The vast majority of Hadramaut (a region in South Arabia, comprising eastern Yemen, parts of western Oman and southern Saudi Arabia), was ruled by the Qu'aiti Sultanate, and fell under a loose British protectorate, the Aden Protectorate, from 1882 to 1967; at which point, the Hadhramaut was annexed by South Yemen. The Qu'aiti Sultanate was a fairly young entity though; founded by 'Umar bin Awadh al-Qu’aiti, a Yafa’i tribesman whose wealth and influence as hereditary Jemadar of the Nizam of Hyderabad's armed forces enabled him to establish the Qu'aiti dynasty in the latter half of the 19th century, with his sons consolidating and expanding his realm. In 1866 though, Sultan Ghalib bin Muhsin, Sheikh of the Kathiri, expelled Ali bin Naji from Ash-Shihr and took possession of the fort. At this time the inland town of Shibam was held by the Qu'aiti tribe, and the Qu'aiti Sheikh, worried that his communication with the seaboard might be cut off, applied to his brothers (still in the service of the Hyderabad State), for assistance against Sultan Ghalib bin Muhsin. The Minister of the Nizam of Hyderabad submitted a request for the British Government to mount an armed intervention on behalf of the Qu'aiti Sultanate, or to allow it to dispatch an armed expedition of its own, but the British refused to interfere themselves or to permit Hyderabad to do this.
Nonetheless, this denial of permission was ignored by the brother of the Qu'aiti Sheikh, Awadh (Nawaz) bin Umar (better known by his Hyderabad title of Sultan Nawaz Jang), whose flotilla set sail to establish a blockade on the sea-coast; landing near Shihr in April 1867, attacking the Kathiri and forcing them into retreat, and re-establishing the authority of his brother as ruler of Shihr. In December of the same year, the Kathiri Sheikh attempted to retake the town once more, only to be repulsed by the Qu'aiti; before the Kathiri applied to the British themselves, seeking their assistance in recovering Shihr by force. The British, once again, refused to interfere, but put pressure on Hyderabad, forcing the Nizam's Minister to issue a statement declaring his readiness to prohibit any interference in the affairs of Hadramaut by Hyderabadi subjects. But hostilities continued regardless; with a subsequent schism between its third generation of rulers, whereby the Naqib of Mukalla entered into an alliance with the Kathiri, and the Jemadar of Ash-Shihr purchased a large warship in response, with the aid of their relatives in Hyderabad. But this vessel was confiscated and its crew detained under the provisions of the Foreign Enlistment Act of 1870 upon arriving in Aden, and not released until the Qu'aiti Jemadar had bound himself under a heavy penalty to send her back to Bombay at once, without touching at, or undertaking any operations against, any of the ports of Hadhramaut. He further attempted to establish a blockade of Mukalla, and hoarded native craft suspected of being bound for that port, but was compelled to pay an indemnity of Rs. 6142 for plundering three such vessels, and sternly warned of the consequences of such interference with commerce in the future by the British.
The British Government steadily avoided interference or arbitration in the disputes between the Naqib of Mukalla and the Jemadar of Shihr, and took no action regarding them, beyond asking for assurances from the ministers of the Hyderabad State that any persons in the service of the Nizam, who might be convicted of taking part in the quarrel (by supplying money and munitions of war to their relatives on either side) would be dismissed. But at length, in 1876, with there being no prospect of the cessation of hostilities without some authoritative interference, the Political Resident at Aden, acting under the authority of Government, visited the two chiefs, and through his mediation, a two year truce was concluded, and forthwith expanded a year further. No permanent settlement was however effected, and eventually hostilities were resumed in 1880 and resulted in the capture of Burum by the Jemadar of Shihr. Being driven to extremities the Naqib of Mukalla signed the agreements drawn up by the Political Resident, and Burum was evacuated by the Jemadar of Shihr.
No sooner was the Naqib thus relieved from immediate pressure than he repudiated the terms of the settlement. The Government of India thereupon directed that the Jemadar should be replaced in possession of Burum, which was surrendered by the Naqib without further bloodshed. Finally, in November 1881, the latter gave himself up to the Commander of H.M.S. Dragon and was conveyed with his dependants to Aden, while the Jemadar of Shihr was put in possession of Muhalla and its dependencies. From Aden the Naqib went to Zanzibar with a number of Sheikhs and followers, and in 1888 he accepted the maintenance provided for him. In 1882, an Engagement was concluded with the Jemadar of Shihr and Mukalla by which he became a British stipendiary, an allowance of 300 dollars a year being assigned to him, his heirs and successors. At the same time the Jemadar paid over a sum of 100,000 dollars to the Resident, at Aden for the maintenance of the Naqib of Mukalla. On 1 May 1888, a Protectorate Treaty was concluded with the Jemadar Abdulla bin Umar, and his brother Awadh bin Umar/'Sultan Nawaz Jang'. Jemadar Abdulla bin Umar died on 25 November 1888, and Government sanctioned the continuance of the salute and stipend to his brother Awadh bin Umar (Sultan Nawaz Jang).
In 1896 though, a quarrel took place between Jemadar Awadh bin Umar and his nephews, Husein and Munassar, over their right of succession and the division of their properly. In September 1901, the Resident tried to bring about a settlement, but failed. A further conference at Aden in February 1902 was no more successful. Jemadar Awadh bin Umar went to India to lay his petition before the Viceroy, while his nephews returned to Shihr after signing a pledge not to interfere with the administration of their country. The agreement was broken, and in June the Resident, accompanied by Jemadar Awadh bin Umar, went to Shihr with an armed force. Husein submitted and was brought to Aden, Munassar following him shortly afterwards. The settlement of the dispute between Awadh bin Umar and his nephews was then submitted to arbitration, which resulted in the award of a large sum of money to Husein and Munassar and their families, and in a permanent salute of 9 guns being sanctioned for the Awadh bin Umar as Jemadar of Shihr and Mukalla, with his title being changed from Jemadar to Sultan. his nephews, however, refused to accept the compensation for the usurping of their birthright as the proper heirs to the throne, and in July 1904 left to return to Hyderabad, with the dispute about their trust money having never been settled. And at the end of 1904, the Sultan purchased a share in the port of Balahaf from the Wahidi Sultanate, but the British refused to sanction the agreement.
In 1917, control of the Aden Protectorate was transferred from the Government of India, which had inherited the British East India Company's interests in various princely states on the strategically important naval route from Europe to India, to the British Foreign Office. And the Aden Protectorate was informally divided into the Eastern and Western Protectorates; the Eastern Protectorate corresponded roughly to the Qu'aiti Sultanate's sphere of control, and its Political Officer was stationed at Mukalla in Qu'aiti, after Sultan Nawaz Jang's grandson, Ali bin Salah, signed a treaty in 1937 appointing the British government as "advisors" in Hadhramaut. But the British exiled Sultan Ali bin Salah to Aden in 1945, on account of his adamant refusal to join their proposed Federation of South Arabia; instead, declaring his intent to pursue a political union-of-the-crowns with the soon-to-be independent State of Hyderabad. And shortly before his exile, this ambitions had been boosted greatly by the marriage he'd secured between his own first-born son and heir, Awadh din Saleh, and Sahibzadi Nazirunissa Begum (granddaughter of both the 6th Nizam of Hyderabad Mahbub Ali Khan, and the former Prime Minister of Hyderabad Viqar-ul-Umrah); with the couple going on to have multiple children, the eldest of these being the final Qu'aiti Sultan, Ghalib II bin Awadh al-Qu'aiti al-Hadhrami (born in London in January 1948).
So then, what if the Qu'aiti Sultans had actually been able to go ahead with their proposed plans, and Ali bin Salah's desired political union between the Qu'aiti Sultanate and the State of Hyderabad had indeed been established? How much would this have shaken things up? Could we conceivably see the Nizam of Hyderabad (and world's wealthiest person, at that time, with an estimated net wealth equivalent to roughly US$33.2 billion in 2021 dollars), Mir Osman Ali Khan, fleeing Operation Polo along with much of the rest of the royal family to seek refuge there (with Hadramaut effectively becoming Hyderabad State's equivalent of Taiwan ITTL)? Or even see Hyderabad's proclaimed status as an independent nation in June 1947 be acknowledged by multiple other nations? Portugal would be one of the likeliest candidates- a draft agreement for the Nizam of Hyderabad to purchase the port of Mormugao was secretly drawn up and sent to Lisbon for approval by the Portuguese government in June 1947 IOTL, with Portuguese PM Antonio de Oliviera Salazar having purportedly been inclined to go ahead with the deal. Might this deal actually go through ITTL?
Nonetheless, this denial of permission was ignored by the brother of the Qu'aiti Sheikh, Awadh (Nawaz) bin Umar (better known by his Hyderabad title of Sultan Nawaz Jang), whose flotilla set sail to establish a blockade on the sea-coast; landing near Shihr in April 1867, attacking the Kathiri and forcing them into retreat, and re-establishing the authority of his brother as ruler of Shihr. In December of the same year, the Kathiri Sheikh attempted to retake the town once more, only to be repulsed by the Qu'aiti; before the Kathiri applied to the British themselves, seeking their assistance in recovering Shihr by force. The British, once again, refused to interfere, but put pressure on Hyderabad, forcing the Nizam's Minister to issue a statement declaring his readiness to prohibit any interference in the affairs of Hadramaut by Hyderabadi subjects. But hostilities continued regardless; with a subsequent schism between its third generation of rulers, whereby the Naqib of Mukalla entered into an alliance with the Kathiri, and the Jemadar of Ash-Shihr purchased a large warship in response, with the aid of their relatives in Hyderabad. But this vessel was confiscated and its crew detained under the provisions of the Foreign Enlistment Act of 1870 upon arriving in Aden, and not released until the Qu'aiti Jemadar had bound himself under a heavy penalty to send her back to Bombay at once, without touching at, or undertaking any operations against, any of the ports of Hadhramaut. He further attempted to establish a blockade of Mukalla, and hoarded native craft suspected of being bound for that port, but was compelled to pay an indemnity of Rs. 6142 for plundering three such vessels, and sternly warned of the consequences of such interference with commerce in the future by the British.
The British Government steadily avoided interference or arbitration in the disputes between the Naqib of Mukalla and the Jemadar of Shihr, and took no action regarding them, beyond asking for assurances from the ministers of the Hyderabad State that any persons in the service of the Nizam, who might be convicted of taking part in the quarrel (by supplying money and munitions of war to their relatives on either side) would be dismissed. But at length, in 1876, with there being no prospect of the cessation of hostilities without some authoritative interference, the Political Resident at Aden, acting under the authority of Government, visited the two chiefs, and through his mediation, a two year truce was concluded, and forthwith expanded a year further. No permanent settlement was however effected, and eventually hostilities were resumed in 1880 and resulted in the capture of Burum by the Jemadar of Shihr. Being driven to extremities the Naqib of Mukalla signed the agreements drawn up by the Political Resident, and Burum was evacuated by the Jemadar of Shihr.
No sooner was the Naqib thus relieved from immediate pressure than he repudiated the terms of the settlement. The Government of India thereupon directed that the Jemadar should be replaced in possession of Burum, which was surrendered by the Naqib without further bloodshed. Finally, in November 1881, the latter gave himself up to the Commander of H.M.S. Dragon and was conveyed with his dependants to Aden, while the Jemadar of Shihr was put in possession of Muhalla and its dependencies. From Aden the Naqib went to Zanzibar with a number of Sheikhs and followers, and in 1888 he accepted the maintenance provided for him. In 1882, an Engagement was concluded with the Jemadar of Shihr and Mukalla by which he became a British stipendiary, an allowance of 300 dollars a year being assigned to him, his heirs and successors. At the same time the Jemadar paid over a sum of 100,000 dollars to the Resident, at Aden for the maintenance of the Naqib of Mukalla. On 1 May 1888, a Protectorate Treaty was concluded with the Jemadar Abdulla bin Umar, and his brother Awadh bin Umar/'Sultan Nawaz Jang'. Jemadar Abdulla bin Umar died on 25 November 1888, and Government sanctioned the continuance of the salute and stipend to his brother Awadh bin Umar (Sultan Nawaz Jang).
In 1896 though, a quarrel took place between Jemadar Awadh bin Umar and his nephews, Husein and Munassar, over their right of succession and the division of their properly. In September 1901, the Resident tried to bring about a settlement, but failed. A further conference at Aden in February 1902 was no more successful. Jemadar Awadh bin Umar went to India to lay his petition before the Viceroy, while his nephews returned to Shihr after signing a pledge not to interfere with the administration of their country. The agreement was broken, and in June the Resident, accompanied by Jemadar Awadh bin Umar, went to Shihr with an armed force. Husein submitted and was brought to Aden, Munassar following him shortly afterwards. The settlement of the dispute between Awadh bin Umar and his nephews was then submitted to arbitration, which resulted in the award of a large sum of money to Husein and Munassar and their families, and in a permanent salute of 9 guns being sanctioned for the Awadh bin Umar as Jemadar of Shihr and Mukalla, with his title being changed from Jemadar to Sultan. his nephews, however, refused to accept the compensation for the usurping of their birthright as the proper heirs to the throne, and in July 1904 left to return to Hyderabad, with the dispute about their trust money having never been settled. And at the end of 1904, the Sultan purchased a share in the port of Balahaf from the Wahidi Sultanate, but the British refused to sanction the agreement.
In 1917, control of the Aden Protectorate was transferred from the Government of India, which had inherited the British East India Company's interests in various princely states on the strategically important naval route from Europe to India, to the British Foreign Office. And the Aden Protectorate was informally divided into the Eastern and Western Protectorates; the Eastern Protectorate corresponded roughly to the Qu'aiti Sultanate's sphere of control, and its Political Officer was stationed at Mukalla in Qu'aiti, after Sultan Nawaz Jang's grandson, Ali bin Salah, signed a treaty in 1937 appointing the British government as "advisors" in Hadhramaut. But the British exiled Sultan Ali bin Salah to Aden in 1945, on account of his adamant refusal to join their proposed Federation of South Arabia; instead, declaring his intent to pursue a political union-of-the-crowns with the soon-to-be independent State of Hyderabad. And shortly before his exile, this ambitions had been boosted greatly by the marriage he'd secured between his own first-born son and heir, Awadh din Saleh, and Sahibzadi Nazirunissa Begum (granddaughter of both the 6th Nizam of Hyderabad Mahbub Ali Khan, and the former Prime Minister of Hyderabad Viqar-ul-Umrah); with the couple going on to have multiple children, the eldest of these being the final Qu'aiti Sultan, Ghalib II bin Awadh al-Qu'aiti al-Hadhrami (born in London in January 1948).
So then, what if the Qu'aiti Sultans had actually been able to go ahead with their proposed plans, and Ali bin Salah's desired political union between the Qu'aiti Sultanate and the State of Hyderabad had indeed been established? How much would this have shaken things up? Could we conceivably see the Nizam of Hyderabad (and world's wealthiest person, at that time, with an estimated net wealth equivalent to roughly US$33.2 billion in 2021 dollars), Mir Osman Ali Khan, fleeing Operation Polo along with much of the rest of the royal family to seek refuge there (with Hadramaut effectively becoming Hyderabad State's equivalent of Taiwan ITTL)? Or even see Hyderabad's proclaimed status as an independent nation in June 1947 be acknowledged by multiple other nations? Portugal would be one of the likeliest candidates- a draft agreement for the Nizam of Hyderabad to purchase the port of Mormugao was secretly drawn up and sent to Lisbon for approval by the Portuguese government in June 1947 IOTL, with Portuguese PM Antonio de Oliviera Salazar having purportedly been inclined to go ahead with the deal. Might this deal actually go through ITTL?
