Royalty in the Middle East

Book topics: Royalty, History, Travel, Fiction, Assyria, Babylonia, Bahrain, Caliphate, Egypt, Iran/Persia, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Morocco, Oman, Palmyra, Phoenicia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sumer, Syria, Turkey, UAE, Yemen

Middle East Royalty

All in the Family by Michael Herb is about absolutism, revolution, and democratic prospects in the Middle Eastern monarchies. Published in 1999.

The Forgotten Queens of Islam by Fatima Mernissi, translated by Mary Jo Lakeland, is a history of Islamic royal women.

The Politics of Arab Monarchies: Legacy, Survival and Reform by Russell E. Lucas. How monarchy has survived from the Persian Gulf to Morocco.

Power and Succession in Arab Monarchies by Joseph Kechichian. A reference guide.

Reform in the Middle East Oil Monarchies edited by Anoush Ehteshami and Steven Wright. Can Arab traditions provide the basis for constitutional monarchy? What are the risks of change and what has been achieved so far? Articles by academics and government officials address these issues.

Encyclopedia of Modern Middle East edited by Reeva S. Simon, Philip Mattar, and Richard W. Bulliet. A comprehensive reference book about the Middle East over the past 200 years. This book is over 2,000 pages long.

Brotherhood of Kings: How International Relations Shaped the Ancient Near East by Amanda H. Podany. From 2300 to 1300 BCE, great kings kings forged friendships across hundreds of miles which gradually made wars between them less common.

Middle East History

History of the Arab Peoples by Albert H. Hourani covers thirteen centuries of Arab history.

A Peace to End All Peace by David Fromkin is about the fall of the Ottoman Empire and the creation of the modern Middle East.

The Ottoman Gulf: The Creation of Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar, 1870-1914 by Frederick Fallowfield Anscombe examines the role the Ottoman Empire played in the creation of modern Gulf states.

Three Kings: The Rise of an American Empire in the Middle East After World War II by Lloyd C. Gardner. The story of the U.S. scramble for influence, oil, and a military presence based on generous aid to shaky regimes in Saudi Arabia, Iran, Egypt, and Iraq.

The Making of the Modern Gulf States by Rosemarie Said Zahlan. Explores the history of the royal families of Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Oman.

Travel Guide

Lonely Planet Middle East by Andrew Humphreys, Ann Jousiffe, Lou Callan, and Cathy Lanigan. Includes notes on the history and culture of the region.

Fiction

The Legend of the Wandering King by Laura Gallego Garcia. Fantasy novel inspired by the life of Imru'l Qays, a real 6th century poet who was said to be the son of the last king of Kindah in Arabia. For young adult readers.

Bahrain

Books About Bahrain

Egypt

Books About Royalty in Egypt

Iran/Persia

Books About Persia and Iran

Iraq

Books About Royalty in Iraq

Israel

Books About Royalty in Israel

Jordan

Books About Royalty in Jordan

Kuwait

Books About Royalty in Kuwait

Morocco

Books About Royalty in Morocco

Oman

The Emergence of States in a Tribal Society: Oman Under Sa'id Bin Taymur, 1932-1970 by Uzi Rabi. Reassesses the reign of Sa'id bin Taymur, who was deposed by his son, Qabus bin Sa'id, in a coup in July 1970. This study refutes the prevailing view that Sa'id's four-decade reign was medieval and isolationist.

Sultan in Oman by Jan Morris. The author travelled through the sultanate of Muscat and Oman in the 1950s with its sultan.

Oman Under Qaboos: From Coup to Constitution, 1970-1996 by Calvin H. Allen, Jr. and W. Lynn Rigsbee. About the current sultan of Oman, who deposed his father in 1970.

Oman's Insurgencies: The Sultanate's Struggle for Supremacy by J. E. Peterson. Looks at the crises that have tested Oman's army and accelerated its development from a traditional regime to a modern state.

The Sultan's Shadow: One Family's Rule at the Crossroads of East and West by Christiane Bird. Said bin Sultan became a ruler of Oman in 1804, when he was 15 years old. An open-minded, tolerant man, he gained power through bloodshed and built a vast empire on the backs of slaves. His rebellious daughter Princess Salme, born to a concubine, scandalized her family by eloping with a German businessman and writing the first-known autobiography of an Arab woman.

Memoirs of an Arabian Princess from Zanzibar by Emily Ruete. The autobiography of Salme, Princess of Zanzibar and Oman, who was born in 1840. From Alibris.

An Arabian Princess Between Two Worlds contains more of Princess Salme's writings.

Obscure Kingdoms: Around the World in Search of Royal Courts by Edward Fox. Published in 1993. The author travelled to Oman, Tonga, Nigeria, Swaziland, and Java. Part travel book and part commentary on kingship and its traditions. Out of print, but available from Alibris.

Sultan in Arabia: A Private Life by John Beasant. Biography of the current sultan of Oman, Qaboos bin Said Al Said, examining "the truth about his emotional condition, the marriage that never really was, and the legacy of his time in an English household." Sometimes available from Alibris.

More Books About Oman

Phoenicia

Books About Jezebel

Qatar

Qatar by David Chaddock. Covers the country's history, culture, government, and more. Illustrated with photographs.

Al Jazeera: The Story of the Network That Is Rattling Governments and Redefining Modern Journalism by Mohammed El-Nawawy and Adel Iskandar. About the television station founded by Qatar's emir. Sheds light on the background of the Al-Jazeera network, how it operates, and its implications for the future of news broadcasting in the Middle East. The original subtitle of this book was "How the Free Arab News Network Scooped the World and Changed the Middle East."

Horses of Qatar: The Legend of Al Shaqab by David Chaddock. In the Arabian peninsula, horses are an essential part of society. Under the patronage of the emir of Qatar and his daughter Sheikha Al Mayassa, this book offers up-close glimpses of the care and training of Qatar's horses.

Berlitz Pocket Guide to Qatar. A travel guide. Includes maps.

Qatar by Tamra Orr. A look at the nation's culture for children age 9 to 12.

More Books About Qatar

Saudi Arabia

Books About Royalty in Saudi Arabia

Syria and Palmyra

The Archaeology of Syria: From Complex Hunter-Gatherers to Early Urban Societies by Peter M. M. G. Akkermans and Glenn M. Schwartz. The first comprehensive presentation of the archaeology of Syria from the end of the Paleolithic period to 300 BC.

Roman Syria and the Near East by Kevin Butcher. The provinces that the Romans called Syria covered a vast area occupied today by several modern states. These included some of the most spectacular ruins of the ancient world -- Palmyra, Baalbek, and Apamea -- and fabled cities such as Antioch, Damascus, Sidon, and Tyre.

Historical Dictionary of Syria by David Dean Commins. Covers significant persons, events, and institutions from the earliest settlements to the present.

Palmyra and Its Empire: Zenobia's Revolt Against Rome by Richard Stoneman. In the 3rd century AD, the Syrian city of Palmyra -- under the rule of its queen, Zenobia -- broke away from Rome. This is the first comprehensive book about Roman Syria, the revolt of Zenobia, and the city of Palmyra.

Empress Zenobia: Palmyra's Rebel Queen by Pat Southern. Biography of the third century Syrian queen who challenged the authority of Rome.

More Books About Queen Zenobia
More Books About Palmyra
More Books About Syria

Turkey

Books About Royalty in Turkey

United Arab Emirates

Books About the UAE
Books About Abu Dhabi
Books About Dubai

Yemen

Islam, Memory, and Morality in Yemen: Ruling Families in Transition by Gabrielle vom Bruck. Tells a story of a Yemeni hereditary elite that was overthrown in the 1962 revolution in North Yemen after enjoying exclusive rights to the leadership of the Imamate, the religiously sanctioned state, for over a millennium.

Historical Dictionary of Yemen by Robert D. Burrowes. Covers people and events in Yemen from ancient times through the 1990s.

Studies in the Medieval History of the Yemen and South Arabia by G. Rex Smith.

A History of Modern Yemen by Paul Dresch. A single Yemeni state was not formed until 1990. Much of Yemen's 20th century history was taken up constructing a state after years of civil war. Book includes illustrations, maps and a detailed chronology.

Yemen: Jewel of Arabia by Charles and Patricia Aithie. A large format, full-color photography book.

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World Royalty