History

In ancient history, the region of Oman was known principally for its copper mining, an activity still pursued to this day. Over the centuries the area was ruled intermittently by its trans-gulf neighbours, the Persians.

Early History

Several thousand years ago, Arab tribes migrated eastward to Oman, coinciding with the increasing presence in the region of peoples from present-day Iran. By the middle of the 8th century, these tribes were practicing a unique brand of the faith, Ibadhism, which remains a majority sect only in Oman. Ibadhism has been characterised as "moderate conservatism", with tenets that are a mixture of both austerity and tolerance.

The introduction of Ibadism vested power in the imam, the leader nominated by the ulema. The imam's position was confirmed when the imam (having gained the allegiance of the tribal sheiks) received the bay'ah (oath of allegiance) from the public. The Ibadis had five imamates before the founding of the Al Said dynasty.

Oman was conquered by several foreign powers; it was controlled by the Qarmatians between 931-934. Between 972 and 1050, Oman was part of the domain of the Iranian Buyyids, and between 1053 and 1154, it was part of the Great Seljuk Empire. In 1154, the indigenous Nabhani dynasty took control of Oman, and the Nabhani kings ruled Oman until 1470, with an interruption of 37 years between 1406 and 1443.

Yarubid Dynasty

Muscat was taken by the Portuguese on 1 Apr 1515, and was held until 26 Jan 1650, although the Ottomans controlled Muscat between 1550-1551 and 1581-1588. In about the year 1600, Nabhani rule was temporarily restored to Oman, lasting to 1624. The Yarubid Imamate (or fifth imamate), recaptured Muscat from the Portuguese in 1650.

The Yarubid dynasty expanded, acquiring former Portuguese colonies in East Africa and engaging in the slave trade. By 1719, dynastic succession led to the nomination of Saif ibn Sultan II. His candidacy prompted a rivalry among the ulema and a civil war between the two major tribes, the Hinawi and the Ghafiri, with the Ghafiri supporting Saif ibn Sultan II. He assumed power in 1748 after the leaders of both factions had been killed in battle, but the rivalry continued, with the factionalisation working in favour of the Iranians, who occupied Muscat and Suhar in 1743.

The Iranians had occupied the coast before--indeed the coast was often the possession of various empires. These empires brought order to the religious and ethnic diversity of the population of this cosmopolitan region. Yet the intervention on behalf of an unpopular dynasty brought about a revolt. The leader of the revolt, Ahmad ibn Said al Said, was elected sultan of Muscat upon the expulsion of the Persians. The position of Sultan of Muscat would remain in the possession of the Al Said clan even when the imamate of Oman remained out of reach.

Al Said Dynasty

The Al Said clan became a royal dynasty when Ahmad ibn Said Al Said was elected imam following the expulsion of the Iranians from Muscat in 1744. Like its predecessors, Al Said dynastic rule has been characterised by a history of internecine family struggle, fratricide and usurpation. Apart from threats within the ruling family, there was the omnipresent challenge from the independent tribes of the interior who rejected the authority of the sultan, recognising the imam as the sole legitimate leader and pressing, by resort to arms, for the restoration of the imamate.

Schisms within the ruling family were apparent before Ahmad ibn Said's death in 1783 and were later manifest with the division of the family into two main lines, the Sultan ibn Ahmad Al Said (r. 1792-1806) line controlling the maritime state, with nominal control over the entire country; and the Qais branch, with authority over the Al Batinah and Ar Rustaq areas. During the period of Sultan Said ibn Sultan Al Said's rule (1806-56), Oman cultivated its East African colonies, profiting from the slave trade.

As a regional commercial power in the nineteenth century, Oman held territories on the island of Zanzibar off the coast of East Africa, in Mombasa along the coast of East Africa, and until 1958 in Gwadar (in present-day Pakistan) on the coast of the Arabian Sea. But when the British declared slavery illegal in the mid-1800s, the sultanate's fortunes reversed. The economy collapsed, and many Omani families migrated to Zanzibar. The population of Muscat fell from 55,000 to 8,000 between the 1850s and 1870s.

Muscat and Oman

When Sultan Sa'id bin Sultan Al-Busaid died in 1856, his sons quarrelled over the succession As a result of this struggle, the empire - through the mediation of the British Government under the "Canning Award" - was divided in 1861 into two separate principalities: Zanzibar (ruled by Mayid ibn Said Al Said), and Muscat and Oman (ruled by Thuwaini ibn Said Al Said). Zanzibar paid an annual subsidy to Muscat and Oman until its independence in early 1964.

In 1868, Azzam ibn Qais Al Said (r. 1868-71) emerged as self-declared imam. Although a significant number of Hinawi tribes recognised him as imam, the public neither elected him nor acclaimed him as such.

Imam Azzam understood that to unify the country a strong, central authority had to be established with control over the interior tribes of Oman. His rule was jeopardised by the British, who interpreted his policy of bringing the interior tribes under the central government as a move against their established order. In resorting to military means to unify Oman, Imam Azzam alienated members of the Ghafiri tribes, who revolted in the 1870-71 period. The British gave Imam Azzam's rival, Turki ibn Said Al Said, financial and political support. Turki ibn Said succeeded in defeating the forces of Imam Azzam, who was killed in battle outside Matrah in January 1871.

Imam of Oman

During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the sultan in Muscat faced rebellion by members of the Ibadi sect residing in the interior of Oman, centred around the town of Nizwa, who wanted to be ruled exclusively by their religious leader, the Imam of Oman. This conflict was resolved temporarily by the Treaty of Seeb, which granted the imam autonomous rule in the interior Imamate of Oman, while recognising the nominal sovereignty of the sultan elsewhere.

The conflict flared up again in 1954, when the new imam led a sporadic 5-year rebellion against the sultan's efforts to extend government control into the interior. The insurgents were defeated in 1959 with British help. The sultan then terminated the Treaty of Seeb and eliminated the office of the imam. In the early 1960s, the imam, exiled to Saudi Arabia, obtained support from his hosts and other Arab governments, but this support ended in the 1980s.

In 1964, a separatist revolt began in Dhofar Province. Aided by Communist and leftist governments such as the former South Yemen (People's Democratic Republic of Yemen), the rebels formed the Dhofar Liberation Front, which later merged with the Marxist-dominated Popular Front for the Liberation of Oman and the Arab Gulf (PFLOAG). The PFLOAG's declared intention was to overthrow all traditional Persian Gulf régimes. In mid-1974, the Bahrain branch of the PFLOAG was established as a separate organisation and the Omani branch changed its name to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Oman (PFLO), while continuing the Dhofar Rebellion.

Reign of Sultan Qaboos

In 1970, Qaboos bin Said Al Said ousted his father, Sa'id bin Taymur, who later died in exile in London. Al Said has ruled as sultan ever since. The new sultan confronted insurgency in a country plagued by endemic disease, illiteracy and poverty. One of the new sultan's first measures was to abolish many of his father's harsh restrictions, which had caused thousands of Omani to leave the country, and to offer amnesty to opponents of the previous régime, many of whom returned to Oman. He also established a modern government structure and launched a major development programme to upgrade educational and health facilities, build a modern infrastructure and develop the country's natural resources.

In an effort to curb the Dhofar insurgency, Sultan Qaboos expanded and re-equipped the armed forces and granted amnesty to all surrendering rebels while vigorously prosecuting the war in Dhofar. He obtained direct military support from the UK, Iran and Jordan. By early 1975, the guerrillas were confined to a 50-square-kilometer (20-square-mile) area near the Yemeni border and shortly thereafter were defeated. As the war drew to a close, civil action programs were given priority throughout Dhofar and helped win the allegiance of the people. The PFLO threat diminished further with the establishment of diplomatic relations in October 1983 between South Yemen and Oman, and South Yemen subsequently lessened propaganda and subversive activities against Oman. In late 1987 Oman opened an embassy in Aden, South Yemen, and appointed its first resident ambassador to the country.

Since his accession in 1970, Sultan Qaboos has balanced tribal, regional and ethnic interests in composing the national administration. The Council of Ministers, which functions as a cabinet, consists of 26 ministers, all directly appointed by Qaboos. The Majlis Al-Shura (Consultative Council) has the mandate of reviewing legislation pertaining to economic development and social services prior to its becoming law. The Majlis Al-Shura may request ministers to appear before it. In September 2000, about 100,000 Omani men and women elected 83 candidates, including two women, to seats in the Majlis Al-Shura.

Further, in December 2000, Sultan Qaboos appointed the 48-member Majlis Al Dowla, or State Council, including five women, which acts as the upper chamber in Oman's bicameral representative body.

In November 1996, Sultan Qaboos presented his people with the "Basic Statutes of the State", Oman's first written "constitution". It guarantees various rights within the framework of Qur'anic and customary law. It partially resuscitated long dormant conflict-of-interest measures by banning cabinet ministers from being officers of public shareholding firms. Perhaps most importantly, the Basic Statutes provide rules for setting Sultan Qaboos' succession.

Oman occupies a strategic location on the Strait of Hormuz at the entrance to the Persian Gulf, 35 miles directly opposite Iran. Oman has concerns with regional stability and security, given tensions in the region, the proximity of Iran and Iraq, and the potential threat of political Islam. Oman maintained its diplomatic relations with Iraq throughout the Gulf War while supporting the United Nations allies by sending a contingent of troops to join coalition forces and by opening up to pre-positioning of weapons and supplies. In addition, since 1980 Oman and the United States have been parties to a military co-operation agreement, which they revised and renewed in 2000. Oman also has long been an active participant in efforts to achieve Middle East peace.

Following the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States, the Omani Government at all levels pledged and provided impressive support to the U.S.-led coalition against terrorism. Oman has signed most United Nations-sponsored anti-terrorism treaties.

Al Said's extensive modernisation program has opened the country to the outside world and has preserved a long-standing political and military relationship with the United Kingdom. Oman's moderate, independent foreign policy has sought to maintain good relations with all Middle Eastern countries.