Abstract: The item consists of a copy of a covering letter from David Wilson, Resident in the Persian Gulf, to the Government of Bombay, with enclosures. It is the fourth in a series of four items on general affairs in the Persian Gulf (the others are: IOR/F/4/1398/55440, IOR/F/4/1398/55441 and IOR/F/4/1399/55442).The enclosures to Wilson's letter consist of copies of observations made by Charles Masson, an individual who presented himself at the Residency in Bushire [Būshehr]. Between 1827 and 1830, Masson had travelled extensively throughout the Dourannee [Durrani] states (parts of modern day Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan), before arriving at Bushire via Muscat, Kishmee [Qeshm] and Bassadore [Bāsa'īdū]. Masson's observations relate to the political status, culture, languages and religions of numerous states, provinces and tribes, and the routes taken during his travels. They include details on: people encountered; caravan entourages; landscapes; climate; agriculture; and villages and fortresses along the routes. Particular attention is paid to Ranjeet Sing [Ranjit Singh, Ruler of the Sikh Empire] and 'the Seicks' [Sikhs]. Masson's observations are arranged under the following headings:'Observations on the political condition of the Doorannee states and of the neighbouring ones''Memorandum on Herat [Herāt]''Adventures from Kandahar to Serkarpore [Shikarpur]''Notice on the countries West of the Indus from the city of Deyrah Ghazie Khan [Dera Ghāzi Khān] to Kolleebat [Kālābāgh]''Adventures in a journey from Tak [Tank] to Peshawer [Peshawar] through the unfrequented countries of Muriout [Marwat, tribe] and Bunnoo [Bannu], the valleys of Angoo [Hangu], and Kwort [Kohat]''Notice on the Province of Jellalabad [Jalalabad] and on the Secapash [Siah-Posh Kafirs, tribe]''Passage through the Pass of Khybur [Khyber Pass] and notice on the countries, west of the Indus from Deyrah Ghazee Khan to Kollebah or Kolybah [Kālābāgh]. Passed through Khyber in July. Was in the countries west of the Indus from Christmas I suspect to April''Discovery of the sites of the ancient cities of Bucephalia and the presumed tomb of Bucephalus the charger of Alexander the Great''Memorandum on Lahore, the Seicks and their Kingdom and dependencies''Lahore via Mooltan [Multan], Ooch [Uch-i-Sharif], Kirepore [Khairpur], Hydrabad [Hyderabad] and Patta [Thatta] to Kerychee [Karachi] and the Ocean'.'Muriout' is also spelled 'Murwut' in the item.The title page of the item contains the following references: 'Bombay Political Dept.', 'P.C. [Previous Communication] 1230, Draft' and 'Examiner's Office'.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description (used for referencing) commences at f 229, and terminates at f 500, 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 pagination sequence.
Abstract: This item consists of copies of a Political Despatch from the Government of India Foreign Department to the Secretary of State for India, dated 2 October 1874, forwarding ten copies of the ‘Epitome of correspondence regarding our relations with Afghanistan and Herat, 1863’ [not included in this item], in compliance with the request contained in the Secretary of State for India’s despatch No. 25 of 6 August 1874.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description (used for referencing) commences at f 320, and terminates at f 321a, 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 sequence contains two foliation anomalies: f 320a and f 321a.
Abstract: This part of the volume consists of copies of enclosures to a secret despatch from the Government of India Foreign Department to the Secret Committee, Number 57 of 1856, dated 8 November 1856. The enclosures are numbered 3-11 and are dated 10 October to 5 November 1856.They mostly consist of correspondence relating to the remittance of three lacs [lakhs] of rupees and the sending of arms and ammunition to the Ameer Dost Mahomed Khan [Amīr Dūst Muḥammad Khān Bārakzāy].The correspondents are the following: the Secretary to the Government of India; the Secretary to the Government of Bombay; the Acting Commissioner in Sinde [Sindh]; the Chief Commissioner of the Punjab, and the Officiating Secretary to the Chief Commissioner; the Acting Political Superintendent on the Frontier of Upper Sinde; the Officiating Deputy Commissioner of Peshawur [Peshawar]; Meeah Khan [Miyān Khān]; and Faiz Ahmed Baabee [Fayz̤ Aḥmad Bābī].Physical description: 1 item (26 folios)
Abstract: This part of the volume consists of a copy of an enclosure to a despatch from the Government of Bombay [Mumbai] Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 103 of 1847, dated 27 December 1847. The enclosure is numbered 3 and is dated 14 October 1847.The enclosure consists of a copy of a letter from HM Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary at the Court of Persia [Iran], Lieutenant-Colonel Justin Sheil, to the Chief Secretary to the Government of Bombay, Arthur Malet, enclosing under flying seals copies of despatches addressed to HM Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Viscount Palmerston, dated 23 to 30 September 1847.The enclosures relate to matters including:Sheil reporting that the Persian Prime Minister Hajee Meerza Aghassee [Ḥājī Mīrzā (ʿAbbās Īravānī) Āqāsī] had several times publicly accused the British Government of having given aid in money to the Salar [Muḥammad-Ḥasan Khān Sālār] and Jaffer Koolee Khan [Jaʿfar Qulī Khān], and that the Shah had said to a member of the British mission that the British Government were behind the ‘disturbances’ in Khorassan [Khorasan]; Sheil writing to Aghassee to demand that the accusation be withdrawn, and that an apology be made by the Persian Government; and the denial of the Shah and Aghassee that they had made the accusation that a ‘Hindoo’ [Hindu] British subject resident in Meshed [Mashhad] had, on account of the British Government given money to the Salar and Jaffer Koolee KhanPersian involvement in Afghanistan, including Sheil addressing a note to Hajee Meerza Aghassee regarding Herat, and stating that Aghassee’s reply repeats indirectly the absence of any intention on the part of the Persian Government to ‘interfere’ with HeratSheil stating that it appears the insurrection in Khorassan will be speedily terminated, and that this has likely prevented ‘complications of a more serious character’, as Sheil has received intelligence that the Russian Minister had told Aghassee that in case of a reverse Russian troops would be ready to assist the Shah in Khorassan, and Aghassee had proclaimed in public more than once that he would make use of that option should the occasion ariseSheil learning that the Russian Minister [Prince Dimitri Ivanovich Dolgorukov, referred to as Dolgorouki in this item] had made an application to the Persian Government for permission to build a hospital on land near Asterabad [Gorgan] opposite the Island of Ashoor Ada [Ashuradeh] for the use of seamen and mariners of Russian ships of war on that coast, and to surround this building as well as the Russian store houses in the same vicinity with a wall; and Sheil reporting that he had represented to the Shah that if he gave his consent to such a proposition it would be equivalent to giving his consent and confirmation to the Russian occupation of Ashoor AdaThe conduct of Mirza Mahomed Ali Khan [Mīrzā Muḥammad ‘Ali Khān], in leaving Constantinople [Istanbul] for France before the ratification of the Treaty of Erzeroom [Erzurum], having been nominated by the Persian Government to exchange the ratifications; Sheil and the Russian Minister, Dolgorouki, anticipating that this would delay the exchange of ratifications; and the Persian Government rejecting the advice of Sheil and Dolgorouki that great delay would be avoided if the Persian Government would provide them with letters directing Mirza Mahomed Ali Khan to hasten his return to ConstantinopleBritish attempts to abolish the transport of African ‘slaves’ [enslaved persons] through the ports of the Persian Gulf, including Sheil addressing a letter to Aghassee intimating that British war ships would examine any Persian vessels in the Persian Gulf suspected of 'slave trading' and liberate any enslaved persons found on board; Sheil’s view that whilst this announcement ‘has ostensibly been distasteful’ to the Persian Government, which declares that such an act would be a breach of treaty, he is nevertheless of the opinion that any obstruction this trade may encounter from British ships of war ‘will in reality be viewed by the Persian Government with considerable apathy’, and that the detention of one Persian vessel and the liberation of any enslaved persons who may be found on board will probably be sufficient to deter other Persian vessels from continuing to engage in the 'slave trade'.The despatches from Sheil to Palmerston include enclosed copies of despatches in French from the Russian foreign minister Count Nesselrode [Karl Robert Vasilyevich] to Prince Dolgorouki, and from the Russian Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to the United Kingdom, Baron Brunow [Filipp Ivanovich Brunnov] to the Russian Chancellor, relating to Afghanistan. The despatches also include: correspondence between Sheil and Hajee Meerza Aghassee; letters (in French) jointly signed by Sheil and Dolgorouki addressed to Aghassee, and replies from Aghassee; and a letter from Sheil to the Political Resident at Baghdad, Major Henry Creswicke Rawlinson.Enclosure No. 3 also includes:A letter from Sheil to HM Minister Plenipotentiary to the Ottoman Empire, Lord Cowley, dated 5 October 1847, stating that it is the intention of the Persian Government to despatch the ratification of the treaty concluded at Ezeroom by special messenger in seven days to the care of the Persian Consul at ConstantinopleA letter from Sheil to the Secretary to the Government of India, dated 10 October 1847, enclosing an extract from the
Delhi Gazettecontaining news ‘from a letter from Tehran’, which Sheil states bears remarkable similarity to his correspondence with the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, copies of which are forwarded to the Governor-General for information. Sheil suggests that as no one in his own office has any correspondence with the northern part of India, this information has been provided by the Native Writers in the office of the Secretary to the Government of India.Physical description: 1 item (46 folios)
Abstract: Enclosure nos. 3-24 to a despatch from the Secret Department, Government of Bombay [Mumbai]. The enclosures consist of correspondence relating to events in Afghanistan and surrounding areas. Subjects covered include:An end to the British subsidy that had been paid to Dost Mahomed, Ameer of Cabul [Dūst Muḥammad Khān Bārakzāy, Amīr of Afghanistan], during the Anglo-Persian War of 1856-57The position of Nawab Foujdar Khan [Nawwāb Fūjdār Khān] as British Vakeel [agent] at Cabul [Kabul]The return of the Kandahar Mission to IndiaA request from Dost Mahomed for a Persian language copy of the Treaty of Paris, that ended the Anglo-Persian WarReports that the King of Bokhara [Naṣr Allāh Khān, Emir of Bukhara] has put down a rebellion in Oora Tuppuh [Istaravshan, Tajikistan] and declared war on Kokan [Khanate of Kokand]Reports that two men in Herat employed respectively by the British Minister at Tehran and the Chief Commissioner, Peshawur [Peshawar], had attempted to instigate a rebellion against the Amir Sirdar Sooltan Ahmed Khan [Sirdār Sulṭān Aḥmad Khān]Dost Mahomed’s rejection of a requested visit from a Russian envoy.The primary correspondents are: Dost Mahomed; Sooltan Ahmed Khan; Foujdar Khan; the Commissioner, Peshawur; the Chief Commissioner, Punjab; and the Government of India.Physical description: 1 item (80 folios)
Abstract: Enclosure nos. 3-33 to a despatch from the Secret Department, Government of Bombay [Mumbai]. The enclosures consist of copies of correspondence relating to events in Herat, and its status after the withdrawal of Persian occupation at the end of the Anglo-Persian War of 1856-57. Subjects covered include:An unsuccessful rebellion in HeratA Russian envoy arriving at Candahar [Kandahar, Afghanistan] with the intention of continuing to HeratThe importance of improving Herat’s defences if it is to remain independentA Persian [Iranian] attack on Merv, successfully defended by the Takkeh Toorkomans [Teke Turkmen]Competing claims over Seistan [Sistan] by the rulers of Candahar, Herat and Persia [Iran]The dissolution and final report (included on ff 471-480) of the British Commission to Herat.The primary correspondent is the Chief Commissioner, Herat. Other correspondents include: Dost Mahomed, Ameer of Cabul [Dūst Muḥammad Khān Bārakzāy, Amīr of Afghanistan]; Nawab Foujdar Khan [Nawwāb Fūjdār Khān], British Vakeel [agent] at Cabul [Kabul]; HM Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to Persia; and the Government of India.Physical description: 1 item (110 folios)
Abstract: This part of the volume consists of copies of enclosures to a secret despatch from the Government of India Foreign Department to the Secret Committee, Number 59 of 1856, dated 22 November 1856. The enclosures are numbered 3-15 and are dated 14 October to 15 November 1856.The enclosures consist of correspondence and a minute of the Governor-General of India concerning British relations with Ameer Dost Mahomed Khan of Cabool [Amīr Dūst Muḥammad Khān Bārakzāy of Kabul], and his intentions regarding sending a military force to Herat.The main correspondents are the following: the Secretary to the Government of India; the Officiating Secretary to the Chief Commissioner of the Punjab; and Dost Mahomed Khan.Physical description: 1 item (36 folios)
Abstract: This part of the volume consists of a copy of an enclosure to a despatch from the Government of Bombay [Mumbai] Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 14 of 1853, dated 28 February 1853. The enclosure is numbered 3 and is dated 10 December 1852.The enclosure consists of a letter from HM Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary at the Court of Tehran, Justin Sheil, to the Chief Secretary to the Government of Bombay, enclosing under a flying seal (for the information of the Governor in Council) copies of nine of his despatches addressed to HM Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, the Earl of Malmesbury. These despatches relate to affairs in Persia [Iran] and Herat, and are dated 11 November to 8 December 1852.The despatches report matters including:Sheil’s stated intention to remark to the Sedr Azim [Ṣadr-i Aʿẓam] that a specific declaration is required to counteract articles which had appeared in the
Tehran Gazette‘boasting’ of the annexation of Herat to the dominions of the Shah (an enclosed copy of a translated paragraph from the
Tehran Gazetteof 11 November 1852 is included)Sheil enclosing a translation of a firman nominating Abbas Koolee Khan ['Abbās Quli Khān] to a permanent residence in Herat, to fulfil a function, Sheil states, of Vizier or Political Secretary but not a diplomatic agentA party of Toorkomans [Turkoman or Turkmen people] capturing 'about 30 Persians' in Mazandaran, and the apparent displeasure of Persian Ministers at the Prince Governor of the province requesting Russian help to pursue and punish the Toorkomans, thereby providing an opportunity for the Russians to extend their influence in MazandaranThree letters (translated copies enclosed) ‘of a rather distant date’ which Sheil had received from Fatteh Mahomed Khan [Fath' Muḥammad Khān], an Afghan ‘Chief’ and ‘one of the chief notables of Herat’, who had been seized as an ‘English’ partisan and sent into captivity in Beerjend [Bīrjand] when Persian supremacy had lately been established in HeratNews received by Sheil that Sam Khan [Sām Khān], the former Persian Agent in Herat, had marched into Herat with a body of troops; the Sedr Azim responding to Sheil’s request for an explanation by stating that Sam Khan had acted without orders from the Persian Government, that his actions were entirely in opposition to their wishes, and that a messenger had been sent to recall Sam Khan immediately (in an enclosed exchange of notes between Sheil and the Sedr Azim); and the Sedr Azim’s verbal assertion that the troops accompanying Sam Khan were only of his tribe, and that this occurrence could be attributed to the intrigues of the Governor of Khorasan, in order to prevent his recall as GovernorSheil highlighting the announcement by the Sedr Azim of the intention to send troops to oppose Dost Mahomed Khan [Dūst Muḥammad Khān Bārakzāʾi] of Cabul [Kabul] and Kohendil Khan [Kuhandil Khān Muḥammadzā'ī] of Candahar [Kandahar], suspected of planning a new expedition in Herat territoryA dispute between the Persian and Ottoman Governments regarding the displaying of their respective flags at their embassies in Tehran and Constantinople [Istanbul] (enclosed copies of two despatches from Sheil to Colonel Hugh Rose, HM Chargé d’Affaires at Constantinople, are included)An agreement having been reached with the Persian Government regarding issues in relation to the nomination of ‘English’ consuls in Asterabad [Gorgan] and Resht [Rasht] (with enclosed translated correspondence between Sheil and the Sedr Azim)Sheil enclosing a portion of a letter from the British Agent in Meshed [Mashhad], containing intelligence from HeratThe arrival in Tehran of Mahomed Sedeek Khan [Sayyid Muḥammad Siddiq Khān Alakuzā'ī], brother of the ‘Chief’ of Herat, with five other ‘Chiefs’ of Herat, and two of them, Khan Dilaver Khan [Khān Dilāvar Khān] and Ser Afraz Khan [Sarafrāz Khān], placing themselves in sanctuary at the British mission, causing the Shah and the Sedr Azim ‘great umbrage’, and with the latter sending Sheil a letter protesting against their protection.Physical description: There is an abstract of contents of the despatch, numbered 1-3, on folio 302. The number 3 is repeated for reference on the verso of the last folio of the enclosure.
Abstract: This part of the volume consists of a copy of an enclosure to a despatch from the Government of Bombay [Mumbai] Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 15 of 1853, dated 28 February 1853. The enclosure is numbered 3 and is dated 14 January 1853. The enclosure consists of copies of nine despatches (with enclosed correspondence) from HM Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary at the Court of Tehran, Justin Sheil, addressed to the Earl of Malmesbury, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, sent under flying seals to the Chief Secretary to the Government of Bombay. The despatches are dated 12 December 1852 to 7 January 1853. The despatches relate to matters including:The proceedings of the Persian [Iranian] Government in relation to HeratThe intention of Sheil and the Russian Minister to Persia to dissuade the Shah from his plan to make a rapid inspection of some parts of the province of Azerbijan [Azerbaijan] with a regiment of cavalry, and to advise the Shah not to act in a manner likely to make the Porte [the Government of the Ottoman Empire] suspicious that Persia intended to take hostile action against Turkey; and Sheil seeking instructions as to whether he should follow the Shah irrespective of the movements of the Russian Minister, or remain in TehranThe Persian Government seeking immediate restitution of the district of Kotoor [Qotur] to Persia, following the pronouncement of the frontier commission that the Turkish occupation was ‘a wanton aggression’The report of HM Consul in Tabreez [Tabriz] of the proceedings of a Nestorian bishop aiding the Russian Government in a plan to introduce the ‘Greek religion’ [Greek Orthodox Church] and Russian missionaries into Azerbaijan by promising Russian protection to any converts from the Nestorian churchThe Persian Government agreeing to Sheil’s proposal that ‘English’ war ships should be authorised to punish the ‘Chiefs’ of Persian ports of the Persian Gulf at which ‘negro slaves’ [enslaved African persons] were being imported.Physical description: There is an abstract of contents of the despatch, numbered 1-3, on folio 351. The number 3 is repeated for reference on the verso of the last folio of the enclosure.
Abstract: This part of the volume consists of a copy of an enclosure to a despatch from the Government of Bombay [Mumbai] Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 6 of 1853, dated 19 January 1853. The enclosure is numbered 3 and is dated 6 November 1852. It consists of a letter from HM Envoy and Minister Plenipotentiary at the Court of Persia [Iran], Lieutenant-Colonel Justin Sheil, to the Chief Secretary of the Government of Bombay (for the information of the Governor in Council), enclosing under flying seals copies of twenty-two despatches addressed by Sheil to HM Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.Sheil’s despatches concern various matters relating to Persian affairs, including: the annexation of Herat by Persia; and the refusal of the Pasha of Baghdad, Namik Pasha [Mehmed Emin Namık Pasha, Governor or Viceroy of Baghdad] to allow Prince Abbas Meerza ['Abbās Mīrzā Mulk Ārā Qājār], the Shah’s younger brother, to enter into Ottoman territory and visit Kerbella [Karbala] unless he is provided with a passport from the Turkish [Ottoman] Ambassador to Persia.The despatches from Sheil include copies of enclosed correspondence, including letters and translated letters from: the Persian Prime Minister, the Sedr Azim [Ṣadr-i Aʿẓam]; the Agent in Meshed [Mashhad]; the Agent in Sheeraz [Shiraz]; and the Political Agent in Turkish Arabia [Ottoman Iraq], Lieutenant-Colonel Henry Creswicke Rawlinson.One of Sheil’s despatches discusses negotiations between the Austrian Government and Persia for a treaty of commerce and navigation, and includes a copy of a draft of the treaty (folios 84-91), which is in French.Physical description: There is an abstract of contents of the despatch, numbered 1-3, on folio 62. The number 3 is repeated for reference on the verso of the last folio of the enclosure.
Abstract: This part of the volume consists of a copy of an enclosure to a despatch from the Government of Bombay [Mumbai] Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 26 of 1853, dated 31 March 1853. The enclosure is numbered 3 and is dated 12 February 1853.The enclosure is a letter from HM Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary at the Court of Tehran, Lieutenant-Colonel Justin Sheil, to the Chief Secretary to the Government of Bombay, forwarding under a flying seal, to the address of the Secretary to the Government of India, copies of thirteen despatches addressed to HM Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, the Earl of Malmesbury, dated 8 January to 4 February 1853.Sheil’s despatches to the Earl of Malmesbury consist of the following:No. 7, dated 8 January 1853: reporting that the Persian [Iranian] officer deputed to assume charge of the Government of Bender Abass [Bandar Abbas], pending the arrival of Mahomed Raheem Khan [(Haji) Muḥammad Rahīm Khān (Shirazī, Malik al-Tujjar)], the Governor nominated by the Shah, had been refused admission into that town by the authorities of the Imam of MuscatNo. 8, dated 10 January 1853: reporting the death of Futtee Mahomed Khan [Fath' Muḥammad Khān], the Herat chief who had been in confinement at Beerjend [Birjand]. Sheil states that though a report has been spread that he committed suicide, there can be no doubt that he was killed on the orders of the Persian GovernmentNo. 12, dated 13 January 1853: in which Sheil states that it will be clear from the accompanying correspondence (some of which is in French) between the Sedr Azim [Sadr-i A'zam], his Russian colleague Prince Dolgorouki [Prince Dimitri Ivanovich Dolgorukov, Russian Minister to Persia], and himself, that his and Dolgorouki’s efforts to dissuade the Persian Government from collecting a large army at Sultaneyah [Soltaniyeh, also spelled Sultaniah in this item] in the ensuing Spring have been unsuccessfulNo. 13, dated 15 January 1853: enclosing a translated copy of letter from the Sedr Azim demanding that Great Britain should abstain from interfering in the affairs of Herat, and subsequent correspondence between Sheil and the Sedr Azim. Sheil expresses his opinion that if the British Government wishes to maintain influence and control over Herat, then this can be achieved only by excluding Persia altogether from Afghanistan and resisting the despatch of Persian troops to Herat on any pretext. Sheil suggests that the Persian Government could be urged to accept these conditions through British occupation of the island or Kharg (or Karrack)No. 14, dated 14 January 1853, reporting news including: the Sedr Azim informing Sheil that Syd Mahomed Khan [Sayyid Muḥammad Siddiq Khān Alakuzā'ī], the Ruler of Herat, has made an urgent appeal to the Prince Governor of Khorassan [Khorasan] for troops to aid in repelling Khohendil Khan [Kuhandil Khān Muḥammadzā'ī], who was advancing to the relief of Ferrah [Farah, also spelled Ferra in this item] (a letter from Syd Mahomed Khan to the Prince Governor is enclosed); that the Herat khans who had been brought under custody from Meshed [Mashhad] to Tehran, have been liberated, at least nominally; the Mission Agent at Meshed reporting that Syd Mahomed Khan continues to instigate the Toorkomans [Turkmen people] to make plundering expeditions into Candahar [Kandahar] and carry away numbers of Afghans into slaveryNo. 15, dated 14 January 1853: reporting that Meerza Saeed Khan [Mirzā Sa'īd Khān Ansarī], hitherto Persian Superintendent of Foreign Affairs, has been appointed Minister for Foreign AffairsA letter from Sheil to the Chief Secretary to the Government of Bombay, dated 15 January 1853, transmitting under a flying seal a copy of a despatch to the Earl of Malmesbury (No. 17, dated 15 January 1853) regarding a practice which is reportedly being carried out at Bombay of granting licences to Persian vessels to carry an ‘English’ flag, which they hoist in their own national ports (the despatch includes enclosed correspondence between Sheil and the Resident in the Persian Gulf, Captain Arnold Burrowes Kemball, and correspondence between the Resident and the Governor of Bushire [Bushehr], Mirza Hassan Ally Khan [Mīrzā Ḥasan ʿAlī Khān]). Sheil requests any information on the subject from the Government of Bombay that would be useful for Lord MalmesburyNo. 18, dated 15 January 1853: enclosing a copy of a despatch received from the Resident at Bushire, relating to certain proceedings of the Governor of Bushire, which Sheil fears may lead to ‘disorder’ in the Persian Gulf, and a translation a of letter which Sheil has addressed in consequence to the Persian Minister for Foreign Affairs. Sheil reports that a ship from the Persian port of Aseeloo [Asaluyah] had touched at Bushire, and the Governor of Bushire, Mirza Hassan Alee Khan, seized the Master and fined him twelve tomans, and also carried off a free Abyssinian [Ethiopian] sailor who was on board. Sheil states that the Chief (Governor) of Aseeloo, Sheikh Ahmed ben Kulfan [Shaikh Aḥmad bin Khalfān (Al Haram)], has threatened revenge against this aggression, and Sheil has intimated to the Persian Minister that private war cannot be carried out in the Persian Gulf (the despatch includes enclosed copies of Kemball’s correspondence with Sheikh Ahmed ben Kulfan and Mirza Hassan Alee Khan)No. 20, dated 19 January 1853: reporting that the Sedr Azim, instead of concluding the arrangement that had recently been reached regarding Herat, has sent Sheil another document which includes a clause stating that if Great Britain interfered at all in the affairs of Herat then the agreement would be annulled. Sheil states that he has rejected the proposed arrangements. (The despatch includes enclosed correspondence between Sheil and the Sedr Azim)No. 21, dated 22 January 1853: stating that a party of three khans of Herat who had been in confinement at Meshed had that day arrived at Tehran under restraint, but will probably be released soon, that one other khan had been murdered on the road by the Persian authorities, and that three other khans were still in confinement at MeshedNo. 22, dated 30 January 1853: reporting news from the Agent at Meshed that Kohendil Khan, the Ruler of Candahar, had passed Ferra with 1,500 men and twelve guns, to proceed against Herat, and that Syd Mahomed Khan had sent a most urgent demand for aid to the Governor of KhorassanNo. 23, dated 30 January 1853: enclosing further correspondence between Sheil and the Persian Prime Minister (Sedr Azim) regarding Herat, including: translated copies of an arrangement sealed by the Sedr Azim; a letter from the Sedr Azim to Syd Mahomed Khan notifying him of this arrangement; and a 'ferman' [firman] from the Shah to Syd Mahomed Khan ratifying the arrangementNo. 25, dated 4 February 1853: enclosing a translation of a letter from Sheil to the Ruler of Herat, transmitting to him a copy of the arrangement made by the Persian Cabinet concerning its future connection with his Government.Physical description: There is an abstract of contents of the despatch, numbered 1-3, on folios 553-554. The number 3 is repeated for reference on the verso of the last folio of the enclosure.
Abstract: This part of the volume consists of copies of enclosures to a secret despatch from the Government of India Foreign Department to the Secret Committee, Number 47 of 1856, dated 8 October 1856. The enclosures are numbered 3-4 and are dated 6 September to 8 October 1856.They consist of two despatches from the Acting Commissioner in Sind [Sindh, also spelled Sinde in this item], Lieutenant-Colonel John Jacob, to the Secretary to the Government of India, concerning the progress of the Persian [Iranian] invasion force in the vicinity of Kelat [Kalat], military affairs at Herat, the receipt of one lac [lakh, one hundred thousand] of rupees by officers deputed by the Khan [Khān] of Kelat, and guns, small arms and ammunition to be despatched to the Khan.The despatches include translated copies of letters from Fukkeer Mahomed Naib of Mekran [Faqīr Muḥammad Nā’ib of Makran] to the Khan of Kelat, and from Faiz [or Faize] Ahmed Baabee [Fayz̤ Aḥmad Bābī] to the Wukkeel [Vakil] of the Khan of Kelat, Moolla Ahmed [Mullā Aḥmad].Physical description: 1 item (6 folios)