Abstract: This item consists of copies of correspondence, consultations, and minutes cited in, or enclosed with, political letters from the Government of Bombay [Mumbai]. The correspondents are: the Government of Bombay; Captain Stafford Bettesworth Haines, Political Agent at Aden; Augustus Le Messurier, Advocate General at Bombay; Lieutenant Alexander Henry Gordon, Commanding the Honourable Company’s brig of war
Euphrates; and Commander Carless, Senior Naval Officer at Aden. It is the twelfth in a series of seventeen items on the trade in enslaved people (the others are IOR/F/4/2112/99462, IOR/F/4/2112/99463, IOR/F/4/2112/99464, IOR/F/4/2112/99465, IOR/F/4/2112/99466, IOR/F/4/2112/99467, IOR/F/4/2112/99468, IOR/F/4/2112/99469, IOR/F/4/2112/99470, IOR/F/4/2112/99471, IOR/F/4/2112/99472, IOR/F/4/2112/99474, IOR/F/4/2112/99475, IOR/F/4/2112/99476, IOR/F/4/2112/99477, and IOR/F/4/2112/99478).The item concerns the seizure of the kotia [kutiyya]
Runchore Parsandby Lieutenant Gordon because there were three enslaved women on board. The circumstances of why the women were on board is discussed, and the item contains depositions from those involved in the case.The item contains a contents page, and the title page of the item contains the following references: ‘Draft 872/45, P.C. [Previous Communication] 5013, Collection No 1 of No 55’.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with f 202, and terminates at f 223, 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: The item consists of copies and extracts of correspondence, which form partial enclosures to a letter from the Government of Bombay [Mumbai] to the East India Company Court of Directors, dated 15 January 1846. A copy of this letter can be found at IOR/F/4/2142/102302.The item relates to a report by Commander Lieutenant A Macdonald, Commander of the Company schooner
Mahi, on his recent visit to Berbera during which he attempted to facilitate peace amongst the ‘tribes’ [clans] of the Somali coast in order to preserve the trade in the region. He reports on his communications with: Sheik Hadjee Shermarki Alli, Governor of Zeyla [Ḥājjī Sharmārkī ‘Alī Ṣāliḥ, Governor of Saylac]; the Governor’s son, Mahomed [Muḥammad]; and the elders of the ‘tribes’.Macdonald mentions in particular the ‘tribes’ of Mejertherjn (also rendered ‘Mejertheyn’ [Majerteen?]) and Ayul Unuss (also rendered ‘Ayul Hamud’).The item also mentions the intention of Stafford Bettesworth Haines, Captain in the Indian Navy and Political Agent at Aden, to send Assistant Lieutenant Charles John Cruttenden to the Somali Coast in order to facilitate peace.The correspondents are: Haines; Thomas Grere Carless, Commander and Senior Naval Officer at Aden; Macdonald; and the Government of Bombay.The title page of the item contains the following references: ‘Bombay Political Department’, ‘P.C. [Previous Communication] 5264, Draft 494/46’, ‘Collection N. 8 of N. 5, Vol: 4’ and ‘Examiner’s Office’.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description (used for referencing) commences at f 165, and terminates at f 169, 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: This item consists of copies of a Political Despatch from the Government of India Foreign Department to the Secretary of State for India, dated 21 November 1873 and received by the India Office via Brindisi on 15 December 1873, forwarding copies of correspondence relating to the Egyptian Corvette
Arkhaanchoring at Berbera and Egyptian forces landing on shore and allegedly treating the territory as if it belonged to the Egyptians. The enclosures include a report by the Political Resident at Aden and a report by the Officer Commanding HMS
Dalhousie, Bombay Marine, who was instructed by the Resident to observe events but refrain from any involvement. The covering letter from the Government of India concludes by referring to a Reuter's telegram, London, 22 October 1873, confirming that 'the Egyptian Government has amicably arranged with the natives to build and occupy a fort at Berbera'.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description (used for referencing) commences at f 26, and terminates at f 28a, 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. The sequence contains three foliation anomalies: f 26a, f 27a, and f 28a.
Abstract: This item consists of copies of a Political Despatch from the Government of India Foreign Department to the Secretary of State for India, dated 26 December 1873 and received by the India Office Secret Department on 20 January 1873, forwarding information relating to affairs at the port of Berbera on the east African coast. The primary document is a letter from the Assistant Resident at Aden to the Political Resident at Aden, describing his meeting with the Commander of the Egyptian Corvette
Sarka, and in particular their discussions relating to inter-tribal feuds in the locality of Berbera. The despatch is in continuation of Political No. 203 of 21 November 1873 (IOR/L/PS/6/114, ff 26-28a).Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description (used for referencing) commences at f 267, and terminates at f 269a, 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. The sequence contains three foliation anomalies: f 267a, f 268a, and f 269a.
Abstract: This item consists of a copy of a Political Despatch from the Government of India Foreign Department to the Secretary of State for India, dated 13 February 1874 and received by the India Office Political Department on 8 March 1874, drawing attention to previous communications and calling for early instructions as to the policy to be pursued with reference to the proceedings of the Turkish and Egyptian officials at Berbera and in the neighbourhood of that port.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description (used for referencing) commences at f 333, and terminates at f 334, 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.
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 72 of 1853, dated 28 November 1853. The enclosures are numbered 3-7, with a note stating that 5-7 are missing. Enclosures 3-4 are dated 8 to 12 November 1853.The enclosures comprise correspondence from the Political Agent at Aden (Stafford Bettesworth Haines), concerning affairs on the Somali coast (also written as Somallee in the correspondence). Includes a sketch (folio 186) of the forts at Berbera by Lieutenant Herne, Bombay Fusiliers (1st Europeans).Physical description: 1 item (17 folios)
Abstract: This item contains manuscript copies of secret letters, despatches, memoranda, intelligence reports relating to the development of an Agency in Somalia.Topics covered:A despatch from the Acting Political Resident at Aden including a report by Lieutenant Burton, 18th Regiment Bombay [Mumbai], Commander in Charge of the Somalia Expedition. This report includes a recommendation to establish an Agency at Berbera together with a plan of Berbera (ff 385v-386r) and a drawing of the proposed Berbera Agency building (f 387r).A request by Lieutenant Burton to be granted a second year for exploration of this part of AfricaA proforma table (f 398v) for the 'Indent on the Ordnance Department for the Undermentioned Article required for the use of the Political Department Emergent, Aden 26 February 1855'Statement by Colonel Clark in explanation and reply to the accusations brought against him by Colonel Outram, concerning initiating overtures to a hostile chief (the Foudhli).Correspondents include: the Political Resident at Aden; Lieutenant Burton, Commander of the Somalia Expedition; H C Montgomery, Chief Secretary to the Government of Fort Saint George, Madras [Chennai]; H L Anderson, Secretary to Government, Bombay; and Sultan Ahmad bin ‘Abdullāh al Foozlie [Aḥmad bin Abdullāh al-Faḍlī].Physical description: 1 item (79 folios)
Abstract: This item comprises enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay [Mumbai] Secret Department to the Secret Committee [Bombay Secret Letter], No. 20 dated 19 March 1856. The enclosures are dated 15 January-19 March 1856.The correspondents are: Brigadier William Marcus Coghlan, Acting Political Resident and Commandant, Aden; the Secretary to the Government, Bombay; and Stephen Page, HM Acting Vice-Consul and Officiating HC [Honourable Company] Agent at Juddah [Jeddah]. The item also includes enclosures to correspondence and one Resolution of the Board.The papers cover the following matters:Coghlan’s decision to continue the British blockade of Berbera, and to disregard the confession (ff 310-311) of a prisoner named ‘Ali Mahomed’ [‘Alī Muḥammad] who has been brought to Aden on the
Mahi, since he is not considered to have been the ‘ring leader’ of the attack on the Somali Expedition of Lieutenant Richard Burton and has been repudiated by the Elders [of the Habr Awwal tribe]Events relating to Zailah [Zeila, also spelled Zeylah in this item], including: the attempt by the Haj Shermarki [Ḥājjī Sharmārkī ‘Alī Ṣāliḥ, also spelled Sheumarki and Shermarkie in this item] to retake his position as Governor, from which he was lately ousted by the [Ottoman] Turkish authorities; Coghlan’s attempt to prevent Shermarki blockading Zailah and potentially disrupting British supply chains by sending the Assistant Resident to liaise between Shermarki and the Turkish authorities; Coghlan’s efforts to ascertain the effect of the [Ottoman] Sultan’s proclamation prohibiting slavery at Zailah, considering news of the arrival there of a ‘large slave Caffilah [caravan]’ from the interior (ff 314-315)News obtained from Mocha that cholera has broken out in the camp of the Asseer [‘Asīr tribe] apparently causing the death of their leader and causing the force's retirement from their putative campaign to attack the Red Sea ports of YemenRelations in Aden between the Abdali [al-‘Abdalī] and Oulaki [al-‘Awlaqī]] ‘chiefs’ regarding their mutual claims over the fort of Bir Ahmed [Bir Ahmad], including: a letter sent by the Secretary to the Government, Bombay, to the Resident in Hyderabad asking him to gather information about the apparent influence of one ‘Sirdar Abdulla bin Ali Oulaki’ [Sirdār ‘Abdullāh bin ‘Alī al-‘Awlaqī] a ‘jemadar [jamadar] in the service of His Highness the Nizam of Hyderabad’ (f 322); and Coghlan’s decision to abstain from interference provided that the dispute causes no interruption of tradeIntelligence relating to the state of affairs in Massowah [Massawa, also known as Mitsiwa], including a letter from Raffaello Barroni, Agent to Mr Plowden [Walter Chichele Plowden], HM Consul in Abyssinia [now Ethiopia], reporting the promise of the Naib of Massawa to re-establish order but that the current absence of any governor renders Massawa ‘without soldiers and without protection, and the population … left to herself and committed to fortune’ (f 318)Report by Stephen Page describing the state of affairs in Juddah and its vicinity since the unsuccessful insurrection led by Abu Montallib [Sharif ‘Abd al-Muṭṭalib bin Ghālib bin Musā‘ad], including Page’s: description of the recent engagement at Tayf (to where Abu Montallib had retreated) between ‘Bedouins’ and [Ottoman] Turkish soldiers; concern regarding the delayed arrival of the newly appointed [sharif?] Ebu Aonan [Muḥammad bin ‘Abd al-Mu‘īn bin ‘Awn]; Page’s belief that the arrival at Juddah of the
Elphinstonewas effective in preventing further disturbance and his request that it may return there by April to avoid potential attacks by ‘Bedouin’ if Ebu Aonan has not yet arrived; and opinion that Abu Montallib’s rebellion was not properly quashedReports on the prevalence of smallpox and typhoid in the town of Aden.Physical description: 1 item (22 folios)
Abstract: This item comprises copies of enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 40 of 1856, dated 27 May 1856. The enclosures are dated 19 April-24 May 1856.The enclosures relate to affairs in Aden, Berbera, Juddah [Jeddah] and Mecca, as reported to the Government of Bombay by Brigadier William Marcus Coghlan, Political Resident in Aden, and Stephen Page, HM Acting Vice-Consul and Officiating Honourable Company’s Agent at Juddah. They specifically cover and include the following:The consent of ‘Sheik’ Shermarki [Ḥājjī Sharmārkī ‘Alī Ṣāliḥ, also spelled Shurmarkey in this item], the deposed Governor of Zailah [Saylac, or Zeila, Somalia] to the terms on which Coghlan states he can reside in Aden, and Shermarki’s arrival at that placeDiscussions between Coghlan, the Government of Bombay and the Government of India regarding the possible terms to be demanded from the Habr Awal [Habr Awwal] tribe for the removal of the British blockade of Berbera, including: the amount of monetary compensation to be paid by the Habr Awal; the probability of the murderer of Lieutenant Stroyan (during an attack on Lieutenant Richard Burton’s Somali Expedition) not being found or brought to justice; the possibility of stationing a vessel of war at Berbera harbour and a government agent during the commercial season; and the demand for the cessation of the export of enslaved persons from Berbera and the coastal vicinityPage’s reports from Juddah, covering: the unsuccessful attack on Mecca by the former Scerriff Abu Montallib [Sharīf ‘Abd al-Muṭṭalib bin Ghālib bin Musā‘ad, also spelled Mutallib in this item] and his withdrawal to Tayf [Taif]; Page’s relief at the arrival at Juddah of the HC [Honourable Company’s] ships
Elphinstoneand
Queen; the arrival of the new Scerriff of Mecca, Ebu Aonan [Muḥammad bin ‘Abd al-Mu‘īn bin ‘Awn] on the HC frigate
Feroozfrom Suez; Page’s concern that Abu Montallib may make another attempt on Mecca and then proceed to Juddah on hearing of the arrival at Mecca of his successor; and the abatement of the threat to Juddah.The principal correspondents are Coghlan, Page and the Government of Bombay.Physical description: 1 item (18 folios)
Abstract: This item comprises copies of enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 43 of 1856, dated 10 June 1856. The enclosures are dated 1 May-10 June 1856.The enclosures principally relate to the British blockade of Berbera as reported to the Government of Bombay by Brigadier William Marcus Coghlan, Political Resident in Aden. They specifically cover the following:Rumours that the Turkish [Ottoman] authorities plan to occupy Berbera when the blockade is withdrawn, Coghlan’s view that this could affect trade to Aden and other British places and lead to increased trade in enslaved persons, and Coghlan’s suggestion that the settlement with the Habr-Owel tribe [Habr Awwal] therefore include a clause on the independence of Berbera portProceedings conducted by Lieutenant Robert Lambert Playfair, Assistant Political Resident, Aden, regarding the recent evasion of the blockade of the Berbera coast by the nacoda [nakhuda] of the Aden bugaloo [baghlah, also spelled bugla in this item]
Mahmondich(ff 331-335)Coghlan’s suggestion that in order to end the blockade and avoid British humiliation, modified terms should be offered to the Habr Awal, which would take into account: Coghlan’s views that there is no point demanding the surrender of the murderer of Lieutenant Stroyan (during an attack on Richard Burton’s Somali Expedition) as the possibility of locating him is so remote and that the Habr Awal have been punished enough; that one of the ‘actors in the outrage’ (f 338) is already in British custody; and that the alleged murderer would be punished if he fell into British hands in future.Also included in this item is a letter from Stephen Page, HM Acting Vice-Consul and Officiating Honourable Company’s Agent at Juddah [Jeddah] to the Government of Bombay, reporting: the arrival of the HC [Honourable Company’s] ship
Elphinstone;the tranquility now prevailing at Juddah and Mecca; the continued presence of the insurgent Abu Montallib [‘Abd al-Muṭṭalib bin Ghālib bin Musā‘ad] (former Sharīf of Mecca) at Tayf [Taif] and his desertion by his followers.The principal correspondents are Coghlan, the Government of Bombay and Page.Physical description: 1 item (19 folios)
Abstract: This item comprises enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay [Mumbai] Secret Department to the Secret Committee [Bombay Secret Letter], No. 3 dated 2 January 1856. The enclosures are dated 10-29 December 1855.Three letters from Brigadier William Marcus Coghlan, Acting Political Resident and Commandant in Aden, to the Secretary to the Government, Bombay, covering the following matters:A general report on the state of affairs in AdenIntelligence from Hodeida [Al Hudaydah] and Mocha describing a serious outbreak of fighting at Mecca, apparently resulting from the proclamation (firman) by the Ottoman Porte [Government of the Ottoman Empire] abolishing slavery at Mecca and Jeddah and the Resident's desire to send a steam vessel to Jeddah to ascertain the seriousness of the situationIntelligence received from the Vice-Consul at Suez and the Consul-General in Egypt, respectively relating to the recent firman of the Porte and the reported insurrection at Mecca, and what specific edicts the Egyptian Government has made with regard to abolishing slavery in its territories.Also included are: two Resolutions of the Board acknowledging Coghlan’s general report and the ‘urgent’ need to despatch a steamer for duty at Aden; and a letter by the Secretary to the Government of India authorising Coghlan to continue the blockade of Berbera until its objectives achieved.Physical description: 1 item (14 folios)
Abstract: This item comprises enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay [Mumbai] Secret Department to the Secret Committee [Bombay Secret Letter], No. 7 dated 16 January 1856. The enclosures are dated 17 December 1855-14 January 1856.The papers chiefly comprise correspondence between Brigadier William Marcus Coghlan, Acting Political Resident and Commandant, Aden, and the Secretary to Government, Bombay, covering the following matters:Relations with and between the tribes in the vicinity of Aden, including the ‘Foutheli Chief’ [Aḥmad bin Abdullāh al-Faḍlī, also spelled Foudheli in this item]The continued British blockade of Berbera, including the Government of Bombay and Government of India's: scepticism regarding the alleged ‘solemn warning’ (f 50) given by the Elders of the Habur Owel Tribe [Habr Awwal, also spelled Habr Owel and Habr-Awel Tribe in this item] which was apparently disregarded by Lieutenant Richard Francis Burton leading to the ‘disastrous termination of the late Somali Expedition’ (f 54); and criticism of Coghlan for accusing Burton ‘in very positive terms, of culpable carelessness’ (f 55). Coghlan vigorously defends his position particularly referring to the depositions which indicate that warning was indeed given.Also included in this item is a letter from the Secretary to the Government of India to the Secretary to Government, Bombay, questioning the ‘professions to peace’ of the Foutheli Chief, whom they consider endangers the security of the trade of Aden.Physical description: 1 item (12 folios)