Ibn Saud finds himself increasingly at odds with the more religious elements of Nejd because of his association with Christian powers and his alleged complacence in regard to the British-protected regimes in Iraq and Transjordan, which remain the objects of Ikhwan desire for conquest.

The Ikhwan castigate him for introducing such innovations as telephones, automobiles, and the telegraph and for sending his son to a country of unbelievers (Egypt).

Having lost control of the Ikhwan by 1926, Ibn Saud endeavors to mollify them by submitting their accusations to the religious scholars (ulama).

In 1927...