Abstract: The volume comprises correspondence between the India Office (John P Gibson, Maurice Clauson, Roland T Peel, John C Walton); the Foreign Office (George Rendel, Lacy Bagallay); the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Trenchard C Fowle); the Political Agent at Kuwait (Gerald S de Gaury); His Majesty’s Minister at Jedda (Sir Andrew Ryan, Sir Reader Bullard); Secretary of State for India (Lawrence Dundas, 2nd Marquess of Zetland); the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (Anthony Eden); and Petroleum Concessions Limited (John Skliros, Stephen H Longrigg, Frank Holmes) regarding the Kuwait Neutral Zone and Petroleum Concessions Limited’s interest in attempting to secure an option or concession from the Shaikh of Kuwait and the Government of Saudi Arabia for their shares in the zone.The volume consists of general correspondence regarding Petroleum Concessions Limited’s interest in and work towards various concessions in the Persian Gulf and various possibilities for approaching the Saudi Arabian Government regarding their share of the Neutral Zone concession. Also discussed are attempts to ascertain the exact nature and extent of the Standard Oil Company of California’s preference rights for both the zone and the remainder of the territory of Saudi Arabia.Further discussion surrounds His Majesty’s Government’s concerns over the financial situation in Saudi Arabia and their desire where possible to provide assistance and support, along with the challenges of balancing this desire with their own policies and interests in the Persian Gulf.The main focus of the discussion in the volume centres on the possibility of a buy-out clause relating to the neutral zone concession existing in the Standard Oil Company of California (SOCAL)’s option agreement with the Saudi Arabian Government and the subsequent discovery that SOCAL’s preference rights were much more extensive. The exact nature of the preference rights are identified by the Foreign Office being supplied copies of the relevant concession articles by Mahmood Riyad Zada of the Royal Legation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in London.The correspondence concludes with PCL deciding to make an offer to the Saudi Arabian Government, via their representation in London, for a concession covering central and western Saudi Arabia and the Kuwait Neutral Zone to be worked by Petroleum Development (Western Arabia) Limited. Separate correspondence documents discussion between Hamilton Ballantyne of the Standard Oil Company of California and the India Office about SOCAL's potential interest in the neutral zone concession now that oil has been discovered in Hasa and Kuwait.Also included in the volume is the memorandum prepared in the Petroleum Department, June 1938, looking at areas where petroleum concessions were mostly likely to be, or had been already been obtained, on the Arabian Peninsula.A series of file notes which were maintained as a record of the correspondence in the volume can be found at folios 224-230.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 235; 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 24-223; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and are located in the same position as the main sequence. A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.
Abstract: The file contains correspondence between the Political
Resident in the Persian Gulf (William Rupert Hay); the Political Agent at Kuwait (Gordon
Noel Jackson, Maurice O’Connor Tandy); the India Office (later the Commonwealth
Relations Office, Eion Pelly Donaldson, Adrian Harbottle Reed, Ralph Ingham Hallows);
the Foreign Office (Lancelot Frank Lee Pyman); the Ministry of Fuel and Power (William
Dunmore Monsell-Davies); His Majesty’s Minister at Jedda (Alan Charles Trott); the
Shaikh of Kuwait (Shaikh Aḥmad al-Jābir Āl Ṣabāḥ) and various oil companies in relation
to the auction process instituted by the Shaikh of Kuwait for his share in the
Kuwait-Saudi Arabia Neutral Zone oil concession.The companies which expressed an interest in bidding for the
Kuwait neutral zone concession included Petroleum Concessions Limited, the Burmah Oil
Company, the Eastern Gulf Company, the Amerada Petroleum Company, the American
Independent Petroleum Corporation, the Superior Oil Company of California and the
Canadian Eagle Oil Company. However owing to the Shaikh's requirement that
financial backing and resources to undertake exploitation of an oil concession are
proven by each potential bidder only four companies were permitted to continue and
submit final bids on 1 June 1948 – Petroleum Concessions Limited, the Burmah Oil
Company, the Eastern Gulf Company and the American Independent Petroleum
Corporation.Other matters discussed in the file include:the question of the political agreement between His
Majesty’s Government and successful Oil Company and discussing whether such an
agreement could be made with an American Company and also what changes and special
requirements would have to be made owing to the concession only being for the Shaikh
of Kuwait’s share of the neutral zone.a visit paid by the Shaikh of Kuwait to Ibn Saud (‘Abd
al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd)and the question of whether or not
the neutral zone was discussed by them.debate around the possibility of a geographic division
of the neutral zone in order to make administration of the zone easier, and the
conclusion that negotiations for such a division could take years and would not
perhaps be in the best interests of the Oil Companies exploiting an oil concession
there.a hydrographic survey of the coast-line of the neutral
zone to locate a suitable landing site for heavy equipment.a new air service instituted by Iraq Airways in 1947
that would fly from Basra to Kuwait and Bahrain.A series of file notes which were maintained as a record of
the correspondence in the volume can be found at folios 272-299.Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for
referencing) commences at the front cover with 1 and terminates at the back cover with
302; 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 also present
in parallel between ff 2-99 and ff 113-300; these numbers are also written in pencil,
but are not circled, and are located in the same position as the main sequence.
Abstract: The volume comprises correspondence between the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Trenchard C Fowle, Charles G Prior); the Political Agent at Kuwait (Gerald S de Gaury, Arnold C Galloway, Tom Hickinbotham); the India Office (John P Gibson, Roland T Peel); the Foreign Office (Lacy Baggallay, Charles W Baxter); His Majesty’s Minister in Jedda [Jiddah] (Sir Reader Bullard); Petroleum Concessions Limited (John Skliros, Stephen Hemsley Longrigg, Frank Holmes); the Shaikh of Kuwait (Shaikh Aḥmad al-Jābir Āl Ṣabāḥ) and the Arabian Americian Oil Company (ARAMCO, formerly the Standard Oil Company of California (SOCAL) and the Californian American Standard Oil Company (CASOC)).The correspondence centres on interest in a possible oil concession for the Kuwait-Saudi neutral zone and in particular the Shaikh of Kuwait’s share of the concession, which had yet to be awarded, and the Saudi Government’s share which was taken up by ARAMCO in July 1939.The early correspondence relates to World War II during which both the Eastern Gulf Oil Company and Petroleum Concessions Limited (PCL) express interest in the Shaikh of Kuwait’s share, but to which the Shaikh consistently responds that he is not interested in discussing the question as he hopes that he may be able to regain control of the whole of the zone should the King of Saudi Arabia, Ibn Saud [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd], pass away. This situation continues until 1946 when the Shaikh decides to begin considering offers for a neutral zone concession and invites various companies including Petroleum Concessions Limited, the Eastern Gulf Oil Company, ARAMCO and the Burmah Oil Company to compete for the concession.Other matters discussed in the volume include:a proposed visit by Harold and Violet Dickson to Ibn Saud December 1938 which was eventually cancelled;a report from His Majesty’s Minister at Jedda regarding discussions held between Stephen Hemsley Longrigg of Petroleum Concessions Limited and the Minister of Finance to the Saudi Arabian Government regarding concessions for the unalloted areas of Saudi Arabia, after which PCL concluded they were not prepared to bid for owing to the preference rights given by the Government to the Californian Arabian Standard Oil Company;a visit paid by Shaikh Yusuf Yasin [Yūsuf Yāsīn] of the Saudi Arabian Government to Sir Reader Bullard, His Majesty’s Minister at Jedda regarding a possible oil concession for the Kuwait-Saudi neutral zone in which the Saudi Arabian Government’s growing need for money was noted along with concerns that the Saudi Government seemed to think British and American Oil interests were conspiring against them to keep offers low.confirmation that the Californian Arabian Standard Oil Company (CASOC) had taken up their right to a concession for all unalloted areas of Saudi Arabia, including the Saudi Arabian share of the neutral zone. The concession agreement was ratified in July 1939 and published in the Umm-al-Qura newspaper.a report of a visit made by Colonel Harold Richard Patrick Dickson of the Kuwait Oil Company to Abraq al Kabrit [Abraq al Kibrīt] to see CASOC’s drilling operations and obtain water samples.Correspondence between Major Frank Holmes, Adviser to the Shaikh of Kuwait on Oil Matters and the Shaikh of Kuwait in which oil in the neutral zone is discussed along with possible arrangements for transit oil from Basra to pass through Kuwait and the likely financial benefits to the Shaikh of such an arrangement.discussion between the Political Agent at Bahrain and the Political Resident regarding the outstanding Saudi Arabia boundary questions and the appropriate time to address the issues. The boundary questions being discussed included the Kuwait Neutral Zone; Jebel Naksh [Nakhsh] and Khor-el-Odeid [Khawr al ‘Udayd] which Saudi Arabia had made claims to but which the British Government considered to belong to Qatar and Abu Dhabi respecitively; and the boundaries between Trucial Coast States, Muscat and Saudi Arabia and how best to draw boundary lines between them, including Saudi Arabian claims to the Baraimi [Al Buraymī] Oasis, and the British Government’s opinion that any boundary settlement needed to ensure the Baraimi Oasis remained part of Abu Dhabi territory.rumours of an intended meeting between Ibn Saud and the Shaikh of Kuwait at Gaisun [Al Qayşūmah]; and further reports that the Shaikh of Kuwait, Shaikh Abdullah bin Isa Al Khalifah [ʻAbd Allāh bin ‘Īsá Āl Khalīfah] [(brother of the Shaikh of Bahrain) and Mohammad Tabriz bin Abdul Aziz bin Saud [Muḥammad bin ʻAbd al-ʻAzīz Āl Sa‘ūd] (a son of Ibn Saud) had all been in the Gaisun area and had corresponded but that Ibn Saud had not travelled there.a request by the Arabian American Oil Company (ARAMCO) to undertake a hydrographic survey of the coast of the neutral zone in order to locate a harbour site suitable for unloading heavy equipment for the trans-Arabian pipeline, and the granting of permission by both the Saudi Arabian Government and the Shaikh of Kuwait for the work to be undertaken.A series of file notes which were maintained as a record of the correspondence in the volume can be found at folios 244-263.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 267; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 3-243; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and are located in the same position as the main sequence. A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.
Abstract: This file contains correspondence between the Rulers of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, as well as the British Political Resident in the Persian Gulf and the Political Agent in Kuwait regarding the administration of the Neutral Zone, and exploration for oil deposits in the Neutral Zone. The papers discuss the initiation of oil operations in the Neutral Zone by various oil companies, but also some details of the jurisdiction of the Rulers of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia in the Neutral Zone and on its borders.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 35; 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: This file contains correspondence pertaining to the negotiations between various oil companies, the British Political Residency in the Persian Gulf, and the British Government on the initiation of oil extraction operations in the Neutral Zone between Iraq, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia. Some papers include negotiations with the Iraq Oil Company and the Standard Oil Company of California.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 246; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located at the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 4-241; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
Abstract: This file contains correspondence relating to the initiation of oil operations in the Neutral Zone. The papers include draft agreements on the proposed territorial division of the Neutral Zone as well as various proposals for the sharing of oil resources drafted between British Foreign Office in London and the Persian Gulf. Of note are numerous letters that discuss Harold Adrian Russell Philby's involvement in negotiations on the future of the Neutral Zone.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description 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. Additional irregular foliation sequences are present in parallel; 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.
Abstract: This file contains correspondence relating to the extraction of oil in the Neutral Zone between Kuwait, Iraq and Saudi Arabia. Most of the papers discuss negotiations between the British government and the ruler of Kuwait, and the various oil companies involved in oil operations in the Neutral Zone at the time. Of note are several letters by Major Frank Holmes acting on behalf of the Eastern and General Syndicate.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 299; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. Additional irregular foliation sequences are present in parallel; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled. A previous foliation sequence, which is present between ff 71-111 and ff 130-298 and is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.
Abstract: This file contains correspondence primarily between the India Office, the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, the Political Agent in Kuwait, and relating to the development of oil operations in the Neutral Zone between Kuwait, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia. The majority of the papers relate to the re-negotiation of oil royalties paid to the Ruler of Kuwait. Other papers cover British government's perspectives on the presence of American Oil Companies in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 378; 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; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled. A previous foliation sequence, which is present between ff 122-377 and is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.
Abstract: This file contains correspondence relating to the operations of oil companies in the Neutral Zone between Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Iraq. The correspondence is primarily between British officials, but also includes letters to and from the American Independent Oil Company, and the Kuwait Oil Company. Of note are several agreements, and drafts of agreements relating to the operations of the oil industry in the Neutral Zone and in Kuwait.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 351; 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; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
Abstract: The file concerns negotiations with Petroleum Concessions Limited (PCL) over an oil concession agreement in the Koweit [Kuwait] Neutral Zone. The Shaikh of Kuwait [Aḥmad al-Jābir Āl Ṣabāḥ] exercised joint control over the Neutral Zone with the King of Saudi Arabia [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd], generally referred to in the papers as Ibn Saud, and neither ruler could grant a concession without the co-operation of the other. The Sheikh of Kuwait could not grant a concession without the approval of the British Government.The papers include: draft concession for the Neutral Zone prepared by Petroleum Concessions Limited (folios 419-433); India Office correspondence, memoranda, and minutes of meetings with oil company representatives; correspondence concerning the negotiations from the Foreign Office, the British Legation, Jedda, the Political Agent, Kuwait, the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, and the Petroleum Department (later the Ministry of Fuel and Power); Ibn Saud's decision, as far as his own rights in the area were concerned, to grant an option to the Standard Oil Company of California (later the Arabian American Oil Company), (the rights were secured by agreement in 1939); the question of whether the Kuwait Neutral Zone was within the 'Red Line Agreement' of 1928 (e.g. folio 357); correspondence from Petroleum Concessions Limited; the Company's decision to pursue an option rather than a concession (folio 348); draft option agreement (folios 332-335); the role in the negotiations of Major Frank Holmes (including correspondence from Holmes); the Shaikh of Kuwait's view that the whole of the Neutral Zone should really belong to Kuwait (e.g. folio 320); minutes of meetings at the Foreign Office with representatives of the Company, and the Company's financial offer to Ibn Saud (folios 253-269); and the agreement between the Arabian American Oil Company and the Eastern Gulf Oil Company to compete with PCL for the Shaikh of Kuwait's rights in the Neutral Zone, 1943-44.The file also contains one apparently misfiled letter dated 31 January 1947 (folio 4).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 448; 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 5-447; 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.
Abstract: This file contains correspondence between British officials regarding the status and history of the neutral zone between Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.The correspondence is between officials at the British Legation in Jeddah, the Foreign Office, the India Office, the Political Agency in Kuwait, the Political Residency in Bushire and the Air Ministry. A limited amount of correspondence with the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ruler of Kuwait, Shaikh Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah is also contained.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 90; 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 concerns correspondence and records of meetings to discuss questions relating to oil in the Persian Gulf, including Kuwait and the Kuwait Neutral Zone, and also Bahrain and Qatar. This includes discussion of the history and status of the Neutral Zone between Nejd and Koweit [Kuwait] and its relationship to the Iraq Petroleum Company Group Agreement of 1928. Also discussed in the correspondence are the interests of the Arabian Development Syndicate and Standard Oil of California.Documents included in the volume are:(ff 227-244) a printed draft of an agreement between the Government of Saudi Arabia and the Ruler of Kuwait(ff 399-406) 'Note of interview with Mr Janson and Major Holmes on Friday, 2nd February 1934'(ff 299-301) 'Note of conversation with Mr. Lefroy of the Anglo-Persian Oil Company on 20th April 1934, regarding the Koweit Neutral Zone'(ff 263-266) Letter in Arabic with translations from Ibn Saud to Abdul-Ghani Adlibia map (folio 245) showing Kuwait and the neutral zone.Correspondents include: the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Trenchard Craven Fowle); the Secretary of State for the Colonies; the Secretary of State for India; the Political Agent, Kuwait (H.R.P. Dickson); and Abdul Aziz bin Abdur Rahman Al Faisal (Ibn Saud).The file includes a divider which gives the subject number, the year the subject file was opened, the subject heading, and a list of correspondence references 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 490; 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.