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56-589: Mubarak Al-Sabah KCSI KCIE (c. 1837 – 28 November 1915) ( Arabic : الشيخ مبارك بن صباح الصباح ) "the Great" ( Arabic : مبارك الكبير ), nicknamed "The lion of the peninsula" ( Arabic : أسد الجزيرة ), was the seventh ruler of the Sheikhdom of Kuwait , from 18 May 1896 until his death on 18 November 1915. Mubarak ascended the throne after assassinating his predecessor and half-brother, Muhammad Al-Sabah . Known for his significant role in shaping modern Kuwait,

112-519: A British protectorate (as Sheikdom of Qatar , colonially under the chief political resident of the Persian Gulf, at Bahrein ). Similarly, three ruling native hakims of the later emirate of Kuwait, were also Kaymakam of a kazas in the same province, 1871 till a British protectorate, also on 3 November 1914. In Ottoman Egypt , the title of kaymakam was used in its generic sense of "lieutenant" for deputies or agents, but most notably, until

168-590: A depiction of the circlet (a circle bearing the motto) and the collar ; the former is shown either outside or on top of the latter. Knights Commanders and Companions were permitted to display the circlet, but not the collar, surrounding their arms. The badge is depicted suspended from the collar or circlet. Kaymakam The title has been romanized in English since 1645 with extremely numerous spelling variations. The most common present-day forms are kaymakam, kaimakam , and qaimaqam . The modern Turkish term

224-663: A protectorate. As a private letter from Sir Arthur Godley , Permanent Under-Secretary of India, wrote to Lord Curzon : "we don't want Koweit, but we don't want anyone else to have it." Mubarak's British protection made him free to secure and strengthen his own power without fear of any outside interference from the Ottomans, surrounding tribes, or the Russians. Mubarak, comforted by British protection felt free to pursue his own policies and mounted an invasion into Najd (Central Arabia) with an army of Kuwaiti townspeople. The objective

280-528: A solution to the problem, especially Hamdi Pasha the Wali of Basra, who proposed an intervention from Basra into Kuwait. The Ottomans were very hesitant to name Mubarak as kaymakam, but he was given the title in December 1897 in large part due to a controversy and conspiracy that involved Mubarak and Basra's government regarding Mubarak's rival, Yusuf al-Ibrahim. The controversy further destabilized relations in

336-627: A specific meaning in Moldavian and Wallachian history, where it refers to a temporary replacement for a Domn ( Hospodar /"Prince"), in and after Phanariote rule, as well as the delegates of the Oltenia Ban in Craiova after the main office was moved to Bucharest during the same period (1761). In this context, the word may be spelled caimacam , while the Romanian term for the office

392-642: A stand-off with each other, Mubarak, the British, and the Ottomans agreed to sign the Status Quo Agreement in September 1901. This agreement maintained that neither the Ottomans nor the British could place troops within Kuwait and that the Ottomans still had jurisdiction over Kuwait. The agreement averted the crisis, but Ottoman control was only nominal with Mubarak to freely pursue his own agendas in

448-483: A strong desire to seize it. However, B.J. Slot, who is not even convinced that Mubarak was the assassin, asserts that "the widely divergent stories and interpretations… make it impossible to reach a firm conclusion about what happened in Kuwait in 1896." Slot asserts that on a local level there was a lack of support for people who claimed that Mubarak assassinated his half-brothers, and that if he had indeed done it revenge would have been taken on him. Mubarak acted to bribe

504-528: Is kaymakam , from Ottoman Turkish kaymakam ( قایمقام ), from Arabic qāʾim maqām ( قَائِم مَقَام‎‎ ), meaning "stand in" or "deputy". In the Ottoman Empire , the title of kaymakam (known either as sadâret kaymakamı or as kaymakam pasha ) was originally used for the official deputizing for the Grand Vizier during the latter's illness, absence from the capital on campaign, or in

560-420: Is căimăcămie . In the Persian Gulf, four hakims (native rulers) of the later emirate of Qatar held the additional Ottoman title of kaymakam in their administrative capacity since 1872 of district administrator since the establishment of Ottoman sovereignty (as kaza [district] of Sandjak al-Hasa , within the vilayet of Baghdad , from 1875 Basra vilayet ) till this was exchanged on 3 November 1916 with

616-566: Is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria in 1861. The Order includes members of three classes: No appointments have been made since the 1948 New Year Honours , shortly after the Partition of India in 1947. Following the death in 2009 of the last surviving knight, the Tej Singh Prabhakar , Maharaja of Alwar , the order became dormant. The motto of the order was "Heaven's Light Our Guide". The Star of India emblem ,

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672-512: Is now an iconic photograph. Mubarak was born into Kuwaiti's powerful al-Sabah family in 1837, son of Sheikh Sabah II Al-Sabah (r. 1859-1866). When he attained the necessary age to do so, Mubarak served primarily as the cavalry commander of the Military of Kuwait in many operations, including several Ottoman campaigns – most notably campaigns in 1871, 1892, and 1894 into Hasa , Qatar , and southern Iraq. For his long service Mubarak received

728-449: Is that Mubarak resented being constantly sent away on tribal expeditions out into the desert. A second related theory is that Muhammad did not adequately fund Mubarak's expeditions. The third theory is that Muhammad was a weak and "indolent" leader whose unpopularity in Kuwait "necessitated" his removal. The most plausible theory is that Mubarak felt he did not receive his rightful share of the family wealth and property, causing contention and

784-856: Is the Order of the Indian Empire , and there is also, for women only, the Imperial Order of the Crown of India . Several years after the Indian Rebellion of 1857 and the consolidation of Great Britain's power as the governing authority in India, it was decided by the British Crown to create a new order of knighthood to honour Indian Princes and Chiefs, as well as British officers and administrators who served in India. On 25 June 1861,

840-572: The Anglo-Kuwaiti Treaty with Great Britain on 23 November 1899, pledging himself and his successors not to receive foreign agents or representatives or to cede or sell territory without the approval of the British government; with this agreement, and the guarantee it represented to Kuwait and the Al-Sabah family, he is regarded as the founder of modern-day Kuwait. German explorer Hermann Burchardt photographed Mubarak in 1903, in what

896-662: The Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland , to institute, erect, constitute, and create, an Order of Knighthood, to be known by, and have for ever hereafter, the name, style, and designation, of "The Most Exalted Order of the Star of India" 19 persons were appointed Knights Companion at the creation of the Order: 12 additional Knights Companion were appointed over the next five years. On 24 May 1866,

952-741: The Khedive of Egypt , the King of Bhutan and the rulers of Zanzibar , Bahrain and Oman were also appointed to the Order. Like some rulers of princely states , some rulers of particular prestige, for example the Maharajas of the Rana dynasty or the Sultans of Oman, were usually appointed Knights Grand Commanders. Women, save the princely rulers, were ineligible for appointment to the order. They were, unlike

1008-717: The Nizam of Hyderabad , the Maharaja of Mysore , the Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir , the Maharaja of Baroda , the Maharajas of Gwalior , the Nawab of Bhopal , the Maharaja of Indore , the Maharajas of Singrauli, the Maharana of Udaipur , the Maharaja of Travancore , the Maharaja of Jodhpur and the Maharao of Cutch . Kashi Naresh Prabhu Narayan Singh of Benares and Sir Azizul Haque were appointed Knight Commander of

1064-501: The Order of the Indian Empire (KCIE) in the 1911 Delhi Durbar Honours , with further recognition as an honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the Star of India (KCSI) in the 1914 Birthday Honours . Mubarak also engaged in affairs concerning the neighboring areas around him, which caused consternation on both the Ottoman and the British sides. Mubarak supported and smuggled British guns to local Arabian leaders. In 1904-1906, while

1120-458: The Tanzimat reforms soon after saw the use of kaymakam for the governor of a sanjak (second-level province), while after the establishment of the vilayet system in 1864, a kaymakam became the governor of a kaza (third-level province). The system was retained by modern Turkey, where a sub-province ( ilçe after the 1920s) is still headed by a kaymakam . The term Caimacam has

1176-646: The constitution of the State of Kuwait mandates that the Emir of Kuwait must be a descendant of Mubarak from the ruling Al-Sabah family. Mubarak was the seventh ruler of the Al-Sabah dynasty. Mubarak was also the father of two rulers of Kuwait who succeeded him, Jaber and Salim , from which the Al-Jaber and Al-Salim in the Al-Sabah family branches originated respectively, and is the paternal ancestor of all successive rulers and prime ministers of Kuwait. Mubarak signed

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1232-510: The kaymakam played an important role in the politics of the capital and often became involved in intrigues against the absent Grand Vizier, trying to replace him. In the last decades of the Empire, the post of kaymakam was filled by the members of the imperial cabinet, or by the Shaykh al-Islam . The modernization and Westernization reforms instituted in the 19th century added new meanings to

1288-476: The British as early as 1863 when he met Sir Lewis Pelly , British political resident of Persia who went on many diplomatic missions around the region, and in 1883 when he was sent on an Ottoman diplomatic mission to Bahrain . On 8 May 1896, Mubarak killed his half-brothers Muhammad and Jarrah, enabling himself to assume the Kuwaiti throne. Most scholars believe that Mubarak assassinated his half-brothers, but

1344-474: The British government recognized Kuwait as an "independent government under British protection." There is no report on the exact size and nature of Mubarak's attack, though Ottoman forces did retreat from those positions weeks later. Mubarak soon removed the Ottoman symbol that was on the Kuwaiti flag and replaced it with "Kuwait" written in Arabic script. Mubarak's participation and previous exploits in obstructing

1400-797: The Great Powers, most notably Britain and Russia into the region due to the construction of the Baghdad Railway . See Anglo-Kuwaiti Agreement of 1899 The long Ottoman indecisiveness in naming Mubarak kaymakam, as well as feelings of vulnerability helped pave the way for Mubarak to pursue British ties. On 18 January 1899, Mubarak signed a secret agreement with Major M.J. Meade, British political resident in Bushire , that guarded Kuwait against any outside foreign aggression. It also required Mubarak and his successors not to receive foreign agents or representatives or to cede or sell territory without

1456-681: The Order of the Indian Empire (KCIE) in 1892 and 1941 respectively, Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire (GCIE) in 1898, and Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Star of India (GCSI) for his services in the First World War in the 1921 New Year Honours. Rulers of other nations in Asia and the Middle East, including the Emir of Kuwait , the Maharajas of the Rana dynasty ,

1512-558: The Order of the Star of India did not incorporate crosses, as they were deemed unacceptable to the Indian princes appointed to the Order. Members of all classes of the Order were assigned positions in the order of precedence. Wives of members of all classes also featured on the order of precedence, as did sons, daughters and daughters-in-law of Knights Grand Commanders and Knights Commanders. (See order of precedence in England and Wales for

1568-482: The Order was expanded to additional ranks. All surviving Knights Companion were elevated to Grand Commander. Additional appointments were made to the Order in the ranks of Grand Commander, Knight Commander, and Companion. These include The last appointments to the Order were made in the 1948 New Year Honours , some months after the Partition of India in August 1947. The Order of the Indian Empire , founded in 1877,

1624-534: The Order. The next most senior member was the Grand Master, a position held ex officio by the Viceroy of India . When the order was established in 1861, there was only one class of Knights Companion, who bore the postnominals KSI. In 1866, however, it was expanded to three classes. Members of the first class were known as "Knights Grand Commander" (rather than the usual "Knights Grand Cross") so as not to offend

1680-590: The Ottoman Empire within the Green zone outlined in the map as well as an independent entity within the red zone outlined in the map. By the time World War I began Mubarak closely sided with the British against the Ottomans, and the 1913 Convention was rendered null. In support of the war effort Mubarak sent a force to Umm Qasr , Safwan , Bubiyan , and Basra to expel the Ottomans in November 1914. In exchange

1736-489: The Ottoman bureaucracy through lavish gift-giving in order to gain support for his appointment as kaymakam [sub governor] of Kuwait like his previous brothers. This is further illustrated through a memorandum by Captain J.F. Whyte, a British agent stationed in Basra : "Sheikh Mubarak has, since his usurpation, been employing his late brother's wealth to secure his recognition as Sheikh and his appointment as Kaimakam of Koweit by

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1792-534: The Ottoman military occupied the important sub-region of al-Qasim in central Najd , Mubarak supported the Ottoman's opponent Abdulaziz bin Abdul Rahman Al Saud giving him "strong moral and material" support. In 1905 Mubarak also served as a mediator between the Saudis and the Ottomans, while simultaneously shaping Saudi strategy during the negotiations. A sign that the Ottoman attitude toward Mubarak

1848-482: The Ottomans tried to forcefully compel Mubarak to accept the new Ottoman presence, therefore showing real loyalty to the Ottomans. However, the British publicly reinforced Kuwait as they began solidifying the meaning of the 1899 Agreement. This showdown caused a crisis between the Ottomans and the British over Kuwait's status as a state. After the Perseus Zuhaf encounter, where an Ottoman and British warship had

1904-460: The Sovereign, members attending formal events wore the order's collar over their military uniform, formal day dress, or evening wear. When collars were worn (either on collar days or on formal occasions such as coronations), the badge was suspended from the collar. At less important occasions, simpler insignia were used: Unlike the insignia of most other British chivalric orders, the insignia of

1960-501: The Sublime Porte." Mubarak constantly avowed his loyalty to Istanbul , but a bitter debate raged among the ruling Ottoman Council on what course of action to take with Mubarak and his apparent fratricide . The debates were fueled by a lack of information and confusing accounts surrounding Mubarak, partly because of Mubarak's own manipulation and spread of disinformation. Some Ottoman officers considered military action in Kuwait as

2016-517: The approval of the British government. Meade was eager to establish Kuwait as an official British protectorate with the intention of extending British influence further into the Arabian Gulf and protecting its own trade as well as controlling the potential terminus for a purposed railway from Port Said and the prevention of a possible Ottoman or Russian takeover of Kuwait. However, neither Mubarak nor other British officials wanted to make Kuwait

2072-473: The ascendancy of Muhammad Ali of Egypt , for the interim governors of the country , who served between the removal of one governor and the installation of the next one. In the tumultuous politics of the ruling Mamluk elite, the appointment of a kaymakam "became, particularly in the 18th century, a device by which a Mamluk faction would legitimize its ascendancy" before installing one of its own members as governor. After Muhammad Ali consolidated his control of

2128-526: The completion of the Baghdad railway helped the British safeguard the Persian Gulf from providing Ottoman and German reinforcements. During the later years of Mubarak's life he wrestled with bouts of illness. Mubarak died on 28 November 1915 due to an attack of malaria aggravated by a bad heart. Knight Commander of the Order of the Star of India The Most Exalted Order of the Star of India

2184-411: The country and his Westernizing reforms, the title, as in the rest of the Ottoman Empire, acquired a new technical meaning: in the army, it became a rank equivalent to lieutenant-colonel, while in the administration it signified the official in charge of a nahiye , with particular responsibility for the maintenance of the irrigation system. The rank is attested in use with a British officer commanding

2240-469: The details of the assassination vary. Jill Crystal posits that Mubarak, with his sons Jabir and Salim, along with loyal supporters, assassinated his half-brothers in secret during the night. Frederick Anscombe also states that Mubarak "and his men" (without specifying whether his sons were in on the plot) killed his half-brothers in the early hours of the day. There are several possible theories as to why Mubarak may have assassinated his half-brothers. One theory

2296-577: The exact positions.) Knights Grand Commanders used the post-nominal initials "GCSI", Knights Commanders "KCSI" and Companions "CSI". Knights Grand Commanders and Knights Commanders prefixed "Sir" to their forenames. Wives of Knights Grand Commanders and Knights Commanders could prefix "Lady" to their surnames. Such forms were not used by peers and Indian princes, except when the names of the former were written out in their fullest forms. Knights Grand Commanders were also entitled to receive heraldic supporters . They could, furthermore, encircle their arms with

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2352-790: The following proclamation was issued by Queen Victoria : The Queen, being desirous of affording to the Princes, Chiefs and People of the Indian Empire , a public and signal testimony of Her regard, by the Institution of an Order of knighthood , whereby Her resolution to take upon Herself the Government of the Territories in India may be commemorated, and by which Her Majesty may be enabled to reward conspicuous merit and loyalty, has been graciously pleased, by Letters Patent under

2408-506: The habit of many other orders, admitted as "Knights", rather than as "Dames" or "Ladies". The first woman to be admitted to the order was Nawab Sikandar Begum Sahiba, Nawab Begum of Bhopal; she was created a Knight Companion at the Order's foundation in 1861. The order's statutes were specially amended to permit the admission of Queen Mary as a Knight Grand Commander in 1911. Members of the Order wore elaborate costumes on important ceremonial occasions: On certain " collar days " designated by

2464-621: The insignia of order and the informal emblem of British India, was also used as the basis of a series of flags to represent the Indian Empire . The order was the fifth most senior British order of chivalry, following the Order of the Garter , Order of the Thistle , Order of St Patrick and Order of the Bath . It is the senior order of chivalry associated with the British Raj ; junior to it

2520-465: The interval between the dismissal of one Grand Vizier and the arrival to the capital of a new appointee. The practice began in the 16th century, or perhaps even earlier, and continued until the end of the Empire. The kaymakam enjoyed the full plenitude of powers of the Grand Vizier, but was not allowed to intervene in the conduct of the military campaigns. Selected from the ranks of the viziers ,

2576-539: The meaning of the 1899 Agreement, and it was a secret anyway), but it was denied due to the international tensions surrounding Kuwait. The Ottomans tried to capitalize on Mubarak's major defeat by deliberating a military solution to gain direct control of Kuwait. The Ottomans slowly realized that the growing British presence around Kuwait was a sign of Mubarak's secret dealing with the British. The Ottomans attempted to firmly reestablish their control and influence by opening up customs and harbormaster posts. Through these posts

2632-686: The non-Christian Indians appointed to the Order. All those surviving members who had already been made Knights Companion of the Order were retroactively known as Knights Grand Commander. Former viceroys and other high officials, as well as those who served in the Department of the Secretary of State for India for at least thirty years were eligible for appointment. Rulers of Indian Princely States were also eligible for appointment. Some states were of such importance that their rulers were almost always appointed Knights Grand Commanders; such rulers included

2688-515: The region to dangerous levels. Because of the tension and instability of the situation the Ottoman Council decided that naming Mubarak kaymakam would be a better alternative to potentially bloody military action. Another reason was that military intervention may have further destabilized the region and destroyed any support that the Ottomans had with the Kuwaiti people. Finally, the Ottomans also had growing anxiety over possible encroachment by

2744-693: The rights for any terminus railroad sites to the British, compromising the German-Ottoman plan to extend the Berlin-Baghdad Railway to the port, which would have given them access to trade on the Indian subcontinent . In exchange Mubarak received £4000 per year and a promise that Britain would recognize Kuwait's autonomy and the Sheikh's power over it. The British government recognised Mubarak by appointing him an honorary Knight Commander of

2800-526: The term. With the establishment of the regular Asakir-i Mansure-i Muhammediye troops in 1826, kaymakam became a rank in the Ottoman army , equivalent to a lieutenant colonel . It remained in use throughout the final century of the Empire, and continued in use in the Turkish Republic until the 1930s , when it was replaced by the title of yarbay . The overhaul of the administrative system in

2856-470: The title istabl-i amire payesi, "(Rank of) The Grand Equerry of his Imperial Majesty", in August 1879 for a campaign into Qatif and southern Iraq. He was given four more Ottoman honors as reward for his services in the Qatar campaign, though the value of his contributions is disputed. Although Mubarak was known for his ties with the British after his ascension to sheikhdom in 1896, he did have interactions with

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2912-803: The verge of losing control of Kuwait. However, B.J. Slot challenges Anscombe's claim that Mubarak had a dream of being the Arab leader of the Arabian Peninsula ; rather, Slot contends, it was a maneuver to contain and balance the power in the region that resulted from an alliance between the Rashidi Amir in al-awadhi, Mubarak's enemy Yusuf Al-Ibrahim, and the Baghdad Military Command. Mubarak's major defeat at Sarif severely threatened his rule. He requested on 28 May 1901 for British protectorate status (the British were still debating

2968-447: The years after. Mubarak carried on different activities that helped Kuwait gain more power and sovereignty apart from the Ottomans. Mubarak allowed exclusive rights for Britain to set up a post office in Kuwait in 1904 and in 1905-06 it was being considered that Kuwait should fly its own flag instead of the Ottoman standard. However, neither the post office nor the flag would happen until World War I . Mubarak as well, in October 1907 sold

3024-406: Was changing occurred in 1911 when in a draft message to Mubarak he was addressed not as "Kaymakam of Kuwait" but rather "Ruler of Kuwait and Chief of its Tribes". This change in attitude, which included other pressures and troubles for the Ottoman Empire including the British lobbying on Kuwait's behalf, led to the Anglo-Ottoman Convention of 1913 , which recognized Kuwait as an autonomous kaza of

3080-483: Was intended to be a less exclusive version of the Order of the Star of India; consequently, many more appointments were made to the latter than to the former. As the last Grand Master of the Orders, Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma was also the last known individual to wear publicly the stars of a Knight Grand Commander of both Orders, during the Silver Jubilee of Elizabeth II celebrations in 1977. The British Sovereign was, and still is, Sovereign of

3136-407: Was to claim the southern portion of the Rashidi dominions in hopes that Mubarak's dream of becoming the new, undisputed Arabian leader would be realized. The campaign was moderately successful until the Battle of Sarif on 17 March 1901 where most of Mubarak's force was destroyed, including the deaths of his brother and two nephews. This marked not only the end of Mubarak's dream but also put him on

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