Abstract: Note written by Sir Thomas William Holderness, Under Secretary of State, India Office, in response to Sir Arthur Hirtzel's memorandum on the war with Turkey (IOR/L/PS/18/B233).The note describes the recommendations of the Inter-Department Committee on Asiatic Turkey, which Sir Thomas Holderness was a member of, and which were based on the assumption by the Committee at the time of its convening that an allied occupation of Constantinople was only weeks away, that Russia would be in possession of the city and surrounding areas and that peace with the Turks would be possible.The committee's responsibility, in light of the assumptions, was as follows:To propose a scheme for Asiatic Turkey that would satisfy Russian, French, Italian and Greek interests in the region and which would suit the needs and requirements of Great Britain; possibilities included the complete partition of the region; the removal of the Ottoman Empire; and decentralisation of Turkey without the need for military intervention.The note goes on to consider potential concerns over German power and influence in Turkey; the dangers of any settlement with Turkey that would not include the ending of the Ottoman Empire; the risks from Germany gaining control of the Balkan States; the danger of pan-Islamism; the possibilities of British interests in the East being achieved if Germany is defeated and Turkey collapses as a military power; and the Mesopotamian Campaign and its development as a serious military operation.Physical description: Foliation: The foliation for this description commences at folio 55 and terminates at folio 57, 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.
Abstract: A printed report, written by a Committee formed by Louis Mallet, Henry Cadogan Rothery and William Henry Wylde, 8 December 1876.The Committee was nominated by H M's Treasury, the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and the Secretary of State for India, to determine whether the Imperial Government had to contribute to the payment of an annual subsidy to the Sultan of Muscat (as compensation for the abandonment of his claims upon Zanzibar) and of the expenses of the Agency and Consulate at Zanzibar, which had been paid by the India Office since 1870.The committee acknowledges that in 1873 it was agreed that these payments should be divided between Imperial and Indian Government, hence the Imperial Government had to compensate the India Office for the payments made in the years 1873-1877.The report includes a summary of payments made to the Sultan of Muscat between May 1873 and February 1877, expenses for the British Agency and Consulate General at Zanzibar for the period 1872-1877, and a proposed budget estimate for the future, to be equally divided between Imperial and Indian Government.Two declarations follow the report, from two comissioners in disagreement with the report.Physical description: Foliation: The foliation for this description commences at f 92 and terminates at f 97, 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 ff 5 and ff 168; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and can be found in the lower right corner of the recto side of each folio.Pagination: The volume also contains an original printed pagination sequence.
Abstract: The letter outlines the opinion of the India Office that no negotiations should be opened with the Turkish authorities over more clearly defined areas of jurisdiction and responsibility for the two powers along the southern coast of the Persian Gulf. It is argued that Britain should maintain their commitments to the Trucial chiefs and the rulers of Bahrein [Bahrain] and Muscat, along with their security responsibilities on the Gulf seas, and if the Ottoman Turks do not impinge on these arrangements little communication with the Porte is deemed necessary. The argument is supported by an overview and discussion of the current situation in the region.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation for this description commences at folio 145 and terminates at folio 147, 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. The main foliation sequence 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.Pagination: The volume also contains an original printed pagination sequence.Condition: folio 145 is torn along one edge, with the loss of some text.
Abstract: The volume contains correspondence, and related notes, regarding negotiations towards the Anglo-Russian Convention of 1907. The focus of negotiations is the definition of British and Russian ‘zones’ in southern and northern Persia respectively. The correspondence is predominantly between the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (Sir Edward Grey) and HM Ambassador to Russia (Sir Arthur Nicolson). It also contains input from HM Minister at Tehran (Sir Cecil Arthur Spring-Rice) on the likely public reception of the treaty in Persia, and comments by the Under-Secretary of State for India (Arthur Godley). The attitude of the Government of India is outlined in a Foreign Department memorandum dated 4 February 1904: see folios 182-184.A copy (in both English and French) of the final convention, signed at St Petersburg on 31 August 1907, can be found at folios 16-20. Proposed drafts and proposed amendments (in both English and French) can be found throughout the file. A number of aide-memoires (also in French) supplied by Alexander Isvolsky [Izvolsky], Russia's Foreign Minister, summarising the negotiations are also included.There are no papers in the file covering the period 1908-1912. The volume only contains a single paper from 1913: a minute summarising a conversation between Sir George William Buchanan (HM Ambassador to Russia) and Sergey Dmitrievich Sazonov (Russian Foreign Ministry) regarding amendments desired by the latter to the Anglo-Russian Convention: see folio 5.The file includes a divider which gives the subject number, the year the subject file was opened, the subject heading, and a list of correspondence references by year. This is placed at the back of the correspondence.Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 186; 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 3-185, and ff 6-15; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.