A-Brief-History-of-Saudi-Arabia

A Brief History of Saudi Arabia
The Fall of Diriya
By the end of 1817, all of Qasim had fallen to Ibrahim. His invasion
army was supplemented by indigenous forces, some opposed to
Wahhabi rule, others willing to ally themselves with the presumptive
victor. Abdallah retreated farther into Najd, eventually withdrawing to
Diriya, ancestral home of Al Saud, joined by supporters from throughout
the region. After awaiting reinforcements, Ibrahim continued his
advance early the following year. Though his force likely numbered
only a few thousand, he succeeded in subduing resistance in Najd. The
Egyptian troops arrived at the gates of Diriya in April of 1818.
Though well-fortified and defended by the regime’s most fervent
warriors, the Saudi forces were bereft of their usual allies. The natural
defenses of the desert had been breached by Ottoman supply lines.
The Bedouin, who typically resisted any foreign incursion, had been so
alienated by the regime that they joined outsiders. And the Egyptians
had a modern, well-equipped army with artillery and superior tactics.
On September 11, 1818, following a seven-month siege that capped
a seven-year Egyptian campaign, the Saudi imam, Abdallah ibn Saud,
surrendered to Muhammad Ali’s son, Ibrahim Pasha. The Saudi state
was ended. Ibrahim looted Diriya, and on orders of Muhammad Ali,
the town was obliterated. Yet almost immediately the foundation of the
second Saudi state began to form within its ruins.
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