'Historical Summary of Events in the Persian Gulf Shaikhdoms and the Sultanate of Muscat and Oman, 1928-1953' [‎92r] (188/222)

171
CHAPTER 6
MUSCAT
I.—General
1. His Highness Saiyid Sa'id bin Taimur bin Faisal, born in 1910, succeeded
officially as Sultan of Muscat and Oman and Dependencies in February 1932 on
the abdication of his father Saiyid Taimur. The Dependencies referred to in the
territorial designation are Gwadur and Dhofar which are not part of Oman. The
title " Highness " is used in conversation and personal correspondence conducted
in English but the Sultan will not permit it to be used in official documents^ 1 )
Although most of his subjects give him no title other than Saiyid, it is probable
that he would like to be addressed as " Majesty." The Foreign Office have held
that he must himself formally adopt this style, which he has never done, and that
it is not for Her Majesty's Government to take the initiative^ 2 ) He is entitled
to a salute of 21 guns. He was awarded the K.C.LE. in 1938 and the G.C.LE. in
1945. He protested when the last award was made because the British Broadcasting
Corporation included it amongst the honours granted to Indian Princes. In
accordance with a request which he made when he received the K.C.I.E. no honour
is written after his name either in private or official correspondence.^) His
attitude in this and many other matters is no doubt due to his jealousy of his
independence and his fear of being regarded as possessing the same status as the
Ruler of an Indian State or a Gulf shaikhdom, which was in fact the treatment in
practice accorded to his predecessors by the late British Government of India.
He has one son Saiyid Qabus who was born in December 1940, and up to 1953
had lived the whole of his life in Dhofar. The Sultan paid an official visit to India
in 1932 and again in 1937 when he stayed with the Viceroy and to England in
1938 where he was the guest of His Majesty's Government ior a fortnight and
was received in audience by The King. He also visited England privately in 1953
and was received in audience by The Queen. He spends almost half his time
away from his capital and keeps his family in Dhofar, where he often resides tor
long periods. Before 1947 he also paid many visits of considerable duration to
India. He was educated in India and Iraq and has a faiily good knowledge o
English. He is a very astute Ruler, but is diffident and lacks force of charac er.
He endeavours to make up for these deficiencies by adopting an a 1 ^ e o rega
aloofness which does not make him popular with his fellow-Arabs^ He has three
brothers. The eldest Saiyid Majid m 1953 was Wall ^ Sun Thyecond Saijnd
Tarin was born in Turkev of a Turkish mother and educated in Turkey ana
BE Bits rsM
M° n niS .Sr
after which he served for a time with ; ^ ^ t f t A1 Saeed It should
Taimur is living at Bombay under , ^ e " t Saivid Sa 'id who died in 1856 were all
be noted that the f^enysons ofdieg y ^ slave . blood in their veins .
by concubines and that the Muscat ru g Arabs will n
The ruling families of the Gu f Sta.khdoms
therefore, give their daughters m mar . g
• j ^nfpntate who has commercial treaties with
2. The Sultan is an mdependent ^ (1953)(4) as
the Government of the United States ( , , j j addition a commercial
well as with Her Majesty's Government.^ There is in ^ Ang | 0 .French
declaration of 1877 with the Netherlands h French Government
declaration of 1862, Her Majesty s Government ana