Abstract: This file consists of a document created by the Political Department in the India Office and details British relations with Kurdistan. The document charts the relationship between the two parties, including the question of future control over Kurdistan, and is split into four sections:I: Events preceding the armisticeII: Events immediately succeeding the armisticeIII: Subsequent eventsIV: Orders issued by His Majesty's Government.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at f 79, and terminates at f 80, 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; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
Abstract: This volume is a report submitted to the British Air Ministry by Air Vice-Marshal John Frederick Andrews Higgins. It consists of a chronological narrative of significant military events in Iraq during his time as Air Officer Commanding, British Forces in Iraq, from April 1924 until November 1926. It is divided by year and by geographical area.The report discusses general military activities undertaken during the period, including the aerial observation of settlements and groups deemed potentially dangerous to the Government, the movements of British and Iraqi troops, and the training of the Iraq Army by British officers.It notably covers the following:Turkish attempts to assert control over the Mosul Vilayet, including ‘infiltration’ of northern Iraq by Turkish personnel, the build-up of troops on the Turkey-Iraq border, and incursions of Turkish cavalry units across the border, which were stopped by British aerial bombardmentBritish planning for the defence of Mosul in the event of a full-scale Turkish invasion, the eventual resolution of the Turkey-Iraq border dispute by the decision of the League of Nations, and a subsequent agreement between Turkey, Iraq, and BritainKurdish resistance to British occupation and the central Iraqi Government, focusing on the continuing anti-British activities of Shaikh Mahmud Barzanji [Maḥmūd Barzanjī], particularly: British ground and aerial attacks on Kurdish villages; a clash between Assyrian levy troops and local Muslim inhabitants at Kirkuk; the suppression of an uprising led by Shaikh Mahmud, including discussions with Riza Khan [Reżā Shāh Pahlavī, Shāh of Iran] about coordination between Iraq and Persia [Iran] against Shaikh Mahmud; British attempts to protect Jaf [Jaff] tribespeople from Shaikh Mahmud’s demands for money during their migration to Persia; and punitive attacks by the British on tribesmen from the Auroman [Hawraman] region for supporting Shaikh MahmudIssues in southern Iraq, primarily involving Akhwan [Ikhwān] raids on nomadic Iraqi herding communities, including: steps taken by the British Government to prevent these raids, such as improved communications in the desert borderlands; aerial bombing of raiding groups; and the detailed mapping of the area to improve the accuracy of British counterattacks against the Ikhwan. The report also mentions the bombing of the house of Shaikh Salim Al Khayun [Sālim al-Khayyūn] in the village of Chubaish [Al-Chibayish], and the Shaikh’s subsequent surrender to Government authoritiesFighting between the forces of ‘Daham, Chief of the Syrian Shammar Jarba’ [Dahhām bin al-Hādī bin al-ʿĀṣī al-Jarbā] and ‘Ajill, Chief of the Iraqi Shammar Jarba’ [‘Ujayl al-Yāwar al-Jarbā], and details the deployment of British armoured cars and aeroplanes to assist Ajill in fighting Daham’s forces.The report contains six appendices:‘Appendix A- Forces in Iraq, April, 1924’‘Appendix B- Note on History of Sheikh Mahmud Prior to April, 1924’‘Appendix C- Composition of Frontier Force under Colonel Commandant H.T. Dobbin, C.B.E., D.S.O., September, 1924’‘Appendix D- Composition of Chapforce under Colonel Commandant J.G. Chaplain, C.B.E., D.S.O.’‘Appendix E- Anti-Akhwan Organisation’‘Appendix F- Reduction of Garrison Following Treaty with Turkey’.Four maps are included in the report. These are catalogued as ‘‘Iraq-Persia Map No. 1’ (IOR/L/PS/20/C204, f 32); ‘Map No. 2’ (IOR/L/PS/20/C204, f 33); ‘Map No. 3’ (IOR/L/PS/20/C204, f 34); and ‘Basra. Map No. 4’ (IOR/L/PS/20/C204, f 35).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 volume also contains an original printed pagination sequence.
Abstract: Tour report written by John Gordon Lorimer from notes taken during his journey from 18 April to 22 May 1910. The report comprises information on topographical matters.The report is divided into sections describing each day's journey, giving start and end destinations, time travelled and topographical features of the route taken, including drawings on some entries. On days where travel was not undertaken the report describes an expedition to the Nasālah coal workings, hunting trips, visits to local religious sites and ruins, insights into local schooling and education, production of crude oil at Qaiyārah, and the distribution of Christian and Jewish populations in the areas travelled.The places visited on the journey included Khānaqīn, Zangābād [Jingābād], Salāhīyah [Şalāḩīyah], Tūz Khurmātu, Dāqūq, Kirkūk, Āltūn Kōprū [Āltūn Kūbrī], Arbīl [Erbil], Shaqlāwah, Bātās, Rowānduz [Ruwāndiz], Askhar, Kandīl Ferry [Qandīl], ‘Aqrah, Bardaresh, Mūsal [Mosul], Baghdād, Qaiyārah [Al Qayyārah], Khandīdah, Sharqāt, Sāmarra, ‘Ausajah, and Mallūh.The transliterations given are as they appear in the volume; modern day variants have been provided where necessary.Printed at the Government Monotype Press, Simla 1913.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 32; 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 printed pagination sequence.
Abstract: This volume compiled and published by the Air Ministry in London in August of 1929 is one of a set of ten volumes produced for British military forces in Iraq. Area 9 covers the region of central Kurdistan and is divided into chapters on history, population, political geography, physical geography, climate, communications, resources, tribes, aviation, and personalities. The volume also contains numerous maps of important Kurdish cities and towns, as well as two maps of Area 9. The content of the chapters is dominated by information meant to be useful to military units and therefore contains detailed statistics on the military preparedness of both native populations and Turkish forces in the region.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 195; 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 printed pagination sequence.
Abstract: This booklet pertaining to Area 8 (Western Kurdistan) was compiled by the General Staff of the British Forces in Iraq and published in 1923. It is meant as a practical field guide to military forces operating in Iraq, and is one of ten editions covering various areas of the country. The content of the booklet covers history, geography, climate, natural resources, ethnography, tribal populations, important personalities, communications and Turkish military readiness and capabilities in each region.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 78; 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 printed pagination sequence.
Abstract: Confidential report compiled by Hyacinth Louis Rabino. The report was printed in Simla at the Government Monotype Press, 1911.The report is divided into three parts (I-III), as follows:Part I: Geographical and Commercial Notes (folios 6-39) with sections on the province of Kurdistan (including information on cultivation, population, revenue, roads, imports/exports, and the capital, Senna), its tribes (including statistics on population, land, and residences), rivers, and mountains, and appendices comprised of government lists of villages.Part II: History (folios 40-54) with a chart showing the Valis and Provincial Governors of Kurdistan for the years 1169-1905 (folio 41).Part III: Gazetteer of Kurdistan (folios 55-104) arranged alphabetically.At the back of the volume is a glossary (folios 105-06) including notes on the weights used in Kurdistan.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 108; 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 third of four volumes comprising a
Gazetteer of Persia.The volume, which is marked Confidential, covers Fārs, Lūristān [Lorestān], Arabistān, Khūzistān [Khūzestān], Yazd, Karmānshāh [Kermānshāh], Ardalān, and Kurdistān. The frontispiece states that the volume was revised and updated in April 1885 in the Intelligence Branch of the Quartermaster General’s Department in India, under the orders of Major General Sir Charles Metcalfe Macgregor, Quartermaster-General in India. Publication took place in Calcutta [Kolkata] by the Superintendent of Government Printing, India, in 1885.The following items precede the main body of the gazetteer:a note by Lieutenant-Colonel Mark Sever Bell, Deputy Quartermaster General, Intelligence Branch, requesting inaccuracies, omissions and suggestions for the gazetteer be reported to the Deputy Quartermaster General;a second note, dated 26 November 1885, describing the geographical scope of the four volumes comprising the
Gazetteer of Persia, and also making reference to the system of transliteration used (Hunterian) and authorities consulted;a preface, containing a summary of the geographical boundaries of the Gazetteer, a description of the Persian coast of the Persian Gulf, an abridged account of trade in the Persian Gulf for the year 1884, and a description of telegraphs in the regions described by the Gazetteer.The gazetteer includes entries for human settlements (villages, towns and cities), geographic regions, tribes, significant geographic features (such as rivers, canals, mountains, valleys, passes), and halting places on established routes. Figures for latitude, longitude and elevation are indicated where known.Entries for human settlements provide population figures, water sources, location relative to other landmarks, climate. Entries for larger towns and cities can also include tabulated meteorological statistics (maximum and minimum temperatures, wind direction, remarks on cloud cover and precipitation), topographical descriptions of fortifications, towers, and other significant constructions, historical summaries, agricultural, industrial and trade activities, government.Entries for tribes indicate the size of the tribe (for example, numbers of men, or horsemen), and the places they inhabit. Entries for larger tribes give tabulated data indicating tribal subdivisions, numbers of families, encampments, summer and winter residences, and other remarks.Information sources are provided at the end of each gazetteer entry, in the form of an author or source’s surname, italicised and bracketed.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the inside front cover with 1 and terminates at the inside back cover with 341; 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 has two printed pagination systems, the first of which uses Roman numerals and runs from I to XIII (ff 3-10), while the second uses Arabic numerals and runs from 1 to 653 (ff 12-338).
Abstract: This item consists of copies of correspondence, minutes, and consultations, cited in, or enclosed with, political letters from the Government of Bombay [Mumbai]. The correspondents are the Government of Bombay and Claudius James Rich, British Political Agent in Turkish Arabia.The majority of the item concerns relations between Persia and the Pachalic [Pashalik] of Bagdad [Baghdad], military manoeuvres of Persia and the Ottoman Empire, and the tensions between the two states caused by:The flight of Hassan Beg [Bey], the brother of the Pacha of Courdestan [Kurdistan], from Mahomed Ali Mirza to the Pacha of BagdadThe accusations of Mahomed Ali Mirza that the Pacha of Bagdad is encouraging a band of counterfeit coinersThe Pacha of Bagdad’s proclamation inciting the chiefs of the Province of Rewandiz [Rawandiz] to desert the PersiansDisputes over the governorship of Sulimania [Sulaymaniyah] and Courdestan.The rest of the item concerns:The arrival and treatment of the French when visiting the Pacha of Bagdad [Pasha of Baghdad, Dawud Pasha]The position of Mahomed Ali Mirza [Dowlatshah], Prince of Kermanshah, in Persia [Iran], and his protection of Kelb Ali Khan, the alleged murderer of Captain Grant and Mr Fotheringham, members of Sir John Malcolm’s embassyThe involvement and influence of Russia on Persia, and Russian interest in Kharezin [Khorasan], Bokhara [Bukhara] and AfghanistanThe civil and political disorder prevailing around BagdadRussian support for Mahomed Ali Mirza as the heir to the Shah of Persia, instead of Abbas Mirza, and the friendship between Mahomed Ali Mirza and Yermolov [Aleksey Perovich Yermolov, Russian Ambassador to Persia].The item includes a contents page and the title page of the item contains the following references: ‘Draft 38, P.C. [Previous Communication] 61, [Season 18]23/4’ and ‘Examiner’s Office 1822’.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with f 179 and terminates at f 216, as it is part of a larger physical volume; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the bottom right corner of the recto side of each folio.Pagination: the item also contains an original pagination sequence.
Abstract: The file consists of a publication concerning Kurdistan and the Kurds. Produced and published by the General Staff, India, and printed in Mount Carmel, Palestine. It provides an edited collection of information based on the reports of military and political officers Captain C F Woolley, and Major Edward Noel (dated c 1919), and a paper written by Sir Mark Sykes in 1908.It is divided into the following sections:Kurdistan and the Kurds - including boundaries, topography, and its inhabitants;the Kurdish tribes - including their locality, rough numbers, character, prominent families, and allegiances;Kurdish tribes outside Kurdistan - between Erzingan [Erzincan] and Sivas and in the neighbourhood of Marash [Kahramanmaraş], in Anatolia, and in Syria;the Kurdish Movement for independence - history, origins, and causes;additions and corrections.Also includes one map on folio 61: 'KURDISTAN AND THE KURDISH TRIBES'.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the last folio, with 61, which is a folded map attached to the outside 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. Pagination: the file also contains an original printed pagination sequence.
Abstract: This file consists of a note in which the struggle for Kurdish independence within Iraq is detailed, taking into account the occurrences of the year 1919. The document covers the following:Kurdish concerns regarding being under the control of the ArmeniansKurdish appeals to the British government for support in the formation of their own statethe hostilities which exist between the Kurdish and Turkish peoplesreligious tensions between Muslims and Christians in the areathe mixed feelings that those living in Mesopotamia have towards the British and their involvement in the areaacts of violence towards British officials in Mesopotamia.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at f 71, and terminates at f 73, 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; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
Abstract: The volume contains a chronological list of brief summaries of papers relating to the activities of the Indian Expeditionary Force D (also known as the Mesopotamia Expeditionary Force) between 1 and 31 May 1919. This is accompanied by appendices containing copies and extracts of these papers, which include: telegrams, memoranda, and tables.An index to the contents of this volume can be found at folios 3-8. The volume concerns:Military personnel issues, including the granting of leave, demobilisation of troops, and transfer of units from Mesopotamia to IndiaSupply of animals to Force DDispatch of water tanks from Mesopotamia to IndiaA report on the performance of Kachin recruits in the 85th Burma Rifles (ff 32-33)Dispatch of units from Force D to respond to ‘disturbances’ in India and on the North-West FrontierSpread of the ‘Ikhwan movement’ in Bahrein [Bahrain], Kowait [Kuwait], and MesopotamiaIntelligence concerning public opinion in Mesopotamia, including: opposition to the British occupation; the preference of ‘leading men’ for direct British administration; and hostility towards the involvement of Sheikh Faisul [Shaikh Fayṣal bin Al-Ḥusayn bin ‘Alī al-Hāshimī] in the post-war GovernmentThe number of troops required to occupy MesopotamiaRailway construction in MesopotamiaReports of ‘serious disorders’ at Sulaimaniyah [Sulaymaniyah] and a ‘serious rising’ in southern Kurdistan led by Sheikh Mahmud [Shaikh Maḥmūd Barzanjī]Matters relating to the administration of Mesopotamia, including: arrangements for the financial management of British administration; conditions of employment for Army officers hired to work in the civil administration; and the creation of administrative provinces, including an ‘Arab province of Mosul’ and a ‘fringe of autonomous Kurdish States … with British political advisers’Maintenance of waterways in MesopotamiaDiscussion of the creation of a daily train service between Baghdad and Basrah [Basra] carrying mail and passengers.The volume also contains:Weekly return of sick and wounded dated 29 March 1919 (ff 10-11), 5 April 1919 (ff 64-65), 12 April 1919 (ff 108-109), 19 April 1919 (ff 112-114), 26 April 1919 (ff 129-130)Distribution and composition of Force D, including details of lines of communication and general organisation, 19 April 1919 (ff 24-38), 1 May 1919 (ff 78-89)State of supplies on 30 April 1919 (ff 66-67)Strength return of Force D on 12 April 1919 (f 120).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 147; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right hand corner of the recto side of each folio. An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 3-145; these numbers are printed and are located in the bottom centre of the recto side of each folio.Dimensions: 21 x 33cm
Abstract: The volume contains a chronological list of brief summaries of papers relating to the activities of the Indian Expeditionary Force D (also known as the Mesopotamia Expeditionary Force) between 1 and 31 July 1919. This is accompanied by appendices containing copies and extracts of these papers, which include: telegrams, memoranda, and tables.An index to the contents of this volume can be found at folios 3-7.The volume concerns:Supply of food, weaponry, construction materials, and other items to Force DMilitary personnel issues, including reinforcements, demobilisation, and travel and accommodation arrangements for families of soldiersRailway construction in MesopotamiaIntelligence concerning a planned ‘Pan-Islamic upheaval after Ramzan [Ramaḍān]’Discussion of the activities of the King-Crane CommissionDiscussion of propaganda produced by ‘Feisal’ [Fayṣal Al-Ḥusayn bin ‘Alī al-Hāshimī] calling for the ‘complete Independence of Arabia’British censorship of telegrams, photographs, and newspapersDisposal of surplus weaponry by Force DReport on the conditions in South Kurdistan following the defeat and capture of ‘Sheikh Mahmud’ [Shaikh Maḥmūd Barzanjī]Financial administration of MesopotamiaMatters relating to the government of Mesopotamia, including: requests by Arab officers for a ‘purely national Civil Government in Mesopotamia’; British opposition to greater involvement of local populations in government; and the usefulness of Mesopotamia for British policy in the wider Middle EastAssessment by the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf of the conditions in Basrah [Basra] and Nasiriyeh [Nasiriyah] (ff 54-55)Discussion of violence in Central Kurdistan, including: the killing of administrative officials by ‘local Gendarmerie’; reports of Kurds near Amadia [Amadiya] ‘attacking Christian villages’; and British preparations for ‘quietening the district’The appointment of Colonel William Nafew Haskell as the Allied High Commissioner in ArmeniaEvents in Persia [Iran], including: the surrender of high profile rebels: the activities of Bakhtiari [Bakhtiyārī] tribes; and British attempts to recruit Persian Kurds to fight ‘in case of incursion by Bolsheviks’.The volume also contains:Weekly returns of sick and wounded for the weeks ending 24 May 1919 (ff 9-10), 31 May 1919 (ff 16-17), 7 June 1919 (ff 39-41), 14 June 1919 (ff 67-68), 21 June 1919 (ff 77-78), and 28 June 1919 (ff 92-94)Ration strength of Force D on 10 May 1919 (ff 36-38), 5 July 1919 (ff 43-44), 12 July 1919 (f 58), 19 July 1919 (f 81), and 26 July 1919 (f 109)Distribution of Force D including details of lines of communication, 1 July 1919 (ff 110-122).Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the front cover with 1 and terminates at the inside back cover with 124; 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 3-122; these numbers are printed and are located in the bottom centre of the recto side of each folio.Dimensions: 21 x 33cm