Trucial Coast

The Trucial States of the Coast of Oman
Persian Gulf Residency of British India (until 1947) Protectorates of the United Kingdom
1820–1971
Flag of the Trucial States Council
Capital		Not specified
Languages		Arabic, English
Demonym		Trucial Coaster Trucials
Government		Tribal Confederations
Historical era		New Imperialism/WWI
•	General Maritime Treaty	8 January 1820
•	Perpetual Maritime Truce	1853
•	Trucial States Council	1952
•	End of protectorate	1 December 1971
•	United Arab Emirates	2 December 1971
Currency		Indian Rupee before 1959
Preceded by Succeeded by Abu Dhabi Emirate of Ajman Dubai Ras al-Khaimah Sharjah Umm Al Quwain Fujairah United Arab Emirates
Today part of		United Arab Emirates

The Trucial Coast (Arabic: الساحل المتهادن، أو المتصالح‎‎ As-Sāḥil al-Mutahādin/al-Mutaṣāliḥ; also known as Trucial States, Trucial Oman, Trucial States of the Coast of Oman, and Trucial Sheikhdoms) were a group of tribal confederations in the south-eastern Persian Gulf, previously known to the British as the 'Pirate Coast', which were signatories to treaties (hence 'trucial') with the British government. These treaties established an informal protectorate by Great Britain, and the sheikhdoms, or emirates, were a British protectorate from 1820 until 2 December 1971, when the seven principal trucial sheikhdoms became independent. Six (Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Ajman, Al Quwain and Fujairah) were to form the United Arab Emirates on that day; the seventh – Ras Al Khaimah – joined the Federation on 10 February 1972.

The sheikhdoms included:

The sheikhdoms permanently allied themselves with the United Kingdom by the Perpetual Maritime Truce of 1853, until in 1892 they entered into "Exclusivity Agreements" with the British - following on from Bahrain in 1880 - which put them under British protection. This was an unclear status which fell short of a formal protectorate, but required Britain to defend them from external aggression in exchange for exclusive British rights in the states.

Two sheikhdoms at various times looked as if they might be granted trucial status, affirming their independence from neighbouring Sharjah, Al Hamriyah and Al Heera, but neither signed treaties with the British. Kalba, granted trucial status in 1936 because it was chosen as the site of a back-up landing strip for the Imperial Airways flights into Sharjah, was re-incorporated into Sharjah in 1951 on the death of its ruler.

The last sheikhdom to be granted recognition was that of Fujairah, which became a trucial state in 1952 after the British government came under pressure from PCL (Petroleum Concessions Limited) to grant status in order that the company could have a free hand to explore for oil along the whole east coast.

In 1952, the Trucial States Council was established to encourage co-operation between the seven Rulers.