Feb 22, 2022: According to a report by Reuters, Saudi Arabia held celebrations on Tuesday to commemorate for the first time its foundation nearly 300 years ago.

The festivities included musical performances on Saudi modern history, fireworks, drone shows and sound effects, with 3,500 performers taking part.

The anniversary marks the day in 1727, when Muhammad bin Saud, the founder of the first Saudi state, took over Dirhiyyah a remote city now on the northwestern edge of the Saudi capital, Riyadh. This is 18 years before the date which historians generally consider the beginning of the Saudi state when a tribal leader bin Saud formed an alliance with the Islamic preacher Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab.

The agreement with the clergy promoted the legitimacy of the Al Saud rulers in exchange for huge financial support and influence to the ‘conservative’ religious establishment on social issues, education and public morality.

Since then, the kingdom’s de-facto leader, crown prince Muhammad Bin Salman, has reined in the religious police, opened the country to concerts and cinemas, lifted a ban on women driving and eased the guardianship system, which gives men significant control over the lives of their female relatives.

Last month, a royal decree declared February 22 a public holiday, known as “Foundation Day”, commemorating the “beginning of the reign of Imam Muhammad bin Saud” and the beginning of the first Saudi state each year. Saudi Arabia’s Shura Council, an influential government advisory body, also approved a proposal last month to amend the law regulating the national flag and anthem.

The state already celebrates National Day on September 23, commemorating the victory of the Al Saud over rival tribes from the Hijaz region and the 1925 conquest of the two holy sites of Islam, Makkah and Madina.

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