Hamad ibn Isa Al Khalifa (1872–1942)

Hamad ibn Isa Al Khalifa KCIE, CSI (6 February 1872 20 February 1942) was the Hakim (ruler) of Bahrain from the death of his father, Hakim Isa ibn Ali, on 9 December 1932 until his own death in 1942.

Hamad ibn Isa Al Khalifa
A photograph of Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa
Sheikh Hamad, 1930s
Hakim of Bahrain
Reign9 December 1932 – 20 February 1942
Coronation9 February 1933
PredecessorIsa ibn Ali Al Khalifa
SuccessorSalman ibn Hamad Al Khalifa
Born1872
Muharraq, Bahrain
Died20 February 1942(1942-02-20) (aged 70)
Al Rumaitha, Bahrain
Burial20 February 1942
Al Rifa'a Cemetery
Spouse
  • Shaikha Aysha bint Ali Al Khalifa
  • Lulwa Al Jalahma
  • Shaikha Aysha bint Rashid Al Khalifa
  • Shaikha Thajba bint Salman bin Duaij Al Khalifa
HouseKhalifa
FatherIsa ibn Ali Al Khalifa
MotherHaya bint Muhammad bin Salman Al Khalifa
ReligionSunni Islam
Inauguration of Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa as the Hakim of Bahrain in February 1933

Biography

Hamad was born on 6 February 1872, the second-born son of eight of Sheikh Isa ibn Ali Al Khalifa (his elder brother predeceased him in 1893), and received a private education.

On 26 May 1923, Shaikh Hamad was officially proclaimed Deputy Ruler. On 9 December 1932 he succeeded his father on the throne of Bahrain and his appointment was made official on 9 February 1933.

He lived in the Al-Sakhir Palace from around 1925 until his death.[1]

He died on 20 February 1942 in Al Rumaitha, Bahrain, and was buried in the Al Hunaynya Cemetery next to his ancestor Shaikh Salman bin Ahmed Al Khalifa.

Political training and reign

Hamad and the British advisor

While the Persian Gulf Residency was in charge of the external representation of the Emirates in the Gulf, an advisor was assigned to assist the Sheikh in managing the affairs of his Emirate. In 1926, Charles Belgrave was appointed the government advisor due to the unrest prevailing since 1919 over the application in Bahrain of the civil and criminal laws of the British Raj. Faced with this violence, then Commissioner Sir Clive Kirkpatrick Daly had forced Sheikh Isa to abdicate in 1923. The Raj withdrew Major Daly from Bahrain in 1926 and invited Hamad to take over as vice-ruler and appoint an advisor. Thus, Belgrave helped establish municipal government. Starting as an economic advisor, he soon became a political, military, and judicial one as well, commanding the police, judiciary, health, customers, public works, and parks departments. Although Belgrave's many duties spread him quite thin, he did manage to produce improvements in education, surveying, and internal security, serving until 1957.

Hamad’s reign and the age of oil

During King Hamad's reign, the search for oil began under the aegis of the Bahrain Petroleum Company (Bapco), and in 1932 the first oil well on the western side of the Persian Gulf began production. He had already established the first customs office in Manama as crown prince in 1917, and in 1923 he built a port for 5,000 rupees and appointed British customers officer Claude de Grenier as Director. In 1941, a bridge was opened between Manama and Muharraq Island. Dealing with international conflicts in the region, Hamad developed electricity, water, health, and education in his territory during his reign.[2][3]

Family

Hamad married four times.

  • (first) Shaikha Aisha bint Ali bin Mohamed Al Khalifa, a granddaughter of Bahrain's Ruler Shaikh Mohamed bin Khalifa (1843–1868).
  • (second) Shaikha Lulwa bint Abdulla bin Sulayman Al Jalahma.
  • (third) Shaikha Aysha bint Rashid bin Mohamed Al Khalifa (her father Shaikh Rashid died in 1947, she died in 1953).
  • (fourth) Shaikha Thajba bint Salman bin Duaij Al Khalifa (her father was Shaikh Isa bin Ali's cousin and slain in Dhahran by the Al Murrah tribe in December 1900, her mother is Latifa bint Mubarak Al Fadhel).

From these unions Hamad had a total of ten children:

  • Salman bin Hamad (1894–1961)
  • Ali (1896–1997)
  • Rashid (?–1916)
  • Mubarak (1910–1977)
  • Abdullah (1915 – 23 July 1973)
  • Duaij (1917–April 1969)
  • Ahmed (1918–1985)
  • Khalifa (1912–April 1984)
  • Ibrahim (1913–1972)

See also

References

  1. Duggan, Brian Patrick; Clark, Terence (February 2009). Saluki: the desert hound and the English travelers who brought it to the West. McFarland. p. 173. ISBN 978-0-7864-3407-7. Retrieved 8 May 2011.
  2. "The History of the Municipality". Municipal Page. Government of Bahrain. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  3. "History of Bahrain Customs". Bahrain Customs Office. Government of Bahrain. Archived from the original on March 8, 2011. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
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