Editing Manama (section)

==History==

===Pre-modern history===
There is evidence of human settlement on the northern coastline of Bahrain dating back to the [[Bronze Age]]. The [[Dilmun]] civilisation inhabited the area in 3000&nbsp;BC, serving as a key regional trading hub between [[Mesopotamia]], [[Majan (civilization)|Magan]] and the [[Indus Valley Civilisation]].{{sfn|Al-Nabi|2012|p=17}}{{sfn|Dumper|Stanley|2007|p=243}} Approximately 100,000 [[Dilmun burial mounds]] were found across the north and central regions of the country, some originating 5,000 years ago. Despite the discovery of the mounds, there is no significant evidence to suggest heavy urbanisation took place during the [[Dilmun]] era.{{sfn|Ben Hamouche|2008|p=184}} It is believed that the majority of the population lived in rural areas, numbering several thousand. Evidence of an ancient large rural population was confirmed by one of [[Alexander the Great]]'s ship captains, during voyages in the [[Persian Gulf]]. A vast system of [[aqueduct (water supply)|aqueduct]]s in northern Bahrain helped facilitate ancient horticulture and agriculture.{{sfn|Al-Nabi|2012|p=19}} 
{{quote box
| halign   = left
| border   = 2px
| bgcolor   = #c6dbf8
|align  = left
| width  = 30%
|quote     = <poem><span style="font-size:2em; font-family:'Times New Roman',serif; font-weight:bold;"></span>"The capital of [[Awal]]... is a town well populated whose environs are fertile and produce corn and dates in abundance."<span style="font-size:2em; font-family:'Times New Roman',serif; font-weight:bold;"></span></poem>
{{pad|1.6em}}—[[Al-Idrisi]]{{sfn|Al-Nabi|2012|p=19}} 
}}
[[File:Khamis Mosque 1956.jpg|thumb|left|The [[Khamis Mosque]] in 1956]]

The commercial network of Dilmun lasted for almost 2,000 years, after which the [[Assyria]]ns took control of the island in 700&nbsp;BC for more than a century. This was followed by [[Babylonia]]n and [[Achaemenid]] rule, which later gave way to Greek influence during the time of [[Wars of Alexander the Great|Alexander the Great's conquests]].{{sfn|Rice|2005|p=128}} In the first century AD, the Roman writer [[Pliny the Elder]] wrote of [[Tylos]], the Hellenic name of Bahrain in the [[classical era]], and its [[pearl]]s and cotton fields.{{sfn|Dumper|Stanley|2007|p=243}} The island came under the control of the [[Parthian Empire|Parthian]] and [[Sassanid]] empires respectively, by which time [[Nestorian Christianity]] started to spread in Bahrain. By 410–420&nbsp;AD, a Nestorian [[Episcopal see|bishopric]] and [[monastery]] was established in [[Al Dair]], on the neighbouring island of [[Muharraq]].{{sfn|Dumper|Stanley|2007|p=243}}<ref>{{cite news|last=Al A'ali|first=Mohammed|title=Protecting Bahrain's Christian heritage...|url=http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/NewsDetails.aspx?storyid=359780|access-date=31 August 2013|newspaper=[[Gulf Daily News]]|date=24 August 2013|archive-date=25 August 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130825003322/http://gulf-daily-news.com/NewsDetails.aspx?storyid=359780|url-status=dead}}</ref> Following the conversion of Bahrain to [[Islam]] in 628&nbsp;AD, work on one of the earliest mosques in the region, the [[Khamis Mosque]], began as early as the seventh century AD. During this time, Bahrain was engaged in long distance marine trading, evident from the discovery of [[Ancient Chinese coinage|Chinese coins]] dating between 600 and 1200&nbsp;AD, in Manama.{{sfn|Dumper|Stanley|2007|p=243}}

[[File:Bahrain Fort overview.jpg|thumb|right|The [[Qal'at al-Bahrain|Portuguese Fort]], built by the [[Portuguese Empire]] while it ruled Bahrain from 1521 to 1602]]
In 1330, under the [[Jarwanid dynasty]], the island became a tributary of the [[Kingdom of Hormuz]]. The town of Manama was mentioned by name for the first time in a manuscript dating to 1345&nbsp;AD.{{sfn|Dumper|Stanley|2007|p=243}} Bahrain, particularly Manama and the nearby settlement of [[Bilad Al Qadeem]], became a centre of [[Shia]] scholarship and training for the [[ulema]], it would remain so for centuries. The ulema would help fund [[pearl hunting|pearling]] expeditions and finance grain production in the rural areas surrounding the city. In 1521, Bahrain fell to the expanding [[Portuguese Empire]] in the Persian Gulf, having already defeated Hormuz.{{sfn|Dumper|Stanley|2007|p=244}} The Portuguese consolidated their hold on the island by constructing the [[Bahrain Fort]], on the outskirts of Manama.{{sfn|Larsen|1983|p=68}} After numerous revolts and an expanding [[Safavid empire]] in Persia, the Portuguese were expelled from Bahrain and the Safavids took control in 1602.{{sfn|Larsen|1983|p=68}}

===Early modern history===

The Safavids, sidelining Manama, designated the nearby town of [[Bilad Al Qadeem]] as the provincial capital.{{sfn|Fuccaro|2009|p=18}}  The town was also the seat of the Persian governor and the [[Shaikh al-Islam]] of the islands. The position of Shaikh al-Islam lay under the jurisdiction of the central Safavid government and as such, candidates were carefully vetted by the [[Isfahan]] courts. During the Safavid era, the islands continued to be a centre for [[Twelver Shi'ism]] scholarship, producing clerics for use in mainland Persia.{{sfn|Fuccaro|2009|p=18}}  Additionally, the rich agricultural northern region of Bahrain continued to flourish due to an abundance of [[date palm]] farms and orchards. The Portuguese traveler [[Pedro Teixeira]] commented on the extensive cultivation of crops like [[barley]] and wheat. The opening of Persian markets to Bahraini exports, especially [[pearl]]s, boosted the islands' export economy. The yearly income of exported Bahraini pearls was 600,000 [[ducat]]s, collected by around 2,000 pearling [[dhow]]s.{{sfn|Dumper|Stanley|2007|p=244}} Another factor that contributed to Bahrain's agricultural wealth was the migration of [[Shia]] cultivators from [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]]-occupied [[Qatif]] and [[Al-Ahsa Oasis|al-Hasa]], fearing religious persecution, in 1537.{{sfn|Fuccaro|2009|p=18}} Sometime after 1736, [[Nader Shah]] constructed a fort on the southern outskirts of Manama (likely the Diwan Fort).{{sfn|Fuccaro|2005|p=42}}

Persian control over the Persian Gulf waned during the later half of the 18th century. At this time, Bahrain archipelago was a dependency of the emirate of [[Bushehr]], itself a part of [[Persia]]. In 1783, the [[Bani Utbah]] tribal confederation [[1783 Bani Utbah invasion of Bahrain|invaded]] Bahrain and expelled the resident governor [[Nasr Al-Madhkur]]. As a result, the [[Al Khalifa]] family became the rulers of the country, and all political relations with [[Bushehr]] and [[Persia]]/[[Iran]] were terminated.  [[Ahmed ibn Muhammad ibn Khalifa]] (later called Ahmed al-Fateh, lit. "Ahmed the conqueror") become the dynasty's first [[Hakim of Bahrain]]. Political instability in the 19th century had disastrous effects on Manama's economy; Invasions by the Omanis in 1800 and by the [[Emirate of Diriyah|Wahhabi]]s in 1810–11, in addition to a civil war in 1842 between Bahrain's co-rulers saw the town being a major battleground. The instability paralysed commercial trade in Manama; the town's port was closed, most merchants fled abroad to [[Kuwait]] and the Persian coast until hostilities ceased.{{sfn|Fuccaro|2005|p=43}} The English scholar [[William Gifford Palgrave]], on a visit to Manama in 1862, described the town as having a few ruined stone buildings, with a landscape dominated with the huts of poor fishermen and pearl-divers.{{sfn|Palgrave|1866}}{{sfn|Fuccaro|2005|p=43}}

[[File:British political agency in Manama.png|right|thumb|The British political agency, {{c.|1900|lk=no}}]]

The [[Pax Britannica]] of the 19th century resulted in British consolidation of trade routes, particularly those close to the [[British Raj]]. In response to piracy in the Persian Gulf region, the British deployed warships and forced much of the Persian Gulf States at the time (including Bahrain) to sign the [[General Maritime Treaty of 1820]], which prohibited piracy and slavery.{{sfn|Dumper|Stanley|2007|p=244}} In 1861, the [[Perpetual Truce of Peace and Friendship]] was signed between Britain and Bahrain, which placed the British in charge of defending Bahrain in exchange for British control over Bahraini foreign affairs. With the ascension of [[Isa ibn Ali Al Khalifa]] as the Hakim of Bahrain in 1869, Manama became the centre of British activity in the Persian Gulf, though its interests were initially strictly commercial.{{sfn|Ben Hamouche|2008|p=192}} Trading recovered fully by 1873 and the country's earnings from pearl exports increased by sevenfold between 1873 and 1900.{{sfn|Fuccaro|2005|p=44}} Representing the British were native agents, usually from minorities such as [[Persians in Bahrain|Persians]] or [[Huwala]] who regularly reported back to British India and the [[Persian Gulf Residency|British political residency]] in [[Bushehr]].{{sfn|Fuccaro|2009|p=64}} The position of native agent was later replaced by a British political agent, following the construction of the British political residency (locally referred to in {{langx|ar|بيت الدولة}}) in 1900, which further solidified Britain's position in Manama.{{sfn|Fuccaro|2009|p=64}}
{{wide image|Bahrainharbor.jpg|700px|align-cap=center|Manama harbour, {{c.|1870|lk=no}} }}

===Modern history===
[[File:Aerial view of Manama, 1936.png|thumb|Aerial view of Manama in 1936]]
Following the outbreak of [[World War I]] in 1914, the [[British Raj]] used Manama as a military base of operations during the [[Mesopotamian campaign]].{{sfn|Fuccaro|2009|p=113}} Prompted by the presence of oil in the region, the British political agency in [[Bushire]] concluded an oil agreement with the Hakim to prohibit the exploration and exploitation of oil for a five-year period. In 1919, Bahrain was officially integrated into the [[British Empire]] as an overseas imperial territory following the Bahrain [[order-in-council]] decree, issued in 1913.{{sfn|Fuccaro|2009|p=113}} The decree gave the resident political agent greater powers and placed Bahrain under the [[residency of Bushire]] and therefore under the governance of the British Raj. The British pressured a series of [[Bahrain administrative reforms of the 1920s|administrative reforms in Bahrain during the 1920s]] (a move met with opposition from tribal leaders), during which the aging Hakim [[Isa ibn Ali Al Khalifa]] was forced to abdicate in favour of his reform-minded son [[Hamad ibn Isa Al Khalifa (1872–1942)|Hamad ibn Isa Al Khalifa]]. A municipal government was established in Manama in 1919, the Customs office was reorganised in 1923 and placed under the supervision of an English businessman, the pearling industry was later reformed in 1924. Earnings from the customs office would be kept in the newly created [[Treasury|state treasury]]. [[Civil law (common law)|Civil courts]] were established for the first time in 1923, followed by the establishment of the Department of Land Registration in 1924.{{sfn|Fuccaro|2009|p=114}} [[Charles Belgrave]], from the [[Colonial office]], was appointed in 1926 by the British to carry on further reforms and manage administration as a financial advisor to the King. He later organised the State Police and was in charge of the Finance and Land departments of the government.{{sfn|Fuccaro|2009|p=115}}

{{multiple image
| width1            = 220
| width2            = 180
| align             = left
| footer            = The newly formed Manama municipality (left) and the reorganised customs office of Manama (right)
| image1            = Manama municipality.png
| image2            = Manama customs office and sea port.jpg
}}

In 1927, the country's pearling economy collapsed due to the introduction of Japanese cultured pearls in the world market. It is estimated that between 1929 and 1931, pearling entrepreneurs lost more than two-thirds of their income. Further aggravated by the [[Great Depression]], many leading Bahraini businessmen, shopkeepers, and pearl-divers fell into debt.{{sfn|Fuccaro|2009|p=127-128}} With the [[First Oil Well, Bahrain|discovery of oil]] in 1932 and the subsequent production of oil exports in 1934, the country gained a greater significance in geopolitics. The security of oil supplies in the Middle East was a priority of the British, especially in the run-up to the Second World War.{{sfn|Fuccaro|2009|p=119}} The discovery of oil led to gradual employment of bankrupt divers from the pearling industry in the 1930s, eventually causing the pearling industry to disappear.{{sfn|Fuccaro|2009|p=163}} During the war, the country served as a strategic airbase between Britain and India as well as hosting [[RAF Muharraq]] and a [[HMS Jufair|naval base]] in [[Juffair]].{{sfn|Ben Hamouche|2008|p=201}} Bahrain was [[Bombing of Bahrain in World War II|bombed]] by the [[Regia Aeronautica|Italian Air Force]] in 1940. In 1947, following the end of the war and subsequent Indian independence, the British residency of the Persian Gulf moved to Manama from [[Bushire]].{{sfn|Fuccaro|2009|p=119}}
{{wide image|Manama View 1945.jpg|700px|align-cap=center|Manama in 1945}}
[[File:View of Manama from the South, 1953.png|thumb|Aerial View of Manama, 1953]]
Following the rise of [[Arab nationalism]] across the Middle East and sparked by the [[Suez Crisis]] in 1956, anti-British unrest broke out in Manama, organised by the [[National Union Committee]]. Though the NUC advocated peaceful demonstrations, buildings and enterprises belonging to Europeans (the British in particular) as well as the main [[Catholic Church|Catholic]] church in the city and petrol stations, were targeted and set ablaze.{{sfn|Fuccaro|2009|p=185-186}} Demonstrations held in front of the British political residency called for the dismissal of Charles Belgrave, who was later dismissed by the direct intervention of the [[Foreign Office]] the following year.{{sfn|Fuccaro|2009|p=116}} A subsequent crackdown on the NUC led to the dissolution of the body. Another [[March Intifada|anti-British uprising]] erupted in March 1965, though predominately led by students aspiring for independence rather than by Arab nationalists.{{efn|These student protests were led by intellectuals and poets such as [[Qassim Haddad]].{{sfn|Fuccaro|2009|p=227}} }} In 1968, the British announced their withdrawal from Bahrain by 1971.{{sfn|Fuccaro|2009|p=226}} The newly independent [[State of Bahrain]] designated Manama as the capital city.{{sfn|Fuccaro|2009|p=227}}
[[File:Manama Souq 1965.JPG|thumb|[[Manama Souq]] in 1965]]
Post-independence Manama was characterised by the rapid urbanisation of the city and the swallowing-up of neighboring villages and hamlets into a single urbanised area, incorporating new neighbourhoods such as [[Adliya]] and [[Salmaniya]]. The construction boom attracted large numbers of foreigners from the [[Indian subcontinent]] and by 1981, foreigners outnumbered Bahrainis two-to-one.{{sfn|Fuccaro|2009|p=229}} The construction of the [[Diplomatic Area]] district in the city's northeast helped facilitate diversification of the country's economy from oil by exploiting the lucrative financial industry. Financial institutions in the district numbered 187 by 1986. The scarcity of land suitable for construction led to [[land reclamation]].{{sfn|Ben Hamouche|2008|p=206}} Religious activism migrated from Manama to the suburban districts of [[Bani Jamra]], [[Diraz]] and [[Bilad Al Qadeem]], hotspots of unrest in the [[1990s uprising in Bahrain|1990s uprising]] that called for the reinstatement of an elected parliament.{{sfn|Fuccaro|2009|p=230}} In 2001, the [[National Action Charter of Bahrain|National Action Charter]], presented by King [[Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa]] was approved by Bahrainis. The charter led to the first [[Bahraini general election, 2002|parliamentary]] and municipal elections in decades.{{sfn|Fuccaro|2009|p=230}} Further elections in 2006 and 2010 led to the election of Islamist parties, [[Al Wefaq]], [[Al-Menbar Islamic Society|Al Menbar]], and [[Al Asalah]], as well as independent candidates.{{sfn|Fuccaro|2009|p=230}} In 2011, a [[Bahraini uprising (2011–present)|month-long uprising]] led to the intervention of [[Peninsula Shield Force|GCC forces]] and the proclamation of a three-month [[state of emergency]]. The [[Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry]] published a 500-page report on the events of 2011.<ref>{{cite web|title=Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry|url=http://www.bici.org.bh/|access-date=14 September 2013}}</ref>