Abstract: The file consists of papers regarding an investigation by the Committee of Imperial Defence, Standing Official Sub-Committee for Questions Concerning the Middle East relating to the employment of German nationals in oil installations, particularly by the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company Limited and Iraq Petroleum Company.It contains: notes from the War Office, Petroleum Department, and Secretary to the Sub-Committee; and agendas and minutes for Sub-Committee meetings on 20 December 1938 and 1 May 1939. 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 front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 22; 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 volume contains papers regarding relations between Persia [Iran] and Iraq. It primarily concerns the frontier delineated by the 1913-1914 Boundary Commission, in particular Persian claims over areas of the Shatt el-Arab, and rights to oilfields in the Naft Khana [Naft Khāna] or Khaniqin [Khāniqīn]area. The papers document renewed negotiations over the border, and include discussion of the following topics: Iraqi concerns over Persian military activities conducted in Iraq; Persia's refusal to recognise the validity of the 1914 Frontier Delimitation Protocol; attempts to redraw the frontier at the Shatt el-Arab along the
thalweg[valley way], as opposed to the
medium filum aquae; proposals to revive the Shatt el-Arab Conservancy Board Scheme; and proposals for an agreement to regulate the exploitation of the oilfields in the transferred territories on the frontier near Khanqin, including the proposed creation of a special zone. These papers primarily consist of correspondence between the following: HM Ambassadors at Baghdad, Teheran and Italy; the India Office Political Department; the Foreign Office (principally Sir John Simon, and J C Sterndale-Bennet); the Iraqi Minister for Foreign Affairs; and the Persian Minister for Foreign Affairs.In 1935 the Iraqi Government formally raised the question of the frontier with the Council of the League of Nations, and sought a Court ruling as to the validity of the 1914 Boundary Protocol. The Italian delegate to the League (Baron Pompeo Aloisi) was designated Rapporteur to the negotiations, and the volume contains correspondence between the Foreign Office and HM Ambassador in Rome, regarding a proposed Italo-Iraqi Treaty of Friendship, proposals regarding the frontier made by Aloisi, and general Italian influence over Iran and Iraq. The volume also includes copies of memoranda and minutes circulated by the League, in addition to correspondence regarding the negotiations in Geneva and Italy, and documents from the Committee of Imperial Defence Standing Official Sub-Committee for Questions Concerning the Middle East.The volume includes a divider giving a list of correspondence references found in the volume by year. This is placed at the end of the correspondence (folio 1).Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at the first folio with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 472; these numbers are written in pencil and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. The front and back covers, along with the two leading and two ending flyleaves, have not been foliated.
Abstract: This volume is a continuation of Collection 17/5, and contains papers regarding negotiations between Persia [Iran] and Iraq at the League of Nations in 1935, mediated by Italian delegate Baron Pompeo Aloisi. The papers primarily consist of communications regarding the negotiations submitted to the Foreign Office by HM Ambassadors at Rome, Teheran and Baghdad, as well as comments by the India Office Political Department, the Admiralty, and representatives of the Governments of Persia, Iraq, and Italy.The negotiations concerned the frontier line along the Shatt el-Arab, the possibility of granting a Persian anchorage at Abadan [Ābādān], the rights of Persian and British warships to traverse and refuel on the river, and the proposed establishment of a Conservancy Board. Following negotiations in Geneva, Rome and Tehran, the Persian and Iraqi Governments had practically agreed on three instruments: a pact of non-aggression, to be signed by Iraq, Persia and Turkey; a treaty for the peaceful settlement of international disputes between Persia and Iraq; and a treaty of friendship, which would settle the frontier question and establish the Conservancy Board.In addition to the correspondence, the volume contains: documents circulated by the Council of the League of Nations; Reports on the Sessions of the Council submitted to the Foreign Office by C J Edmonds, Second Adviser to the Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs; multiple drafts of the treaty of friendship and non-aggression treaties; and copies of notes exchanged by the Iraqi and Persian Ministers at the League of Nations. A number of these documents are written in French.The volume includes a divider which gives a list of correspondence references contained in the volume by year. This is placed at the end of the correspondence (folio 1).Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with 1 and terminates at the last folio with 498; 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 leading and ending flyleaves. An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 1-498; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
Abstract: This file relates to the administration of Syria and the possibility of the French Government installing a King of Syria.The file mostly contains copies of Colonial Office and Foreign Office correspondence, much of which consists of copies of the minutes, memoranda and correspondence of the Committee of Imperial Defence's Standing Official Sub-Committee for Questions Concerning the Middle East, which discuss how the British Government should respond to rumours that the French Government has been approaching both King Feisal of Iraq [Fayṣal bin Ḥusayn bin ‘Alī al-Hāshimī] and his brother, Ali [‘Alī bin Ḥusayn al-Hāshimī], as candidates for the throne of Syria.Related matters discussed in the correspondence include:The British stance on whether Iraq and Syria should be ruled by one king.The possibility of Syria becoming a republic rather than a monarchy, with a Syrian as President (an outcome which is deemed to be more suited to British interests).Reports in the Turkish press that the ex-Khedive of Egypt, Abbas Hilmi [ʿAbbās Ḥilmī II] has aspirations for the Syrian throne, and that the Turkish Government also favours the ex-Khedive as a candidate.Reports that the French Government is contemplating ending its mandate over Syria and is negotiating a treaty with Syria, using the 1930 Anglo-Iraqi Treaty as a basis.Details of the Treaty of Alliance between France and Syria (signed on 16 November 1933), and of its suspended ratification.Details of the Franco-Lebanese Treaty of Friendship and Alliance, signed on 13 November 1936.Egypt's preference for Prince [Muhammad] Abdul Moneim to be installed as King of Syria.Ibn Saud's [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd's] concerns that the throne of Syria might be offered to a Hashimite candidate (i.e. a member of the Hāshimī family).The principal correspondents are the following: His Majesty's Consul at Damascus (Edwyn Cecil Hole, succeeded by Gilbert Mackereth); the High Commissioner for Iraq (Sir Francis Henry Humphrys and his Acting Commissioner, Hubert Winthrop Young); His Majesty's Ambassador in Baghdad (Humphrys again, and later, Basil Cochrane Newton); the Secretary of State for the Colonies; the British Consul-General at Beirut (Harold Eustace Satow); the High Commissioner for Egypt (Percy Lyham Loraine, succeeded by Miles Wedderburn Lampson); His Majesty's Ambassador in Angora [Ankara] (George Russell Clerk, succeeded by Loraine); the British Minister at Jedda (Sir Reader William Bullard); His Majesty's Chargé d’Affaires, Jedda (Alan Charles Trott); officials of the Colonial Office and the Foreign Office.The French material in this file consists of several items of correspondence, a copy of the Franco-Syrian Treaty of 1933, a copy of the Franco-Lebanese Treaty of 1936, and copies of extracts from two French language publications (the Lebanese newspaper,
L'Orient, and the Damascus newspaper,
Les Échos de Syrie).The file includes two dividers which give a list of correspondence references contained in the file by year. These are placed at the back of the correspondence.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at the inside front cover with 1 and terminates at the last folio with 248; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. An external leather cover wraps around the documents; the front inside of this cover has been foliated as f 1. A previous foliation sequence, which is present between ff 12-247 and is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.
Abstract: This volume concerns relations between the British Government and the Government of the Hejaz and Nejd (later Saudi Arabia).The volume largely consists of copies of Foreign Office and Colonial Office correspondence. The correspondence near the beginning of the volume discusses Ibn Saud's [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd's] wish to enter into full diplomatic relations with the British Government. The Hejazi Government's proposal in 1929 to establish a legation in London is accompanied by a request for the British Government to raise the status of its Agency and Consulate in Jedda to the same status.The subsequent correspondence in the volume discusses the following:The British Government's consideration (and acceptance) of Ibn Saud's proposal, and the appointment of Sir Andrew Ryan as His Majesty's Minister at the British Legation in Jedda in May 1930.Hafiz Wahba's appointment as Hejazi Minister in London in 1930.Complaints made by the Hejazi Ministry of Foreign Affairs, regarding Sir Andrew Ryan's attitude and conduct since his arrival in Jedda.Details of an Hejazi-Nejdi diplomatic mission to Europe (including visits to Italy, France, Britain, and the Netherlands), undertaken in May 1932 and headed by Amir Feisal [Fayṣal bin ‘Abd al-‘Azīz Āl Sa‘ūd], Hejazi Minister for Foreign Affairs (this part of the volume includes detailed accounts of the mission's meetings with Foreign Office officials during its visit to London).Sir Andrew Ryan's account of his meeting with Ibn Saud at Taif in July 1934, and their discussion of the 'blue line' (the frontier which marked the Ottoman Government's renunciation of its claims to Bahrain and Qatar, in the Anglo-Ottoman convention of 1913) and the Kuwait blockade.Details of several meetings held at the Foreign Office between Fuad Bey Hamza (Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs for Saudi Arabia), Sir Andrew Ryan and George William Rendel (Head of the Foreign Office's Eastern Department), during September 1934, regarding the 'blue line', the Kuwait blockade, and the future of the Treaty of Jedda (the treaty signed between Britain and Ibn Saud in 1927).Requests from the Italian Government for information regarding Fuad Bey Hamza's visit to London.The volume features the following principal correspondents: His Majesty's Agent and Consul at Jedda, a position that was raised to His Majesty's Chargé d’Affaires to Jedda in late 1929 (Hugh Stonehewer Bird, William Linskill Bond, Cecil Gervase Hope Gill, and Albert Spencer Calvert successively); His Majesty's Minister at Jedda (Sir Andrew Ryan); His Majesty's Ambassador in Rome (Ronald William Graham); Ibn Saud; Amir Faisal; officials of the Hejazi/Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs; officials of the Foreign Office, the Colonial Office, and the India Office.In addition to correspondence, the volume contains a copy of the minutes of a meeting of the Committee of Imperial Defence's Standing Official Sub-Committee for Questions Concerning the Middle East. The meeting, which took place in London on 8 November 1934, was primarily concerned with the settlement of the 'blue line' issue, the Saudi-Transjordan frontier, and the Kuwait blockade.The volume includes two dividers which give a list of correspondence references contained in the volume by year. These are placed at the back of the correspondence.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at the first folio with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 449; these numbers are written in pencil and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. The front and back covers, along with the two leading and two ending flyleaves, have not been foliated.
Abstract: Papers regarding negotiations to amend the borders between French-mandated Syria, and British-mandated Iraq and Trans-Jordan. The papers discuss the boundaries established by the Sykes-Picot Agreement and the Treaty of Sèvres, the British push for the inclusion of Amadiyah within the Iraq mandated territories, and the issue of tribal groups crossing border regions. The papers primarily consist of communications between the Foreign Office, the Secretary of State for the Colonies, and the High Commissioner for Iraq, with occasional commentary from the India Office Political Department.The file also contains copies of treaties, minutes and appendices from the Committee of Imperial Defence, Standing Sub-Committee for Questions Concerning the Middle East, and minutes and documents circulated by the Council of the League of Nations, including:Memorandum by the High Commissioner for Iraq, stating objections to the frontiers established by the Treaty of Sèvres, including two maps, ff 375-380.Minutes and appendices of the Foreign Office meeting of 13 July 1931, including copies of the Humphrys-Ponsot Draft for Combined Reference to the Council of the League of Nations, and a copy of the Agreement between HMG and the French Government respecting the Boundary Lines between Syria and Palestine from the Mediterranean to El Hammé, Treaty Series No. 13 (1923), ff 315-349.Papers circulated at the Committee of Imperial Defence Sub-Committee meeting of 8 September 1931, including correspondence with the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs concerning the Beirut formula, ff 238-314.Minutes of the Committee of Imperial Defence Sub-Committee meeting of 23 September 1931, including a sketch map of the Syria-Trans-Jordan frontier, and a report by the British Resident at Trans-Jordan, ff 141-209.Second report by Sir Francis Humphrys on his negotiations in Paris regarding the Syrian frontier, and annexes comprising draft agreements, ff 67-75.Excerpt minutes of the 65th Session of the Council of the League of Nations, 9 December 1931, including copies of the joint request for arbitration submitted by Britain and France, ff 48-66; plus minutes of the sessions on 31 October 1931, and 30 January 1932, ff 37-46.Copy of the League of Nations Mandate, Report of the Commission entrusted by the Council with the Study of the Frontier between Syria and Iraq, Geneva, 10 September 1932 (Official reference: C. 578. M. 285. 1932. VI), ff 6-28, which includes four maps (IOR/W/L/PS/12/2848 (i), IOR/W/L/PS/12/2848 (ii), IOR/W/L/PS/12/2848 (iii) and IOR/W/L/PS/12/2848 (iv)).The volume includes a divider giving a list of correspondence references contained in the volume by year. This is placed at the end of the correspondence (folio 4).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 388; 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 4-385; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
Abstract: This file concerns the British Government's response to the Pan-Arab movement during the 1930s and 1940s. Much of the correspondence refers to the prospect of an Arab federation, although the use of the word 'federation' is noted in some of the correspondence as being a mistranslation of the original Arabic expression, which would be more accurately represented by the words 'unification' or 'unity'.Significant subjects of discussion include:Arab party politics in Palestine.Iraqi-Egyptian relations.Italian propaganda in the Middle East.The future of Palestine.Britain's post-war policy in the Middle East.Whether the Arab states should be induced to make a wartime declaration in favour of the democracies (i.e. the Allies).The formation of the Arab League (also referred to as the Arab Federation in the correspondence).Details of the Pact (also referred to as Covenant) of the Arab League, signed in Cairo on 22 March 1945.Whether representatives of the Arab League should be present at the Palestine Conference in London, in 1947, in addition to representatives of Arab states.Notable correspondents include the following: the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf; the High Commissioner for Iraq; His Majesty's Ambassador in Baghdad; the High Commissioner for Egypt; His Majesty's Ambassador in Cairo; the High Commissioner for Palestine; His Majesty's Minister at Jedda; the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs; the Minister of State in the Middle East; officials of the Foreign Office, the Colonial Office, the India Office, the Commonwealth Relations Office, and the Indian Political Service's External Affairs Department; Noury Said [Nūrī al-Sa‘īd], Prime Minister of Iraq; George Antonius, Lebanese-Egyptian author and diplomat.Also included with the correspondence are the following:Extracts from Palestine police summaries dating from 1933 to 1936, produced by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) in Jerusalem.A printed copy of a paper on Arab federation by the Foreign Research and Press Service, dated 20 June 1941.Copies of documents produced by the War Cabinet's Standing Official Sub-Committee for Questions Concerning the Middle East (also referred to as the Middle East (Official) Committee), including minutes of meetings (1941-1942) and a copy of a report on Arab Federation, dated January 1942.A copy (in French) of the Protocol of the Preparatory Committee for the Arab Congress, dated 7 October 1944.Copies of the Pact/Covenant of the recently formed Arab League (consisting of a printed copy in French, distributed by the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and an English translation of the full Arabic text, which includes a passage that was omitted from the French version).The French material consists of the aforementioned Protocol and Arab League Pact, plus one item of correspondence and a copy of a newspaper extract.The file includes two dividers which give a list of correspondence references contained in the file by year. These are placed at the back of the correspondence (folios 2-3).Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 571; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. Two previous foliation sequences, which are also circled, have been superseded and therefore crossed out.
Abstract: Papers regarding requests received from the King of Yemen for assistance in fortifying Sheikh Said [Ra's Shaykh Sa'īd] and securing Yemen against foreign aggression. The King was concerned over French claims to Perim Island [Jazīrat Mayyūn] and Sheikh Said, and was seeking anti-aircraft and gas equipment from the UK and Italy.The file consists of correspondence between the Secretary of State for the Colonies, the War Office, and the Governor of Aden (Bernard Reilly). Telegrams from Reilly provide details of meetings with Qadhi Hussein el Halali, the King's representative, regarding the defence of Yemen.The file also includes several documents from the 67th and 68th meetings of the Committee of Imperial Defence's Standing Official Sub-Committee for Questions Governing the Middle East, discussing the fortification of Sheikh Said. The following topics are discussed: the importance of maintaining Yemeni neutrality in the event of a conflict between European powers; the provision of equipment and training by the UK; the need to operate within the terms of the Anglo-Italian Agreement of 1938; French claims to Perim and Sheikh Said; and pre-existing British commitments to Ibn Sa'ūd.The file includes a divider which gives a list of correspondence references contained in the file by year. This is placed at the end of the correspondence (folio 2).Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 74; 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 primarily concerns British policy regarding the south-eastern boundaries of Saudi Arabia.It includes interdepartmental discussion regarding the approach that the British Government should take in reaching a settlement with King Ibn Saud [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd] over the demarcation of the boundaries.Much of the correspondence discusses the legal and international position of what is referred to as the 'blue line' (the frontier which marked the Ottoman Government's renunciation of its claims to Bahrain and Qatar, as laid down in the non-ratified Anglo-Ottoman Convention of 1913 and redefined and adopted in the Anglo-Ottoman convention of the following year), a line which is not accepted by Ibn Saud as being binding upon his government.The volume features the following principal correspondents: His Majesty's Minister at Jedda (Sir Andrew Ryan); the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Lieutenant-Colonel Trenchard Craven William Fowle); the Political Agent, Kuwait (Lieutenant-Colonel Harold Richard Patrick Dickson); the Political Agent, Bahrain (Lieutenant-Colonel Percy Gordon Loch); the Chief Commissioner, Aden (Bernard Rawdon Reilly, referred to in the correspondence as Resident); the Secretary of State for the Colonies (Sir Philip Cunliffe-Lister); the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (Sir John Simon); the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs; officials of the India Office, the Foreign Office, the Colonial Office, the War Office, and the Air Ministry.Matters discussed in the correspondence include the following:Whether the British should press Ibn Saud [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd] for a general settlement of all outstanding major questions.The extent of territory that the British should be prepared to include in any concession made to Ibn Saud.The British response to what are referred to as Ibn Saud's 'ancestral claims' to territories east of the blue line.Sir Andrew Ryan's meetings with Ibn Saud in Taif, in July 1934.Meetings held at the Foreign Office between Sir Andrew Ryan, George Rendel (Head of the Foreign Office's Eastern Department), Fuad Bey Hamza (Deputy Minister for Saudi Foreign Affairs), and Hafiz Wahba (Saudi Arabian Minister in London), in September 1934.The boundaries of a proposed 'desert zone', suggested by Rendel, where Ibn Saud would hold personal rather than territorial rights.Saudi-Qatari relations.Whether tribal boundaries should be considered as a possible solution to the boundary question.Also included are the following:Two copies of an India Office memorandum entitled 'Historical Memorandum on the Relations of the Wahabi Amirs and Ibn Saud with Eastern Arabia and the British Government, 1800-1934', dated 26 September 1934.Copies of the minutes of meetings of the Committee of Imperial Defence's Standing Official Sub-Committee for Questions Concerning the Middle East, dated 8 November 1934 and 12 September 1934.A copy of a report by Bertram Thomas regarding a Trans-Oman air route reconnaissance, which was undertaken in May-June 1927.The Arabic material consists of one item of correspondence (an English translation is included).The volume includes a divider which gives a list of correspondence references contained in the volume by year. This is placed at the back of the correspondence (folio 4).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 394; 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.
Abstract: This volume concerns British policy regarding the south-eastern boundaries of Saudi Arabia.It documents preparations for negotiations with the Saudi Government, and includes interdepartmental discussion regarding the approach that the British Government should take in reaching a settlement with Ibn Saud [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd] over the demarcation of the boundaries.The areas of territory discussed include that which separates Saudi Arabia and the Aden Protectorate in the south, that which extends to the Sultanate of Muscat and Oman in the south-east, and the area extending to the south of Qatar in the east.Reference is made to the 'blue line' and the 'violet line' – boundary lines that formed part of the Anglo-Ottoman Conventions, concluded in 1913 and 1914 respectively.The correspondence includes discussion of the following:The likely consequences of not settling on defined boundaries.The extent of territory that the British should be prepared to include in any concession made to Ibn Saud.The legal distinction between personal and territorial sovereignty.References made by Fuad Bey Hamza (Deputy Saudi Minister for Foreign Affairs) during conversations with Sir Andrew Ryan (His Majesty's Minister at Jedda), regarding certain assurances made by Sir Henry McMahon to King Hussein of the Hejaz [Ḥusayn bin ‘Alī al-Hāshimī] in 1915, on the subject of Arab independence (a summary of a letter from King Hussein to McMahon, together with a copy of McMahon's reply, is included in the volume).Tribal history in Trucial Oman between 1918 and 1934.The Koweit [Kuwait] blockade.The boundaries of a proposed 'desert zone', roughly following the edge of the sands of the Ruba al Khali and considered by the British as a possible concession but later abandoned.Abu Dhabi's claims to Odeid [Al ‘Udayd, Saudi Arabia] and Banaiyan [Bi’r Bunayyān, Saudi Arabia].The volume features the following principal correspondents: the Political Agent, Bahrain (Percy Gordon Loch); the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Lieutenant-Colonel Trenchard Craven William Fowle); His Majesty's Minister at Jedda (Sir Andrew Ryan); the Secretary of State for the Colonies (Philip Cunliffe-Lister); Bernard Rawdon Reilly (Chief Commissioner, Aden, but referred to in the correspondence as Resident); officials of the Foreign Office, the Colonial Office, the India Office, the War Office, the Air Ministry, and the Government of India's Foreign and Political Department.In addition to correspondence, the volume contains a sketch map and a copy of draft minutes of a meeting of the Committee of Imperial Defence's Standing Official Sub-Committee for Questions Concerning the Middle East, dated 15 April 1935.The volume includes a divider which gives a list of correspondence references contained in the volume by year. This is placed at the back of the correspondence (folio 4).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 365; 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.
Abstract: This volume primarily concerns British policy regarding the south-eastern boundaries of Saudi Arabia, specifically those bordering Qatar, the Trucial Shaikhdoms, Muscat, the Hadramaut and the Aden Protectorate.It includes interdepartmental discussion regarding the approach that the British Government should take in reaching a settlement with King Ibn Saud [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd] over the demarcation of the boundaries.References are made to various existing and proposed lines, including the 'blue line' and the 'violet line' – boundary lines that formed part of the Anglo-Ottoman Conventions, concluded in 1913 and 1914 respectively, a 'green line' and a 'brown line', which represent more recent territorial concessions proposed by the British to Ibn Saud, and a 'red line', which is referred to as the Saudi Government's claim for its country's south-eastern boundary.The volume features the following principal correspondents: the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Lieutenant-Colonel Trenchard Craven William Fowle); the Political Agent, Bahrain (Lieutenant-Colonel Percy Gordon Loch); His Majesty's Minister at Jedda (Sir Andrew Ryan); the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (Sir Samuel Hoare); the Acting Chief Commissioner, Aden (Lieutenant-Colonel Morice Challoner Lake); officials of the Colonial Office, the Foreign Office, the India Office, the Government of India's Foreign and Political Department.The correspondence includes discussion of the following:The extent of territory that the British should be prepared to include in any concession made to Ibn Saud.The abandonment of the idea of a proposed 'desert zone'.The future of the Treaty of Jedda of 1927.Meetings held at the Foreign Office with Fuad Bey Hamza, Deputy Saudi Minister for Foreign Affairs, and Hafiz Wahba, Saudi Arabian Minister in London, during June and July 1935.The eastern boundary of the Aden Protectorate.The possibility of the British Government employing Bertram Thomas to carry out enquiries and investigations regarding the question of Saudi Arabia's south-eastern frontiers.Wells and territories of the Al Murra [Āl Murrah] tribe.Preparations for Sir Andrew Ryan's forthcoming visit to Riyadh for negotiations with Ibn Saud.Abu Dhabi's claim to Khor-al-Odeid [Khawr al ‘Udayd].Details of a British aerial reconnaissance of the Qatar Peninsula, which took place on 11 October 1935.In addition to correspondence the volume includes the following: copies of the minutes of meetings of the Committee of Imperial Defence's Standing Ministerial and Official Sub-Committee for Questions Concerning the Middle East, dated 15 April 1935 and 24 September 1935 respectively; photographs of the Qatar Peninsula, taken during the aforementioned aerial reconnaissance; a map showing the route of the aerial reconnaissance.The volume includes a divider which gives a list of correspondence references contained in the volume by year. This is placed at the back of the correspondence (folio 4).Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with 1 and terminates at the last folio with 411; 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.
Abstract: This file primarily concerns British policy regarding the eastern and south-eastern boundaries of Saudi Arabia, specifically those bordering Qatar, Abu Dhabi, and Muscat (i.e. the Sultanate of Muscat and Oman).Much of the correspondence relates to British concerns that the boundaries should be demarcated prior to the commencement of any oil prospecting in the area. The file's principal correspondents are the following: His Majesty's Minister at Jedda (Sir Andrew Ryan, succeeded by Sir Reader William Bullard); the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Lieutenant-Colonel Trenchard Craven William Fowle); the Political Agent, Bahrain (Lieutenant-Colonel Percy Gordon Loch); the Political Agent, Muscat (Major Ralph Ponsonby Watts); the Secretary of State for the Colonies; the Secretary of State for India; the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs; officials of the Foreign Office, the Colonial Office, the India Office, and the Admiralty.Matters discussed in the correspondence include the following:Whether the British should press King Ibn Saud [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd] for a settlement of the outstanding questions relating to the aforementioned boundaries.Sir Andrew Ryan's meeting with Ibn Saud and the Deputy Minister for Saudi Foreign Affairs, Fuad Bey Hamza, in Riyadh, in November 1935.The disputed territories of Jebel Naksh [Khashm an Nakhsh, Qatar] and Khor-al-Odeid [Khawr al ‘Udayd].Whether or not a territorial agreement between Ibn Saud and Qatar was concluded prior to the Anglo-Qatar Treaty of 1916.The intentions of Petroleum Concessions Limited regarding the development of its oil concession in Qatar.The line proposed by the British for the boundary between Saudi Arabia and the Aden Protectorate.The Kuwait blockade.Leading personalities in Oman.Details of Harry St John Bridger Philby's expedition to Shabwa [Shabwah, Yemen].Four meetings held between Sir Reader Bullard, George Rendel (Head of the Foreign Office's Eastern Department), and Ibn Saud, in Jedda, 20-22 March 1937.Also included are the following:Copies of the minutes of meetings of the Committee of Imperial Defence's Standing Official Sub-Committee for Questions Concerning the Middle East.Copies of correspondence dating from 1906, exchanged between the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Major Percy Zachariah Cox), the Government of India's Foreign and Political Department, and the Ruler of Abu Dhabi [Shaikh Zayed bin Khalifa Al Nahyan], regarding the latter's claim to Khor-al-Odeid.Several maps and sketch maps depicting the proposed boundaries discussed in the correspondence.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 2).Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 421; 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.