1922 Encyclopædia Britannica/Ibn Sa'ud

IBN SA‛UD (see 2.267 and 28.245), the name of the Wahabite dynasty of Dar‛iya and Riyadh (Nejd). ‛Abd el ‛Aziz ibn Sa‛ud, the ruling emir, about 54 years of age in 1921, succeeded to the throne in 1902. The Ibn Sa‛ud dynasty suffered eclipse at the hands of Ibn Rashid, emir of Hail (Jebel Shammar) from the middle of the eighties of the last century. The rightful emir, ‛Abdurrahman ibn Faisal, and his son ‛Abd el ‛Aziz ibn Sa‛ud were in exile at Kuwait, such power in Nejd as remained to the Sa‛ud dynasty being wielded by an uncle, as mediatized ruler, until his murder by Ibn Rashid's order in 1902. In March 1902, with the help of Mubarak, sheikh of Kuwait, ‛Abd el ‛Aziz—his father stepping aside—regained Riyadh by a coup d'état against Ibn Rashid, who called in the Turks to aid him. Nevertheless, owing to the anarchy prevailing in Hail at the time, and with the help of the people of Nejd (who were traditionally attached to the house of Ibn Sa‛ud), ‛Abd el ‛Aziz eventually succeeded in restoring and establishing the supremacy of the kingdom of Riyadh. Early in 1913 he extended his rule to El Hasa, driving out the Turks who had garrisoned the district since 1871. On the entry of Turkey into the World War, though the attitude of ‛Abd el ‛Aziz was at first uncertain, he eventually concluded a treaty with Great Britain on lines similar to those in force with the Persian Gulf states and, thereafter, proved an unswerving ally. He restored the chief towns in Nejd, rendered the roads more or less safe from raiders, encouraged cultivation, and increased the material prosperity of his dominions generally. His son, Turki, acted as his able lieutenant in the outlying districts (see Arabia).