Abstract: This volume contains correspondence on the disposal of river craft in Mesopotamia, exchanged between 9 May and 20 December 1919, after the conclusion of the First World War. It contains material relating to:The centralisation of the disposal of all small miscellaneous craft in the Ministry of Shipping, and the constitution of a Small Craft Disposals Department headed by Major Le MesurierThe appointment of the Shipping Controller as the Agent of the Disposal Board, and that of Colonel J MacGregor to represent the Ministry of Shipping in Mesopotamia in this connectionThe completion of the railway between Basra (also written as Busrah in this volume) and Baghdad, the availability of ‘a major portion’ of the Mesopotamian military fleet for disposal, and the effective monopoly established by Lord Inchcape [James Mackay, 1st Earl of Inchcape] through his posts as the Government Director of the Anglo-Persian Oil Company, and as sole Agent of the Standard Oil Company in the Persian Gulf and Mesopotamia, while also trading through the Mesopotamian-Persian Trading CorporationThe agreement between the Shipping Controller and the Minister of Munitions for the latter to assume responsibility for the disposal of the surplus of small craft in MesopotamiaThe Ministry of Shipping’s general policy to release all vessels on full requisition and arrange with shipping firms to carry troops and supplies at contract ratesThe information from the ‘leading Mahometan [Muslim] merchant’ in Baghdad that he proposes to ‘form a company representing local Mahometan, Jewish and Christian commercial interests’ to run steamers on the Tigris, and requests facilities to purchase suitable boats and bargesThe submission by the Euphrates and Tigris Steam Navigation Company for the return of SS
Khalifah, and the suggestion that ‘no tonnage should be hired to others until vessels have been hired to them to replace tonnage of which they have been deprived owing to military operations’The fleet of vessels on the rivers Tigris and Karun, controlled by the Euphrates and Tigris Steam Navigation Company Limited, before and after the outbreak of the First World WarThe complaint of Lord Inchcape to Sir Thomas Holderness, Permanent Under-Secretary of State for India, about the perceived opposition from the India Office to the commercial activities of Lynch Brothers and Company in MesopotamiaThe hostility of local Mesopotamian merchants towards the Mesopotamia-Persia Trading Corporation (formerly Lynch Brothers and Company) and its commercial monopolyThe suggestion from Lord Inverforth [Andrew Weir, 1st Baron Inverforth], Minister of Munitions, to Lord Inchcape to purchase the Mesopotamian FleetThe suggestion by the former Minister of Munitions, Winston Churchill, of a conference between the Ministry of Munitions and the India Office for the disposal of small craft in MesopotamiaThe schemes outlined by Colonel W R Dockrill on how to commercialise the transportation of supplies, materiel and personnel for the Mesopotamian Army of OccupationThe involvement of the Mesopotamian Feet in supplying the Army of Occupation at Kut [Al-Kut], and transporting coal and oil fuel stores to Baghdad from Basrah [Basra]A possible meeting between Lord Inverforth, an India Office representative and the Director of MovementsThe offer made by Strick, Scott and Company to purchase steamers, barges, tugs, and oil tanks for the transportation and storage of oil in MesopotamiaThe Anglo-Persian Oil Company’s interest in the Government’s oil fleet and installations in Mesopotamia, and information on the numbers, location and capacity of the vesselsThe offer of Bird and Company, Calcutta [Kolkata], to purchase the motor launch
StrathnaverA request from the Anglo-Persian Oil Company to the Under-Secretary of State for India for barges and tugs to transport oil from Abadan to the vilayets of Baghdad and BasraThe agreement between the War Office, India Office and Foreign Office for the sale of the whole surplus of the Mesopotamian Fleet, including the portion already returned to India.The volume also includes a ‘General Statement on Mesopotamian Craft’, listing the different types of vessels, including hospital craft, tugs and steamers, and barges, up to 8 November 1919; ‘Minutes of an Inter-Departmental Meeting held at the India Office on Monday, 27 October 1919, to consider Colonel [Arnold Talbot] Wilson’s proposal regarding the disposal of the fleets and barges in Mesopotamia’ (ff 83-88); ‘A Memorandum by Sir Thomas Holderness [Permanent Under-Secretary of State for India] on the Disposal of the Mesopotamian Fleet’ (ff 113-116); ‘A Brief Report [by Major H G Chesney, Assistant Political Officer] on the Proceedings of the Meeting [of local merchants] called for [in Basra] on Friday, 18 July 1919’ (ff 129-132); and the record of an inter-departmental conference held at the India Office to discuss the question of the disposal of surplus rivercraft in Mesopotamia (f 185).Physical description: Foliation: The foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 275; 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 contains papers relating to the right of navigation in the Shatt-el-Arab (also referred to as the Shatt-al-Arab).It includes correspondence relating to the following: the alignment of the Perso-Iraq frontier at the mouth of the Shatt-al-Arab; the right of Persian [Iranian] vessels to navigate the Shatt-al-Arab and to anchor in Iraq waters; the proposal that the Shatt-al-Arab should be treated as an international waterway, and that an international commission should be appointed to look after it; the proposed establishment of a Conservancy Board to control the navigation in the Shatt-al-Arab, and the proposal that the Conservancy Board should also be charged with the superintendence of lighting and buoying throughout the Persian Gulf.The main correspondents are as follows: the India Office; the Foreign Office; Sir Robert Henry Clive, HM Minister, Tehran; the Admiralty; the High Commissioner for Iraq; the Colonial Office; the Air Council (Air Ministry); and the Government of India Foreign and Political Department.The volume includes correspondence in French between Sir R H Clive and Mirza Abdul Hussein Khan Taimourtache (also spelled Teymourtache in the file) [Abdolhossein Teymūrtāsh], Minister of Court, Persia, dated 19 April 1928 (folios 353-354) and 26 July 1930 (folio 31).The volume includes a map and three charts of the Shatt al-Arab [IOR/L/PS/10/1098, f 131; IOR/L/PS/10/1098, f 163; IOR/L/PS/10/1098, f 262; and IOR/L/PS/10/1098, f 263].The volume includes a divider which gives the subject number, the year the subject file was opened, the subject heading, and a list of correspondence references by year. This is placed at the back of the correspondence.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with 1 and terminates at the last folio with 357; 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, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.
Abstract: This part contains papers relating to the question of the removal of the flagstaff of the British Political Residency at Bushire from outside the Residency grounds, due to the objection of the Persian [Iranian] Government that the flagstaff was in Persian territory (this was being discussed in the context of the treaty negotiations taking place between the United Kingdom and Persia).The papers mostly consist of correspondence and India Office Political Department minute papers.The correspondents are as follows: the India Office; the Foreign Office; the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf; the Government of India Foreign and Political Department; and HM Minister, Tehran (Robert Henry Clive).Physical description: 1 item (44 folios)
Abstract: The volume contains letters and enclosures from Captain John Malcolm, British Envoy at Abusheher [Bushehr, various spellings appear in the volume] to the Earl of Mornington, Governor-General, Fort William (Richard Wellesley, 1st Marquess, Wellesley, spelled Marquis in the volume). Letters were also sent to Neil Benjamin Edmonstone, Secretary to the Government in the Secret Political and Foreign Department, Fort William; Lieutenant-Colonel William Kirkpatrick, Secretary to the Government in the Foreign Department, Fort William; Jonathan Duncan, Governor of Bombay [Mumbai]; Henry Dundas, President of the Board of Control; and to the Secret Committee of the Court of Directors.The letters cover a variety of issues and topics including:Malcolm's journey to Persia [Iran], via Muscat, and his meeting with the Imam of Oman [Sayyid Sulṭān bin Aḥmad Āl Bū Sa‘īd, also written as Imaum]Malcolm's arrival at Abusheher and his reception by Persian officialsHis visits to a number of cities and regions including: Muscat, Hormuz [Jazireh-ye Hormoz], Kishm [Qishm], Anjam, Sheraz [Shiraz, various spellings appear in the volume], Isfahaun [Isfahan], Kashan [Kashan], and Teheraun [Tehran]Malcolm’s observations on the following: a general view of the former trade of European nations with the Persian Gulph [Gulf], from its first establishment until the year 1763; the present state of the trade with the Persian Gulph; the model by which the East India Company (EIC) could improve its trade; the port best situated for a settlement in the Gulph; an estimate of revenues and expenses; and the best way to carry this plan (ff 29-62)His communication with the ambassadors from the late Tippoo Sultan [Sulṭān Fātiḥ ʻAlī Ṣāḥib Tīpū, Ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore, d 1799], to the Court of Persia offering his advice to enable them to return to IndiaCorrespondence with Jaffier Ali Khan [Ja‘far ‘Alī Khān, various spellings appear in the volume], ‘Native Agent’ in Sheraz; and with Mirza Mehdi Alli Khan [Mirzā Mahdī ‘Alī Khān, various spellings appear in the volume], ‘Native Agent’ in AbusheherMalcolm’s memoir on the origin and rise to power of the Royal Family of Persia, covering narration of the character of Baba Khan [Fatḥ ʻAlī Shāh Qājār], his ministers and generals, the Persian army, the internal state of Persia, and its foreign relations (ff 68-76)‘Abridged memoir of the Khajar [Qājār] Family’ (ff 77-92)Reports received from Herat about the advance of Zemaun Shah’s army [Zamān Shāh Durānī, Amīr of Afghanistan] in PersiaRussian-Persian war over GeorgiaPersian-Afghan WarBritish-Afghan relations‘Substance of a Declaration or manifest of the Empress Catherine the 2nd on taking up arms against Aka Mahummud Khan [Āqā Muḥammad Khān Qājār], King of Persia, printed at Astracan [Astrakhan] 23rd May 1796 in the Russian and Armenian languages’ (ff 114-117)Translations of rukums [royal grants confirming specific trading privileges] from the Shah of Persia, Futteh Ally Khaun [Fatḥ ʻAlī Shāh Qājār, various spellings appear in the volume] (ff 128-129 and ff 182-183)The relations between Zemaun Shah and the late Tippoo SultanArrangements for Malcolm to meet with the Shah of PersiaThe French activities in Baghdad [also spelled as Bagdad] and Bussorah [Basra]The appointment of certain officials in the Persian CourtThe communication between the Shah of Persia and Prince Mahomood [Maḥmūd Shāh Durānī, brother of Zamān Shāh]Copies of a Political treaty (ff 247v-251) and a Commercial treaty (ff 253v-259r) between the English Government and the Government of Persia. Each treaty was preceded by firmaun [farman, also spelled as Firimaun] from Futteh Ally Khaun (ff 246-247, 252-253, and 258v-259r)The possibilities of the Russian Government forming a connection either with the Aosbegs [Uzbeks] led by Shah Mooraud [Shāh Murād r 1785–1800], Zemaun Shah, or the Persians for the purpose of invading IndiaMalcolm’s arrival at Baghdad and his meeting with Soliman Pacha [Büyük Sulaymān Pāshā, also spelled as Pashaw]; Harford Jones, British Resident at Baghdad; and Samuel Manesty, British Resident at BussorahA journal of Malcolm’s mission to Persia including notes on the manners and habits of the Persian Court, and details of general military affairs in the region (ff 288-291).Further correspondence, included as enclosures in the volume, comes from Persian officials: Cheragh Ali Khan, Wakeelud dawlah [Chirāgh ‘Alī Khān Navā’ī, Wakil al-Dawlah, Vizier to the Prince Regent of Shiraz]; Hajy Abrahim [Ḥājjī Ibrāhīm Khān Zand Kalāntar Shīrāzī, Eʿtemād al-Dawlah, Persian Prime Minister]; and Reza Kouli Khan, Governor of Kazeroon (Rezā Qulī Khān, Governor of Kazerun]. Besides some intelligence received from notable merchants, and native inhabitants of Afghanistan, Georgia and Persia.The volume includes some duplications, and some faded letters/enclosures.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 293; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.Pagination: the volume also contains an original pagination sequence.
Abstract: The volume comprises correspondence, memoranda, reports, minutes, abstracts, and extracts of political consultations concerning a number of miscellaneous subjects relating to Persia [Iran]. Matters covered include:French influence and activities in Persia and the Red SeaThe diplomatic missions of Brigadier-General John Malcolm (1808), Sir Harford Jones (1807-11), and Sir Gore Ouseley (1810-14)The Preliminary and Definitive Treaties of Peace between Persia and BritainRussian influence and activities in PersiaBritish policy in Persia more generallyPolitical affairs of, and British relations with, other regional powers in Afghanistan, Turkish Arabia [Ottoman Iraq], Central Arabia, and the Persian Gulf.Correspondence largely comes from: the governments in Bombay, Bengal, and London; political, naval, and diplomatic officers in the region; agents and informants in Persia and the Red Sea; and government officials in Persia.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with 1 and terminates at the last folio with 699; 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.Pagination: The volume contains intermittent original pagination sequences.
Abstract: The volume consists of letters sent outwards (between 1 February 1789 and 18 July 1796), and inwards (between 20 October 1792 and 13 April 1798) from or to the Bushire Residency; the position of Resident at Bushire being initially held by Charles Watkins, but he was relieved in December 1792 by Nicholas Hankey Smith. These are primarily addressed to, or sent from, the Resident and Factor at Bussora [Basra] (Samuel Manesty and Harford Jones Brydges, later Nathan Crow and Piter le Messurier); and the President and Governor in Council, Bombay (in chronological order; William Medows, Robert Abercromby, George Dick, John Griffith, and Jonathan Duncan), or his secretary John Morris.The function of the Bushire Residency during this period was primarily commercial, and this is reflected in the correspondence. The main subject discussed is the importation of wool into Bushire and Bussora, and its subsequent sale. The acquisition of Carmenian [Armenian] wool is therefore much discussed as a result. The importation of other goods such as tin, lead, and steel are also discussed to a lesser degree due to the high demand for these articles at Bushire.Accounting concerns are another recurring topic within the volume. Primarily, this is related to changes to be made to accounting procedures, but it also includes a number of reports produced by the Committee of Accounts, Bombay, on the accounts and disbursements of the Bushire Residency; the Resident's responses to these reports can be found in the outwards correspondence.Political concerns are less prominent. However, the volume does contain a number of reports from the Resident at Bushire on the unstable political situation in Persia. In addition, subsequent to the outbreak of war between Britain and France in 1792, reports can also be found respecting the presence of French ships off Muscat, and the arrival at Bagdad [Baghdad] of individuals believed by the British to be in the service of the French Government.The movement of the East India Company's vessels in the Persian Gulf is frequently reported on as a matter of standard procedure; mainly related to the delivery of letters and packets. However, the volume also includes orders addressed to the commanders of the Company's ships, which are included as enclosures to letters sent to the Resident at Bushire; these are by and large of a routine nature.Physical description: Condition: The volume is made up of photocopies of variable quality, and it appears that the copies have been reduced in size from the originals. As a result, a significant proportion of the text is difficult to read.Foliation: The foliation sequence commences at the first folio and terminates at the last folio; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.To account for folios missed when the file was originally numbered, the volume contains the following foliation corrections; 13, and 13A; 72, and 72A.
Abstract: A copy of a dispatch from Brigadier-General John Malcolm, Envoy of the Supreme Government of India to Persia [Iran], to Lord Minto, Governor-General of Bengal, sent from Bagdad [Baghdad] and dated 6 October 1810. The dispatch concerns Malcolm’s views on the state of Persia. It includes discussion of the following: population and tribes; government; the army; state revenues; the character of the King [Shah] of Persia [Fath-‘Ali Shāh Qājār], his Court and his family; political relations between the United Kingdom and Persia, and British policy towards Persia.Included is a copy of a letter from Malcolm to the Secret Committee of the Court of the Directors of the East India Company, sent from Bombay [Mumbai] and dated 10 February 1811, enclosing a copy of a dispatch to the Secret Committee (which is not included in this item), which he states he had previously forwarded from Bagdad by Lieutenant MacDonald, who he goes on to state had been plundered within a few miles of Bagdad.Physical description: 1 item (47 folios)
Abstract: A copy of a letter from Henry Willock, HM Chargé d’Affaires in Persia [Iran], to Joseph Dart, Secretary to the Court of Directors of the East India Company, sent from Tabriz and dated 6 August 1820.The letter forwards Willock’s communications with the Supreme Government of India (IOR/L/PS/9/69/43), discusses a British offer of mediation to make Bahrein [Bahrain] tributary to Persia, and reports the occupation of Anjar [Hengām] island by British troops.Physical description: 1 item (2 folios)
Abstract: These two volumes are George Curzon's own personal annotated copies of both volumes of his book
Persia and the Persian Question, which was published in 1892. Alongside the volumes are various loose papers relating to Persia [Iran], consisting of the following: received correspondence; newspaper cuttings; publishers' press releases; cuttings from various booksellers' catalogues; various journal and magazine articles; two items of printed official British correspondence; several prints of photographs and sketches; and a few handwritten notes by Curzon.In most cases these papers, which range in date from 1892 to 1924, relate to the chapters in the book where they were originally inserted, suggesting that they were kept by Curzon with the intention of using them to inform a revised edition of the book.Of particular note among the small amount of correspondence are two letters received by Curzon in 1914 and 1915 from retired schoolmaster and Islamic scholar Sayyid Mazhar Hasan Musawi of Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India (ff 5-9 and ff 44-53). These letters, which are written in Urdu and are accompanied by English translations, discuss in detail several inaccuracies found in the Urdu version of
Persia and the Persian Question.The various prints of photographs and sketches, which were originally inserted into volume two, are of different locations in the Gulf region. Several of these appear to have been produced in preparation for the publication of the second volume of John Gordon Lorimer's
Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf, Oman and Central Arabia(i.e. the 'Geographical and Statistical' section) in 1908, as they are identical to the versions found in that volume.Also of note among the loose papers are an illustrated article from
Country Lifedated 5 June 1920, entitled 'The People of Persia' (ff 36-37), and a printed family tree of the Shah of Persia [Aḥmad Shah Qājār], produced in preparation of his visit to Britain in 1919 (f 233).Volume one of
Persia and the Persian Questioncontains a map of Persia, Afghanistan and Beluchistan [Balochistan], which is folded inside the front cover (f 1).The German language material consists of a publisher's press release for two books authored by German archaeologist Ernst Emil Herzfeld (ff 29-30).Physical description: Foliation: this shelfmark consists of two physical volumes. The foliation sequence commences at the first folio of volume one (1-463), and terminates at the last folio of volume two (ff 464-898); these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. Each volume contains a large number of loose leaves, which have been foliated in the order that they were inserted into the volume; for conservation reasons, these loose folios have been removed from the volume and stored separately. The foliation sequence does not include the front and back covers of the two volumes.Pagination: the file also contains an original printed pagination sequence.
Abstract: Copy of dispatch No. 10 from HM Chargé d’Affaires to Persia [Iran], Henry Willock, in Tehran, to HM Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, George Canning, of 14 June 1825. The letter concerns internal affairs in Persia, including:The appointment by the Shah of Persia (Fath-‘Ali Shāh Qājār) of his twelve year old son as Governor of IsfahanThe downfall of Abdulla Khan Ameen ed Dowleh [‘Abd Allah Khan Isfahani, Amin al-Dawlah], the Grand Vizier of the Shah of Persia, and the nomination of Allah Ear Khan Asaf ed Dowleh [Allahyar Khan Qajar Davallu, Asif al-Dawlah] as his replacementConflict and disorder in the provinces of Khorasan and GilanThe appointment of the eldest son of the Prince Royal (Crown Prince of Persia, 'Abbās Mīrzā Qājār) as Governor of Hamadan [Hamedan].This document was originally enclosed in Willock’s letter to the Secret Committee of the East India Company of 3 July 1825 (IOR/L/PS/9/70/25).Physical description: 1 item (4 folios)
Abstract: Copy of Dispatch No. 19 from HM Chargé d’Affaires to Persia [Iran], Henry Willock, at Cund [Kand] near Tehran, to HM Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Viscount Castlereagh, of 15 June 1819. The letter concerns internal political affairs in Persia, including:The decline in influence of the Sudr Aazim [Ṣadr-i Aʿẓam, Grand Vizier], Mirza Sheffee [Mirza Muḥammad Shafī‘ Māzandarānī], due to old ageThe ascendancy of Mirza Abdul Wahab [Mirza ‘Abdul Wahhāb Nishāṭ Iṣfahānī]The use of European officers for training troops by the Prince-Governor of Kermanshah, Mahomed Ali Mirza [Muḥammad 'Alī Mīrzā Dawlatshāh]Unrest in Gilan ProvinceThe campaign of the Prince-Governor of Khorasan, Hussun Ali Mirza [Ḥusayn 'Alī Mīrzā Farmānfarmā] against the fortress of Boorjnoord [Bojnord].The letter was enclosed in Willock’s letter to the Secret Committee of the East India Company of 15 June 1819 (see IOR/L/PS/9/68/206), which was received on 28 August 1819.Physical description: 1 item (3 folios)
Abstract: Copy of dispatch No. 28 from HM Chargé d’Affaires to Persia [Iran], Henry Willock, in Tehran, to HM Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, George Canning, of 19 December 1825. The letter concerns the internal state of affairs in Persia and the possibility of a conflict to secure the succession to the throne following the death of the Shah, Futteh Ali Shah [Fath-‘Ali Shāh Qājār]. Willock argues that the struggle for the succession would leave Persia vulnerable to Russian encroachment, which would be of strategic concern to the British in India. He offers a detailed assessment of the character, abilities, loyalties, and means for contesting the succession of the various governors, factions, and other persons of importance in Persia, including Prince-Governors such as the late Prince-Governor of Kermanshah, Mahomed Ali Mirza [Muhammad 'Ali Mirza, Dawlatshah]; the Prince-Governor of Fars, Hoosein Ali Mirza [Ḥusayn ‘Alī Mirzā, Farmānfarmā]; and the Prince-Governor of Khorasan, Hussun Ali Mirza [Hasan 'Ali Mirza, Shuja' al-Saltanah]. Willock also gives a detailed character sketch of the Crown Prince of Persia, Abbas Mirza ['Abbās Mīrzā Qājār], and argues that Britain should support his claim to the throne as a means of warding off the spread of Russian influence in Persia. To achieve this, he recommends strengthening Abbas Mirza’s armed forces by means of money, arms and officers to train his troops.This document was originally enclosed in Willock’s letter to the Secret Committee of the East India Company of 31 December 1825 (IOR/L/PS/9/70/62).Physical description: 1 item (36 folios)