With his conquest of the Hijaz and the unification of his Kingdom, Ibn Saud could look forward at last to international recognition of his extraordinary achievements in welding together the vast territories he now controlled. But the battle for stability was far from over. Indeed, he had yet to face perhaps the gravest threat to the survival of the Kingdom he had built.
The Ikhwan, who had played so large a part in Ibn Saud's military success, were now looking for their reward. Most of the Arabian Peninsula was now within Ibn Saud's gift. No man could impugn Ibn Saud's commitment to Islam in its purest form and yet, by Ikhwan standards, the Saudi leader had proved a little too lenient in his treatment of the less puritanical Muslims of the Hijaz. This was not what the Ikhwan had fought for. There was disappointment and discontent, both of which increased as the months passed.