Abstract: The correspondence in the volume relates to three main areas of discussion:The Kuwait Oil Company's negotiations with the Shaikh of Kuwait, Aḥmad al-Jābir Āl Ṣabāḥ, for the granting of an oil concession in Kuwait. Included within the volume are copies of both the draft concession agreement, in Arabic and English, (folios 16-27) and copies of the political agreement between His Majesty's Government and the Kuwait Oil Company (folios 57-65, 71-80 and 83-84) as well as correspondence regarding particular clauses within both agreements. Also included are records of interviews between Harold Dickson, Political Agent Kuwait, and the Shaikh of Kuwait, 25-26 February 1934, discussing the Shaikh's thoughts on the draft concession presented to him (folios 28-35). The Kuwait Oil Company's negotiations were handled by Major Archibald Chisholm and Major Frank Holmes.The British Government's concerns over an oil concession for the Nejd-Kuwait Neutral Zone, and particularly the possibility of an American company receiving the concession from the Saudi Government. The correspondence is primarily between the Foreign Office, India Office and the British Legation at Jedda and seeks to determine what the position is between the Saudi Government and the two interested parties in the Neutral Zone concession: the Standard Oil Company of California and the Arabian Development Syndicate. Also included in the volume are records of two meetings held at the India Office between Sir Louis Kershaw, Deputy Under Secretary of State, and representatives of the Foreign Office, Admiralty, India Office and Petroleum Department to discuss the oil concession in the Neutral Zone, ways of attempting to ensure that British owned company secures the concession, and the difficulties of jurisdiction and protection of employees within the zone itself (folios 89-97 and 125-128).Correspondence between the Air Ministry, Air Officer Commanding , the Political Agent Kuwait and the Shaikh of Kuwait regarding the lease of three sites within Kuwait: two at Jahra and Subaihiya [Şubayḩīyah] for use as landing grounds and one at Shuwaikh for use as an air base. The correspondence includes details of how the three sites are to be used and the conditions which the Shaikh of Kuwait places on their lease.The volume also contains file notes (folios 220-225) which list each individual item of correspondence received and its date.Physical description: Foliation: The volume is foliated with pencil numbers, enclosed in a circle, located in the top right corner of the recto of each folio. The foliation sequence runs from front to back covers. There is an earlier foliation sequence which uses uncircled numbers in the top right corner of each recto and runs intermittently from folios 2-30. The following foliation anomalies occur: 1A-1E, 16A, 27A, 56A, 57A, 128A, 186A. Folios 83 and 84 are fold-outs.Watermark: The watermark EllamS can be found on folios 60 to 65.
Abstract: The file deals with political relations between the King of Hejaz and Najd [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd] (commonly referred to in the papers as Bin Saud or Ibn Saud) and the states of Iraq and Kuwait, particularly in terms of raids by Akhwan [Ikhwān] tribes from Najd.The correspondence is mainly between the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Lieutenant-Colonel Lionel Berkeley Holt Haworth) and the Political Agent, Bahrain (also spelled Bahrein, Major Cyril Charles Johnson Barrett). There is also correspondence between British officials and Bin Saud. Enclosures to correspondence from the Political Resident include copies of correspondence with the Political Agent, Kuwait; the office of the High Commissioner, Iraq; the Colonial Office, London; the Government of India; the Senior Naval Officer in the Persian Gulf; and other British officials in the region.The papers cover the following:disputes over border posts in Iraq;diplomatic contact between the British and Bin Saud;report on Bin Saud and the Iraqi press (folios 27-28);activities of Faisal ad Dawish [Fayṣal al-Dawīsh] and other Akhwan leaders;raids by Akhwan tribes, especially Mutair and Ajman;activities of the Royal Navy and Royal Indian Marine to protect Kuwait;activities of the Royal Air Force (RAF) to protect Kuwait;use of air reconnaissance against tribes;the British response to the raids, including the need to protect British subjects and British property in Kuwait (e.g. folio 79);note on Bin Saud by Barrett, 3 March 1928 (folios 134-140);use of cars, aeroplanes and armoured cars to defend against attacks by Akhwan;threat to British oil supplies (folios 192-194);descriptions of plunder taken by Akhwan from desert tribes (donkeys, sheep, goats etc.);Akhwan 'jehad' [jihad] against non-Akhwan tribes (e.g. folios 209-210);provision by British of machine guns and Lewis guns for defence of Kuwait (e.g. folio 234);threat of extension of conflict to Trans-Jordan (folio 310).The Arabic content of the file consists of approximately ten folios of correspondence, mainly copies of letters from the Political Agent, Bahrain.The date range gives the covering dates of the main run of correspondence. The earliest document in the file is an enclosure to the first item of correspondence and is dated 28 January 1928.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 454; 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 between ff 7-453; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and are located in the same position as the main sequence.
Abstract: The volume contains correspondence relating to the draft oil concession agreements presented to the Shaikh of Kuwait (Aḥmad al-Jābir Āl Ṣabāḥ) by the Eastern and General Syndicate Limited, and the Anglo-Persian Oil Company (A.P.O.C.).The correspondence focuses particularly on the individual clauses within the two draft agreements and a comparison of them for the Shaikh in order that he can make an informed decision on which concession proposal is best for his country. The memorandum comparing the drafts is produced by the Petroleum Department of the British Government and two copies of it are contained in the volume (folios 48-64, 153-161).Also included in the volume is correspondence between the US Embassy in London and the Foreign Office regarding what the US embassy view as unacceptable delays in the amount of time it has taken the British Government to discuss the question of the Kuwait concession and repeating their concerns that the Eastern and General Syndicate will not be compared favourably alongside the British A.P.O.C. proposal. Also outlined by the Foreign Office are their fears that the Government's delays in responding to the US in this matter could potentially affect more serious negotiations in the future between the two countries.Other items of interest in the volume include:Letters from the Admiralty and the Army Council expressing their concerns over strategic and military assets in the Gulf should American interests be permitted to acquire the oil concession in Kuwait;Enquiries from the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf to the Secretary of State for India asking if anything can be done to assist the Shaikh of Kuwait with his grievances regarding his date gardens in Iraq and Ibn Sa'ud's blockade;A letter from the Secretary of State, Foreign Office (on behalf of the Secretary for Mines) to the Director of the Eastern and General Syndicate Limited outlining the history and background to an oil concession in Kuwait dating back to 1917 when A.P.O.C. first undertook preliminary examinations in Kuwait and Bahrain (folios 76-81);Details of proposals by A.P.O.C. to increase the financial offer of their concessionLetter from the Political Agent in Kuwait to the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf regarding anti-A.P.O.C. and anti-British propaganda which is being circulated in Kuwait (folios 106-108).Physical description: Foliation: The principal foliation runs from the first folio to last folios and consists of numbers enclosed in a circle in the top right hand corner. A second former sequence commences on the first folio of writing and concludes on folio 173, consisting of pencil numbers (not circled) in the top right hand corner. This sequence has gaps. Foliation anomalies: 1A-1D, 21A, 162A
Abstract: The volume is
Military Report on the Arabian Shores of the Persian Gulf, Kuwait, Bahrein, Hasa, Qatar, Trucial Oman and Oman(Calcutta: Government of India Press, 1933). The volume was produced by the General Staff, India. The place name Bahrain is rendered in the title and elsewhere in the volume in the spelling 'Bahrein'.The volume contains information in separate sections for each of the places listed in the title under the following chapter headings:I Historical (ff 8-14);II Geography, Climate, Health (ff 15-54);III Population (ff 54-67);IV Water Supply; Resources (ff 68-70);V Armed Forces (ff 70-75);VI Aviation (ff 75-78);VII Political (ff 79-81);VIII Inter-Communication [wireless and telegraph] (ff 81-82);IX Communications [land routes] (ff 83-98).There are three appendices, which follow the same format:I Currency, Weights and Measures (f 99-102);II Landing Facilities - Maritime (ff 103-106);III List of Maps (f 106).The volume includes five maps of the region (ff 109-113).Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at 1 on the front cover and terminates at 113 on the last of the five maps inserted in a pocket attached to the back cover. The numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and appear in the top right hand corner of the recto page of each folio. All five maps (ff 109, 110, 111, 112, 113) need to folded out to be examined. This is the system used to determine the sequence of pages in the volume.Pagination: an original printed pagination sequence, numbered 2-198 appears between ff 8-106.
Abstract: Imprint:Published by James Horsburgh, Hydrographer to the East India Company.Distinctive Features:Relief shown by hachures. Depth shown by soundings.Nautical chart of the western coast of the Persian Gulf showing the Island of Bahrein compiled from the surveys carried out by the Bombay Marine’s officers between 1820 and 1829.Contains annotations on hazardous features including rocks, shoals, reefs and sand banks.Shows the position of lighthouse and ‘Portuguese harbour and fort’, west of Manamah, Bahrain. Uqair in the Eastern province of Saudi Arabia labelled ‘Formerly Port to the Wahabee, Capital, Deriah’. Hawar Islands off the west coast of Qatar labelled ‘Wardens Islands’.Physical description: Dimensions:890 x 538 mm, on sheet 1022 x 666 mm
Abstract: Printed agreement between the British Government and the Kuwait Oil Company setting out the company's obligations to the British Government in the event of the company's obtaining a concession from the Sheikh of Koweit [Kuwait]. The agreement contains twelve clauses: clause 1 states that the Company and any subsidiary should remain 'a British Company, registered in the British Empire'; clause 11 states that in the event of a national emergency or war the British Government 'shall have the right of pre-emption of all the oil produced in Koweit' in accordance with the terms of a schedule headed 'Pre-emption Clause' at the end of the agreement.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at 1 on the first folio and terminates at 2 on the last folio. The numbers are written in pencil, are enclosed in a circle, and appear in the top right hand corner of the recto page of both folios. This is the system used to determine the order of pages.Pagination: the file also contains an original printed foliation sequence, numbered 2-3 (folios 1-2). The numbers appear in the top centre of each page.
Abstract: Imprint:Simla Drawing Office.Distinctive Features:Relief shown by hachures.Map marked ‘For Official Use only’. No. 4192. Copied from sheets H38 and H 39 of the maps of Eastern Turkey in Asia drawn to scale 1;1,000,000.Boundaries indicated by red, black and pecked lines with a key provided below title.Physical description: Dimensions:332 x 390 mm, on sheet 408 x 460 mm
Abstract: Imprint:Issued by the Foreign Office Research Department in May 1954.Distinctive Features:Relief shown by hachures.Copy of the original map published as an Annex no. 5 to unratified Anglo-Ottoman Convention of 29 July 1913 with inner and outer limits of Kuwait authority shown by red and green lines respectively.Physical description: Dimensions:286 x 287 mm, on sheet 327 x 332 mm
Abstract: Imprint:Harrison & Son Lith. St. Martins Lane, W.C. (90.3/13. 2496) F.O. Asiatic Turkey 2808 CC-2.Distinctive Features:Relief shown by contours and spot heights.Proposed limits of Kuwait authority indicated by red line.Includes an explanatory note on sources used in compiling the map and a key to symbols at the bottom margin; borders lettered and numbered for reference. Top right corner printed: ‘(Enclosure to Burshire Residency Letter No. 1727 to the Port of India in the Foreign Dept.)’.Enlarged copies of this map hold at IOR/R/15/1/612.Physical description: Dimensions:514 x 477 mm, on sheet 615 x 506 mm
Abstract: Distinctive Features:Tracing of a sketch map produced to illustrate the act of violation of Kuwait Territorial waters by Iraq armed custom, attached to a letter no. C-182 dated 18th May 1934 (folios 313-319).Kuwait State boundary and neutral zone limits shown by red pecked line with position of al Maghasil and al Tha’alib marked in red ink. Shows road from Basra to Jahara. The word ‘Frontier’ is misspelled in the title.“A” inserted in red crayon in the upper centre.This is an updated copy of map at folio 312.Physical description: Materials:Pen and ink on tracing paperDimensions:320 x 195 mm
Abstract: Distinctive Features:Tracing of a sketch map produced to illustrate the act of violation of Kuwait Territorial waters by Iraq armed custom, attached to a letter no. C-182 dated 18th May 1934 (folios 313-319).Kuwait State boundary and neutral zone limits indicated by red pecked line. Shows road from Basra to Jahara. The word ‘Frontier’ is misspelled in the title. An updated copy of the map (with several place names added) can be found at folio 320A.Physical description: Materials:Pen and ink on tracing paperDimensions:321 x 175 mm
Abstract: The sketch map shows approaches to Kuwait [Kuwait] Harbour and Shatt Al Arab. An Admiralty sea map, it states it is compiled from various authorities, and is found in the volume 'Report and Proceedings of the Standing Sub-Committee of the Committee of Imperial Defence on the Persian Gulf', 1911.It indicates: heights above Water Springs, depth soundings, different types of lights and buoys, gravel, mud, rock, sand, shells, and stones; with additional comments on wrecks, tides, floods, and landing places.Two compass roses are included noting the predicted magnetic variation for 1915.In includes a printing statement as follows: 'Issued for Fleet purposes 2nd June 1902. New editions December 1904, July 1907, October 1909. Engraved by Davies & Company. F 3293'.Physical description: Materials: Printed on paperDimensions: 588 x 450mm, on sheet 643 x 495mm