Abstract: Enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 34 of 1846, dated 24 March 1846. The enclosures are dated and contain correspondence relating to affairs in the Bagdad Pachalic [Baghdad Pashalik]. Contents relate to: Ottoman ad valorem taxes imposed on Shia [Shīʿah] pilgrims from Qajar [Qājār] Persia [Iran]; a description of the trade of manufactured goods and commodities in 1845; and political interventions sought by English Christian missionaries against the large Jewish community in Bagdad. This item commences with an abstract of contents (folio 377). Correspondence from Her Majesty’s Consul and Honourable Company’s Political Agent in Turkish Arabia [Ottoman Iraq] addressed to the Government of Bombay copying correspondence with the Secretary to the Government of India.Physical description: 1 item (22 folios)
Abstract: This item comprises copies of enclosures to a despatch from the Government of India Secret Department to the East India Company Secret Committee, Number 2 of 1838, dated 7 February 1838. The enclosures are dated 17 July-29 November 1837.The item relates to Turkish Arabia [Ottoman Iraq] and covers the following matters:The arrival of Lieutenant Henry Blosse Lynch at Bagdad [Baghdad; this spelling is also used in the item] to take command of the steam vessels in the rivers of the Pachalic [Pashalik] (the Euphrates and Tigris) and to put them in condition for effective service. The correspondence chiefly discusses the officers, men and stores considered necessary to equip the
Euphratessteamer for service, including the indent (request) submitted by Lynch to the Superintendent of the Indian Navy (ff 15-18), and which Presidency (Bombay or Bengal) will be liable for the expenses incurred and the personnel requiredThe arrival of ‘Indian Agents’ deputed to supervise the restoration of the canal of Kerbela [Karbala], including a meeting of the Political Agent in Bagdad with the Pacha [Pāshā], and his expectation that complications will arise due to the involvement of various interested parties (f 8)The proposal of the Governor-General of India to send a Mr Eliot to provide assistance to Colonel Robert Taylor, the Political Agent at Bagdad, and the suggestion that since there is no actual need for an assistant, Eliot could be employed ‘collecting information on the political and commercial condition of the countries in the neighbourhood’ (f 26).The correspondents are: Lynch; the Government of Bombay; Government of India; the Controller of the Government Steam Vessels, Calcutta [Kolkata]; and Taylor.Physical description: 1 item (24 folios)
Abstract: This item comprises a copy of an enclosure to a despatch from the Government of Bombay Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 8 of 1847, dated 23 January 1847. The enclosure is dated 13 November 1846.The item comprises despatches from Major Henry Creswicke Rawlinson, Political Agent in Turkish Arabia [Ottoman Iraq], forwarding, for the information of the Government of Bombay and the Governor General of India, copies of his communications with Henry Wellesley, HM Minister Plenipotentiary at Constantinople [Istanbul], reporting on affairs in the Bagdad Pachalic [Baghdad Pashalik, also spelled Baghdad Pashalic in this item], with relevant enclosures.The papers cover the following matters:1) Welleseley’s enquiry to Rawlinson regarding his knowledge of any cases of the ‘injurious bearing of the Mahomedan law of evidence on the lives and property of H[er]. Majesty’s subjects residing within the limits of the Ottoman Empire’ and Rawlinson’s response incorporating his critical assessment of Islamic religious law in general and the Hanifeh [Hanafi] Code (school of Islamic jurisprudence) (ff 85-88).2) Orders issued (at the request of Nejib Pasha [Muḥammad Najīb Pāshā, Governor of Baghdad]) by the Persian [Iranian] Government to the Prince Governor of Azerbijan [Iranian Azerbaijan] and the Governor of Ooroomeeya [Urmia, also spelled Orumiyeh in this item] for the removal of the ‘refugee chiefs’ of Sulmanieh [Sulaymaniyah, also spelled Sulimanieh, Sulemanieh and Sooloomanneh in this item] and Rowanduz [Rawandiz, also spelled Rowandiz in this item] from the Turco-Persian frontier.3) A cholera outbreak within the Baghdad Pashalic, which Rawlinson estimates over the last forty days has killed ‘at least 30,000 souls’ (f 89).4) The recent ‘outrage’ committed by ‘a party of Persian marauders’ (f 88) (‘the freebooter Abdulla Beg Sharof Baini’ (f 93) [‘Abdullāh Beg Sharaf Baynī, also spelled Sharaf Baine and Shorof in this item], his followers (refugee subjects of Sulemanieh residing in Kermanshah) and a force of Sinjabis [Sanjâbi tribe, also spelled Sinjabees]) on the Wermazier tribe (dependents of the Jaaf [Jaff] tribe), and responses to the situation including:A petition by the heads of the Wermazier tribe to Abdulla Pasha [‘Abdullāh Pāshā] of SulemaniehAbdulla Pasha’s plea to Nejib PashaNejib Pasha’s complaint to Rawlinson of the ineffectiveness of Mohib Ali Khan [Muḥibb ʿAlī Khān], Governor of Kermanshah, in restraining, punishing and removing Abdulla Beg ‘from his obnoxious position on the frontier’ (f 94), the insecurity of the frontier Turkish tribes who are ‘harassed and tormented beyond all endurance’ (f 95) and intimation that he would not be able to prevent equally violent reprisals occurring in Persian territoryRawlinson’s concerns about the disorganisation on the frontier and suggestion that a complaint needs to be made by the Porte itself in order to make the Persian Government take the matter seriously and put realistic pressure on the Governor of Kermanshah.Physical description: 1 item (18 folios)
Abstract: This item comprises a copy of an enclosure to a despatch from the Government of Bombay Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 91 of 1846, dated 4 August 1846. The enclosure is dated 28 May 1846.The primary document is a despatch from Major Henry Creswicke Rawlinson, Political Agent in Turkish Arabia [Ottoman Iraq], forwarding, for the information of the Government of Bombay and the Governor-General of India, copies of his communications to Sir Stratford Canning, HM Ambassador at Constantinople [Istanbul], reporting on affairs in the Baghdad Pachalic [Baghdad Pashalik, also spelled Pashalic in this item].The papers notably cover the following matters:The agreement negotiated by Canning relating to the rights of Britain to navigate the ‘Rivers of Mesopotamia [Iraq]’ (the Tigris and Euphrates) under its own flag and subject only to anchorage fees, and Rawlinson’s expectation that this will encourage the use of steam vessels and stimulate British trade with the Turkish [Ottoman] EmpireTensions between Persian [Iranian] and Turkish tribes on the Turco-Persian frontier at Kermanshah, plans for mediation by Rawlinson of the differences between the tribes, and Rawlinson’s description (f 14) of two ‘serious outrages’ committed by Persian tribes against the property of Turkish tribes and his fears of possible retaliationA meeting between Najib Pasha [Muḥammad Najīb Pāshā, Governor of Baghdad] and the Persian Consul Moolah Abdool Azeez [Mullā ‘Abd al-‘Azīz, also referred to as the Persian Agent] regarding the various complaints of the Consul against the Turkish authorities relating to: import and export duties; alleged fees for interment at Nejjef [Najaf, also spelled Nejif in this item]; ferry tolls required to cross a canal between Nejjef and Kufa; passport regulations affecting Persian citizens resident in Baghdad; and the inability of Persian citizens to obtain restitution following the ‘plunder’ of their property in the vicinity of BaghdadRawlinson’s mediatory role following two recent incidents at Kerbela [Karbala], namely: the affair of Hajee Medhi [Ḥājī Mahdī] who was sent to Kerbela by the Persian Consul on private business but presented himself as a Government Agent independent of the local government, and the question of Turkish and Persian jurisdictional rights regarding his punishment; and the affair of the Persian Army soldiers on official business who refused to deposit their arms, forced the gates and assaulted the guards, and the postponement of their punishment pending the decision of the Turkish and Persian governmentsRawlinson’s report of the discontent over taxation among ‘the Arabs of this Pashalic’, and his concern that increased tensions and acts of defiance will lead to constant conflict and disorderInformation received by Rawlinson alleging the erection of fortifications at Zahab [Sarpol-e Zahab] and Mohamrah [Khorramshahr, also spelled Mahomrah in this item] and the denial of the Persian Prime Minister, as conveyed by HM Minister in Tehran, of plans to erect any fortifications on the Persian frontier.Physical description: 1 item (20 folios)
Abstract: This item comprises a copy of an enclosure to a despatch from the Government of Bombay Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 21 of 1847, dated 16 February 1847. The enclosure is dated 26 December 1846.The item comprises despatches from Major Henry Creswicke Rawlinson, Political Agent in Turkish Arabia [Ottoman Iraq], forwarding for the information of the Government of Bombay and the Governor General of India, copies of his communications to Henry Wellesley, HM Minister Plenipotentiary at Constantinople [Istanbul], reporting on affairs in the Bagdad Pachalic [Baghdad Pashalik].The papers cover two matters:The orders obtained by Rawlinson, on behalf of Persia [Iran], from Nejib Pasha [Muḥammad Najīb Pāshā, Governor of Baghdad], for the repositioning further southward of the Turkish [Ottoman] guard ship stationed off Mohumra [Khorramshahr, formerly Mohammerah], including a copy of his letter to Joannes Parseigh, the British Agent in Bussorah [Basra], directing him to hand the orders to Khurshid Beg [Khūrshīd Beg], Acting Governor of Bussorah, and see that they are implementedThe preliminary arrangements, by Rawlinson, for a conference between the Turkish [Ottoman] and Persian frontier authorities to encourage the suspension of the ‘internecine conflicts’ between the Kurds and avert further violence and retaliation, including: the appointment of a Persian Commissioner; Nejib Pasha’s requirement that Abdulla Pasha of Sulimanieh [‘Abdullāh Pāshā of Sulaymaniyah] collect all chiefs implicated in the latest disputes to attend the conference; and Rawlinson’s encouragement of Mohib Ali Khan [Muḥibb ʿAlī Khān], Governor of Kermanshah, to cooperate and collect together the relevant tribes on the Persian side.Physical description: 1 item (8 folios)
Abstract: This item comprises a copy of an enclosure to a despatch from the Government of Bombay Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 16 of 1847, dated 12 February 1847. The enclosure is dated 11 December 1846.The enclosure comprises two copies of the same despatch from Major Henry Creswicke Rawlinson, Political Agent in Turkish Arabia [Ottoman Iraq], forwarding, for the information of the Government of Bombay and the Governor-General of India, copies of his communications to Henry Wellesley, HM Minister Plenipotentiary at Constantinople [Istanbul], reporting on affairs in the Bagdad Pachalic [Baghdad Pashalik].The papers cover Rawlinson’s concerns that the recent death of Moollah Abdooll Azzeez [Mullā ‘Abd al-‘Azīz], the Persian [Iranian] Consul in Baghdad (also referred to as the ‘Persian Agent’), will engender a number of problems in the Pashalic. He refers to the following:The number of pilgrims in the city without a ‘national protector’The increased mutual depredations of the Turco-Persian frontier tribesThe inability and unwillingness of the unpaid deputy of the late Agent to ‘deal with political questions of any magnitude’ including representing Persia at a conference proposed (on the orders of Tehran) by the Governor of Kermanshah on the frontier to settle the differences between tribes preparatory to the settlement provided for in the Treaty (of Erzurum)Rawlinson’s lack of authority from the Foreign Office to represent Persian interests, but intention to mediate between Nejib Pasha [Muḥammad Najīb Pāshā, Governor of Baghdad] and the Persian authorities to promote good relations.Physical description: 1 item (8 folios)
Abstract: This item comprises copies of enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 87 of 1847, dated 13 October 1847. The enclosure is dated 26 August 1847.The primary document is a despatch from Lieutenant Arnold Burrowes Kemball, Acting Political Agent in Turkish Arabia [Ottoman Iraq] (acting for Henry Creswicke Rawlinson who had taken a leave of absence), forwarding for the information of the Secretary to the Government of India and the Secretary to the Government, Bombay, copies of his despatches to Lord Cowley, HM Minister Plenipotentiary at Constantinople [Istanbul], with relevant enclosures, on the ‘affairs of the Baghdad Pachalic [Pashalik]’.The documents notably cover the following matters:British attempts to verify the authenticity of the communication from the Mootsellim [Mutasallim] of Bussorah [Governor of Basra] to Sheikh Mahomed ben Khaleefa [Shaikh Muḥammad bin Khalīfah Āl Khalīfah, Shaikh of Bahrain] inviting him to place himself under the protection of the Turkish [Ottoman] flag, including a corroborative document forwarded to Rawlinson by Major Samuel Hennell, Resident in the Persian GulfReactions of the independent Arab rulers of the Gulf regarding the appearance of an Ottoman brig of war [in the Gulf] and the alleged the claims by the Turkish officers on board of the intention to replace British influence in the Gulf with Turkish influence. Included are reports by John Croft Hawkins, Commodore Commandant Indian Navy, Squadron in the Persian Gulf, on the HC [Honourable Company] steam frigate
Queen, and the Agent at Shargah [Sharjah], regarding: the brig’s movements; the concerns expressed by Shaikh Mucktoom [Maktūm I bin Buṭṭī Āl Bū Falāsah of Dubai]; and the alleged ‘exultation’ of Sultan Ben Suggur [Shaikh Sulṭān I bin Ṣaqr al-Qāsimī, Ruler of Sharjah and Ra’s al-Khaymah, Al Jazirah Al Hamra and Ar Rams, variously] at the potential loss of British influence (ff 263-268)Reports that Nejib Pasha [Muḥammad Najīb Pāshā, Governor of Baghdad] plans to survey ‘the old and ruined canals’ of Abooghraib [Abu Ghraib], Scindreeah [Sindria?] and Mahmoodiah [Mahmudiyah?], in order to repair them and bring the adjoining land back into cultivation and improve irrigationThe disturbed state of the country in Moosul [Mosul] due ‘principally to the internal dissensions in the large tribe of the Shammar [Šammar] Arabs’ (f 269)The question of whether British and Russian subjects travelling in the Turkish [Ottoman] dominions will be subject to new passport regulation fees, and Kemball’s scepticism, in communications with Colonel Justin Sheil, HM Minister at Tehran, regarding Nejib Pasha’s intention to exempt ‘native Englishmen’, taking into consideration the passport fees recently levied on Rawlinson and his party for the latter’s leave of absenceKemball’s scepticism, communicated to Sheil, regarding Nejib Pasha’s intentions of fulfilling instructions from the Turkish Government for the removal of a Turkish guard vessel from her anchorage off the mouth of the Haffer [Haffar] Canal to a station higher up the stream, and intention to escalate his dissatisfaction to the Porte via HM Minister at Constantinople (ff 272-273).Physical description: 1 item (20 folios)
Abstract: This part of the volume consists of copies of enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay [Mumbai] Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 63 of 1853, dated 28 October 1853. The enclosures are numbered 3-5 and are dated 6-26 September 1853.The enclosures relate to affairs in the Baghdad Pachalic [Pashalik].Physical description: 1 item (29 folios)