100th anniversary of the discovery of oil in the Middle East.

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A find rich in history
Mideast oil changed world
By Tom Hundley
June 1, 2008

When the price of oil roared to record highs last week, it was duly noted. But another milestone passed almost unremarked: Monday was the 100th anniversary of the discovery of oil in the Middle East.

Britons William Knox D'Arcy and George Reynolds are not exactly household names in America, but it was D'Arcy's money and gambler's nerve, and Reynolds' hardheaded persistence that brought in the first gusher in what is today Iran.

The discovery would change the world. Over the next century, as America and the Middle East became locked in an extraordinary embrace, the flow of cheap, abundant oil would bring wealth and war; it would fuel mighty economies, determine the destinies of nations, and shape the everyday lives of almost everyone on the planet.

The early quest for cheap Middle East oil was driven by British Imperial ambitions and the needs of the Royal Navy. During the inter-war period, the United States entered the picture, and a surprising amount of British diplomatic energy was spent trying to undercut American influence in the region.

After World War II, the scramble for cheap Middle Eastern oil became an American game, driven mainly by America's booming consumer economy. The strategic importance of securing a reliable and abundant supply of oil drew Britain and the U.S. deep into the geopolitics of the region, and established the enduring perception of the two allies as "the great meddling powers of the Middle East," according to Roger Howard, a British journalist who has written a new history of the era, "The Oil Hunters."

Oil put Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and a host of minuscule Persian Gulf sheikdoms on the map. They became global players by virtue of their vast wealth and their ability to plunge the rest of the world into a recession simply by turning off the spigot.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chi-oil_anniversary_thinkjun01,0,5956346,print.story