Aden Protectorate
Encyclopedia
The Aden Protectorate was a British
protectorate
in southern Arabia which evolved in the hinterland of Aden following the acquisition of that port by Britain in 1839 as an anti-piracy station, and it continued until the 1960s. For administrative purposes it was divided into the Western Protectorate and the Eastern Protectorate. Today the territory forms part of the Republic of Yemen
.
s in the immediate hinterland
of the port
city of Aden
:
British expansion into the area was designed to secure the important port that was, at the time, governed from British India
. From 1874, these protection arrangements existed with the tacit acceptance of the Ottoman Empire
that maintained suzerainty
over Yemen
to the north and the polities
became known collectively as the "Nine Tribes" or the "Nine Cantons."
of protection with the Hadhrami
Mahra Sultanate of Qishn and Socotra
in 1886, Britain embarked on a slow formalization of protection arrangements that included over 30 major treaties of protection with the last signed only in 1954. These treaties, together with a number of other minor agreements, created the Aden Protectorate that extended well east of Aden to Hadhramaut
and included all of the territory that would become South Yemen except for the immediate environs and port of the British colonial capital, Aden city, which together with several offshore islands was known as the Aden Colony, the only part where no Arab ruler retained jurisdiction. In exchange for British protection, the rulers of the constituent territories agreed not to enter into agreement with or cede territory to any other foreign power.
In 1917, control of Aden Protectorate was transferred from the Government of India
, which had inherited the British East India Company
's interests in various princely state
s on the strategically important naval route from Europe
to India
, to the British
Foreign Office
. For administrative purposes, the protectorate was informally divided into the Eastern Protectorate (with its own Political Officer, a British advisor, stationed at Mukalla in Qu'aiti
from 1937 to ca. 1967) and the Western Protectorate (with its own Political Officer, stationed at Lahej from 1 April 1937 to 1967), for some separation of administration.
In 1928, the British established Aden Command, under Royal Air Force
leadership, to preserve the security of the Protectorate. It was renamed British Forces Aden
in 1936 and was later known as British Forces Arabian Peninsula and then Middle East Command (Aden).
The Eastern Protectorate (ca. 230,000 km²) came to include the following entities (mostly in Hadhramaut
):
The Western Protectorate (ca. 55,000 km²) included:
The boundaries between these polities and even their number fluctuated over time. Some such as the Mahra Sultanate barely had any functioning administration. Not included in the protectorate were Aden Colony or the insular areas of Perim
, Kamaran
, and Khuriya Muriya
that accrued to it.
sultan and, throughout the 1940s and 1950s, signed similar treaties with twelve other protectorate states. The following were the states with advisory treaties:
Eastern Protectorate States
Western Protectorate States
These agreements allowed for the stationing of a Resident Advisor in the signatory states which gave the British a greater degree of control over their domestic affairs. This rationalized
and stabilized the rulers’ status and laws of succession
but had the effect of ossifying the leadership and encouraging official corruption. Aerial bombardment
and collective punishment
were sometimes used against wayward tribes to enforce the rule of Britain’s clients. British protection came to be seen as an impediment to progress, a view reinforced by the arrival of news of Arab nationalism
from the outside world on newly available transistor radio
s.
of Yemen
to the north who did not recognize British suzerainty in South Arabia and had ambitions of creating a unified Greater Yemen
. In the late 1940s and the early 1950s, Yemen was involved in a series of border skirmishes along the disputed Violet Line, a 1914 Anglo-Ottoman demarcation
that served to separate Yemen from the Aden Protectorate.
In 1950, Kennedy Trevaskis, the Advisor for the Western Protectorate drew up a plan for the protectorate states to form two federation
s, corresponding to the two halves of the protectorate. Although little progress was made in bringing the plan to fruition, it was considered a provocation by Ahmad bin Yahya. In addition to his role as king, he also served as the imam
of the ruling Zaidi branch of Shi'a Islam
. He feared that a successful federation in the Shafi'i
Sunnite protectorates would serve as a beacon for discontented Shafi'ites who inhabited the coastal regions of Yemen. To counter the threat, Ahmad stepped up Yemeni efforts to undermine British control and, in the mid-1950s, Yemen supported a number of revolts by disgruntled tribes against protectorate states. The appeal of Yemen was limited initially in the protectorate but a growing intimacy between Yemen and the popular Arab nationalist president of Egypt
Gamal Abdel Nasser
and the formation of United Arab States
increased its attraction.
in 1956, as a valuable port
for accessing crucial Middle Eastern oil. It had also been chosen as the new location for Middle East Command
.
Nationalist pressure prodded the threatened rulers of the Aden Protectorate states to revive efforts at forming a federation and, on 11 February 1959, six of them signed an accord forming the Federation of Arab Emirates of the South
. In the next three years, they were joined by nine others and, on 18 January 1963, Aden Colony was merged with the federation creating the new Federation of South Arabia
. At the same time, the (mostly eastern) states that had not joined the federation became the Protectorate of South Arabia
, thus ending the existence of the Aden Protectorate.
was declared in the Aden Protectorate.
The Emergency was precipitated in large part by a wave of Arab nationalism
spreading to the Arabian Peninsula and stemming largely from the Socialist and pan-Arabist doctrines of the Egypt
ian leader Gamel Abdel Nasser. The British
, French
, and Israel
i invasion forces that had invaded Egypt
following Nasser's nationalisation of the Suez Canal
in 1956 had been forced to withdraw following intervention from both the United States
and the Soviet Union
.
Nevertheless, Nasser had then enjoyed limited success in spreading his pan-Arabist doctrines through the Arab world, with his 1958 attempt to unify Egypt and Syria
as the United Arab Republic
collapsing in a humiliating failure only 3 years later. A perceived anti-colonial uprising in Aden in 1963 provided another potential opportunity for his doctrines, though it is not clear to what extent Nasser directly incited the revolt among the Arabs in Aden, as opposed to the Yemeni guerrilla groups drawing inspiration from Nasser's pan-Arabist ideas but acting independently themselves.
By 1963 and in the ensuing years, anti-British guerrilla groups with varying political objectives began to coalesce into two larger, rival organizations: first the Egyptian-supported National Liberation Front
(NLF) and then the Front for the Liberation of Occupied South Yemen
(FLOSY), who attacked each other as well as the British.
By 1965, the RAF station
(RAF Khormaksar
) was operating 9 Squadrons. These included transport units with helicopters and a number of Hawker Hunter
ground attack aircraft. These were called in by the army for strikes against positions when they would use "60 lb" high explosive rockets and their 30 mm Aden cannon.
Notable events include the Battle of Crater which brought Lt-Col Colin Campbell Mitchell
(AKA. "Mad Mitch") to prominence. On June 20, 1967 there was a mutiny in the South Arabian Federation Army, which also spread to the police. Order was restored by the British, mainly due to the efforts of the 1st Battalion Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders
, under the command of Lt-Col Mitchell.
Nevertheless, deadly guerrilla attacks particularly by the NLF soon resumed against British forces once again, with the British leaving Aden by the end of November 1967, earlier than had been planned by British Prime Minister Harold Wilson
and without an agreement on the succeeding governance. Their enemies, the NLF, managed to seize power.
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
protectorate
Protectorate
In history, the term protectorate has two different meanings. In its earliest inception, which has been adopted by modern international law, it is an autonomous territory that is protected diplomatically or militarily against third parties by a stronger state or entity...
in southern Arabia which evolved in the hinterland of Aden following the acquisition of that port by Britain in 1839 as an anti-piracy station, and it continued until the 1960s. For administrative purposes it was divided into the Western Protectorate and the Eastern Protectorate. Today the territory forms part of the Republic of Yemen
Yemen
The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....
.
Informal beginnings
What became known as the Aden Protectorate was initially informal arrangements of protection with nine tribeTribe
A tribe, viewed historically or developmentally, consists of a social group existing before the development of, or outside of, states.Many anthropologists use the term tribal society to refer to societies organized largely on the basis of kinship, especially corporate descent groups .Some theorists...
s in the immediate hinterland
Hinterland
The hinterland is the land or district behind a coast or the shoreline of a river. Specifically, by the doctrine of the hinterland, the word is applied to the inland region lying behind a port, claimed by the state that owns the coast. The area from which products are delivered to a port for...
of the port
Port
A port is a location on a coast or shore containing one or more harbors where ships can dock and transfer people or cargo to or from land....
city of Aden
Aden
Aden is a seaport city in Yemen, located by the eastern approach to the Red Sea , some 170 kilometres east of Bab-el-Mandeb. Its population is approximately 800,000. Aden's ancient, natural harbour lies in the crater of an extinct volcano which now forms a peninsula, joined to the mainland by a...
:
- Lahej (Abdali)
- AlawiAlawi (sheikhdom)Alawi , or the Alawi Sheikhdom , was one of the original "Nine Cantons" that signed protection agreements with Great Britain in the late 19th century and became part of the British Aden Protectorate. It was later in the Federation of Arab Emirates of the South, and its successor, the Federation of...
- DhalaEmirate of DhalaDhala , Amiri , or the Emirate of Dhala was a state in the British Aden Protectorate, the Federation of Arab Emirates of the South, and its successor, the Federation of South Arabia...
(Amiri) - AqrabiAqrabiAqrabi , or the Aqrabi Sheikhdom , was a state in the British Aden Protectorate, the Federation of Arab Emirates of the South, and its successor, the Federation of South Arabia. Its capital was Bir Ahmad.-History:...
- AulaqiLower AulaqiLower Aulaqi , or the Lower Aulaqi Sultanate , was a state in the Aden Protectorate, the Federation of Arab Emirates of the South, and its successor, the Federation of South Arabia...
- FadhliFadhli SultanateFadhli , or the Fadhli Sultanate , was an independent sultanate on the southern coast of the Arabian Peninsula from at least the 15th century until 1967...
- Haushabi
- Subeihi
- YafaLower YafaLower Yafa, Lower Yafa'i , or the Sultanate of Lower Yafa , was a state in the British Aden Protectorate. Within its area were the sheikhdoms of Al Saadi, Yaher, Kalad, Thi Nakheb, and Yazidi. It was a founding member of the Federation of Arab Emirates of the South in 1959 and its successor, the...
British expansion into the area was designed to secure the important port that was, at the time, governed from British India
British Raj
British Raj was the British rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947; The term can also refer to the period of dominion...
. From 1874, these protection arrangements existed with the tacit acceptance of the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
that maintained suzerainty
Suzerainty
Suzerainty occurs where a region or people is a tributary to a more powerful entity which controls its foreign affairs while allowing the tributary vassal state some limited domestic autonomy. The dominant entity in the suzerainty relationship, or the more powerful entity itself, is called a...
over Yemen
North Yemen
North Yemen is a term currently used to designate the Yemen Arab Republic , its predecessor, the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen , and their predecessors that exercised sovereignty over the territory that is now the north-western part of the state of Yemen in southern Arabia.Neither state ever...
to the north and the polities
Polity
Polity is a form of government Aristotle developed in his search for a government that could be most easily incorporated and used by the largest amount of people groups, or states...
became known collectively as the "Nine Tribes" or the "Nine Cantons."
Formal treaties of protection
Beginning with a formal treatyTreaty
A treaty is an express agreement under international law entered into by actors in international law, namely sovereign states and international organizations. A treaty may also be known as an agreement, protocol, covenant, convention or exchange of letters, among other terms...
of protection with the Hadhrami
Hadhramaut
Hadhramaut, Hadhramout, Hadramawt or Ḥaḍramūt is the formerly independent Qu'aiti state and sultanate encompassing a historical region of the south Arabian Peninsula along the Gulf of Aden in the Arabian Sea, extending eastwards from Yemen to the borders of the Dhofar region of Oman...
Mahra Sultanate of Qishn and Socotra
Mahra Sultanate
The Mahra Sultanate of Qishn and Socotra or sometimes the Mahra Sultanate of Ghayda and Socotra was a sultanate that included both the historical region of Mahra and the Indian Ocean island of Socotra in what is now eastern Yemen...
in 1886, Britain embarked on a slow formalization of protection arrangements that included over 30 major treaties of protection with the last signed only in 1954. These treaties, together with a number of other minor agreements, created the Aden Protectorate that extended well east of Aden to Hadhramaut
Hadhramaut
Hadhramaut, Hadhramout, Hadramawt or Ḥaḍramūt is the formerly independent Qu'aiti state and sultanate encompassing a historical region of the south Arabian Peninsula along the Gulf of Aden in the Arabian Sea, extending eastwards from Yemen to the borders of the Dhofar region of Oman...
and included all of the territory that would become South Yemen except for the immediate environs and port of the British colonial capital, Aden city, which together with several offshore islands was known as the Aden Colony, the only part where no Arab ruler retained jurisdiction. In exchange for British protection, the rulers of the constituent territories agreed not to enter into agreement with or cede territory to any other foreign power.
In 1917, control of Aden Protectorate was transferred from the Government of India
British Raj
British Raj was the British rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947; The term can also refer to the period of dominion...
, which had inherited the British East India Company
British East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
's interests in various princely state
Princely state
A Princely State was a nominally sovereign entitity of British rule in India that was not directly governed by the British, but rather by an Indian ruler under a form of indirect rule such as suzerainty or paramountcy.-British relationship with the Princely States:India under the British Raj ...
s on the strategically important naval route from Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
to India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, to the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Foreign Office
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office, commonly called the Foreign Office or the FCO is a British government department responsible for promoting the interests of the United Kingdom overseas, created in 1968 by merging the Foreign Office and the Commonwealth Office.The head of the FCO is the...
. For administrative purposes, the protectorate was informally divided into the Eastern Protectorate (with its own Political Officer, a British advisor, stationed at Mukalla in Qu'aiti
Qu'aiti
Qu'aiti , officially the Qu'aiti State in Hadhramaut Qu'aiti , officially the Qu'aiti State in Hadhramaut Qu'aiti , officially the Qu'aiti State in Hadhramaut (Arabic: (الدولة القعيطية الحضرمية) or the Qu'aiti Sultanate of Shihr and Mukalla (Arabic:سلطنة الشحر والمكلاا ), was a sultanate in the...
from 1937 to ca. 1967) and the Western Protectorate (with its own Political Officer, stationed at Lahej from 1 April 1937 to 1967), for some separation of administration.
In 1928, the British established Aden Command, under Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
leadership, to preserve the security of the Protectorate. It was renamed British Forces Aden
British Forces Aden
British Forces Aden was the name given to the British Armed Forces stationed in the Aden Protectorate during part of the 20th century. Their purpose was to preserve the security of the Protectorate from both internal threats and external aggression.-History:...
in 1936 and was later known as British Forces Arabian Peninsula and then Middle East Command (Aden).
The Eastern Protectorate (ca. 230,000 km²) came to include the following entities (mostly in Hadhramaut
Hadhramaut
Hadhramaut, Hadhramout, Hadramawt or Ḥaḍramūt is the formerly independent Qu'aiti state and sultanate encompassing a historical region of the south Arabian Peninsula along the Gulf of Aden in the Arabian Sea, extending eastwards from Yemen to the borders of the Dhofar region of Oman...
):
- KathiriKathiriKathiri was a sultanate in the Hadhramaut region of the southern Arabian Peninsula, in what is now officially considered part of Yemen and the Dhofar region of Oman....
- MahraMahra SultanateThe Mahra Sultanate of Qishn and Socotra or sometimes the Mahra Sultanate of Ghayda and Socotra was a sultanate that included both the historical region of Mahra and the Indian Ocean island of Socotra in what is now eastern Yemen...
- Qu'aitiQu'aitiQu'aiti , officially the Qu'aiti State in Hadhramaut Qu'aiti , officially the Qu'aiti State in Hadhramaut Qu'aiti , officially the Qu'aiti State in Hadhramaut (Arabic: (الدولة القعيطية الحضرمية) or the Qu'aiti Sultanate of Shihr and Mukalla (Arabic:سلطنة الشحر والمكلاا ), was a sultanate in the...
- Wahidi BalhafWahidi BalhafWahidi Balhaf , or the Wahidi Sultanate of Balhaf , was one of several Wahidi states in the British Aden Protectorate. It was also part of the Federation of Arab Emirates of the South, and its successor, the Federation of South Arabia when it was known simply as Wahidi...
- Wahidi Bir AliWahidi Bir AliWahidi Bir Ali , or the Wahidi Wilayah of Bir Ali , was one of several Wahidi states in the British Aden Protectorate and the Protectorate of South Arabia. Its capital was Bir Ali on the Gulf of Aden coast...
- Wahidi HabanWahidi HabanWahidi Haban , or the Wahidi Sultanate of Haban , was one of several Wahidi states in the British Aden Protectorate. Its capital was Habban. The last sultan, Husayn ibn Abd Allah Al Wahidi, was deposed and the state was abolished in 1967 upon the founding of the People's Republic of South Yemen...
The Western Protectorate (ca. 55,000 km²) included:
- AlawiAlawi (sheikhdom)Alawi , or the Alawi Sheikhdom , was one of the original "Nine Cantons" that signed protection agreements with Great Britain in the late 19th century and became part of the British Aden Protectorate. It was later in the Federation of Arab Emirates of the South, and its successor, the Federation of...
- AqrabiAqrabiAqrabi , or the Aqrabi Sheikhdom , was a state in the British Aden Protectorate, the Federation of Arab Emirates of the South, and its successor, the Federation of South Arabia. Its capital was Bir Ahmad.-History:...
- AudhaliAudhaliAudhali , or the Audhali Sultanate , was a state in the British Aden Protectorate. It was a founding member of the Federation of Arab Emirates of the South in 1959 and its successor, the Federation of South Arabia, in 1963. Its capital was Zarah...
- BeihanEmirate of BeihanBeihan or Bayhan , officially the Emirate of Beihan , was a state in the British Aden Protectorate and the Federation of South Arabia...
- DathinaDathinaDathina , the Dathina Sheikhdom , or sometimes the Dathina Confederation, was a state in the British Aden Protectorate, the Federation of Arab Emirates of the South, and its successor, the Federation of South Arabia. It was abolished in 1967 upon the founding of the People's Republic of South Yemen...
- DhalaEmirate of DhalaDhala , Amiri , or the Emirate of Dhala was a state in the British Aden Protectorate, the Federation of Arab Emirates of the South, and its successor, the Federation of South Arabia...
- FadhliFadhli SultanateFadhli , or the Fadhli Sultanate , was an independent sultanate on the southern coast of the Arabian Peninsula from at least the 15th century until 1967...
- Haushabi
- Lahej
- Lower AulaqiLower AulaqiLower Aulaqi , or the Lower Aulaqi Sultanate , was a state in the Aden Protectorate, the Federation of Arab Emirates of the South, and its successor, the Federation of South Arabia...
- Lower YafaLower YafaLower Yafa, Lower Yafa'i , or the Sultanate of Lower Yafa , was a state in the British Aden Protectorate. Within its area were the sheikhdoms of Al Saadi, Yaher, Kalad, Thi Nakheb, and Yazidi. It was a founding member of the Federation of Arab Emirates of the South in 1959 and its successor, the...
- QutaibiQutaibiQutaibi or the Qutaibi Sheikhdom was a polity in the western Aden Protectorate. It was a dependency of the Emirate of Dhala and is now part of the Republic of Yemen...
Dependence of Dhala - ShaibShaibShaib , or the Sheikhdom of Shaib , was a state in the British Aden Protectorate, the Federation of Arab Emirates of the South, and its successor, the Federation of South Arabia. Its last sheikh, Yahya Mohamed Al-Kholaqi Al-Saqladi, died in Jeddah Saudi Arabia July 2001...
- Upper Aulaqi SheikhdomUpper Aulaqi SheikhdomThe Upper Aulaqi Sheikhdom was a state in the British Aden Protectorate, the Federation of Arab Emirates of the South, and its successor, the Federation of South Arabia...
- Upper Aulaqi SultanateUpper Aulaqi SultanateThe Upper Aulaqi Sultanate was a state in the British Aden Protectorate and the Federation of South Arabia. Its capital was Nisab.-History:...
- The five Upper YafaUpper YafaUpper Yafa, Upper Yafa'i , or the Sultanate of Upper Yafa , was a state in the British Aden Protectorate and the Protectorate of South Arabia. It was ruled by the Harharah dynasty and its capital was Mahjaba...
sheikhdoms of:- Busi
- Dhubi
- Hadrami
- MaflahiMaflahiMaflahi, Muflahi , or the Muflahi Sheikhdom , was a state in the British Aden Protectorate. It was originally one of the five sheikhdoms of Upper Yafa but joined the Federation of South Arabia and its successor, the Federation of South Arabia, as a separate state...
- Mausatta
- Upper Yafa SultanateUpper YafaUpper Yafa, Upper Yafa'i , or the Sultanate of Upper Yafa , was a state in the British Aden Protectorate and the Protectorate of South Arabia. It was ruled by the Harharah dynasty and its capital was Mahjaba...
The boundaries between these polities and even their number fluctuated over time. Some such as the Mahra Sultanate barely had any functioning administration. Not included in the protectorate were Aden Colony or the insular areas of Perim
Perim
Perim is a volcanic island strategically located in the Strait of Mandeb at the southern entrance into the Red Sea, off the southwestern coast of Yemen, at . It has a surface area of 13 square kilometers and rises to an altitude of 65 meters. The island has a natural harbour on its southwestern...
, Kamaran
Kamaran
Kamaran Island is the largest Yemen-controlled island in the Red Sea. The island is long and wide and is strategically located at the southern end of the Red Sea....
, and Khuriya Muriya
Khuriya Muriya Islands
The Khuriya Muriya Islands are a group of five islands in the Arabian Sea, off the southeastern coast of the Sultanate of Oman. The islands form part of the province of Shalim and the Hallaniyat Islands in the governorate of Dhofar....
that accrued to it.
Advisory treaties
In 1938, Britain signed an advisory treaty with the Qu'aitiQu'aiti
Qu'aiti , officially the Qu'aiti State in Hadhramaut Qu'aiti , officially the Qu'aiti State in Hadhramaut Qu'aiti , officially the Qu'aiti State in Hadhramaut (Arabic: (الدولة القعيطية الحضرمية) or the Qu'aiti Sultanate of Shihr and Mukalla (Arabic:سلطنة الشحر والمكلاا ), was a sultanate in the...
sultan and, throughout the 1940s and 1950s, signed similar treaties with twelve other protectorate states. The following were the states with advisory treaties:
- Kathiri
- Mahra
- Qu'aiti
- Wahidi Balhaf
Western Protectorate States
- Audhali
- Beihan
- Dhala
- Haushabi
- Fadhli
- Lahej
- Lower Aulaqi
- Lower Yafa
- Upper Aulaqi Sheikhdom
These agreements allowed for the stationing of a Resident Advisor in the signatory states which gave the British a greater degree of control over their domestic affairs. This rationalized
Rationality
In philosophy, rationality is the exercise of reason. It is the manner in which people derive conclusions when considering things deliberately. It also refers to the conformity of one's beliefs with one's reasons for belief, or with one's actions with one's reasons for action...
and stabilized the rulers’ status and laws of succession
Order of succession
An order of succession is a formula or algorithm that determines who inherits an office upon the death, resignation, or removal of its current occupant.-Monarchies and nobility:...
but had the effect of ossifying the leadership and encouraging official corruption. Aerial bombardment
Bombardment
A bombardment is an attack by artillery fire directed against fortifications, troops or towns and buildings.Prior to World War I the term term was only applied to the bombardment of defenceless or undefended objects, houses, public buildings, it was only loosely employed to describe artillery...
and collective punishment
Collective punishment
Collective punishment is the punishment of a group of people as a result of the behavior of one or more other individuals or groups. The punished group may often have no direct association with the other individuals or groups, or direct control over their actions...
were sometimes used against wayward tribes to enforce the rule of Britain’s clients. British protection came to be seen as an impediment to progress, a view reinforced by the arrival of news of Arab nationalism
Arab nationalism
Arab nationalism is a nationalist ideology celebrating the glories of Arab civilization, the language and literature of the Arabs, calling for rejuvenation and political union in the Arab world...
from the outside world on newly available transistor radio
Transistor radio
A transistor radio is a small portable radio receiver using transistor-based circuitry. Following their development in 1954 they became the most popular electronic communication device in history, with billions manufactured during the 1960s and 1970s...
s.
Challenges to the status quo
British control was also challenged by King Ahmad bin YahyaAhmad bin Yahya
Ahmad bin Yahya Hamidaddin was the penultimate king of the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen from 1948 to 1962. His full name and title was H.M. al-Nasir-li-din Allah Ahmad bin al-Mutawakkil 'Ala Allah Yahya, Imam and Commander of the Faithful, and King of the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of the Yemen...
of Yemen
Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen
The Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen , sometimes spelled Mutawakelite Kingdom of Yemen, also known as the Kingdom of Yemen or as North Yemen, was a country from 1918 to 1962 in the northern part of what is now Yemen...
to the north who did not recognize British suzerainty in South Arabia and had ambitions of creating a unified Greater Yemen
Greater Yemen
Greater Yemen is a geographic term denoting the present territory of the Republic of Yemen as well as the Saudi regions of 'Asir, Najran Province, Jizan Province, the adjacent islands in the Red Sea and the adjacent parts of Tihamah and sometimes the Omani province of Dhofar.Greater Yemen is also...
. In the late 1940s and the early 1950s, Yemen was involved in a series of border skirmishes along the disputed Violet Line, a 1914 Anglo-Ottoman demarcation
Anglo-Ottoman Convention of 1913
The Anglo-Ottoman Convention of 1913 was an agreement between the Ottoman Porte and the British Government defining the limits of Ottoman jurisdiction in the area of the Persian Gulf with respect to Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, and the Shatt al-‘Arab...
that served to separate Yemen from the Aden Protectorate.
In 1950, Kennedy Trevaskis, the Advisor for the Western Protectorate drew up a plan for the protectorate states to form two federation
Federation
A federation , also known as a federal state, is a type of sovereign state characterized by a union of partially self-governing states or regions united by a central government...
s, corresponding to the two halves of the protectorate. Although little progress was made in bringing the plan to fruition, it was considered a provocation by Ahmad bin Yahya. In addition to his role as king, he also served as the imam
Imam
An imam is an Islamic leadership position, often the worship leader of a mosque and the Muslim community. Similar to spiritual leaders, the imam is the one who leads Islamic worship services. More often, the community turns to the mosque imam if they have a religious question...
of the ruling Zaidi branch of Shi'a Islam
Shi'a Islam
Shia Islam is the second largest denomination of Islam. The followers of Shia Islam are called Shi'ites or Shias. "Shia" is the short form of the historic phrase Shīʻatu ʻAlī , meaning "followers of Ali", "faction of Ali", or "party of Ali".Like other schools of thought in Islam, Shia Islam is...
. He feared that a successful federation in the Shafi'i
Shafi'i
The Shafi'i madhhab is one of the schools of fiqh, or religious law, within the Sunni branch of Islam. The Shafi'i school of fiqh is named after Imām ash-Shafi'i.-Principles:...
Sunnite protectorates would serve as a beacon for discontented Shafi'ites who inhabited the coastal regions of Yemen. To counter the threat, Ahmad stepped up Yemeni efforts to undermine British control and, in the mid-1950s, Yemen supported a number of revolts by disgruntled tribes against protectorate states. The appeal of Yemen was limited initially in the protectorate but a growing intimacy between Yemen and the popular Arab nationalist president of Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
Gamal Abdel Nasser
Gamal Abdel Nasser
Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein was the second President of Egypt from 1956 until his death. A colonel in the Egyptian army, Nasser led the Egyptian Revolution of 1952 along with Muhammad Naguib, the first president, which overthrew the monarchy of Egypt and Sudan, and heralded a new period of...
and the formation of United Arab States
United Arab States
The United Arab States was a short-lived confederation of the United Arab Republic and North Yemen from 1958–1961.The United Arab Republic was a sovereign state formed by the union of Egypt and Syria in 1958...
increased its attraction.
Federation and the end of the Protectorate
Aden had been of interest to Britain as a link to British India and then, after the loss of most of Britain's colonies from 1945 and the disastrous Suez CrisisSuez Crisis
The Suez Crisis, also referred to as the Tripartite Aggression, Suez War was an offensive war fought by France, the United Kingdom, and Israel against Egypt beginning on 29 October 1956. Less than a day after Israel invaded Egypt, Britain and France issued a joint ultimatum to Egypt and Israel,...
in 1956, as a valuable port
Port
A port is a location on a coast or shore containing one or more harbors where ships can dock and transfer people or cargo to or from land....
for accessing crucial Middle Eastern oil. It had also been chosen as the new location for Middle East Command
Middle East Command
The Middle East Command was a British Army Command established prior to the Second World War in Egypt. Its primary role was to command British land forces and co-ordinate with the relevant naval and air commands to defend British interests in the Middle East and eastern Mediterranean region.The...
.
Nationalist pressure prodded the threatened rulers of the Aden Protectorate states to revive efforts at forming a federation and, on 11 February 1959, six of them signed an accord forming the Federation of Arab Emirates of the South
Federation of Arab Emirates of the South
The Federation of Arab Emirates of the South was an organization of states within the British Aden Protectorate in what would become South Yemen. The Federation of six states was inaugurated in the British Colony of Aden on 11 February 1959. It subsequently added nine states and, on 4 April...
. In the next three years, they were joined by nine others and, on 18 January 1963, Aden Colony was merged with the federation creating the new Federation of South Arabia
Federation of South Arabia
The Federation of South Arabia was an organization of states under British protection in what would become South Yemen. It was formed on 4 April 1962 from the 15 protected states of the Federation of Arab Emirates of the South. On 18 January 1963 it was merged with the crown colony of Aden...
. At the same time, the (mostly eastern) states that had not joined the federation became the Protectorate of South Arabia
Protectorate of South Arabia
The Protectorate of South Arabia was a grouping of states under treaties of protection with Britain. The Protectorate was designated on 18 January 1963 as consisting of those areas of the Aden Protectorate that did not join the Federation of South Arabia, and it broadly, but not exactly,...
, thus ending the existence of the Aden Protectorate.
Aden Emergency
On December 10, 1963 when a state of emergencyState of emergency
A state of emergency is a governmental declaration that may suspend some normal functions of the executive, legislative and judicial powers, alert citizens to change their normal behaviours, or order government agencies to implement emergency preparedness plans. It can also be used as a rationale...
was declared in the Aden Protectorate.
The Emergency was precipitated in large part by a wave of Arab nationalism
Arab nationalism
Arab nationalism is a nationalist ideology celebrating the glories of Arab civilization, the language and literature of the Arabs, calling for rejuvenation and political union in the Arab world...
spreading to the Arabian Peninsula and stemming largely from the Socialist and pan-Arabist doctrines of the Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
ian leader Gamel Abdel Nasser. The British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, and Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i invasion forces that had invaded Egypt
Operation Musketeer (1956)
Operation Musketeer was the Anglo-French-Israeli plan for the invasion of Egypt to capture the Suez Canal during the Suez Crisis. Israel had the additional objective to open the Straits of Tiran.-The operation:...
following Nasser's nationalisation of the Suez Canal
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
in 1956 had been forced to withdraw following intervention from both the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
.
Nevertheless, Nasser had then enjoyed limited success in spreading his pan-Arabist doctrines through the Arab world, with his 1958 attempt to unify Egypt and Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
as the United Arab Republic
United Arab Republic
The United Arab Republic , often abbreviated as the U.A.R., was a sovereign union between Egypt and Syria. The union began in 1958 and existed until 1961, when Syria seceded from the union. Egypt continued to be known officially as the "United Arab Republic" until 1971. The President was Gamal...
collapsing in a humiliating failure only 3 years later. A perceived anti-colonial uprising in Aden in 1963 provided another potential opportunity for his doctrines, though it is not clear to what extent Nasser directly incited the revolt among the Arabs in Aden, as opposed to the Yemeni guerrilla groups drawing inspiration from Nasser's pan-Arabist ideas but acting independently themselves.
By 1963 and in the ensuing years, anti-British guerrilla groups with varying political objectives began to coalesce into two larger, rival organizations: first the Egyptian-supported National Liberation Front
National Liberation Front (Yemen)
The National Liberation Front or NLF was a military organization operating in the Federation of South Arabia in the 60s. During the North Yemen Civil War fighting spilled over into South Yemen as the British tried to exit its Federation of South Arabia colony...
(NLF) and then the Front for the Liberation of Occupied South Yemen
Front for the Liberation of Occupied South Yemen
The Front for the Liberation of Occupied South Yemen or was a military organization operating in the Federation of South Arabia in the 60s. As the British tried to exit its Federation of South Arabia colony Abdullah al Asnag created FLOSY...
(FLOSY), who attacked each other as well as the British.
By 1965, the RAF station
RAF station
A Royal Air Force station is a permanent Royal Air Force operations location. Many RAF stations are aerodromes, or airbases, being the home to one or more flying squadrons. Other RAF stations are training units, administrative units, headquarters , or carry out ground-based operational tasks...
(RAF Khormaksar
RAF Khormaksar
RAF Khormaksar was a Royal Air Force station in Aden. Its motto was "Into the Remote Places". During the 1960s, it was the base for nine squadrons and became the RAF's busiest-ever station. It later became Aden International Airport.-History:...
) was operating 9 Squadrons. These included transport units with helicopters and a number of Hawker Hunter
Hawker Hunter
The Hawker Hunter is a subsonic British jet aircraft developed in the 1950s. The single-seat Hunter entered service as a manoeuvrable fighter aircraft, and later operated in fighter-bomber and reconnaissance roles in numerous conflicts. Two-seat variants remained in use for training and secondary...
ground attack aircraft. These were called in by the army for strikes against positions when they would use "60 lb" high explosive rockets and their 30 mm Aden cannon.
Notable events include the Battle of Crater which brought Lt-Col Colin Campbell Mitchell
Colin Campbell Mitchell
Colin Campbell Mitchell was a British Army lieutenant-colonel and politician. He became famous in July 1967 when he led the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders in the British reoccupation of the Crater district of Aden. At that time, Aden was a British colony and the Crater district had briefly been...
(AKA. "Mad Mitch") to prominence. On June 20, 1967 there was a mutiny in the South Arabian Federation Army, which also spread to the police. Order was restored by the British, mainly due to the efforts of the 1st Battalion Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders
Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders
The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, 5th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland is an infantry battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland....
, under the command of Lt-Col Mitchell.
Nevertheless, deadly guerrilla attacks particularly by the NLF soon resumed against British forces once again, with the British leaving Aden by the end of November 1967, earlier than had been planned by British Prime Minister Harold Wilson
Harold Wilson
James Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx, KG, OBE, FRS, FSS, PC was a British Labour Member of Parliament, Leader of the Labour Party. He was twice Prime Minister of the United Kingdom during the 1960s and 1970s, winning four general elections, including a minority government after the...
and without an agreement on the succeeding governance. Their enemies, the NLF, managed to seize power.
Sources, references, and further reading
- Almanach de Bruxelles
- Paul Dresch. A History of Modern Yemen.Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2000.
- R.J. Gavin. Aden Under British Rule: 1839-1967. London: C. Hurst & Company, 1975.
- Tom Little. South Arabia: Arena of Conflict. London: Pall Mall Press, 1968.
- WorldStatesmen - Yemen-States of the Aden Protectorates
