In 1914, when Kuwait was a British protectorate, the British Consul in Kuwait organized a celebration at the consulate to mark King George V’s birthday. He invited the then-ruler of Kuwait, Sheikh Mubarak Al-Sabah, his sons, and several sheikhs and dignitaries to foster acquaintance and strengthen relations. Among the attendees were Salem Buqammaz, Hilal Al- Mutairi, Hamad Al-Khaled , Abdulrahman Al-Asousi, Ibrahim Al-Mudhaf, Abdulrahman Al-Roumi , Abdulkarim Marafie, and Abdullah Al-Sumait.
These are the names that could be identified from an anonymous notice listing all the invitees in small, illegible print. The notice also included other details in larger print, highlighting the simplicity of life in those days. The Mubarakiya School had opened shortly before this event, becoming the first official school in Kuwait and possibly in the Arabian Peninsula. American missionaries in Basra had tried to persuade Sheikh Mubarak Al-Sabah to establish a mission hospital in Kuwait with an attached English language school.
He was hesitant, suspecting that the initiative combined missionary objectives with humanitarian activities. The newsletter also noted that the cost of the King’s birthday celebration was approximately 14 rupees, slightly more than one Kuwaiti dinar, reflecting the modest, protocol-driven nature of celebrations at the time. The Indian rupee was the currency used in countries under the British Crown in the region and was administered from Bombay. It was in circulation in Iraq from 1914 until 1931, when the Iraqi dinar was introduced.
In Kuwait, the rupee remained in use until the early 1960s, when it was replaced by the Kuwaiti dinar after independence. I lived through the rupee era and enjoyed helping my father and grandfather with money exchange. I would take the rupees out of burlap sacks and arrange them in specially designed wooden drawers. The rupee was divided into 16 annas, following the English system of complex weights and measures.
Later, France introduced the decimal system for measuring distances, dimensions, and weights, which was much simpler than the English system. The newsletter also reported contributions from some citizens to the reception. Khalaf Al-Halwaji, owner of the first sweets factory, which may still be operating today, donated almond syrup and pomegranate juice. A guest named Al-Tuwaiji, or possibly Al- Tariji, donated 300 cigarettes. Another guest, Ghloum, contributed eight boxes of sweets. Abdullah Al-Qattan donated bottles of rose water. Yousef Al-Mutawa gave rare and precious incense, and Sultan bin Issa Al-Qanaei donated boxes of biscuits. As a Lebanese proverb on nostalgia says, “My God bring back the old good days!”
By Ahmad alsarraf
e-mail: [email protected]
e-mail: [email protected]
