Euphrates expedition

Title:

Euphrates expedition

Date:

1834/1841

Description:

Abstract: Volume containing correspondence related to the Euphrates expedition of 1835-36, a survey of the navigability of the Euphrates River as part of a possible overland route between the Persian Gulf and the Mediterranean. The correspondence covers: the overland journey from Sovedia [Samandağ] to Bir [Birecik]; the journey down the Euphrates to Bussora [Basra]; delays to the expedition caused by the obstructionism of various Ottoman officials, particularly Mehmet Ali, Pasha of Egypt, and his son Ibrahim Pasha; the sinking of the steamer Tigrisduring a storm, with the loss of 23 men; exploratory journeys along the Tigris and Karoon [Karun] rivers; and analysis of the results of the expedition.The primary correspondent is the commander of the expedition Colonel Francis Rawdon Chesney. Other correspondents include: Chesney’s second-in-command Lieutenant Henry Blosse Lynch and other officers of the expedition; the Board of Control; the Government of Bombay; the British Consul, Aleppo; the British Consul, Baghdad; and HM Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire.Lists of the expedition’s personnel in March and October 1836 are included on folios 130 and 414, respectively. A list of the men lost in the sinking of the Tigrisis on folio 227.A breakdown of the distances and fuel consumption for each leg of the journey down the Euphrates is provided on folio 240, and for the return journey along the Tigris to Baghdad on folios 416 and 418. The dimensions of the steamer Euphratesare on folio 415.Lists of the contents of the Euphratesat the end of the expedition, including valuations, is provided on folios 503-515. The final accounts of the expedition are on folio 525.The bulk of the correspondence dates from 1834-1838, the later dates cover a request for a picture and short biography of Colonel Chesney for an article in the Dublin University Magazine(folios 551-568).The volume includes a table of contents on folios 1-8. Separate contents pages appear on folios 340-341, covering folios 342-403, and on folio 500, covering folios 501-526.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with 1 and terminates at the last folio with 568; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.

Language:

English

Type:

Archival file

Type (Narrower):

Other Texts

Type (Broader):

Text

Subject:

Surveys
Euphrates Expedition (1835-1837)

Geographic region:

Euphrates River
Tigris River
Karoon River

Rights:

المُلكية العامة

Identifier:

81055/vdc_100022551646.0x000251_ar
81055/vdc_100022551646.0x000251_en
IOR/L/MAR/C/574
IOR/L/MAR/C/574

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