Kamaran

File:Kamaran mosque from Turkish era.png

In 1513, Afonso de Albuquerque spent three months on the island after the abortive siege of Aden. The Portuguese stay was marked by a short supply of food, a small smattering of only goats and camels, alongside the outbreak of a mysterious epidemic that caused fever and blood clogging.Roger Crowley, "Conquerors: How Portugal Forged the First Global Empire", p. 295.

In 1523 Selman Reis went on an expedition in the Red Sea.Öztuna, Yılmaz. [https://books.google.com/books?id=79XQDAAAQBAJ&pg=PT58 Kanuni Sultan Süleyman] Turkey: Kültür Bakanlığı, 1989. During this expedition Selman Reis discovered that the Kamaran Island was occupied recently by the Portuguese,Shah, Azmat Ali. "OTTOMAN DOMINATION IN THE ARAB LAND AND IT’S EFFECTS ON MUSLIM INDIA." p.11.Qutb ad-Dīn an-Nahrawālī. 1511-1582. al-Barq al-Yamānī fī al-fatḥ al-ʿUṯmānī. p .39 [https://archive.org/details/ashrf1979_HOTmail_20190211_0927/page/n116/mode/1up] who used their base to raid the coast of Arabia,Qutb ad-Dīn an-Nahrawālī, p .39 Salman Reis and Husayn al Rumi had an Ottoman force composed of 4,000 men. After their arrival in Yemen, the Ottomans attacked the Portuguese, leading to the complete destruction and expulsion of Portuguese forces and the occupation of the island by the Ottomans.Sind University Research Journal: Arts series. Humanities & social sciences, Vol 9 [https://books.google.com/books?id=GxHRAAAAMAAJ&q=+Kamaran+island][https://books.google.com/books?id=T57CAAAAIAAJ&q=Kamaran+island Gerald De Gaury, Rulers of Mecca, p. 126]

During the early months of World War I, there was a debate among the British on the suitability of occupying Kamaran and the other Turkish-held Red Sea islands such as the Farasan Islands. Those who opposed the move pointed out that when war broke out, Great Britain had solemnly declared that it had no territorial ambitions in the area; even a temporary occupation might be seen by the Arabs, particularly the Imam of Yemen, as a breach of that promise. Finally, the decision was taken to occupy Kamaran and on the 9th of June 1915, the RMS Empress of Russia landed an armed party on the island, previously evacuated by the Turkish garrison. G. A. Richardson, formerly vice-consul at Hudaydah and Kamaran, also disembarked to act as Political Officer with additional responsibility for Police, Treasury and Customs.John Baldry, "British Naval Operations against Turkish Yaman 1914-1919", Arabica, T. 25, Fasc. 2 (Jun., 1978), p. 163. While the British continued to administer Kamaran from Aden, they never declared formal possession.

File:Kamaran NAAFI canteen.jpg canteen in 1927]]

In 1923, the Treaty of Lausanne, which divided up the defeated Ottoman Empire, declared an end to its sovereignty over the Arabian Peninsula and adjacent islands, whose future was to be "settled by the parties concerned" without specifying those parties. Britain continued to administer the island despite the objections of Yemen which claimed sovereignty over the island. In 1949, Britain formally declared the governor of Aden to be the governor of Kamaran but the island did not become a part of the colony.The Kamaran Order in Council, 1949 (SI 1949/137)

File:Kamaran Island barren landscape.jpg

After the departure of the Turks, an international control was exercised over the quarantine station, but it was in fact placed under British administration. In anticipation of a vast increase in the number of the faithful from British India, the Dutch East Indies, etc. who would make the pilgrimage the camp was greatly extended. Long lines of barrack-like sleeping quarters were constructed{{Cite web |last=Ausaf |title=Kamaran Island — Transit for Indian Hajj Pilgrims in the past {{!}} Ambassador Dr. Ausaf Sayeed |url=https://ausafsayeed.com/kamaran/ |access-date=2024-07-18 |language=en-US}} where the Turks had provided only wattle huts. Big disinfecting plants were installed where the pilgrims went through an ordeal of cleansing on a production line basis. A power station was built. The local water supply being inadequate, a massive distillation plant was introduced to make sea water fit for drinking. There were carpenters’ shops, machine shops, a small railway to transport fuel and stores, a wireless station, a fine landing stage, a cantonment of officials’ bungalows. This proved a bonanza for the islanders. They prospered on this trade in potential disease among the devout, and the population grew. In the village of Kamaran, the only settlement apart from a few isolated groups of fishermen's huts, fine houses and a magnificent mosque went up, and a lively trade in pilgrim requirements was conducted with the mainland.Nigel Groom, "The Island of Two Moons: Kamaran 1954", British-Yemeni Society Journal, 2002. The pilgrimage quarantine station continued to function until 1953, when the Saudis opened their own quarantine station in Jeddah and put the large profitable pilgrim camps of Kamaran out of business.

Norman Lewis describes that, during Thompson's commissionership, resident islanders worked primarily as pearl divers and would rarely last past the age of 50 due to the harsh work-induced stresses.{{r|Lewis}}

However, this prosperity was short-lived. Determined to control the pilgrimage in all its aspects, the Saudi Arabian Government decided to construct its own quarantine station and to insist that Kamaran be by-passed. Soon, the long lines of buildings in the camps lay empty and deserted; a handful of men maintained what had become a ghost town while arrangements were debated for its breaking up and disposal.{{r|Groom}}

On 30 November 1967, Kamaran became a part of the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen (South Yemen) upon its independence from Britain, but was seized by the adjacent Yemen Arab Republic (North Yemen) in 1972[https://books.google.com/books?id=eQvhZaEVzjcC&dq=kamaran+1972+yemen+OR+jemen&pg=RA1-PA163 Daniel McLaughlin, Yemen: The Bradt Travel Guide (2007) pp.162-163] {{ISBN|1-84162-212-5}} and became a part of a unified Yemen in 1990.

File:Kamaran. British Commissioner's office.png

Kamaran Island had an Ottoman post office until 1915 and had a sub-post office of Aden beginning in 1924. From 1967, it was a postal territory of South Yemen, from 1972 of North Yemen, and from 1990 of the unified Republic of Yemen.

{{Weather box|width=auto

|metric first=y

|single line=y

|location = Kamaran Island

|Jan high C = 27.8

|Feb high C = 28.3

|Mar high C = 30.0

|Apr high C = 31.7

|May high C = 35.0

|Jun high C = 36.1

|Jul high C = 36.7

|Aug high C = 36.1

|Sep high C = 36.1

|Oct high C = 33.9

|Nov high C = 30.6

|Dec high C = 28.3

| year high C =

|Jan mean C = 25.6

|Feb mean C = 25.9

|Mar mean C = 27.5

|Apr mean C = 28.9

|May mean C = 31.4

|Jun mean C = 32.5

|Jul mean C = 33.1

|Aug mean C = 32.8

|Sep mean C = 32.5

|Oct mean C = 30.9

|Nov mean C = 28.1

|Dec mean C = 26.1

| year mean C =

|Jan low C = 23.3

|Feb low C = 23.3

|Mar low C = 25.0

|Apr low C = 26.1

|May low C = 27.8

|Jun low C = 28.9

|Jul low C = 29.4

|Aug low C = 29.4

|Sep low C = 28.9

|Oct low C = 27.8

|Nov low C = 25.6

|Dec low C = 23.9

| year low C =

|rain colour = green

|Jan rain mm = 5

|Feb rain mm = 5

|Mar rain mm = 3

|Apr rain mm = 3

|May rain mm = 3

|Jun rain mm = 2

|Jul rain mm = 13

|Aug rain mm = 18

|Sep rain mm = 3

|Oct rain mm = 3

|Nov rain mm = 10

|Dec rain mm = 23

|year rain mm = 91

| Jan humidity = 74

| Feb humidity = 71

| Mar humidity = 70

| Apr humidity = 68

| May humidity = 63

| Jun humidity = 61

| Jul humidity = 58

| Aug humidity = 61

| Sep humidity = 65

| Oct humidity = 62

| Nov humidity = 69

| Dec humidity = 73

| year humidity =66

|Jan sun =

|Feb sun =

|Mar sun =

|Apr sun =

|May sun =

|Jun sun =

|Jul sun =

|Aug sun =

|Sep sun =

|Oct sun =

|Nov sun =

|Dec sun =

|year sun =

| Jand sun = 7.7

| Febd sun = 6.5

| Mard sun = 6.5

| Aprd sun = 8.2

| Mayd sun = 8.2

| Jund sun = 6.9

| Juld sun = 6.4

| Augd sun = 5.4

| Sepd sun = 5.6

| Octd sun = 8.7

| Novd sun = 8.6

| Decd sun = 6.4

|yeard sun =

|source 1 = Arab Meteorology Book{{cite web

| url = http://extras.springer.com/2007/978-1-4020-4577-6/Book_Shahin_ISBN_9781402045776_Appendix.pdf

| title = Appendix I: Meteorological Data

| publisher = Springer

| access-date = 14 October 2024

| archive-date = March 4, 2016

| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160304072830/http://extras.springer.com/2007/978-1-4020-4577-6/Book_Shahin_ISBN_9781402045776_Appendix.pdf

| url-status = dead

}}

|date=14 October 2024

}}

• List of islands of Yemen

{{reflist|refs=

{{cite book |last=Lewis |first=Norman |title=A Voyage by Dhow |publisher=Jonathan Cape |date=2001 |location=London |language=en |isbn=0-224-06171-2}}

}}

• [http://www.worldstatesmen.org/Yemen.html#South-Yemen WorldStatesmen- Yemen]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20061218224752/http://www.kamaran.net/index.htm Kamaran Island page]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20070327210000/http://www.kamaran.net/photogallery/photogallery.htm Kamaran Island Photo Gallery]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20060824000325/http://www.al-bab.com/bys/articles/groom02.htm Nigel Groom. The island of two moons: Kamaran 1954] at [https://web.archive.org/web/20050729114517/http://www.al-bab.com/bys/ The British-Yemeni Society] webpage
• [http://www.filatelia.fi/articles/neareast.html#kamar Small Islands in the Near East]

{{Islands of Yemen}}

Category:Islands of the Red Sea

Category:Islands of Yemen

Category:Al Hudaydah Governorate

Category:1915 establishments in the British Empire