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  • The 1970s UAE Postal Service That Stitched a Nation Together

    The 1970s UAE Postal Service That Stitched a Nation Together
    2026/07/22
    Before WhatsApp and FedEx, there was the Trucial States Postal Service — a ramshackle network of dhows, desert jeeps, and hand-stamped envelopes that literally glued seven squabbling emirates into one nation. In this episode, Lucas and Luna follow the unlikely story of the UAE's first unified postage stamps, printed in 1972, and the British colonial postal agents who ran the system from a single room in Dubai. They meet the Bahraini clerk who designed the first definitive series, the Indian postmaster who cycled 40 miles across sand to deliver a letter, and the Sheikh of Sharjah who almost vetoed the whole idea because his portrait was too small. Along the way, they explore how a simple envelope became a symbol of sovereignty — and why the 1973 postal strike in Abu Dhabi nearly derailed the federation. A forgotten chapter of nation-building, one stamp at a time. #UAEPostalService #TrucialStates #Federation #StampCollecting #SheikhZayed #SheikhRashid #Dubai #AbuDhabi #Sharjah #1972Stamps #PostalHistory #NationBuilding #BritishColonial #GulfHistory #UAEHistory #MiddleEastHistory #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    6 分
  • The 1971 UAE Flag Designer Abdullah Al-Maainah

    The 1971 UAE Flag Designer Abdullah Al-Maainah
    2026/07/21
    In 1971, a young Emirati named Abdullah Mohammed Al-Maainah entered a flag design competition for a union that didn't yet exist. His entry, chosen from hundreds, would become the flag of the United Arab Emirates. This episode explores how a 19-year-old sketched a symbol of unity using the Pan-Arab colours, the controversy over the green stripe, and how the flag flew for the first time at Union House in Dubai on December 2, 1971. We follow Al-Maainah's journey from a schoolboy in Abu Dhabi to a diplomat, and the flag's evolution into a national icon. Along the way, we discuss the Trucial States Council's push for a federation, the rivalry between Abu Dhabi and Dubai, and the delicate negotiations that led to a seven-emirate union. The episode also touches on the flag's protocol, its use in UAE National Day celebrations, and how it represents the Bani Yas and Qawasim tribes that shaped the nation. #AbdullahAlMaainah #UAEFlag #PanArabColors #UnionHouse #TrucialStates #BaniYas #Qawasim #SheikhZayed #SheikhRashid #December1971 #UAEHistory #FlagDesign #MiddleEast #NationalIdentity #FexingoHistory #History #Podcast #Emirates Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    7 分
  • The 1960s Trucial Coast Oryx Hunt That Nearly Wiped Out a Species

    The 1960s Trucial Coast Oryx Hunt That Nearly Wiped Out a Species
    2026/07/21
    In the 1960s, the Trucial Coast saw a conservation crisis unfold in the desert: the Arabian oryx, once numbering in the thousands, was hunted to near-extinction by motorized expeditions crossing from Saudi Arabia and Oman. This episode follows the efforts of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, who, even before oil wealth transformed Abu Dhabi, began capturing the last surviving oryx in the Liwa Oasis and Al Ain to establish a captive breeding program. We discuss the role of the Bani Yas tribe in protecting remnant herds, the involvement of British Political Agent John Chauncy in negotiating cross-border hunting bans, and the 1968 founding of the Al Ain Zoo's oryx pen, which later supplied the UAE's reintroduction program. The episode also touches on the cultural significance of the oryx in Bedouin poetry, its status as a national symbol, and the legacy of Sheikh Zayed's personal commitment to conservation — a thread that runs from his 1960s rescue efforts to today's status as a global model for rewilding. A focused look at how one man's foresight saved a species on the brink. #ArabianOryx #SheikhZayed #TrucialCoast #LiwaOasis #AlAin #ConservationHistory #BaniYas #JohnChauncy #BedouinCulture #UAEHistory #1960s #HuntingBan #CaptiveBreeding #WildlifeReintroduction #AlAinZoo #Rewilding #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    7 分
  • The 1970s Trucial Coast Dhow Builders Who Shaped Gulf Maritime Heritage

    The 1970s Trucial Coast Dhow Builders Who Shaped Gulf Maritime Heritage
    2026/07/20
    In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the legacy of the dhow builders of the Trucial Coast in the 1970s, a time when oil wealth was transforming the region but traditional shipwrights were still crafting vessels by hand along Dubai Creek and in Sharjah, Ajman, and Ras Al Khaimah. They focus on the story of a master builder, Mohammed bin Nasser al-Jabri, who oversaw the construction of the last commercial cargo dhow launched from Al Shindagha in 1978. The conversation covers the intricate techniques of stitching planks with coconut fiber rope, the use of teak from India and mangrove poles from East Africa, and the transition from pearling to trading. They also touch on the 1976 UNESCO survey that documented surviving shipwrights and the subsequent efforts to preserve the skill. The episode ends with a reflection on how these boats represent a living connection to the pre-oil era. #DhowBuilders #TrucialCoast #MohammedBinNasserAlJabri #DubaiCreek #AlShindagha #CoconutFibreRope #TeakTrade #MangrovePoles #EastAfricaTrade #IndiaTrade #1970s #UNESCO #Pearling #MaritimeHeritage #Shipwrights #TraditionalCrafts #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    9 分
  • The 1970s UAE Coast Guard That Smuggled Everything

    The 1970s UAE Coast Guard That Smuggled Everything
    2026/07/20
    In the early 1970s, the newly-formed UAE faced an impossible contradiction: its coast guard was supposed to stop smuggling, but its boats were often the ones carrying the contraband. This episode follows the chaotic formation of the UAE Coast Guard under Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid, the corruption that ran through its ranks, and the unlikely hero—an Irish mercenary named Tom O'Leary—who tried to clean it up. We trace the smuggling routes from Iran's Bandar Abbas through the creek at Ras Al Khaimah, the gold ships that refueled at Dubai's Port Rashid, and the 1973 decision to arm the coast guard with fast Italian patrol boats. Along the way, we meet the dhows that carried everything from cigarettes to automatic weapons, and the British officers who turned a blind eye. It's a story of how a young federation's first institution was also its most compromised, and how the line between enforcer and smuggler blurred in the early days of the UAE. #UAECoastGuard #Smuggling #TomOLeary #SheikhZayed #SheikhRashid #BandarAbbas #RasAlKhaimah #PortRashid #GoldSmuggling #ItalianPatrolBoats #Dhow #1970s #MiddleEastHistory #UAEHistory #TrucialCoast #BritishOfficers #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    7 分
  • The 1955 Buraimi Crisis That Nearly Sparked a Gulf War

    The 1955 Buraimi Crisis That Nearly Sparked a Gulf War
    2026/07/19
    In 1955, a remote oasis on the edge of the Empty Quarter became the flashpoint for a high-stakes confrontation between Saudi Arabia and the Trucial States, backed by Britain. This episode of Fexingo History takes you to the Buraimi oasis—a cluster of nine villages with date palms and falaj irrigation that had been under Abu Dhabi's control for centuries. When Saudi forces, led by Turki bin Abdullah al-Saud, occupied the area claiming it as part of their eastern province, it sparked a diplomatic crisis that nearly erupted into open war. We follow the Trucial Oman Scouts as they eject the Saudis in a bloodless but tense operation, and examine the role of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan—then the wali of Al Ain—who managed to bribe Bedouin tribes to maintain local support. The episode also covers the arbitration that failed in Geneva, the CIA's discreet involvement, and how the crisis's resolution in 1974 finally cemented the UAE's modern borders. A forgotten prelude to the oil bonanza, the Buraimi crisis reveals how traditional oasis politics collided with Cold War geopolitics. #BuraimiCrisis #SheikhZayed #TrucialOmanScouts #SaudiArabia #AbuDhabi #AlAin #EmptyQuarter #BritishEmpire #OilPolitics #ColdWar #CIA #OasisDiplomacy #Bedouin #falaj #GenevaArbitration #MiddleEastHistory #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    6 分
  • The 1966 Death of Sheikh Shakhbut and the Rise of Zayed

    The 1966 Death of Sheikh Shakhbut and the Rise of Zayed
    2026/07/19
    In 1966, the ruler of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan Al Nahyan, was effectively removed from power in a quiet palace coup that paved the way for his younger brother Sheikh Zayed. This episode explores the political and economic tensions that led to Shakhbut's ousting: his resistance to modernization and oil wealth, his distrust of foreign oil companies, and his legendary miserliness that frustrated both the British and his own family. We examine the role of British political agent John Chauncy, the Murban oil discovery, and how Zayed's more pragmatic approach transformed Abu Dhabi. The episode also touches on the rumors of assassination plots and the careful orchestration of the handover. It's a story of clashing visions for the future of the emirate and the birth of modern UAE leadership. #SheikhShakhbut #SheikhZayed #AbuDhabi #UAEHistory #1966 #Murban #OilDiscovery #BritishPoliticalAgent #JohnChauncy #PalaceCoup #TrucialCoast #BaniYas #AlAin #LiwaOasis #Modernization #20thCentury #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    4 分
  • The 1968 Dubai Agreement That Quietly United the Emirates

    The 1968 Dubai Agreement That Quietly United the Emirates
    2026/07/18
    In 1968, two men met in the desert outside Dubai and agreed to build a nation. This episode traces the secret talks between Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan and Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum that led to the federation of the Trucial States. We explore the role of British withdrawal, the tense negotiations with rulers of Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah, and the quiet diplomacy that overcame tribal rivalries. The Union Defence Force, the Majlis al-Ittihad, and the final proclamation on December 2, 1971. A story of unlikely allies and what it took to forge a country. #UAEHistory #SheikhZayed #SheikhRashid #DubaiAgreement #TrucialStates #Federation #1971 #BritishWithdrawal #UnionDefenceForce #MajlisAlIttihad #RasAlKhaimah #Fujairah #Buraimi #AlAin #MiddleEastHistory #ModernMiddleEast #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    7 分