Kuwait History lesson

The emirate developed around the city of Kuwait, which was settled early in the 18th century. Kuwait was nominally under Ottoman Turkish rule until 1899, when the reigning emir asked for, and obtained, British protection. In 1914 Great Britain reaffirmed its protective role and formally recognized the independence of the state. Subsequently, Wahhabis from the Saudi Arabian province of Najd attacked Kuwait. The British aided the emirate, and peace was restored in 1921 by a treaty establishing the Kuwait-Najd boundary; a neutral zone was created in 1922. Petroleum was discovered in 1938. Under a concession, the Kuwait Oil Co., owned jointly by the Gulf Oil Corp. of the U.S. and the British Petroleum Co., began exploitation of the reserves in 1946. Under the provisions of a 1951 agreement, the emir shared equally in the company's profits.