Required Reading on the Sultanate of Oman

My buddy Nick and I share a common interest in the Sultanate of Oman. He recently purchased a couple of books, posted a picture of them on Facebook, and solicited my input on essential readings about the Sultanate. So, I could post a few suggestions for him... Or I could write an unnecessarily thorough list, post it to the blog, link to it on his Facebook post, and enlighten anyone who cares to learn about the Sultanate in the process.

I'll give you three guesses which option I've chosen.

The books below fall almost entirely into three categories: long since out of print, available on Kindle, or available to view/download online. Instead, I've divided them into three other categories...

The Top Five
This first category is what I'd consider the five most important books for someone trying to learn the history, and particularly the modern history, of Oman to read.

Allfree, P.S.; Warlords of Oman; Robert Hale; London; 01APR2014; link: I'm in the process of reading this book. It's one of several books that document the development of the southeast end of the Arabian Peninsula from the 1950's and into the 1970's.

Gardiner, Ian; In the Service of the Sultan: A First Hand Account of the Dhofar Insurgency; Pen & Sword Military; Barnsley, South Yorkshire; 2007; link: Brigadier Gardiner's book is probably the best, most accessible overview of the Dhofar War available - and easily available, as you can download it on Kindle. My own dissertation on the Dhofar Rebellion probably cited this book more frequently than any other source, save perhaps for those of S. Monick as noted below.

Morton, Michael Quentin; Buraimi: The Struggle for Power, Influence and Oil in Arabia; I.B. Tauris; London; 09MAY2014; link: I have yet to read this book, but it's likely the only book written specifically on the Buraimi Dispute. The Buraimi Dispute may have been the most significant factor in Sultan Said bin Taimur's eventual fall from power.

Kechichian, Joseph A.; Oman and the World: The Emergence of an Independent Foreign Policy; RAND Corporation; Santa Monica, CA; 1995; link: This is another book that I've only had a chance to skim, but it discusses Oman's postwar development, and particularly its foreign policy, in detail.

Thesiger, Wilfred; Arabian Sands; Penguin Classics; London; 1959; link: Thesiger's account of five years spent travelling in southeast Arabia - at that point, Dhofar, Oman, Muscat, the Hadramaut, and the Trucial States - is truly indispensable. It's also an extremely enjoyable read.

Books on the Omani Insurgencies
Oman was the location of two insurgencies in the twentieth century: the Jebel Akhdar War from 1957 to 1959, and the Dhofar Rebellion from around 1962 until 1976. These are books specifically focused on those conflicts.

Akehurst, John; We Won a War: The Campaign in Oman 1965-1975; M. Russell; Salisbury, Wiltshire; 1982: General Akehurst's account of the war is considered the magnum opus on the conflict (or at least, it will be until I write my book). It's long since out of print, and I think I paid about £60/$100 for my copy. It's indispensable for a detailed study of the Dhofar War, but casual students can easily get by with Brigadier Gardiner's account listed above.

Arkless, David C.; The Secret War: Dhofar 1971/1972; William Kimber; London; 1988: This seems to be a little-known account of the Dhofar War, based upon the experiences of a member of the aviation community from early in the conflict. I haven't had a chance to read it yet.

Cheney, Major Stephen A., USMC; “The Insurgency in Oman 1962-1976”; Marine Corps Command and Staff College; Quantico, VA; 1984:

Cole, Roger and Belfield, Richard; SAS Operation Storm: Nine Men Against Four Hundred in Britain's Secret War (AKE); Hodder & Stoughton; London; 2011: I originally purchased this book in an airport book shop in Manama, Bahrain in February of 2012. Until I read Chris Kyle's autobiography, American Sniper, it was probably the most poorly-written book I'd ever read. I got two or three chapters into it over the course of a couple of hours before I gave up. Young people may enjoy it, but adults should stick to Gardiner, Akehurst, or Jeapes.

Fiennes, Ranulph; The Feather Men; Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.; London; 1991: I was informed in no uncertain terms by a Dhofar veteran that Fiennes' claims about a tribal vendetta against the Special Air Service are nonsense. I only cite it here because it offers a few contextual details, such as the long-term presence of Commonwealth troops contracted to the Sultan's Armed Forces and Royal Oman Police.

Fiennes, Ranulph; Where Soldiers Fear to Tread; Hodder & Stoughton, Ltd.; unknown; 1983: I haven't heard much about this book, but it's Fiennes' actual account of his time in Oman in the 1960's. Fair warning: Fiennes has a reputation for embellishment.

Geraghty, Tony; Who Dares Wins: The Story of the SAS 1950-1982; Fontana Paperbacks; Glasgow; 1983: Geraghty's book contains some brief accounts of the Special Air Service's participation in the Jebel Akhdar and Dhofar Wars.

al Hamdani, Ibrahim bin Saif; Development as an anti-Insurgency weapon: The Dhofar War; unknown; unknown; unknown; link: I'm actually hoping that Nick will be able to locate and procure a copy of this book for me.

Higgins, Andrew; With the SAS and Other Animals: A Vet's Experiences During the Dhofar War 1974 (AKE); Pen & Sword Military; Barnsley, South Yorkshire; 2011: Dr. Higgins' book is a bit less exhaustive than Brigadier Gardiner's, but extremely valuable for studying the civil affairs portion of the Dhofar campaign. It's also a pretty enjoyable read, as Dr. Higgins' experiences were somewhat unique relative to the accounts of other Dhofar veterans.

Hoffman, Bruce; British Air Power in Peripheral Conflict 1919-1976; RAND Corporation; Santa Monica, CA; 1989; link: Hoffman's book includes an excellent section on aviation operations in Dhofar.

Jeapes, Tony; SAS Secret War: Operation Storm in the Middle East; Greenhill Books; London; 2005: Major General Jeapes' book focuses somewhat on Special Air Service operations, but should really be seen as complementary to General Akehurst's account listed above. One could essentially write a comprehensive overview of the conflict based upon their accounts alone.

Kane, Ray; Coup D'état Oman; N/A; N/A; 2012; link: This is a recent release that I haven't had a chance to read yet.

Meagher, Major John B., USMC; The Jebel Akhdar War Oman 1954-1959; Marine Corps Command and Staff College; Quantico, VA; 1985; link: Major Meagher, writing in 1985, provides one of the few easily accessible accounts of the 1957-'59 Jebel Akhdar War.

Monick, S.; “Victory in Hades: The Forgotten Wars of Oman 1957-1959 and 1970-1976, Part 1”; Scientia Militaria, South African Journal of Military Studies, Vol. 12, Nr 3; Saldanha, South Africa; 1982; link: Following from Major Meagher's account listed directly above, S. Monick's account of the Jebel Akhdar War is the other account of the Jebel Akhdar War which is most accessible.

Monick, S.; “Victory in Hades: The Forgotten Wars of Oman 1957-1959 and 1970-1976, Part 2A: The Dhofar Campaign 1970-1976”; Scientia Militaria, South African Journal of Military Studies, Vol. 12, Nr 4; Saldanha, South Africa; 1982; link: Following from S. Monick's account of the Jebel Akhdar War, I found his study of the Dhofar War extremely valuable, and its only competitor for most citations would have been Brigadier Gardiner's book.

Monick, S.; “Victory in Hades: The Forgotten Wars of Oman 1957-1959 and 1970-1976, Part 2B: The Dhofar Campaign 1970-1976”; Scientia Militaria, South African Journal of Military Studies, Vol. 13, Nr 1; Saldanha, South Africa; 1983; link: See above.

Myklebust, Martin and Smithee, Alan; “Six Requirements for Success in Modern Counterinsurgency”; Small Wars Journal; Bethesda, MD; 11JUL2013; link: Nick will know why this particular article is significant, but beyond that, the authors provide a good overview of the Dhofar War, contrasted with the Algerian Revolution.

N/A; British Army Field Manual, Volume 1 Part 10, Countering Insurgency; British Ministry of Defence; N/A; 2009; link: The MoD's 2009 counterinsurgency field manual includes a case study on the Dhofar War. This is in contrast to the DoD's 2006 field manual, which only mentions the Dhofar War when citing Jeapes' book in the annotated bibliography.

Ray, Bryan; Dangerous Frontiers: Campaigning in Somaliland and Oman; Pen & Sword Military; Barnsley, South Yorkshire; 2012; link: This is another recent release that I haven't had an opportunity to read yet.

Peterson, J.E.; Oman's Insurgencies: The Sultanate's Struggle for Supremacy; Saqi Books; London; 02JAN2013; link: This is another recent release that I haven't had an opportunity to read yet. One of Nick's friends recommended it.

Spicer, Timothy; An Unorthodox Soldier; Mainstream Publishing; Edinburgh; 1999: Spicer's book (which was allegedly written by a ghost writer) mentions Oman only briefly, in a couple of paragraphs which discuss how "Sultan Quabos" employed British troops in support of local militias. Spicer is a controversial figure, and his book offers little to the narrative, but I'm including it because it played a significant role in my own life and career.

Townsend, John; Oman, the Making of a Modern State; St. Martin's Press; New York; 1977: I think that either Major Cheney or Major Meagher cited this book, and I grabbed the citation. I don't think I've actually ever seen it in person.

White, Rowland; Storm Front: The Epic True Story of a Secret War, the SAS's Greatest Battle, and the British Pilots Who Saved Them; Corgi; London; 2011: Following from Arkless and Hoffman, Rowland White's excellent book details the air war in Dhofar, and particularly the attack pilots' role in the Battle of Mirbat.

Recent News Articles and Other Items
In addition to the books, here's a selection of articles from the last few years. The give a bit local and international context for the last ten years or so. The two exceptions are the first item, which discusses Oman's role in preparations for the 1991 Persian Gulf War; and the final item, which is a travel guide that I've found useful.

Brown, Ronald J.; U. S. Marines in the Persian Gulf, 1990-1991: With Marine Forces Afloat in Desert Shield and Desert Storm; History and Museums Division, Headquarters, United States Marine Corps; Washington, D.C.; 1998; link

Grogan, Specialist Cory; Oregon National Guard unit impresses in Oman; Oregon National Guard Public Affairs Office; Rubkut Training Range, Oman; 30MAR2012; link

Kaplan, Robert; Oman's Renaissance Man; Foreign Policy; N/A; 01MAR2011; link

Miller, Judith; The view from the Gulf: America’s quiet go-between speaks; Fox News; N/A; 31JAN2012; link

N/A; Oman uncovers 'spy network' but UAE denies any links; BBC; N/A; 31JAN2011; link

N/A; US embassy cables: Oman helped secure release of British sailors held by Iran; The Guardian; N/A; 10DEC2010; link

Nicoll, Fergus; Oman: Sultan Qaboos still popular despite discontent; BBC; Muscat; 03MAR2011; link

Slackman, Michael; Oman Navigates Between Iran and Arab Nations; New York Times; Muscat; 15MAY2009; link

Staff Writers; More than 2,000 protest Friday in Salalah, Oman; Gulf News; Muscat; 22APR2011; link

Thomas, Gavin; The Rough Guide to Oman; Rough Guides/Penguin Group; N/A; 2011; link

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For anyone out there who's a true Oman novice, I'd also recommend the Defense Language Institute's Countries in Perspective presentation on Oman.

The list above is thorough, but not exhaustive; after all, I have to keep some tricks up my sleeve for when I write my own book about Oman and the Dhofar Rebellion. I hope to start writing that by the end of the year, once I've completed my book on the Orcadian Gordon Highlanders.