Emirate of Diriyah

The Emirate of Diriyah was the first Saudi state. It was established in the year 1744 (1157 A.H.) when Imam Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab and Prince Muhammad ibn Saud formed an alliance to establish a religious and political sovereignty determined to purge the Arabian Peninsula of heretical practices and deviations from orthodox Islam as they understood it. This joint effort is seen by Wahhabi as the restoration of the basic belief in Tawhid, and many Salafi maintain it marks the beginning of the broader Salafi revivalist movement. Practices such as offering prayers to saintly figures, making pilgrimages to tombs and special mosques, venerating trees, caves, and stones were abolished under this rule. Since the establishment of the First Saudi State none of these practices have ever been observed again in Saudi Arabia. In 1744, both Muhammed bin Abd Al Wahhab and Muhammad bin Saud took an oath to achieve their goal. Marriage between Saud's son, Abdul Aziz Ibn Mohammed Ibn Saud, and the daughter of the Imam helped to seal the pact between their families which has lasted through the centuries to present day.