1. ‘Bahrainese abroad’

Description:

Abstract: The file comprises correspondence from two distinct periods. Correspondence at the beginning and end of the file is dated 1909 to 1913 (ff 2-16, ff 52-87), and discusses the British protection of Bahrainis in Ottoman Turkey, in response to Ottoman Government representatives in Constantinople [Istanbul] questioning Britain’s claim of Bahrain being under its protection, and the registration and status of the increasing numbers of Bahrainis residing in the port of Mohammerah [Khorramshahr], thanks to that port’s relative stability and affluence. Some of this correspondence deals with a specific incident occurring in March 1911 in which three Bahrainis were detained by the Basra authorities, with the latter refusing to recognise that the men were under British protection (ff 56-63). The principal correspondents in these parts of the file are: the British Ambassador at Constantinople [Istanbul] (Sir Gerard Augustus Lowther); the British Consul at Bussorah [Basra] (Francis Edward Crow); the Acting British Consul for Arabistan (Arnold Talbot Wilson).The middle portion of the file (ff 17-50) comprises copies of correspondence from the Basrah [Basra] archives, dated 1873-1878, sent to the Political Agent at Bahrain (Major Stuart George Knox) by Wilson in December 1910 (covering letter, f 16):letters dated 1878 from the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Lieutenant-Colonel Edward Charles Ross), reporting of the destruction of Zobara [Zubarah] by the Shaikh of el Bidaa [Al Bidda] with ‘two or three thousand followers’, under a Turkish flag (ff 20-21);letters dated 1873-1874, chiefly between the British Consul at Baghdad (Colonel Charles Herbert) and the British Ambassador at Constantinople (Sir Henry George Elliot), discussing a disagreement between British and Turkish Government officials over the Turkish Government’s intention to conscript Bahrainis residing in Turkish-administered Iraq into the Ottoman army, including a copy and translation of a memorial from the ‘Bahrainees of Kerbulla [Karbalā']’ (ff 22-50).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 88; 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 2-87; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.Condition: There is considerable insect damage on some pages in the file, in the form of small holes in the paper. However the damage is not sufficient to impair the legibility of any text.

2. ‘File 28/57 II Volunteers for national service’

Description:

Abstract: The volume comprises applications made by individuals in Bahrain (chiefly employees of the Bahrain Petroleum Company, BAPCO) for emergency commission to the military forces, and correspondence concerning official policy towards volunteers for military duty, and proposals for the introduction in Bahrain and Qatar of conscription for military duty. The file is a direct chronological continuation of ‘File 28/57 I Volunteers for national service’ (IOR/R/15/2/748). The principal correspondents in the file are: the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Geoffrey Prior; Lieutenant-Colonel William Rupert Hay); the Political Agent at Bahrain (Hugh Weightman; Major Reginald George Evelin William Alban); the Chief Local Representative of the Bahrain Petroleum Company (BAPCO) (Ward P Anderson; Milton H Lipp).The volume includes:correspondence throughout between the Political Agent at Bahrain and BAPCO representatives, concerning individuals who have applied for military service, including: individuals’ contractual obligations and the importance of their work to BAPCO, education and employment references, suitability for military service, medical certificates, exit permits, arrangements for passage out of Bahrain;correspondence related to efforts to secure the return to Bahrain from India of a Miss Henninghem, a nurse previously employed by BAPCO, in consequence of the BAPCO hospital starting to admit members of the armed forces (ff 48-49, ff 86-88, ff 99-100);correspondence relating to efforts to secure the services of four British or European women to work as coding staff at the naval wireless transmission office in Bahrain, including enquiries made by the Political Agency to various British organisations and expatriates in Bahrain, asking after the availability of any possible candidates (ff 58-68);correspondence and papers relating to enquiries into the conscription of former BAPCO employees (and others) who are British subjects (including British Canadian and Trinidadian) in India, upon their departure from Bahrain, under the Indian National Service Act (f 118, f 128, ff 133-142, f 175, ff 198-202), and associated correspondence concerning: the difficulties faced by BAPCO in retaining Canadian employees who would prefer to return to work in Canada (ff 164-165); BAPCO employees who take leave in South Africa, only to inform BAPCO that they have no intention of returning to Bahrain (f 189, ff 196-197); queries over the legality of applying the Indian National Service Act to British Canadians (f 217, ff 229-230, ff 242-242); Government proposals, supported by BAPCO, to introduce conscription in Bahrain for work considered essential to the war effort, including oil production, eventually enshrined as Defence Regulation No. 2 of 1942, under the Persian Gulf States (Emergency) Order in Council (1939) (ff 271-272, ff 275-277, ff 282-285, ff 290-322);correspondence relating to the recruitment of Royal Naval Volunteer Reserves (RNVR) at Bahrain, including enquiries made by the Political Agency to various organisations in Bahrain, asking after the availability of any possible candidates (ff 121-127, f 129, ff 143-144).While the earliest piece of correspondence in the volume is dated 24 February 1930 (a school reference submitted by a BAPCO employee, f 174), the volume commences with correspondence dated from October 1940.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 357; 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 6-278; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and are located in the same position as the main sequence.

3. ‘File 28/57-III Volunteers for National Service: Conscription of Labour, etc.’

Description:

Abstract: The file contains copies of correspondence and other papers relating to the introduction and application of Defence Regulation No. 2 of 1942, issued under the Persian Gulf States (Emergency) Order in Council (1939). The Regulation stipulated that British subjects employed at the Bahrain Petroleum Company (BAPCO) and Petroleum Concessions Limited (PCL), whose operations were considered essential to the war effort, could not leave their post without the permission of the Political Agent at Bahrain. The file is a direct chronological continuation of ‘File 28/57 II Volunteers for national service’ (IOR/R/15/2/749). The principal correspondents in the file are: the (officiating) Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Lieutenant-Colonel William Rupert Hay); the Political Agent at Bahrain (Edward Birkbeck Wakefield); the Chief Local Representative of BAPCO (Milton H Lipp; Ward P Anderson).The file includes:copies of correspondence dated November 1941, relating to the introduction of a regulation under the Emergency Powers (Defence) Act (1939-1940) in Persia [Iran], prohibiting employees of the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (AIOC) and Imperial Bank from leaving their jobs without prior official consent (ff 3-13);copies of correspondence, papers, and file notes, dated from March 1942, detailing discussion between the Political Resident, Government of India officials, Political Agent at Bahrain, and BAPCO and PCL representatives, over the drafting and implementation of an emergency regulation to be made under the Persian Gulf States (Emergency) Order in Council (1939). The correspondence discusses: the applicability of the regulation to Indian as well as ‘British-European’ employees; the allocation of leave to Indian employees; opposition of BAPCO and PCL to conscription; employees’ likely response to the Regulation; questions of jurisdiction over Canadian and United States employees; punishment of offenders under the regulation; copies of Defence Regulation No. 2 of 1942, dated 7 May 1942 (ff 102-103, ff 117-118); letters to the managers of BAPCO, PCL and Petroleum Development (Qatar) Limited (PDQ), all dated 8 May 1942, informing them of the implementation of the Defence Regulation (ff 104-112);correspondence concerning shortages of staff at BAPCO, including lists of staff whose contracts have expired or have resigned, roles required to be filled, and efforts to recruit employees from the Burmah Oil Company and from Caltex (Africa) Limited, in South Africa;correspondence relating to individual BAPCO employees, either applying for temporary leave, including compassionate leave, and reassignment. The correspondence includes: applications for leave; assessments of the individuals’ importance to operations; employment records; correspondence relating to the granting of exit permits by the Political Agent; notices informing employees due to depart Bahrain on leave of their duty to return to Bahrain after their leave has completed, or face arrest and conviction under the Defence Regulation (f 155);notes and correspondence dated from March 1942 relating to the increased cost of living in Bahrain, due to the rising costs of foodstuffs, and the possibility of granting additional allowances to Indian BAPCO employees (ff 56-60, ff 68-71).Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1 and terminates at the back cover with 257; 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 3-256; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.

4. 'File D/2 Miscellaneous Correspondence with Basrah'

Description:

Abstract: This file largely consists of correspondence between the British Consul, Basra, and the Political Agent, Bahrain, regarding Bahraini citizens residing in Iraq. Most of the file is concerned with requests for the Political Agent's assistance, made by the Consul on behalf of various Bahraini citizens. The file contains translated copies of letters and petitions addressed to the Consul, and one item that is written in Arabic: an original copy of a letter, which is also addressed to the British Consul.Matters discussed in the correspondence include: the repatriation to Basra (where his father lives) of a boy living in Bahrain; the arrest (and subsequent release without charge) in Iraq of a Bahraini citizen; disputes regarding the nationalities of persons enlisted for military training under Iraq's conscription law; a Bahraini citizen's request for assistance in the recovery of proceeds and jewellery from two fellow Bahrainis; the verification of the legality (in British law) of a marriage performed in the Shara [Sharia] Court of Bahrain.Other correspondents include the Assistant Political Agent, Bahrain, and Charles Dalrymple Belgrave, Adviser to the Government of Bahrain.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 51; 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 3-30 and ff 31-36; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.

5. Ext 5661/41 'Propaganda in Persia – economic incl. H.M.G.'s influence over Govt. formed in 1941.'

Description:

Abstract: This file relates to British propaganda (in the form of food packages, radio broadcasts and literature) in Persia [Iran] during the first few months of the British and Russian occupation of the country. It contains correspondence discussing the internal affairs of Persia from a British perspective, as relayed to the Foreign Office by His Majesty's Ambassador in Tehran (Sir Reader William Bullard). Other prominent correspondents include the Secretary of State for India (Leo Amery) and officials of the Foreign Office and the Government of India's External Affairs Department.Matters discussed include the following:Political affairs in Persia, including appointments, resignations, and Cabinet reshuffles.Food shortages in Persia and a proposed 'propaganda scheme', whereby the Government of India would supply Persia with around one ton of sugar, from which small boxes of sugar would be distributed to the poor.The administration of the ex-Shah's [Reza Shah Pahlavi] estates.Proposed subjects for British and Government of India propaganda directed towards Persia, such as the position of the new Shah and the benefits of abolishing conscription.Bullard's proposal that food packages sent to Persia by the British should include the statement '[s]upplied by the British Empire'.The file includes a divider which gives a list of correspondence references contained in the file by year. This is placed at the back of the correspondence (folio 1).Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 71; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.

6. Ext 4003/43 'Retention by Messrs Keymer Son and Co of services of Mr George Savery –q[uestio]n of deferment of call up'

Description:

Abstract: This file consists primarily of letters between the Foreign Office and Keymer, Son and Company Limited. In their correspondence, Messrs Keymer request deferment of the conscription of one of the employee's because of their value to the company.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 12; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.

7. Coll 17/26 'Iraq. Army.'

Description:

Abstract: The file contains papers relating to the Iraqi armed forces, mostly concerning the introduction of conscription in Iraq under a system of National Service. The file also includes papers regarding the military policy of the Government of Iraq, and the concern of the chief of the Iraqi General Staff about the possibility of an attack on Iraq by Iran.The papers mainly consist of correspondence between HM Embassy at Baghdad (Sir Francis Henry Humphrys, George Arthur Ogilvie-Forbes, Sir Archibald Clark Kerr, Sir Charles Harold Bateman), and the Foreign Office (Sir John Simon, Sir Samuel Hoare, Anthony Eden), copies of which were sent to the Under Secretary of State for India. The file also includes India Office Political Department minute papers.In addition, the file includes a copy letter from the Chancery of HM Embassy, Baghdad, to the Political Agency at Kuwait (with a copy of the Kuwait Intelligence Summary for the period from 1 to 15 April 1939), and a letter from Trenchard Craven William Fowle, Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, Bushire, to Roland Tennyson Peel of the India Office, regarding the moving of the Basra Garrison to Zubair.The file includes a divider, which gives lists of correspondence references contained in the file by year. This is placed at the back of the correspondence.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 55; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.

8. Coll 28/36 ‘Army & Air Force: Condition of; Manoeuvres; Foreign Advisers; Conscription Law.’

Description:

Abstract: Correspondence and papers reporting on non-combat activities of the Persian [Iranian] army and air force in Persia:Detailed reports of military manoeuvres and reviews, including troop numbers, their organisation and presentation, with lists of equipment and vehicles.The appointment of Swedish advisers to the Persian army and air force.The purchase of military aeroplanes.A copy, in English, of the Iranian Government’s Conscription Law, passed by the Majlis on 29 Khordad 1317 (equivalent to 19 June 1938) (ff 7-51).The file contains a single copy of correspondence written French, sent by the Iranian Legation in London to British Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (f 58).Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 147; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.