History of Saudi Arabia Crossword Puzzle for Kids

The history of Saudi Arabia as a nation state began with the Al Saud dynasty in 1727.

The territory that is now Saudi Arabia was the site of several ancient cultures and civilizations. The prehistory of Saudi Arabia shows some of the earliest traces of human activity in the world.

It was founded in the area of Najd, the central part of the Arabian Peninsula. The Sa'udi emirate's leadership is a traditional form of rule on Arabia since the 18th century. Over the next century and a half, the family went through a lot of opposition and hurdles. The family faced opposition from powerful families of Arabia but also rulers of Egypt and the Ottoman Empire.

In 1902, Abdulaziz Ibn Saud, also known as Abdul Aziz Al-Saud, took over the city of Riyadh from another family, the Al-Rashid. He continued to win more areas, and on 8 January 1926, he became the King of Hejaz and the Sultan of Najd. On 20 May in 1927, the government of the United Kingdom accepted him as the King of the areas ruled by him (the Nejd and Hejaz). His kingdom now had its sovereignty recognized. The modern nation state of Saudi Arabia was established in 1932 as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and was declared by King Abdulaziz Al-Saud. Petroleum oil was found in Saudi Arabia on 3 March in 1938, which made the country rich since the export of oil started bring ingin a lot of money.

However, the history of the Arabian Peninsula goes uch further and led to the development of the Saudi state. People and cultures can be traced back 63,000 years ago. The most significant event that happened in the Peninsula is the rise of the Islamic religion presented by Muhammad. The Rashidun Caliphate, the Umayyad Caliphate, Abbasid Caliphate and Fatimid Caliphate all occupied the Arabian Peninsula and helped it develop to whit it is we today. Other dynasties existed in history, but the Islamic holy cities of Mecca and Medina were under the protection of the Hashemite Sharifs of Mecca from the 10th century onwards.

Early history

Pre-Islamic Arabia is the time before 610 AD.,when Muhammad started speading the religion of Islam. The term ‘Pre-Islamic Arabia’ is useful because it shows the importance of Islam and its influence in forming the Arabian Peninsula as we know it today with all its religions and cultures. It also shows a relation between the rise of Islam and the native Arabs, who lived through conquest, trade and innovations.

The era covers thousands of years with many different cultures and communities. The oldest evidence pointing to inhabitants of the Arabian Peninsula is perhaps 63,000 years old. The area had trading relations with many parts of the ancient world, but the hot and harsh climate had made large settlements difficult. Bedouin groups were naturally also present. Some settlements had always existed around oases, places in the deserts in which growth and water are available. For instance, the Dilmun culture was very old and existed along the Persian Gulf. It exxisted at the same time as the ancient civilizations of the Sumerians and of Egyptians. The Kindite Kingdom and other ancient communities also existed there.

The history of Arabia page gives more information on Pre-Islamic Arabia. This page will cover more of the post-Islamic era because of its strong relationship with Saudi Arabia.

The Hejaz area became an important center as Islam rose in the 620s. After Muhammad of the Quraysh tribe started sprading Islam in 610, the existing cities of Medina (formerly called Yathrib) and Mecca eventually became the holiest places of Islam. The number of Muslims rapidly began to grow after the migration (or Hijra) of Muhammad and his companions in 622 from Mecca to Medina. During the completion of the religion, both cities became the holiest places in the Muslim world. Masjid al-Haram and Al-Masjid al-Nabaw are the main locations of pilgrimage, and Muslims hopes to visit the Kaaba, primarily in Masjid al-Haram and the Prophet's tomb in Al-Masjid al-Nabawi, at least once in their lifetimes.

Muhammad and his companions went through the Arabian Peninsula in the following years and united the divided tribes of Arabia under one flag. That led to Medina becoming the capital of the newly-established Islamic state, which he ruled.

Modern history

After Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab were exiled from Uyaynah, he sought refuge in Diriyah, where some of his followers were residing. At that time, Muhammad bin Saud was the local chieftain of Diriyah. Two brothers and the wife of Muhammad bin Saud were followers of Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab's ideology. They encouraged co-operation between Muhammad bin Saud and Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab. Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab needed military support to secure his ideology and preaching, and Muhammad bin Saud needed pastoral support. Fulfilling those needs eventually led to an alliance between the scholar Muhammad ibn Abd al Wahhab and the ruler Muhammad bin Saud. They created the First Saudi State, the Emirate of Diriyah.

When Muhammad bin Saud died in 1765, his son Abdulaziz bin Muhammad Al Saud was a dedicated student of Muhammad ibn Abd al Wahhab and became the leader of the Emirate of Diriyah. In his reign, the Emirate of Diriyah expanded its territory throughout the Arabian Peninsula. In the eastern part of the peninsula, Abdulaziz bin Muhammad Al Saud got Al-Hasa, Qatar, Al-Buraimi and Bahrain under his influence. In the western part of the Peninsula, he conquered parts of the Hejaz region. During his conquests, the Saudi State got involved in a war against the Ottomans.

At that stage, the Ottoman campaigns against the Saudi State failed, and Abdulaziz bin Muhammad Al Saud was expanded his territory inside Ottoman territories. With his death in 1803, his son Saud bin Abdulaziz Al Saud became ruler andconquered the holy cities of Mecca and Medina for a few years, which gave him the title of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques. Eventually, Egypt, which was supported and led by the Ottomans, destroyed his power in 1818. That marked the end of the First Saudi State.

By 1824, the Al Saud family regained control over parts of the Nejd region, which is seen as the beginning of the Second Saudi State, the Emirate of Najd. The Saudi ruler, Turki bin Ali, made Riyadh the capital of his state, which remains the capital today. Turki bin Ali succeeded in retaking most of the lands that had been lost to the Ottomans.

In 1865, the Ottomans launched another attack on the Saudi State. This time, with help from the Al Rasheed family of Ha'il, another powerful family of the Najd region, the Ottomans captured part of the Saudi State. The Al Rasheed family defeated the Saudi State in 1891, which marked the end of the Second Saudi State. Abdul Rahman bin Faisal Al Saud, who was the Saudi leader, retreated into the desert and eventually to Kuwait with his family.

Text adapted from the Simple English Wikipedia article “History of Saudi Arabia” (revision 10869669, 2026-05-25), authors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.