Page 107 - Arabiab Studies (IV)

Foreign Interventions and Occupations of Kamaran I. 97
Abu ‘Arish, Hamud, until 1809. It appears that he was seeking an
opportunity to throw off his allegiance to the Wahhabis and a
chance occurred when he reached an agreement with Abmad, son
of Imam Man$ur ‘All of $an‘a’ as a result of which Ahmad
deposed his father. Knowing that he had the full support of the
Zaydl Imam, Sharif Hamud now felt himself sufficiently strong to
renounce his allegiance to the Wahhabis and proclaimed his
loyalty to Imam Ahmad, restoring Abu ‘Arish, al-fjudaydah,
Zabld, Bayt al-Faqih and Kamaran to Yemeni sovereignty.57
Incensed at this open act of defiance Amir Sa‘ud despatched an
army against Hamud the following July. Wahhabi troops landed at
Jlzan and then advanced southwards, looting and burning al-
Luljayyah and al-Hudaydah.58 It is not clear whether the Wahhabis
occupied Kamaran, but this is only an academic question for the
Wahhabis withdrew almost immediately from the Yemeni
Tihamah, contenting themselves by re-instating Hamud at Abu
‘Arish with authority over most of the Tihamah and Kamaran.
Sharif Hamud then began to harass his former ally, Imam
Ahmad.59

Muhammad‘All and Kamaran, 1819-40

Muhammad ‘All, the viceroy of Egypt, invaded the Hejaz in 1812
and by 1819 the Wahhabi capital had fallen to him. The same year
a Wahhabi force operating in the southern Hejaz mutinied and its
leader TamI b. Shu‘ayb sought refuge with Sharif Hamud. The
latter, fearing the ascendency of Muhammad ‘All throughout the
Peninsula, saw the possibility presented by Taml’s opportune
arrival in Abu ‘Arish to ingratiate himself with Muhammad ‘AH
and sent the hapless TamI to Muhammad ‘All.60 This contact
between Hamud and the viceroy led to an agreement by which the
Sharif surrendered his authority over the Tihamah and Kamaran to
Muhammad ‘All. The viceroy, now in control of the Tihamah,
restored that territory together with Kamaran to the Imam of
$an‘a’ in return for 20,000 bahars of coffee.61
Further changes in the sovereignty of Kamaran occurred in
1832. That year Zenar Agha was involved in a dispute over arrears
of salary with the Egyptian governor of the Hejaz. Turk9e Bilmez
foresaw the defeat of Muhammad ‘All in his revolt against Turkey
and thought that, by showing fidelity to the Sultan, he might
obtain a high position, even the pashalic of Jeddah. Tiirk^e was
thus among the first to adhere to the Agha’s movement in his
dispute with the Egyptian governor of the Hejaz.
T0rk9e urged the Agha to overthrow the governor. Although the