Abstract: This file contains correspondence between British officials regarding a number of specific incidents on the Trucial Coast as well as more general discussions concerning British Government policy and aims in the region.The specific incidents discussed include unrest in Dubai caused by opposition to its ruler, Shaikh Said bin Maktum al Hashar (Shaikh Saʻīd bin Maktūm bin Hasher Āl Maktūm) from within his own family; British concerns over the relationship between the Shaikhs of the region and Saudi Arabia and the movements of the California Arabian Standard Oil Company in the region.The correspondence is primarily between the Political Residency in Bushire, the Political Agency in Bahrain and the Residency Agent in Sharjah. Some of the correspondence is between British officials and local rulers, primarily the ruler of Dubai, Shaikh Said bin Maktum al Hashar. This correspondence is in Arabic with English translations.Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with 1 and terminates at the last folio with 274; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner or top centre of the recto side of each folio. An additional foliation sequence is also present in parallel between ff 115-261; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled. The front and back covers, along with three leading and ending fly leafs have not been foliated.
Abstract: The volume contains confidential correspondence related to the slave trade and slavery, exchanged between a number of British Government representatives. It should be read in conjunction with IOR/R/15/1/226, of which this file is a continuation, there being numerous references to it in some of the correspondence in this volume (for example, on folios 18-19, and 20).A large proportion of the correspondence is high-level, relating to requests from the British Government and the League of Nations for information on the nature and extent of slavery and the slave trade in the Persian Gulf. This correspondence is composed of memoranda sent to the Persian Gulf Political Resident (Lieutenant-Colonel Trenchard Fowle throughout the period covered by the file), from staff at the India Office in London, and from Sir George Maxwell, then a member of the League of Nations Committee on Slavery. Other correspondence is lower-level, mainly comprising letters sent between the Political Resident and the Political Agent in Bahrain (Lieutenant-Colonel Percy Loch, Nov 1932-Apr 1937), and the Political Resident and the other Political Agents and naval officers in the Gulf region.George Maxwell wrote a report on slavery in the Persian Gulf in 1935 (National Archives: FO371/18915). Further details on the extent of slavery, the trade in slaves and abolition efforts were requested by Maxwell in 1936. As the centre of British administration on the Arab Coast, Maxwell was particularly interested in Bahrain (folios 7-11). He asked British officials for information about treaties and legislation introduced by the British Government, manumission figures, details of the trade and the routes it used. The report compiled by the Political Resident stated that, to all intents and purposes, Bahrain was a slavery-free state. The report detailed no significant new legislation, low manumission numbers, and, with no discernible organised trade, no information on known slave traders and trading routes (folio 88). Maxwell was disappointed at the 'meagre' amount of information forthcoming (folio 86), leading to a more detailed report being compiled by the Political Resident (folios 115-119). Maxwell wanted a new proclamation be made in Bahrain, effectively announcing that the state had abolished slavery outright (folio 118). A proclamation to this effect was made by the Shaikh of Bahrain in August 1937 (folio 113).Other correspondence in the volume (folios 160-225) relates to a flashpoint in Dubai in March 1938, in which civil unrest amongst the people of Dubai was provoked by Sheikh Sa'id bin Maktum's decision (under British direction) to deport two men dealing in arms. According to the Residency Agent at Sharjah ('Abd al-Razzaq Razuqi) the root cause of the unrest was the growing concern created by increasing numbers of slaves (and in particular domestic slaves) being manumitted by the Residency Agency (folio 159). This was seen by Dubai inhabitants as a threat to the pearling season (folio 169) and the wider economic stability of the town (folios 203-04). The civil unrest in Dubai caused consternation among British officials, who were anxious to remain on friendly terms with the region's shaikhs and their subjects. With the likelihood of global war looking increasingly likely, the British Government desired that the Trucial Coast region, which was a staging post on the air supply route from Britain to India, remain politically and socially stable (folios 198-200).Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with 1 and terminates at the last folio with 241; 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. The foliation sequence does not include the front and back covers, nor does it include the leading and ending flyleaves.
Abstract: This file contains correspondence between British officials regarding political developments in Dubai, primarily the impact (and continuation) of events as described in file IOR/R/15/2/2009, in which a reform movement opposed to Dubai's ruler emerged in the Shakyhdom but was subsequently quashed. The aftermath of this incident led to tensions between Dubai and Sharjah and a detailed account of these events is contained between folios 50-55.The file also contains details of an alleged conspiracy against Dubai's ruler which resulted in five alleged conspirators being blinded. The file contains two accounts of this event written by witnesses (using pseudonyms). These accounts were sent to the editor of
al-Bahraynnewspaper in Bahrain but were intercepted by the British authorities.The majority of the correspondence is in English and between British officials, but the file also contains a limited amount of correspondence with local rulers that is in Arabic (with English translations).Physical description: Foliation: The front cover along with the four leading flyleaves has not been foliated. The foliation sequence commences with 1 and terminates with 318; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner or sometimes in the middle of the recto side of each folio. An additional mixed foliation/pagination sequence is also present in parallel between ff 152-301; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
Abstract: This file contains correspondence regarding political developments in Dubai in 1938, specifically the tensions that developed between the ruler of Dubai, Shaikh Saʻīd bin Maktūm bin Hasher Āl Maktūm and members of the Al Bu Falasah branch of his tribe, as well as the related reform movement that emerged in the Shaikhdom in that year.The correspondence contained in the file is a mixture of internal correspondence between British officials and correspondence with local Shaikhs, primarily the aforementioned Shaikh Said and Shaikh Mani' bin Rashid al Maktoum. The correspondence with local Shaikhs is in Arabic and accompanied by English translations.Much of the correspondence in the file is between the Residency Agent in Sharjah and local Shaikhs, this correspondence is also in Arabic with English translations.Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences on the first page of text with 1 and terminates at the inside back cover with 403; 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 throughout the file; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled. An earlier, circled foliation system also in pencil is contained between folios 140-399 and has been crossed out.
Abstract: Distinctive Features:The northern portion of a blueprint map showing the location of RAF facilities at Dubai creek including the Air Sea Rescue Hut and new B.O.A.C. Rest House.Includes inset indicationg Dubai location in context of Trucial Coast.Inscriptions:On verso in red crayon: ‘Map Enclosure to S. 21 file 81/58 – IV’.Physical description: Dimensions:408 x 295 mm
Abstract: The file contains correspondence related to the security of the Arab Coast Air Route, used by both Imperial Airways and the Royal Air Force (RAF). The majority of the file is devoted to proposals made by Sir Trenchard Craven William Fowle, Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, in his letter dated 28 June 1939: see folios 44-50. His proposals can be summarised as follows:Alternative landing facilities should be established for use in the event of civil disturbances at Sharjah and Dibai [Dubai].The Political Resident should be given the discretion – in the event he is unable to consult the home government – to use force against ‘troublesome Shaikhs’ that threaten the continued operation of the Air Route.There is also a small amount of discussion in the file around the possibility of negotiating a fresh agreement with the Shaikh of Ra's al-Khaymah for the provision of air facilities.The main correspondents in the file are as follows: the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Charles Geoffrey Prior), officials of the Air Ministry, officials of the Foreign Office, and officials of the India Office (J P Gibson and Roland Tennyson Peel). The Admiralty is also consulted over the Resident's proposals.The file includes a divider which gives a list of correspondence references contained in the file by year. This is placed at the back of the correspondence.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 56; 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 file contains correspondence between British officials regarding the provision of medical facilities on the Trucial Coast including the political reasons for doing so. Specifically, the correspondence discusses the opening of a medical dispensary in Dubai in June 1939.The file also contains a limited amount of correspondence related to the opening of an American Mission hospital in Qatar in 1947.In addition to this correspondence the file contains the following documents:'Report on Dibai [Dubai] Dispensary' (folios 73-74)'Statement showing estimated cost of dispensary on the Trucial Coast' (folio 127).The file includes a divider, which gives a list of correspondence references contained in the file by year. This is placed at the back of the correspondence.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 129; 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 file contains correspondence and notes related to air facilities required by Imperial Airways (from 1940 the British Overseas Airways Corporation - BOAC) and the Royal Air Force (RAF) along the Arabian Coast. The file therefore contains a number of lists (some of which are categorised by priority) prepared by the Air Ministry outlining British requirements for navigation beacons, wireless transmissions sets, direction finding sets, moorings for flying boats etc; the lists prepared by the Air Ministry are revised over time to reflect changing requirements, for example the introduction of night flying. Also covered in the file is the establishment of a petrol dhow at Dubai in 1934 (see folio 402 for a copy of the agreement), and consideration in 1938 of arrangements for the provision of fuel at Ras al Khaimah [Ra's al-Khaymah] for Imperial Airways in cases of emergency.Another topic featured in the file is the introduction of a flying boat service by Imperial Airways in 1937, and the selection of a suitable stopping point along the Arabian Coast. The selection process is covered, which includes consideration of Dubai (also spelt Debai and Dabai), Ras al Khaimah, and Umm al Qaiwain [Umm al-Qaywayn] as potential sites. This process culminates in the Dubai Commercial Air Agreement (1937): see folios 223-226 for a copy of the agreement with both Arabic and English translation. This includes an agreement respecting security arrangements for passengers transferred between the alighting area at Dubai and their accommodation at Sharjah: see folio 199 for an English translation of the agreement. Further correspondence relating to its renewal in 1943 can also be found in the file. The prospects for the future use of Dubai and Sharjah, as of 1946, are also briefly discussed at the end of the correspondence.Material related to a survey of Sharjah Creek in 1939 and Dubai Creek by Bernard Whitteron in 1941 can be found between folios 36-57. This includes sketch maps the two creeks: Dubai (folio 48) and Sharjah (folios 53, and 55-56). It has been included in consideration of possible engineering work to enhance their navigability and hence their utility for flying boats.The main correspondents are as follows: the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, the Political Agent at Bahrain (Tom Hickinbotham, Hugh Weightman, and Reginald George Alban), officials of the Air Ministry, and officials of the India Office.The file includes a divider which gives a list of correspondence references contained in the file by year. This is placed at the back of the correspondence.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 466; 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 2-465; these numbers are also written in pencil but are not circled.
Abstract: This file contains:Two letters from the Government of India's Foreign and Political Department to the Secretary of State for India concerning the wording of an address regarding historical agreements between the British Government and local rulers in the Persian Gulf to be given by the Secretary in 1935 (folios 3-6).Correspondence exchanged between the Foreign Office and the British Legation in Jeddah in 1935 regarding a query that had been raised by Ibn Saud's adviser, Fuad Bey Hamza, about historical agreements between the British Government and local rulers in the Persian Gulf (folios 7-16).Correspondence between officials at the Foreign Office, India Office and the Political Residency regarding a British naval flotilla tour of the Persian Gulf that took place in September 1933 (folios 17-79). In addition to correspondence on this topic, the file also contains the following related documents:A first-hand account of the British naval flotilla tour of the Persian Gulf in September 1933 written by Lieutenant-Colonel Percy Gordon Loch, the Officiating Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (folios 22-31)'Programme of a Darbar of the Trucial Chiefs to be held on board H.M.S. Shoreham at Dibai [Dubai] on 23rd September, 1933' (folio 32)'Address by the Honourable the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf to the Trucial Chiefs, at Dibai [Dubai] on the 23rd September 1933' (folios 33-35)'Address by His Excellency the Viceroy at a Public Durbar held on board H.M.S "Argonaut" on the 21st November 1903 at Shargah for the Arab Chiefs of the littoral' (folios 76-79).The file includes a divider, which gives a list of correspondence references contained in the file by year. This is placed at the back of the correspondence.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 80; 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 contains: correspondence (and a list of the correspondence) between the India Office and the Government of India, regarding the payment of dollar exchange compensation allowance for Government employees at Bahrain and Koweit [Kuwait], and for postal staff at Dubai, Gwadur [Gwadar] and Bahrein [Bahrain]; and India Office minute papers and notes about the correspondence.The correspondence largely consists of letters from the Government of India forwarding statements showing the amount of dollar exchange compensation allowance paid each quarter.Physical description: 1 item (72 folios)