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could qualify as Kuwaitis. It was further decreed that only
Kuwaitis could own land, and as the oil-money began to circulate
land that had previously been almost valueless rocketed in
?[ 1 C c; ., p '; evl u ousl y anybody wanting a plot of land would apply to
the Shaikh, who would send his minions to mark it out. Naturally
the Shaikh's servants would expect some small douceur, but that
was the extent of the expenditure. Now the value of the same
land compares with that prevailing in central London or Honq
Kong! ^
As the oil-pressure began to rise it was clear that not only the
financial status of Kuwait would change but the political status
also. To appreciate what was happening it is necessary to look
at the genesis of the Kuwait Oil Company.
In the 1930 s, the major American Oil Companies were eager to
develop the deposits which everyone was fairly certain were
lying, like buried treasure worth untold billions of dollars
beneath the sea and sand of the Arab littoral of the Persian
Gulf. Not so the Government of India and BP*. BP had more crude
oil flowing from their Persian fields than they could
conveniently refine or market. The last thing they wanted were
further Arab concessions which would put them under pressure to
produce vast quantities of crude in competition with their own
Persian production. So they dragged their feet; and, as a
result, the Bahrain concession went to a consortium of American
majors and proved profitable. BP took a certain amount of stick
over this in Parliament and the Press, and when the Kuwait
concession became active had to be seen to be in there fighting
the British corner. The negotiations were involved and
prolonged, and culminated in the concession going to a company
50% BP and 50% Gulf Oil Corporation of the U.S.A., to be known as
the Kuwait Oil Company. It was laid down by the Government of
India when approving these agreements that the management and
staff of the companies in the Shaikhdoms should, as far as
possible be British; but this requirement had largely gone by the
board.
In fact, this oil-field proved a God-send to BP when, a few years
later, Persian production was embargoed as a result of
Moussadiq's nationalisation of Iranian oil. BP were able to make
good the shortage by a rapid expansion of Kuwait production.
In early 1947 there was a visitation by members of the
Congressional Foreign Affairs Committee, and it was obvious that
the U.S.A. would soon press for their own representation in
Kuwait : it was equally obvious that, if this were granted, it
would be impossible to keep the door closed against other
countries. Ultimately it had to be opened, and now even the
U.S.S.R. has an Embassy in Kuwait.
* During these years the Ang1o-Persian Oil Co. changed its name
to the Ang 1 o - Iran i an Oil Co. and finally to BP. I have
therefore referred to it as BP throughout for simplicity