kingdom · Arabia and the Gulf

Saudi Arabia

1932 CE – present · capital Riyadh

The Al Saud kingdom covering most of the Arabian Peninsula, guardian of Mecca and Medina and one of the world's largest oil producers.

Origins

Abd al-Aziz ibn Saud unified the Kingdom of Hejaz and Nejd as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on 23 September 1932, completing three decades of conquest begun with the Emirate of Nejd and Hasa. The Idrisid Emirate of Asir was absorbed by 1934, and the Treaty of Ta'if with Yemen fixed the southern border.

Rule and society

Saudi Arabia is an absolute monarchy whose kings rule with the support of the Wahhabi religious establishment. Oil found at Dammam in 1938 and developed by Aramco funded a vast state. King Faisal used the 1973 oil embargo as a political weapon. The 1979 seizure of the Grand Mosque led to stricter religious policies, and the kingdom hosted coalition forces in the Gulf War of 1990-1991.

To the present

Succession has passed among the sons of Abd al-Aziz. Under King Salman, from 2015, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman launched the Vision 2030 programme to diversify the economy and relaxed some social restrictions, while concentrating power further.

Lineage

Idrisid Emirate of Asir 1906 CE – 1934 CEKingdom of Hejaz and Nejd 1926 CE – 1932 CESaudi Arabia

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Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Saudi Arabia. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/saudi-arabia
MLA
“Saudi Arabia.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/saudi-arabia. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Saudi Arabia.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/saudi-arabia.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Saudi Arabia’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/saudi-arabia (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻