During the 16th century, the entire territory came under the direct influence of the Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman Navy defeated Portuguese forces on several fronts including the Gulf coast.[19] The British eventually got the upper hand, but the region was known to the British as the "Pirate Coast", as raiders based there harassed the shipping industry despite both European and Omani navies patrolling the area from the 17th century into the 19th.[20] British expeditions to protect the Indian trade from raiders at Ras al-Khaimah led to campaigns against that headquarters and other harbours along the coast in 1819. The following year, Britain and local rulers signed a treaty to combat piracy along the Gulf coast. Yet according to the local Qawassim version, the piracy issue was a pretext. The British Empire tried to further establish itself in the Persian Gulf region and to secure it from any other European influence, particularly from France and Russia, not from local raiders.
Posted on: Thu, 22 Aug 2013 05:12:27 +0000
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