History of United Arab Emirates

By 1720s, trade by the British in the gulf had grown. The British were primarily concerned with asserting their naval power to safeguard trade links to India and keeping any European competitors out. While Europeans sought control of the coasts, inland, the Bedouin made the sandy deserts of Abu Dhabi and Dubai their home. The town of Abu Dhabi became an important center.

Following decades of maritime conflict, the coastal emirates became known as the Trucial States with the signing of the General Maritime Treaty with the British in 1820, which established the Trucial States as a British protectorate.

The states gained autonomy following World War II, when the trucial states of Bahrain and Qatar declared independent statehood. In 1968, with the British announcement of its withdrawal from the Arabian Gulf, Sheikh Zayed of Abu Dhabi stepped into action to quickly establish closer ties among the Emirates.

The arrangement of Trucial States revoked on 1 December 1971 with independence and the establishment of the United Arab Emirates on 2 December 1971 following the British withdrawal from its treaty obligations.

The UAE became a federation of six emirates —Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain and Fujairah—formed the United Arab Emirates; the seventh, Ras Al Khaimah, joined on February 10, 1972.

Before oil was discovered in the 1950s the UAE's economy was dependent on fishing and a declining pearl industry. But since oil exports began in 1962, the country's society and economy have been transformed.
History of United Arab Emirates