Abstract: This file contains correspondence and reports related to the British Government's response to the announcement of the Arab revolt against the Ottoman Empire in 1916 (folios 2-14) and to political-military developments in the Hejaz between 1924 and 1926, notably the conquest of Jeddah and the fall of the Hashemite Kingdom of the Hejaz (folios 15-244).The majority of the correspondence in the file is between British officials, but it also contains a limited amount of correspondence between European diplomatic staff in Jeddah and the Ruler of Nejd, Ibn Saud (‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd).Much of the section of the file that concerns the Hejaz consists of detailed situation reports that were sent to British diplomatic posts (including the Political Agency in Muscat by Britain's Agent and Consul in Jeddah, Reader William Bullard (followed by Stanley R Jordan between December 1924 and February 1926).In addition, the file contains the following documents:'Notes regarding Policy to be adopted in connection with the revolt of the Sherif of Mecca' (folios 10-11)'Aims of the Indian Caliphate Committee as given to the Foreign Secretary to the Hejaz Government by the Delegation, in writing about January 13th 1925' (folios 57-58)'Minutes of a Conference held at the Colonial Office on the 12th of March, 1926, to discuss matters arising out of Sir Gilbert Clayton's report on his Mission to Ibn Saud' (folios 233-235).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 245; 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 2-12; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
Abstract: This volume contains correspondence and several documents concerning a number of topics related to the Arabian Peninsula as follows:'Note on the Khurma Dispute by Captain Garland with Sketch Map (with Appendix Dated 10th June 1919)' (folios 5-10)'Notes on the "AKHWAN" Movement' by Harold Richard Patrick Dickson, 1920 (folios 18-32)'Note by Miss G.L. [Gertrude Lowthian] Bell', 1920 (folios 34-37)'Hejaz Post-War Finance' written by the Foreign Office's Arab Bureau, 1919 (folios 39-41)'Note on the political situation in Bahrein as existing at the end of 1919, with suggestions and proposals for improving the situation' (folios 97-101)'Note on history of Zubara and Claims of Shaikh of Bahrein to Zubara' (folio 108)A map of Qatar and Bahrain (folio 110)'Memorandum on the British Position on the Arabian Littoral of the Persian Gulf. 1921' (folios 141-149)'Diary of Journey from Bahrein to Mecca' written by Khan Sahib Saiyid Siddiq Hassan, 1920 (folios 160-173)'Report of Shaikh Farhan Beg Al Rahmah of the Muntafik, Personal Assistant to Major H.R.P. Dickson, C.I.E., Political Agent, Bahrein, who accompanied the Nejd mission from Bahrein to Mecca via Riyadh and back' (folios 173-178)'Note on the tracts and tribes of South Hasa, Trucial Oman, "Independent Oman" and Dhahirah (Oman Sultanate), located between the coast of the Persian Gulf and Ruba' al Khali (the Great Salt Desert)' (folios 197-199)Government of India printed correspondence on Ikhwan raids into Iraq and Kuwait, 1927-28 (folios 208-238).The majority of the correspondence in the volume is internal correspondence between British officials in Iraq, India and the Gulf, but it also contains a limited amount of translations of letters that were sent to British officials by Ibn Saud (‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd).Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with 1 and terminates at the last folio with 239; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. The foliation sequence does not include the front and back covers, nor does it include the leading and ending flyleaves. A previous foliation sequence between ff 203-238, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.
Abstract: Papers relating to the invasion of the Hejaz region on the Arabian Peninsula by Wahabi [Wahhabi] forces under the Sultan of Najd, Ibn Saud [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd]:Part 2, covering the British Government’s response to Ibn Saud’s actions, including its policy of neutrality, and its objection to the King of Hejaz, ‘Alī ibn al-Ḥusayn ibn ‘Alī al-Hāshimī’s attempt to recruit troops in the Aden ProtectoratePart 3, covering the Wahabi attack on Transjordan [Jordan], and the British Government’s discussion of the location of the boundary between Transjordan, Hejaz, and NajdPart 4, covering the response of Muslim countries to the Hejaz-Najd situation, and Hejaz and Najd deputations to India.Each part includes a divider which gives the subject and part numbers, the year the subject file was opened, the subject heading, and a list of correspondence references contained in that part 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 inside back cover with 325; 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 volume mostly consists of correspondence concerning the relations between Britain and Ibn Sa'ud, with a specific focus on the negotiation and signing of the Treaty of Jeddah. The majority of the correspondence is between the British Legation in Jeddah and the Foreign and Colonial Offices in London. Copies were often sent to the Political Residency in Bushire, the Political Agencies in Bahrain and Kuwait, and the High Commissioners in Baghdad and Jerusalem.The volume follows the evolution of the Treaty:Britain's initial reluctance, due to their official friendship with King Hussein, to engage with the issue prior to Ibn Sa'ud's conquest of the Hejaz;how this event then gave cause for the Bahra and Hadda agreements of November 1925;the negotiations between Ibn Sa'ud and Gilbert Clayton in early 1927 leading to the signing of the Treaty of Jeddah on 20 May that year and its ratification in August.At the end of the volume (folios192-196) is Clayton's final report on his mission to the Hejaz and includes a copy of the Treaty.Physical description: Foliation: the sequence starts on the first folio and continues through to the inside back cover. The numbering is written in pencil, circled and written in the top right corner of each folio. There are the following irregularities: ff 1A-1C; f 185A; ff 78-84 are those of a booklet, stored in an envelope (f 77A). There is a second sequence that is also written in pencil but is not circled and is inconsistent.
Abstract: The file consists of correspondence concerning the poverty of Hejaz and the establishment of a spinning and weaving industry in Medina with the help of Indian capital. It also includes a translation of an advertisement to pilgrims announcing Medina-made cloth for sale in Mecca.The main correspondents include: Andrew Ryan, British Minister at Jedda [Jeddah]; Albert Spencer Calvert, HM Vice-Consul at Jedda; and John Picton Bagge, Director of Foreign Division, Department of Overseas Trade.The file includes a divider which gives the subject and a list of correspondence references contained in the file by year. This is placed at the front of the file.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at f 1, and terminates at f 12, it is the second file in a larger physical volume, each file has its own foliation sequence; these numbers are written in pencil, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.
Abstract: The file comprises correspondence relating to the diplomatic representation of the Kingdom of Hejaz and Najd at The Hague and in Batavia.The file includes a letter from HBM Minister, Jedda (Cecil Gervase Hope Gill) to HM Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, with background information on the representatives: Ibn Saud's Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary at The Hague (Shaikh Hafidh Wahba); the First Secretary in charge of the Hejazi Legation at the Hague (Shaikh Abdulla Ibrahim al Fadhl); and Hejazi Consul in Batavia (Seyyid Hamza al Ghouth). Also discussed is the issue of the financing of these posts by the Government of Hejaz and Najd.Correspondence also discusses the potential role of a Dutch bank in financing the delegation. Other correspondents include the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs; the Under-Secretary of State for India; and the Secretary, Political and Secret Department, India Office.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description (used for referencing) commences at f 538, and terminates at f 543, as it is part of a larger physical volume; these numbers are written in pencil, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.
Abstract: The file comprises telegrams, despatches, correspondence, memoranda, and notes, relating to the case of Farhan ibn Mashur, who had committed various acts of rebellion against Ibn Saud.At the conference on HMS
Lupinin February 1930 (the Lupin Conference) the King of Iraq (Faisal I) had given an assurance to the King of Hejaz and Najd (ibn Saud) that Farhan bin Mashur would return to ibn Saud via Syria subject to a pardon. However, ibn Mashur was allegedly abducted on the way through Syria and this was seen as a broach of Faisal's guarantee to Ibn Saud.The King of Iraq offered to hand over Ibn Mashur's family and property to the King of Hejaz and Najd as a gesture of good faith, a measure which was accepted by Ibn Saud.The discussion in the volume between British officials concerns the practicalities of the case and the need to maintain cordial relations between the two monarchs. It also discusses the agreements at the Lupin conference and implications for British action in this matter.The file features the following principal correspondents: the Political Secretary to the High Commissioner for Iraq (R S M Sturges); the Private Secretary to the King of Iraq, Baghdad (Abdullah Beg al Haj); the King of Iraq, (Faisal bin Hussein); the High Commissioner for Iraq (F H Humphrys); the Secretary of State for the Colonies (Sidney James Webb, Lord Passfield); the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonial Office; the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs; the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs; the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Government of Hejaz and Najd; HBM Minister, Jedda (Sir Andrew Ryan); and the King of Hejaz and Najd (ibn Saud).Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description (used for referencing) commences at f 46, and terminates at f 133, as it is part of a larger physical volume; these numbers are written in pencil, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.
Abstract: The file comprises telegrams, despatches, correspondence, memoranda, and notes, relating to raid claims issuing between Iraq and the Kingdom of Hejaz and Najd.The discussion in the volume relates to the negotiations of compensation, final agreement and arrangements for payment and distribution to tribes.The file features the following principal correspondents: the High Commissioner for Iraq; the Secretary of State for the Colonies; Office of the Council of Ministers, Baghdad; the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mecca; the King of Iraq (Faisal I); the Secretary, Political and Secret Department, Government of India.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description (used for referencing) commences at f 134, and terminates at f 202, as it is part of a larger physical volume; these numbers are written in pencil, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.
Abstract: This item comprises enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay [Mumbai] Secret Department to the Secret Committee, [Bombay Secret Letter] No. 12 dated 2 February 1856. The enclosures are dated 10-25 January 1856.The papers comprise three letters from Brigadier William Marcus Coghlan, Acting Political Resident and Commandant, Aden, to the Secretary to Government, Bombay, covering the following matters:The general peaceful state of affairs in Aden, including relations between tribes of the vicinity and lack of any ‘aggressions’ by the ‘Foutheli chief’ [Aḥmad bin Abdullāh al-Faḍlī]The report by HM Agent and Consul-General in Egypt that an order has, in fact, been given ‘for the emancipation of slaves within the Egyptian territory’ (f 161) but it has been very generally put into execution and has not yet met with any resistance by the ‘mussulman [Muslim] population’. Coghlan notes that the Consul-General’s letter indicates he has not yet heard of the recent disturbance in the Hejaz [also spelled Hedjaz in this item]Reports, from Hodeida [Al Hudaydah] that [Ottoman] Turkish troops have suppressed the insurrections in Jedda [Jeddah, spelled Judda in this item] and Mecca and intend to march on Taif [Ta'if] to where rebel leader Shereef Abd-el-Mutalib [Sharif ‘Abd al-Muṭṭalib bin Ghālib bin Musā‘ad] has fled from MeccaNews of a violent rebellion in Massowah [Massawa, also known as Mitsiwa] against the Governor of Massawa, reported by Raffaello Barroni, Agent to Mr Plowden [Walter Chichele Plowden], HM Consul in Abyssinia [now Ethiopia], including Barroni’s urgent request to Coghlan to send a vessel to save the ‘lives, merchandise and money of all the Indians, Banyans and Europeans who are here’ (f 164).Also included are: three Resolutions of the Board including a Resolution to despatch the vessel
Queenfor the protection of British subjects at Jedda, and the
Elphinstoneto afford relief and protection at Mussowah on the proviso it does not prevent the restoration of peace in Jedda; and a letter from the Secretary to the Government of India agreeing that Lieutenant Richard Burton’s ‘negligence’ does not excuse the actions of the [Habr Awwal] tribe and that until reparation is received the blockade of Berbera should remain in place.Physical description: 1 item (13 folios)
Abstract: This volume largely consists of copies of Colonial Office and Foreign Office and correspondence. The correspondence concerns the possibility of the Hejaz railway being reconditioned and extended. A large part of the correspondence discusses the issue of ownership regarding the Hejaz railway. Much of the correspondence documents attempts by the British to dismiss claims that the railway had been legally recognised as a
waqfduring Ottoman rule. Matters discussed in relation to the railway include the following:The history of the Hejaz railway.Details of the proceedings of the Muslim Conference in Jerusalem in 1931, and of its resolutions regarding the Hejaz railway (not formally recognised by the British), in which it is argued that the line is a
waqf.Reports that the Saudi Government is prepared to put aside the question of ownership in order to discuss with the British and French the restitution of the railway.Details of a Hejaz railway conference between the British, French, and Saudi governments, held at Haifa in October 1935.The issue of whether the British Government should contribute towards the reconstruction of the Saudi Arabian section of the railway.Correspondents include the following: His Majesty's Minister at Jedda (Sir Andrew Ryan, succeeded by Sir Reader William Bullard); His Majesty's Chargé d’Affaires, Jedda (Albert Spencer Calvert, succeeded by Alan Charles Trott); His Majesty's Consul at Damascus (Edwyn Cecil Hole, succeeded by Gilbert Mackereth); the High Commissioner for Palestine and Transjordan (Arthur Grenfell Wauchope); the Secretary of State for the Colonies; His Majesty's Ambassador in Paris (Eric Phipps); the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs; the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs; various officials of the Colonial Office and Foreign Office.In addition to correspondence, the file includes the following items:A copy of a memorandum by the British Consul at Damascus on the history of the Hejaz railway and its management by Compagnie Damas-Hama et Prolongments (DHP).A copy of an extract from the proceedings of the aforementioned Muslim Conference.A copy of the minutes and two copies (one in English and one in French) of the resolutions of the Hejaz railway conference.As well as the aforementioned resolutions, the file contains a number of letters written in French. The Arabic material consists of a short passage taken from correspondence that is translated elsewhere in the file.The file includes two dividers, which give a list of correspondence references contained in the file by year. These are placed at the back of the correspondence.Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the inside front cover with 1 and terminates at the last folio with 516; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located at the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 2-515; these numbers are also written in pencil and are circled, but are crossed through.
Abstract: The file concerns regulations regarding the prohibition of the import, sale, carrying and possession of arms in the Hejaz kingdom, and later the kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The regulations were all published in the Saudi newspaper Umm al Qura [Umm al-Qurá], and consist of the following: a high decree published 15 May 1931 (folios 43-45); a high order sanctioned by the Legislative Assembly, 8 Safar 1352 [2 June 1933] (folios 39-40); and a regulation issued by Ibn Sa'ūd ['Abd al-Raḥmān bin 'Abd al-'Azīz bin Fayṣal Āl Sa'ūd] on 3 Shabān 1354 [31 October 1935] (folios 29-34).The file also includes correspondence between HM Minister at Jedda (Andrew Ryan), the Foreign Office, the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Lieutenant-Colonel Trenchard Craven Fowle), the Political Agent at Bahrain (Lieutenant-Colonel Percy Gordon Loch), the Political Agent at Kuwait (Captain Gerald Simpson Hillairet de Gaury), and the High Commissioner for Trans-Jordan (Arthur Wauchope), discussing: the impact of the regulations on tribesmen from Transjordan, Kuwait and the Trucial Coast; the difficulties of enforcing the regulations in the hinterlands; and concerns that Ibn Sa'ūd intended to use the regulations to impose his influence on tribes who moved into Saudi limits from Qatar and Abu Dhabi.The file includes a divider which gives a list of correspondence references found in the file by year. This is placed at the end of the correspondence (folio 2).Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 48; 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 relates to the ownership of property in the Hejaz (later Saudi Arabia) by foreigners. The early correspondence in the file (1930-1931) relates to the estates of deceased British Indian citizens (and one Chinese national). The remainder of the file's correspondence is chiefly concerned with the status of private properties in the Hejaz belonging to the Hashimite family. Much of this correspondence documents the progress of negotiations for the aforementioned properties to be restored to the Hashimite family; further correspondence speculates on the possible impact on Hashimite properties of Saudi regulations introduced in October 1934 (a translated copy of which is included in the file, at folios 39-44) which, it is reported, state that foreigners may not own immovable property in the country.The file features the following principal correspondents: His Majesty's Minister at Jedda (Sir Andrew Ryan); the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (Sir John Simon); the High Commissioner for Transjordan (Arthur Grenfell Wauchope); the British Resident, Transjordan (Charles Henry Fortnom Cox); His Majesty's Ambassador in Baghdad (Sir Francis Henry Humphrys); His Majesty's Chargé d’Affaires to Jedda (Cecil Gervase Hope Gill); the British Consul General, Kashgar (Frederick Williamson); the Foreign Secretary to the Government of India; Nuri Al Sa'id [Nūrī al-Sa‘īd], former Iraqi Prime Minister; officials of the Foreign Office, the Colonial Office, the Government of India's Foreign and Political Department, and the Government of Bombay's Political Department.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 inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the last folio 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. An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 2-128; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.