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1. 'File B/2 Oils and Minerals, Bahrain'
- Description:
- Abstract: The letters, office notes and other items contained in the volume relate to the discovery and survey of bitumen (or asphalt) deposits in Bahrain, and subsequent discussions between British officials and the ruler of Bahrain, Shaikh ‘Īsá bin ‘Alī Āl Khalīfah, on securing exclusive concessions to extract oil deposits in future. The principal correspondents in the file are the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf and the Political Agent at Bahrain (both posts being held by numerous incumbents during the period covered by the file), and Shaikh ‘Īsá bin ‘Alī Āl Khalīfah, ruler of Bahrain.In January 1901, John Calcott Gaskin, then Political Agent in Bahrain, wrote to the Political Resident Major Charles Kemball, reporting that asphalt deposits had been discovered at Jebbel Dukhan [Jabal ad Dukhkhān] in Bahrain, and were attracting the interest of the German company Wonckhaus & Co. (folios 1-2). In January 1902 Gaskin further reported to the Resident that Wonckhaus & Co. had approached Shaikh ‘Īsá with a view to securing exclusive rights to the extraction of the asphalt (folios 3-4). Between the years 1903 and 1909 British representatives carried out a number of geological surveys on the asphalt deposits, the first, in 1903, being carried out by Gaskin himself. The results of each of these surveys suggested that, though the deposits of asphalt were neither extensive nor commercially viable, they did provide evidence that more significant reserves of oil might be present (folios 17-24, 43-46, 79).Correspondence in the second half of the file shifts to the question of the Shaikh of Bahrain’s ownership of the asphalt/oil deposits, and efforts by British officials to secure exclusive rights to the mineral resources. In early 1914 the Political Agent, Major Arthur Trevor, exchanged a number of letters with Shaikh ‘Īsá, seeking assurances that British officials would be consulted prior to any attempts at extraction, and that the Shaikh would not consult anyone else over the extraction of his mineral resources (folios 83-100). Correspondence at the end of the volume indicates outside interest in Bahrain’s mineral resources. Enclosed with a letter addressed to the Political Resident dated 1 May 1914, the geologist and oil prospector Charteris A. Stewart enclosed a map showing the sites of oil seepages in the Gulf, including at Bahrain, and enquired after the governance of a number of islands in the Gulf (folios 106-07). In June 1914 the Bahrain Political Agent and the Political Resident discussed interest in the Gulf’s oil deposits from Messrs S. Pearson & Son, whom Stewart was representing (folio 108).Physical description: Foliation: The file is foliated from the first to last folio of writing with blue crayon numbers in the top-right corner of the recto of each folio. The following foliation anomalies occur: 31A, 61A, 61B.The following folios are fold-outs: 51, 52, 73, 83, 96.
2. 'File 5/1 I Mineral and oil deposits in Kuwait territory: surveys'
- Description:
- Abstract: This file contains correspondence and papers relating to some of the earliest attempts to prospect for oil deposits in Kuwait. It includes discussions between the Anglo-Persian Oil Company, the ruler of Kuwait, and British authorities on the potential for finding oil, and the commercial and operational arrangements required to extract it when it is found. Early versions of oil concessions are also included in the paperwork.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 108; 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 4-106; 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.
3. 'File 5/1 II Kuwait Oil Company'
- Description:
- Abstract: This file contains papers and correspondence relating to the initiation of oil exploration and extraction in Kuwait. It includes the initial agreements for prospecting and concessions rights with the Anglo-Persian Oil Company in Kuwait. The file includes numerous papers that discuss the progress of rival oil companies on the Arabian Peninsula's Persian Gulf coast, most notably, the Eastern and General Syndicate under the guidance of Major Frank Holmes. The letters and agreements are mainly exchanged between the Political Agent in Kuwait, the Ruler of Kuwait, and the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, as well as representatives of the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company.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 274; 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 64-269; 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.
4. 'File 8/28 MUSCAT STATE AFFAIRS: SIR SAIYID SAEED BIN TAIMUR – QUESTION OF TITLE & LETTERS AFTER SULTAN'S NAME: BI-CENTINARY CELEBRATIONS & ISSUE OF STAMPS'
- Description:
- Abstract: This file relates to the position of the Sultan of Muscat and Oman and the commemoration of the bicentenary (written as 'bi-centinary' on the file's cover) of the formation of the Al bu Said [Āl Bū Sa‘īd] dynasty.Notable correspondents include the following: the Political Agent and Consul, Muscat; the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf; the Sultan of Muscat and Oman [Sa‘īd bin Taymūr Āl Bū Sa‘īd]; the Government of Muscat and Oman's Minister for Foreign Affairs; officials of the India Office and the Government of India.The correspondence includes discussion of the following: the question of how the Sultan should be addressed in official correspondence; the selection of the Sultan's successor; the announcement of the birth of the Sultan's son [Qaboos Āl Bū Sa‘īd] in early December 1940; the precise date of the bicentennial of the Al bu Said dynasty; arrangements for the issuing of commemorative postage stamps for the bicentenary; requests from various correspondents for commemorative stamps; scheduled geological exploratory work in Dhofar [Zufār].The Arabic language material consists of correspondence between the Political Agent and representatives of the Sultan of Muscat and Oman.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 239; these numbers are written in pencil 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.
5. 'File 8/90 III ECONOMIC AGRICULTURAL & INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT IN MUSCAT TERRITORY.'
- Description:
- Abstract: This file relates to agricultural and industrial development in the Sultanate of Muscat and Oman. The bulk of the file consists of a copy of a report produced by Brian Joseph Hartley, Director of Agriculture, Aden, which is entitled 'A Preliminary Report on the Agricultural Resources of the Batinah Coast – Sultanate of Muscat and Oman' (ff 27-67). A similar report relating to the province of Dhofar was produced by Hartley two years previously (see IOR/R/15/6/282).Two letters exchanged between the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf and the Foreign Office discuss the steps that the Sultan of Muscat and Oman [Sa‘īd bin Taymūr Āl Bū Sa‘īd] intends to take to implement the recommendations made by Hartley in his report. It is noted that the recruitment of an agricultural officer and a fisheries officer from India or Pakistan is being considered, with the Foreign Office suggesting that the Sultan should consider recruiting Palestinians for these posts, with a view to later allowing Palestinian refugees to settle as cultivators in Muscat.Also covered very briefly in the file is the recent visit of consulting geologist Sir Cyril Sankey Fox to Dhofar to examine lead ore deposits, and Fox's wish to carry out similar prospecting in Oman.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 68; 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.
6. 'File 8/90 II ECONOMIC, Agricultural & INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT IN MUSCAT TERRITORY'
- Description:
- Abstract: This file relates to the agricultural and industrial development of the Sultanate of Muscat and Oman. The first half of the file concerns a report on the land resources of the province of Dhofar (also spelled as Dhufar), produced by Brian Joseph Hartley, Director of Agriculture, Aden. A copy of the report, dated 20 March 1948 and entitled 'A Preliminary Survey of the Land Resources of the Dhufar Province, Sultanate of Muscat and Oman', is included in the file, along with a series of photographs depicting water supplies, examples of irrigation farming, palm and olive groves, and cattle (ff 37-60).The second half of the file primarily concerns a visit to Dhofar by consulting geologist Sir Cyril Sankey Fox, to examine lead ore deposits, after being granted a mineral prospecting licence by the Sultan of Muscat and Oman [Sa‘īd bin Taymūr Āl Bū Sa‘īd].The file's principal correspondents are the following: the Political Agent and Consul, Muscat; the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf; the Foreign Office; the Sultan of Muscat and Oman [Sa‘īd bin Taymūr Āl Bū Sa‘īd]; Sir Cyril Sankey Fox.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 61; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.
7. Political No. 23 of 1874, Forwarding a Copy of Papers Relating to the Projected Exploration of the Persian Gulf by a British Company to be Established for the Purpose of Pearl Fishing
- Description:
- 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 30 January 1874 and received by the India Office via Brindisi on 24 February 1874, forwarding a copy of papers relating to the projected exploration of the Persian Gulf by a British company to be established for the purpose of pearl fishing. The papers comprise letters from officers of the Persian Gulf Residency concerning the activities of Lieutenant Walter Grant, formerly of the Indian Navy, deputed by 'certain speculators' to investigate the projected establishment of a commercial company to obtain pearls from the Persian Gulf banks with 'modern scientific appliances' and to obtain concessions from the Chief of Bahrein [Bahrain] 'or other Arab Chiefs'. The scheme is considered undesirable by the Political Resident and the Government of India, a view supported in a fourteen-point report by Colonel Lewis Pelly, (Agent to the Governor-General, Rajpootna [Rajputana], and Resident in the Persian Gulf 1862-1872), to the Government of India Foreign Department (ff 428-249).Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description (used for referencing) commences at f 246, and terminates at f 249, 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 246a, and f 247a.
8. Political No. 23 of 1874, Forwarding a Copy of Papers Relating to the Projected Exploration of the Persian Gulf by a British Company to be Established for the Purpose of Pearl Fishing
- Description:
- 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 30 January 1874 and received by the India Office via Brindisi on 24 February 1874, forwarding a copy of papers relating to the projected exploration of the Persian Gulf by a British company to be established for the purpose of pearl fishing. The papers comprise letters from officers of the Persian Gulf Residency concerning the activities of Lieutenant Walter Grant, formerly of the Indian Navy, deputed by 'certain speculators' to investigate the projected establishment of a commercial company to obtain pearls from the Persian Gulf banks with 'modern scientific appliances' and to obtain concessions from the Chief of Bahrein [Bahrain] 'or other Arab Chiefs'. The scheme is considered undesirable by the Political Resident and the Government of India, a view supported by a fourteen-point report by Colonel Lewis Pelly (Agent to the Governor-General, Rajpootna [Rajputana] and Resident in the Persian Gulf 1862-1872), to the Government of India Foreign Department (ff 259-260 and 263-264).Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description (used for referencing) commences at f 258, and terminates at f 264, 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 three foliation anomalies: f 258a, f 261a, and f 262a.
9. Coll 30/110(3) 'Trucial Coast Oil Concessions: Hinterland Exploration and Survey. Trucial Coast Boundaries. Trucial Coast Surveys 1938-9.'
- Description:
- Abstract: The file relates to geological survey work carried out by Petroleum Concessions Limited (PCL) (and its subsidiaries Petroleum Development (Trucial Coast) Limited and Petroleum Development (Oman and Dhofar) Limited) to identify productive sources of oil in the hinterland of the Trucial Coast and Muscat and Oman (particularly in the area around Buraimi).The papers include: the extent to which the Trucial Coast hinterland was under the control of Trucial Coast rulers; the question of the boundaries of the Trucial Coast states, including a set of reports by the Political Agent, Bahrain and Residency Agent, Sharjah, dated 1937 (folios 461-473); local tribes; the importance to general British policy in the Middle East of the friendship and stability of Saudi Arabia (folio 444); the question of the borders of Saudi Arabia and Muscat and Oman; minutes of meetings between India Office officials and representatives of Petroleum Concessions Limited; agreement that the Royal Air Force (RAF) should assist in carrying out aerial surveys of the area, 1937; the emphasis of the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Trenchard Craven William Fowle) on the importance of establishing whether oil existed in commercial quantities within the British sphere of influence in the Persian Gulf, in view of the fact that the majority of oil wells in the region were in Iran, 1937 (folios 395, 382, 208-210); the difficulties in arranging a visit by the Company's geologists to Jebel Faiyah [Jabal al Fāyah] and other parts of the Trucial Coast interior, 1938; the use by the Company of a civil aircraft for aerial surveys, 1938 (folios 328, 263); a report on local tribal politics in the Baraimi [Buraimi] area, 1938 (folios 229-236); sketch map of region, folio 216; the presence in the area of two PCL exploration parties to Buraimi, November-December 1938; a report by the Assistant Political Agent, Bahrain (Captain John Baron Howes), who accompanied one of the parties, with comments by the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf and the Political Agent, Bahrain, and two sketch maps, folios 144-169; further plans for exploration by the Company in 1939, with sketch map (folios 116-118); Fowle's view that the explorations should help to dispel the view that American oil interests would do more to explore the region (folio 151), contrasted with his feeling in July 1939 that PCL were looking for excuses not to proceed with proposals from the Sultan of Muscat for further exploration (folio 49); the postponement of surveys in 1939 and 1940 as a result of war conditions; and the continuation of annual concession payments to the shaikhs concerned, 1943 (folio 4).The papers also contain a significant amount of correspondence from the Political Agent and HBM's Consul, Muscat.The Arabic language content of the papers consists of four annual reports in both English and Arabic on the Company' operations in 1940, sent to local rulers.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.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 501; 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 2-500; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
10. Coll 30/110(4) 'Trucial Coast Oil Concession: Muscat Oil Concession. Hinterland Exploration & Survey.'
- Description:
- Abstract: The file concerns geological and geophysical surveys for oil and other minerals in the hinterland of Muscat and Oman (especially Dhofar Province, also referred to as Dhufar) and the Trucial Coast (especially Sharjah) undertaken by the substantially British-owned Iraq Petroleum Company (IPC) and its subsidiaries Petroleum Concessions Limited, Petroleum Development (Trucial Coast) Limited, and Petroleum Development (Oman and Dhofar) Limited. The British Government were keen to assist IPC to resume exploration, which had been discontinued during the Second World War, in view of the political, strategic and economic importance of the Company's oil concessions in the area (folio 275).The papers include: the extent to which certain tribal areas were under the control of local rulers; the need for demarcation of the boundaries of the Trucial Coast states; list of concession and political agreements in force in 1945 in the various Trucial Coast states (folios 267-268); interest on the part of the Shaikh of Fujairah in entering into treaty relations with the British Government (folio 210); minutes of meetings at the India Office between British Government officials and oil company representatives; permission from the British Government to employ American personnel in survey work (folios 186-193); papers concerning a report by Sir Cyril Sankey Fox, formerly Director of the Geological Survey of India, for the Sultanate of Muscat and Oman entitled 'The Geology and Mineral and Other Resources of Dhufar Province and Other Parts of the Sultanate of Muscat and Oman, South-East Arabia', March-May 1947 (folios 64-100), including correspondence from the author of the report; sketch map provided by the Political Agent, Muscat (Major Andrew Charles Stewart), which is said by him to have been marked by the Sultan of Muscat [Sa‘īd ibn Taymūr] to show the western boundary of Dhofar (folio 68); a request by Petroleum Development (Trucial Coast) Limited that geological factors be taken into account in determining the boundary between Abu Dhabi and Dubai, with sketch map (folios 57-58); Petroleum Concessions Limited 'Instructions to Field Party for Geological Reconnaissance of Southeastern Hadhramaut, the Mahra, and Dhofar' (folios 49-53); and minutes of Foreign Office meeting to discuss the south-eastern frontiers of Saudi Arabia, July 1947.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.Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the inside the front cover with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 336; these numbers are written in pencil 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 327-335; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and have been crossed out. Finally, the second folio is listed as ‘1A’ rather than ‘2.’
11. Coll 30/87(2) Part I 'Qatar: Oil Concession.'
- Description:
- Abstract: The file concerns the signing of the agreement between the British Government, the Anglo-Persian Oil Company (APOC) (later the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company), and the Shaikh of Qatar, Abdullah bin Qasim al Thani [‘Abdullāh bin Jāsim Āl Thānī] to award the company an exclusive oil concession in Qatar (also spelled Qatr and Katr). The file also concerns preliminary oil explorations in Qatar, and the subsequent suspension of operations on the orders of the British Government.The papers cover: discussion, drafts and text of the commercial agreement between the Shaikh of Qatar and APOC (signed 17 May 1935); discussion, draft and text of the political agreement between HM Government and APOC (signed 5 June 1935); the use by the Shaikh of modern, Egyptian Arabic to make comments on the draft (folios 624-625); British support for the proposal that disputes between foreign employees of the company and inhabitants of Qatar should not be submitted to the Shara [Sharia] courts (folio 604); intelligence on the activities of the Standard Oil Company [California-Arabia Standard Oil Company] (e.g. folio 443); British emphasis that military protection would be afforded to the Shaikh of Qatar on condition that he awarded the oil concession to APOC, and the assumption by Britain of responsibility for the protection of Qatar (e.g. folios 400-403); the transfer of the concession from the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company to Petroleum Development (Qatar) Limited (e.g. folios 335-357); the payment of salaries to the Shaikh's representatives (e.g. folios 294-295); water drilling operations by the company (e.g. folios 237-241); references to Qatar's disputed border with Saudi Arabia; reports of preliminary drilling results and first discoveries of oil (1939-41); employment of foreign personnel by Petroleum Concessions Limited in Qatar (folios 180-182); the suspension of drilling operations on the orders of HM Government in 1942 as a result of war conditions, including correspondence on the subject between British officials and the Shaikh of Qatar, 1942-43; note that the suspension had been ordered because the British military authorities were unable to spare sufficient personnel to ensure the destruction of the oil wells, should the military situation demand it (folio 41); correspondence dated 1944 concerning a proposed increase in world oil refining capacity; and further correspondence dated 1944 concerning the boundary between Qatar and Bahrain at Hawar Island.The main correspondents are senior officials at the India Office, representatives of the oil companies concerned, and the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf.The Arabic language content of the file consists of approximately 30 folios of correspondence, largely between British officials and the Ruler of Qatar.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.Physical description: Foliation: this file consists of four physical volumes. The foliation sequence commences at the inside front cover of volume one (ff 1-161) and terminates at the inside back cover of volume four (ff 486-647); 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.
12. File 2249/1915 Pt 1 ‘Oil: Mesopotamia & Persia: General File’
- Description:
- Abstract: Correspondence and other papers concerning oil exploration and applications for oil concessions in Mesopotamia [Iraq] and in the frontier region between Mesopotamia and Persia [Iran] during and in the years following the First World War, when Mesopotamia was under British military occupation and administration. The papers cover: an application for an oil concession on the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, made to the British Government by the Motor Petrol Association Limited, 1918; an application made to the Government by the Anglo-Persian Oil Company (APOC) for an extension of their Persia oil concession to cover the ‘Persian Gulf littoral’, 1918; the development of an oilfield at Naft Khana [Nafţ Khānah] in Mesopotamia, with company expenditure paid from British military funds; discussion of the position of the Turco-Persian frontier in relation to the Naft Khana oilfields; the transfer of territory from Persia to Mesopotamia, and the formation of a new company by APOC to apply for concession rights in this territory; discussion between the British civil administration in Mesopotamia, HM Petroleum Executive, APOC, the India Office and Foreign Office, on future oil policy in Mesopotamia; the US Ambassador in London’s concern that representatives of the Standard Oil Company of New York were being forbidden to undertake geological surveying work in Mesopotamia, 1919.The file’s principal correspondents are: the Civil Commissioner in Mesopotamia, Arnold Talbot Wilson; the India Office; the Foreign Office; HM Petroleum Executive.The volume 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.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 236; 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.
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