History History

Appearance of the first human tracks at Jebel Faya in the emirate of Sharjah. The men feed mainly on gathering and hunting. Fossil remains and stone tools bear witness to their presence.

The archaeological site Hili in Al Ain, reveals to French archaeologists the domestication of goats and the presence of sorghum. Birth of the agricultural palm groves and necropolis of Jebel Hafit in Al Aïn.

The Bronze Age is an important period for this region. The Umm al-Nar period takes its name from the common circular tombs, the best reconstruction of which is at Hili, north of Al Ain. They contained objects (combs, bracelets) of different types, enclosed in soft stone boxes, which confirms the hypothesis of numerous contacts with Mesopotamia, but also with Iran, the Indus Valley (Pakistan) and Bactria (Afghanistan). This peninsula also became the main supplier of copper to Mesopotamia, extracted from the Hajjar Mountains and exported by sea in the form of ingots and manufactured objects. Not far from Dubai, the archaeological site of Saruq al Hadeed bears witness to this prosperous period. It was at the end of the Neolithic period that the region experienced global warming.

Iron Age: Paradoxically, the importance of iron in the region is relegated to the background by the arrival of three pre-eminent factors in the organization of the way of life of the inhabitants. First of all, the discovery of a new irrigation principle, the falaj, allowing the conveyance of water by artificial channels, underground or not, from the mountains to the crops, provokes an unexpected growth of resources. At the same time, the domestication of the dromedary brings a new means of transport and favours commercial contacts. Having repelled all foreign domination, the region is now free from the Persian yoke, imposed by Darius the Great at the end of the^5th century BC, and victorious over the attempts at Greco-Roman domination led by Alexander the Great and his successors.

Period Ed-Dur : The territory of the emirates is then already a great pearl fishing center. From the 1st century onwards, information on the Ed-Dur period is more precise, thanks to some writings that appear and that concern the region. Thus, Pliny the Younger, in his Natural History, mentions the presence of numerous villages in the area that today corresponds to the Emirates and evokes a nomadic people living sometimes from fishing on the coast and sometimes from the resources of the desert.

The Christians of the Assyrian Church animate the Nestorian monastic community of Sir Bani Yas Island. They organize the pearl trade and collect taxes.

The Islamic period: While during the first centuries the Persian influence was asserted and several religious currents coexisted (Arab paganism, Nestorian Christianity...), the arrival in the region of the disciples of the Prophet Mohammed, who died in 632, sounded the conversion of the inhabitants of the emirates to Islam. Many nomadic tribes try to resist, but the Al-Julanda, helped by Mohammed's successor, the first Caliph Abu Bakr, win a decisive victory at Dibba (10,000 dead) and settle in the region for a long time.

Portuguese domination: In 1448, the Portuguese, after having taken control of several islands located on the spice route, seized the territory hitherto under the tutelage of Hormuz, in order to extend their commercial power as far as India and to gain a monopoly of trade between Europe and the Indian Ocean. The Bedouins of the Bani Yas tribe occupy the oasis of Liwa and the jeweller Gasparo Balbi evokes the island of Dalma in his travel story.

In the middle of the 17th century, the Portuguese were driven out of all their positions by the English and the Dutch. On the other hand, they leave the memory of a sometimes cruel domination towards the population. And their presence, which lasted nearly a century and a half, had the effect of tightening the fabric of certain local tribes.

Originally from Saudi Arabia, the large Bedouin tribe of the Bani Yas first settled in the Liwa oasis, where they founded a village entity that encompasses some forty hamlets and has been an important social and economic hub for the region since the 16th century. The Bani Yas tribe is a confederal tribe with some twenty clans. Differences in the way of life appear between them depending on whether they practice fishing or farming, but they live side by side, help each other and mix constantly, ensuring the tribe's perfect cohesion. In 1761, the clan of Al-Nahyan founded Abu Dhabi, whose importance, from 1791 onwards, became such that the political leader of all the Bani Yas groups (Sheikh Shakbut) left Liwa to settle there. In 1790, the foundation stone of Fort Al Fahidi in Dubai Creek was laid.

The Trucial States: while the great European powers (Holland, France and especially Great Britain) logically coveted the region after the departure of the Portuguese, numerous confrontations pitted the crews of ships chartered by local sheikhs against those of English vessels. A tribe from Ras al-Khaimah, the Qawassim, worked to assert their naval power and became a serious threat to the British fleet. The struggles between the Qawassim and the British seemed to end in 1820, when a peace agreement was signed between Britain and the seven sheikhs of the Omani coast, whose independence the British now recognized and who were called the "Truce States. A temporary truce was agreed upon during the pearl season and renewed each year, then for a period of ten years. It was not until 1853 that the signing of a permanent peace treaty finally allowed the emirates to find a peaceful context, favorable to the restarting of their maritime trade and their economy.

In 1833, members of Abu Dhabi's Al-Bu Falah clan, from which the Maktoum family currently in power is a direct descendant, settled in Dubai's cove.

The pearl industry is booming. The future city is still only a modest fishing village, under British protection, but Dubai already enjoys a privileged location on the edge of a long inlet favourable to trade. Its development begins in the Shindagha district, where ships dock and where the inhabitants are mainly of Arab descent. As trade logically developed on the same bank, Fort Al Fahidi and the Great Mosque became the centre of the city, where a large Indian community was registered.

The Truce States are hit hard by the war, which brings it to a brutal halt. The part of Deira, on the opposite bank, became the most populated at the beginning of the 20th century, with the arrival of Persians and Baloch Indians. At that time, Dubai already had a multinational community, focused on the pearl industry and trade. It is estimated that, among the ports on the Truce coast, Dubai had the largest number of men working on pearl boats and that, instead of returning to the desert at the end of the season, the crews began to reside on the coast all year round, which was the beginning of a sedentary lifestyle. In 1902, when Sheikh Maktoum Bin Hacher, a liberal and visionary, was in charge of the city, a significant event precipitated the city's growing development: very high taxes on the transit of goods hit the ports on the Persian coast, which had the direct consequence of shifting all trade between India and the Truce coast to the port of Dubai. In 1920, as taxes were being raised in Persian ports, Sheikh Said Bin Maktoum proposed to the hard-pressed merchants to come and settle permanently in Dubai, not far from the fort. Most of these merchants, most of whom came from Bastak, settled with their families in the area that corresponds to today's Bastakiya district. They brought with them their architectural know-how and introduced the wind tower into the city's landscape, which was now open to new socio-cultural influences. Dubai was then experiencing a glorious period of economic growth.

The decline of the pearl industry: the emirates' prosperity was based mainly on the pearl trade in the late 1930s. Added to this is the competition from the Japanese pearl market and the economic crisis that has shaken the world since 1929. Despite the development of a parallel trade to that of pearls, the Emirates inevitably saw their trade become scarcer and the population suffer from hunger. Rice, sugar and tea were in short supply, and Great Britain was obliged to provide rations to the countries of the Truce States. Pearl divers are trying to convert themselves into manoeuvres for unloading boats.

The quest for black gold: while studies on the country's oil resources had already been underway for several years, in 1935, Sheikh Said bin Maktoum of Dubai was the first to sign an agreement with the company Petroleum Development, soon followed by the Emir of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Shakbut. Sheikh Said bin Maktoum and his son Rashid launched Dubai into a vast program of redevelopment of the Creek. Thanks to the issue of vouchers sold to merchants and a loan granted by Kuwait, work to de-silting the Creek was financed as early as 1958 and large vessels were able to move easily and find refuge inside the inlet as early as 1963, increasing the volume of trade from 2,000 tonnes in 1951 to 20,000 tonnes in 1963, whatever the tides. Dubai thus gained an advantage over Sharjah, the rival port, stronghold of the Qawassim, the "bosses" of the north. In 1958, Sheikh Said died and Sheikh Rachid became the sovereign. The development of the city required the opening of an architectural office for town planning. John Harris, a Briton, became one of the closest advisers to the sovereign and presented two master urban plans for the development of Dubai in 1960. In 1971, it became urgent to widen the streets, organize the water supply and continue the development of the banks of the Creek for the loading of goods. In 1959, a salt-stone airstrip was built to accommodate the increasing number of foreign companies' aircraft. In 1963, a first bridge called Al Maktoum Bridge was built over the Creek and was open to motorists who avoided a long detour. It was not until 1966 that oil was discovered in Dubai and when the export of oil became imminent, the creation of a new deep-water port became necessary, all the more so as the Creek was saturated. Port Rashid was inaugurated in 1970.

In 1968, the British announced their intention to withdraw three years later. Faced with the prospect of independence, Sheikh Zayed, the leader of Abu Dhabi, immediately rallied the leaders of the other emirates. He invited them to form a strong federation.

Bringing together Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm al-Quwain and Fujairah. Sheikh Zayed is elected president of this new country. A few weeks later, Ras-Al-Kaïmah joins them.

The economic changes following the 1973 oil shock and the increase in oil resources led to the realization of the need to diversify the revenue windows towards industry for Dubai. The emirate is diversifying its economy from Jebel Ali, a free zone located 30 kilometres from the centre on the coast. In 1975, a year before the opening of Dubai's first luxury hotel (Intercontinental), Harris proposed the construction of the first skyscraper to house the city's first convention centre. The World Trade Center was inaugurated by Queen Elizabeth and Sheikh Rashid in 1979, becoming the tallest skyscraper in the Middle East. It proudly appears on all AED 100 banknotes.

The emirate of Dubai is embarking on gigantic projects at the initiative of Sheikh Rashid, who was convinced from the outset that a large share of oil revenues should be devoted to preparing for the post-oil era.

After the events in Iran in 1978-79, political awareness grew in the country and, on 19 February 1979, the CNF met to decide on the regrouping of the armed forces, the abolition of internal borders, the overall planning of immigration into the country, and the distribution of wealth through federal control. In 1981, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) was established, comprising the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman and Qatar. Sheikh Rashid's poor health, until his death in 1990, slowed achievements for a few years. It was not until the beginning of the 1990s and the arrival of his brother Sheikh Maktoum that new projects began to emerge.

The founding father of the Emirates died at the age of 86. Sheikh Khalifa, his son, became the second President of the United Arab Emirates and Emir of Abu Dhabi.

On the death of his uncle, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum became ruler of Dubai, vice-president and prime minister. Sheikh Mohammed of Dubai undertakes gigantic architectural projects which are born and are talked about all over the world (Burj al-Arab, the Marina, the Palm and Burj Khalifa). Dubai appears as a financial and commercial pole, unavoidable throughout the peninsula and the Middle East.

Dubai's total debt is estimated at $80 billion. Abu Dhabi is lending 10 billion to avoid bankruptcy.

Opening of the Burj Khalifa, the highest tower in the world.

The UAE participates for the first time in the G20, at the invitation of France.

Since then, the growing Islamist threat in the countries of the region has forced the UAE to mobilize for fear of spreading instability in the region. They have taken part in various air strikes: in 2014 in Libya against Islamist militants and in Syria against Daech, and in 2015 in Yemen against Houthist rebels. In March 2014, for the first time, significant tensions led the UAE, alongside Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, to publicly stand up to Qatar, whose support for the Islamist movement they disapprove of.

The United Arab Emirates cut off relations with Qatar. Gulf crisis.

Historic presence of Pope Francis invited to Abu Dhabi as part of the Year of Tolerance. Signing between Pope Francis and the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar of the document on human fraternity for world peace and common coexistence.

In August, full normalization of relations between the United Arab Emirates and Israel with the signing of the Abraham Accords.

In January, re-establishment of relations with Qatar. Organization of the Universal Exhibition by the city of Dubai, between¹ October 2021 and 31 March 2022.

Death of Sheikh Kalifa. Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed became the new governor of Abu Dhabi and third president of the UAE on May 14. He is also the son of Sheikh Zayed, half-brother of Sheikh Khalifa