Page 68 - Su'udi Relations with Eastern Arabi & Uman (1800-1870)

that Muhammad b. Na$ir be left alone.473
Unlike Badr, whose religious orientation intensified his attachment to the
Su‘udi amir and made him a close ally, Sa‘!d was politically motivated and
unwilling to bow to any power of similar nature. His intention in sending his
dissimulating letter to al-Dir‘!yah was to prevent any possible reaction against
him. Similarly, Sa‘!d hoped to utilize the time to sharpen the patriotic
sentiment among his people and create local insurrections for national
existence which he hoped would, in the long run, diminish al-Dir‘!yah
supremacy and help him to build his own power.474 Nevertheless, the extent of
the Su‘ud!s influence, the general condition of the country, and Sard’s general
conduct were disappointing. The British agent at Masqat reported that:
The present government is very unstable and unpopular. The Seyd,
young and inexperienced, had lost the influence his father had acquired,
and from the little consideration he manifested towards the sheikhs who
visited Muscat, was left almost friendless. Of Oman he possessed only the
sea coast, the upper country having become tributary to the Wahabees,
and it was only by a degrading submission that the Imam protected the
low country from their road. As most of the Arab families had removed
from Muscat, it was expected that trouble would ensue.475
Until the Masqap expedition against the Su‘ud!-Qasim! settlement at Khawr
Fakkan a year later, 1807, and the defection of Muhammad b. Nasir, Sa‘Id
succeeded in maintaining acceptable relations with the Su‘ud!s and abstaining
from any conduct which might lead them to a punitive action against him.
Even so, certain incidents brought about a direct collision between al-Dir‘!yah
and Masqat. Upon the suggestion of Qays b. Ahmad, governor of Suhar, a
joint military force from Masqat and Suhar, commanded by both Qays and
Sa‘!d, descended on the setdement at Khawr Fakkan, occupied the fort, and
put the garrison to the sword. When news of the arrival of the Masqat! forces at
the setdement reached Sultan b. §aqr, the chief of the Qawasim, he hastened to
the relief of the place, but arrived after the massacre of the garrison.
Nonetheless, he engaged in a batde against Sa‘!d and Qays; many Masqat!
troops were drowned or slain, and Qays b. Ahmad himself was killed. The
sources give different accounts of the repercussions of this event. Ibn Bishr
states that both ‘Azzan, the son of Qays and his successor in Suhar, and Sa‘!d b.
Sultan sent messengers to the Amir Su‘ud and to Sultan b. Saqr seeking peace
and announcing the readiness of themselves and their people to enter the
Su‘ud! fold. He also adds that their request was accepted and that, eventually,
the whole of ‘Uman came under the rule of Su‘ud.476 The English sources
indicate that ‘Azzan allied himself to the Su‘ud!s as a result of a conflict with
Sa‘!d who, in order to exercise more authority over Suhar, had stripped Qays*
descendants of their right to the place.477
Meanwhile, Sa‘!d b. Suljan took similar action against Muhammad b. Nasir
which, when added to his operation at Khawr Fakkan, worsened his relations
with al-Dir‘!yah and led to a long period of warfare in various parts of the
sultanate. As mentioned earlier, Muhammad was accused of having been the
assassin of Badr and for some time had been residing in his home district, with
the forts of Sama’il and Bidbid in his possession. In order to deprive
Muhammad of his traditional authority over those tribal fort towns, Sa‘!d
enticed him into Masqat, but then imprisoned and refused to release him until

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