A Comprehensive History of Yemen: From Ancient Kingdoms to Modern Unification
**Ancient Yemen**
Yemen has a rich and storied history, dating back to ancient times. Many South Arabian kingdoms flourished in the region, with the most famous being the Kingdom of Sheba during the 2nd millennium BC. The Queen of Sheba is a biblical and Quranic figure.
During this period, Yemen became an important exporter of frankincense, myrrh, and spices from India and ivory from Africa. The Romans called it Arabia Felix, and Emperor Augustus sent Aelius Gallus, the prefect of Egypt, to conquer it.
The Romans managed to besiege the capital of Sheba (Ma’rib), but the expedition was ultimately a failure. In 275 AD, the Kingdom of Sheba fell to the Himyarites, who converted to Judaism in 380 AD.
**Islamic Yemen**
In the 7th century, the Prophet Muhammad established Islam as a religion in Saudi Arabia. In 630 AD, he sent his son-in-law, Ali, to Yemen, who established Islam as the main religion.
Yemen played a central role in the Islamic conquest of Egypt, Iraq, Persia, and Spain. However, it proved difficult to control.
In the 9th century, the Shia theocratic rule of the Zaydi imams began in the north of Yemen. The rest of the country was ruled by other dynasties, among them the Rasulid dynasty, which was the strongest.
By the 13th century, the Rasulids had established Sunni Islam in most of Yemen. Under their rule, the custom of drinking coffee began, and Yemen became the only country to trade coffee.
The cities of Aden and Mocha prospered because of the coffee trade, which attracted the attention of the British Empire.
**British and Ottoman Yemen**
In 1839, the East India Company captured Aden. Thirty years later, when the Egyptian Suez Canal started operating, Aden became a perfect refueling spot for the British going to India.
In 1873, the Ottoman Empire captured Sana’a, as they were already in control of the rest of Arabia. Constant dispute between the Ottomans and the British led to the division of the country in 1904.
The Ottoman Yemen Vilayet controlled the north, while the Protectorate of South Arabia controlled the south.
**North Yemen**
After the Ottoman Empire lost World War I in 1918, the north of Yemen became an independent kingdom under Imam Yahya, who did not recognize the southern British protectorate.
Imam Yahya’s rule was unpopular, and he was assassinated in 1948. His son, Ahmad, succeeded him and created a similar hated system.
In 1955, Imam Ahmad was assassinated, and his son, Muhammad al-Badr, replaced him. After a week, the military staged a coup, and al-Badr fled to the highlands.
In 1962, a military coup established the Yemen Arab Republic in the north.
**South Yemen**
In the south, people saw independence in the north as inspiration to get rid of the British. The Egyptians agreed to provide support for some of the organizations campaigning for southern independence.
A new, radical alternative movement, the National Liberation Front (NLF), drew its support primarily from indigenous elements in the south.
As the time for independence approached, the conflict between the various groups escalated into open warfare. By late 1967, the NLF had the upper hand, and the British finally accepted the inevitable and arranged the transfer of sovereignty to the NLF on November 30, 1967.
The People’s Democratic Republic of Southern Yemen was a Marxist state with close ties to the Soviet Union, China, Cuba, and the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO).
**Civil War and Reunification**
In the 1970s, two border wars were fought between North and South Yemen. In the north, a conflict between the Imam’s royalist forces and republicans escalated into a full-blown civil war that continued until 1970.
By the late 1960s, Yemenis decided that the only logical outcome of the conflict was a compromise, which would have as its most important side effect the departure of the various foreign forces.
In the late 1980s, oil was discovered on the borders between North and South Yemen.
In 1990, Ali Salim al-Baidh and Ali Abdullah Saleh signed the unification agreement, and the two Yemens were reunited.
Sanaa was declared the political capital, and Aden was to be the economic capital. After a 30-month transition period, elections of a new national legislature were to take place in November 1992.
However, in 1994, a civil war broke out between the north and the south.