Page 93 - Life & Land Use on the Bahrain Islands (Curtis E Larsen)

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occupied by a Portuguese garrison, but the subsequent years were marked by
numerous revolts and protests. Independent rule was temporarily regained about
1534.
The early years of the sixteenth century not only marked the entry of the
Portuguese into the gulf region, but the Ottoman Turks as well, Northern Persia
was invaded by the Ottomans in 1514 (Lane 1957), and by the mid sixteenth century
there was a Turkish fleet in the gulf. In 1559, the Turks made their first attempt to
take Bahrain by force (Belgrave 1975). Cooperative accords were reached between
Bahrain and the Portuguese, however, after the latter's fleet repelled the Turks.
The late sixteenth century also witnessed the entry of both the Dutch and the
English into the gulf region in search of trading concessions. This heightened
competition with the Portuguese for regional trade.
The longest continuous control of Bahrain by the Portuguese ended in
1602, when the fort was seized by Rukn ed-Din with popular support directed
against the abuses of the Hormuzi governor (Belgrave 1975). Renewed attempts by
the Portuguese to retake the island were countered by aid from the prince of
Shiraz. This move subsequently brought Bahrain under the aegis of Safavid Persia,
which, in turn, garrisoned troops at the Portuguese fort.
Through a variety of intrigues, the Safavids under Shah Abbas I were able
to create a unique position for Persia that lasted until the eighteenth century. In
concert with English representatives (e.g., Sir Anthony Sherley), Shah Abbas
acquired English naval aid in laying siege to and conquering the island of Hormuz in
1607 (Ross 1933, Steensgaard 1974). Tlie fall of Hormuz marked the onset of what
Steensgaard calls a "revolution in Asian trade.” The joint Persian-English attack on
Hormuz was designed not only to gain control of the gulf for the Safavids, but also
to circumvent Ottoman control of the caravan routes through central Asia. As a
result, caravan trade was crippled and never regained its former importance.
For the following century (1607-1711) Bahrain remained under the
jurisdiction of Safavid Persia. The Persian hold on Bahrain was broken briefly in
1711 by an invasion from Oman led by Sultan bin Seif, but it was bought back by
Persia in 1730 (Badger 1871). The relatively quiet and politically stable Safavid