Qatar
 

Formally to 3 Nov 1916                      c.1868 - 1916                            1916 - 1936                                   1936 - 1949                               1949 - 9 Jul 1971                          Adopted 9 Jul 1971   Map of Qatar Hear National Anthem Al-Salam Al-Amiri" (The Peace for the Anthem) Adopted 7 Dec 1996 Hear Former Anthem 1954 - 7 Dec 1996 (No Words)  Constitution (9 Jun 2005) Capital: Doha Currency: Qatari Rial (QAR)  National Holiday: 3 Sep (1971) Independence Day Population: 907,229 (2007) GDP: $26.3 billion (2006) Exports: $33.2 billion (2006) Imports: $12.3 billion (2006) Ethnic groups: Arab 52.5% (of which Palestinian 13.4%, Qatari 13.3%, Lebanese 10.4%, Syrian 9.4%), Indo-Pakistani 15.2%, Iranian 16.5%, black African 9.5%, other 6.3% (2000) Total Armed Forces: 12,400 (2003) U.S. Troops: 3,400 (Aug. 2004) Merchant marine: 23 ships (2006) Religions: Muslim 77.5% (mostly Sunni), Christian 8.5%, other 14% (2004)  International Organizations/Treaties: ABEDA, AFESD, AL, AMF, APM, BTWC, CTBT, FAO, G-77, GCC, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDB, IFAD, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISESCO, ISO, ITSO, ITU, KP, MIGA, NAM, NPT, OAPEC, OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCLOS, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFCC, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO Qatar Chronology 1550 - 1670                Part of the Ottoman Empire. 12 Sep 1868                Muhammad ibn Thani signs treaty with the British,                              effectively establishing Qatar (previously                               considered to be a dependency of Bahrain) as                               an independent State (al-Thani authority limited                              to Doha and Wakrah, only later expanded to                               include the entire peninsula).  1872                       Sovereignty of the Ottoman Empire over Qatar                               recognized (as kazan [district] of Sandjak                              al-Hasa within vilayet of Baghdad [from 1875                               Basra] vilayet [see Iraq]).  3 Nov 1916                British protectorate (Sheikdom of Qatar)(under                              the chief political resident of the                               Persian Gulf; see under Bahrain). Jul 1937                   Zubara annexed, previously under Bahrain.  3 Sep 1971                Independence from Britain (State of Qatar).

Rulers¹ (1872 - 3 Nov 1916 also Kaymakam [district administrator])
12 Sep 1868 - 1878         Muhammad ibn Thani                    (d. 1878)
1878 - 17 Jul 1913         Sheikh Qasim ibn Muhammad Al Thani    (b. c.1825 - d. 1913)
1893 - 1906                Sheikh Ahmad ibn Muhammad             (d. 1906)
                             Al Thani -Regent
17 Jul 1913 - 20 Aug 1949  Sheikh Abdullah ibn Qasim Al Thani    (b. c.1876 - d. 1957)
                             (regent 13 May - 17 Jul 1913)
20 Aug 1949 - 24 Oct 1960  Sheikh Ali ibn Abdullah Al Thani      (b. 1894 - d. 1974)
24 Oct 1960 -  3 Sep 1971  Sheikh Ahmad II ibn Ali Al Thani      (b. 1917 - d. 1977)
Emirs¹
 3 Sep 1971 - 22 Feb 1972  Sheikh Ahmad II ibn Ali Al Thani      (s.a.)
22 Feb 1972 - 27 Jun 1995  Sheikh Khalifah ibn Hamad Al Thani    (b. 1932)
27 Jun 1995 -              Sheikh Hamad ibn Khalifah Al Thani    (b. 1952)

Prime ministers
29 May 1970 - 27 Jun 1995  Sheikh Khalifah ibn Hamad Al Thani    (s.a.)             Non-party
27 Jun 1995 - 29 Oct 1996  Sheikh Hamad ibn Khalifah Al Thani    (s.a.)             Non-party
29 Oct 1996 -  3 Apr 2007  Sheikh Abdullah ibn Khalifah Al Thani (b. 1959)          Non-party
 3 Apr 2007 -              Sheikh Hamad ibn Jassim ibn Jabr      (b. 1959)          Non-party
                             Al Thani                      
 

British Political Officers (subordinated to the chief political residents
of the Persian Gulf; see under Bahrain)
Aug 1949 - Jul 1950        Sir Arthur John Wilton                (b. 1921)
Jul 1950 - Aug 1950        Phillip Plant (adviser)
Aug 1950 - 1951            ....
1951 - 1953                Christopher Thomas Ewart-Biggs        (b. 1921 - d. 1976)
1953 - 1955                W.B.M. Johnson
1955 - 1958                Derrick Charles Carden                (b. 1921 - d. 2006)
1958 - 1959                John Spenser Ritchie Duncan           (b. 1921)
1959 - 1962                John Campbell Moberly                 (b. 1925 - d. 2004)
1962 - 1965                Philip McKearney                      (b. 1926)
1965 - 1969                Ranald H.M. Boyle                     (b. 1921 - d. 1999)
1969 -  3 Sep 1971         Edward Firth Henderson                (b. 1917 - d. 1995)

  ¹The full style of the ruler:
(a) to 3 Sep 1971: Hakim Qatar ("Ruler of Qatar");
(b) from 3 Sep 1971: Amir Dawlat Qatar ("Emir of the State of Qatar").

Political Parties Not Allowed.

Territorial Disputes: None-- On 16 March 2001, the World Court granted Bahrain sovereignty over the Hawar Islands and Qitat Jaradah shallows, and Qatar sovereignty over Zubara and the shallows surrounding the islet of Fasht-el-Dibal.