Page 220 - The Origins of the United Arab Emirates_Neat

18(> 7 he Origins of the United Arab Emirates

'They have most of them at one time or another crossed swords
with the Shaikh of Ras al-Khaimah and have come oil second
best. They have no love for him and all know him to he a
deceitful individual but at the same time 1 believe they have
a respect for his quick-witted ness.23

Never one to miss an opportunity, Sultan seized on the death,
in April 1937, of the recently recognised ruler of Kalba, Sa‘id
bin Hamad, to make a bid for his position. Sard’s only heir
was Hamad, his seven-year-old son, so Kalba was immediately
exposed to intrigues, and three contenders for the control of power
came forward: Barut, a former slave of Shaykh Sa‘id, during whose
rule he had become head slave and general factotum; Sultan bin
Salim of Ras al-Khaimah; and Khalid bin Ahmad, former ruler
of Sharjah, whose wife had been the daughter of Shaykh Sa‘id.
The young Hamad was elected ruler almost immediately following
the death of his father. Khalid bin Ahmad wished to participate
in the rule, so he left Dhayd with a large force and tried to
enter Kalba. When he found that he was unacceptable to the
people, he withdrew, and set up camp outside the town, hoping
thereby to isolate it and enforce his election as ruler.24 The Political
Resident watched the events closely—concerned, of course, for the
safety of the emergency landing ground. He decided not to interfere
in Khalid’s bid for Kalba and to propose British recognition if
Khalid were successful. In the meantime, he warned the rulers
of Ras al-Khaimah, Sharjah and Umm al-Qaiwain to keep away.
Sultan of Ras al-Khaimah, seeing that Sharjah’s great weakness
afforded him an unrivalled opportunity to take Kalba under his
control, took no heed of Fowlc’s warning and left for Kalba in
early June. On his way, he passed by Dhayd and made an unsuccess­
ful attempt to enlist the support of Khalid bin Ahmad for his
election as regent of Kalba. When Sultan and his party of twelve
followers entered Kalba, Fowle did not interfere, knowing that
‘if he [Sultan] were given enough rope [he] would sooner or later
hang himself’.25 Before long, Sultan’s attempts to secure election
got him into trouble with the people of Kalba and he was forced
to ask Fowle for help. He also angered Shaykh Muhammad bin
‘Ali of the Bani Qitab, who was an ally of Khalid bin Ahmad; the
bedouin of the Bani Qitab consequently raided the outskirts of Ras
al-Khaimah and cut communications in order to prevent Sultan from
returning home. 26 HMS Shoreham went to Kalba on 21 June and Sultan
, ,
,.
boarded it at once. He told the Senior Naval Offi er that ‘he had
done a good service to H.M. Government by sending for a ship, but
quite unable to say why it was that the trouble had only arisen
was