Abstract: This item consists mostly of copies of correspondence, minutes and memoranda cited in, or enclosed with, letters to and from the Government of Bombay. It is the third in a series of eight items on the subject of the alleged piracy of the Joasmee [al-Qawāsim, also referred to as Joassmee] (the others are: IOR/F/4/648/17850, IOR/F/4/649/17851, IOR/F/4/650/17853 and 17854, IOR/F/4/651/17855, and IOR/F/4/652/17856 and 17857). The main subjects are:Reports of the appearance of Joasmee pirates off the coasts of Cutch [Kutch] and Kattivar [Kathiawar], and the organising of ships to protect the trading vessels sailing to and from the ports along these coastsAccounts of the activities of British ships sent to cruise the coastlines of Guzerat [Gujarat] and Scind [Sindh] in search of Joasmee pirates. It includes depositions from the members of the crews of two suspected pirate ships that were captured, and from two residents of Mandavie [Mandvi], where the ships were detained (ff 168r to 171v)Arrangements for providing convoys for trading vessels travelling along the Indian coast, and those sailing from India to MochaSuspicions that the Joasmee pirates are being assisted by communities along the coast of Makran, and that pirates from Dwarka are perhaps also activeReports of attacks by and engagements with Joasmee pirates in the Persian Gulf. It includes an extract from the log book of the
Arielfrom 15-17 September (ff 146v to 148r); and a list of questions put to and answers by Joasmee prisoners captured by Captain Francis Erskine Loch, Commander of the
Edenand Senior Officer of His Majesty’s Navy in the Gulph [Gulf] of Persia (ff 223r to 225v)The capture by the Joasmees of a number of female prisoners, suspected to be variously of Indian and European origin, and efforts to get them released from Ras ul Khima [Ra’s al-Khaymah], Bahrein [Bahrain], and Sharga [Sharjah] where they are being held. It includes a table with details of ten Joasmee prisoners to be offered as part of a prisoner swap (f 322r)Reports of efforts by Joasmee pirates to intercept, in the Gulf of Aden, trading ships sailing from India to Mocha, and the actions taken to protect this tradeA report by Captain George Forster Sadleir, dated 18 November 1819, on his travels in the Arabian Peninsula and his meetings with Ibrahim PashaThe case of a merchant ship at Muscat that was illegally flying the King’s coloursDiscussions regarding the legal basis of claims to prize property captured in the Persian Gulf.The main correspondents are: Henry Meriton, Superintendent of Marine; William Bruce, Resident at Bushire; Charles William Elwood, Agent at Porebunder [Porbandar]; James Macmurdo, Resident in Cutch; Lieutenant James Arthur, Commander of the Ariel; Lieutenant Thomas Tanner, Commander of the Thetis; Captain George Robson, Commander of the Prince of Wales; Captain D D Conyers, Commander of the Mercury; Sheikh Abdallah ben Ahmed [Shaikh ‘Abdullāh bin Aḥmad Āl Khalīfah], Sheikh of Bahrein; and Sheikh Hassan ben Ramah [Shaikh Ḥasan bin Raḥma al-Qāsimī], Chief of the Joasmees.The title page (f 138) of the item contains the following references: ‘PC 16, Draft 383’, 1821/2’; and ‘Examiner’s Office 1821’.Physical description: There is no chronological order.
Abstract: This volume comprises letters received by the Resident at Bushire. For most of the period covered by this volume the Acting Resident at Bushire was Lieutenant William Bruce. The three other occupants of the Residency during this period were Lieutenant Robert Taylor, James Orton, and Thomas Flower. Most of the letters are from the Government of Bombay, although there are a small number of letters from the Government of Fort William, Calcutta. The letters cover a range of subjects including: the Bushire Residency's accounts and expenses; the woollen trade; the procurement of sulphur for gunpowder; instructions for receiving visitors at Bushire; the threat of pirates in the Gulf; relations between the East India Company and the Sultan of Muscat; and the sending of arms from Bombay to the Court of Persia, via Bushire. Many of the letters contain enclosures such as copies of letters from other Government departments at Bombay, and copies of letters from the Court of Directors.Physical description: Pagination: This volume contains an original pagination sequence, used by the Bushire Residency. It is written in ink and appears in the right hand corner of each recto and in the left hand corner of each verso. The sequence begins with the first letter and runs from number 1 through to number 268.Foliation: The volume has been foliated for referencing purposes, using circled numbers written in pencil in the top right hand corner of the recto of each folio. The sequence begins on the second folio of writing, on number 1, and continues through to number 137, which is the last folio of writing. Two folios were numbered 82; these folios are now numbered 82 and 82A, in accordance with the IOR foliation guidelines. This is the sequence that has been used by this catalogue to reference items within the volume.
Abstract: Most of the letters are written by Lieutenant William Bruce, who was the Resident at this time. A handful of letters are written by James Orton, Assistant Surgeon at Bushire, who took temporary charge of the Residency while Bruce was away from Bushire. Subjects relating directly to the Residency include: accounts; stationery; military and marine expenses; and the sending of arms from Bombay to the Court of Persia, via Bushire. Broader themes within the letters include the procurement of sulphur for its use in India, the woollen and silk trades in Persia, and the threat of Āl Qāsimī pirates to British trade in the Persian Gulf.Physical description: 1 volume in one slipcasePagination: This file has an original pagination sequence, which is written in ink, in the top right corner of each recto and the top left corner of each verso. This sequence runs until page 100. A later pagination sequence, which is written in pencil, begins at page 101. This sequence is inconsistent, with many numbers repeated out of sequence.Foliation: The volume has been foliated for referencing purposes by circling numbers in pencil, in the top right corner of each folio. The sequence begins with the first letter, on number 1, and runs through to 138, ending on the inside of the back cover of the volume. This is the sequence that has been used by this catalogue to reference items within the volume.
Abstract: Journal of the voyage of the East India Company ship
Prince of Walesfrom England to Bombay [Mumbai] and Persia [Iran], and back (Captain Jonathan Court), 9 February 1762-20 January 1764 (dates given are for arrival unless otherwise indicated): left Portsmouth, 6 May 1762; 9 September 1762, Joanna [Anjouan]; 11 November 1762, Bombay; 15 February 1763, Muscat; 27 February 1763, Gombroon [Bandar Abbas]; 3 April 1763, Bombay; 16 August 1763, St Helena; 28 November 1763, the Downs.The ship was at Bombay from 11 November 1762 to 28 January 1763, and from 3 April to 24 May 1763.Inscribed: 'This is my Original Journal and in my own hand Writing, Jona. Court' (folio 1).Marked: 'Recd. [Received ] 24 Jany. [January] 1764'.The journal contains daily entries in six columns: H [hour], Courses, K [knots], F [fathoms], Winds etc., and [date and remarks]. The entries also include periodic navigational readings at the foot of the columns. When the ship is in harbour, or close to shore, entries consist of date and remarks only.The journal records: navigational information; weather; sea conditions; the provisioning, ballasting, cleaning, and maintenance of the ship; cargoes carried, including Company goods, King's provisions, private trade, and pepper and saltpetre (from Bombay); details of the ships with which the
Prince of Walessailed in convoy; contact with other Company ships, and His Majesty's ships; the transport of a detachment of Company troops from Bombay to Bandar Abbas; and general remarks.A description of the evacuation of the Company's factory at Bandar Abbas, including losses amongst the ship's crew in the course of a successful attack on the Persian garrison in the former Dutch factory there, 26 February-8 March 1763, is included on folios 83-85.The journal also includes a list of the ship's company, dated May 1762, giving number, men's names, quality [rank or occupation], and (where applicable) dates and circumstances of death, desertion, impressment etc. (folios 3-4).Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description (used for referencing) commences at 1, and terminates at 152; it is part of a larger physical volume of different shelfmarks in which this shelfmark has been given its own separate foliation sequence, i.e. non-consecutive; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.
Abstract: A journal of the second voyage of the East India Company ship
Prince of Walesto Mocha and Madras recorded by the Captain of the ship, John Pelly junior.The journal is inscribed: ‘This is my Originall Journall John Pelly jun[ior]’, ‘Witness Tho[mas] Reading’, and ‘Rec.d [received] 13th July 1742’. The entries are dated 9 November 1740 to 9 July 1742.The entries record the ship anchoring at the following places: Gravesend (26 November to 23 December 1740), Spithead (27 December 1740 to 3 January 1740/1), Mocha (3 May to 21 July 1741), Madrass [Madras] (19 August to 28 September 1741), and Table Bay (8 January to 5 March 1741/2), before arriving at Tinmouth [Teignmouth] on 13 June 1742. Pelly also records being unable to anchor at Joanna Island [Anjouan] on 9 April 1741. The final entry is for 9 July when the ship was at Blackwall and the goods on board had been delivered. Both Old Style and New Style dates are given.Entries for when the ship was at sail consist of tables recording the following: remarks; hours (H); knots (K); fathoms (F); courses; winds; and other comments. The other comments mostly concern: wind and other weather conditions; the course of the ship and navigational measurements; sightings of land; sightings of, and encounters with, other ships; actions performed by the crew; and other information including sightings of birds.Entries for when the ship was at anchor mainly record: wind and other weather conditions; goods and provisions received on board the ship (including coffee at Mocha, and red wood and saltpetre at Madras); goods, including iron and steel, being unloaded from the ship and taken ashore at Mocha; actions performed by the crew; the arrival and departure of other ships; and the deaths of members of the crew.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description (used for referencing) commences at f 1, and terminates at f 98; it is part of a larger physical volume of different shelfmarks in which this shelfmark has been given its own separate foliation sequence, i.e. non-consecutive; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.