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Accepted Paper:
Gwadar, Muscat and Zanzibar: Power and Ports Interchange in the Indian Ocean
Beatrice Nicolini
(Catholic University, Milan)
Paper short abstract:
During the nineteenth century the presence of Omanis political leaders on Asian ports and on the Eastern African coasts did lead to numerous intersections between regional and international interests where Britain often played a role of turning realities into new political scenarios.
Paper long abstract:
The power of the Al Bu Sa'id Sultans of Oman was widely known as based on delicate balance of forces, and social groups, deeply different among them. In fact, the elements that composed the nineteenth century Omani leadership were, and had always been, generally divided amongst different groups: the Baloch, the Asian merchant communities and the African regional leaders (Mwiny Mkuu). The role played by European Powers, particularly by the Treaties signed between the Sultans of Oman and the East India Company for abolishing slavery, and by the arms trade was crucial for the development of the Gulf and the Indian Ocean international networks. They highly contributed to the gradual shifting of the Omanis from the slave trade to clove and spice cultivation - the major economic source of Zanzibar Island - along the coastal areas of Sub-Saharan East Africa.
Land and Maritime Empires in the Indian Ocean
Session 1