War
conflict of 1811-1818
The Ottoman–Wahhabi war, or Wahhabi war, was fought from early 1811 until 1818 between the Ottoman Empire, its vassal the Eyalet of Egypt, and the Wahhabis’ Emirate of Diriyah (later known as the first Saudi state), resulting in the destruction of the latter.
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Text from the Wikipedia article “Ottoman–Wahhabi war”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
The Ottoman–Wahhabi war, or Wahhabi war, was fought from early 1811 until 1818 between the Ottoman Empire, its vassal the Eyalet of Egypt, and the Wahhabis’ Emirate of Diriyah (later known as the first Saudi state), resulting in the destruction of the latter.
While the official name of the Wahhabi state was the Emirate of Diriyah, the war was historically referred to as the "Wahhabi War" in English. The Encyclopaedia of Islam was unaware of other names of the war as of its 1938 supplement. It did not name the Emirate of Diriyah, but described success against "the Wahhabi power." Modern names include the "Egyptian–Wahhabi war", and the "Ottoman/Egyptian–Wahhabi war." The name "Kingdom of Saudi Arabia" was only adopted by the Kingdom of Hejaz and Nejd in 1932. Modern names like the "Egyptian–Saudi war", and Ottoman–Saudi War then appeared. Some Saudi figures have been attempting to diminish the role of Wahhabism in their history and avoid using the "Wahhabi" names. Some consider using the term Wahhabi an epithet.
The 18th century was a time of decline and modernization of the Ottoman Empire. The Industrial Revolution began in Western Europe, and it created a flood of cheap goods that traditional small Ottoman workshops could not compete with. The closure of these workshops caused unemployment, loss of tax revenue, and currency devaluation in the Ottoman Empire. The technologies of the First Industrial Revolution required large amounts of high quality coal, navigable rivers, and a cool climate. The Ottomans would not be able to successfully compete with the Western European manufacturers without technological advances that were not available for the duration of the Empire. The Industrial Revolution had other negative effects for the Ottomans. It contributed to a rapid decline in the cost of ocean shipping, roughly two thirds between the 1770s and 1820s. This led to goods increasingly travelling by sea rather than overland on Ottoman Imperial trade routes, which were sources of tax revenue for the empire and income for Bedouin convoys. The economic pain led to increasing dissatisfaction with Ottoman rule, a "general perception of that time that things were going wrong," and mounting criticism.
One of the most historically significant critics of the Ottomans in this period was Muhammad Ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab, the founder and leader of the Wahhabi movement. The term Wahhabi was written, and possibly first used, by Muhammad's older brother Sulayman ibn Abd al-Wahhab. Sulayman opposed his younger brother's movement and convinced many Bedouin tribal chiefs not to follow his brother with his letters. Muhammad Ibn Abd al-Wahhab was greatly influenced by the works of classical Islamic scholars Ibn Taymiyya and Ibn al-Qayyim, who had a significantly different formulation of Monotheism (Tawhid) than his predecessors.
Muhammad Ibn Abd al-Wahhab opposed what were then mainstream religious practices that dated back to the Islamic Golden Age or before. Many of these were associated with Sufism, such as the visiting and veneration of the shrines and tombs of Muslim saints. He claimed these amounted to heretical religious innovation or even idolatry. However, his doctrine was not accepted by other Sunnis or other branches of Islam. The Wahhabis called themselves the Muwahhidun, from his doctrine on Tawhid, but the name Wahhabi stuck anyway.
Muhammad Ibn al-Wahhab cofounded of the Emirate of Diriyah in Najd (Central Arabia) by signing the Diriyah pact and joining forces with Muhammad bin Saud Al Muqrin and what became known as the House of Saud. In the years that followed, he gained supporters and his movement grew. By 1765, the movement counted the majority of people in Najd as its followers. Although he had indirectly expressed critiques on the Ottoman dynasty in his letters, he had decided not to publicly challenge the legitimacy of the empire as a precautionary measure. He did not acknowledge their caliphate claims, an assertion made by Sultan Abdul Hamid I after the Ottoman defeat in the 1770s Russo-Turkish war, to portray himself as the leader of the Muslim world.
Muhammad Ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab died in 1792, but his ideology and teachings are viewed as responsible for the war that occurred later. However, this did not imply that he personally sought a conflict with the Ottomans, as classical Wahhabi doctrines did not view the establishment of a caliphate as a necessity upon individual Muslims. Ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab was rather alarmed by what he claimed was the erosion of religious morality in neighboring Ottoman vilayets and found fault with the administrative functioning of the Ottoman Empire, which he criticized for not properly enforcing Sharia (Islamic law) in its territories. This included an economic criticism, as Ottoman economic decline led to taxes that the Wahhabis argued against on religious grounds. The Wahhabis believed that they offered an alternative religious and political model to that of the Ottomans and had a separate claim to Islamic leadership. They called for social reform based on their doctrines. These differences eventually led the new small state to move beyond the cautious criticisms against the vast neighboring empire that its founders had avoided.
Political hostility and distrust would eventually lead the Wahhabis and the Ottomans to declare mutual exchanges of Takfir (excommunication), many years after Muhammad Ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab's death. By the 1790s, the Wahhabis had consolidated their rule over most regions of Central Arabia. Growing Wahhabi influence alarmed Ghalib ibn Musa'id, the Sharif of Mecca, who responded by starting a war with the Wahhabis in 1793. Intending to form a military coalition to defeat them, he corresponded with Ottoman authorities in Istanbul. He sought to create hostility towards the Wahhabis by portraying them as disbelievers (a declaration that they were apostates). Similar efforts were made by the ruler of Baghdad. These reports, along with Wahhabi expansion, eventually succeeded in turning the Ottoman bureaucrats against the Wahhabis. There became significant hostility towards the movement.
In 1797, Sulayman the Great, the Ottoman governor of Iraq, invaded Diriyah with around 15,000 troops in co-ordination with Ghalib. They laid siege to Al-Ahsa for a month. However, re-inforcements led by Saud ibn 'Abd al-Azeez would force the Ottomans to retreat. After three days of skirmishes, Sulayman the Great and the Wahhabis came to a peace settlement which was to last for six years. However, the peace would be broken in 1801, when a caravan of pilgrims protected by a Wahhabi convoy was plundered near Hail; upon orders from the Mamluk administration in Baghdad. This attack would completely break down the already deteriorating Wahhabi-Ottoman diplomatic relations, and the Wahhabi's Emirate of Diriyah sent a large-scale expedition towards Iraq.
There were multiple Wahhabi raids on Najaf. In 1802, 12,000 Wahhabis sacked Karbala in Iraq killing up to 5,000 people and plundering the Imam Husayn shrine. Wahhabi forces led by Abdulaziz bin Muhammad Al Saud entered Mecca in 1803 after defeating Ghalib and forcing his surrender. The assassination in November 1803 of Abdulaziz during prayers in al-Dir'iyya by an Iraqi; was suspected of being orchestrated by the Mamluk governor of Baghdad, which greatly deteriorated Wahhabi-Ottoman relations. Ghalib had worked hard to dampen the prospects of reconciliation between the Emirate of Diriyah (later the first Saudi state) and the Ottoman Empire. In the ensuing conflict, the Wahhabis gained control of Mecca and Medina by 1805. After his assassination, Abdulaziz was replaced as his son Saud bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (1748–1814). He also held the titles Emir and Imam of Diriyah. He denounced the Ottoman sultan and called into question the validity of his claim to be caliph and guardian of the sanctuaries of the Hejaz. Under his rule, the Wahhabis also attacked Ottoman trade caravans which led to further deterioration of Ottoman finances.
In response, Ottoman Sultan Mahmud II, ordered Muhammad Ali, governor of Egypt, to attack the Wahhabi state in December 1807. Ali had embarked on an extensive modernization program that included a significant expansion of Egypt's military forces. The Ottomans had grown increasingly wary of Ali's reign. Ordering him to go to war with the Wahhabi state would serve their interests in either victory or defeat as the destruction of either's forces would be beneficial to them. Tensions between Ali and his troops also contributed to his decision to send them to Arabia and fight against the Wahhabi movement, where many would die rather than be able to challenge his rule in Egypt. Events within Egypt delayed the expedition until 1811.
In 1811, Muhammad Ali's Ottoman troops landed in Yanbu under the command of his son Tusun Pasha. They captured the city of Yanbu in a bloodless confrontation where all of Al-Saud's forces surrendered. The Ottoman troops then moved south to attempt to recapture the city of Medina. However, the Ottomans were decisively defeated at the Battle of Al-Safra in 1812 during their initial attempt to reach the city. 5,000 Ottoman troops were killed by the Wahhabis who successfully repelled them from the area. The Ottomans were forced to retreat back to Yanbu. Muhammad Ali Pasha then sent an additional 20,000 troops to help recapture Medina. The Ottoman forces successfully reached the city in their second attempt and won Battle of Medina in late 1812. A small Ottoman contingent then recaptured the city of Jeddah without a fight a month later. A week after that, in January 1813, Ottoman troops also captured Mecca without a fight. Both cities had been ruled by the Ottomans for centuries and preferred their rule to the Wahhabis. At the end of the first campaign, the five major cities of Western Arabia (Hejaz) had returned to Ottoman rule. However, Wahhabi power remained intact to the east.
To signal reestablished authority and inspire confidence, Muhammad Ali Pasha decided to visit the area in person in 1813. He arrived in September 1813 in Jeddah with 2,000 infantry, 2,000 cavalry, and 8,000 camels. The camels carried a large amount of supplies and ammunition for the Ottoman army. He set about recapturing the remaining areas of Western Arabia. His troops marched east and were successful in many tribal areas. However, these minor fights tired the troops and they were initially unable to regain control of Turubah in 1813 when they attempted a siege of the city. In early 1814, a force led by Abidin Bey not only failed to recapture Al-Bahah, but was put under siege at the city of Taif when it retreated. The Ottomans were able to break the Siege of Taif, but were then only able to recapture and hold the city of Al Qunfudhah for around a month. In 1815, one of the main rebels, Bakhroush bin Alass of Zahran tribe, was killed and beheaded by Muhammad Ali's forces in Al Qunfudhah. In the spring of 1815, Ottoman forces inflicted large-scale defeat upon the Saudis, forcing them to conclude a peace treaty. Under the terms of treaty, the Wahhabis had to give up Hijaz. Abdullah ibn Saud was forced to acknowledge himself as the vassal of the Ottoman Empire and obey its Sultan unquestionably. However, neither Muhammad Ali nor the Ottoman Sultan had confirmed the treaty.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Ottoman–Wahhabi war”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.