Freddie De Butts

Freddie De Butts

Freddie De Butts with rulers of the Trucial States
Trucial States (present-day United Arab Emirates)
c. 1964–1966

This photograph from the mid-1960s shows Freddie De Butts seated with several rulers and leaders from the Trucial States, the group of sheikhdoms that would later form the United Arab Emirates in 1971.

At the time, De Butts served as commander of the Trucial Oman Scouts from 1964 to 1967, a security force created under British protection to maintain stability in the Gulf region. After the formation of the UAE, he later became the first Chief of Staff of the UAE Armed Forces, helping to organize the country’s early military structure.

The image captures a moment during the final years of the British protectorate in the Gulf, when local rulers and British officers worked closely together under the political framework known as the Trucial System.

Only a few years after this photograph was taken, the Trucial States would unite to create the United Arab Emirates, marking the end of the British presence and the beginning of a new independent federation in the region. 📷

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