The history of present day Saudi Arabia was the history of the coastal regions till the 18th century. The earliest settlements in eastern Arabia were during the 4th and 5th millennium BC. Among the western Arabian kingdoms, the Nabataean Kingdom was famous in ancient times.

In early 18th century, the royal family of modern Saudi Arabia, the "Al Saud", ruled as Sheikhs in the oasis village of Dir’aiyah near modern Riyadh. The alliance in 1744, between Mohammed bin Saud the ruler of Dir’aiyah, and Mohammed bin Abdul Wahhab, a preacher who followed a strict and simple form of Islam, led to the establishment of the Saudi Arabian Empire. Wahhab’s followers came to be known as Wahhabis, and "Wahhabism" is the official religion of Saudi Arabia.

Mohammed bin Abdul Wahhab’s religious zeal and Mohammed bin Saud’s military skill led to the conversion of most of the tribes of Najd. By 1806, the Saudi forces controlled most of present day Saudi Arabia as well as big chunks of present southern Iraq. The Turks viewed the growing power of Saudi Arabia as a threat and defeated and expelled the Saudis from Hejaz (western Arabia) in 1812 and annexed Dir’aiyah.

In 1891, a rival clan Al-Rashid expelled the Al Sauds from Najd, who fled to the Empty Quarter and then to Kuwait, where the ruling Sheikh gave them shelter. The Saudi ruler, Abdul Aziz bin Abdul Rahman al Saud (known as Ibn Saud) grew up in Kuwait. Ibn Saud was deeply religious and pious, but also an excellent military strategist and diplomat. He recaptured Riyadh from the Al- Rashids by 1925, and the kingdom of Jeddah consequently surrendered to him.

In May 1933 after oil had been discovered in Bahrain, Ibn Suad granted oil concessions to an American firm. But oil production really started after World War II and by 1950 Saudi Arabia was earning US $ 1 million per week. By 1960, 81 % of Saudi Arabia’s revenue came from oil.

1960 to 1964 saw the rise and fall of the profligate Saud, who was forced to surrender his powers to his younger brother Prince Faisal in November 1964, who was a foreign minister in his regime. Faisal modernized Saudi Arabia’s administration and also tried to reorganize Saudi Arabian finances.

During the Arab Israeli War in 1967, Saudi Arabia joined the embargo against the USA and UK. Oil prices shot up and Saudi Arabia became very rich and powerful. From 1973 to ‘78, the annual revenue increased from US $4.35 billion to US $36 billion. This wealth was used for the establishment of the petro- chemical industry.

Faisal was assassinated and succeeded by his half brother Khalid, and Fahd was crown prince. During Khalid’s reign (1975-82), Riyadh and Jeddah grew astoundingly in size and importance. Khalid was succeeded by his half brother Fahd in 1982.

Relations with Iran soured during the Islamic Revolution in 1979. In 1987, some Iranian pilgrims were killed in a demonstration in Mecca, and the Iranians boycotted the traditional Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca for several years.

Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990, and Saudi Arabia asked for US protection fearing that it would be the larger target. About 500,000 foreign troops were stationed in Saudi Arabia, and democratic ideas and principles spread all over the country. Saudi Arabia’s neighbours too began gingerly exploring democratic ideas. It was only in 1993 that Saudi Arabia set up a Consultative Council to help increase people-participation in government and decision-making. The Saudi government is still very close-minded about allowing democracy, in its full sense, to pervade the country. In 1995 when Fahd fell ill, his half brother Abdullah took over the government to hand it back when the king was well again.

While the rest of the world has entered 21st century, it is still medieval times in Saudi Arabia, where modernity works only in certain fields but not in freedom of thought, action and speech.