The Trucial Oman Scouts was the founding unit of the United Arab Emirates military and police forces, established in 1951 and run as a joint partnership between Emiratis and the British. Its role was to defend the seven emirates of Trucial Oman in the Arabian Gulf that were under the protectorate of the United Kingdom until 1971.
This project aims to preserve and celebrate the memory and accomplishments of the soldiers and policemen who formerly served the UAE. It seeks to do this by recording the oral testimonies of these veterans; creating a digital archival collection of photographs, films and recordings; and creating a museum collection for display in the UAE.
Barker Langham are the museum consultants for this project, working closely with the Centre for Gulf Studies at Exeter University where Eric Langham is an Associate Fellow. For the first phase, we have interviewed a number of former Scouts to ensure that their stories on the military, political and social history of the region are recorded. This has resulted in a wealth of material for use in the later stages of the project.
This project follows the success of the Al Jahili Fort Rehabilitation Project, in which this former base of the Scouts was restored and transformed into a new cultural venue.
