Abdul Rahman bin Faisal Al Saud [1889-1891]
On Faisal's death, Saudi fortunes declined once more. Disagreements between the sons of Faisal weakened the House of Saud, and Arab infighting brought an end to the Second Saudi State. Abdul Rahman bin Faisal [Abd ar Rahman], struggled valiantly to resist foreign intrusion and restore peace and stability to his Kingdom.
At the same time, a tribal leader of the Shammar, Muhammad bin Rashid, based in Hail, created a strong political body which rapidly covered the greater part of Nejd, and by 1871 (1288 AH), after concluding a pact with Turkey, captured Al-Hasa. While the Al Saud was bickering, the family of Muhammad ibn Rashid, who controlled the area around the Shammar Mountains, had been gaining strength and expanding its influence in northern Najd.
Nejd became nominally a dependency of the Turkish empire in 1871 when Midhat Pasha established a small garrison in El Hasa, and created a new civil district under the government of Basra, under the title of Nejd, with headquarters at Hofuf. Its real independence was not, however, affected, and the emirs, Mahommed Ibn Rashid at Hail, and Abdallah Ibn Saud at Riyadh [Rid], ruled in western and eastern Nejd respectively, until 1892, when the former by his victory at Aneza became emir of all Nejd. His successor, Abdul Aziz Ibn Rashid, was, however, unable to maintain his position, and in spite of Turkish support, sustained a severe defeat in 1905 at the hands of Ibn Saud which for the time, at any rate, restored the supremacy ofRiyadh.
In 1889 (1307 AH), a younger son of Faisal, Abdul Rahman bin Faisal, managed to confirm the rule of the Saudi dynasty by assuming the leadership of the family. At that time, the authority of the Saudi family centered on Riyadh. When Imam 'Abd ar-Rahman, King 'Abd al-'Aziz's father, emerged as head of the Al Sa'ud, he and his followers attacked Riyadh, recapturing it. The Rashids returned to fight but found the defenses too strong and began a siege of the city.
In 1890 Muhammad ibn Rashid, the grandson of the leader with whom Turki had first made an alliance, was in a position to enhance his own power. He removed the sons of Saud ibn Faisal from Riyadh and returned it to the nominal control of their uncle, Abdul Rahman bin Faisal [Abd ar Rahman]. Muhammad put effective control of the city, however, into the hands of his own garrison commander, Salim ibn Subhan.
In 1891 (1309 AH), the House of Saud faced a further set-back. When Abdul Rahman bin Faisal attempted to exert real authority, he was driven out of Riyadh. Muhammad bin Rashid completed his control of Nejd by capturing Riyadh, the citadel of the House of Saud. After 40 days, a peace was negotiated at talks to which King 'Abd al-'Aziz, then a child, accompanied his father. Faced with an overwhelming show of force and resources, the last ruler of the Second Saudi State, Abdul Rahman, was forced to leave the city. The armistice was short-lived, however, and Imam 'Abd ar-Rahman was forced to evacuate his family in 1891. He sent some family members to Bahrain, while the men took refuge with al-Murra, a Bedouin tribe living in a remote area on the edge of the Rub al-Khali, the Empty Quarter, accompanied by his son, Abdul Aziz (Ibn Saud), the future King of Arabia.
This experience had a profound effect on the young King 'Abd al-'Aziz. In later years he attributed his love of the desert, horsemanship and many simple bedouin values to his time spent with the tribe.
Imam 'Abd ar-Rahman eventually moved to Bahrain and ultimately to Kuwait. From 1893, the Al Sa'ud were hosted in Kuwait by its rulers Shaykh Muhammad and then Shaykh Mubarak al-Sabah.
In the absence of Saudi rule, the central area of the peninsula degenerated into instability and bloodshed. Where once peace and prosperity had prevailed, intrigue and war broke out, shattering the lives of the Bedouins and the city dwellers alike.
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