Abstract: This file contains correspondence and documents related to the work of the Aden Boundary Commission, the British Government body tasked with the delineation of the borders of the British Protectorate of Aden. Much of the correspondence in the file relates specifically to the Amiri border region.The file contains a number of letters from Colonel Robert Alexander Wahab, the Commissioner of the Aden Boundary Commission, sent to the Political and Secret Department of the India Office in London (and the British Political Residency in Aden).The following documents are contained in the file:a report written by Colonel Wahab regarding the demarcation of the Amiri border (folios 178-184);a Foreign Office memorandum entitled 'Memorandum on the Boundary of the British Protectorate of Aden' (folios 706-708);a note compiled by the India Office entitled 'Aden Boundary' (folios 709-711).The majority of the correspondence in the file is in English, but also enclosed is a limited amount of correspondence from the Ottoman Ambassador in London that is in French.The file contains a printed map of the Aden frontier on folio 726.The volume includes a divider which gives the year that the subject file was opened, the subject heading, and a list of correspondence references contained in it arranged by year. This divider is placed at the front of the volume.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the inside front cover with 1 and terminates at the inside back cover with 758; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.
Abstract: This file contains correspondence between British officials regarding the delineation of the border between the British Protectorate of Aden and the Ottoman Vilayet of Yemen.Much of the correspondence is between officials at the Foreign Office and the India Office. Much of the correspondence relates to negotiations between the British and the Ottoman Empire and the work of the Anglo-Turkish Boundary Commission (under Colonel Robert Alexander Wahab and Colonel Mustapha Remzi Bey). The file contains some copies of correspondence in French that were sent to Ottoman officials in the course of negotiations.The file contains seven maps, the details of which are as follows:a series of four maps entitled 'South Arabia, Anglo-Turkish Boundary' Sheets 1-4 (folios 43-46);a printed map entitled 'Map of Subaihi Border' with place names in English and Arabic (folio 120);a printed map of the Shekh Sa'id [Sheikh Said] Peninsula (folio 121);a printed map entitled 'Sketch Map of Aden Boundary' (folio 276).The volume includes a divider which gives the year that the subject file was opened, the subject heading, and a list of correspondence references contained in it arranged by year. This divider is placed at the front of the volume.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the inside front cover with 1 and terminates at the inside back cover with 300; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.
Abstract: This volume contains correspondence, reports, telegrams, a memorandum and minutes between Sultan of Nejd Ibn Saud [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd] and the British Representative regarding the negotiations of the Transjordan boundary after the First World War. Related matters of discussion include the following: Gilbert Clayton’s mission; a conference agreement with tribunal representation; relations between Iran and Nejd relating to refugee issues; the British mandate; the railway in the southern part of Nejd; Mullah Hafiz; the Bahra agreement; the Hada Agreement; the Jeddah Agreement; and conflicts and riots between Iraq and Nejd around the frontier. The correspondence in the volume is mainly internal correspondence between British officials, although the Sultan of Nejd and officials from the Iraqi Government also feature.The principal correspondents are: the High Commissioner for Iraq; Under Secretary of States; Sir Gilbert Falkingham Clayton, British Agent and Consul General in Jeddah; and the Government of Iraq. Other items of note include a hand-drawn map showing the Transjordan frontier (f 223), a draft of the negotiations between Gilbert Clayton and Ibn Saud (ff 287-305); an annotated draft of negotiations by R V Vernon (ff 123-167); a newspaper article about the Anglo-Wahabi Agreement (f 196); and finally a memorandum with a list by the Iraqi Government summited to the Tribunal regarding the damages after the raids (ff 55-57).The volume 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 foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with 1 and terminates at the last folio with 380; 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 between ff 256-378, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out. The foliation sequence does not include the front and back covers.
Abstract: The volume concerns the attempts of the British Government to mediate a settlement of the differences between the Shaikh of Kuwait (also referred to as Koweit), Sir Ahmad al-Jabir as-Subah [Aḥmad al-Jābir Āl Ṣabāḥ], and Ibn Saud [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd], King of Hejaz and Nejd (usually referred to as Nejd). The matters at issue between the two rulers included (1) the dispute over the Kuwait-Nejd-Iraq frontier; (2) a customs dispute; (3) raids by the Akhwan [Ikhwan] in Kuwait, and inter-tribal conflict in Nejd.In addition to India Office correspondence and memoranda, the volume includes correspondence from: the High Commissioner for Iraq; the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Lieutenant-Colonel Cyril Charles Johnson Barrett, later Lieutenant-Colonel Hugh Vincent Biscoe); the Political Agent, Kuwait (Lieutenant-Colonel Harold Richard Patrick Dickson); HM Minister, Jeddah (Sir Andrew Ryan); the Colonial Office; the Foreign Office; the Government of India; and the two rulers concerned.The papers cover: India Office confidential print entitled 'Koweit, 1908-1928', containing background information on the dispute between the Shaikh of Kuwait and Ibn Saud, 1928; discussion of the chief grievances of the Shaikh of Kuwait toward Ibn Saud, with sketch map showing tribal divisions on the Kuwait border, folios 388-390; a statement by the Shaikh of Kuwait of Akhwan raids, including numbers of persons killed and numbers of animals stolen, with proposals by the Shaikh for the settlement of his disputes with Ibn Saud (folios 377-387); Ibn Saud's blockade of Kuwait; discussion by British officials of inter-tribal conflict; discussion by British officials of the customs and frontier disputes; draft of an agreement between Kuwait and Nejd (folios 220-228); the activities of Ibn Saud's agents, including Ibrahim bin Arfaj; The Colonial Office's view that Kuwait should be maintained as a British-protected state, independent of both Iraq and Nejd (folios 147-148); Ibn Saud's refusal to meet Lieutenant-Colonel Biscoe to discuss matters; a British suggestion that the dispute between the two rulers might be settled on less formal lines, and the proposal to employ the tribal system known as
Arafato settle claims, November 1930-February 1931; £10,000 compensation paid by Ibn Saud, to be divided between Iraq and Kuwait, March 1931; and details of the claims for compensation made by the Shaikh of Kuwait against Ibn Saud, arising from Akhwan raids and the blockade of Kuwait, May-June 1931.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 contained by year. This is placed at the back of the correspondence.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with 1 and terminates at the last folio with 397; 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 161-397; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled. The foliation sequence does not include the front and back covers, nor does it include the leading and ending flyleaves.
Abstract: This file contains correspondence and documents related to the work of the Aden Boundary Commission, the British Government body tasked with the delineation of the borders of the British Protectorate of Aden. Much of the correspondence in the file relates specifically to the Subaihi border region.The file contains a number of letters from Colonel Robert Alexander Wahab, the Commissioner of the Aden Boundary Commission, sent to the Political and Secret Department of the India Office in London (and the British Political Residency in Aden). The file also contains extracts from Wahab's diary related to his work on the commission.The file contains a detailed report on the demarcation of the frontier entitled: 'Report on the Demarcation of the Frontier between the Tribes in the Protectorate of Aden and the Turkish Province of Yemen; by Major-General P. J. Maitland, C.B., Political Resident at Aden' (folios 25-44).The file contains a number of maps as follows:a printed map of the Sheikh Sa'id Peninsula (folio 94);a printed map of the border region of the British protectorate of Aden (folio 112);a printed map entitled 'Map of Haushabi and Subaihi Border' with list of place names in English and Arabic (folio 237);a printed map of the Sheikh Sa'id Peninsula (folio 239);a hand-drawn entitled 'Map Illustrating Southern Subaihi Frontier Proposals Referred to in Sir N O'Conor's Telegram No. 112' (folio 288);a printed sketch-map entitled 'Aden Boundary Commission Survey Sketch Accompanying No. 19 of 15th March 1904' (folio 291);a printed sketch entitled 'Aden Boundary Commission Survey Sketch Accompanying No. 21 of 15th March 1904' (folio 456);a printed map entitled 'Aden Frontier Survey, Subaihi Boundary in Wadi Ma'din' (folio 457).The file also contains correspondence related to French claims of ownership over Sheikh Said (Cheikh Said), a peninsula near the island of Perim on the Mandeb Strait at the entrance to the Red Sea. The file contains original copies of articles on this topic that were printed in the French newspaper
La Dépêche Colonialein September and October 1904
.The majority of the correspondence in the file is in English, but also enclosed is a limited amount of correspondence from the Ottoman Ambassador in London that is in French.The volume includes a divider which gives the year that the subject file was opened, the subject heading, and a list of correspondence references contained in it arranged by year. This divider is placed at the front of the volume.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation commences at the inside front cover and terminates at the inside 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.
Abstract: The papers concern the Kuwait-Nejd boundary dispute.Correspondence discusses the arbitration of the British Government in the matter of the border of Kuwaiti territory under the Shaikh of Kuwait [Shaikh Sālim bin Mubārak Āl Ṣabāḥ] with that of the Ruler of Nejd [Najd], Bin Saud [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd, popularly known as Ibn Sa‘ūd]. In this connection correspondence discusses the supersession of the Anglo-Turkish Convention 1913 by the British Government's 1915 agreement with Bin Saud in which he pledged to resolve disputes by peaceful means and submit to arbitration by the British Government. In addition the correspondence discusses potential hostilities between the Ruler of Ha'il led by the Rashidi dynasty of the Shammar tribe and the Ruler of Nejd, Bin Saud. Also discussed is the Battle of Jahra and the involvement of British military forces by air and sea.Correspondents include: the Civil Commissioner Baghdad; the High Commissioner, Mesopotamia; the Political Agent, Kuwait; the Political Agent, Bahrain; the Deputy Political Resident, Bushire; the Under-Secretary of State for India; the Secretary to the Government of India in the Foreign and Political Department, Simla; the Air Ministry; Abdul Aziz bin Hasan Qusaibi, Agent of Bin Saud in Bahrain; Bin Saud; the Shaikh of Kuwait; Abdullah al Mut'ab Al-Rashid, Shaikh of Jabal Shammar.Physical description: 1 item (144 folios)
Abstract: Copies of letters from the East India Company Envoy to Persia [Iran], Lieutenant-Colonel John Macdonald Kinneir, to the Government of India, dating from June 1826 to August 1826. Contained within are copies of six letters, numbered 7-9, 12, 14 and 15, from Macdonald Kinneir to the Chief Secretary to the Government of India, George Swinton, and two letters, one of which is numbered 11, from Macdonald-Kinneir to the Governor-General of India, Lord Amherst. The letters concern the journey of Macdonald Kinneir’s mission to the Court of the Shah of Persia and the outbreak of war between Russia and Persia over a territorial dispute in the Caucasus [Russo-Persian War, 1826-1828], covering a period preceding and succeeding the outbreak of war. Included are details of:The illness and death of members of Macdonald Kinneir’s entourageMacdonald Kinneir’s views on the possible course and outcome of war between Russia and PersiaThe question of Great Britain paying a subsidy to Persia upon the outbreak of war with RussiaThe outbreak of war between Persia and Russia, and Persian military operations against RussiaThe outbreak of rebellions in territories ceded to Russia by the Treaty Gulistan in 1813, including Dagistan [Dagestan], Shirwan [Shirvan], Shekee [Sheki], Karabaugh [Karabakh], and the involvement of the former rulers of these territoriesReports of the alleged arrest of the Russian envoy sent to Persia to negotiate the territorial dispute, Prince Minchikoff [Prince Aleksandr Sergeevich Menshikov]Macdonald Kinneir’s planned intercession on behalf of Russian prisoners of war.Also detailed is a report of negotiations between Russia and the Ottoman Empire, and of the rebellion and dissolution of the Ottoman Janissaries.This document was originally enclosed, numbered 1, in Macdonald Kinneir’s letter to the Secret Committee of the East India Company of 6 September 1826 (IOR/L/PS/9/70/131).Physical description: 1 item (12 folios)
Abstract: Copy of dispatch No. 1 from HM Chargé d’Affaires to Persia [Iran], Henry Willock, in Tehran, to HM Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, George Canning, of 13 January 1826. The letter originally enclosed copies of correspondence between the Russian General Wilhemenoff and the Prince Royal of Persia [Crown Prince of Persia, 'Abbās Mīrzā Qājār] concerning an ongoing border dispute between Russia and Persia over land on the shores of the lake of Gokcheh [Lake Sevan] (now catalogued as IOR/L/PS/9/70/68-69). The letter itself also concerns this frontier dispute, detailing:The Prince Royal’s erroneous reports of a build-up of Russian troops in the CaucasusThe mission of Mirza Saudik [Mirza Muhammad Sadiq Marvazi] to Tiflis [Tbilisi] to discuss the dispute with General WilhemenoffThe desire of the Shah of Persia [Fath-‘Ali Shāh Qājār] to open a correspondence with Canning concerning the dispute, and Willock’s efforts to defer the matter until the arrival of the East India Company Envoy to Persia, Lieutenant-Colonel John Macdonald Kinneir, in Persia.This document was originally enclosed in Willock’s letter to the Secret Committee of the East India Company of 17 February 1826 (IOR/L/PS/9/70/66).Physical description: 1 item (6 folios)
Abstract: Copy of dispatch No. 13 from HM Chargé d’Affaires to Persia [Iran], Henry Willock, at Camp Sultanieh [Solţānīyeh], to HM Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, George Canning, of 27 June 1826. The letter concerns the ongoing frontier dispute between Russia and Persia in the Caucasus, which has the possibility of leading to war. The letter details Persian proceedings concerning the dispute, including:The representations of the religious leader Aga Sied Mahomed [Agha Sayyid Muhammad Mujahid Isfahani, Ayat Allah] to the Shah of Persia [Fath-‘Ali Shāh Qājār] in favour of war in response to the reported mistreatment of Muslims in Russian territory in the CaucasusThe arrival of the Russian envoy charged with negotiating the frontier with the Persians, Prince Minchikoff [Prince Aleksandr Sergeevich Menshikov] at TabrizThe alarm of the Prince Royal of Persia [Crown Prince of Persia, 'Abbās Mīrzā Qājār] at the possibility of war with RussiaThe willingness of the Shah to settle the dispute peaceablyWillock’s representations to the Shah recommending a peaceful resolutionThe views of Persian ministers concerning the dispute, including the Prime Minister of Persia, Allah Ear Khan Auseff ed Dowleh [Allah Yar Khan Qajar Davallu, Asif al-Dawlah], and the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mirza Abul Hussun Khan [Mirza Abu'l-Hasan Khan Shirazi].The letter also originally enclosed extracts from Willock’s diary detailing the views of the Shah, the Prince Royal and the principle Persian ministers at the Court towards the dispute, which also contains a note of the communications between the Surgeon to HM Mission to Persia, Dr John McNeill, and the Prince Royal and the Shah (now catalogued as IOR/L/PS/9/70/97).This document was originally enclosed in Willock’s letter to the Secret Committee of the East India Company of 28 June 1826 (IOR/L/PS/9/70/95).Physical description: 1 item (10 folios)
Abstract: Copy of dispatch No. 14 from HM Chargé d’Affaires to Persia [Iran], Henry Willock, at Camp Sultanieh [Solţānīyeh], to HM Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, George Canning, of 15 July 1826. The letter details Persian proceedings at the camp of the Shah of Persia [Fath-‘Ali Shāh Qājār] at Sultanieh concerning the ongoing frontier dispute between Russia and Persia in the Caucasus, which has the possibility of leading to war, including:The influence of the Prime Minister of Persia, Allah Ear Khan [Allah Yar Khan Qajar Davallu, Asif al-Dawlah], and the Prince Royal of Persia, Abbas Mirza [Crown Prince of Persia, 'Abbās Mīrzā Qājār], over the ShahThe Crown Prince’s expressions in favour of war with RussiaThe failed negotiations between the Prince Royal and the Russian envoy Prince Minchikoff [Prince Aleksandr Sergeevich Menshikov] at TabrizThe enthusiastic reception of the religious leader Aga Sied Mahomed [Agha Sayyid Muhammad Mujahid Isfahani, Ayat Allah], who is in favour of war, at the campPrince Minchikoff’s arrival at Sultanieh and his audience with the ShahThe movement of Persian troops to the frontier with Russia.The letter also originally enclosed extracts from Willock’s journal between 3-12 July 1826 (now catalogued as IOR/L/PS/9/70/101), the translations of correspondence between Russian and Persian officials (now catalogued as IOR/L/PS/9/70/102), and a note from Minchikoff to the Vizier to the Prince Royal, the Kaem Mukam [Mirza Abu'l-Qasim Farahani, Qa'im Maqam] (now catalogued as IOR/L/PS/9/70/103).This document was originally enclosed in Willock’s letter to the Secret Committee of the East India Company of 23 July 1826 (IOR/L/PS/9/70/99).Physical description: 1 item (12 folios)
Abstract: Copy of dispatch No. 15 from HM Chargé d’Affaires to Persia [Iran], Henry Willock, at Camp Sultanieh [Solţānīyeh], to HM Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, George Canning, of 18 July 1826. The letter reports the unsuccessful termination of the negotiations between the Russian envoy to Persia, Prince Minchikoff [Prince Aleksandr Sergeevich Menshikov], and the Persian Government, concerning the frontier dispute between Russia and Persia in the Caucasus. Willock reports the circumstances of the termination of the negotiations, and the intention of the Shah of Persia to occupy the disputed territory (land on the shores of the lake of Gokcha [Lake Sevan]) by force. Willock details what he believes to be the Persian plans for hostilities and gives his views on the possible course of events, indicating that he believes that the outbreak of war between Russia and Persia is inevitable.This document was originally enclosed in Willock’s letter to the Secret Committee of the East India Company of 23 July 1826 (IOR/L/PS/9/70/99).Physical description: 1 item (6 folios)
Abstract: Copy of dispatch No. 16 from HM Chargé d’Affaires to Persia [Iran], Henry Willock, at Camp Sooltaneeah [Solţānīyeh], to HM Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, George Canning, of 23 July 1826. The letter reports a recommencement of negotiations between the Russian envoy to Persia, Prince Minchikoff [Prince Aleksandr Sergeevich Menshikov], and the Persian Government, and the rejection by the Shah [Fath-‘Ali Shāh Qājār] of Prince Minchikoff’s proposal for the temporary evacuation of the disputed territory (land on the shores of the lake of Gokcheh [Lake Sevan]) by Russia. Willock also reports an 'insurrection' in Talish [Talysh], in which a Russian force has been ‘cut up’, and the appeal made by the inhabitants of Talish for aid from Persian troops, which he believes has influenced the Shah’s decision.The letter originally enclosed extracts from Willock’s journal, reporting his communications with Prince Minchikoff (now catalogued as IOR/L/PS/9/70/106), and translations of a note from Prince Minchikoff to the Prime Minister of Persia [Allah Yar Khan Qajar Davallu, Asif al-Dawlah] (now catalogued as IOR/L/PS/9/70/107), and from the Persian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Meerza Abul Hassan Khan [Mirza Abu'l-Hasan Khan Shirazi] to the Russian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Count Karl Robert Nesselrode (now catalogued as IOR/L/PS/9/70/108).This document was originally enclosed in Willock’s letter to the Secret Committee of the East India Company of 23 July 1826 (IOR/L/PS/9/70/99).Physical description: 1 item (4 folios)