The item consists of:Extract from Lord Chelmsford (Frederick John Napier Thesiger)'s private letter of 18 October 1916: regarding the Government of India's existing responsibilities in relation to Mesopotamia; the likelihood of those responsibilities increasing; whether it might be possible to dissociate India from the administration of Mesopotamia; India's involvement in the Persian Gulf; India's likely future involvement with Basrah [Basra]; and Lord Chelmsford's vision for a largely independent administration in Mesopotamia, with India controlling external relations and military operations.Memoranda on the future administration of Mesopotamia, prepared at Mr Chamberlain's request, by Sir Thomas William Holderness, 9 January 1917: Regarding the potential need for a new agency, instead of the Government of India, to be responsible for territory in Southern Mesopotamia and agreements with Arab States that might be acquired at the outcome of the war (World War One); and the possible requirements and implications of administering such an area.Notes by Sir (Frederic) Arthur Hirtzel, 30 December 1916: regarding the need for a new dependency to be created, to include Arabia, Egypt, and the Soudan [Sudan]; the expected future role of the British Government in the Persian Gulf; and the likely need for the Government of India to take on responsibilities in Southern Persia.1 file (3 folios)Foliation: The foliation for this description commences at folio 102 and terminates at folio 103, 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 also present in parallel between folios 6-153; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and can be found in the same position as the main sequence.
The item consists of correspondence between the Government of Bombay and Rear Admiral William O’Brien Drury, Commander-in-Chief, East Indies Station, regarding a proposal for increased British naval presence in the Gulf of Arabia [Red Sea] in order to resist French influence in the region.1 item (8 folios)The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the front to the rear of the item.Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description (used for referencing) commences at f 287, and terminates at f 294, as it is part of a larger physical volume; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the bottom right corner of the recto side of each folio.Pagination: the item also contains an original printed pagination sequence.
Correspondence covers debts of the Sultan of Muscat, reforms to increase revenues, and negotiations with Omani rebels. Topics include:Budget for 1919;Currency and customs;The desire of the Sultan [Taymūr bin Fayṣal] to abdicate;Terms of negotiations with tribes from the interior of Oman;Prohibition of coffee and the sale of liquor;Appointment of a wazir for the Sultan.1 volume (248 folios)There is an index at the front of the file.Foliation: There are two foliation sequences. The most complete sequence, which should be used for referencing, is circled in pencil, in the top right hand corner of the recto of each folio. It begins on the title page, on number 1, and runs through to 248, ending on the last folio of writing.
Document providing a history of lighting and buoying of the Persian Gulf.Covering:first reconstruction: 1909-14 – assessment, programme of reconstruction; obstructive activities of the Turkish authorities, detail of buoys and lighthouses placed, and parts of the programme not completed;expansion: 1914-25 – including extensions to the original programme, and an overhaul of beacons;administration and finance – including light dues, responsibility for the cost of the service, the Government of India's role in administration and maintenance, and the creation of a Lighting and Buoying Fund;relations with Persia – listing occasions during the British management of the Lighting and Buoying Service when His Majesty's Government came into collision with the Persian Government;conclusions.It also includes an appendix listing lights, buoys, and beacons present at the time of writing (1928).Written by M J Clauson of the India Office.1 file (3 folios)This file consists of a single document.Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at f 49, and terminates at f 51, as it is part of a larger physical volume; these numbers are written in pencil, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. Pagination: the file also contains an original printed pagination sequence.
This previously secret file, compiled by the India Office, contains various papers relating to expenditure on the Malleson Mission and troops in East Persia between 1918 and 1921.The file opens with a note about the contents of the file, and is followed by an India Office Political Department Memorandum and a memorandum by the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Correspondence regarding expenditure is then included which dates from after the Chancellor's memorandum (November 1919) until January 1921.There are two appendices. Appendix I contains correspondence on the subject which was exchanged prior to the Chancellor's memorandum. Appendix II provides copies of the main military and political telegrams which are referred to in the memoranda and the later correspondence regarding expenditure. At the end of the file is a copy of a separate telegram from the Viceroy, Army Department, to the Secretary of State for India dated August 1919 (folios 16-17).The main correspondents throughout the file are the India Office, the Treasury, the War Office (including the Secretary of State for War, Winston Churchill), the Secretary of State for India (Edwin Samuel Montagu), and the Viceroy, Army Department.1 file (17 folios)The content of the main file is arranged in chronological order from the front to the rear of the file. The content of the appendices is also arranged in chronological order within each appendix.Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at the first folio with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 17; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.Pagination: the volume also contains an original printed pagination sequence.
The file consists of a letter from Richard Thomas Prowse, Secretary to the Board of Customs, to the Under Secretary of State for India concerning the question of whether the Customs Consolidation Act 1876, empowers the Board of Customs to require, under penalty, names of suppliers and consignees of arms, ammunitions, and munitions of war.It includes a copy of the case as laid before the Law Officers of the Crown and their opinion.1 file (3 folios)The file consists of a single document.Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at f 73, and terminates at f 75, as it is part of a larger physical volume; these numbers are written in pencil, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.Pagination: the file also contains an original printed pagination sequence.
Bound volume containing two secret reports, both authored by Colonel Wilfrid Malleson (referred to as Division of the Chief of the Staff in the first report, and Assistant Quarter Master General for Intelligence in the second), and both issued by the Division of the Chief of the Staff in 1909.The first report is entitled
Statistics regarding the Masqat [Muscat] Arms Traffic (Revised.)(ff 4-16), and contains several appendices and fold-out tables giving details of: caravan routes along which arms trafficking is carried out on the Makran coast; total values of arms and ammunition imported into Muscat and other Persian Gulf ports; importers and (European) exports of arms.The second report is entitled
Special Reports on the Masqat Arms Traffic, Season 1908-09(ff 17-60), and comprises a number of reports on the arms trade through Muscat, submitted by ‘secret agents’, and a map illustrating the arms traffic from Muscat to Persia, Baluchistan and Afghanistan (f 59). The report also includes two appendices, lettered G and H. Appendix G is a letter (in French) dated 28 October 1907, from M Pick to Messieurs Malcom and Company of Muscate [Muscat]. Appendix H comprises lists (in French) of arms for sale, with prices given in French francs.The voluime includes a map illustrating the Muscat arms traffic, dated 1909, indicating routes taken by the Muscat arms trade from the Persian (Makran) coast and inland, into Persia, Baluchistan and Afghanistan (f 59).1 volume (60 folios)Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 62; 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.
Memorandum communicated by the Air Ministry on 23 August 1928 concerning air communication in the Persian Gulf.Covering:an introduction to the development of the Persian and Arabian air routes;flights on the air route along the Persian shore from 1918 onwards;the association of the Government of India with the route - consisting of extracts from a memorandum by the Indian Air Board (an Advisory Committee to the Government of India) in 1926 entitled 'The Past History and Future Development of Civil Aviation in India';the attitude of Persia towards the use of the route by a regular Civil Air Service operated by Imperial Airways Limited;the air route along the Arabian shore described by section, and detailing the attitude of the shaikhs.1 file (3 folios)This file consists of a single memorandum.Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at f 77, and terminates at f 79, as it is part of a larger physical volume; these numbers are written in pencil, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. Pagination: the file also contains an original printed pagination sequence.
The memorandum concerns various agreements — between the British and Persian Governments — relating to telegraphic communications between India and Europe via Persia. It outlines the landing rights that the Indo-European Telegraph Department has at Bushire and Jask. It also includes copies of a number of agreements and conventions signed between the two states, which are as follows:agreement for the construction of a telegraph line from Khanakeen [Khānaqīn] to Bushire, dated December 1862 (ff 25v-26);convention for an additional wire between Bushire and Khanikin [Khānaqīn] for the exclusive use of international messages, ratified 1 May 1866 (ff 26v-28);convention for the construction of a telegraph line between Guadur [Gwādar] and a point between Jask and Bendar Abbas [Bandar-e ʻAbbās], ratified 25 August 1868 (ff 28v-29);convention for the erection of a third wire between Tehran and Bushire, and the replacement of wooden poles with iron ones, ratified 31 March 1873 (ff 29-31);the Jask agreement to extend the territory of the telegraph establishment, dated 25 February 1887.Also included in the memorandum is a letter (folio 26) from the Persian Minister of Foreign Affairs to the Governor of Bushire dated 18 May 1863, which orders the construction of a telegraph station at Bushire for the use of the British.1 file (9 folios)Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at f 24, and terminates at f 32, as it is part of a larger physical volume; these numbers are written in pencil, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. Pagination: the file also contains an original pagination sequence.
This file concerns arms traffic outside of the Persian Gulf. Specifically, the document discusses what it refers to as the 'spasmodic' illicit traffic of arms (as opposed to 'systematic' traffic) which has been carried out by masters of dhows carrying other merchandise. Most of the file is concerned with the traffic of arms from Jibuti [Djibouti] – which is referred to as '
thedistributing centre [original italics]' for the arms trade outside of the Persian Gulf – to ports in the Gulf of Aden.The document provides a brief history (from a British perspective) of traffic from Jibuti in the years since the signing of the Brussels Convention in 1890. It summarises, and provides references to, letters and despatches from a number of British authorities, which discuss various issues relating to the arms trade out of Jibuti, including: the extent to which traffic at Jibuti has been regulated; the possible threat that the traffic poses to the Aden garrison; the effects of measures taken by the French to curtail the traffic from Jibuti; other possible ports of supply, such as Zanzibar, Muscat and the Aden Protectorate ports.Also discussed are the attitudes of the maritime chiefs to the arms traffic, the various preventive measures available to the Resident at Aden for dealing with the effects of the traffic at Aden, an account of measures taken both by the British Somaliland authorities and by the Italian authorities, and an evaluation of the naval measures taken by the British since 1901. The file concludes by noting that one possible solution to the problem could be the deployment of armed dhows, a measure which previously has been advocated by the naval authorities, the Viceroy and the Resident at Aden.The document is attributed to P H D [P H Dumbell, Reading Clerk to the Council, India Office].1 file (10 folios)The file consists of a single document which retains its original order, as evidenced by an original pagination sequence.Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the first folio and terminates at the last folio; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.Pagination: the file also contains an original printed pagination sequence.
This file contains correspondence between Captain Charles Geoffrey Prior, British Political Agent at Bahrain; Lieutenant Colonel Hugh Vincent Biscoe, British Political Resident in the Persian Gulf at Bushire; Major Frank Holmes of the Eastern and General Syndicate; Charles Dalrymple Belgrave, Adviser to the Bahrain Government; Shaikh Ḥamad bin ‘Īsá Āl Khalīfah, ruler of Bahrain; Cyril H Cane, His Britanic Majesty's Consul-General San Francisco; and Freshfields Leese and Munns solicitors. There are also copies of correspondence between various officials in the India Office and Colonial Office.The correspondence concerns the assignment of 1930 Bahrain Oil Concession (draft agreement, ff. 110-129); negotiations of Eastern and General Syndicate for concession for the remaining area of Bahrain group of islands; and application by Bahrain Petroleum Company Limited for a prospecting licence, including
Supplementary Agreement between H.E. Shaikh Hamad bin Shaikh Isa Al Khalifah and the Bahrein Petroleum Company Ltd(f. 224).1 volume (237 folios)This file is arranged in approximately chronological order.Foliation: The foliation sequence is circled in pencil, in the top right corner of each folio. It begins on the second folio after the front cover, on number 1, and runs through to 231, ending on the inside of the back cover.
This file contains correspondence between the British Political Agent at Bahrain; the British Political Resident in the Persian Gulf at Bushire; Shaikh Ḥamad bin ‘Īsá Āl Khalīfah; ‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd (Ibn Sa‘ūd); Khalīl bin Ibrāhīm Kanoo [Kānū]; Major Frank Holmes of the Eastern and General Syndicate Limited; and various representatives and employees of the Anglo-Persian Oil Company, including Arnold Talbot Wilson, J B Mackie, J E Shuckburgh and T L Jacks.The correspondence concerns the initiation of negotiations for oil concessions between the Shaikhs of Bahrain, Kuwait and Ibn Sa‘ūd, and the Anglo-Persian Oil Company and Eastern and General Syndicate Limited, as well as subsequent correspondence concerning exploration for oil. Within the correspondence are various draft and signed oil concessions documents, including a signed copy of the oil concession agreement in Arabic and English between Shaikh Ḥamad and Major Frank Holmes of Eastern and Syndicate Limited, dated 2 December 1925 (ff. 281-299).Towards the end of the file there is correspondence concerning a dispute between Major Frank Holmes and Khalīl bin Ibrāhīm Kanoo relating to the rights for boring water wells in Bahrain vis-à-vis the 1925 oil concession agreement.1 volume (345 folios)This file is arranged approximately in chronological order.Foliation: The foliation sequence commences at the 3rd sheet and terminates at the sixth sheet from the back of the volume; these numbers are written in blue crayon with additions and corrections made using pencil, they are circled (except between ff. 199-270) and can be found in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio (except between ff. 286-299 where they can be found in the top centre).