The first " Saudi state " established in 1744 in the area around Riyadh , rapidly expanded and briefly controlled most of the present-day territory of Saudi Arabia , sacking Karbala in 1802 and capturing Mecca in 1803 , but was destroyed by 1818 by the Ottoman viceroy of Egypt , Mohammed Ali Pasha . A much smaller second " Saudi state " , located mainly in Nejd , was established in 1824 . Throughout the rest of the 19th century , the Al Saud contested control of the interior of what was to become Saudi Arabia with another Arabian ruling family , the Al Rashid , who ruled the Emirate of Jabal Shammar . By 1891 , the Al Rashid were victorious and the Al Saud were driven into exile in Kuwait
sacking Karbala
Wahhabi sack of Karbala
Saudi Arabia