Contents Preface Acknowledgments A Note on Transliteration Introduction ''Abdul ''Aziz bin ''Abul Rahman Political Responsibilities A Rich Legacy A Short Biography Methodological Approach 1. SYRIA UNDER OTTOMAN RULE CONDITIONS IN THE LEVANT Wars and the Great Famine Perceptions of Ottoman Rule THE ARAB REVOLT Lawrence of Arabia The Arabs and the Ottomans SYRIA, LEBANON AND PALESTINE The Arab Awakening The French Mandate 2. FROM LATAKIYYAH TO RIYADH EARLY LIFE IN SYRIA Religious Training Rashid Rida and the Dar al-Da''wah Witness to Occupation MEETING ''ABDUL ''AZIZ BIN ''ABDUL RAHMAN A Journalist Lured by the Badu The Ikhwan rebellion Private Secretary and Amin al-Sirr Acting Foreign Minister Nationalism in the Levant Family Roots Family Allegiances Conclusion 3. SA''UDI ARABIA REBORN THE ARABIAN PENINSULA BETWEEN 1918 AND 1932 Domestic and Foreign Policies before 1927 The Al Sa''ud in Makkah THE KING''S MEN Arab Advisors Ahmad Al Thunayan ''Abdallah Sulayman Hafiz Wahbah Fu''ad Hamzah Non-Arab Advisors Harry St John Bridger Philby Charles R. Crane Karl Twitchell A MONARCH''S VISION A Ministry of Foreign Affairs A Foreign Policy Blueprint 4. RIVALRIES AND ALLIANCES ANGLO-AMERICAN RIVALRIES The Al Sa''ud and Britain after the Arab Revolt British Traditions vs. American Initiative A MEETING OF MINDS Petroleum, ARAMCO, Income and Influence ''Abdul ''Aziz and Franklin D. Roosevelt The Meeting in Egypt The Question of Palestine THE VALUE OF WESTERN ALLIANCES An American Security Umbrella Dhahran Airfield Creating a Professional Military Britain as a Back-Up Power MAJOR POWER DILEMMAS Palestine and how Philby "Sold" it to Weizmann The Anglo-Sa''udi Buraymi Disputes YASSIN AS AN INDISPENSABLE COUNSELOR 5.

CONCERNS, THREATS AND REGIONAL CONVULSIONS CORE ARAB CONCERNS Arab Unity and the League of Arab States Israel, Palestine, and Arab Dilemmas THREATENING ARAB REVOLUTIONS The 1952 Nasir Coup in Egypt Oil as a Weapon Onassis, Tapline, and Nationalizations REGIONAL CONVULSIONS Cold War in Arabia The 1956 Suez War The Eisenhower Doctrine and Sa''ud The Sa''ud-Nasir Relationships Crises in Jordan and Lebanon UAR, CENTO and Sa''udi Arabia From Eisenhower to Kennedy 6. TIES THAT SHARED VISIONS AND FORGED LEGACIES A MEMORABLE ENCOUNTER Yassin and a Young but Worldly Vice-Roy The Journalist with Foresight HOW TO DEFINE AN ARAB/MUSLIM VISION? Border Disputes on the Arabian Peninsula Relations with Britain and the Buraymi Crisis Relations with America and Arab Nationalism Dhahran Airfield Dilemma Views of Arab Nationalism at the Height of the UAR Damage Control with John F. Kennedy Preserve the Monarchy at All Costs Ideological Rivalries between Sa''ud and Faysal Yassin as the Honest Broker A WORTHY FOREIGN POLICY The Long Road Together Between 1924 and 1962 The Faysal-Yassin Friendship CONCLUSION: A PREMATURE DEATH APPENDICES 1. Interviews 2. Nationality Certificate 3. Identity card 4. Family Registration Card 5. Death Certificate 6.

Memorandum of Conversation Between ''Abdul ''Aziz bin ''Abdul Rahman Al Sa''ud and President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 14 February 1945 7. Alawi State--French Delegation 8. Yassin Documents Sample Pages Draft-letter addressed to President John F. Kennedy; Coded telegram from HRP Prince Faysal bin ''Abdul ''Aziz to Shaykh Yusuf Yassin Bibliography Index About the Author.