Persian Gulf coups misrepresented

Abstract

One of the less well-known facets of the final years of pax Britannica in the Persian Gulf was the unwritten policy that the British government overthrew rulers who breached their treaty commitments, failed to develop their states or who declined to accept advice. Between 1965 and 1970 the Foreign Office orchestrated three coups in the region: Sharjah in 1965, Abu Dhabi in 1966 and Salalah (Oman) in 1970. Various objectives were achieved including the maintenance of prestige, strategic interests and the introduction of a ruler who was more amenable. The mechanisms of influence that the British employed varied considerably between the Trucial States, which were protected by treaties signed in the nineteenth century with the Government of India, and the Sultanate of Oman, which was always regarded as nominally independent. The British created a network of influence in the Gulf that endured for 150 years.