Mubarak Al-Sabah broke the Ottoman hold over the Persian Gulf. Other rulers in the Gulf were inspired or influenced by Mubarak to take similar actions, many allying strongly with the British. Mubarak established not only the foundations of modern Kuwait but was a key person in the establishment of the modern Persian Gulf. Mubarak Al-Sabah Sheikh Mubarak bin Sabah Al-Sabah, KCSI, KCIE (1837 – November 28, 1915) () "the Great" was the seventh ruler of Kuwait from May 18, 1896 until his death on November 28, 1915. Mubarak ascended the throne upon killing his half-brother, Muhammad Al-Sabah. Mubarak was the seventh ruler
The Years of Rice and Salt "The Age of Great Progress", is set during the 19th century and begins during a war between the Ottoman Empire and the Indian state of Travancore. The Indians have previously defeated the Mughals and the Safavids and have developed more modern forms of warfare, emphasising surprise and mobility, they have also invented steam engines and ironclad warships which they sail straight to the city of Konstantiniyye and capture it with the aid of military balloons. The Ottomans are defeated easily. A Muslim Armenian doctor named Ismail ibn Mani al-Dir, who had served the Ottoman Sultan, is captured and sent to