The Founder's Memorial

Not to be confused with The Founders Memorial.
The Founder's Memorial
Native name
صرح زايد المؤسس (Arabic)
LocationAbu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Coordinates24°27′47.23″N 54°19′20.69″E / 24.4631194°N 54.3224139°E / 24.4631194; 54.3224139
Websitewww.thefoundersmemorial.ae/en/

The Founder's Memorial (Arabic: صرح زايد المؤسس), a monument and visitor centre in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE) is a memorial to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the first President of the United Arab Emirates, who died in 2004. Zayed was the driving force behind the formation of the United Arab Emirates, becoming the Union's first President (Arabic: رَئِـيـس, romanized: Ra'īs), a post which he held for a period of almost 33 years (from 2 December 1971 until his death in 2004).[1]

Zayed was appointed the governor of the Eastern Region of Abu Dhabi in 1946,[2] and was based in the Muwaiji Fort in Al Ain. He became Ruler of Abu Dhabi on 6 August 1966, following the announcement by the British government that it intended to abrogate its treaties with them and to withdraw from the area.[3] In a seminal meeting on 18 February 1968 at a desert highland on the border between Dubai and Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum of Dubai shook hands on the principle of founding a Federation and attempting to invite other trucial rulers to join in order that a viable nation be formed in the wake of the British withdrawal.[4]

Zayed's tireless determination to cement the foundation of the Federation that he saw as critical to the survival of the Trucial States as a viable political entity bore fruit when, on 2 December 1971, the UAE was founded. Zayed is often referred to as the Father of the Nation.[5]

  1. ^ Martin, Douglas (3 November 2004). "Zayed bin Sultan, Gulf Leader and Statesman, Dies". New York Times. Archived from the original on 30 July 2013. Retrieved 25 January 2014.
  2. ^ Joffe, Lawrence (3 November 2004). "Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 28 August 2013. Retrieved 18 April 2013.
  3. ^ Heard-Bey, Frauke (1996). From Trucial States to United Arab Emirates. UK: Longman. p. 339. ISBN 0-582-27728-0.
  4. ^ Maktoum, Mohammed (2012). Spirit of the Union. UAE: Motivate. pp. 30–34. ISBN 978-1-86063-330-0.
  5. ^ "Remembering Sheikh Zayed, the father of the nation". Khaleej Times. Retrieved 2018-11-03.