suzerainty () is the rights and obligations of a person, state or other polity who controls the foreign policy and relations of a tributary state, while allowing the tributary state to have internal autonomy. While the subordinate party is cal ...
and allowing for a small Ottoman force to be stationed in
Sana'a
Sanaa ( ar, صَنْعَاء, ' , Yemeni Arabic: ; Old South Arabian: 𐩮𐩬𐩲𐩥 ''Ṣnʿw''), also spelled Sana'a or Sana, is the capital and largest city in Yemen and the centre of Sanaa Governorate. The city is not part of the Governo ...
. However, the Ottomans were slow to gain control over Yemen and never managed to eliminate all resistance from local Zaydis. In 1913, shortly before
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, the Ottoman Empire was forced to cede some power formally to
highland
Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally speaking, upland (or uplands) refers to ranges of hills, typically from up to while highland (or highlands) is ...
Zaydis.
Independence
On 30 October 1918, following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire,
Imam Yahya Muhammad of the
al-Qasimi dynasty
A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family,''Oxford English Dictionary'', "dynasty, ''n''." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1897. usually in the context of a monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A ...
declared northern Yemen an independent
sovereign state
A sovereign state or sovereign country, is a polity, political entity represented by one central government that has supreme legitimate authority over territory. International law defines sovereign states as having a permanent population, defin ...
. In 1926, Yahya proclaimed the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen, becoming both a temporal king as well as a (Zaydi)
spiritual leader, and won
international recognition for his new state, such as with the
Kingdom of Italy
The Kingdom of Italy ( it, Regno d'Italia) was a state that existed from 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 1946, when civil discontent led to ...
, entering into the
Italo-Yemeni Treaty
{{Short description, 1926 treaty between Italy and Yemen
The Italo-Yemeni Treaty of 1926 (also known as the Treaty of San'a) was a treaty between the Kingdom of Italy and Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen. The treaty was signed in September 1926 and ...
in 1926.
Consolidation
In the 1920s, Yahya had expanded his power to the north into
Tihamah
Tihamah or Tihama ( ar, تِهَامَةُ ') refers to the Red Sea coastal plain of the Arabian Peninsula from the Gulf of Aqaba to the Bab el Mandeb.
Etymology
Tihāmat is the Proto-Semitic language's term for 'sea'. Tiamat (or Tehom, in mas ...
, but he collided with the rising influence of the
Saudi Saudi may refer to:
* Saudi Arabia
* Saudis, people from Saudi Arabia
* Saudi culture, the culture of Saudi Arabia
* House of Saud
The House of Saud ( ar, آل سُعُود, ʾĀl Suʿūd ) is the ruling royal family of Saudi Arabia. It is c ...
king of
Nejd and Hejaz,
Abdul Aziz ibn Sa'ud. In the early 1930s, Saudi forces retook much of these gains before withdrawing from some of the area, including the southern Tihamah city of
Al Hudaydah
Al-Hudaydah ( ar, الْحُدَيْدَة, al-ḥudayda), also transliterated as Hodeda, Hodeida, Hudaida or Hodeidah, is the fourth-largest city in Yemen and its principal port on the Red Sea.
As of 2004, its population was 402,560 and it is ...
. The present-day boundary with
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...
was established by 20 May 1934
Treaty of Taif, following the
Saudi–Yemeni War in 1934. Yahya's non-recognition of his kingdom's southern boundary with the
British Aden Protectorate (later the
People's Democratic Republic of Yemen
South Yemen ( ar, اليمن الجنوبي, al-Yaman al-Janubiyy), officially the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen (, ), also referred to as Democratic Yemen (, ) or Yemen (Aden) (, ), was a communist state that existed from 1967 to 19 ...
) that had been negotiated by his Ottoman predecessors resulted in occasional clashes with the British.
In 1932, the governments of Yemen and the
Kingdom of Iraq
The Hashemite Kingdom of Iraq ( ar, المملكة العراقية الهاشمية, translit=al-Mamlakah al-ʿIrāqiyyah ʾal-Hāshimyyah) was a state located in the Middle East from 1932 to 1958.
It was founded on 23 August 1921 as the Kingdo ...
signed a treaty which led to the training of Yemeni Army officers in Iraq. Later, several of them would play a key role in the
1962 coup d'état in North Yemen.
Robert D. Burrowes: ''Historical Dictionary of Yemen'', Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press 2000, p. 190.
/ref>
The Kingdom of Yemen became a founding member of the Arab League
The Arab League ( ar, الجامعة العربية, ' ), formally the League of Arab States ( ar, جامعة الدول العربية, '), is a regional organization in the Arab world, which is located in Northern Africa, Western Africa, E ...
in 1945 and joined the United Nations on 30 September 1947. It committed a small expeditionary force to the 1948 Arab–Israeli War
The 1948 (or First) Arab–Israeli War was the second and final stage of the 1948 Palestine war. It formally began following the end of the British Mandate for Palestine at midnight on 14 May 1948; the Israeli Declaration of Independence had ...
.[Morris, Benny (2008)]
''1948: The First Arab-Israeli War''
Yale University Press
Yale University Press is the university press of Yale University. It was founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day, and became an official department of Yale University in 1961, but it remains financially and operationally autonomous.
, Yale Universi ...
, p.205, New Haven, .
Instability and decline
Imam Yahya
, succession1 = King of Yemen
, succession2 = Imam of Yemen
, image = Imam yahya cropped.png
, image_size =
, caption = Portrait of Yahya by Ameen Rihani, 1922. Imam Yahya steadfastly refused to be photographed thro ...
was assassinated in an unsuccessful coup d'état in 1948 but was eventually succeeded by a firm heir – Yahya's son, Imam Ahmad bin Yahya
, succession = King and Imam of Yemen
, image = YemenAhmad.jpg
, image_size =
, caption =
, reign = 17 February 1948 – 19 September 1962
, predecessor = Yahya Muhammad Hamid ed-Din
, successor = ...
, who regained power several months later. His reign was marked by growing development, openness and renewed friction with the United Kingdom over the British presence in the south that stood in the way of his aspirations for the creation of Greater Yemen. He was slightly more forward-thinking than his father and was more open to foreign contacts. Nonetheless, his regime, like his father's, was autocratic and semi-medieval in character; even the most mundane measures required his personal approval.
In March 1955, a coup by a group of officers and two of Ahmad's brothers briefly deposed the king but was quickly suppressed. Ahmad faced growing pressures, supported by the Arab nationalist
Arab nationalism ( ar, القومية العربية, al-Qawmīya al-ʿArabīya) is a nationalist ideology that asserts the Arabs are a nation and promotes the unity of Arab people, celebrating the glories of Arab civilization, the language an ...
and pan-Arabist objectives of the President of Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
, Gamal Abdel Nasser
Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein, . (15 January 1918 – 28 September 1970) was an Egyptian politician who served as the second president of Egypt from 1954 until his death in 1970. Nasser led the Egyptian revolution of 1952 and introduced far-re ...
, and, in April 1956, he signed a mutual defense pact with Egypt. In March 1958, Yemen joined the United Arab Republic
The United Arab Republic (UAR; ar, الجمهورية العربية المتحدة, al-Jumhūrīyah al-'Arabīyah al-Muttaḥidah) was a sovereign state in the Middle East from 1958 until 1971. It was initially a political union between Eg ...
(a federation of Egypt and Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
formed in February 1958) in a confederation
A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a union of sovereign groups or states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...
known as the United Arab States
The United Arab States (UAS, ar, الدول العربية المتحدة) was a short-lived confederation of the United Arab Republic (Egypt and Syria) and the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen (North Yemen) from 1958 to 1961.
The United Arab R ...
. However, this confederation was dissolved in December 1961, soon after Syria withdrew from the United Arab Republic and the United Arab States in September 1961. Relations between Egypt and Yemen subsequently deteriorated.
Imam Ahmad died in September 1962 and was succeeded by his son, the Crown Prince Muhammad al-Badr
, succession = King and Imam of Yemen
, image = Muhammad al-Badr.jpg
, image_size =
, caption = Al-Badr in 1962
, reign = 19 – 26 September 1962
, predecessor = Ahmad bin Yahya
, successor = ''Title abolishe ...
, whose reign was brief. Egyptian-trained military officers inspired by Nasser and led by the commander of the royal guard, Abdullah as-Sallal, deposed him the same year of his coronation, took control of Sana'a, and created the Yemen Arab Republic
The Yemen Arab Republic (YAR; ar, الجمهورية العربية اليمنية '), also known simply as North Yemen or Yemen (Sanaʽa), was a country from 1962 to 1990 in the northwestern part of what is now Yemen.The United States extend ...
(YAR). This fighting sparked the North Yemen Civil War and created a new front in the Arab Cold War
The Arab Cold War ( ar, الحرب العربية الباردة ''al-Harb al-`Arabiyyah al-bāridah'') was a period of political rivalry in the Arab world from the early 1950s to the late 1970s as part of the broader Cold War. The generally a ...
, in which Egypt assisted the YAR with troops and supplies to combat forces loyal to the imamate, while the monarchies of Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...
and Jordan
Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...
supported Badr's royalist forces opposing the newly formed republic. Conflict continued periodically until 1967 when Egyptian troops were withdrawn. By 1968, following a final royalist siege of Sana'a, most of the opposing leaders reached a reconciliation, and Saudi Arabia recognized the republic in 1970.
Flags
File:Flag of Yemen 1918.svg, Plain red flag (1918–23)
File:Flag of the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen (1918-1927).svg, Flag with shahada (1923–27)
File:Flag of the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen.svg, Flag with five stars and sword (1927–70)
See also
* History of Yemen
The history of Yemen describes the cultures, events, and peoples of what is one of the oldest centers of civilization in the Near East. Its relatively fertile land and adequate rainfall in a moister climate helped sustain a stable population, a f ...
* Imams of Yemen
* List of Shia dynasties
The following is a list of Shia Muslim dynasties.
North Africa and Europe
*Idrisid dynasty (788–985 CE) — (Morocco) - Zaidi
*Fatimid Caliphate (909–1171 CE) — (Kabylia) - Ismaili
*Banu Kanz (1004–1412 CE) - ( Upper Egypt) — Ism ...
* United Arab States
The United Arab States (UAS, ar, الدول العربية المتحدة) was a short-lived confederation of the United Arab Republic (Egypt and Syria) and the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen (North Yemen) from 1958 to 1961.
The United Arab R ...
* Yemen Arab Republic
The Yemen Arab Republic (YAR; ar, الجمهورية العربية اليمنية '), also known simply as North Yemen or Yemen (Sanaʽa), was a country from 1962 to 1990 in the northwestern part of what is now Yemen.The United States extend ...
References
Sources
* ''History of Arabia'', ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' (Macropædia Vol. 1). Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica, 1979, pp. 1043–1051.
Kingdom of Yemen
at Flags of the World.
External links
at nationalanthems.info.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yemen, Mutawakkilite Kingdom of
States and territories established in 1918
States and territories disestablished in 1970
Former countries in the Middle East
Yemeni monarchy
Former monarchies
Former Arab states
Former monarchies of Asia
Shia dynasties
Neutral states in World War II
Former member states of the United Nations