Abstract: The file contains copies of correspondence and other papers relating to the arrival in Bahrain in January 1947, of a survey party, who are touring the head of the Persian Gulf to assess the region’s aerodromes. The principal correspondents in the file are the Bahrain Political Agent, Captain Hugh Dunstan Lance, the Political Resident, Lieutenant-Colonel William Rupert Hay, Ludovic James Dunnett of the Ministry of Civil Aviation, and Eion Pelly Donaldson of the India Office.The first part of the file (ff 3-19) contains correspondence relating to arrangements for the arrival of the survey party, including notices of estimated arrival, and the arrangement of taxis for transportation, made between 12 December 1946, when notification was received of the survey party visit (f 1) and the arrival of the party around 29 January 1947. The second part of the file (ff 20-49) is a copy of the report, entitled ‘Ministry of Civil Aviation Technical Survey Party, Report on Baghdad, Basra, Shaibah [Sha’iba], Dhahran, Abadan and Bahrain’, issued by the Ministry of Civil Aviation Planning Secretariat and dated 27 February 1947. The report focusses on each aerodrome in turn, with sections and appendices on: runway orientation and size; suitability of runways for aircraft of certain size; passenger accommodation; engineering (drainage, subsoil, bearing strength); meteorological departments; air traffic control; and radio communications. At the front of the report (f 21) is a summary of conclusions and recommendations for the route between Palestine and India, chiefly concerning an extension of the runway at Shaibah and long-term planning for a new civil aviation airport at Bahrain. The last part of the file (ff 50-55) contains correspondence sent after the issue of the report, and a meeting, held in London on 1 April 1947, to assess the report’s recommendations. A letter from the Donaldson to Hay, dated 17 April 1947 (f 50), discusses the case for a new airport at Hamala, south of Manama, Bahrain, with a suggestion that the Bahrain Government might contribute to the scheme by investing in approach roads and a hotel.Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover on folio 1 and terminates at the back cover on folio 60; 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 3-53; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled. They are located in the same position as the main sequence, except for some instances which are located in the verso.
Abstract: The file comprises correspondence and other papers relating to the transport and trade in contraband goods through the Gulf during the Second World War, with particular reference to the trade in goods of enemy origin or destination. The principal correspondents in the file are: the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Geoffrey Prior); the Political Agent at Bahrain (Major Reginald George Evelin William Alban; Edward Birkbeck Wakefield; Major Tom Hickinbotham) and the Senior Naval Officer in the Persian Gulf (including Commodore Cosmo Moray Graham).The file includes:correspondence dated late 1939, relating to a request from the Government of India for information on the trade in wool in the Persian Gulf, the reply from the Residency Agent at Sharjah being that there is no export trade, only a small import trade of goat hair from Persia (ff 3-7);correspondence dated 1940, relating to a proposal from the Admiralty for the institution of a Contraband Intelligence Centre in the Gulf, based at Bahrain, and intended to monitor trade outside the Shatt-al-Arab. The proposal is made in response to the completion of the railway line from Istanbul to Basra, and fears that goods could be shipped from the Far East, through the Persian Gulf, and onwards overland into Europe (ff 14-30);correspondence relating to a number of separate intelligence reports suggesting that various goods, including German dyestuffs and parachute silk, were being traded through the Persian Gulf for enemy purposes (ff 27-33);detention and release in January 1941 of the vessel
Puerto Ricanat Bahrain (ff 42-49);in 1941, correspondence relating to the use of Gulf ports, including Kuwait and Dubai, to re-forward goods to Iraq, Syria and Beirut (ff 51-55);in 1942, correspondence marked most secret relating to intercepted messages instructing an increase in rug exports from Dubai, and British suspicions that rugs, not actually exported from Dubai, may be a code for tea, sugar or textiles (ff 57-60);correspondence (ff 62-90) relating to intelligence reports that German agents are shipping drugs and other contraband on dhows travelling from Goa to Basra, including reports of specific vessels to be stopped and searched. A copy of a report from the Collector of Salt Revenue at Bombay, dated 5 February 1943 (ff 89-90) provides details of the nature and methods allegedly being used to smuggle contraband through the Persian Gulf;in 1945, correspondence relating to instructions from the Naval Officer-in-Charge at Karachi to stop and search vessels at Gwadar (ff 92-105).The file notes (ff 116-127) reference correspondence, some of which relates to the import of tea, which is no longer included in the file, having been moved to other files (File 29 War: Food Supplies, IOR/R/15/2/766-794).Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1 and terminates at the back cover with 128; 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 incomplete foliation sequence is also present in parallel between ff 3-111 and a mixed foliation/pagination sequence is present in the file notes at the back (ff 116-127); these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
Abstract: The file comprises telegrams, letters and other papers responding to the military operations carried out by British forces against Iraqi forces in Iraq between 2 and 31 May 1941, as part of the campaign widely referred to as the Anglo-Iraqi War, and the political aftermath of the War, concluding with Iraq’s declaration of war against Germany and the other Axis powers. The principal correspondents in the file are: the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Geoffrey Prior), and the Political Agent at Bahrain (Edward Birkbeck Wakefield).The file includes:telegraphic updates sent by the Political Resident and Political Agent on developments in Iraq (f 7, f 13, f 28);correspondence concerning changing spheres of British military command (land and air) during the conflict (f 3, f 6);correspondence concerning the reception of propaganda at Bahrain from Baghdad and Berlin; BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) broadcasts as a source of information on developments in Iraq; British counter-propaganda; anti-British sentiment in Bahrain (f 4, f 10, f 12, f 21, f 27);correspondence relating to concerns over Iraqis at Bahrain, including those employed as NCOs (Non-Commissioned Officers) for the Bahrain Defence Force, and Iraqi Bahrain Petroleum Company (BAPCO) employees (f 8, ff 14-16);a translated copy of a statement addressed to ‘His Royal Highness The Regent Prince Abdul Ilah Amman [‘Abd al-llah]’ by the ‘Iraqi Community of Bahrain’, dated 20 May 1941 (f 26);a telegraphic message of support for ‘His Royal Highness Abdulilah’ from ‘Hamad AlKhalifah’ [Shaikh Ḥamad bin ‘Īsá Āl Khalīfah], undated (ff 35-36);correspondence dated 1943, referring to the state of war existing between Iraq and Germany, Italy and Japan as of 17 January 1943 (ff 39-43);a copy of a booklet entitled
Documents relating to the adherence of Iraq to the Declaration of the United Nations, signed at Washington on 2nd January 1942, printed by the Government Press at Baghdad, 1943 (ff 45-55).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 58; 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 2-44; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and are located in the same position as the main sequence.
Abstract: The file contains copies of correspondence and other papers relating to investigations into the prospect of recruiting large numbers of labourers from the Persian Gulf, for non-combatant military work in Basra, and later on, civilian (oil refinery) labour at Abadan. The principal correspondents in the file are: the Political Agent at Bahrain (Edward Birkbeck Wakefield); the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Geoffrey Prior, and Lieutenant-Colonel William Rupert Hay as Officiating Political Resident); and Colonel Charles Marriot of the 3rd Auxiliary Pioneers, PAIFORCE [Persia and Iraq Force].The file includes:correspondence dated May 1942, relating to an initial proposal from the War Council for the recruitment of men from the Persian Gulf states for (chiefly) non-combatant service, and enquiries made to the Political Agents in the Persian Gulf as to whether there would be any objection from the rulers in the region (ff 2-9);correspondence dated July to August 1942, relating to arrangements made by the Tenth Army for a recruitment tour to the Persian Gulf, and enquiries made to the Political Agents as the degree of success that such a tour might have (ff 10-14);correspondence relating to Colonel Charles Marriot’s visit in January 1943 to Bahrain to assess the prospects of recruitment in the Persian Gulf region (ff 16-18), his subsequent report on his visit (ff 30-31), and his subsequent correspondence with the Political Agent at Bahrain over the delays and increasing unlikelihood of the recruitment scheme taking place (ff 34-36, ff 40-41);a copy of a secret memorandum, dated 12 November 1942 entitled ‘Recruiting in the Persian Gulf’ (ff 20). Following the memorandum are several annexes: copies of letters from the Political Agents at Kuwait, Bahrain, and Muscat, offering assessments of the recruitment prospects in their respective areas (ff 21-22); copies of documents indicating rates of pay and allowances for recruits, clothing and equipment lists, field service ration schedules, and rates for permanent partial disability compensation for Iraq (ff 23-29);correspondence relating to assessments that up to 2,000 Bahrain subjects could be recruited to work in Basra or elsewhere, in light of the depressed economic situation and unemployment in Bahrain (f 33, ff-38-39, f 42);correspondence relating to a request from PAIFORCE, made in April 1943, for civilian labour to work at the oil refinery at Abadan, and the Political Agent at Bahrain’s response that there is now no surplus labour available at Bahrain, due to construction work at the Royal Naval and Royal Air Force bases in Bahrain, and the extension of the Bahrain Petroleum Company’s (BAPCO) refinery facilities (ff 44-57).Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1 and terminates at the back cover with 66; 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 2-41; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled. Pagination: the file notes at the back (ff 61-65) have been paginated using pencil.
Abstract: The file contains correspondence and telegrams between the Government of India, the British Embassy at Baghdad, California Arabian Standard Oil Company (CASOC), Bahrain Petroleum Company (BAPCO) and the Political Resident at Bahrain, regarding the monthly meetings of the Petroleum Advisory Committee held in Baghdad, then in Basra and in Tehran between 1942-1944. The correspondence mainly contains requests to the Political Agent at Bahrain to arrange air passages and hotel bookings for the oil companies' delegates.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 107; 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 2-103; these numbers are written in ink and pencil, but are not circled.
Abstract: The volume comprises telegrams, despatches, correspondence, memoranda, and notes, relating to Kuwait relations with the British Government.The discussion in the volume relates to:appointment of the Political Agent, Kuwait;visit of HM Consul, Basra;customs and railway negotiations;the Anglo-Turkish convention, 1912;the death of Mubarak [Shaikh Mubārak bin Ṣabāḥ Āl Ṣabāḥ], 1915, and succession of his son Jabir [Shaikh Jābir II bin Mubārak Āl Ṣabāḥ].There are a number of letters in Arabic with their translations, for example, from Sheikh Mubarak to Percy Zachariah Cox, the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (folio 83) and to Captain William Henry Irvine Shakespear (folio 90). It also includes the Arabic text and translation 'Secret Agreement Between the British Government and Shaikh Mubarak dated the 23rd January 1899' (folios 100-102).The file also includes a copy of the 'Maritime Truce Treaty with the Shaikh of Kuwait, of 1841 [with English and Arabic versions]' (folios 130-132).The principal correspondents in the volume include: the Viceroy of India, Lord Curzon; the Secretary of State for India; His Majesty's Ambassador at Constantinople; the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, Percy Zachariah Cox; the First Assistant to the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf; the Under-Secretary to the Government of India; the British Consul to Basra, F E Crow; the Vali of Bussorah; Sadun Pasha, Seyyid Talib Pasha; the Ruler of Kuwait, Shaikh Mubarak; the Political Agent at Kuwait, Captain Stuart George Knox; the British Consul at Mohammerah [Khorramshahr].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 191; 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 2-190; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
Abstract: Lists, sent by the United States Consulate at Dhahran to the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, detailing officers serving at the following United States’ embassies and consular offices in the Persian Gulf region: the US Embassy in Jidda [Jedda] (f 2); the US Consulate in Basra (f 3, f 8); and the US Consulate at Dhahran (ff 7-10). The file also contains a letter from the US Consul at Dhahran (Parker Thompson Hart), dated 24 August 1949, informing the Political Residency of the appointment of a new Commander to the US Middle East Force (f 5).Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the front cover with 1 and terminates at the inside back cover with 13; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located at the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.
Abstract: This file concerns tide tables relating to Bahrain, Bushire and other locations in the Gulf. It consists mostly of telegrams, memoranda, and brief letters of correspondence. Most of the file documents the efforts of the Political Agent, Bahrain, to obtain copies of tide tables for the Port of Bushire, Shatt al Arab, and the Port of Basrah [Basra].Correspondents include the following: the Political Agent, Bahrain (also spelled Bahrein in some of the correspondence); the Secretary to the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, Bushire; the Survey of India’s Map Record Office, Dehra Dun [Dehradun]; the Director of Customs and Port Officer, Bahrain; the Port Director and Director-General of Navigation, Basrah; J D Potter (publishers and Admiralty chart agents); Lawrence and Mayo Ltd (opticians and Admiralty chart agents).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 60; 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 4-57; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
Abstract: The volume contains correspondence related to the proposed appointment of Persian representatives in Kuwait, and the Political relations between Iraq and Kuwait. There is also correspondence related to the proposal of the Iraqi Government to appoint an Iraqi Vice-Consul at Kuwait. The correspondence also discusses the following:Granting permissions for certain individuals and school teachers from Iraq to visit Kuwait.Unity between Iraq and Kuwait, and the effect of such a union on British interest in the Arab world.Yasin Pasha’s (former Prime Minister of Iraq) party as leading the anti-British propaganda campaign in Iraq.Arab-Jewish relations in Palestine, and the Iraqi Press Propaganda against Kuwait which claims that the Amir of Kuwait had trade deals with the Jews in Palestine.The eradication of smuggling ‘which has had the worst effect upon the trade of Iraq’.The claim that Qasr Al-Zuhur Radio Station (King Ghazi’s Broadcast Station) is inciting the Kuwaiti youth to rise against the British, and call for the annexation of Kuwait by Iraq.A large amount of the correspondence is in the form of newspaper articles and extracts, translated from Arabic newspapers and sent between the Political Agency, Kuwait and the Political Residency, Bushire. The articles mainly call for the annexation of Kuwait to the Kingdom of Iraq. Most of these come from productions of the Iraqi Press including, Al-Nas, and Al-Ikha’ al-Watani.The main correspondence is between the Political Agency, Kuwait, the Political Residency, Bushire, the Ruler of Kuwait, the British Embassy, Baghdad, the High Commissioner for Iraq, and the Secretary of State for India.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with 1 and terminates at the last folio with 341; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. The foliation sequence does not include the front and back covers, nor does it include the two leading and four ending flyleaves. Two additional foliation sequences are also present in parallel between ff 2-341 and ff 3-341; 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.
Abstract: The volume contains correspondence in the form of telegrams, and confidential papers sent between British officials in the Gulf regarding Iraqi propaganda against Kuwait. Communications were made with former Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Pasha al-Said and the Ruler of Kuwait, in this regard. The correspondence also contains reports about members of Al-Naqib family from Basra who were appointed as envoys from Baghdad with instructions to offer official advice to the Ruler of Kuwait. A particular name that appears in the volume is Sayid Hamid Bey Al-Naqib, Basra Deputy to the Ruler of Kuwait.The correspondence also discusses the following: the refusal by Ibn Saud of any form of unity between Iraq and Kuwait, the issue of encouraging Persian immigration to Kuwait, and the petitions raised by members of the Legislative Council in Kuwait, to the Political Agent, Kuwait, to assist in releasing political prisoners in Kuwait.The correspondence also contains letters and newspaper extracts regarding Khalid Sulaiman al-‘Adsani, Secretary of the dissolved Legislative Council in Kuwait, and about the Arab Youth movement called al-Ansar, which calls for Arab unity. Most of the correspondence in the volume (ff 2-136) is dated 1939.The main correspondence is between the British Embassy, Baghdad, the Political Agency, Kuwait, the Political Residency, Bushire, the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, London, and the British Embassy, Jeddah.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 156; 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 3-154; these numbers are also written in pencil, but, where circled, are crossed through.
Abstract: The volume contains correspondence, and related papers, regarding a court case over the ownership of date gardens claimed by the Shaikh of Kuwait [Shaikh Aḥmad al-Jābir Āl Ṣabāḥ], and his relations, around Fao in Iraq. The court case in question was prosecuted by the heirs of Ali Pasha Al-Zuhair at the Court of Basra. The volume also contains correspondence regarding legal aid provided to the Shaikh of Kuwait by the British Government, as a result of a pledge made to Shaikh Mubarak [Shaikh Jābir II al-Mubārak Āl Ṣabāḥ] in 1914 guaranteeing his ownership of these lands.A number of copies of statements (or memoranda) submitted to the Court of Basra can be found in the file:A statement submitted by the attorneys of the defendants 23 May 1938 in reply to the plaintiff's claim, with appended supporting correspondence: folios 74-106.A translation of ‘the important parts’ in a statement (in reply to the Shaikh's lawyer) submitted to the Court of Basra by Sulaiman ash-Shawwaf, the agent of Abdulla as-Zuhair: folios 123-131.The third memorandum presented by the attorneys of the defendants to the Court of Basra June 1938: folios 325-336 English translation, and folios 337-348 original Arabic version.A biographical entry on Tewfik Doss Pasha – an Egyptian lawyer selected by the British to provide assistance to the Shaikh of Kuwait – from
Personalities in Egypt for 1937can be found on folios 37-38. A translation into English of a power of attorney dated 26 Dhil-Qa‘ada 1326 [19 December 1908] given by Ahmed Pasha Al-Zuhair can be found on folios 312-313, with the original Arabic version on folio 314. A list of the heirs of Ali Pasha Al Zuhair is on folio 310.Related topics which are also covered within are the cutting down of trees within the Shaikh's date gardens by local Iraqi authorities and a proposed draft of a new land settlement law before the Iraqi Parliament.The main correspondents are as follows: the Kuwait Political Agent (Gerald Simpson de Gaury), the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Sir Trenchard Craven William Fowle and Hugh Weightman), HM Ambassador to Egypt (Sir Miles Lampson), the Shaikh of Kuwait, HM Consul at Basra, and officials at the British Embassy in Baghdad (mainly James Morgan). It also contains some correspondence with the Shaikh's advocate Abdul Jalil Pertow.The volume includes a significant amount of Arabic material, but in most cases an English translation is also available.Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 372; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. Three additional foliation sequences are also present in parallel between ff 6-367, ff 48-367, and ff 73-113; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
Abstract: This file is a continuation from IOR/R/15/5/151. It contains correspondence, memoranda and legal papers regarding lawsuits brought against the Shaikh of Kuwait [Aḥmad al-Jābir Āl Ṣabāḥ] by the heirs of the former owners of the Al Faddaghiyeh, Al Bashiyah and Al Fao properties, and efforts on behalf of the Shaikh to reclaim the properties. The papers discuss: the application of Land Settlement Procedure in the Bashiyah, Fao and Faddahiyeh cases; an amendment to the Land Settlement Law which potentially prevents non-Iraqi nationals from owning property in Iraq; updates on the various hearings and appeals being held in the Iraqi courts; arrangements for powers of attorney to be granted to and by the Shaikh; changes in the Shaikh's legal representation, following the conscription of representative Abdul Jalil Partu into the army, and later his appointment as Mayor of Basra; the occupation of the Fao fish and meat markets by the Fao municipality; and the actions of the Andrew Weir and Co monopoly in blocking the export of dates from the gardens.The file primarily consists of correspondence between the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, the Foreign Office, the India Office Political Department, the Political Agent at Kuwait, and HM Ambassador to Iraq. It also contains letters received from the Shaikh of Kuwait (Shaikh Aḥmad al-Jābir Āl Ṣabāḥ), the Shaikh's son and acting representative in Basra (Shaikh Muḥammad Āl Ṣabāḥ), the Shaikh's secretary (Abdulla Mulla Saleh) and the Shaikh's lawyers (Abdul Jalil Partu, Sulaiman Faidhi, and Nasrat al-Faresi) as well as copies of outgoing letters to them.The file contains the following legal documents (English translations unless otherwise stated):Decision of the Basra Land Board regarding the ownership of the Bashiyah property, f 5.Copy of the Land Settlement Law Amendment, taken from
Al Waqayi' al 'Iraqiyyah, f 9.Documents served by the Government of Iraq on the Al Sabah family regarding the Fao Nahiyah properties, ff 33-34.Documents issued by a Committee formed to settle the dispute between the heirs of Mohd and Jarrah Pasha and their Unvle Mubarak Pasha Al Sabah regarding shares in his estate, ff 42-50.Decision of the Land Settlement Board regarding the appeal against the Fao ruling, ff 69-74.Various Power of Attorney documents, ff 80-81, 129-131, 138-145.Decision of the Land Settlement Board regarding the claim of Hababa al Ghuneem, ff 322-323.The papers continue under reference IOR/R/15/5/153.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 338; 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 also present in parallel between ff 2-337; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.