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towards the Soviet sphere, the Suez Crisis, and the Cold War. As the title of the

thesis suggests, the thesis covers the time period highlighted by sectarian tensions

and the earliest political initiatives by the nationalist movement’s founder in 1953

to address certain grievances until the departure of Belgrave in April 1957.

Additionally, an overview of the proceedings that involved three exiled members of

the Movement was also presented in the thesis.

Chapter One discusses the background and sectarian tensions of the 1950s in

Bahrain setting the scene for the major conflict of 1953. This is followed by an

examination of Al-Bakir’s earliest initiatives and political manoeuvring driven by his

desire to form a trade union in addition to his attempted interaction with British

politicians visiting Bahrain as early as January 1953. Details of the sectarian Sunni-

Shi’ite clash of September 1953 are presented as they provided Al-Bakir with the

pretext to endeavour to unite both Sunni and Shi’ite fronts and turn a social

movement into a politically-oriented one. Chapter Two surveys the growth of

nationalist agitation against foreign-owned-or-operated companies and the attack

on Bahrain’s Police Fort by demonstrators. The nationalists aimed to strengthen

unity amongst Bahrainis putting their disputes aside and a petition by locals for

reform was forwarded to the Ruler. Chapter Three traces the spark that led to a

public gathering by Bahrainis that resulted in the founding of the nationalist

movement.

In Part Two of the thesis, Chapter Four covers a time period characterised by

the formation of regional defensive pacts and the formation of government

committees in Bahrain. Additionally, Eden’s brief visit to Bahrain and early British

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