Number of results to display per page
Search Results
25. ‘File 86/2 VI (C 46) Bahrain Oil’
- Description:
- Abstract: The volume contains letters, telegrams and memoranda relating to ongoing exploratory oil drilling being undertaken in Bahrain by the Bahrain Petroleum Company (hereafter BAPCO), and the resignation of Major Frank Holmes as Chief Local Representative for BAPCO in Bahrain. The volume is a direct continuation of ‘File 86/2 V (C 44) Bahrain Oil’ (IOR/R/15/1/653). The principal correspondents in the volume are Captain Everald Gastrell, officiating Political Agent in Bahrain, Major Holmes, and various Government officials from the Colonial Office, India Office and Petroleum and Mining Departments in London.Key subjects discussed in the volume include:Holmes’s resignation as Chief Local Representative for BAPCO in Bahrain, including a record of proceedings at the India Office in London, dated 10 August 1933, in which a decision for Holmes’s removal was established (folios 27-33), an announcement of Holmes’s resignation in a telegram from the Secretary of State for India, dated 15 September 1933 (folio 58), and a copy of the text of a letter from Holmes, dated 15 September 1933, announcing his resignation to the Political Agent (folio 83);The Ruler of Bahrain, Shaikh Ḥamad bin ‘Īsá Āl Khalīfah’s response to Holmes’s resignation (folios 46, 55-56, 66);Holmes’s departure from Bahrain, including translations of speeches given by the secretaries of the Manama and Muharraq municipalities at a farewell party in Holmes’s honour (folios 159-60, 161);Oil prospects in Bahrain and the need or lack of need for refineries in Bahrain (folio 113);A request from the replacement Chief Local Representative, Ed Skinner, for an urgent extension to the Company’s prospecting license, and subsequent negotiations for the extension (folio 148, 165-67, 180-82);Modifications to the BAPCO mining lease, with a draft of the amended lease (folios 128-42).The volume also contains a printed translation of the Saudi decree announcing the oil concession at Al-Hasa, dated 10 July 1933 (folios 170-74).Physical description: Foliation: The main foliation sequence begins on the first folio and ends on the last folio, using circled pencil numbers written at the centre and top of each recto. A second foliation sequence is also present between ff 3-190; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and can be found in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. The following foliation anomalies occur: 2, 2A, 2B and 2C. Index numbers written in red and blue pencil are part of the volume’s original filing system, and correspond to the numbered office notes index at the end of the file (ff 191-96).
26. ‘File 86/2 X (C 52) Bahrain Oil’
- Description:
- Abstract: The volume contains letters, telegrams and memoranda relating to oil prospecting undertaken in Bahrain by the Bahrain Petroleum Company (hereafter BAPCO), and the development of BAPCO’s infrastructure. The volume is a direct continuation of ‘File 86/2 IX (C 50) Bahrain Oil’ (IOR/R/15/1/657). The principal correspondents in the volume are the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, Lieutenant-Colonel Trenchard Fowle, the Political Agent in Bahrain, Lieutenant-Colonel Percy Gordon Loch, the Chief Local Representative for BAPCO, Ed Skinner, and BAPCO’s London representative, Hamilton Ballantyne.Subjects covered by the volume include:The ongoing construction of oil export facilities off Sitrah Island, including a submarine line, buoying, wireless radio link, and oil storage tanks;Application by BAPCO for the use of long-distance wireless radio within Bahrain’s coastal waters, rejected by the British and Bahrain Governments, recommending instead the use of Imperial & Communication Limited’s own, similar facilities (folios 21-22, 26);The calibration of oil storage tanks, and measurement of oil for royalties, including the appointment of an external inspector by the Government of Bahrain (folios 101-03, 110-11), and a set of US pound to UK ton conversion tables (folios 170-72);Reports of five barrels of crude oil having been shipped to Yokohama Japan (folio 8), and intelligence about where and why the barrels had been sent (folios 105-06, 134);Negotiations between British Government officials and BAPCO over amendments to the proposed mining lease, including a copy of the amended lease (folios 49-63), and a memorandum from the British Governmental Mining Department on the draft mining lease (folios 157-65);Reports on BAPCO’s workforce, and the nationality of the Company’s employees, with a report that the Company has increased its proportion of British and Bahraini subjects (folios 113-14), and a copy of the quarterly Roster of Employees report, dated 15 April 1934 (folios 116-32), including details of all employees names, nationalities, roles, and length of residency in Bahrain;Application by BAPCO for the appointment of a mooring master and pilot at the Company’s facilities off Sitrah Island (folio 75), initially rejected by the Government of Bahrain, but later accepted after acknowledgement of the specialist skills required of a mooring master for tankers (folios 179-80);The departure on 7 June 1934 of the Standard Oil Company tanker El Segundo, form Bahrain to Singapore, carrying 3,300 tons of oil (folio 144).The volume also contains pages of an article entitled “Bahrain Oil Field”, dated 17 May 1934 taken from the British journal Oil News(folios 198-99).Physical description: Foliation: The main foliotion sequence begins on the front cover and ends on the back cover, using circled pencil numbers in the top-centre corner of each recto. A second foliation sequence runs between ff 2B and 202, but skips ff 116-132; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and can be found in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. The following foliation anomalies occur: 1, 1A and 1B; 2, 2A and 2B; 53 and 53A; 54 and 54A; 55 and 55A; 59 and 59A; 60 and 60A; 132 and 132A. Numbers written in red and blue pencil are part of the volume’s original filing system, and correspondent to the office notes index at the end of the file (ff 203-06).
27. ‘File 86/2 XIII (C 61) Bahrain Oil’
- Description:
- Abstract: The volume contains letters, telegrams and memoranda relating to oil production in Bahrain, being undertaken by the Bahrain Petroleum Company (hereafter BAPCO). The volume is a direct continuation of ‘File 86/2 XII (C 54) Bahrain Oil’ (IOR/R/15/1/660). The principal correspondents in the volume are the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, Lieutenant-Colonel Trenchard Fowle, the Political Agent in Bahrain, Lieutenant-Colonel Percy Gordon Loch, and BAPCO’s representatives in London (Hamilton Ballantyne) and Bahrain (Messrs Russell and Smith).The subjects covered by the volume are:Finalisation of BAPCO’s mining lease, and its signing on 29 December 1934 by the Ruler of Bahrain, Shaikh Ḥamad bin ‘Īsá Āl Khalīfah, and representatives of BAPCO. The volume includes a photostat [photocopy] of the original lease (in English and Arabic, folios 137-67) and a printed copy (English, folios 170-87), both of which contain a map (folios 164 and page 186 respectively) showing the 100,000 acres designated by BAPCO for the mining lease;Discussion over the status of land reserved by Shaikh Hamad and the ruling family for leisure purposes within the concession area (palace and gardens, hunting, racing), with a scientific survey of the areas in question (folios 191-99);Details relating to the transfer of oil from storage tanks on land to tankers off the coast of Sitrah Island, including proposals for procedures to be followed relating to oil in the sea-loading line and the discharge of ballast (folios 77-79, 81-84) and a diagrammatic plan (folio 50) of the tank installation, attached to a detailed description of the tank facilities (folios 43-49);The appointment of Mr Smith as Chief Local Representative for BAPCO (folio 119), pending Mr Russell’s planned absence from Bahrain;Speculation over the extent of oil exports from Bahrain, and Japan as a key market, with an anticipated five tanker visits during 1935 (folios 110-11);An abstract of accounts for oil measured in 1934 (folios 102-04), including details of the amount of oil produced and shipped, the amount of oil in storage, and royalties paid to Shaikh Hamad;BAPCO’s annual report for 1934 (folios 127-34), with details about the status of BAPCO’s wells, a description of the oil camp buildings, and a breakdown of the nationalities of the Company’s 589 employees;An application by BAPCO to reserve uncultivated land for the drilling of water wells, including a map of the area under consideration (folios 204-05).Physical description: Foliation: The volume is foliated from the first folio to the last folio, using pencil numbers written in the top-right corner of each recto. The foliation sequence switches to pagination between ff 171-186. Numbers written in red or blue pencil are part of the volume’s original filing system, and correspond to the office notes index at the end of the volume (ff 209-13). The following foliation anomalies occur: 1A, 1B, 1C and 1D; 187 and 187A.
28. ‘File 86/2 XIV (C 67) Bahrain Oil’
- Description:
- Abstract: The volume contains letters, telegrams and memoranda relating to oil production in Bahrain, being undertaken by the Bahrain Petroleum Company (hereafter BAPCO). The volume is a direct continuation of ‘File 86/2 XIII (C 61) Bahrain Oil’ (IOR/R/15/1/661). The principal correspondents in the volume are the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, Lieutenant-Colonel Trenchard Fowle, the Political Agent in Bahrain, Lieutenant-Colonel Percy Gordon Loch, and BAPCO’s representatives in London (Hamilton Ballantyne) and Bahrain (Ed Skinner).The subjects covered by the volume are:Continued discussion amongst Government officials over a decision to charge BAPCO lighting dues on their vessels at Bahrain, and the Secretary of State’s opinion that it would be unwise to impose dues at present, recommending instead that BAPCO pay an annual lump sum to Government (folios 61-62);Allegations that BAPCO have been using wireless telephone to communicate with their head offices in California, prohibited under the terms of the concession agreement (folios 28-30). Attempts to substantiate the claims are inconclusive (folio 59);Appointment of a new British (Canadian) subject to the BAPCO board (folios 53, 60);BAPCO’s plans for the construction of an oil refinery at Bahrain, including various applications to Government, identifying land on which the refinery is to be built, with maps (folios 43, 47-50, 173-77, 181-87);Reports in the world press about Standard Oil’s negotiations with other oil companies to assist in the marketing of Bahrain oil, including a report in the Iraq Timesin October 1935 about negotiations between Royal Dutch Shell, the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company and BAPCO (folio 21), and reports in the Times(folio 81), the New York Tribune(folios 93-97) and Daily Gazetteof Karachi (folios 114-16) on an agreement, eventually struck around June 1936, between Standard Oil and the Texas Corporation;Correspondence between the British Government and Ballantyne with regard to the implications of the new agreement which has created the California Texas Oil Company Limited, with a broad consensus that the Company will have a “general obligation to respect HMG’s [His Majesty’s Government’s] interests” (folios 206-09);Correspondence between Government and BAPCO, stating the need for a “neutral referee” to check (or gauge) oil, in light of new oil refining techniques being employed (folios 121-28);The prospect of an application for the unallotted areas of Bahrain (i.e. those not covered by the existing BAPCO concession), anticipated to be made by Petroleum Concessions Limited (folios 100-05);BAPCO abstracts of accounts and statements of royalties for the second half of 1935 (folios 64-65) and the first half of 1936 (folios 156-57), and annual reports for 1935 (folios 67-77) and 1936 (folios 194-205), both of which include details of the status of the Company’s oil and water wells, buildings constructed, and nationality of workforce. A map accompanies each report, indicating well locations and other facilities including pipelines, pump stations and camps. Both maps are enclosed in a single envelope (folio 76 for the 1935 report, folio 77 for the 1936 report);The copy of a deed updating the mining lease, dated 3 June 1936 (folios 146-51), its changes chiefly relating to the construction of the oil refinery and increased production.Physical description: Foliation: The main foliation sequence begins on the first folio and ends on the last folio, using circled pencil numbers found in the top-centre of each recto. A second foliation sequence runs between ff 4-209; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and can be found in the top right corner of each recto. The following anomalies occur in the main foliation sequence: 1, and 1A; 78 and 78A; 81 and 81A.Index numbers written in red and blue pencil are part of the volume’s original filing system, and correspond to the office notes index at the end of the volume (ff 210-17).
29. 'File 5/C Kuwait Najd Boundary'
- Description:
- Abstract: The volume comprises telegrams, despatches, correspondence, memoranda, printed reports, and notes for the period from November 1920 to February 1923 relating to the Kuwait/Najd boundary.The main topics discussed include:The attack on Jahra by the IkhwanBahrain Agency Mission to Ibn Sa`ud, 1920Ikhwan raidsKuwait Mission to Ibn Sa`ud, 1921Death of Shaikh Salim, 1921Boundary settlementThe volume includes an index (folio 232) which lists topics including: air reconnaissance; boundary, Kuwait-Iraq; Chasib mission; Council for Kuwait; letters with Ibn Sa'ud; trade with Najd.The principal correspondents in the volume include: the Political Agent, Bahrain; the Political Agent, Kuwait (James Carmichael More); the Civil Commissioner in Mesopotamia, Baghdad (Arnold Talbot Wilson).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 233; 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 2-232; 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.
30. ‘File 86/2 II (C 31) Eastern and General Syndicate, Oil, Bahrain’
- Description:
- Abstract: The volume contains letters, telegrams and memoranda relating to negotiations over the transfer of the Bahrain oil concession, conducted between the British Government, Eastern & General Syndicate Limited (hereafter E&GS), and the Eastern Gulf Oil Company of the United States (EGOC). The volume is a direct continuation, with some overlap of correspondence, with ‘File 86/2 I (C 30) Bahrain Oil Concession (Eastern & General Syndicate)’ (IOR/R/15/1/649). The principal correspondents in the volume are the Political Agent in Bahrain, Captain Charles Prior, Major Frank Holmes, Director of E&GS, and various representatives of the Colonial Office of the British Government in London.Key subjects covered by the volume include:Negotiations between the British Government and E&GS (on behalf of EGOC) for the transfer of the Bahrain oil concession from E&GS to EGOC, with particular emphasis on four conditions stipulated by the British Government to ensure sufficient British control of a concession funded by foreign finance;An agreement of the concession transfer, and negotiations between the British Government and the solicitors appointed by EGOC (Freshfields, Leese and Munns of London) for the transfer;Questions over legal jurisdiction and property law in Bahrain; negotiations with regard to the liability of the Ruler of Bahrain (Shaikh Ḥamad bin ‘Īsá Āl Khalīfah) in the event of theft of oil company property by oil company employees;Registration of the Bahrain Petroleum Company (BAPCO) in Canada;Holmes’s trip to Bushire and Bahrain, and his appointment as chief representative of BAPCO in Bahrain;E&GS/BAPCO application to extend the oil concession area across those parts of Bahrain not covered by the existing concession.The volume contains numerous copies of the indentures and concessions agreements, in copy and original (folios 110-14, 206-10, 211-29).Physical description: Foliation: The main foliation sequence begins on the front cover and ends on the inside back cover, using circled pencil numbers written in the top-right corner of each recto. A second foliation sequence is present between folios 2-53 and 72-233; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and can be found in the same position as the main sequence.The following foliation anomalies occur: 1, 1A, 1B, 1C, 1D and 1E; 2 and 2A; 130 and 130A; 144 and 144A.Folios 176-195 are bound together and housed in a clear polyester sleeve.
31. 'Treaties and Undertakings etc in force between the British Government and the Rulers of Bahrain, 1820-1914'
- Description:
- Abstract: Government of India Foreign and Political Department documents: three identical copies, one (volume three) enclosed in a red cover. Volume two is inscribed 'Received under Foreign and Political Department endorsement 147EA of 22.6.16'. The documents contain transcripts of fifteen treaties and undertakings between the British Government and the Rulers of Bahrain in English and (at the rear of the volumes) in Arabic. In addition to agreements dated by year only, the agreements relate to piracy, the slave trade, arms traffic, observance of treaties, jurisdiction over foreigners, pearl fisheries, post office, wireless telegraphy, and oil. A note at the start of the agreements states that in the event of doubt about the precise interpretation of any portion of the English and Arabic text, the English text was to be considered decisive.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at 1 on the front cover of volume one and terminates at 70 on the back cover of volume three. The foliation runs through all three volumes as a single continuous sequence, split between volume one (ff. 1-23); volume two (ff. 24-46); and volume three (ff. 47-70). These numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and can be found in the top right hand corner of the recto page of each folio. Each volume also has its own separate printed pagination sequence.
32. ‘State of affairs between the Chief of Bahrein and Ameer Fysul the Wahabee Ruler’
- Description:
- Abstract: Enclosure nos. 2-6 to a despatch from the Secret Department, Government of Bombay [Mumbai], dated 3 January 1852. The enclosures are dated 22 October 1851-3 January 1852.The enclosures consist of copies of correspondence relating to a claim by Ameer Fysul of Nedjd [Fayṣal bin Turkī bin ‘Abdullāh Āl Sa‘ūd, Emir of Najd] to sovereignty over Bahrein [Bahrain], and efforts to maintain peace between the two countries.The primary correspondents are Ameer Fysul, the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, and the Government of India.Physical description: 1 item (10 folios)
33. ‘Statements Showing Stocks of Food Held:– (a) By Bahrain Government. (b) By Trucial Coast. (c) By UKCC Pool at Bahrain’
- Description:
- Abstract: The volume comprises tables detailing the volumes (given in tons) of food supplies in Bahrain and on the Trucial Coast. There are five tables at the front of the volume for stores kept by the Bahrain Government, Trucial Coast and UKCC (United Kingdom Commercial Corporation). Foodstuffs are arranged in columns at the top of each table (wheat, flour, barley/millets, rice, sugar, tea, coffee, pulses), with dates ranged down the left-hand edge of the table. Entries for the Bahrain Government run across three tables, from 15 November 1943 to 1 June 1945 (ff 2-3), from 15 June 1945 to 5 May 1948 (ff 5-6), and from 3 May 1948 to 9 January 1950 (ff 12-13). Entries for the Trucial Coast run across two tables from 15 November 1943 to 1 September 1947 (ff 3-4), and from 1 October 1947 to 9 January 1950 (ff 6-7). Entries for the UKCC are confined to one table, covering the dates 15 November 1943 to 1 April 1946 (ff 4-5). On all tables, an additional column labelled ‘reasons for change’ contains occasional notes that explain fluctuations in the supply levels. A final column on all tables is labelled ‘initials’, and contains the initials of the entry writer and the date the entry was made.On the last page of the volume (ff 81-82) are a series of column headings, written upside-down at the bottom of the page, which were intended for use in a table designed to log commodity licenses. Headings include commodity, name of merchant, quantity (given in tons), and name of merchant. The table contains a single entry, registering a consignment of 80 tonnes of coffee, imported into Aden by Haridas Jaminal and Sons. Enclosed at the end of the volume are five loose, typewritten sheets, detailing: monthly commodity quotas for Bahrain, and re-export to Saudi Arabia and the Trucial Coast (f 77); a proposed list of established shippers to Bahrain for rice, wheat flour, barley and other grains and pulses from Karachi (f 78); a list of established shippers to Trucial Oman for rice, wheat flour and barley from Karachi, rice from Calcutta [Kolkata], and sugar from Bombay [Mumbai] (ff 79-80); a list of officers at the Middle East Supply Centre (for Palestine, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Persia/Iraq Command, and Persia), dated 1 March 1943 (f 81).Folios 14 to 75 are blank.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 83; 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 2-18; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
34. ‘Administration report on the Persian Gulf Political Residency and Maskat Political Agency for 1901-1902’
- Description:
- Abstract: Administration Report on the Persian Gulf Residency and Maskat [Muscat] Political Agency for 1901-02, published by the Office of the Superintendent of Government Printing, India, Calcutta [Kolkata], forming part of the Selections from the Records of the Government of India, Foreign Department, and based on reports sent to Government by the Political Resident and other Agents in the Persian Gulf.The Administration Report is organised as follows:1. General Summary, submitted by Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Arnold Kemball, Officiating Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, dated 21 April 1902 (folios 4-6), with overviews of: the year’s rainfall and harvest, and the impact of drought; the governorship of Bushire and Gulf ports; public peace; public health; currency; customs administration in the Gulf, under Belgian control; settlement of claims for compensation. The General Summary also includes summaries for key towns and regions, chiefly comprising accounts of local politics: Oman and Muscat; the Oman Coast; Bahrain; Koweit [Kuwait] and Nejd, including details of the loss of a decisive battle by Shaikh Mubarak al-Sabah at the hands of the Amir of Nejd, and the capture of Riadh [Riyadh] by Abdul Aziz [Ibn Sa‘ūd]; Persian Arabistan; Fars and the Persian Coast; Persian Baluchistan. Further reports are included on: the slave trade, including numbers of slaves manumitted by British officials in the region; incidents of piracy; naval movements, chiefly British but also Russian and French vessels; changes in British official personnel; and movements and changes in foreign representatives. An appendix to part 1 comprises statistical tables with meteorological data for the region.2. Administration Report of the Muscat Political Agency, 1901-02, submitted by Major Percy Zachariah Cox, His Britannic Majesty’s Consul and Political Agent at Muscat, dated 2 April 1902 (folios 7-9) including: an account of recent tribal politics of Oman, most notably disturbances at Wadi Maawal; events in Sohar; ill-treatment of British Indian subjects in Muscat and Oman; customs; arms trafficking; pearl disputes; the death of the Sultan’s Vazir [Wazir], Sayyid Saeed bin Mahomed bin Salimin, and a brief account of his life; opening of the Muscat to Jask telegraph cable; epidemics and preventative measures; the slave trade; and naval movements.3. Trade Report of the Persian Gulf for the Year 1901, submitted by Kemball, in his capacity at His Britannic Majesty’s Acting Consul-General for Fars, Khuzistan, etc., dated 31 March 1902 (folios 9-39), with summaries on: imports and exports; the harvest; exchange; currency and specie; mule hire; freight and shipping activity; Russian commerce; customs administration; administration of justice; further details of imports and exports, with reference to particular commodities including cotton, medicines, kerosene, opium and shells. An appendix follows with tabulated trade data of the principal imports and exports, and number, tonnage and nationality of vessels.4. Trade Report for Maskat[Muscat], 1901-02, submitted by Cox (folios 40-41), with brief summaries on the import of arms, cereals, coffee and silk, and the export of dates and dried fish. An appendix follows the report, containing tabulated trade statistics.5. Report on the Trade and Commerce of Mohammerah[Khorramshahr] for 1900(folios 42-46), with remarks on: exchange; exports; imports; shipping; caravan routes; agriculture; health; and the river trade. An appendix follows the report, containing tabulated trade data.6. Trade Report of Bundar Abbas[Bandar-e ʻAbbās] for the Year 1901, submitted by Captain C H Boxer, His Britannic Majesty’s Vice-Consul at Bandar-e ʻAbbās, dated 12 March 1902 (folios 46-52), with remarks on: the value of imports and exports; harvest; exchange; transport; shipping; and the benefits to British trade that an extension of the telegraph cable to Bandar-e ʻAbbās would bring. An appendix follows the report, containing tabulated trade data.7. Report on the Trade and Commerce of the Bahrein Islands for the Year 1901, submitted by John Calcott Gaskin, Assistant Political Agent, dated 7 February 1902 (folios 53-60), containing remarks on: total trade in Bahrain; the year’s pearl fishing season; importation of cotton and coffee; exports, including oyster shells; imports from India, Turkey and Persia; weights and measures in Bahrain; shipping; and a schedule of the lighterage rates at the Port of Bahrain. An appendix follows the report, containing tabulated trade data.Physical description: The report is arranged into a number of parts and sections, with tabulated statistical data directly following written sections. There is a contents page at the front of the report (folio 3), which refers to the report’s internal pagination sequence.
35. ‘Administration Report on the Persian Gulf Political Residency and Maskat Political Agency for 1902-03’
- Description:
- Abstract: Administration Report on the Persian Gulf Residency and Maskat [Muscat] Political Agency for 1902-1903, published by the Office of the Superintendent of Government Printing, India (Calcutta), forming part of the Selections from the Records of the Government of India, Foreign Department, and based on reports sent to Government by the Political Resident and other Agents in the Persian Gulf. Folios 181 and 168 are copies of notes, dated 15 and 21 May 1903 respectively. Both notes were sent by Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Arnold Kemball, Officiating Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, to Louis William Dane, Secretary to the Government of India in the Foreign Department. The first note (no.82) enclosed the Residency and Muscat Political Agency reports. The second note (no.87) enclosed statistical tables of trade at Ahwaz and Shuster for 1902, drawn up by His Britannic Majesty’s Consul at Mohammerah [Khorramshahr] from returns supplied by Messrs Lynch and Brothers.The Administration Report is organised as follows:1. General Summary, submitted by Kemball (folios 183-87), including reports on: the year’s rainfall and harvest; the governorship of Bushire and Gulf ports; public health, with details of outbreaks of cholera and smallpox; customs administration in the Gulf; settlement of claims against the Persian Government; and the coronation of King Edward VII. The General Summary also includes summaries for towns and regions, chiefly comprising accounts of local politics: Oman and Muscat; Oman and the Pirate Coast, including an assessment of the pearling season; Bahrain, including news from El Katr [Qatar]; El Hassa [Al-Hasa] and El Katif [Al-Qaṭīf]; Koweit [Kuwait] and Nejd, with an update on the fighting taking place between Abdul Rahman bin Feysul el Saood [Ibn Sa‘ūd] and the Emir of Nejd, Ibn Rashīd; Persian Arabistan; Fars and the Persian Coast, with separate reports from Shiraz, Lār, Lingah [Bandar-e Lengeh], and Bunder Abbas [Bandar-e ʻAbbās]; Persian Baluchistan. Further reports are included on: the slave trade, including numbers of slaves manumitted by British officials in the region; incidents of piracy; naval movements, chiefly British but also Russian, French and Persian vessels; changes in British official personnel; and movements and changes in foreign representatives. An appendix to part 1 comprises statistical tables with meteorological data for the region.2. Administration Report of the Muscat Political Agency, 1902-03, submitted by Major Percy Zachariah Cox, His Britannic Majesty’s Consul and Political Agent at Muscat (folios 187-92), including: an account of the tribal politics of Oman; reports from Seeb, Awabi, Nezwa [Nizwa], and Gwadur [Gwadar]; the Political Muscat Agent’s tour, including Fujeyrah [Fujairah], a Persian flag flying on Sirrī Island, and the journey from Abu Thabi [Abu Dhabi] to Muscat; a report of Cox’s attendance of the Delhi coronation durbar; customs; the arms trade; public health; slave trade activity; telegraph rates; Agency buildings; naval movements at Muscat, chiefly British but also Russian, French and U.S. vessels; official changes and the Resident’s visit. A trade report for Muscat is appended to the administration report, summarising imports and exports, itself followed by an appendix of tabulated trade statistics.3. Report on the Trade and Commerce of the Persian Gulf for the Year 1902, submitted by Kemball (folios 192-99), including: general remarks on trade; imports and exports; exchange; mule hire rates; freight and shipping rates. An appendix follows with trade data of the principal imports and exports, and number, tonnage and nationality of vessels.4. Report on the Trade of the Bahrein Islands for the Year 1902, submitted by John Calcott Gaskin, Assistant Political Agent (folios 200-02), with details of: coffee imports; pearling season; shell exports; exchange; port improvements. An appendix follows the report, containing tabular data on the principal imports and export at Bahrain.5. Report on the Trade of Mohammerah[Khorramshahr] for the Year 1902, submitted by William McDouall, His Britannic Majesty’s Vice-Consul, Mohammerah (folios 203-08), with summaries on: exchange; shipping; river trade; caravan routes; and agriculture. An appendix follows the report, containing trade data in tabular format.6. Trade Report of Bundar Abbas[Bandar-e ʻAbbās] for the Year 1902, submitted by Captain William George Grey, His Britannic Majesty’s Vice-Consul, Bandar-e ʻAbbās (folios 208-11), with summaries on: openings for British trade; mistakes made by British traders; the progress or decline of rival trade; obstacles to trade; communication between traders and the Consular Officer; legislative and tariff regulations; shipping. An appendix follows the report, containing trade data in tabular format.Physical description: The report is arranged into a number of parts and subsections, with statistic data in tabular format directly following written sections. There is a contents page at the front of the report (folio 180) which lists the report’s contents, and refers to the report’s own pagination sequence.
36. ‘Administration Report on the Persian Gulf Political Residency and Maskat Political Agency for 1903-1904’
- Description:
- Abstract: Administration Report on the Persian Gulf Residency and Maskat [Muscat] Political Agency for 1903-1904, published by the Office of the Superintendent of Government Printing, India (Calcutta), forming part of the Selections from the Records of the Government of India, Foreign Department, and based on reports sent to Government by the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf and the Political Agent at Muscat. Folios 165 and 166 are copies of notes, dated 18 April 1904 and 18 May 1904 respectively, sent by Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Arnold Kemball, Officiating Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, and Captain William George Grey, His Britannic Majesty’s Consul and Political Agent, Muscat, to Louis William Dane, Secretary to the Government of India in the Foreign Department, submitting their respective annual administration reports.The Administration Report is organised as follows:1. General Summarysubmitted by Kemball (folios 167-69), including reports on: the year’s rainfall and harvest; the governorship of Bushire and Gulf ports; public health, with details of outbreaks of cholera and plague; settlement of claims; the Viceroy of India, Lord Curzon’s visit to the Gulf, including details of the itinerary; the British Minister at the Court of the Shah of Persia’s visit to the Gulf; and the postal service. The General Summaryalso includes summaries for towns and regions, as follows: Oman and Muscat; Oman and the Pirate Coast, with an assessment of the pearling season, incidents of piracy and tribal relations; Bahrain [referred to as Bahrain], with an assessment of the pearling season; El Hassa [Al-Hasa] and El Katif [Al-Qaṭīf]; Koweit [Kuwait] and Nejd, with an update of the struggle between Abdul Rahman bin Feysul el Saood [Ibn Sa‘ūd] and the Emir of Nejd, Ibn Rashīd; Persian Arabistan; Fars and the Persian Coast, with separate routes from Shiraz, Lingah [Bandar-e Lengeh], and Bunder Abbas [Bandar-e ʻAbbās]; Persian Baluchistan; the slave trade, including numbers of slaves manumitted; incidents of piracy; movements of British naval vessels; reports on changes in British officials; and visits made by foreign representatives. An appendix to part 1 (folios 168-70) comprises statistical tables with meteorological data for the region.2. Administration Report of the Muscat Political Agency, 1903-04, submitted by Grey (folios 170-77), including an account of the tribal politics of Oman; a detailed account of Lord Curzon’s visit to Muscat, including copies of the addresses presented to Lord Curzon by the community of British subjects and other British protected persons in Muscat, and Sultan Seyyd Faisal [Sa‘id Fayṣal], and Curzon’s replies to each. The report also includes details of the Resident’s visit to Muscat; political tours made by the Muscat Agent; administration of customs; Gwadur [Gwadar] customs; arms trafficking; health; law; building work in Muscat; improvements to the coal depot at Makullah cove; marine incidents, principally the wrecking of the French steamship Amiral Gueydon; naval movements at Muscat; the slave trade, including numbers of slaves manumitted at Muscat; and changes to official personnel at Muscat.3. Report on the Trade and Commerce of the Persian Gulf for the Year 1903, submitted by Kemball (folios 178-87), including general remarks on trade, and more detailed remarks on customs tariffs; imports and exports; tea; indigo; exchange; freight and shipping. Two appendices to part 3 contain tabular data on the value and quantities of imports and exports into Bushire and other Gulf ports, as well as data on the numbers, tonnage and nationality of visiting vessels.4. Trade Report for Muscat, 1903-1904, submitted by Grey (folios 187-91), containing details on imports and exports at Muscat, and followed by an appendix with trade statistics.5. Report on the Trade of Mohammerah[Khorramshahr] for the Year 1903, submitted by William McDouall, His Britannic Majesty’s Vice-Consul, Mohammerah (folios 190-92) with summaries on: exchange; shipping; caravan routes; and agriculture. An appendix follows the report, containing trade data in tabular format.6. Trade Report of Bundar Abbas[Bandar-e ʻAbbās] for the Year 1903, submitted by Arthur Prescott Trevor, His Britannic Majesty’s Vice-Consul, Bandar-e ʻAbbās (folios 193-96), with summaries on: openings for British trade; mistakes made by British traders and their foreign competitors; the progress of rival trade; obstacles to trade; changes to trade tariffs; communications; exchange; and shipping. An appendix follows the report, containing trade data in tabular format.7. Report on the Trade of the Bahrein Islands for the Year 1903, submitted by John Calcott Gaskin, Assistant Political Agent, dated 9 January 1904 (folios 196-99), with details on: cotton, rice and coffee imports; lantern manufacture in Bahrain; assessment of the pearling season; the oyster shell export trade; boatbuilding activity; exchange; and shipping. An appendix follows the report, containing tabular data on the principal imports and export at Bahrain.Physical description: The report is arranged into a number of parts and subheadings, with statistic data in tabular format directly following written sections. There is a contents page at the front of the report (. 164) which lists the report’s contents, referring to the report’s own pagination sequence. Some statistical tables (ff. 197-99) are arranged on the page in landscape format.