Maktoum bin Butti bin Suhail

Maktoum bin Butti (Arabic مكتوم بن بطي) was the joint founder and first ruler of the Dubai sheikdom, alongside Obeid bin Said bin Rashid, with whom he led a migration of the Al Bu Falasah from Abu Dhabi, seceding from the Bani Yas. He was a signatory to the second treaty made with the British and the rulers of the Trucial Coast, abolishing the slave trade.

Maktoum bin Butti bin Suhail
Sheikh
Ruler of Dubai
Reign	9 July 1833 – 1852
Predecessor	Obeid bin Said bin Rashid
Successor	Saeed bin Butti
Died	1852
Father	Butti bin Suhail

Migration

The settlement of Dubai had previously paid tribute to the Bani Yas of Abu Dhabi and was ruled by a regent in 1820 when the General Maritime Treaty of 1820 was signed between the sheikhs of the South Eastern Persian Gulf coast and the British. The regent, Saeed bin Saif bin Zaal, signed on behalf of his nephew, Sheikh Mohammed bin Hazza bin Zaal, who was at the time in his minority. Mohammed bin Hazza remained head man of Dubai until the arrival of the Al Bu Falasah in 1833.[1]

The migration of some 800 members of the Al Bu Falasah was triggered by a coup which removed Sheikh Tahnun bin Shakhbut Al Nahyan as Ruler of Abu Dhabi and the Bani Yas tribe.[2] A subsection of the tribe, the Al Bu Falasah, disagreed with the new Ruler, Sheikh Khalifa bin Shakhbut Al Nahyan and moved North to Dubai, which at the time consisted of a settlement of some 250 houses at Shindagha and the Al Fahidi Fort on the other side of the Ghubaiba inlet.[3] The migration would have been an arduous undertaking, and took place over some time throughout and following the pearling season of that year (typically May to November).[4]

Rule

Having established the Al Bu Falasah in Dubai, Maktoum proceeded to consolidate his position, taking over entirely when Obeid bin Said died of old age in 1836. The settlement expanded, with the natural port in the area near the Al Fahidi Fort providing a wharfage for trading vessels as well as pearling boats.[3] Dubai sat between the rival tribal confederacies of the Bani Yas to the South (Abu Dhabi) and the Al Qassimi to the North (Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah) and benefited from its location between the two, seeking good relations with the British and building trade.[5]

During this time, the interior of the Trucial Coast was in virtually constant conflict with warring tribes raiding villages and coastal settlements, as well as conflict between coastal communities. In 1843, Maktoum lost an eye in such a conflict with the Ghafalah bedouins.[6]

Maktoum signed the 1847 'Engagement to Prohibit Exportation of Slaves From Africa on board of Vessels Belonging to Bahrain and to the Trucial States and to Allow Right of Search of April–May 1847'.[7]

He died at sea, travelling from Muscat to Qishm, of smallpox in 1852.[6]

See also

• Al Maktoum

References

1. Wilson, Graeme (1999). Father of Dubai. Media Prima. p. 22.
2. Heard-Bey, Frauke (2005). From Trucial States to United Arab Emirates : a society in transition. London: Motivate. p. 465. ISBN 1860631673. OCLC 64689681.
3. Heard-Bey, Frauke (2005). From Trucial States to United Arab Emirates : a society in transition. London: Motivate. p. 242. ISBN 1860631673. OCLC 64689681.
4. Wilson, Graeme (199). Father of Dubai. Media Prima. p. 23.
5. Wilson, Graeme (1999). Father of Dubai. Media Prima. p. 24.
6. Lorimer, John (1915). Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf. British Government, Bombay. p. 773.
7. Heard-Bey, Frauke (2005). From Trucial States to United Arab Emirates : a society in transition. London: Motivate. p. 288. ISBN 1860631673. OCLC 64689681.