"دليل الخليج. مجلد I. القسم التاريخي. الأجزاء Iأ و Iب. ج.ج. لوريمر ١٩١٥" [‎٩‎١‎٢] (١٧٨٢/١٠٦٧)

iiLmi.u.i] WMAfJJJJJW; Mi ii I H/iim
Death of
Ahmad-bin-
'AH, 1888.
1889.
1891.
1892.
912
In 1888, probablv- in conf?eqaence of difficulties with the Bani Yas
of Trucial 'Oman in which he was involved and to secure the safety cf
funds which he was accustomed to place in Bahrain, Shaikh Jasiraol
Dohah sought the friendship of the Shaikh of Bahrain, to whom he
deputed his son 'Abdullah, and vague terms ot" amity were arranged.
Ahmad-bin-'AH, the brother of Shaikh 'Isa, died of small-pox in
October 1888. The position of the Shaikh was considered to have been
greatly weakened by this event, for he had been accustomed to depend
in everything on the advice and loyal support of Ahmad, and he was him
self at this time slow and undecided in matters of business, whereas
Ahmad, though sensual and devoted to field sports, possessed some
ability and strength of character and was considerably feared because of
his harshness. 'Abdul Wahhab, kinsman and Wazir of the Shaikh,
retired about the same time on account of old age and was replaced at
first by his son 'Abdur Rahman, a Turkish subject, whose home was
at Darin on Tarut Island. After the death of Ahmad many of the
mainland tribes of Qatar and Hasa, instigated by Nasir-bin-Mubarak,
began to frequent Bahrain and to play upon the fears of Shaikh 'Isa,
from \\ hom they obtained presents on condition of not assisting Nasir;
and numbers of these unwelcome visitors even obtained free passages to
Bahrain from the Shaikh of Saihat or from 'Abdul Wahhab, the late
Wazir, at Darin, upon whom they would quarter themselves until
arrangements were made by their host. The revenues of the deceased
Ahmad,, amounting to half those of the entire Bahrain principality, were
resumed by Shaikh 'Isa, who instead granted allowances to Ahmad's
numerous progeny—an arrangement from which trouble afterwards
sprang.
In 1889 a considerable immigration of Na'im and Sulutah from
Qatar into the Bahrain islands took place.
After the battle of Buraidah in 1891, in whieh he was defeated by
Ibn-Rashid. -Abdur Rahman, the head of the Wahhabi interest in Xajd,
took refuge temporarily in Bahrain.
There was eonsiderable fear in 1892 of an invasion of Bahrain bv
Shaikh Jasim of Dohah and Narir-bin-Mubarak from Qatar, where
hey were said to be eolleeting foree S ; and the panie in Bahrain at one
-in.e reached sneb a he.ght that the resident British Indian snbjeets
embarked their valuables on board boats in Manamah harbour. Letters
of warning were addressed by the British authorities to the leaders
o the movement; a promise was obtained from the Turkish Wali
Basrah that he would direct his subordinates in Hasa to prevent