Abdullah bin Saud Al Saud (; died May 1819) was the last ruler of the First Saudi State, from 1814 to 1818, and was executed in

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

under the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

. Although the Ottomans maintained several garrisons in the Nejd thereafter, they were unable to prevent the rise of the

Emirate of Nejd The second Saudi state (), officially known as the Emirate of Najd, was a state that existed between 1824 and 1891 in the Najd region of what is now Saudi Arabia. Saudi rule was restored to central (Najd) and Eastern Arabia after the first Sau ...

, also known as the Second Saudi State, led by Turki bin Abdullah.

Early life

Abdullah was the eldest son of Saud bin Abdulaziz, who declared him as the heir apparent in 1805. Abdullah's first military command was in 1811. In his second command he fought against the

Egyptians Egyptians (, ; , ; ) are an ethnic group native to the Nile, Nile Valley in Egypt. Egyptian identity is closely tied to Geography of Egypt, geography. The population is concentrated in the Nile Valley, a small strip of cultivable land stretchi ...

in 1812, and was unable to prevent them from ultimately recapturing

Hejaz Hejaz is a Historical region, historical region of the Arabian Peninsula that includes the majority of the western region of Saudi Arabia, covering the cities of Mecca, Medina, Jeddah, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, Tabuk, Yanbu, Taif and Al Bahah, Al-B ...

. Following his failure, Saud bin Abdulaziz took back the command, which delayed the capture of the region.

Reign

Abdullah succeeded his father, Saud, in May 1814. At the beginning of his reign, Abdullah faced intra-family challenges from his uncle Abdullah bin Muhammad, but managed to settle these problems. His father had initiated a war with the

with the capture of

, which were regained by the Ottomans in 1813. Because of his father's conquest, Abdullah immediately had to face an invasion of his domains by an Ottoman-Egyptian army under the command of Ibrahim Pasha, the son of Muhammad Ali Pasha. The Ottoman forces began their campaign by quickly recapturing

Mecca Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...

and

Medina Medina, officially al-Madinah al-Munawwarah (, ), also known as Taybah () and known in pre-Islamic times as Yathrib (), is the capital of Medina Province (Saudi Arabia), Medina Province in the Hejaz region of western Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, ...

. Heavily outnumbered and under-equipped, the forces of

Diriyah Diriyah (; formerly romanization of Arabic, romanized as Dereyeh and Dariyya) is a towns in Saudi Arabia, town and governorate in Saudi Arabia. Located on the northwestern outskirts of the Saudi capital, Riyadh, Diriyah was the original home of t ...

Emirate were defeated in 1815 and retreated to their stronghold of

Najd Najd is a Historical region, historical region of the Arabian Peninsula that includes most of the central region of Saudi Arabia. It is roughly bounded by the Hejaz region to the west, the Nafud desert in Al-Jawf Province, al-Jawf to the north, ...

. Following the battle,

Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and social activist. A global cultural icon, widely known by the nickname "The Greatest", he is often regarded as the gr ...

sent a letter to Abdullah requesting his submission and, in May 1815, an agreement was made which terminated Abdullah's claims over two Islamic holy cities,

and

, and recognised the supremacy of the Ottoman caliph. Between 1814 and 1816 Abdullah had to deal with the concerns of the British regarding piracy coming from the Qasimi region. Abdullah sent several letters to William Bruce who was the British resident in

Bushehr Bushehr (; ) is a port city in the Central District (Bushehr County), Central District of Bushehr County, Bushehr province, Bushehr province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. Etymology The roots of the n ...

to inform him that the Emirate did not involve in any such event. Rather than engage the Ottomans in open battle, Abdullah decided to attempt to weather the invasion by fortifying his forces in the Najd towns in 1816. As a result, Ibrahim took the villages of Najd one by one, sacking any town that resisted. Ibrahim finally reached the Saudi capital at Diriyah. After a siege lasting several months, Abdullah finally surrendered on 9 September 1818, marking the end of the Saudi state.

Fall of the Emirate and execution of Abdullah bin Saud

Ibrahim systematically razed Diriyah to the ground and sent many members of the Al Saud clan into captivity in Egypt and Constantinople, the Ottoman Empire. Three brothers of Abdullah and eighteen Al Saud members were killed. Abdullah, his three sons and two of his supporters were brought to

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

in November 1818. After a six-month stay in Cairo, Abdullah was transferred to

by Muhammad Ali Pasha, with a recommendation for a pardon. This was refused by Sultan

Mahmud II Mahmud II (, ; 20 July 1785 – 1 July 1839) was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1808 until his death in 1839. Often described as the "Peter the Great of Turkey", Mahmud instituted extensive administrative, military, and fiscal reforms ...

and, in May 1819, he and his two supporters were publicly beheaded in the square before

Hagia Sophia Hagia Sophia (; ; ; ; ), officially the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque (; ), is a mosque and former Church (building), church serving as a major cultural and historical site in Istanbul, Turkey. The last of three church buildings to be successively ...

for their crimes against Islamic holy cities and mosques. Hakan Özoğlu and Altan Tan argue that Abdullah's four sons were also beheaded with him. Prior to his execution, Abdullah, who had forbidden listening to music, was forced to listen to the

lute A lute ( or ) is any plucked string instrument with a neck (music), neck and a deep round back enclosing a hollow cavity, usually with a sound hole or opening in the body. It may be either fretted or unfretted. More specifically, the term "lu ...

. Selim Koru. (24 July 2015)
Turkey's 200-Year War against 'ISIS'
''The National Interest''

Reasons for his execution

In 1802, during the Wahhabi sack of Karbala, the mausoleum of

Husayn ibn Ali Husayn ibn Ali (; 11 January 626 – 10 October 680 Common Era, CE) was a social, political and religious leader in early medieval Arabia. The grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and an Alids, Alid (the son of Ali ibn Abu Talib ibn Abd a ...

was desecrated by the army of Abdullah bin Saud, causing anger and shock in the

Muslim world The terms Islamic world and Muslim world commonly refer to the Islamic community, which is also known as the Ummah. This consists of all those who adhere to the religious beliefs, politics, and laws of Islam or to societies in which Islam is ...

. As a result, the Ottoman authorities found themselves in a situation that they had to punish the Saudis for their crimes. The guardian of Islam's religious places was the Turkish-Ottoman Caliph in Constantinople,

, who ordered that an Egyptian force be sent to the Arabian Peninsula to defeat Abdullah bin Saud and his allies. In 1818, an Egyptian army led by Ibrahim Pasha led a siege on their capital,

, in

. Abdullah eventually surrendered. Abdullah bin Saud was taken along with two of his supporters who were then sent to Cairo and then to Constantinople where they were executed on the orders of

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Saud, Abdullah Saud 19th-century executions by the Ottoman Empire 19th-century monarchs in the Middle East 19th-century murdered monarchs 1819 deaths Executed monarchs Executed Saudi royalty Abdullah Monarchs taken prisoner in wartime People executed by the Ottoman Empire by decapitation People of the Wahhabi war Year of birth missing