Abstract: Note on demobilisation by Arnold Talbot Wilson, Civil Commissioner, Baghdad (enclosed in letter to the India Office, No 20517, dated 28 September 1918).The note gives details on the two areas that demobilisation would need to cover, namely the repatriation of the fighting force and the transference to Civil Government of those parts of the military administration that could be used for national benefit.The note is broken down into a number of sub-headings:Strategical and Political Considerations: Including the proposal of the need for a mobile military force, comprised wholly of British troops, that could react to any instability or disturbances caused by the previous decade of war, and which could protect India and support reforms in other countries.Maintenance in Baghdad of Troops and War Material: outlining proposals for the use of horses, mules, skilled individuals within British units, and mechanical transport for the civil administration of the country.Directorate of Telegraphs: regarding the question of whether or not to amalgamate it with the Indo-European Telegraph Department.Inland Water Transport: regarding the current usage of water transport for military purposes and the likelihood that once railways have been established it would only be required for fuel supplies and building materials.Medical Services: The need to evacuate the medical building established during war-time; the ongoing need for some of the temporary services during demobilisation; and those buildings that might be of use to the civil administration including sanitary and water installations and hospitals.Works Department: Effect of the department's work on the civil population, including electric lighting and water installations and the need for it to be taken over by the civil department.Remounts; Veterinary Services; Irrigation and Agriculture; Surveys; Stationary Department; Graves RegistrationRoyal Air Force: The need to maintain a wing of the Air Force in Baghdad; and regarding the other supplementary activities that could be developed including surveys and postal services.Royal Navy: That there would be no need for a naval detachment after the warRepatriation of Prisoners of War now interned in India: 25,000 turkish prisoners of war in India, with about 5,000 being inhabitants of Iraq, and a further 5,000 expected to wish to be repatriated to Iraq. The likelihood of many working for the labour corps, and arrangements with the civil administration for security of those who cannot be realised without guarantees.Indian Immigration: Need for a definite policy regarding the question as there may be a number of requests to remain in Iraq as cultivators.The Appendix (folio 4) lists includes summaries of a number of related documents to be consulted:Memorandum by the Civil Commissioner Baghdad (Arnold Talbot Wilson) to the Chief of General Staff, General Headquarters, Mesopotamia, No. 18791, 8 September 1918Memorandum No. A/2120/31, 26 September 1918, from the Deputy Adjutant-General, General Headquarters to the Civil Commissioner, BaghdadObservations by the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (undated)Physical description: Foliation: The foliation sequence commences at the first folio 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. The copy of the note marked '46' is the one which has been foliated.Pagination: The booklet also contains an original typed pagination sequence.
Abstract: The volume comprises telegrams, despatches, correspondence, memoranda, notes, and press cuttings relating to the construction of the Baghdad railway. Topics discussed include:the visit of engineers to survey German alignment;Baghdad Railway (1911) Command Paper 5635 (ff 10-48);the draft Anglo-Turkish Convention on railways in Asia Minor, 1911.The principal correspondents in the volume are: the Political Agent at Kuwait, Stuart George Knox; the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, Percy Zachariah Cox; the First Assistant Resident to the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, J H Bill; the Civil Commissioner, Baghdad.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 99; 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 4-98; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
Abstract: The item consists of copies and extracts of correspondence, minutes and resolutions cited in, or enclosed with, an extract Political Letter from the Government of Bombay to the East India Company Court of Directors, dated 30 November 1847.The item relates to two separate claims by Colonel Robert Taylor, former Political Agent, Turkish Arabia. The first claim concerns a deduction of his allowances for the month of November 1843, which he argues should be cancelled as he remained in post as Political Agent until the beginning of December 1843. The second claim, presented by Remington & Co on Taylor’s behalf, concerns rent owed to him by the Government of Bombay due to properties that he owned at Bussorah [Basra] and Baghdad being used as depots for the Euphrates Flotilla between 1839-42. In particular, the claim focuses on Taylor’s properties at Margheil [Al Ma‘qil, also rendered in text as Maghill and Margheel].The item contains the responses of the governments of Bombay and India to these claims. In particular, a minute by the Governor of Bombay (folios 911-915) provides an outline of the history of the second claim and his recommendations for a response.The title page of the item contains the following references: ‘Bombay Political Department’, ‘Draft N. 152/48’, ‘Collection No. 6 of No. 150’ and ‘Examiner’s Office’.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description (used for referencing) commences at f 899, and terminates at f 921, 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: Note written by John Evelyn Shuckburgh, Assistant Secretary of the Political Department, India Office, on the political and strategic importance that would be associated with British forces taking Baghdad, and the likely political and strategic injury that the British would incur should they fail to take Baghdad. Following Shuckburgh’s note is a reply, written by the Secretary of the Political Department, Sir (Frederic) Arthur Hirtzel, dated 6 October 1915, concurring with Shuckburgh’s assessment, and commenting on the chances of withdrawal from Kut-el-Amara [Kut al Amara] should sufficient Turco-German troops be fielded in the region.Physical description: Foliation: The foliation for this description commences at f 119, and terminates at f 119, 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 also present in parallel; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and won't be found in the same position as the main sequence.
Abstract: This note was written by Major-General Percy Zachariah Cox in April 1918 in his capacity as Civil Commissioner, Baghdad. It consists of two main parts. The first part deals with the premises for British policy, namely, the proclamation issued on British arrival in Baghdad, that they had come to emancipate the country from the 'oppressive rule' of Turkey; the announcement of policy in the telegram, 29 March 1917, from the Secretary of State for India to the Viceroy which advocated annexation of the Basrah [Basra] Vilayet and the creation of a 'veiled protectorate' in Baghdad Vilayet.It discusses the 'difficulties' this would create with President Woodrow Wilson's principles of self-determination (paragraph 4) and the issues surrounding the creation of an 'Arab facade'.Part II deals with observations on more detailed issues and considers: the nature of Arab authority, dynastic or representative and Arab attitudes to King Hussein, Sherif of the Holy Places in the Hejaz [Ḥusayn bin ‘Alī, Shereef of Mecca]; personnel available for establishing a local administration; relevance of Indian models of administration and British supervision; requirements for Indian troops after the end of hostilities; ways of popularising British administration through irrigation, education and civilian health; elements the British should foster; measures to consolidate commercial influence in Mesopotamia.Physical description: Foliation: There is a foliation sequence, which is circled in pencil, in the top right corner of the recto of each folio. It begins on the first folio, on number 1, and ends on the last folio, on number 3. There are three copies of this item, of which only one (the foliated one) has been digitised.
Abstract: The file contains only four documents, all dating from October 1946. There is a letter and enclosure from the British Embassy in Baghdad to the Political Agent, Bahrain asking him to take temporary custody of a seemingly harmless destitute calling himself John Hinsler, who had been detained in Persia during the Second World War. An accompanying aide memoire contains a record of the verbal account given by John Hinsler, who claimed to have been born in 1902 in China to English parents and orphaned as a child. In a letter of reply, the Political Agent declines to accept the transfer of John Hinsler to Bahrain pending his repatriation to China, on the grounds of his former connection with Persia.Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1 and terminates at the back cover with 9; 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 between ff 3-7; 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 telegrams, despatches, correspondence, memoranda, and notes from February 1919 to August 1920, mainly relating to boundary questions between Ibn Sa'ud and the Ruler of Kuwait, Shaikh Salim [Shaikh Sālim al-Mubārak Āl Ṣabāḥ], as well as attacks on the Ikhwan and British relations with Ibn Sa'ud.The volume includes an index (folio 115) to topics and people discussed in the file. The principal correspondents in the volume include: the Political Agent, Kuwait (James Carmichael More); the Political Agent, Bahrain (Harold Richard Patrick Dickson); Ibn Sa'ud; the Ruler of Kuwait; and the Civil Commissioner, Baghdad.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 115; 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 5-114; 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 the text of Lieutenant-General Sir Frederick Stanley Maude's proclamation in Baghdad on the occasion of the British occupation in March 1917. This proclamation was issued following the 'Fall of Baghdad', a decisive victory for the British during the Mesopotamian Campaign. Maude largely focuses on the various parties (in particular the Turks [Ottomans]) who have previously been involved with the oppression and division of the area and assures the people of Baghdad that the British Government only seeks to improve their situation.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at f 122, and terminates at f 122, 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 printed memorandum, marked 'Secret' is a statement by Sir Frederic Arthur Hirtzel, Political Secretary, India Office, dated 30 August 1916, concerning the British campaign against Turkey in Mesopotamia [Iraq] in the context of the First World War, in particular British intentions to advance on Baghdad. The memorandum is divided into three sections titled as follows: 'The Political Reasons for the Expedition', 'The Importance of Bagdad [Baghdad]', and 'The Advance on Baghdad'. References are made in the text to correspondence between Sir Charles Murray Marling, British Minister at Tehran, and the Foreign Office in 1915.Physical description: Foliation: The foliation sequence commences at the 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. Pagination: The volume also contains an original printed pagination sequence.
Abstract: This item consists primarily of copies of correspondence cited in, or enclosed with, political letters from the Government of Bombay. The correspondents are the Government of Bombay and Lieutenant Colonel Robert Taylor, Political Agent in Turkish Arabia.The item concerns a request by Taylor to retain the services of Andrew Ross, the Assistant Surgeon at the Residency, even after he has been promoted to Full Surgeon. He would normally be required to vacate his position on his promotion.The item contains a contents page, and the title page of the item contains the following references: ‘Collection No. 12, Draft 431, P.C. [Previous Communication] 3075, [Season] 1841’ and ‘Examiner’s Office’.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with f 525 and terminates at f 533, 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 volume also contains an original pagination sequence.
Abstract: Imprint:Heliozincographed at the Survey of India Offices, Dehra Dun. S.D.O. No. 3949-3-25.Distinctive Features:Sketch map of Baghdad and surrounding area produced to illustrate the movements of the British military forces on the 7th March 1917 with position of various brigades and regiments indicated.Same base map as IOR/L/MIL/17/15/72/2, f 11.Physical description: Dimensions:175 x 160 mm, on sheet 234 x 225 mm
Abstract: Imprint:Heliozincographed at the Survey of India Offices, Dehra Dun. S.D.O. No. 3950-3-25.Distinctive Features:Sketch map of Baghdad and surrounding area produced to illustrate the movements of the British military forces on the night 9th and 10th March 1917 with position of various brigades and regiments indicated.Physical description: Dimensions:167 x 160 mm, on sheet 235 x 223 mm