Turki Bin Abdullah Al Saud (1755–1834)
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Turki bin Abdullah Al Saud (;‎ 1755 – 9 May 1834) was the founder of the Emirate of Najd, also known as
Second Saudi State 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 ...
and ruled
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, ...
from 1823–1834 following administration by 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 ...
.Vassiliev 2013


Family background and early life

Turki was born in 1755. He was the son of Abdullah bin Muhammad who was the youngest son of
Muhammad bin Saud Muhammad bin Saud Al Muqrin Al Saud (; 1687–1765), also known as Ibn Saud, was the emir of Diriyah and is considered the founder of the First Saudi State and the House of Saud, Saud dynasty, named after his father, Saud bin Muhammad Al Muqrin. ...
, founder of the
First Saudi State The first Saudi state (), officially the Emirate of Diriyah (), was established in 1744, when the emir of a Najdi town called Diriyah, Muhammad I, and the religious leader Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab signed a pact to found a socio-religious r ...
, and the brother of Abdulaziz bin Muhammad, the second ruler and first Imam of the State. Imam Abdulaziz's grandson, Abdullah bin Saud, was the last Imam of the First Saudi State. This made Turki the first cousin once removed of Imam Abdullah bin Saud.


Ascent

Turki fought in defense 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 ...
against the Egyptians and hostile tribes, including
Banu Khalid Bani Khalid () is an Arab tribal confederation mainly inhabiting the Arabian Peninsula. The tribe ruled southern Iraq, Kuwait, and Eastern Arabia ( al-Hasa and al-Qatif) from the 15th century to the 18th century, and again under the protection ...
. He escaped when the city was seized by Ibrahim Pasha in 1818, marking the end of the First Saudi State.Winder 1965, p. 52. He spent the next two years in hiding due to the ensuing persecution of the Al Saud with Abdullah bin Saud being sent to Cairo and then, to İstanbul to be executed by the Ottomans. Turki briefly collaborated with Mohammad bin Mishari bin Muammar, an Arab client of Muhammad Ali, who aspired to rule Najd himself. However, when Mishari bin Saud, the last Imam’s brother, escaped from Egyptian captivity to reassert Saudi rule, Turki joined him and was appointed governor of
Riyadh Riyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of the Riyadh Governorate. Located on the eastern bank of Wadi Hanifa, the current form of the metropolis largely emerged in th ...
. Ibn Muammar quickly crushed the revolt, however, and imprisoned Mishari. Turki retaliated by capturing Ibn Muammar and his son (also named Mishari). An attempt to exchange both men for Mishari bin Saud before the latter was returned to Egyptian custody failed, resulting in the execution of Ibn Muammar and his son. Turki was then forced back into hiding. By this time, many senior members of the House of Saud had been killed, exiled, or imprisoned, leaving Turki as one of the few within the family willing and able to assume leadership.


Reign

In 1823, Turki re-emerged to form an alliance with Sawaid, the ruler of Jalajil in
Sudair Sudair or Sudayr () is a historical region in Najd in the central of Saudi Arabia, and is located approximately 150 km north of the Saudi capital, Riyadh. The region lies in a valley directly to the east of the Tweig escarpment, which runs ...
, and had soon established himself in Irqah. He made further incursions into Najd, in which he seized major settlements such as Durma and Manfuhah in order to isolate Riyadh and its Egyptian garrison. By August 1824, Riyadh itself came under siege and fell a few months later; Turki designated Riyadh as the new Saudi capital the same year as Diriyah had been devastated and largely depopulated by the Egyptians during their occupation. In Riyadh he constructed Qasr Al Hukm in 1824 to be used as the headquarters of the Amir. Though he had succeeded in re-establishing a viable Saudi polity, Turki chose to remain a nominal vassal of the Ottomans due to what had happened to Abdullah bin Saud. This in no way inhibited his attempts over the next several years to consolidate his hold in Najd, with Kharj, Qasim, and Jabal Shammar all having submitted to Saudi rule by 1828 despite clashes with the local
Bedouin The Bedouin, Beduin, or Bedu ( ; , singular ) are pastorally nomadic Arab tribes who have historically inhabited the desert regions in the Arabian Peninsula, North Africa, the Levant, and Mesopotamia (Iraq). The Bedouin originated in the Sy ...
. With Hejaz and the Red Sea remaining in Egyptian hands, further expansion was directed eastwards. The conquest of the Eastern Province was achieved in 1830, in response to a Bedouin invasion from this region led by the
Banu Khalid Bani Khalid () is an Arab tribal confederation mainly inhabiting the Arabian Peninsula. The tribe ruled southern Iraq, Kuwait, and Eastern Arabia ( al-Hasa and al-Qatif) from the 15th century to the 18th century, and again under the protection ...
. Efforts to extend Saudi influence along the
Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf, sometimes called the Arabian Gulf, is a Mediterranean seas, mediterranean sea in West Asia. The body of water is an extension of the Arabian Sea and the larger Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.Un ...
littoral The littoral zone, also called litoral or nearshore, is the part of a sea, lake, or river that is close to the shore. In coastal ecology, the littoral zone includes the intertidal zone extending from the high water mark (which is rarely i ...
, however, met with mixed success. The mere threat of invasion was enough to subdue Oman in 1833 yet Bahrain revolted in the same year (having agreed to pay tribute three years prior), a situation that remained unresolved at the time of Turki’s death. In addition to his religious personality and extensive involvement in war Turki was also a patron of poets, namely Rahman bin Jabir and Abdulaziz bin Hamad bin Nasir bin Muammar, during his reign.


Assassination

In spite of his success in returning the House of Saud to power, Turki could not avoid falling victim to familial intrigue. On 9 May 1834, as the imam was leaving the mosque, he was ambushed and slain by three assassins working for his second-cousin (and fellow member of the House of Saud) Mishari bin Abdul Rahman. It was Mishari who then emerged “with an unsheathed sword”, insisting that he, and not Faisal (who was away on campaign against Bahrain), was the new imam. Faisal, however, quickly learned of his father's assassination and hurried back to Riyadh. He reached this city by the end of May, defeating and executing Mishari within a matter of weeks. Yet this was only a partial victory as it would take almost a decade of fighting against other would-be usurpers before Faisal succeeded in establishing his authority as Turki’s successor.


Personal life

The Second Saudi State would endure until 1891. In addition, Turki was the progenitor of four branches of the
House of Saud The House of Saud ( ) is the ruling royal family of Saudi Arabia. It is composed of the descendants of Muhammad bin Saud, founder of the Emirate of Diriyah, known as the First Saudi State, (1727–1818), and his brothers, though the ruling ...
: *The Al Faisal- through his eldest son and successor Faisal; this is the branch to which the present line of Saudi monarchs belongs. According to the
Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...
, it contained several thousand male descendants of Turki by the late twentieth century. *The Al TurkiKechichian 2001, pp. 33–34.- through his youngest son Abdullah bin Turki. *The Al Jiluwi- through his son Jiluwi who was born while Turki was in exile. His mother was Huwaydiya bint Ghaydan bin Jazi Al Shamir. *The Saud Al Kabir- through Faisal's son Saud whose mother was Dashisha bint Rakan bin Mandil. The
Imam Turki bin Abdullah Mosque The Imam Turki bin Abdullah Grand Mosque (), also known as the Grand Mosque of Riyadh, is a Sunni Islam Friday mosque in the ad-Dirah neighborhood of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, located adjacent to al-Hukm Palace compound, in Deera Square. It wa ...
in Riyadh is named in his honour.


References


Bibliography

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External links


Second State of Saudi Arabia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saud, Turki Abdullah 19th-century monarchs in the Middle East 19th-century murdered monarchs 1755 births 1834 deaths Turki Turki Turki People of the Wahhabi war Wahhabis People murdered in 1834 Politicians assassinated in the 1830s