شركة المراكب العربية المحدودة

منذ نشأتها حتى افولها (١٩١١-١٩١٥)

Abstract

This study presents a historical and analytical examination of the experience of the Arab Ships Company Limited (1911–1915) as one of the earliest Arab attempts to organize maritime commercial activity in the Arabian Gulf and the Arabian Sea at the beginning of the twentieth century. Maritime trade constituted one of the most important economic activities in the region before the discovery of oil and relied primarily on ships and steamers for transporting goods and passengers between Arab and Indian ports. Within this context, the idea of establishing a joint Arab company emerged with the aim of unifying the efforts of Arab merchants and confronting the monopoly imposed by British shipping companies over maritime transport routes between India and the Gulf region. The study aims to highlight the circumstances surrounding the establishment of the company and its economic objectives, as well as to examine its maritime fleet and the nature of its commercial activities in transporting goods and passengers. It also analyzes the factors that led to the decline of the company after only a few years of operation. The research relies on a variety of historical sources, including unpublished British archival documents, Arabic books, historical studies, and scholarly articles published in academic journals. The study concludes that the company represented a pioneering experience in Arab economic cooperation, achieving notable commercial success and competing with foreign companies; however, the political and economic conditions associated with the outbreak of the First World War, along with pressures exerted by British companies, ultimately led to the termination of its activities in 1915.