In 1965, in coordination with

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

officials, Khalid Al Qasimi, the cousin of the

Sheikh Sheikh ( , , , , ''shuyūkh'' ) is an honorific title in the Arabic language, literally meaning "elder (administrative title), elder". It commonly designates a tribal chief or a Muslim ulama, scholar. Though this title generally refers to me ...

Sharjah Sharjah (; ', Gulf Arabic: ''aš-Šārja'') is the List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, third-most populous city in the United Arab Emirates, after Dubai and Abu Dhabi. It is the capital of the Emirate of Sharjah and forms part of the D ...

; Saqr Al Qasimi, staged a bloodless

palace coup A palace is a large residence, often serving as a royal residence or the home for a head of state or another high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome whi ...

usurping the throne to ensure British interests in the

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf, sometimes called the Arabian Gulf, is a Mediterranean seas, mediterranean sea in West Asia. The body of water is an extension of the Arabian Sea and the larger Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.Un ...

Background

Saqr, who had been Sheikh since 1951, developed a reputation as the most politically, socially and educationally progressive of the ruling sheikhs in the

Trucial States The Trucial States, also known as the Trucial Coast, the Trucial Sheikhdoms, or Trucial Oman, was a group of tribal confederations to the south of the Persian Gulf (southeastern Arabia) whose leaders had signed protective treaties, or truce ...

. British officials began to worry about his continued loyalty to the Empire due to his positive opinions on

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

ian leader

Gamal Abdel Nasser Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein (15 January 1918 – 28 September 1970) was an Egyptian military officer and revolutionary who served as the second president of Egypt from 1954 until his death in 1970. Nasser led the Egyptian revolution of 1952 a ...

and his sympathies for the

Pan-Arab Pan-Arabism () is a pan-nationalist ideology that espouses the unification of all Arab people in a single nation-state, consisting of all Arab countries of West Asia and North Africa from the Atlantic Ocean to the Arabian Sea, which is ref ...

cause. With the outbreak of the Dhofar War in neighboring

Oman Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is a country located on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia and the Middle East. It shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Oman’s coastline ...

in 1963 the British became concerned that if Oman fell to the Marixist-Leninist

Popular Front for the Liberation of the Occupied Arabian Gulf The Popular Front for the Liberation of the Occupied Arabian Gulf (, abbreviated PFLOAG), later renamed the Popular Front for the Liberation of Oman and the Arabian Gulf (), was a Marxist and Arab nationalist revolutionary organisation active in ...

that the group would make good on their promises and attempt to foster Communist uprisings in the gulf states. The British where so afraid of the Gulf falling to a communist revolution that they sought to depose Arab leaders who refused to take their advice on good governance and military expansion. In the case of Saqr's enthusiastic welcome of an Arab League mission to the Trucial States, British officials were concerned that the mission might provide an opening for Nasser to undermine British presence in the

Coup

With the strong support and backing of the Al Qasimi family for his removal, Saqr was invited to

Dubai Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...

for a meeting, which was actually a trap organized by

Terence Clark Sir Terence Joseph Clark (born 19 June 1934) is a British retired diplomat and writer. Career Clark was educated at Parmiter's School. He did National Service nominally in the Royal Air Force, actually learning Russian at the Joint Services ...

with the

Trucial Oman Scouts The Trucial Oman Scouts (), known as Trucial Oman Levies prior to 1956, was a predecessor paramilitary force that operated in the Trucial States under British control from 1951 to 1971, after which they were renamed to the Union Defence Force with ...

ambushing and disarming the Sheikh's bodyguards. Saqr was escorted to the airport under armed guard consisting of the Scouts and two British officers, and was sent into exile in Egypt. The Al Qasimi family council then appointed Khalid as the new ruler.

Legacy

One of three British coups in short succession in the Persian Gulf, the British had also toppled the Sheikh of Abu Dhabi in 1966 and the Sultan of

in 1970 in order to maintain their continued interests in the region. Saqr would attempt to take back his throne following the formation of the United Arab Emirates in December 1971, unsuccessfully attempting a coup in 1972.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1965 Sharjawi coup d'etat Military coups in the United Arab Emirates 1960s coups d'état and coup attempts June 1965 in Asia Conflicts in 1965 Islamic monarchies