WAHHABI

in 1900 ‘abdul ‘aziz, the son of ‘abdulrahman the exiled fourth son of faisal, conceived the idea of re-establishing the dynasty of his ancestors. by a bold stroke he captured riyadh. slowly but steadily he recovered the lost provinces, and by 1914 he ruled the territories of faisal except the hasa province which by a surprise attack he captured from the turks at the beginning of that year. meanwhile he had begun to consider his plans for the future, and, being ambitious to extend his rule to the limits of the first wahhabi empire, he not unnaturally based his scheme on the project of an intensive revival of the wahhabi creed. history taught him that the weakness of such a creed lay in the impossibility of keeping it at white heat among the shifting clements of a nomad society, easily wearied by ceaseless effort. it taught him at the same time—wit- ness the experience of ibn rashid—that the naturally centrifugal character of arabian society would defy any attempt at perma- nent empire-building without the impetus of religious emotion. to give permanence to such an emotion it was necessary to change the essential character of the nomad tribes with which he had to deal, and history again taught him that, if land was avail- able to settle in, the nomad would naturally turn to a sedentary life of agriculture—witness the populations of syria and ‘traq recruited from time immemorial from the ranks of the arabian bedouin (bedawin). selilement of the nomads.—h¥lis scheme was no less than to tempt the nomads to settle in villages under the influence of religious fervour and to hold them in their new life by the tics of agriculture. his difficulty was to find cultivable land not already occupied and water to water it withal, but the success which has attended his efforts may be judged from the fact that in 15 years some 50 villages have been founded in central arabia with a population probably not far short of 50,000 souls in the aggregate. the first of such villages, ‘artawiya in, eastern najd, was found- ed in 1912 and served as a model for others following in rapid succession. the nucleus in each case was a mosque provided for from state funds which also provided the inhabitants with rifles and the services of a religious teacher. for the rest they set themselves to build houses, dig wells and cultivate the land. as each community took root it became automatically a territorial contingent of ibn sa’ud’s standing army. on these contingents, fearless and ferocious, ibn sa‘ud has mainly relied in the further- ance of his imperial ambitions, while retaining in reserve the citizen contingents recruited from the towns on a conscription basis. tenets of the tkhwan.—the fkhwan (brothers), as these village communities are called, purport to follow in detail the practice of the prophet, and regard as infidels all who do otherwise. their enemies are the enemies of the true faith and their every cam- paign is therefore a jihad (holy war), death in which is a sure passport to paradise. another feature of these communities is the complete elimination of all tribal distinctions. the old pas- time of tribal raid and counter-raid is discountenanced. the 977 blood-feud is no more. and the bedouin generally are rapidly becoming permeated by the jkwan spirit to such an extent that the nomad tribes of central arabia may be regarded as a single religious fraternity where natural points d’appui are the numer- ous [khwan settlements in their midst. the settled town com- munities of nejd are wabhabi in spirit and in practice, but can- not be regarded as forming part of the inner circle of the faith, which only comprises the bedouin whether settled or nomad. in the matter of doctrine the wahhabis (7kiwas) differ from their fcllow-moslems in rejecting a large mass of tradition which they regard as un-authentic. like all moslems they regard the koran (quran) as the word of god and therefore the foundation of their social code, but there is admittedly much in the koran and much not in it which from the earliest days of islam required explanation or consideration. such matters were freely dealt with by the prophet in conversation or in his practice, the records of which were subsequently collected in the form of “‘ traditions of the prophet ” which, being generally handed down by word of mouth, grew in volume as time progressed. and it was freely recognised that the authenticity of some traditions was less well established than that of others. the various schools of sunni islam owed their existence to differences of opinion on such matters, but the basis of the wah- habi faith is exclusive reliance on only two collections of tradi- tions (those of al bukhari and al muslim), whose authority is admitted by all schools, and the rejection of all else in respect of which there is doubt. thus the wahhabi interpretation of the creed of islam is common ground to the whole of sunni islam (except for its specific denunciation of the use of tobacco), whose other schools differ from it in allowing a greater laxity of belief and practice on the strength of traditions whose authenticity is in dispute. the wahhabi movement is therefore quite aptly recognised as a puritan movement within islam. for bibliog- raphy, sce arabia. (fst... j.ee ps): wales, prince of: sec edward, prince of wales. . wales (see 28.258), had in 1921 a population of 2,206,712. in the years immediately preceding the outbreak of war in 1914, wales was deeply distracted by acute political divisions and widespread industrial unrest. historical, physical and other conditions peculiar to wales tended to aggravate anxicties. and uncertainties prevalent throughout the united kingdom. the prospect of the settlement of the grave constitulional crisis that had arisen between the two houses of parliament intensified interest in measures of a highly controversial character which directly concerned wales as a national entity. thus, the dis- establishment and disendowment of the church of england in wales had been the most constant and, usually, the most promi- nent issue in welsh elections since 1868. the demand for welsh autonomy, either as an independent measure or as part of a general scheme of federal devolution, had been attracting intcrest and support. such proposals found their strongest response in those parts of wales—the north and west—where the great bulk of the population was welsh in speech and tradition and nonconformist in creed. 7 urbanisation.— but the centre of interest in the life of wales had been establishing itself definitely in the northeastern and southeastern regions, with their growing concentration of popu- lation and productive wealth. these regions were becoming intensely industrialised, and the process was extending steadily up the valleys. rural depopulation was proceeding at an accel- erating rate with a concomitant decay of agriculture and of rural life generally. in the first decade of the century the rural popu- lation of wales declined by about 27%. of the twelve counties in england and wales, which in t911 had the smallest number of inhabitants to the square mile, seven were welsh “ rural ” counties. these showed an absolute decrease in the density of population found in two only of the five english counties in- cluded in the same list. owing to the relatively unattractive conditions of agricultural labour, the proximity of the ‘‘ works,” the decay of tillage and the consolidation of holdings to form large sheep runs, the manhood of the rural areas was steadily draining into the urban centres and mining valleys of industrial 978 wales. south wales with a population rapidly growing, largely through immigration from rural wales, from all parts of the british isles and even from foreign countries, was becoming a vast and closely knit industrial community. men representing a variety of national and cultural traditions found in their eco- nomic condition the only basis of mutual understanding, of common action and, in short, of a growing class consciousness. the coal miners formed much the largest body of workers engaged in a single industry in wales and monmouthshire (251,400 in r9r1). the steady advance in the cost of living, clearly marked for some years before the war and the fermenting of new ideas kept the community in a state of unrest which frequently issued in trade disputes concerning the remuneration and conditions of labour. moreover industrial wales was acquiring great influence in the world of british industry. national consciousness.—the national identity of the welsh people received striking official recognition a month after the coronation of king george v., when the king’s eldest son was formally invested with the title and insignia of prince of wales in a full representative welsh assembly in carnarvon castle. the ceremony of investiture, occasionally witnessed in the english parliament in the middle ages, was then, for the first time, performed in wales and in a welsh assembly. the claim of wales to separate treatment on the ground of special condi- tions resulting from her distinctive historical development has since received practical recognition in some of the great admin- istrative measures passed by the imperial parliament. thus, a welsh commission with headquarters in cardiff, was made responsible for the administration in wales of the national health insurance act (1913). under the same act the campaign against tuberculosis was entrusted to the king edward vii. (welsh) national memorial association. some of the measures of reconstruction and development passed in the post-war period are likewise administered in wales on a national basis. that welsh national consciousness, evidenced by the demand for administrative autonomy and by the claim for legislative auton- omy in welsh affairs (welsh home rule bill, april 1914) is not incompatible with the fundamental unity of the british commonwealth was conclusively demonstrated in the world war, 1914-8. welshmen in the war.—in proportion to the population wales sent the highest number of volunteers to the british fighting forces. welsh troops, including considerable numbers of mono- glot welshmen, served on the fighting fronts of three continents. at home some of the gravest burdens of official lite were borne by welshmen. at the close of 1916 the supreme direction of affairs was entrusted to a welsh spcaking welshman, mr. d. lloyd george. lord rhondda, long a leading figure in industrial organisation in wales, subsequently undertook the control of the distribution of the food supplies of the country. religion and education religion.—in 1914 the bill for the disestablishment and dis- endowment of the church of england in wales passed the im- perial parliament. it provided that the secularised portion of the endowment of the church should be applied to specified national purposes mainly educational. an amending act (sept. 1919), which revised the financial provisions of the original act, definitely closed a long and embittered struggle. ‘ the church in wales ” faced the problem of reconstruction with energy and marked success. the task of framing a constitution, begun in 1917, was completed in 1922. under this constitution the su- preme authority is vested in the governing body, an assembly fully representative of the clergy and laity of “ the church in wales.” diocesan, ruridecanal and parish assemblies, consti- tuted on the same principle, exercise delegated powers within their respective areas. the representative body holds and, in gencral, administers all the property of the church. in 1920 the bishop of s. asaph (dr. a. g. edwards) was elected the first archbishop of wales, it being laid down by the constitution that “the office of archbishop shall be held by a diocesan bishop of the church in wales.” the speedy creation of two wales new dioceses (monmouth, 1921; brecon and swansea, 1923) demonstrates the high measure of statesmanship in counsel and vigour in action possessed by the reconstituted church. meanwhile the nonconformist bodies were gradually drawing closer together under the general style of the free churches, which, after the disestablishment of the church, was replaced by that of the evangelical churches. the need of closer union was felt and emphasised on all sides, and the evangelical churches readily found in several directions opportunities for whole-hearted co-operation. but the attempt to maintain a national organisation representing all the churches (the welsh national council of evangelical churches) has, so far, not proved conspicuously successful. although the welsh baptists still maintain the close communion and, therefore, remain officially outside the movement for the union of the churches, the deepening consciousness of the fundamental unity of spirit and aims is profoundly affecting the mutual relations of the church in wales and the various evangelical churches. the roman catholic church, represented in industrial wales by large communities mainly recruited by immigration from treland and by scattered communitics of native tradition in the border counties, steadily extended its organisation. education and national culfure.—the intermediate education act (1889) had given to wales a system of public secondary education and had led to the creation of a representative national body, the central welsh board, charged with the inspection and examination of the schools. in 1894 the three colleges of aberystwyth, cardiff and bangor were, by royal charter, con- stituted into a national university of wales. to supervise the administration of the various education acts a welsh depart- ment of the board of education was set up in whitehall in 1907. thus for some years before the war the administration of educa- tion in wales had been largely national. the national library of wales was founded in aberystwyth in 1911 and the national museum of wales in cardiff in 1912. the final report of the royal commission on the universities under lord haldane’s chairmanship was issued in 1918. while approving the continuance of a single national university for wales, it contained recommendations of the greatest importance to the university and to wales. a supplemental charter (1920) enabled the university to be reconstituted in accordance with the recommendations of the commission. the new constitution is broadly based on national and popular support. in the uni- versity court which is the governing body, a majority is ensured to the representatives of the welsh county and county borough councils, the local authoritics contribute a penny rate to the support of the university, which receives an equal sum from the imperial exchequer. through sub-committees of the court, e.g., the council of music, the board of celtic studies and the ex- tension board, the university directly fosters educational and cultural activities over ihe whole of wales, etc. in 1925 the colleges were responsible for the work of 130 “ extramural ”’ classes (university tutorial and preparatory classes) engaged in the systematic study of a considcrable varicty of subjects both in the great industrial centres and in the remote country villages. the university college of swansea was established in 1920 as a fourth constituent college of the university. local interest and support secured for the applied sciences a strong position among the studies prosecuted in the new college. the representation of the people act (1918) created the university of wales a parliamentary constituency represented by one member. meanwhile a departmental committee had been set up by the board of education to inquire into the organisation of secondary education in wales. the most significant of the recommenda- tions included in its report (1920) was that there should be established a national council of education for wales. this proposal gained considerable support. it is probably the most generally acceptable of the various schemes (home rule, devo- lution, secretary for wales) advanced in recent years with a view to increasing welsh autonomy. it is usually interpreted to mean the creation of a separate and autonomous authority in wales for primary, secondary and university education. wales, university of language and literature—in these years the demand for the fuller recognition of the language, literature and native culture of wales in all branches of public education has been urged ever more insistently. the 1918 education act, which required local education authorities to prepare schemes of instruction adapted to suit the requirements of their respective areas, iced to a con- siderable extension of the use of the welsh language in the schools, notably in the industrial region of south wales. a departmental committee of the board of education was set up in 1925 to inquire into the position of the welsh language in the schools and colleges of wales. the movement in favour of the greater utilisation of the native language and traditional culture derives its strongest impulse from the welsh churches and from the sunday schools, the eisteddfod, the literary socicty and the cymmrodion so- cietics. more recently the welsh drama movement has power- fully reinforced the older organisations and has, in addition, provided a new interest of cultural value. contemporary welsh literature surpasses, in volume, breadth of outlook and quality, that of the roth century. the influence of the scholars and writers trained in the national colleges is clearly discernible in this revival and development of the welsh literary tradition. rural and industrial conditions rural life—a welsh agricultural council was established before the war to keep the board of agriculture in touch with the particular needs and interests of the industry in wales. there was, however, a growing conviction that the adequate treatment of the agricultural problems of wales required the creation of a department of agriculture for wales with resources and powers similar to those possessed by the scottish and irish departments. in 1gor the agricultural co-operative movement spread from ireland into wales. at the end of 10 years societies were to be found throughout the country with a membership of 6,000. the transactions of the societies represented a sum of over £290,000 in 1912. this rapid expansion was confined almost exclusively to the distributive phase of the movement. the aver- age size of holding in wales was 47 ac. and the smallholders were quick to grasp the advantage of co-operative purchasing of foodstuffs, implements, etc. the co-operative marketing by a few societics of dairy produce in west wales and of wool in north wales represented the productive side. the prosperity of agriculture during the war strengthened the demand for improvement in the remuncration and working conditions of land labourers. organisation spread rapidly among the farmers and farm labourers. the agricultural la- bourers’ union made great progress. numerous branches of the farmers’ union were formed, and in 1918 an independent welsh farmers’ union was established. before the close of that year minimum wages for agricultural labourers had been fixed by law. socia] and economic changes have altered largely the structure and outlook of the life of the welsh countryside since rg11. the breaking up of landed estates after the war enabled large num- bers of welsh farmers to acquire the freehold of their farms. the application of more scientific methods to all branches of farming and the extension of organisation and co-operation have helped to stabilise the condition of prosperity which dates from the war period. in many ways the war served to draw rural wales out of its isolation. thousands of land workers who had served in foreign countries returned home with a new and broader outlook. the rapid development of road transport obliterated the formerly sharp distinction between town and country. village institutes, women’s institutes, tutorial classes, lecture courses and dramatic and musical societies are now firmly established in the rural areas. the social and intellectual advantages of urban life appear relatively much less conspicuous than they did formerly. the latest census returns suggest that rural depopulation is abating. of the eight counties of england and wales which showed a decrease in population in the inter-censal period (1911- 21), two only were welsh counties. 979 industrial wales —widespread industrial unrest, marked by frequent and protracted conflicts, characterised the years 1911-4. one fruitful source of trouble among the coal miners, namely, the remuneration for work done in “‘ abnormal places,” leading to the demand for a minimum wage, was removed by the passing of the coalminers’ minimum wage act nov. 27 1912. trade depression was fairly general; there was much unemployment in the anthracite coal area, while the cost of living advanced steadily. the war induced a great outburst of activity and consequent prosperity in the coal-mining and metallurgical industries of south wales. on the other hand the slate-quarrying industry in north wales, which in 1¢11 gave employment to 12,800 men, was paralysed by the cessation of building opera- tions. hundreds of the workers migrated to the more favoured mining areas. industrial peace was, however, of short duration, and by 1917 the position in the coal-field had become critical (see coal). during and since the war the anthracite coal area in west wales was greatly developed. the slate quarrying industry in north wales has recovered a considerable degree of prosperity through the general resump- tion of building operations and the industrial development of snowdonia is proceeding steadily. some of the industries started or greatly stimulated tn wales in the war period have become definitely established, notably oil refining in swansea and various metallurgical industries in north east wales (flintshire). copper smelting, which formerly ranked as one of the chief industries of south wales, is decaying somewhat. in the period 1911-21 the most rapid increase of population occurred in the three welsh counties, flintshire, monmouthshire and glamorganshire. a satisfactory and lasting settlement of the coal question would almost certainly open a new era of industrial expansion and growing prosperity and progress in wales. conclusion.—whether or not the welsh language and the traditions of native culture, which have withstood, with remark- able tenacity, successive processes of romanisation, normani- sation and anglicisation, will maintain themselves despite the advance of cosmopolitan industrialism, is becoming a question of deep interest and concern in wales. it is, however, highly significant that the most vigourous manifestations of the vitality of native elements are, at present, found in the populous indus- trial areas. brbpliocrraphy.—f. l. dobbins, south wales as the chief industrial centre of the united kingdom (1922); sir j. rhys* and sir d. b. jones, the welsh people (1923); n. edwards, the industrial revoltu- tion in south wales (1924); sir o. m. edwards, wales (1925). 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