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13. 'Note on a Railway for Southern Persia, by Colonel E.C.S. Williams, C.I.E., R.E.'
- Description:
- Abstract: This file consists of a note written by Colonel Edward Charles Sparshott Williams, Deputy Government Director of Indian Guaranteed Railway Companies, in which the author assesses the practicalities and costs of constructing a number of alternative proposed river and rail routes, designed to improve communications from Mohummerah towards Teheran or Ispahan in southern Persia.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence commences and terminates at folio 200, as it is part of a larger physical volume; this number is written in pencil, is circled, and is located at the top right corner of the folio. An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel; this number is also written in pencil, but is not circled.
14. 'Memorandum on the state of affairs in Persia by Major-General Sir H Rawlinson'
- Description:
- Abstract: This printed memorandum was compiled by diplomat Major-General Sir Henry Creswicke Rawlinson, and discusses various subjects relating to the state of affairs in Persia including:the perceived nature of the Persian people;the perceived character of the current Shah of Teheran [Tehran] and concerns over the future succession;the style of governance in Persia;English-Russian relations and the involvement of both countries in Persia;the views of Sir Henry Wolff on reforms in Persia and the appropriate action for the English to take;the proposed building of railways in Persia.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at f 9, and terminates at f 10, 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.
15. 'File 39/10 (10/24) Meetings of the Baghdad Petroleum Advisory Committee'
- Description:
- Abstract: The file contains correspondence and telegrams between the Government of India, the British Embassy at Baghdad, California Arabian Standard Oil Company (CASOC), Bahrain Petroleum Company (BAPCO) and the Political Resident at Bahrain, regarding the monthly meetings of the Petroleum Advisory Committee held in Baghdad, then in Basra and in Tehran between 1942-1944. The correspondence mainly contains requests to the Political Agent at Bahrain to arrange air passages and hotel bookings for the oil companies' delegates.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 107; 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 mixed foliation/pagination sequence is also present in parallel between ff 2-103; these numbers are written in ink and pencil, but are not circled.
16. Ishārāt al-uṣūl ilá mafātīḥ al-aḥkām ḥasaba mā yaqtaḍīh al-awqāt wa-al-ayyām
- Description:
- bi-saʻy Mīrzā Zayn al-ʻĀbidīn.In Arabic ; introd. in Persian.
17. Persian Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: This part of the volume consists of copies of enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay [Mumbai] Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 118 of 1846, dated 14 October 1846. The enclosures are numbered 3-4 and are dated 14 to 15 August 1846, and relate to Persian [Iranian] affairs.Enclosure No. 3 consists of a letter from HM Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary at the Court of Persia, Lieutenant-Colonel Justin Sheil, to the Chief Secretary to the Government of Bombay, forwarding under flying seal a letter to the Secretary to the Government of India, enclosing copies of despatches addressed by Sheil to HM Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, the Earl of Aberdeen, dated 20 July to 10 August 1846. It also includes one letter from Sheil to HM Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, Sir Stratford Canning, dated 10 August 1846.The despatches concern matters including:Sheil raising the claims for compensation of Hajee Noor-ood-deen [Ḥājī Nūr al-Dīn], a British subject, with the Persian GovernmentThe Persian Government having built up a ‘considerable’ artillery at Tehran, with Sheil enclosing a list of the guns and ordnance stores in the arsenal at TehranAn outbreak of cholera in TehranThe death from cholera of Meerza Abul Hassan Khan [Mīrzā Abū al-Ḥasan Khān Shirāzī, Īlchī-yi Kabīr], Persian Minister for Foreign Affairs, and Sheil’s preference for his successorThe Persian Government having been persuaded not to recall the Persian Minister at Erzeroom [Erzurum], Meerza Tekkee Khan [Mīrzā Taqī Khān Farāhānī, also known as Amīr Kabīr], following an attack on him in which he nearly lost his life, two of his servants were murdered, and his property was stolen; and the Persian Prime Minister, Hajee Meerza Aghassee [Ḥājī Mīrzā (ʿAbbās Īravānī) Āqāsī], instead instructing him to seek redress for these events from the Turkish [Ottoman] Government, and in anticipation of this being readily accorded, to sign the treaty with the PorteThe Russian Minister to Persia, Prince Dolgorouki [Prince Dimitri Ivanovich Dolgorukov] having addressed a ‘violent and personally threatening’ letter to Hajee Meerza Aghassee, calling on him to disavow in writing language which had been attributed to him, as well as any intention of going to war with Russia, which the Persian Prime Minister had complied withThe Court of Spain attempting to negotiate a treaty of commerce with the Persian GovernmentThe intention of the Russian Government to send a war steamer from Astracan [Astrakhan] twice a month laden with merchandise to the coast of Asterabad [Gorgan], and the opposition of the Persian Ministers to repeated visits of a Russian war ship to the Persian CoastThe Shah [Muḥammad Shāh Qājār] complaining to Sheil about the encroachments of Russia in the direction of Asterabad.Sheil’s despatches include enclosed copies of the following: correspondence between Sheil and Meerza Abul Hassan Khan; autograph letters from the Shah to Hajee Meerza Aghassee; correspondence between Prince Dolgorouki and Hajee Meerza Aghassee; and letters from Aghassee to Meerza Tekkee Khan and Sheil.Enclosure No. 4 is a letter from Sheil to the Secretary to the Government of India, dated 5 August 1846, informing him, for the information of the Governor-General, of the death of Meerza Abul Hassan, in view of him having been a pensioner of the British Government.Physical description: 1 item (67 folios)
18. Persian 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 33 of 1854, dated 31 May 1854. The enclosures are numbered 3-5 and are dated 8 December 1853 to 29 April 1854.The enclosures contain correspondence discussing the view of the Prime Minister [Ṣadr A‘ẓam] of the Government of Persia [Iran] on the journey of the mother of Prince Abbas Meerza [ʿAbbās Mīrzā Qājār] from Mecca to London. Correspondents include HM Chargé d’Affaires, Tehran; Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs; and the Secretary to the Government of India.Physical description: 1 item (67 folios)
19. Persian Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: This item comprises copies of enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 47 of 1856, dated 25 June 1856. The enclosures are dated 22 April-13 May 1856.The enclosures comprise copies of despatches sent by Richard W Stevens, HM Consul in Tehran, to the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, copies of which are forwarded for the information of the Government of Bombay and the Government of India. The despatches chiefly relate to the Persian [Iranian] military campaign against Herat, notably:Intelligence that the Persian Army of Prince Sultan Moorad Meerza [Prince Sulṭān Murād Mīrzā] defeated the Heratees in a battle at Ghorian [Ghurian] which is now garrisoned by the Persian ArmyThe apparent plan of the Shah [Shāh] of Persia to also conquer Kandahar [also spelled Candahar in this item] where there is purported opposition to Dost Mahomed Khan [Dūst Muḥammad Khān Bārakzāy], and the order of a detachment of Persian troops to Kandahar via Seistan [Sistan]Unverified intelligence received from the news-writer at Meshed [Mashhad] that the brother of the Ruler of Herat, Mahommed Youssuf [Muḥammad Yūsuf], and Essau Khan [ʻĪsá Khān], the anti-Persian vizier of Herat, have arranged terms of surrender with Sultan Moorad MeerzaIntelligence received from an Italian officer (ff 395-396) whose brother is attached to the Persian Army of Herat, alleging: Essau Khan’s defection to the Persians; the surrender of Herat due to scarcity of provisions; the garrisoning of Herat on the orders of the Shah; the poor condition of the Persian Army; and the agreement of the Heratees to all of Persia’s terms apart from the permanent occupation of Herat. (The copy of the original intelligence is in Italian, with an English translation. A duplicate of the Italian letter and translation is in IOR/L/PS/5/487, ff 426-436, ff 430-432)Intelligence brought to Tehran by the post-master of Semnaan [Semnan] claiming that Persian regular troops had entered Herat, the postponement of celebrations in Tehran following reports that the news was false, and punishment of the messengerReports in Tehran that Essau Khan in fact discovered Mahommed Youssuf in secret talks with the Persian Commander, ousted him in a coup, expelled him to the Persian camp ironically offering him as peeshkesh [peshkash, a fine or a present to the ruling authority on receiving an appointment or assignment of revenue], and did not surrender to the Persians.The item also covers the following matters:Russia’s expression of friendship for Persia by withdrawal of protection to the family of a Russian subject who died in Persia last year owing the Persian Government half a million tomansThe Persian prime minister’s intention to spread anti-English propaganda, in Bokhara [Bukhara], Khiva and Afghanistan, following the Ottoman Sultan’s firman placing his ‘non-Mussulman’ [non-Muslim] subjects on equal footing with ‘Mahommedans’ [Muslims] (referring to the Treaty of Paris March 1856 in which an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, Great Britain, France and Sardinia ended the Crimean War with Russia)Intelligence from Asterabad [Gorgan] of the murder of the Khan of Khiva by a group of Turcomans [Turkmen] of the Yamoot [Yomut] tribe, and fighting between Yamoots and Yoozbegs [Uzbeks] potentially leaving Khiva vulnerable to Russian ‘designs’The circulation in Tehran of an article originally printed by a Persian-language newspaper in Bombay [Mumbai], and Stevens’s assertion that only a complete retraction by the Persian Government of the ‘unfounded accusations’ and ‘calumnious statement’ contained in it will repair the ‘injurious effect’ (f 387) on Britain’s image.Physical description: 1 item (16 folios)
20. Persian Affairs and Persian Gulf 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. 8 dated 16 January 1856. The enclosures are dated 3-22 December 1855.The item comprises copies of despatches, with relevant enclosures, from Charles Augustus Murray, HM Envoy in Persia [Iran], to the Earl of Clarendon, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, forwarded to the Government of Bombay and the Government of India, and from Commander James Felix Jones, Indian Navy, Acting Resident in the Persian Gulf, to the Secretary to the Government, Bombay.Murray’s despatches relate to his suspension of diplomatic relations between the British Mission in Tehran and the Persian Government in connection with: the opposition of the Sadr Azim [Ṣadr-i Aʿẓam, Persian Prime Minister, spelled in various ways in this item] to Murray’s appointment of Meerza Hashem Khan [Mīrzā Hāshim Khān] to the British Agency at Sheeraz [Shiraz]; the Sadr Azim’s imprisonment of Meerza Hashem Khan’s wife; and the ‘insults’ and ‘calumnies’ circulated by the Persian Government against Murray and other British officials in Tehran. Notably covered are:Murray’s assertion of the Sadr Azim’s excessive influence over the ShahThe purported feud between the families of Meerza Hashem Khan and the Sadr AzimThe Sadr Azim’s contention that there has never been a British Agent at Shiraz and that Meerza Hashem Khan was in the pay of the Persian Government and therefore ineligible for employment by the BritishAttempts by Nicolas Prosper Bourée, French Consul at Tehran, to mediate between Murray and the Persian GovernmentMurray’s decision to haul down the flag of the British Mission in TehranMurray’s vehement denial of Persian claims that both he and William Taylour Thomson, the former Chargé d’Affaires at the Court of Persia, had affairs with the wife of Meerza Hashem Khan (see ff 101-102, 103-106 and 116-117) and that Thomson originally took Meerza Hashem Khan under the protection and employment of the British Mission for this reasonMurray’s refusal to rehoist the flag unless the Meerza’s wife is released and an apology is received from the Sadr Azim for the ‘gross and groundless’ ‘calumnies’ (f 98)Murray’s arrangements for the withdrawal the British Mission to Turkish [Ottoman] Territory, and (despite the opposition of the Persian Minister for Foreign Affairs) for HM Consul, Richard Stevens, to remain in TehranThe Persian Government’s insistence on its continued friendship with the British Government.The despatches include copies of Murray’s correspondence with the Sadr Azim and the Minister for Foreign Affairs and copies of notes written by the Shah.Also covered in Murray’s despatches are:Rumours of the death of Dost Mahomed Khan [Emir Dūst Muḥammad Khān Bārakzāy]Reports of the seizure of Herat by Prince Mahomed Yoosuf [Muḥammad Yūsuf Khān, Regent of Herat] and the apparent state of ‘civil war’ in Afghanistan (f 67)Intelligence from the British Agent at Meshed [Mashhad] relating the story of Hassan Ali Khan [Ḥasan ‘Alī Khān] in Bokhara [Bukhara] concerning his encounters with a man he suspects is a European [‘Perhaps Ferguson’ is noted in the left hand margin of folio 64]Russian incursions into the territory of the Khan of Khokand [Muḥammad Khudāyār Khān, Khān of Kokand]The Imam of Muscat’s letter asking Murray to mediate in his dispute with the Persian Government concerning ownership of Bender Abbass [Bandar Abbas].Jones’s despatches cover his reaction to the news of the suspension of diplomatic relations between Britain and Persia, including his: concerns about the defences of Bushire [Bushehr] and a potential conflict there with Persia; communications with Commodore Richard Ethersey, Commanding the Indian Naval Squadron in the Persian Gulf, with regard to strengthening the squadron in the Bushire Roads to protect British subjects; and measures to establish good communications with Murray. Also included is a copy of a ruckum [raqam] from HRH Prince Tamasp Meerza Prince Governor of Fars [Shāhzādah Ṭahmāsp/Ṭahmāsb Mīrzā Muʾayyid al-Dawlah], to the News Writer and Agent for Foreign Affairs, Bushire, intimating he has no quarrel with the Resident.Physical description: 1 item (76 folios)
21. VOL 11 LETTERS INWARD AND OUTWARD
- Description:
- Abstract: The volume contains letters received by the Resident at Bushire. For most of the period covered by this volume the Acting Resident at Bushire was Lieutenant William Bruce. The two other occupants of the Residency during this period were Andrew Jukes, Surgeon, and Stephen Babington.Correspondents include the British Mission at Tabriz and Tehran, in Persia, and the Government of Bombay, although there are a small number of letters from the Government of Fort William, Calcutta. Diplomatic exchanges between Britain and Persia are the main feature of the correspondence. Other subjects include: the Bushire Residency's accounts and expenses; the woollen and horses trade; instructions for receiving visitors at Bushire and the sending of letters and packets from Bombay to the Court of Persia, via Bushire. Some of the letters contain enclosures such as copies of letters from other Government departments at Bombay.The volume also contains a number of letters outward, sent by William Bruce between 19 and 25 December 1810, mostly regarding the Bushire Residency's accounts and expenses.Physical description: The foliation is written in pencil and can be found in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. The numbering commences at the front cover with 1 and 1A; then 2-17; 18, 18A, 18B, 18C and 18D and it carries on until 46, which is the last number given to the back cover of the volume. The verso of folio 39 is paginated as 40. Three separate original pagination sequences are also present between ff. 1A-12v, ff. 14-18 and ff. 19-41. These sequences are written in either ink or pencil, and can be found in the top right of the verso side and the top left of the recto side of each folio respectively; pencil has been used in cases where the original numbering has been obscured, as a result of damage to the folio.
22. Vol 26: Letters Inward
- Description:
- Abstract: The file consists of correspondence addressed to the Resident at Bushire, Captain William Bruce. However, much of the content has been weeded, and is no longer present in the file; this is indicated by gaps in the file's pagination sequence.The remaining content includes some instructions to the Resident, concerning a stop-off he made at Muscat during his return from Bombay to Bushire early in 1822, along with a dispatch from Henry Willock, HM Chargé d'affaires at the Court of Persia, concerning the deterioration of his situation at Tehran as a result of arrears in the Persian Subsidy. It also includes a letter from the Bombay Government removing William Bruce from his position as Resident at Bushire at the end of 1822, for negotiating an unauthorised treaty at Shiraz with the Persian authorities there.Physical description: Foliation: The main foliation sequence commences at the cover and terminates at the last folio; 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 incomplete pagination sequence is also present between ff 2-40v; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and are located in the top outermost corners of each page.
23. Vol 263: Persian Expeditionary Force
- Description:
- Abstract: This volume primarily concerns Britain's Persian Expeditionary Force and the state of relations between the British and the Persians following the end of the Anglo-Persian War. The volume contains letters written and received by a range of correspondents, including the following:Lieutenant-General Sir James Outram, Commander of the Persian Expeditionary Force, Bushire;Meerza [Mirza] Mahomed Khan, Sirkisheekchee Bashee and Mookhtar-ood-Dowlah, Persian Commander-in-Chief;Hajee Sheikh Mohsin Khan, representative of Meerza Mahomed Khan;Captain James Felix Jones, Resident in the Persian Gulf (also referred to as Political Agent of the Persian Forces and Civil Commander);Brigadier-General John Jacob, Commander-in-Chief of the British forces, Bushire;Brigadier Henry Willoughby Trevelyan, Commandant of Artillery in Persia;Henry Lacon Anderson, Secretary to the Government, Bombay;Charles Augustus Murray, Her Britannic Majesty's Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary at the Court of Persia;Brigadier Robert William Honner, Commander at Karrack [Bandar-e Charak];Ahmed Khan, Durya Begee and Governor of Bushire;His Royal Highness Prince Tahmasp Meerza [Tahmasp Mirza Mu'ayyid al-Dawla], Governor of Fars;Commander James Rennie, Senior Naval Officer, Commander of the Persian Gulf Squadron, Bushire;George Frederick Edmonstone, Secretary to the Government of India.The volume has been divided into sections and summarised as follows:Folios 3-54: Hajee Sheikh Mohsin Khan's visit to the British Commander-in-Chief [Brigadier-General John Jacob], Brigadier Henry Willoughby Trevelyan's return visit to the Persian Commander-in-Chief [Meerza Mahomed Khan], and details of the powers devolved by Lieutenant-General Sir James Outram to Brigadier-General John Jacob;Folios 55-69: Extracts (sent to Bombay by the Resident) from the Tehran Gazetteregarding the renewal of friendship between Britain and Persia, religious toleration in Persia, and Afghans residing in Persia;Folios 70-84: The return of His Excellency Charles Augustus Murray to the Persian capital and the evacuation of Mohumrah [Khorramshahr, Iran] and Bushire;Folios 85-107: General John Jacob's farewell orders;Folios 108-192: The appointment of Ahmed Khan as Governor of Dashtestan and Bushire.Physical description: Foliation: The foliation sequence commences at the front cover and terminates at the inside of the back cover; the numbers are written in pencil, are circled and can be found in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.
24. Vol 89 Translation Book, 1835 (native letters inward)
- Description:
- Abstract: The volume consists of substances of, and translations of, native letters (i.e. correspondence in Arabic or Persian) sent to the British Resident in the Persian Gulf. The majority of these are from native agents serving the British in the Gulf at Bahrein [Bahrain], Muscat, Sharjah, Shiraz, Lingah [Bandar-e-Lengeh].The first part of the volume mainly contains updates on the political situation in Persia in 1834, when Ally Shah [Ali Shah], brother of the late Shah Abbas Mirza, was trying to oppose to the succession of Prince Royal Mohammed, before he surrendered and Mohammed become Shah.The main topic in the later letters is the piracy instigated by the Beniyas [Bani Yas] tribe under their Chief, Shaikh Khuleefa ben Shackboot [Khalīfah bin Shakhbūṭ] of Aboothabee [Abu Dhabi], and British intervention to suppress them.Also included are communications from local rulers in the Gulf region: Sultan ben Sugger [Sulṭān bin Saqr], Chief of the Joasmees [Qawāsim]; Shaikh Khuleefa bin Shaskboot [Shakhbūṭ] of Abothabee [Abu Dhabi], Chief of the Beniyas [Bani Yas], and letters from merchants at Shiraz, Isfahan and Bushire.Physical description: Pagination: There is a pagination sequence, which appears in the top right corners of the rectos and in the top left corners of the versos.Foliation: There is a foliation sequence, which is circled in pencil, in the top right corner of the recto of each folio. This sequence, which should be used for referencing, begins on the front cover, on number 1, and ends on the inside of the back cover, on number 111.