The file comprises notifications, resolutions, circulars, and memorandum from the following Government of India departments: the Finance Department, Home Department, Foreign and Political Department, Department of Industries and Labour, Army Department, Department of Education Health and Lands, Department of Overseas Trade, and Department of Commerce.Included in the file are:the announcement of an updated version of the Indian Arms Rules, 1878, published in 1924 and subsequent amendments to the wording of revised rules throughout 1924 and 1925;amendments to the Superior Civil Services (Revision of Pay and Pensions) Rules 1924;amendments to the warrant of precedence in India, including additions to and removals from the warrant, and changes to the position of titles within the order of precedence;alterations and amendments to the rules on passage allowances, pensions, leave rules, payments to subscribers of the General Provident fund, and the premature retirement rules;the publication of 'rules for the supply of articles for the public service' in 1924 and the subsequent publication of a list of authorised firms as required under the rules;a copy of the dress regulations for officers of the political department under the Government of India and the Government of Bombay and amendments to those regulations;amendments to regulations for the study of foreign languages;corrections to the 'Manual of Instructions to Officers of the Political Department of the Government of India';instructions relating to the purchase of publications in the United Kingdom for official use by Government of India departments;an Order in Council enacted by His Majesty King George V to enable an amendment of the Government of India Act allowing the Secretary to the High Commissioner to India to make and discharge contracts on behalf of the Secretary of State for India in the High Commissioner's absence;correspondence between the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, Francis Beville Prideaux and the Political Agent at Bahrain, Clive Kirkpatrick Daly, following the announcement that the Daly was to be made a Companion of the Most Eminent Order of the Indian Empire (C.I.E.);the announcement of the death of Queen Alexandra (wife of Edward VII) and information relating the official memorial service for her, and procedures for official mourning.1 file (276 folios)The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the front to the rear of the file.Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1 and terminates at the inside back cover with 276; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. An additional mixed foliation/pagination sequence is also present in parallel between ff 2-274; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.Condition: Folios 2-6, 157 have some minor tears and other imperfections which obscure a few of the words on each folio.
The volume comprises telegrams, despatches, correspondence, memoranda, and notes, relating to the demarcation of the boundary between Koweit [Kuwait] and Qatif region [Al-Qaṭīf] in the period 1905-1914. Places discussed include: Ras Mishab [Mishʻāb, Ra's al-], Musallamiya [Musallamiya Island], Odeid, Wahran, Hafar [Hafar Al Batin], and Umm Kasr [Umm Qaṣr].The discussion in the volume relates to the places which could demarcate the boundary and the allegiance and authority which the Ruler of Kuwait held in these places. Also included (folio 33) in the volume is a copy of the 'Draft Agreement Between the British Government and Shaikh Abdullah bin Thani, Shaikh of Qatar.'The principal correspondents in the volume include: the Political Agent at Kuwait, Stuart George Knox; the Political Agent at Bahrain, Francis Beville Prideaux; the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, Percy Zachariah Cox; the Secretary of India in the Foreign Department, Simla, Sir Hugh McMahon.1 volume (36 folios)The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the front to the rear of the volume.Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 38; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. Additional foliation sequences are present in parallel between ff 3-8 and ff 2-37; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
The volume comprises telegrams, despatches, correspondence, memoranda, and notes relating to ownership of Bubiyan Island [Jazīrat Būbiyān] and Warba Island [Jazīrat Warbah]. The discussion in the volume relates to:a military post on Bubiyan Island;proposal to include right of pre-emption of Warba in 1907 Agreement;evidence of Kuwaiti ownership of Warba and Bubiyan. The evidence was acquired by conducting a survey (ff 26-45) with various questions.Principal correspondents include: the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, Percy Zachariah Cox; the Secretary to the Government of India in the Foreign Department; First Assistant Resident, Bushire; the Secretary of State for India; the Viceroy, Simla; the Secretary to the Government of India in the Foreign Department.1 volume (44 folios)The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the front to the rear of the volume.Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 46; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 16-28; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled. A previous foliation sequence, which is present between ff 4-436 and is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.Pagination: the volume also contains a hand written pagination sequence.
The discussion in the volume relates to the migration of the Al Bu Ainain (a tribe of '1000 males') from Wakrah, Qatar, to 'Qasr as-Sabaih', a settlement 30 miles north of Katif [Al-Qaṭīf]. The correspondence contains the discussion between British officials as to whether Qasr as-Sabaih lay in territory of the Ruler of Kuwait or was under Turkish jurisdiction. It also discusses how the 'headman of the Al Bu Ainain', Abdullah bin Ali, approached a number of authorities to seek their assistance, including the Ruler of Bahrain, the Wali of Basrah, and the Turkish authorities in Al Hasa.Further discussion in the volume concerns the flying of the Turkish flag over the fort at Qasr as-Sabaih and the relationship of the Al Bu Ainain with the Turkish authorities. The file finishes with a note (folio 90) that the Al Bu Ainain had come to a private arrangement with the Ruler of Kuwait whereby in return for the payment of a yearly allowance, the Ruler would not encourage Bedouin raiding against the tribe.Included in the volume is a statement (folio 36) of 'Distribution of Garrisons in Hasa, Qatif and Qatar' giving numbers of Turkish troops and supplies at each location. The volume also includes some extracts (folios 65-75) from
'Bahrain News'and
'Kuwait News'.Correspondence (folios 77-89) also discusses a possible migration of Sheikh Nasir bin Shahin al-Tuwar of Fuwairat from Qatar to Qasr as-Sabaih.The principal correspondents in the volume include: the First Assistant Resident, Bushire (A P Trevor); the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, Percy Zachariah Cox; the Political Agent, Kuwait (William Henry Irvine Shakespear); the Political Agent, Bahrain (C F Mackenzie and David Lockhart Robertson Lorimer); and the Secretary to the Government of India in the Foreign Department (S H Butler).1 volume (91 folios)The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the front to the rear of the volume.Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 91; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 3-90; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.
The volume comprises correspondence, letters, notes and printed reports relating to translated articles from various Arabic language media. The articles are written from an anti-British view point and relate to the topic of British strategy concerning Kuwait and Mohammerah and the perceived intention to diminish the Ottoman Sultan's influence.The papers in the file are divided into 7 parts:extract from
Al Ahram, Cairo, 16 September 1904. This concerns an article entitled 'Arabia: From our special correspondent in Muscat' which gave comments on English policy towards Kuwait and Iraq. British officials indicate that they believe this was written by a Frenchman residing in Muscat, Monsieur Goguyer.anti-British Arabic leaflet,
Fath-el-Basayer.Section 2. Translations of articles in the
Habl-ul-Matin, April and May 1906.Section 3. Pan-Islamic propaganda. Including a circular memorandum from the Office of the Director of Criminal Intelligence.Section 4. Extract from "
Busrah Gazette", 23 August 1906 on Shaikh Mubarak's contribution to the Hedjaz Railway.Section 5. Extract from
Lewa, Cairo, 25 June 1908, 'The Mesopotamia Problem' looking at the Kuwait and Mohammerah intrigue and the British response.The principal correspondents in the volume are: the Political Agent at Kuwait, Stuart George Knox; the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, Percy Zachariah Cox; First Assistant Resident to the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, J H Bill; Office of the Director of Criminal Intelligence; Foreign Office, Simla; John Gordon Lorimer.1 volume (35 folios)The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the front to the rear of the volume.Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 35; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. Two additional foliation sequences are also present in parallel between ff 2-31, and ff 2-34; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.
The file contains papers relating to Seistan [Sistan] and Persia [Iran].The file includes printed copies of despatches from the Agent to the Governor-General of India and HM Consul-General for Khorasan and Seistan (Lieutenant-Colonel Henry Martindale Temple), to the Secretary to the Government of India Foreign Department, with enclosed despatches from Captain Percy Molesworth Sykes to the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (the Marquis of Salisbury). Skyes’s despatches regard matters including: Seistan; trade routes into South-East Persia; the boundary between Persia and Afghanistan, in relation to the River Helmund [Helmand] changing its course (in despatch No. 5, which includes four sketch maps, folios 12, 13, 14 and 15); Sykes’s journey to Birjand (in despatch No. 7, which includes a sketch map on folio 20); the ruling family of Kain, which also governed Seistan, Tabbas and Tun; Sykes’s journey from Seistan to Kerman [Kirman] (in despatch No. 11, which includes a sketch map); and the direct Kerman-Quetta caravan trade that Sykes was trying to establish.The file also includes copies of the following papers:A despatch from Temple to the Secretary to the Government of India Foreign Department, enclosing a letter from Temple to Sir Henry Mortimer Durand (HM Minister, Tehran), with copies of enclosures, regarding the establishment of a Seistan and Kain consulateA letter from Charles Edward Pitman, Director General of Telegraphs, to the Secretary to the Government of India Public Works Department, enclosing a copy of a ‘Report on the Preliminary Survey of the Route for a Telegraph Line from Quetta to the Persian Frontier’ by H A Armstrong, Assistant Superintendent, Indian Telegraph Department, which includes six photographs of views along the route [Mss Eur F111/352, f 52; Mss Eur F111/352, f 53; Mss Eur F111/352, f 54; Mss Eur F111/352, f 55; Mss Eur F111/352, f 56; and Mss Eur F111/352, f 57], and a map showing the proposed route of the telegraph line [Mss Eur F111/352, f 59]Letters from Hugh Shakespear Barnes, Agent to the Governor-General in Baluchistan, to the Secretary to the Government of India Foreign Department, enclosing copies of the diary of the Political Assistant, Chagai, for the weeks ending 16 February, 28 February, and 8 March 1900Diary No. 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11 and 12 of Major-General George Frederick Chenevix-Trench, HM Consul for Seistan (Diary No. 6 includes a sketch map, folio 86)A copy of a ‘Report on Reconnaissances Made while Attached to the Seistan Arbitration Commission’ by W A Johns, Deputy Consulting Engineer for Railways, BombayA copy of the report ‘Notes on Persian Seistan’, compiled by Captain Edward Abadie Plunkett, and issued by the Government of India Intelligence Branch, Quarter-Master General’s DepartmentTwo copies of map signed by Plunkett titled ‘Persian Seistan-Cultivated Area’ [Mss Eur F111/352, f 270]A booklet entitled ‘Notes on the Leading Notables, Officials, Merchants, and Clergy of Khorasan, Seistan, Kain, and Kerman.’Printed copies of letters from the Government of India Foreign Department to the Secretary of State for India (Lord George Francis Hamilton), relating to the maintenance of British interests in Persia, dated 4 September 1899 and 7 November 1901 (the former with an enclosure of a minute by the Viceroy on Seistan).1 file (388 folios)The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the front to the rear of the file.Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 390; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. The file contains one foliation anomaly, f 301A
This file contains a 'Treaty of Friendship and Goodwill' and is signed by David George Levigne Shaw, the Political Resident in Aden, on behalf of the British Government, and by Saiyid Mustafa bin Saiyid Abdu'l 'Ali on the part of His Eminence Saiyid Muhammad bin Ali bin Muhammad bin Ahmed bin Idris, the Idrisi Saiyid and Amir of Sabia and its environs. The document is also signed by Harold Fenton Jacob, First Assistant Resident in Aden. The Treaty seeks to unite the British Government and the Idrisi Saiyid against Turkish [Ottoman] incursions in Aden and Yemen more generally. Though the main focus of the document is the provision of diplomatic and moral support, paragraph 7 of the Treaty confirms that the British Government will support the Idrisi against Turkey through the supplication of 'funds and munitions'.The Treaty is prefaced by two letters: one signed by various government officials including the Viceroy of India, and one written by David George Levigne Shaw. Both letters provide their opinions on the Treaty.1 file (2 folios)The file opens with two letters about the Treaty and is followed by the Treaty itself.Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at f 114, and terminates at f 115, as it is part of a larger physical volume; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
Printed copies of correspondence and memoranda relating to the arms traffic in the Persian Gulf:a letter from Leonard William Reynolds of the Government of India, dated 29 June 1909 (ff 2-3)a confidential letter from the British Minister to Belgium, Arthur Henry Hardinge, to the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Edward Grey, dated 3 May 1909 (f 4)a letter from the Political Agent at Maskat [Muscat], Robert Erskine Holland, dated 5 July 1909 (ff 4-5)a memorandum written by Wilfrid Malleson of the Intelligence Branch, Indian Army Headquarters, dated 10 July 1909, also signed by the Officiating Chief of Staff in India, Herbert Mullaly, and the Chief of Staff in India, Beauchamp Duff (ff 6-7)further copies of correspondence signed by Malleson, Mullaly, Duff, and others including the Commander-in-Chief in India, Horatio Herbert Kitchener, and the Foreign Secretary to the Government of India, Spencer Harcourt Butler (ff 8-10)a confidential memorandum written by Robert Erskine Holland, dated 27 June 1909 (f 11)1 file (11 folios)Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 11; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.Pagination: this part also contains an original printed pagination sequence.
The file contains notes, memoranda, and correspondence relating to the visits and treatment of Japanese and Italian subjects and agents in the Persian Gulf. The correspondence is mostly between the Political Agency at Bahrain, the Political Residency at Bushire, the British Ministry at Jeddah, the India Office in London, the Home and Foreign Departments of the Government of India, and representatives of Imperial Airways Limited in Sharjah.The file covers the following matters:The visit of Mr Ohba, agent of the Japanese company Mitsui Bussan Kaisha, to Bahrain in February 1939, his attempts to secure a local shipping agent, and his subsequent visit to Sharjah;A tour of Saudi Arabia made by the Japanese Minister at Cairo in March 1939, and his request that two members of his staff also visit Kuwait and Bahrain, which was subsequently refused by the British Government;The movements of Kawamura (alias Muto), a Japanese Muslim convert engaged in anti-British activities in China;The treatment to be accorded to Italian and Japanese subjects in India and the Persian Gulf at the start of the Second World War, when both countries still declared to be neutral.The file contains (folios 24-25) a report from the Ministry at Jeddah on the Japanese Minister's visit to Saudi Arabia and includes details on agreements and proposals made between both countries relating to commerce, communism, and oil.At the back (folios 39-42) are internal office notes.1 file (41 folios)The file is arranged chronologically.Foliation: The main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover and terminates at the back cover; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. Two additional sequences are also present between ff 2-38 and ff 39-42 respectively; these sequence are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and are located in the same position as the main sequence.
The volume comprises telegrams, despatches, correspondence, memoranda, and notes, relating to the:Shaikh of Kuwait's date gardens on the Shatt al-`ArabTurkish demand that Kuwaitis should take out Turkish Nationality Certificatesregistration of Shaikh Mubarak's property at Faddaghiyaoffer of a cash salary to Shaikh of Kuwait as QaimaqamThe principal correspondents in the volume include the Political Agent, Kuwait, Stuart George Knox; the Ruler of Kuwait, Shaikh Mubarak al Sabah; and the Political Resident in Turkish Arabia, John Gordon Lorimer.1 volume (307 folios)The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the front to the rear of the volume.Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1 and terminates at the inside back cover with 309; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located at the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 2-308; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
The volume comprises telegrams, despatches, correspondence, memoranda, and notes, relating to three main topics.The first main topic discussed is the Shaikh of Kuwait's date gardens on the Shatt al-Arab (ff 3-162). The discussion in the volume relates to the Shaikh's concern about the repair of embankments and the actions of Turkish soldiers in dismantling the embankments in proximity to their fort. Included in the volume is a hand-drawn plan (folio 135) of the fort, garden, embankments and marshlands in relation to the Shatt al Arab waterway.The second main topic discussed is registration of Shaikh Mubarak's property at Faddaghiya (ff 163-311). The volume includes the Arabic version with English translation (ff 165-182) of the preliminary agreement between Shaikh Mubarak al-Sabah and Abdul Wahab bin Qirtass concerning 'the property known as Fadhagiya' as well as the final deed relating to the purchase. Also included is an Arabic copy (folio 251) of 'receipts passed for land revenue paid by Shaikh Mubarak on his Faddaghiya estate'.The third main topic discussed is the dismissal of the Mudir of Fao for overstepping his authority.The principal correspondents in the volume include the Political Agent, Kuwait (Stuart George Knox; William Henry Irvine Shakespear); the Political Resident in Persian Gulf (Percy Zachariah Cox); the Secretary to the Government of India in the Foreign Department (Sir Louis Dane); the First Assistant Resident, Bushire; HBM's Consul at Basrah; and the Ruler of Kuwait (Shaikh Mubarak bin Sabah al-Sabah).1 volume (338 folios)The papers are arranged in rough chronological order from the front to the rear of the volume.Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 340; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.Pagination: the file also contains a hand written pagination sequence (ff 3-339).
The volume comprises hand written letters, notes, typed correspondence and printed reports relating to the proposed adoption of a distinctive Kuwait flag and certificates of nationality for marine craft belonging to Shaikh Mobarak [Shaikh Mubārak bin Ṣabāḥ Āl Ṣabāḥ] or his subjects. Further discussion surrounds the inscription of 'Koweit' in Roman script as well as Arabic script and the concerns of Shaikh Mobarak over this in the context of strained relations between Persia and Turkey. Shaikh Mobarak requested that Britain guarantee him protection against the Ottomans. The result was the continued use of the Turkish flag with Kuwait inscribed in Arabic letters, to illustrate the Shaikh's 'quasi-independence'. Correspondence discusses the concern of the Ruler of Kuwait over the ability of the British to protect him from the Ottoman Government and the special agreement between the British Government and the Shaikh of Koweit [Kuwait] which imposed certain restrictions on the Shaikh whilst implying a British guarantee of protection of Kuwait's territorial integrity. The correspondence discusses the relative merits of adopting the British flag and the inscription of the Muslim declaration of faith on the flag flown by the Shaikh in front of his palace. Correspondence in 1924 discusses the procedure of flying the flag of Kuwait on HM Ships when receiving a visit from the Shaikh of Kuwait.The principal correspondents in the volume include: the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, Percy Zachariah Cox; the Secretary to the Government of India in the Foreign Department, Sir Louis Dane; the Political Agent at Kuwait, Stuart George Knox, and later James Carmichael More; the Second Assistant to the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf; Viceroy; the Secretary of State for India, John Morley; the HM Ambassador to Constantinople, Nicholas O'Conor; the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Edward Grey; the Naval Commander in Chief, East Indies Station.1 volume (57 folios)The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the front to the rear of the volume.Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 57; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 3-42; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.