Abstract: The first edition of
Who's Who in Persia (Volume I) Khorasan, Sistan & the Kainat, compiled by General Staff, India, comprises a biographical dictionary of individuals connected with those regions in 1923.It also includes two genealogical trees outlining the pedigree of the Chiefs of Tun and Tabas, and the Rukn-ud-Dauleh family, showing their relationship to the Shahs of Persia.Published by the Government Central Press, Delhi.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 36; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. Pagination: the file also contains an original printed pagination sequence.
Abstract: Printed collection of biographical notices, as well as comments on élite dynasties and tribes of Persia [Iran], written over a period of twelve months and completed in December 1897 by Lieutenant-Colonel Henry Philip Picot (Military Attaché, Teheran [Tehran]), then Acting Oriental Secretary in Her Majesty’s Legation. Amendments were added up until 23 January 1898. The author presented the manuscript to Charles H Hardinge (First Secretary, Foreign Office, London), 27 January 1898. The latter forwarded it to the Marquis of Salisbury (Prime Minister), 28 January 1898, who received it a month later (28 February 1898). The title page (f 1) is stamped as having belonged previously to the Government of India’s Library of the Foreign Office, Simla, where this copy was received with two other copies (two for Simla and one for Calcutta [Kolkata], three copies in total) and a letter from the Secretary of the Political and Secret Department, dated 8 July 1898 (location not disclosed). The contents are marked secret (originally ‘confidential,’ crossed out), and specified as, ‘For the use of Officers in Her Majesty’s Service only.’The printed work comprises two ‘inclosures’ [enclosures]: firstly, Picot’s letter of presentation to Hardinge (f 2v), prefaced by Hardinge’s letter of presentation to the Marquis of Salisbury (f 2); secondly, the treatise proper (ff 3r-60v). The contents page (f 3v) lists four main sections, but without corresponding page references. Following a brief introduction (f 4), an alphabetic register [index] of names (ff 4v-11v), and a glossary of titles and terms (ff 12r-13v), the work is divided into eight chapters comprising numbered entries. The first four chapters deal with the royal family in Teheran (forty-five entries over ff 14r-19v), the notables of Teheran (ninety-seven entries over ff 20r-32v), the merchants of Teheran (twenty-eight entries over ff 33r-35v), and the clergy of Teheran (eleven entries over ff 36-37). The remaining four chapters focus on the provinces of Fars (thirty-eight entries over ff 37v-44v), Ispahan [Isfahan] (eleven entries over ff 45-47), Khorasan (fifty-nine entries over ff 47v-57v), and Tabriz (twenty-two entries over ff 58-60).Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with 1 and terminates at the last folio with 60; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.Pagination: the volume also contains an original pagination sequence.
Abstract: The volume consists of corrections and additions to the biographical dictionary of individuals given in
Who's Who in Persia (Volume I) Khorasan, Sistan & the Kainat,compiled by the General Staff, India, from 1923.Published by the Government of India Press, Simla, 1924.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 13; 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 3-13; these numbers are printed, and are not circled.
Abstract: This file consists of a report written by Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Edward Stewart, Bengal Staff Corps, in which he describes his journeys to and around Mashad, Herat and Merv in the vicinity of the Perso-Afghan frontier, and provides detailed intelligence regarding topography, settlements, communications, vegetation and agriculture. He also describes local populations, tribes and chiefs, and their present and historical actions and allegiances.The author records his opinion that due to a general fear of Torcoman raids, and a positive attitude towards Russia, the region of Khurasan [Khorāsān] could willingly fall under Russian sway; he therefore urges the instalment of an English officer on the Perso-Afghan frontier to maintain a British influence there.The report is written in twelve chapters, and is followed by five appendices giving detailed descriptions of routes travelled, with mileages.Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with 123 and terminates at the last folio with 162, 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. An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 123-162; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
Abstract: Military report on the Khurasan [Khurāsān] and Seistan [Sīstān] regions of Persia [Iran], with maps and illustrations. Produced by the General Staff, India, and published in Calcutta [Kolkata] by the Government of India Press, 1931. Marked for official use only.The report includes chapters on:a history of Khurasan and Seistanthe geography of Khurasan and Seistan (mountains, rivers, deserts, an alphabetical listing of towns) and climate (including assessments of the health risks associated with both regions)population (religion, tribes)resources (including crops, grazing, fuel, transport, and a note on horses and mules in Khurasan)armed forces (including a description of the Eastern Division of the Persian military, an Order of Battle, organisation, armaments, equipment, clothing, rations, training)aviation (detailing the organisation, personnel, equipment, aerodromes, etc., of the Persian Air Force)administration (municipal, police, justice, department of public instruction, revenue, roads and communications, census, post and telegraphs, sanitation)communications (railways, roads, types of motor transport in use, principal routes used by travellers from Meshed [Mashad] to Russian territory, telegraphs, telephones, wireless)An appendix includes a veterinary note on conditions in Khurasan and Seistan. The volume also includes four colour plates illustrating different badges associated with Persian army and police officers, and a number of maps and diagrammatic maps.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 75; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.Pagination: the file also contains an original printed pagination sequence.
Abstract: The volume is
Report on Sistan and the Country Between it and Mashad[Mashhad], by Lieutenant H D Napier, Staff Lieutenant, Intelligence Branch, Quarter Master General's Department in India. It was printed at the Government Central Printing Office, Simla, 1894. It consists of two parts, political and military.The report is largely based on a journey from Mashad to Sistan and back undertaken between 1 November 1892 and 18 March 1893 by the author; his munshi and a native of Mashad, Haji Jawad [Haji Javād]; a sub-surveyor of the Queen's Own Corps of Guides, Sher Ali Khan [Shīr ʿAlī Khan]; a 'gholam' [young servant] from the Governor of Khorasan (unnamed); and a Turkoman [Turkmen] 'postal sowar' [mounted orderly or guard] (unnamed). It provides information and statistics (often tabulated) on the history, geography, economy, population, resources, roads, and meteorology of the region. The information in the military section reflects concerns with supplies, transport, and development possibilities.Throughout the volume there are numerous photographs, plans, and sketches. These are of fortifications, landscape features, sites of historical or cultural interest, and notable people. In a pocket at the rear of the volume is a map that illustrates the report.Near the beginning of the report there is a preface (folio 4) written by Lieutenant-Colonel George Hand More-Molyneux, Assistant Quarter Master General, Intelligence Branch, on 7 May 1894, and guidance for the 'Custody and Disposal of Secret Books, Reports, &c., Issued by the Intelligence Branch, Quarter Master General's Department in India' (folio 3).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 57; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.Pagination: An additional printed pagination sequence is also present in parallel between ff 6-53.
Abstract: The map shows trade routes in the provinces of Seistan and Kain [Sīstān and Qā’en] and the surrounding Khorasan region of Persia [Iran], and trade routes across the borders from Persia into Afghanistan and British Baluchistan.The map was created by Ordnance Survey, Southampton.Physical description: Materials: Printed on paperDimensions: 202 x 134mm, on sheet 242 x 153mm
Abstract: The item is Volume I of the four-volume
Gazetteer of Persia(1910 edition).The volume covers the provinces of Astarabad, Shahrud-Bustam, and Khorasan, or such part of them as lies within the following boundaries: on the north the Russo-Persian boundary; on the east the Perso-Afghan boundary; on the south and south-west, a line drawn from the Afghan boundary west through Gazik to Birjand, and the road from Birjand to Kirman, and from Kirman to Yazd; and on the west the road from Yazd to Damghan and thence to Ashraf.The gazetteer includes entries on villages, towns, administrative divisions, districts, provinces, tribes, halting-places, religious sects, mountains, hills, streams, rivers, springs, wells, dams, passes, islands and bays. The entries provide details of latitude, longitude, and elevation for some places, and information on history, communications, agriculture, produce, population, health, water supply, topography, military intelligence, coastal features, ethnography, trade, economy, administration and political matters.Information sources are provided at the end of each gazetteer entry, in the form of an author or source’s surname, italicised and bracketed.The volume contains an index map (from a later edition of the
Gazetteer of Persia), dated January 1917, on folio 397.The volume also contains a glossary (folios 393-394); and note on weights and measures (folios 394v-395).Prepared by the General Staff Headquarters, India.Printed at the Government Monotype Press, India.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 398; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. Pagination: the file also contains an original printed pagination sequence.
Abstract: This volume is Volume I of the four-volume Gazetteer of Persia (1886 edition). It was compiled for political and military reference by Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Metcalfe MacGregor, Assistant Quarter Master General, in 1871, and brought up to 31 July 1885 by the Intelligence Branch, Quarter Master General’s Department in India. It was printed by the Government Central Branch Press, Simla, India in 1886.The areas of Persia [Iran] covered are Astarabad, Shahrud-Bustan, Khurasan [Khorāsān], and Sistan. The boundaries of the areas covered by Volume I are as follows: the Afghan border from the River Helmand to Sarakhs in the east; and from there a line north-west to Askhabad, due west to the Atrak, which it follows to the Caspian Sea; then along the sea coast to Ashurada Island; then in a straight line to Shahrud; and from the latter south-east to Tabas hill, Sihkuha, and the Helmand, from where the river first meets the south-east border of Sistan.The gazetteer includes entries on human settlements and buildings (forts, hamlets, villages, towns, provinces, and districts); communications (passes, roads, bridges, canals, and halting places); tribes and religious sects; and physical features (rivers, streams, springs, wells, fords, valleys, mountains, hills, plains, and bays). Entries include information on history, geography, buildings, population, ethnography, resources, trade, agriculture, and climate.Information sources are provided at the end of each gazetteer entry, in the form of an author or source’s surname, italicised and bracketed.The volume includes the following illustrations: ‘VIEW OF AK-DARBAND.’ [Mss Eur F112/376, f 12v]; ‘PLAN OF AK-KALA.’ [Mss Eur F112/376, f 14]; ‘ROUGH SKETCH OF ASTARÁBÁD, FROM AN EYE-SKETCH BY LT.-COL. BERESFORD LOVETT, R. E., 1881.’ [Mss Eur F112/376, f 24]; ‘ROUGH PLAN OF BASHRÚGAH’ [Mss Eur F112/376, f 40v]; ‘ROUGH PLAN OF BÚJNÚRD’ [Mss Eur F112/376, f 48]; and ‘BUJNURD, FROM THE S. W.’ [Mss Eur F112/376, f 49v].It also includes the following inserted papers (folios 51 to 60): a memorandum from the Office of the Quartermaster General in India, Intelligence Branch to Lord Curzon, dated 6 December 1895, forwarding for his information ‘Corrections to Volume I of the Gazetteer of Persia’, consisting of articles on the Nishapur district of the province of Khorasan, and the Shelag river.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the 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. Pagination: the file also contains an original printed pagination sequence.
Abstract: This memorandum, written by Lord Curzon [George Nathaniel Curzon, Marquess Curzon of Kedleston], discusses a proposed Bunder Abbas–Kerman railway line. Curzon considers the possible diplomatic, commercial and strategic motives for constructing the railway line.Curzon argues that if the line has been suggested merely as a diplomatic rejoinder – that is to say, as a response to a Russian concession from Baku to Teheran [Tehran] – then the proposal is of little merit.He suggests that if the line is being proposed for its commercial value then this should be demonstrated by the figures of trade. Moreover, Curzon argues that the line's commercial effect on any future extension of the Nushki railway beyond Dalbandin should also be considered, since both lines would then be competing for the trade of East Persia and Khorasan.Curzon suggests that one strategic advantage of constructing a line from Bunder Abbas to Kerman would be the prospect of diverting a future Teheran–Yezd–Kerman Russian railway line away from the direction of India.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at f 14, and terminates at f 14, 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. A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.
Abstract: The volume, marked 'Strictly Confidential', is
Collection of journals and reports received from Captain the Hon. G C Napier, Bengal Staff Corps, on special duty in Persia. 1874.It was printed in London by George E Eyre and William Spottiswoode, printers to Her Majesty's Stationery Office, 1876.The volume contains ten documents written by George Campbell Napier, and compiled by the Political and Secret Department of the India Office. The documents included are as follows:1. Report of the proceedings in regard to the Khaff [Khvāf] raid (folios 5-9);2. Diary kept during tour in Khorassan [Razavi Khorasan] (folios 10-59);3. Observations on the topography of the Eastern Alburz tract, with notices on a few places of interest on the Persian Border (folios 60-80);4. Memorandum on the condition and external relations of the Turkoman tribes of Merve [Mary] (folios 80-92);5. Reports on events in Herat and Turkistan. Diary for March 1875 (folios 92-97);6. Report on the present situation in Seistan [Sīstān] in relation to late arbitration (folios 97-103);7. Report on the Perso-Afghan border (folios 103-125);8. Notes on the political condition of the population of Eastern Khorassan (folios 125-132);9. Notes on the condition of the districts, chiefships, and tribes of the north-eastern frontier of Persia (folios 133-172);10. Memorandum on the relations of Russia and Persia with the Turkoman tribes of the Attrek Frontier (folios 172-178).At the back of the volume (folio 194) is a fold-out map of the northern frontier of Khorassan, with parts of Irak [Iraq] and Mazandaran [Māzandarān].On the inside front cover and title page are hand-written notes, each reading 'Turkish Dept'.Physical description: Foliation: The foliation sequence commences at the inside front cover, and terminates at the inside back cover; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio (except for the front cover where the folio number is on the verso).Pagination: The volume also contains an original printed pagination sequence.
Abstract: Reprint of
Collection of journals and reports received from Captain the Hon. G C Napier, Bengal Staff Corps, on special duty in Persia. 1874,with a revised index at pp 348-355 (folios 181-185). A copy of the original index is present at folios 186-200.A letter from the Under Secretary of State for India to the Under Secretary of State for War has been pasted into the front of the volume (folios 2-3), noting that two copies of the revised version have been forwarded for the use of the Intelligence Department.The volume contains ten documents written by George Campbell Napier, and compiled by the Political and Secret Department of the India Office. The documents included are as follows:1. Report of the proceedings in regard to the Khaff [Khvāf] raid;2. Diary kept during tour in Khorassan [Razavi Khorasan];3. Observations on the topography of the Eastern Alburz tract, with notices on a few places of interest on the Persian Border;4. Memorandum on the condition and external relations of the Turkoman tribes of Merve [Mary];5. Reports on events in Herat and Turkistan. Diary for March 1875;6. Report on the present situation in Seistan [Sīstān] in relation to late arbitration;7. Report on the Perso-Afghan border;8. Notes on the political condition of the population of Eastern Khorassan;9. Notes on the condition of the districts, chiefships, and tribes of the north-eastern frontier of Persia;10. Memorandum on the relations of Russia and Persia with the Turkoman tribes of the Attrek Frontier.At the back of the volume (folio 201) is a fold-out map of the northern frontier of Khorassan, with parts of Irak [Iraq] and Mazandaran [Māzandarān].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 203; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. Pagination: the file also contains an original printed pagination sequence.