Sheba

The Sheikdom of Sheba consists of a region in the southwest corner of the Arabian Peninsula, extending from the Gulf of Berbera to the Rub'Al Khali ("Empty Quarter"); it's bounded on the west by the Yamen and on the east by Hadramaut. The land can be divided into the littoral surrounding the port of Crater; maritime ranges rising from 1,000 to 2,000 ft., upon which there is very little rainfall; farther inland, intramontane plains rising to about 3,000 ft.; and a northern highland plateau broken by numerous hills and intersected by deep fertile valleys. The climate is hot and dry, ranging from pleasant in the winter to sweltering in the summer.

In the lowlands, cultivation depends chiefly on irrigation from water channels and courses, including those below the surface, raised from wells. Near the coast, rainfall comes in irregular heavy torrents, averaging about 5 in. annually. The intramontane highland receives between 20 and 30 in. each year. Agriculture forms the chief occupation of the tribal groups dwelling throughout the region. Goods are marketed through the port of Crater.

History

History of the region begins around 1200 BC. Following domination of the region by Minaean peoples to the north, the city of Timna upon the north highland plain became the focus of the Qataban kingdom (c.7th-1st centuries BC) through is domination of the spice and incense trade — transported overland into both eastern and western Arabia, chiefly to Mesopotamia. The kingdom consumed the smaller entity of Awsan on the Gulf of Berbera in the 6th century BC.

It was at that time that the region was first described as Sheba by northern cultures, especially those of the Levant. The collapse of the Minaeans led to the rise of Saba to the north, leading to two centuries of warfare towards the end of Qataban's existence. Following a century of decline, Qataban fell under the control of Hadramawt kingdom — a subservience that lasted until 290 AD. At that time both regions, and Yamen too, fell under the suzerainty of the Himyarite Kingdom, a polity that originated in the southern highlands of Yamen. At this time, Judaism was adopted as the de facto state religion.

The Jewish monarchy ended with the reign of Yusuf in 523; after an internal war, a Christian Himyarite was appointed in 525, but at a time when the Ethiopian kingdom of Aksum had begun an invasion across the Bab el Mandeb, the strait between Arabia and Africa. An independent Aksumite kingdom, paying tribute to Ethiopia, established itself in Sheba and Yamen, lasting until 578, when the region was annexed by the Sassanian Empire of Persia. The rise of the Islamic conquest brought about the end of petty dynasties and brought the whole Arabian peninsula under the control of the Umayyad Caliphate — though effective control couldn't be fully established over the various tribes.

An independent Muslim dynasty, the Ziyadid, established itself after 819; the last ruler was murdered in 1018 by an Ethiopian slave who became the ruler, founding the Najahid dynasty, who paid tribute to Baghdad. This lasted until 1158, when a brief subsequent dynasty the Zurayids asserted themselves. This lasted a brief time, before the region was conquered in 1174 by Turan Shah, the brother of Saladin the Great, after which the land was ruled by the Ayyubids. Still, power could not be consolidated, and resistance by Zaida tribesmen continued. After a long war, a truce was signed in 1219 and the Rasulid Dynasty was established in 1229. Umar and his successor Yusuf ruled until 1296; but after Baghdad's destruction by the Mongols in 1258, the Zaida imams began a war of attrition that would leave them in control after Yusuf's death.

Though attacks were brought against the region by the Mamluks, the Ottomans and the Portuguese in the 16th century, vigorous resistance turned them away. The land remains under the authority of Zaida to the present.