State Formation and Political Stability: Al-Aqilat as an Epistemic Community in the Third Saudi State (1902-1932)

This thesis presents an in-depth analysis of Al-Aqilat as an epistemic community that contributed to the political, economic, and military stabilization of Third Saudi State between 1902 and 1932. Traditionally recognized as a merchant group, Al-Aqilat's influence extended far beyond trade to encompass financial diplomacy, intelligence gathering, strategic mediation, and logistical support. Through their control over trade routes, financial capital, and intelligence channels, they negotiated policies, facilitated cross-border agreements, and supported military operations positioning themselves as indispensable non-state actors, especially in contrast to the Ikhwan's destabilizing militancy. Challenging state-centric and tribal dominant narratives, this research emphasizes how knowledge-based governance played a crucial role in stabilizing the emerging state. Guided by Epistemic Community Theory (ECT), Social Network Theory (SNT), and Historical Institutionalism (HI), the study explores how Al-Aqilat functioned as a merchant-intelligence network shaping diplomacy, governance, and regional security. This research is archival based, drawing from British, French, Ottoman, and Saudi historical documents, analyzed through a qualitative thematic coding approach using NVivo. The study employs inductive thematic analysis to allow theoretical constructs to emerge from archival materials, ensuring that the themes and epistemic attributes of Al-Aqilat are data-driven rather than imposed. By thematically coding historical correspondences, financial agreements, and intelligence reports, this study reconstructs how Al-Aqilat functioned as an epistemic community in Saudi state-building. The findings extend ECT by showing how historical merchant-intelligence networks operated as knowledge-based agents of governance, not merely within modern policy environments. The integration of SNT further explains how Al-Aqilat's transregional intelligence networks facilitated strategic knowledge exchange, while HI sheds light on their long-term influence on institutional governance, economic policies, and diplomatic practices. This research contributes to historical political economy, governance studies, and epistemic theory by highlighting how trade-based intelligence networks historically functioned as mechanisms of political stability and security. It also draws practical parallels with contemporary financial intelligence networks, offering insights into the enduring role of knowledge-driven trade communities in shaping economic sovereignty and transnational governance. Ultimately, this study reframes Al-Aqilat as a sophisticated epistemic community whose strategic expertise and knowledge capital significantly shaped the formation and stability of modern Saudi Arabia. Keywords: Epistemic Community, Al-Aqilat, Saudi State Formation, Economic Intelligence, Political Stability, Social Network Theory, Historical Institutionalism, Governance.