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Abu Dhabi�s urban development path contrasts sharply with its exuberant neighbour, Dubai. As Alamira Reem puts it, Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates since 1971, �has been quietly devising its own plans ... to manifest its role and stature as a capital city�. Alamira Reem, a native Abu Dhabian and urban planner and researcher who has studied the emirate�s development for more than a decade, is uniquely placed to write its urban history. Following the introduction and description of Abu Dhabi�s early modern history, she focuses on three distinct periods dating from the discovery of oil in 1960, and coinciding with periods in power of the three rulers since then: Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan Al Nahyan (1960�1966), Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan (1966�2004), and Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan (2004�). Based on archival research, key interviews and spatial mapping, she analyses the different approaches of each ruler to development; investigates the role of planning consultants, architects, developers, construction companies and government agencies; examines the emergence of comprehensive development plans and the policies underlying them; and assesses the effects of these many and varied influences on Abu Dhabi�s development. She concludes that, while much still needs to be done, Abu Dhabi�s progress towards becoming a global, sustainable city provides lessons for cities elsewhere.