Saudi Arabia

Through the ages

Rivals in history

The kingdoms, empires and states Saudi Arabia fought or stood against, from the first to today.

1. 🇮🇶 Neo-Babylonian Empire552 BC to 543 BC

   King Nabonidus marches into northwest Arabia, kills the ruler of Tayma and makes the oasis his residence for about ten years, also taking Dedan and other towns on the incense road.

2. Roman Empire26 BC to 24 BC

   Augustus sends Aelius Gallus with an army to conquer the incense kingdoms. Misled by Nabataean guides, his troops suffer from thirst and disease, reach Marib in Yemen and turn back without lasting gains.

3. 🇵🇹 Kingdom of Portugal1517

   A Portuguese fleet under Lopo Soares de Albergaria attacks Jeddah, the port of Mecca, in 1517 but fails to take it. The Portuguese never break into the Red Sea's holy cities.

4. 🇪🇬 Egypt of Muhammad Ali1811 to 1818

   On the Ottoman sultan's orders, Muhammad Ali's armies land in the Hejaz in 1811, retake Mecca and Medina and march into Najd. Ibrahim Pasha besieges Diriyah and destroys it in 1818, ending the first Saudi state.

5. 🇹🇷 Ottoman Empire1871 to 1913

   The Ottomans occupy al-Hasa, on the Gulf coast, in 1871 and later back the Al Rashid against the Al Saud. Ibn Saud expels the Ottoman garrison from al-Hasa in 1913.

6. Emirate of Jabal Shammar1887 to 1921

   The Al Rashid of Hail take Riyadh in 1887 and crush the Al Saud and their allies at Mulayda in 1891. Ibn Saud retakes Riyadh in 1902, and after twenty years of war he captures Hail in 1921.

7. Kingdom of Hejaz1919 to 1925

   Sharif Hussein of Mecca, king of the Hejaz, quarrels with Ibn Saud over the border oases. Ikhwan forces rout his army at Turabah in 1919, take Mecca in 1924 and Jeddah in December 1925.

8. 🇾🇪 Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen1932 to 1934

   Disputes over Asir and Najran lead to war in 1934. Saudi forces under Prince Faisal take the port of Hodeidah, then withdraw under the Treaty of Taif, which leaves Asir, Jizan and Najran to Saudi Arabia.

9. 🇪🇬 Nasser's Egypt1962 to 1967

   In North Yemen's civil war Saudi Arabia backs the royalists and Egypt sends troops to defend the republic, and Egyptian aircraft bomb Saudi border towns. After Egypt's 1967 defeat by Israel, Nasser and King Faisal agree to end the intervention.

10. 🇮🇷 Iran1979 to 2023

    The two powers compete for influence across the region after Iran's 1979 revolution. Clashes during the 1987 pilgrimage leave hundreds dead, and ties are cut in 1988 and again in 2016. A deal brokered by China restores relations in 2023.

11. 🇮🇶 Iraq1990 to 1991

    After invading Kuwait, Saddam Hussein's army masses on the Saudi border and briefly seizes the town of Khafji in January 1991. The kingdom hosts the US-led coalition that expels Iraq from Kuwait.

12. 🇾🇪 Houthis (Ansar Allah)Since 2015Still open

    When the Houthis take Sanaa and advance south, Saudi Arabia leads an air campaign from March 2015. The Houthis fire missiles and drones at Saudi cities and oil sites, including Abqaiq in 2019. A truce has largely held since April 2022, without a final peace.

Today

Saudi Arabia now

Saudi Arabia is the birthplace of Islam and home to Islam's two holiest shrines in Mecca and Medina. The king's official title is the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques. ABD AL-AZIZ bin Abd al-Rahman AL SAUD (Ibn Saud) founded the modern Saudi state in 1932 after a 30-year campaign to unify most of the Arabian Peninsula. One of his male descendants rules the country today, as required by the country's 1992 Basic Law.

Capital

Riyadh

Government

absolute monarchy

Head of government

Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud

Languages

Arabic

Through time

Then and now

• Population33.3 million2023 · 1.7 million in 1950
• Life expectancy78.7 years2023 · 40.0 years in 1950
• GDP per person$53,5162022 · $3,556 in 1950
• Living in cities85%2025 · 21% in 1950
• Literacy98%2024 · 3% in 1950
• Political regimeClosed autocracy2025 · Closed autocracy in 1950
• Military alliancesNone of these2024 · None of these in 1950
• Military spending6.5% of GDP2025
• War deaths0.0 per 100,0002025

Population: HYDE 3.3, Gapminder and UN WPP. GDP per capita: Maddison Project Database 2023. Urban share: UN WPP. Life expectancy: Riley, HMD, UN WPP. Literacy: OWID historical estimates, World Bank, UNESCO. Military spending: SIPRI. War deaths: UCDP. Political regime: V-Dem, Regimes of the World. All via Our World in Data (CC BY 4.0). Alliances and organization memberships: compiled by Atlas. Satellites in orbit: CelesTrak SATCAT. Modern borders, backcast.

Relations

Close partners and tensions

Summarised from World Bank and Wikipedia data, updated 23 October 2026.