[3] Originally, their ancestors were expelled from Umm Qasr in Iraq by the Ottomans due to their predatory habits of preying on caravans in Basra and trading ships in the Shatt al-Arab waterway.

[7] In 1820, representatives of the British Empire - then the dominant power in the region - signed a "General Treaty of Peace" with tribal chiefs including Al Khalifa.

[12] When Muhammad refused to stop his campaign, Britain directly intervened, besieging his war fleet and forcing him to call off the attack.

[12] In 1847, Faisal bin Turki, Imam of Najd, attempted to intervene in Bahrain, exploiting internal conflicts within the ruling family.

Faisal's inability to seize Bahrain was, in part, due to the firm stance of the British government against Saudi expansion in the Persian Gulf.

Shortly after the fighting had taken place, Mohammed bin Thani, an influential tribal leader in Al Bidda, pursued a separate peace agreement with Faisal and agreed to his governance, a move seen as a betrayal by the Bahrainis.

[19] The conflict pacified when, facing pressure from multiple sides and fearing further erosion of Bahraini influence, Muhammad bin Khalifa agreed to a peace settlement.

[20] The British blockade ended with the signing of the Perpetual Truce of Peace and Friendship in 1861, by which the ruler of Bahrain was not to engage in "prosecution of war, piracy and slavery at sea" and Britain was to provide protection.

[22] Al Khalifa initiated a series of land and property confiscation, and destruction of local sources of strength that lasted to the early 1930s.

[23] Khuri (1980) mentions that it is very hard to either support or reject their assertion regarding the council of jurists, because documentation is lacking, but argues that it could be a "mythical reaction to their physical and social agonies during and after the conquest [of Al Khalifa]".

[25] Once external threats were reduced in 1828 following Oman's heavy loss, the Al Khalifa became engaged in a series of internal conflicts among themselves.

[27] Abdulla's reign (1834–43) was full of conflicts and wars that caused much chaos for Bahrain; its trade declined to half and many locals, especially the Shia were forced to emigrate to other ports such as Al-Muhammarah due to the oppressive extortion and looting they were subjected to.

[21] Muhammad fled to Qatar, leaving his brother Ali as ruler of Bahrain, who then surrendered to British demands of giving up their war vessels and paying a fine of $100,000.

[30] The British then, after talks with chiefs of Al Khalifa, appointed the 21 years old[32] Isa bin Ali as the ruler of Bahrain, a position he would hold until 1923.

"[38] The autonomy of the ruler was not much different in terms of quality from that of other sheikhs (members of Al Khalifa family) who controlled an estate,[39] except that he had higher quantity of resources and assets.

[71] Pearl diving was controlled by Sunni Arab tribesmen, who enjoyed high autonomy within their estates; they resolved disputes and held their own courts, but stopped short of collecting taxes.

[66] Interfering in tribes affairs had negative consciences, as they threatened to emigrate, which meant decline in trade and an implicit threat of war.

[66] Khuri (1980) argues that Al Khalifa tight control over palm cultivation and relaxed measures with regard to pearl diving does not mean their purpose was to favor Sunnis and oppress Shia, instead he says their purpose was to increase their revenues as much as possible from both groups; Sunni tribesmen strongly resisted any interference in their affairs and had better production in relaxed atmosphere.

[75] Thus Shia jurists represented an alternative to the government; they were looked upon by their followers as the "legitimate" authority, whereas the ruler treated them as religious leaders.

[82] This and the rapidly growing number of foreigners as a result of the pearl boom created a dual authority system, one led by the British agent and the other by the Al Khalifa ruler (Isa bin Ali).

[83] During the First World War, Bahrain was threatened again by Wahhabis, who re-occupied the eastern part of Arabia, Ottoman and Persian, both of which did not drop their claims over the island.

[84] When war ended, Britain changed its policy in Bahrain from being cautious and giving advises to the ruler, to directly implementing reforms.

[85] In 1919, a joint court headed by Dickson and Abdulla bin Isa, the son of the ruler was established to deal with cases of foreigners against Bahrainis.

[94] The Shia, so desperate to get rid of the tribal regime,[95] demanded in one of their many petitions to Daly that Bahrain is placed under formal British protection.

[96] The latter, who supported their demands, wrote a letter to a higher official in which he mentioned the mismanagement and corruption of Al Khalifa as well as the "atrocities and oppressions" they had committed, especially by Abdulla bin Isa.

[97] The other faction, mainly the tribal chiefs and pearl merchants, rejected the reforms on the basis that equity and standardization of law would remove their advantages such as exemption from taxes and sovereignty over estates.

[99] The violence settled after the British fleet arrived in Bahrain and after that ruler Isa bin Ali was forced to abdicate in favor of his son, Hamad.

[100] Soon after, about two thirds of Al Dawasir left for Dammam and the rest remained, only to follow them shortly after the ruler had given them a deadline to either return or leave altogether.

[104] A failed assassination was attempted on the ruler by one of his cousins in 1926, but aside from that, the rest of his reign was without major disturbances and he proceeded to implement the administration reforms.

[117] The policy of recruiting from "minority cultures" continued and due to this Bahrainis avoided joining police that they only constituted 20% of it by the 1960s, the rest being foreigners (Balushis, Yemenis, Omanis, etc.).