Through British records and archives,

The National Archives reviews the history of Sheikh Zayed in Al Ain and his achievements, which brough prosperity to people and the area

The National Archives organized a virtual lecture entitled “An Introduction to British Documents: Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan in Al Ain as a Model for Study”. The lecture reviewed the historical context of the period in which Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan was the Ruler Representative in Al Ain and described the tribal map in the middle of the 20th century. This is in addition to the great role of Sheikh Zayed in Al Ain, which witnessed the first signs of his unprecedented unitary thought and where he rose to prominence as a leader of wisdom and dedication. He was admired by his people who were impressed by the major projects in the fields of education management, schools construction, agriculture and agrarian reform as well as encouraging farmers to engage in farming. Trade boomed in Al Ain, thanks to Sheikh Zayed’s efforts.

In this lecture, which was organized by the NA and broadcasted via the interactive social media, Dr. Hamdan Al Dara’, Researcher and Historian, expressed his admiration for the period, which Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan spent in Al Ain (1946-1966) and in which he started to implement his huge project to provide fresh water. He was dedicated to dig and restore Falajs and end water monopoly. He succeeded in achieving social justice.

The lecture, which received the interest of internal and external researchers, started with defining history and demonstrating the importance of documents in writing history. The lecturer reviewed the main sources and references for studying history, noting that the British Indian Government archives contain documents that record the British activities in the region and the administrative dependencies of the British Indian Government from the 17th century to the 20th century. He presented samples of this archive. He suggested that documents of the British Foreign Office and the UK National Archives are of great help in studying the history of the region affairs. He appreciated the personal archives of VIPs who spent part of their lives serving as officials in the UAE. He also stressed the importance of academic integrity in verifying the facts contained in documents.

With respect to the period in which Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan was the Ruler Representative in Al Ain, Dr. Hamdan Al Dara’ highlighted the timeline of the leadership roles of Sheikh Zayed at various levels, his hobbies, sports and efforts in accompanying the oil exploration teams as well as his journey to the Western Region with the British traveler, Buckmaster, in 1954, which lasted for two full months. It was the first statistics on population and oases.

Under the topic “Zayed and the Unitary Thought”, the lecturer talked about unity in Sheikh Zayed’s thought and about his efforts and discussions to achieve the Union.