The UAE wasn’t always the thriving, cosmopolitan country we all know and love now.
Far from it, in fact. It can be easy to overlook the humble beginnings of this great nation given what riches it has today, epitomised by the dazzling array of five-star resorts, supercars and skyscrapers.
But as the UAE turns 50, here’s a little history lesson about how it came to be. Leather elbow pads on tweed jackets at the ready. Don’t worry, though, we won’t be putting you in detention if you don’t remember it all…
The very beginning…
Before 2011, it was hard to pinpoint when humans first inhabited the Arabian Peninsula but a decade ago, a team of excavators led by Hans-Peter and Margarethe Uerpmann from Eberhard Karls University in Tübingen, Germany, made an incredible discovery.
They unearthed many artefacts at Jebel Faya (an hour’s drive from modern-day Sharjah’s city centre), including stone hand-axes, that were subsequently dated back 100,000 years. This suggested humans had in fact travelled from Africa to the peninsula some 125,000 years ago. And in those days, the area was wet and fertile – far from the arid desert it later became.
Prof Simon Armitage, of Royal Holloway, University of London, was the lead author of the research paper chronicling the findings. He wrote: “Archaeology without ages is like a jigsaw with the interlocking edges removed — you have lots of individual pieces of information but you can’t fit them together to produce the big picture.
“At Jebel Faya, the ages reveal a fascinating picture in which modern humans migrated out of Africa much earlier than previously thought, helped by global fluctuations in sea-level and climate change in the Arabian Peninsula.”
Paleolithic Age (6,000 BC-3,500 BC)
This was the era in which humans began to make the peninsula their home, with Bedouins setting up camp here. They lived off both land and sea, making use of the abundant fish in the Gulf and the plant-life all around them. It is at this time that they began making pottery, examples of which have been found in Abu Dhabi, Ras Al Khaimah, Sharjah and Umm Al Quwain. However, the re-emergence of dunes and lowering of lake levels put paid to any thoughts of making the region a permanent residence.
Bronze Age (3,200BC-1,300BC)
Humans returned to the peninsula in the Jebel Hafeet Period, which lasted until 2,600BC. This era was so called because of the discovery of beehive-shaped tombs dotted around Al Ain’s famous mountain by Danish archaeologist PV Glob from 1959 onwards.
From 2,600BC to 2,000BC came the Um Al Nar Period that was named after the circular tombs found on the Abu Dhabi island of that name in the mid 1950s. The people of this time were well versed in trading and even started domesticating animals.
Then followed the Wadi Suq Period when the extensive use of camels and other livestock allowed people to settle inland and begin cultivating crops such as the date palm, to which the UAE is intrinsically linked even nowadays.
Iron Age (1,300BC-300BC)
This period in the peninsula’s history is arguably most notable for the invention of the falaj irrigation system that allowed farmers to overcome the dry conditions by extracting groundwater meaning they could grow crops such as dates, wheat and barley. The locals at this time also began building fortifications to protect their beloved falaj waterways and the produce they spawned.
The arrival of Islam (630AD-1258AD)
Undoubtedly one of the key turning points in the history of what we know call the UAE came in 630AD when special envoys sent by the Prophet Mohammed arrived here to spread his word. Although Islam was widely embraced, following the Prophet’s death two years later there came the Ridda Wars fought between his followers (led by Abu Bakr) and groups of Arabian dissidents. In fact, one of the key battles of the wars was fought at Dibba in Fujairah where the non-Muslims were defeated meaning Islam had effectively triumphed on the peninsula.
The Portuguese Era (1498-1650)
When the great explorer Vasco de Gama successfully made his way round the Cape of Good Hope, he had eyes on the Arabian Gulf and arrived here in 1498.
Within two decades the Portuguese had muscled their way into the Indian Ocean and Gulf of Oman, establishing themselves there with the use of the superior arms they had at their disposal.
Having taken over most of the pepper and spice trade, they were the supreme rulers of the Gulf for almost 150 years.
Portuguese power began to dwindle in the 17th century, however, with the indigenous people beginning a resistance and other Europeans starting to compete for control of the region.
The Dutch Era (1622-1750)
When the Portuguese lost the Strait of Hormuz in 1622, the Dutch and British were quick to jump in. Both based in Bandar Abbas, they soon became sworn enemies after the Dutch refused to pay the British customs duty.
However, the Dutch swiftly grew more active and successful at trading in the region than their rivals and by the 17th century had become the dominant naval force in the Arabian Gulf.
But, stuck in a three-way battle for supremacy with the British and French, the Dutch had relinquished power over both it the Indian Ocean by the 1750s.
The British Era and discovery of oil (1720-1968)
The British established themselves as a major trading force by the 1720s, using their superior naval firepower to protect its trade links to India and fight off its competitors.
However, at the start of the 18th century the Qawasims had taken control of Musandam and other parts of the Arabian Gulf, building up a fleet of 60 or more large vessels and armed forces of nearly 20,000. Fearful they might get in their way, the British crushed the Qawasims in November 1819.
The following year, the British got the relevant sheikhs together to sign the General Maritime Treaty of 1820. This and a serious of truces, including The Perpetual Treaty of Maritime Peace agreed in 1853, led to what we now know as the United Arab Emirates being dubbed the Trucial States.
The Exclusive Agreement, signed in 1892 meant the Trucial States were protected from aggressors by the British, in return for them not giving any of their territories to or striking deals with anyone else other than the British without Westminster’s prior consent.
This meant the Brits were at the forefront when oil was discovered in 1958 and then first exported by Abu Dhabi four years later. As oil revenues rose, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan (who came into power in 1966) started pumping money into his emirate, constructing schools, housing, hospitals and roads.
In 1969, Dubai began exporting too, with its ruler, Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum, following a similar path of infrastructure building to hugely increase his people’s quality of life. (Sharjah joined the party a little while later but to similar effect).
As US companies began to grab the lion’s share of oil contracts and the Trucial States became too expensive for Westminster to run, the British announced in early 1968 that it would be withdrawing by the end of 1971, thus paving the way for the birth of the UAE…
