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: 824,789 (2008) GDP: $85.3 billion (2008) Exports: $62.4 billion (2008) Imports: $24.9 billion (2008) 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 Active Armed Forces: 12,400 (2006) U.S. Troops: 430 (2006) Merchant marine: 22 ships (2008) Religions: Muslim 83% (of which Sunni 73%, Shi'a 10%), Christian 10% (of which Roman Catholic 6%), Hindu 3%, Buddhist 2%, nonreligious 2% (2000)  International Organizations/Treaties: ABEDA, AFESD, AL, AMF, APM, BTWC, CTBT, FAO, G-77, GAFTA, GCC, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), 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, WFTU, 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 Mar 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.