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37. Red Sea Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: Enclosures nos. 3-6 to dispatch no. 22 from the Secret Department, Bombay Castle, dated 27 June 1861. The enclosures are dated 27 May-18 June 1861. No date of receipt.The enclosures consist of intelligence reports on the Red Sea region by Captain Robert Lambert Playfair, Assistant Political Resident, in charge of the Residency, Aden, and accompanying resolutions of the Honourable Board.The reports cover: suppression of the slave trade in Abyssinia; a report of the presence of Russian steamers in the Red Sea; and a description of the eruption of a volcano (Jebel Dubbeh [Dubbi, Eritrea]) near Edd on the African shore of the Red Sea.Physical description: 1 item (9 folios)
38. Abyssinia and Red Sea Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: Enclosures Nos. 3-6 of Despatch No. 4 from the Secret Department, Bombay Castle, dated 22 February 1860. The Enclosures are dated 17 January-13 February 1860. Received 21 March 1860.The Enclosures concern affairs in Abyssinia, and the intention of Brigadier William Marcus Coghlan, Political Resident, Aden, to undertake a tour of the Red Sea in order to gather intelligence on the activities of the French there.Physical description: 1 item (7 folios)
39. Aden Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: This part of the volume consists of copies of enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 65 of 1840, dated 6 August 1840. The enclosures are dated 5 January-23 February 1840 and consist of copies of letters from a German national, the Reverend J L Kraaff [Johann Ludwig Krapf], to the Political Agent at Aden. The letters, which discuss affairs in Abyssinia [Ethiopian Empire], were considered relevant in connection with the plans of the Government of France to establish settlements at the mouth of the Red Sea.Physical description: 1 item (50 folios)
40. Aden Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: This item comprises copies of enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 77 of 1841, dated 30 September 1841. The enclosures are dated 17 July-28 September 1841.The principal correspondents are: Captain Stafford Bettesworth Haines, Political Agent at Aden; the Officiating Chief Secretary to Government, Bombay; the Superintendent of the Indian Navy; and the Military Board.The papers cover and include the following matters:A copy of a survey of the ‘coast of Africa in the southward and westward of Aden’, entitled ‘Memorandum to accompany the Chart of the Bay of Tajoorah [Tadjoura], & part of the Coast of the Hebrawul’, by Lieutenant W Barker, Indian Navy, Commanding the HC [Honourable Company’s] brig Euphrates(ff 38-79), forwarded by Haines to the Secretary to the Government, Bombay. Also included are letters from the Acting Secretary to Government, Bombay, to Haines, the Engineers’ Department, Bombay, the Secretary to the Government of India, and the Superintendent of the Indian Navy. The letters acknowledge the ‘memoir’ and map (not included in this item), order and forward copies of the map, and convey the approbation of the Government, Bombay for the ‘zeal and energy’ of Lieutenant BarkerAn application by Haines to the Government of Bombay explaining the need for the appointment of a clerk to aid the Assistant Political Agent (notably with Post Office duties) and listing the current duties of the Assistant and his own duties (ff 87-91), and the refusal of the Government of Bombay to agree to the requestReports by Haines of the disruption to kafilahs [camel caravans] of supplies entering Aden, resulting from violent clashes between divisions of different competing tribes near the frontier of the settlement. Haines notably describes the activities and forces of Sultan M’Houssain Futhel of Lahidge [Muḥsin bin Faḍl al-‘Abdalī, Sultan of Lahej] and the Foudthelee ‘Chief’ [Sultan Aḥmad bin ‘Abdullāh al-Faḍlī], their apparent hostility to the British, and the alleged plan of the Foudthelee ‘Chief’ to attack the field works at AdenMeasures to be pursued as a result of the ‘perseverance exhibited by the Chief of Lahedge in stirring up the other tribes in the neighbourhood to unite with him in hostile attempts against our garrison at Aden’, and the policy to be adopted with respect to the ‘oppressive and unjust treatment of the subjects and dependents of the British Government by the Sheriff [Sharīf] of Mocha’ (f 98)Minute by the Governor in Council, Bombay, concurred in by civil members of the Board (ff 100-102), giving Haines discretionary powers, during the relief of the European portion of the garrison of Aden, to mount an offensive against the tribes in the immediate neighbourhood who are considered hostile to the British Government, including authority to attack Shaick Othman [Ash Shaykh ‘Uthmān] where a post has been erected by ‘the hostile Arabs’ (f 107). Authority is given for military measures provided that: Haines thinks it would be politically expedient; the officer commanding at Aden has the means to undertake it; it will not increase hostility towards the British; and it will not require prolonged operations. Haines is also permitted to take advantage, if necessary, of HMS Endymionin the Red Sea to enforce ‘redress’ from the Sheriff of MochaHaines’s detailed response and justification of his actions, subsequent to a complaint made by the Superintendent of the Indian Navy regarding Haines’s ‘interference’ in the duties of various vessels in the Red Sea, notably delaying the HC [Honourable Company’s] schooner Constancefrom being despatched to Suez with the mails (ff 108-110). Included are copies of Haines’s letters to the Superintendent of the Indian Navy concerning the use of the Euphratesand Constancein connection with Captain William Cornwallis Harris’s mission to Shoa [Shewa] and to monitor and counteract French activities and influence in the vicinity of Zeyla [Zeila] and Tedjoura, and requesting that the HC sloop-of-war Cliveremain at Aden to potentially proceed on ‘secret service’ to Mocha (ff 111-115). The Government of Bombay responds that vessels should ‘not be interfered with except under some great emergency involving the safety of important interests which justify the disregard of ordinary rules altogether on the responsibility of the officer deviating therefrom’ (f 116), and undertake to inform him in future when a vessel is on express orders from GovernmentThe murder of the ‘Arab interpreter named Ahmed’ outside the Turkish Wall at Aden, notably a copy of an account written by Captain George Duff, 10th Regiment Native Infantry, Commanding the Turkish Wall outpost (ff 119-124)Supplies and stores on board the HC brig Palinurus(at Bombay [Mumbai] harbour) including: distribution of the biscuit amongst the Indian Navy vessels in harbour and the steam vessel conveying the relief regiment to and from Aden; instructions for the rest of its provisions to be unloaded; and the lack of room on the steamer proceeding to Suez on 1 September to convey to Aden any portion of military stores on board the Palinurus(ff 125-131)A memorandum recording the present establishment attached to the Palinurusand her proposed employment to convey convicts to Singapoor [Singapore], including a table of foodstuffs ‘of the quantity of diet for convicts’, and a ‘statement shewing the monthly cost of provisions supplied during the voyage to European and native convicts transported from Bombay’ (ff 132-135).Physical description: 1 item (105 folios)
41. Aden Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: This item comprises copies of enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay [Mumbai] Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 69 of 1847, dated 6 August 1847. The enclosures are dated 13 April-2 August 1847 (although some internal copy documents date back to 26 December 1846).The primary documents are: letters from Stafford Bettesworth Haines, Captain Indian Navy and Political Agent in Aden, to Arthur Malet, Secretary to the Government, Bombay, with related correspondence; Malet’s forwarding letters to Henry Miers Elliot, Secretary to the Government of India with the Governor-General; and minutes of the Governor in Council.The subjects covered notably include:An unsuccessful attempt by the Chief of the Ameer tribe [Banu ‘Amir?] to extract tribute from the (British) Aden revenue based on a 200-year old documentDespatch of Haines’s assistant, Lieutenant Charles John Cruttenden on the Honourable Company (HC) steam frigate Auckland, to investigate the veracity of reports of the arrival of a large body of Turkish [Ottoman] troops at Mocha and Hodeida [Al Hudaydah]Haines’s application for an HC steam vessel (schooner) of war to proceed to Mocha, Hodeida and Museowah [Massawa, also spelled Mussowah in this volume], to see what changes have taken place in the sea port towns of the lower part of the Red Sea; observe if Turkish troops have re-occupied them; and liaise where necessary with Turkish authorities to protect British and Indian interestsCaptain Haines’s arrangement and funding of a passage on an American ship for Syed Omar, cousin and ambassador to the King of Johanna [Anjouan, also known as Ndzuwani or Nzwani], and his party, from Aden to Zanzibar, including a letter of thanks to the British authorities from Syed Omar; a testimonial from a French traveller ‘rescued’ by Syed Omar at Jedda [Jeddah]; and bills of expenses submitted by Haines to Bombay for the assistance providedProgress reports of Captain J Kilner, Executive Engineer at Aden, on the various works connected with the defences of Aden up to 28 February 1847 (ff 339-340)Measures taken by the Military Board for protecting the town of Aden from floods of rain water from the landward side of the town; and Military Board’s criticism of how unsatisfactorily the instructions and works at Aden have been carried out, notably the conduct of Captain Kilner and Colonel Grant, and the lack of cordiality between Haines and Kilner (ff 344-351) (see also IOR/L/PS/5/450, ff 198-202).Physical description: There is an abstract of contents of the despatch, numbered 1-25, on folios 305-308. These numbers are repeated for reference on the verso of the last folio of each enclosure.
42. Aden Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: This item comprises copies of enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 85 of 1847, dated 1 October 1847. The enclosures are dated 15 July-28 September 1847.The primary correspondents are: Stafford Bettesworth Haines, Captain Indian Navy and Political Agent at Aden; the Secretary to the Government, Bombay; and the Military Board, Bombay. Relevant enclosures include: correspondence between Haines and Captain James Kilner, Executive Engineer, Aden; letters from Kilner to the Brigade Major, Aden, the Superintending Engineer at Aden and the Superintending Engineer at Poona [Pune]; letters from Brigadier W Spiller, Commanding the Aden Field Force, to the Quartermaster-General of the Army, Poona, and from the latter to the Secretary to the Government, Military Department, Bombay. The item also includes several minutes of the Governor and President in Council and the members in Council, Bombay.The documents chiefly relate to a dispute between Haines and Kilner regarding the latter’s method of procuring kirby [stalks of the bajra grass, or pearl millet, also spelled ‘kurbee’ in this item] for the Engineer Department at Aden (ff 223-252).Haines complains that Captain Kilner has:Acted contrary to the civil and military orders by purchasing forage, especially kirby, directly from the local inhabitants of Lahidge [Lahej, also spelled Lahedge in this item] outside the Turkish Wall (boundary wall of the Aden settlement) instead of at the Aden marketUsed a contractor (a ‘Mr Weiss’, the ‘Coral and Sand Contractor’) to arrange kirby procurement, and to purchase articles arriving by boat without obtaining the necessary customs permitsCaused potential tensions between the local inhabitants and the British and ‘injured’ the Aden market.Kilner counter-complains about Haines, notably stating that:There is no explicit prohibition on purchasing outside the walls or from the interiorHaines interfered unduly in having Lieutenant Charles John Cruttenden, the Political Assistant, interrogate Mr Weiss at the police officeHis methods actually save money for the Government, especially since prices in the Aden market are more than double what he pays and the quality of market kirby is particularly poorCustoms permits should not be required for ‘trifling articles’ such as mats and basketsHaines has recently made specific arrangements to prevent locals bringing articles from the interior for the Engineer Department.Ultimately the authorities in Bombay communicate that whilst Kilner must conform with the rules of the Political Agent for procuring supplies, the price of kirby has now risen so high it is impossible to purchase it and ‘Government looks to [the Political Agent] to take secure measures to avert such complaints of excessive dearth’ and ensure that plentiful supplies find their way to the Aden market (f 249).Other matters covered in the item are as follows:The visit of Mahomed Eschreff Bey [Muḥammad Sharīf Beg], Commissioner from the Sublime Porte [Government of the Ottoman Empire] to the sea port towns of the Arabian coast, including: Haines’s concern that the extension of [Ottoman] Egyptian and Turkish influence in the area (notably at Hodeida [Al Hudaydah] and Mocha) may affect Aden’s trade with Zeyla [Zeila] and Berbera (notably the trading fair at Berbera); and Haines’s request, approved by the authorities in Bombay, that a vessel of war be dispatched to monitor the spread of Turkish influenceThe plundering of the ‘Interior Kafilah [caravan]’ due to various members of the Agribi [‘Akrabī], Subei [Subaīhī] and Azeibi [‘Uzaybī] tribes ‘retaliating each other in consequence of some petty feud between them’ (f 221)Rumours that Sultan Hamed Abdalla Foutheli [Aḥmad bin Abdullāh al-Faḍlī] will meet Sultan Hamed M’ Houssain [Aḥmad bin Muḥsin al-‘Abdalī] of Lahidge at ‘Sheik Othman’ [Shaykh Uthman] to settle their disputes including over Sheik Hydra ibn Maidee of Bir Ahmed [Shaikh Ḥaydarah bin Mahdī of Bi’r Ahmad].Note: The last two enclosures, the Bombay Timessummary of Intelligence and Bombay Overland Telegraph and Courier, are noted as ‘Missing 30.10.1906’.Physical description: 1 item (45 folios)
43. Aden Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: This item comprises copies of enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 36 of 1856, dated 12 May 1856. The enclosures are dated 9 April-10 May 1856.The papers concern events on the north east coast of Africa, as reported to the Government of Bombay by Brigadier William Marcus Coghlan, Political Resident at Aden. They specifically cover the following matters:Reports by Raffaello Barroni, Agent to Walter Chichele Plowden, HM Consul in Abyssinia [now Ethiopia], of disorder alleged to be fostered by the Governor of Mussowah [Massawa] and the resultant plunder carried out by Egyptian soldiers in nearby Abyssinian provinces, and the trafficking of prisoners taken by Egyptian troops on the ‘slave market’ at MussowahProceedings relating to Haj Shermarkie [Ḥājjī Sharmārkī ‘Alī Ṣāliḥ, also spelled Shermarkay and Shurmarkie in this item], the deposed Governor of Zailah [Saylac, or Zeila, Somalia, also spelled Zeylah in this item], including: Coghlan’s deputation of his assistant, Lieutenant Robert Lambert Playfair, to travel on the HC [Honourable Company’s] steam vessel Queento investigate Shermarkie’s alleged ‘piracy’ and attempts to blockade and re-take Zailah; Playfair’s account of his visits to the coastal ports of Zailah, Ain Tarad [El Darad, or Ceel Dhaarand], Berbera and Tajourah [Tadjoura], including a description of the mediation he conducted on board the Queenbetween the mutually hostile Shermarkie and the new Governor of Zeylah, Haj Aboo Bekr bin Ibrahim [Ḥājjī Abū Bakr bin Ibrāhīm, also spelled Aboo Bukur Dunklee in this item]; and the offer of asylum at Aden to Haj Shermarkie on condition that he does not leave without permission from the Political Resident or use Aden as a base to organise further attacks on ZailahThe trade in enslaved persons in Zailah and Tajourah and Playfair’s opinion that it will never be suppressed unless British vessels have permission to search Turkish [Ottoman] vessels at sea and land enslaved persons on shore.Coghlan also reports on the water shortages at Aden, reduced water allowances, and continuing efforts to improve the water supply.The principal correspondents are Coghlan and the Government of Bombay. Coghlan’s despatches contain numerous enclosures including letters and reports from: Playfair; Barroni; the Governor of Yemen; and Haj Shermarkie (letters written in September 1855, in which Shermarkie complains of his recent deposition and reminds Coghlan of his previous acts of loyalty towards Britain).Physical description: 1 item (24 folios)
44. Aden Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: This item comprises copies of enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 33 of 1856, dated 28 April 1856. The enclosures are dated 14-26 April 1856.The enclosures comprise copies of reports and correspondence relating to the deployment of the HC [Honourable Company’s] sloop of war Elphinstoneand steamship Queento the Arabian and African Red Sea coasts, targeted at intimidating insurgent forces and quelling disturbances in: Mecca and Juddah [Jeddah, also spelled Jedda and in this item]; Hodeida [Al Hudaydah, also spelled Hodeidah in this item]; Mussowa [Massawa, also spelled Massowah and Massowa in this item]; and Zeylah [Saylac, or Zeila, Somalia].The papers notably include:Letters and reports by Captain John James Frushard, Indian Navy, Senior Naval Officer, Aden, on the Elphinstoneto: Stephen Page, HM Acting Vice-Consul and Officiating Agent at Judda, requesting Page to forward any proclamation made by the British Government and the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire abolishing the trade in enslaved persons in the Hedjaz [Hejaz]; Camil Pacha [Muḥammad Kāmil Pāshā, also written Mehmed Kiamil Pacha in this item] Governor of the Hejaz, announcing his arrival at Juddah to assist in quelling the disturbances in Mecca; William Marcus Coghlan, Political Resident, Aden, describing proceedings of the Elphinstoneand Queenat Hodeida and with Mahmud Pasha, Governor of Hodeida, against the Assyr [‘Asīr tribe], and reporting the small French presence in the Red Sea portsLetters and reports by Lieutenant G N Adams, Indian Navy, Commanding the Queen, to Coghlan and Rear Admiral Sir Henry John Leeke, Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Navy, reporting his proceedings at Mocha and Hodeida, Juddah, and Mussowa, including conditions on board ship and running aground on the way to AdenLeeke’s commendation of Frushard and Adams, notably for their ‘zeal and energy’ which saved Hodeida from being ‘cruelly murdered and robbed’ (f 146) by the AssyrCoghlan’s instructions that the Queenconvey the Assistant Political Resident, Lieutenant Robert Lambert Playfair, to Zeylah to investigate reports that Haj Shermarkay [Ḥājjī Sharmārkī ‘Alī Ṣāliḥ], former Ruler of Zeylah, has blockaded the port and committed acts of ‘piracy’ in the vicinity, and to take any necessary action to prevent the interruption of supplies.The principal correspondents are: Coghlan, Frushard, Adams and Leeke.Physical description: 1 item (19 folios)
45. Aden Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: This item comprises copies of enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 28 of 1856, dated 16 April 1856. The enclosures are dated 12 March-16 April 1856.The enclosures comprise copies of reports and letters forwarded by Brigadier William Marcus Coghlan, Political Resident in Aden, and Coghlan’s correspondence with the Government of Bombay. They chiefly relate to the deployment of the HC [Honourable Company’s] sloop of war Elphinstoneand steamship Queento the Arabian and African Red Sea coasts, targeted at intimidating insurgent forces and quelling disturbances in: Mecca and Judda [Jeddah, also spelled Jedda in this item]; Hodeida [Al Hudaydah]; and Mussowah [Massawa, also spelled Massowah and Massowa in this item].They specifically cover:The uprising led by the ‘rebel’ Shereff of Mecca, Aboo Montallib [Sharīf ‘Abd al-Muṭṭalib bin Ghālib bin Musā‘ad], purportedly in protest at the abolition of the slave trade by the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire; the Shereff’s alleged intention to attack and plunder Judda; the Shereff’s retreat to Taief [Taif, also spelled Tayf in this item] with his followers and his desertion by them after an engagement with Ottoman soldiers; the re-establishment of order in Judda and Mecca; and the prospective arrival of the new Shereff of Mecca, Ebu Aoun [Muḥammad bin ‘Abd al-Mu‘īn bin ‘Awn]The unsuccessful attempt of the Assyr [‘Asīr tribe, also spelled Asseer in this item] to attack the ports of Hodeida and Mocha in order to drive the Turks [Ottoman local authorities] from Yemen, and then to attack Aden, including: the retreat of British merchants and their families to the safe harbour of Ras Majarmla [Ra’s Mujamilah]; the approach of the Assyr ‘in great numbers’ (f 75) at Hodeida; the arrival of the Elphinstoneand Queenat Hodeida; the defence of the port organised by the Governor of Hodeida (without British help); the retreat of the Assyr due to sickness and inadequate provisions; and the rumoured death from cholera of the leaders and up to 10,000 members of the Assyr forceAn uprising in Mussawah said to be caused by the violent and oppressive policies of the authorities, and its abatement following the arrival of the Elphinstoneand the mediation of the deputy Governor of Mussawah with the ‘rebels’.This item also covers: the logistics of organising the return of the Elphinstoneand Queento Mussawah, Judda and Hodeida in April to avert renewed disturbances at those places; intelligence received by Coghlan, from the Government of Bombay, of certain ‘Sumalee’ [Somali] and Arab individuals employed by the Political Agency ‘who are not to be depended upon’ and if not closely watched would ‘betray their employers to the Asseer [‘Asīr] Arabs, who are approaching in the direction of Aden’ (f 101); and Coghlan’s assertion that all land entrances to Aden are secured and known ‘traitorous’ individuals are being watched.The principal correspondents are: Coghlan; the Government of Bombay; Captain John James Frushard, Indian Navy, Senior Naval Officer, Aden, on the HC ship Elphinstone; Stephen Page, HM Acting Vice-Consul and Officiating HC Agent at Judda; and Lieutenant G N Adams, Indian Navy, Commanding the HC steamship Queen.Physical description: 1 item (38 folios)
46. Aden Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: Enclosures Nos. 3 and 4 to Despatch No. 2 from the Secret Department, Bombay Castle, dated 9 January 1860. The Enclosures are dated 4-17 December 1860. Received 3 March 1860.The Enclosures consist of reports from Brigadier William Marcus Coghlan, Political Resident and Commandant, Aden, concerning the affairs of Aden and its vicinity. The reports include: French ambitions to increase their influence in the Red Sea, and the need for British representation at Massowah [Massawa, Eritrea].Physical description: 1 item (10 folios)
47. Aden Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: This item comprises enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay [Mumbai] Secret Department to the Secret Committee [Bombay Secret Letter], No. 23 dated 2 April 1856. The enclosures are dated 29 November 1855-2 April 1856.The primary correspondents are Brigadier William Marcus Coghlan, Political Resident and Commandant, Aden; and the Secretary to the Government, Bombay. The item also includes: Resolutions of the Board; minutes of the Governor and President in Council; and minutes of the members in Council.The papers chiefly cover the following matters:Intelligence (ff 412-415) conveying: the departure of the force of the Asseer [‘Asīr, also spelled Aseer in this item] tribe from Yemen, following an outbreak of cholera which has purportedly killed between 3,000 and 15,000, in camp and on their return home; and the destruction of the town of Zaidiah [Zaidiyyah?], and alleged atrocities committed on its inhabitants, merchants and Banians [Banyans, Indian merchants], by soldiers who had originally been sent by the Governor of Yemen to burn the houses outside the town after hearing that the Asseer had arrived thereUncertainty regarding the role and involvement of the prisoner ‘Mahomed Ali’ (recently brought to Aden) in the party that attacked Lieutenant Richard Burton’s Somali Expedition; Coghlan’s opinion that the arrest and the 150 deaths caused by a conflict between two branches of the Habr Owel [Habr Awwal] tribe over the prisoner’s culpability, is sufficient to end the blockade; Coghlan’s belief that he can secure the Habr Owel’s agreement to his terms for ending the blockade, including the abolition of slavery, and the concurrence of the Board providing that ‘ample reparation’ is ‘demanded from and conceded by the Habr Owel’ (f 419); and agreement by the Governor and members in Council that the man said to be ‘the actual murderer of poor Lieutenant Stroyan’ (f 420), should still be pursuedThe situation regarding the slave trade on the ‘non-Persian’ side of the Red Sea, including Coghlan’s: statement that he is unable to provide an update due to the withdrawal for other purposes of vessels which would otherwise have toured the ports, and that the majority of the trade continues in places under the government of the Ottoman Porte, despite the recent Imperial Firman abolishing it; and belief that the exportation of enslaved persons from Africa into Arabia could be stopped if he was granted sufficient powers of search and detention by the [Ottoman] Turkish authorities with regard to Turkish vessels and Turkish ports, as well as an adequate naval force at AdenViews of Coghlan and the Government of Bombay on the desirability of establishing a lighthouse on the island of Perim [also known as Mayyun], notably: that it would command the entrance to the Red Sea and ‘cut off the slave vessels which ply between Zailah and Tajourra [Zeila and Tadjoura] and the various ports of Yemen’ (f 429); that it would command the straits of Babelmandeb [Bab-el-Mandeb] and therefore be of major strategic importance should ‘Mr de Lesseps [Ferdinand de Lesseps] succeed in… cutting a ship canal through the Isthmus of Suez’ (f 432); that it would be of commercial and nautical benefit for steamers sailing new routes from Suez; and that it would probably become a telegraphic station. Also included are Coghlan’s views on fortification of the lighthouse and the supply of fresh water, and his intention to survey the island providing he has a vessel and assistance from the Bombay Marine Department.Physical description: 1 item (32 folios)
48. Aden Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: This item comprises copies of enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 26 of 1847, dated 15 March 1847. The enclosures are dated 4 January-13 March 1847.The item chiefly comprises communications between Stafford Bettesworth Haines, Political Agent at Aden; the Secretary to the Government, Bombay; and the Secretary to the Government of India. Also included are several minutes of the President and Governor in Council, Bombay, concurred with by members in Council or the Board.The papers cover the following matters:The general peaceful state of affairs in the vicinity of Aden and the resulting good communications with the interior and well stocked marketsReports that the Imam of Sana [Sana‘a ] has marched to Taaez [Taiz, also spelled Taez in this item] since the Sherriff [Sharif] of Mocha has made peace with Sheik Ali Homeida [Shaikh ‘Alī Ḥumaydah], that he is levying contributions from the ‘mountain chiefs’, and that his force is reputedly 7000 men strongAffairs concerning the tribes of the neighbourhood, including: a recent disturbance between a number of tribes caused by a ‘misunderstanding concerning transit duties’ (f 574); and an apparent attack by the Azeibies [‘Uzaybī?] on Futhel ibn Hyder [Faḍl bin Ḥaydar] of Seyla and his return attackA report that the Sultan of the Ourlghi tribe has issued orders for his tribe to march westward, causing great concern to the ‘agriculturists’ (farmers) surrounding Lahidge [Lahej] and the Sultan of Lahidge, and Haines’s hope that an invasion will not happen as this would affect the Aden marketThe return to Aden of the HC [Honourable Company’s] Schooner of War Constancefrom Mussowah [Massawa, also spelled Mussowa in this item] and a copy of the commander’s report to Haines (ff 592-594), of his proceedings regarding settlement of the dispute between the Banian merchant and the Turkish [Ottoman] Governor of Mussowah to the satisfaction of both parties. Also included is Haines’s justification for sending the Constanceto Mussowah (f 599), following a request for further particulars from the Bombay GovernmentHaines’s report that he has requested the HC Schooner Tigristo convey Lieutenant Charles John Cruttenden, Assistant Political Agent at Aden, on a tour around the different ports and within the gulf of Aden, whom he has instructed, amongst other things, to: proceed to Berbera and Bulharr [Bulhar] to visit the ‘feuding’ Somali tribes on the African coast and to persuade the Elders into amicable settlements since the feuds are impeding the coastal trade with Aden; investigate obtaining supplies from Maculla [Makalla] in case of an emergency; obtain the property of the late Reverend Thomas Brochman at Shahr [ash-Shihr]; visit Socotra to enquire into the movement of French vessels which have apparently surveyed the island in detail recently; and enquire into the trade in enslaved persons in the region (ff 587-589)The view of the Governor-General of India that the stipend of the Sultan of Lahidg should be forfeited as he was the ‘leader and fomenter of the recent hostilities at Aden’, and should only be renewed after ‘a period of approved good conduct’ (f 581)Soundings taken, by the commander of the Constance, on two sides of the Zebaya [Zubayr] Islands and confirmation that no change in the depth of water there has been found (subsequent to the recent volcanic eruption there) (f 597)The ‘Proposed Draft of Instructions for the guidance of the Political Agent at Aden’ (ff 607-609) regarding police rules, and their transmission to Haines to report how far, in his opinion, they can be made applicable to AdenIn response to Haines’s request for instructions, the Bombay Government’s agreement that the Johannese Chiefs [ruling princes of Anjouan] who are expected to return to Aden next July should be entertained at government expense, but that Haines should arrange a ‘Bugla, or other country craft’ (f 613) to return them to their country as there is no justification for using a government vessel.Physical description: 1 item (45 folios)