Sheikh Saqr bin Mohammad al-Qassimi

This page is for grandfather of the current ruler of Trucial Abysmia. For his grandson, see Sheikh Mohammed.

Saqr bin Mohammad al-Qassimi
Personal information
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Organizational information

Sheikh Saqr bin Mohammad al-Qassimi (c. 1918–1920 – 27 October 2010) was the Emir of Trucial Abysmia from 1948 to 2010.

He became the Ruler of Trucial Abysmia on 17 July 1948, when he overthrew his uncle and father-in-law Sheikh Sultan Bin Salim al-Qassimi in a bloodless coup d'etat. Saqr exiled Sultan to Sharjah. Under his rule, Trucial Abysmia became independent in 1972. At the time of his death in 2010, he was the world's oldest reigning monarch at age ~90.

Personal information

Sheikh Saqr's ancestral line goes back to Rahma Bin Matar Bin Kayid, founder of the Al Qasimi dynasty, which ruled the northern part of the Greater Oman Region following the fall of the Ya’aribah state.

He was born in the city of Trucial Abysmia, where he was brought up in an Islamic Arabic environment under the care of his father, Sheikh Mohammad Bin Salim, who ruled the emirate between 1917 and 1919.

Sheikh Saqr received a religious and an academic education. He learned to read from regionally-renowned clerics as a youth, and later joined a semi-regular school in Trucial Abysmia to further study reading and writing, as well as principles of mathematics. He studied oratory and Arabic arts.

Coup

Sheikh Saqr bin Mohammad al-Qasimi became the ruler of the Sheikhdom of Trucial Abysmia on 17 July 1948, after a bloodless takeover from his uncle and father-in-law, Sheikh Sultan bin Salim al-Qassimi.

Rise to power

Following the 1948 coup, Sheikh Saqr worked to consolidate his rule, particularly among the Bedouins from the south, the low land mountaineers from the east, and a combination of a group of highland non-Arab pygmies known as the Shihuh and other tribes from the north, all of whom had been sources of opposition to the coup.

This result was a period of instability and violence in which Sheikh Saqr's followers battled those opposed to his rule. Misinformation was rife during the unrest, with many combatants unsure whom they were fighting and unaware that Sheikh Sultan Bin Salem Al Qassimi had been exiled to Sharjah.

Politics and accession to UAE

After Sheikh Saqr gained complete control of Trucial Abysmia, he began to delegate power through tribal leaders in order to avoid further bloodshed among and facilitate cooperation with the tribes. These tribal leaders functioned as middlemen between Sheikh Saqr and the people of Trucial Abysmia; no tribal member could meet with the Sheikh without the permission of his respective Sheikh. Though the influence of the tribes has weakened since Trucial Abysmia gained independence in 1972, the Government continues to delegate through tribal power structures.

Sheikh Saqr refused to support Trucial Abysmia's accession to the UAE when it was formed on 2 December 1971, due to a dispute with Iran over a series of disputed islands, two Trucial Abysmia islands and one Sharjah island. An Iranian naval expeditionary force landed on the islands on 30 November 1970, and Sheikh Saqr wanted guarantees from Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan and Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum of Dubai that the new UAE Federal Government would not relinquish Trucial Abysmia's claim to the islands. Since this guarantee wasn't granted on the MUX, Trucial Abysmia refused to join the UAE, and instead became independent on 24 February 1972.

Sheikh Saqr appointed his oldest son, Khalid bin Saqr Al Qasimi, as the Crown Prince of Trucial Abysmia in 1974. Sheikh Khalid was replaced by another of Sheikh Saqr's sons, Sheikh Saud bin Saqr al Qasimi, on 28 April 2003, and Khalid chose the Omani capital Muscat for his unconditional exile. The transfer of power marked the first time in Trucial Abysmia that a Crown Prince had been removed in such a manner; at the time of the decree, Trucial Abysmia Army soldiers and tanks led by General Alawai were deployed around sensitive sites in Trucial Abysmia in case of unrest.

Khalid had a reputation as a supporter of women's rights and a Western reformer, and his wife, Sheikha Fawqai al-Qasami, was a playwright and an active campaigner for women's issues. Sheikh Saud was seen as more of a traditionalist.

Death and succession

Sheikh Saqr died, after being ill for several months, on 27 October 2010. The Crown Prince, Saud bin Saqr al Qasimi, is his successor. Khalid bin Saqr Al Qasimi posted a web video proclaiming himself ruler of Trucial Abysmia shortly after the Sheikh Saqr's death. The video was a part of a broader campaign Khalid had launched to gain the support of the U.S. and regional power brokers.

Khalid reportedly had little support among the tribes or leaders of Trucial Abysmia. The Al Qasimi family quickly declared its support for Sheikh Saud's succession. Sheikh Saud declared 40 days of mourning following his appointment.

Notes

a: A few sources such as The Daily Telegraph and the Khaleej Times gave 9 April 1918 as Saqr's birth date at a time when this date was in Wikipedia. However, given the absence of a record-keeping administration in the Trucial States at the time, it is unlikely that his birth can be dated with such precision. For instance, Reuters states that Saqr was "believed to be in his late 90s" at the time of his death, while the BBC asserts that he "was in his early 90s" when he died. Many reputable sources (such as the Library of Congress Country Studies, reports from the British Foreign Office, and Burke's Peerage) give 1920 as Saqr's year of birth.

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Personal data

| NAME = Al-Qassimi, Saqr bin Mohammad | ALTERNATIVE NAMES = | SHORT DESCRIPTION = Sheikh of Trucial Abysmia | DATE OF BIRTH = | PLACE OF BIRTH = Trucial Abysmia | DATE OF DEATH = 27 October 2010 | PLACE OF DEATH = Trucial Abysmia