A History of Modern Yemen

Abstract

If you have time to read a single book on Yemen's recent past, PaulDresch's A History of Modern Yemen is the one for you. Dresch, aUniversity Lecturer at Oxford University's Institute of Social and CulturalAnthropology, elucidates the history of Yemen, starting in the 19thCentury, with the British and the Ottomans vying for power and influencein this most ancient and original of Arab states, and culminating in Yemen'sunification in 1990 and the Yemen-Saudi border settlement of 2000.Within these 285 pages, the author traces over a century and a half of theevents and trends, men and movements, that have shaped today's Yemen.
 To be sure, a thorough familiarity with Yemen's long history - if suchknowledge lies within reach - would require a lifetime of reading andstudy. And Dreschs Modern Yemen does not pretend to cover such a span.What Dresch does cover, nevertheless, he covers well and offers afascinating account not just for historians and Middle East analysts, but forYemenophiles such as the present reviewer.The author divides the book into seven chapters, along with twoappendices, a glossary of Arabic terms, a chronological outline of Yemenihistory since 1831, copious notes and references, and an index. ChapterOne, "Turkey, Britain and Imam Yahya: the Years Around 1900", sets thestage not just for the anti-imperialist rebellions which would culminate inthe mid-twentieth century, but also for the on-going internal strugglesfought along tribal, regional, sectarian, and political lines. To follow theplethora of personalities, tribes, and place names which populate thesepages can be a daunting task prepare to jot down notes unless you own aphotographic memory! ...