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49. ‘Miscellaneous information translated from the correspondence of the secret informant regarding the Russian and Persian frontier discussions and the proceedings of the Russian mission at Tabreez’
- Description:
- Abstract: Translation of a summary of the correspondence of an unknown secret informant detailing miscellaneous information regarding the negotiations between Russia and Persia [Iran] for the demarcation of their frontier, and concerning the Russian mission at Tabreez [Tabriz], including:The relationship between the Russian Chargé d'Affaires to Persia, Mazarovich [Semyon Mazarovich], and the Prince Royal [Crown Prince] of Persia ['Abbās Mīrzā Qājār]The missions of Futteh Allee Khan [Fath-‘Ali Khan Rashti] to Tiflis [Tbilisi] to negotiate the Russo-Persian frontierThe question of the return of guns captured by Russia from Persia at the Battle of Uslandooz [Aslanduz] in 1812The Russian request for the release of Turkish prisoners held at TabreezThe involvement of Mazarovich in the kidnap of an enslaved person.This document was originally enclosed in the letter of HM Chargé d'Affaires to Persia, Henry Willock, to the Secret Committee of the East India Company of 2 April 1825 (IOR/L/PS/9/70/11).Physical description: 1 item (6 folios)
50. ‘Extract from the Private Journal of Colonel Macdonald’
- Description:
- Abstract: Extract from the private journal of the East India Company Envoy to Persia [Iran], Lieutenant-Colonel John Macdonald Kinneir, dated 15 October 1827 to 14 December 1827. The journal details negotiations for peace in the ongoing war between Russia and Persia [Russo-Persian War, 1826-1828]. Macdonald Kinneir details the events preceding and during the meeting of Prince Abbas Meerza [ʿAbbās Mīrzā Qājār, Crown Prince of Persia] and General Paskevitch [General Ivan Fyodorovich Paskevich-Erivansky, Governor-General of Georgia], at Deharaghon [Azarshahr], for the negotiation of peace between Russia and Persia. He reports his travels, including to Tabreez [Tabriz], which is occupied by the Russians during the period covered by the journal, and the arrangements for the meeting at Deharaghon. Included are details of the Russian occupation of Tabreez, and Macdonald Kinneir’s efforts to ensure Abbas Meerza’s presence at Deharaghon. The journal then discusses the negotiations at Deharaghon regarding the cession of Talish to Russia and the payment of financial reparations demanded by Russia, including a transcript (in French) of proposals drawn up for the terms for the Persian payment of reparations (ff 21-22). Macdonald Kinneir also details the mistrust existing between Abbas Meerza and General Paskevitch, and the build-up of troops by both sides, including a transcript (in French) of a proposed armistice agreement (ff 26-28).The journal records Macdonald Kinneir’s meetings and communications with officials on both sides during the period, including:Prince Abbas MeerzaGeneral PaskevitchThe Prime Minister of the Shah of Persia, the Asuf-oo-Dowleh [Allāh Yār Khān Qājār Davallū Āṣaf al-Dawlah]The Kaim Mukam [Mīrzā Abū al-Qāsim Farāhānī, Qāʾim-Maqām, the Vizier of the Crown Prince]M Amburger [Andrei Karlovich Amburger]General Paskevitch’s private secretary, M Grebiadoff [Alexander Sergeyevich Griboyedov].This document was originally enclosed, numbered 1, in Macdonald Kinneir’s dispatch No. 75 to the Chief Secretary to the Government of India, George Swinton, of 9 December 1827 (IOR/L/PS/9/71/107).Physical description: 1 item (34 folios)
51. ‘Extracts from the Private Journal of Col. Macdonald’
- Description:
- Abstract: Extracts from the private journal of the East India Company Envoy to Persia [Iran], Lieutenant-Colonel John Macdonald Kinneir, from 17 December 1827 to 27 March 1828. The journal covers the period of the negotiations for the peace treaty signed at Toorkomanchaee [Treaty of Turkamanchay] in February 1828, which ended the war between Russia and Persia [Russo-Persian War, 1826-1828]. Macdonald Kinneir details his involvement in the negotiations, which took place primarily at Dehkarghan [Azarshahr] and Toorkomanchaee, including his conferences, discussions and communications with the key negotiators, including the Russian Commander-in-Chief, General Paskewitch [General Ivan Fyodorovich Paskevich-Erivansky, Governor-General of Georgia], Abbas Mirza [ʿAbbās Mīrzā Qājār, Crown Prince of Persia], and the Persian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Meerza Abul Hassan Khan [Mīrzā Abū al-Ḥasan Khān Shīrāzī]. Macdonald Kinneir gives a detailed account of the events in the lead up to and aftermath of the conclusion of the treaty, including:The negotiations concerning the reparations to be paid by Persia to Russia, and the delays to the delivery of the moneyRussian threats to resume the war owing to mistrust caused by delays to the delivery of the reparationsThe breaking off of negotiations at Dehkarghan and resumption of negotiations at ToorkomanchaeeThe signing of the treatyThe agreement between Macdonald Kinneir and Abbas Mirza for the abrogation of the third and fourth articles of the Definitive Treaty between Britain and Persia in return for 200,000 tomans from BritainThe withdrawal of Russian troops from the Province of Azerbijaun [Azerbaijan] and the return of Abbas Mirza to Tabriz.Also included in the journal are copies of the following communications:Letter from Captain Ronald Dugald Harcourt Macdonald to Macdonald Kinneir, ff 12-13Written pledge, in French, from the Russian agent Prince Kondacheff guaranteeing the safety of reparations payments, ff 22Letter, in French, from General Paskewitch to Macdonald Kinneir, ff 33-34.This document was originally enclosed, in No. 93, in Macdonald Kinneir’s dispatch No. 34 to the Secret Committee of the East India Company of 28 March 1828 (IOR/L/PS/9/71/253).Physical description: 1 item (38 folios)
52. ‘Remarks of the Prince Royal on the proposals of Peace submitted by The Russian Authorities’
- Description:
- Abstract: The remarks of the Prince Royal, Abbas Meerza [Crown Prince of Persia, ʿAbbās Mīrzā Qājār] on the proposals made by Russia for the agreement of peace in the war between Persia [Iran] and Russia [Russo-Persian War, 1826-1828] (see IOR/L/PS/9/71/99). The Prince Royal proposes that the River Araxes [River Aras] be made the border between Russia and Persia, and opposes the Russian demand for the territorial cession of Talish from Persia to Russia. He also proposes a counter offer to Russian financial demands, suggesting Persia pay five crores of tomans [Persian currency], rather than the Russian demand for the payment of fifteen, with the occupation of Tabreez [Tabriz] or Khoee [Khoy] by Russian troops to serve as security on the payment.This document was originally enclosed, numbered 4, in dispatch No. 74 of the East India Company Envoy to Persia, Lieutenant-Colonel John Macdonald Kinneir, to the Chief Secretary to the Government of India, George Swinton, of 8 November 1827 (IOR/L/PS/9/71/98).Physical description: 1 item (2 folios)
53. Dispatch No. 74 from the East India Company Envoy to Persia, Lieutenant-Colonel John Macdonald Kinneir, in Tabreez, to the Chief Secretary to the Government of India, George Swinton
- Description:
- Abstract: Dispatch No. 74 from the East India Company Envoy to Persia [Iran], Lieutenant-Colonel John Macdonald Kinneir, in Tabreez [Tabriz], to the Chief Secretary to the Government of India, George Swinton, of 8 November 1827. The letter concerns the negotiations for peace in the war between Russia and Persia [Russo-Persian War, 1826-1828], being negotiated between the Prince Royal, Abbas Meerza [Crown Prince of Persia, ʿAbbās Mīrzā Qājār], and General Paskevitch [General Ivan Fyodorovich Paskevich-Erivansky, Governor-General of Georgia]. Macdonald Kinneir details the increased territorial and monetary demands being made by Russia, and his unsuccessful attempts to prevail upon Paskevitch to lessen these demands. He indicates that he believes the Persian Government has no alternative but to accede to the demands, and should seek the evacuation of Azerbijan [Azerbaijan] by Russian troops as soon as possible. The letter also gives some details about the strength of the Russian army, and originally contained enclosures concerning the peace negotiations and recent events at Tabreez (now catalogued as IOR/L/PS/9/71/99-106).Physical description: 1 item (3 folios)
54. Dispatch No. 75 from the East India Company Envoy to Persia [Iran], Lieutenant-Colonel John Macdonald Kinneir, in Deheraghon, to the Chief Secretary to the Government of India, George Swinton
- Description:
- Abstract: Dispatch No. 75 from the East India Company Envoy to Persia, Lieutenant-Colonel John Macdonald Kinneir, in Deheraghon [Azarshahr], to the Chief Secretary to the Government of India, George Swinton, of 9 December 1827. The letter concerns the negotiations for peace in the war between Russia and Persia [Russo-Persian War, 1826-1828]. In the letter, Macdonald Kinneir reports the meeting of Prince Abbas Meerza [Crown Prince of Persia, ʿAbbās Mīrzā Qājār], and the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian forces, General Paskevitch [General Ivan Fyodorovich Paskevich-Erivansky, Governor-General of Georgia], during which Abbas Meerza accepted a modified version of the peace terms offered by Russia (see IOR/L/PS/9/71/99). Macdonald Kinneir also reports that he has sent his second assistant, Captain John Campbell, to Britain via Russia to inform the authorities about the war and the peace negotiations. Macdonald Kinneir also discusses the ongoing military occupation of Persian territory [the province of Azerbaijan], detailing the military situation and speculating about what may happen should the King [Shāh of Persia, Fatḥ-‘Alī Shāh Qājār] refuse to pay the reparations agreed to by Abbas Meerza.Originally enclosed with this letter was an extract from Macdonald Kinneir’s diary about the negotiations (now catalogued as IOR/L/PS/9/71/108) and copies of the dispatches transmitted to Britain by Campbell (now catalogued as IOR/L/PS/9/71/109-128).Physical description: 1 item (2 folios)
55. Persian Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: This item comprises a copy of an enclosure to a despatch from the Government of Bombay Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 133 of 1846, dated 14 November 1846. The enclosure is dated 14 September 1846.The enclosure consists of a copy of a despatch, with enclosures, from Lieutenant-Colonel Justin Sheil, HM Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary at the Court of Persia [Iran], to Viscount Palmerston, the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, relating to affairs in Persia. The despatch is copied to the Governor and President in Council, Bombay, and the Governor-General of India, for information.The papers notably cover the following matters:Arrangements at Erzeroom [Erzurum] for finalising the Treaty between the governments of Persia and the Ottoman Empire, notably the insertion of a tenth article authorising the appointment of ministers of both governments to implement the Treaty terms after ratificationCompensation to be paid by the Ottoman Porte [Government] in reparation for the recent attack on Meerza Tekkee Khan [Mīrzā Taqī Khān Farāhānī], the Persian Minister at Erzeroom, and his servantsThe proposed arrangement between the Political Resident at Bushire [Bushehr] and the Governor of Fars to engage a British vessel of war against any ‘chiefs’ of the Persian shores of the Gulf coast who commit ‘aggressions’ against British subjects or commerceSheil’s enquiries to the Khuleefa of Merve [Khalifah of Merv] relating to the fate of Mr Wyburd [William Henry Wybard]The mortality caused by the cholera outbreak in TehranIntelligence received by Sheil of: the arrival in Tehran of a dissident of Herat who wishes to persuade the Asef-ood-Dowleh [Āṣaf al-Dawlah], with the acquiescence of the Persian Government, to attack Herat; and the confederacy of opposition forming in Meshed [Mashhad] against Yar Mahomed Khan [Yār Muḥammad Khān], Ruler of HeratThe Persian Government’s complaints regarding another violation of its territory by members of the Bilbass [Belbās or Bilbas] tribe of Turkish Koords [Kurds] in the south-west extremity of Azerbijan [Azerbaijan]The remonstrations of the Persian Government against the Turkish [Ottoman] vessel of war anchored near Mohemmera [Khorramshahr, formerly Mohammerah] to ‘molest Persian commerce by forcing vessels bound to that port to proceed to Bussorah [Basra]’ (f 103)The improbability of the Persian Government’s orders for the removal from Kermanshah of Abdoollah Beg, Chief of the Sheref Bainees [‘Abdullāh Beg, leader of the Sharaf Baynī] being enacted due to the inaccessibility of that territory.Physical description: 1 item (21 folios)
56. Persian Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: This item comprises copies of enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 81 of 1847, dated 30 September 1847. The enclosures are dated 14 June-14 August 1847.The primary documents are despatches of Lieutenant-Colonel Justin Sheil, HM Envoy and Minister Plenipotentiary at the Court of Persia [Iran], to the Chief Secretary to the Government, Bombay, forwarding for the information of the President and Governor in Council, Bombay, and the Governor-General of India, copies of his despatches to Viscount Palmerston, HM Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. The enclosures in Sheil’s despatches notably include copies of his correspondence with the Persian Prime Minister, Hajee Meerza Aghassee [Ḥājjī Mīrzā (ʿAbbās Īravānī) Āqāsī], and copies of correspondence of or with: Major Henry Creswicke Rawlinson, Political Agent, Turkish Arabia [Ottoman Iraq]; Major Samuel Hennell, Political Resident in the Persian Gulf; Keith Edward Abbott, HM Consul in Tehran; and Lord Cowley, HM Minister at Constantinople [Istanbul].The despatches cover numerous matters, including the following:1) The involvement of Sheil, Richard White Stevens, the British Consul in Tabreez [Tabriz], the Governor of Bagdad [Muḥammad Najīb Pāshā, Governor of Baghdad], and Rawlinson, in the reconciliation of Rassool Pasha [Rasūl Pāshā], the ex-Meer of Rewandooz [Mīr of Rawandiz, Iraqi Kurdistan], with the Governor of Bagdad, subsequent to the former’s unsuccessful attempt at rebellion (ff 5-8).2) The Persian Government’s political tensions with the Turkish Government [Ottoman Porte] notably regarding:Military preparations of the Porte for the reduction of the ‘insurgent’ Bedr Khan Bey [Badr Khān Beg], Chief of Bohtan [also known as Buhtan and Bokhti], and the approach of a detachment of the Turkish Army to Van (bordering north western Persia)The slow progress of peace negotiations at Erzeroom [Erzurum] and Persian suspicions concerning perceived favouritism by the mediating powers (Britain and Russia) towards TurkeyThe potentially disastrous effect on Persian inhabitants (notably in religious places such as Kerbella [Karbala]) of new Ottoman regulations prohibiting the subject of any foreign power acquiring property of any kind in the Turkish dominions and the intention to apply the regulations retrospectivelyThe allegation that Persian ‘Mahomedan’ [Muslim] subjects are treated less favourably than Russian ‘Mahomedan’ by Turkey with regard to the passport taxes enforced by the Governor of BagdadThe refusal of the Turkish Government to remove their Guard Ship near Mohemmera [Khorramshahr, formerly Mohammera, also spelled Muhammera in this item] to a position further up the Shat-ul-Arab [Shatt al-Arab River].3) Sheil’s annoyance with Hennell for asking Rawlinson to obtain from the Ottoman Porte orders for the authorities at Bussorah [Basra] to seize all Persian vessels taking refuge in the Shat-ul-Arab which have committed acts of ‘piracy’ or ‘outrage’ in the Persian Gulf, since the privilege was given discreetly by the Governor of Fars without the knowledge of the Persian central government who may withdraw it should it become widely known (ff 18-20).4) Sheil's concerns regarding the apparent extension of Russian influence in Asterabad [Gorgan] and his suggestion that Mr Abbott, HM Consul in Tehran, visit that place since no one of the British Mission has been there since 1845 (f 25).5) Sheil’s efforts to persuade the Persian Government to adhere to its alleged promise to replicate the action of the Ottoman Porte and issue a firman [edict] for ‘the abolition of the traffic in slaves in the Persian Ports of the Persian Gulf’ (f 37), including: the claim of the Shah [Muḥammad Shāh Qājār, Shāh of Persia] that his refusal is for religious reasons; Hajee Meerza Aghassee’s claim that the Shah’s true motive is irritation at the delay in concluding treaty negotiations at Erzeroom (which he apparently blames on mediators Britain and Russia); Sheil’s conviction of Hajee Meerza Aghassee’s responsibility for the evasion originating in his influence over the Shah; the Shah’s agreement that since the ‘Queen of England has ordered her ships of war to stop and seize all slaving vessels…there is an end to the trade no more slaves will be brought to Persia’; and reports that since the Treaty of Erzeroom, Mohemmera has become a Persian market for enslaved persons (ff 27-43 and 79-90).6) Sheil’s report that Messrs Alexander Hector and Co, British merchants in Bagdad, HM Consul in Tehran, and Mr Mills an English merchant of Sheeraz [Shiraz], have all concluded agreements to each supply 200,000 muskets to the Persian Government, noting that as the latter cannot afford the cost the manufacturers should not import the entire amount (f 57).7) Disapproval expressed by Sheil and Abbott with regard to Hector and Co acquiring the legal title to a thirty-year old debt originally owed to Gaspar Khan [Gaspar Khān], a Turkish subject, by Mahomed Ali Meerza, Prince Governor of Kurmanshah [Muḥammad ‘Alī Mīrzā, Prince Governor of Kermanshah], a Persian subject, as it could draw the British Government into inappropriate litigation (ff 96-101).8) The agreement concluded by HM Consul in Tabreez, between the Governor of Oroomeeya [Urmia, or Orumiyeh], Afshar Chiefs and proprietors, and Daood Khan [Daud Khān] (a Christian nominated by Sheil and the Russian Minister Count Medem [Aleksandr Ivanovich Medem] to superintend the Nestorian Christians of Oroomeeya) for a more equitable arrangement for both ‘Mahomedans’ and Christians (ff 53-60).9) Hindrances to the ratification, by the Persian and Turkish Governments, of the Treaty concluded at Erzeroom on 31 May 1847, notably: the objections of the Persian Government and Prime Minister to the Porte’s ‘needless’ insistence that Persia officially declare that Turkey’s cession of Mohemmera does not imply the abandonment of any other territory or port belonging to Turkey, and that Turkish territory in which Persian tribes have settled is not devolved to Persia, and agree to the non-fortification of the Shat-ul-Arab. Included is Sheil’s correspondence with Hajee Meerza Aghassee (ff 62-67 and 117-126).10) Sheil’s complaint to Hajee Meerza Aghassee regarding the detention in Asterabad, on the orders of Sulieman Khan [Sulaymān Khān, also spelled Saleeman Khan in this item], Governor of Asterabad, of a reply messenger sent by the Khan of Khiva with gifts and letters for Sheil, and demand for the recall to Tehran of Sulieman Khan, an apology, and the reimbursement of the messenger's losses (ff 68-79).11) Detailed observations by Sheil on the composition, condition and strength of the artillery force of Persia (ff 102-112), specifically the regular and the irregular infantry and cavalry. In his critical assessment Sheil alleges corruption, poor conditions, incompetence, indiscipline, insubordination, lack of training, defective arms, poor uniforms, lack of medical facilities, poor transport, and badly administered systems of food distribution and pay, whilst praising the soldierly quality of ‘a native of Persia’ as ‘robust, healthy, cheerful and full of alacrity, patient of hunger, cold and fatigue, in short of every hardship excepting thirst…’ (ff 104-105).12) Sheil’s opinion that a general state of disorganisation is creeping over Persia, notably: detailing various disturbances in the province of Khorassan [Khorasan] and Khuzistan [Khuzestan]; criticising the ‘corruption, deceit, incompetency, falsehood, ignorance, poverty of the Government and people and ….mutinous troops’; and lamenting the role of the elderly Hajee Meerza Aghassee whom he asserts monopolises every function of government but has ‘ceased to possess the energy mental or bodily, for even a partial performance of its duties’ (f 115).13) The movement of Persian troops to Khorassan which has lately been cut off from all communication due to the ‘marauding’ incursions of the Toorkomans [Turkoman or Turkmen people], and rumours of a force collected by ‘rebel’ Jaffer Koolee Khan [Jaʿfar Qulī Khān, also spelled Jaffir Koolee Khan in this item], Chief of Boojnoord [Bojnord] to threaten Persia, including: confirmation that infantry and guns have marched from Tehran but are ordered to wait at Bestam [Bastam, also spelled Bastian in this item] (half way to Meshed) for reinforcements who refuse to march without receiving arrears of pay from the Persian Prime Minister; and Sheil's fear that the disorganised and untrained Persian force would lose in any engagement with Jaffer Koolee Khan.Physical description: 1 item (129 folios)
57. Persian Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: This item comprises a copy of an enclosure to a despatch from the Government of Bombay Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 149 of 1846, dated 14 December 1846. The enclosure is dated 14 October 1846.The enclosure consists of a despatch, with enclosures, from Lieutenant-Colonel Justin Sheil, HM Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary at the Court of Persia [Iran], to Viscount Palmerston, the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, relating to affairs in Persia. The despatch is copied to the Governor and President in Council, Bombay, and the Governor-General of India, for information.The papers notably cover the following matters:The efforts of Sheil and the Russian Minister in Tehran, Prince Dolgorouki [Prince Dimitri Ivanovich Dolgorukov], to persuade Meerza Tekkee Khan [Mīrzā Taqī Khān Farāhānī], the Persian Minister at Erzeroom [Erzurum], to conclude negotiations with Turkish [Ottoman] representatives and sign the Treaty between Persia and Turkey. Included are copies of instructions to Meerza Tekkee Khan from the Persian Prime Minister, Hajee Meerza Aghassee [Ḥājī Mīrzā (ʿAbbās Īravānī) Āqāsī] (ff 427-429, ff 438-442), with a warning of ‘severe reprehension’ if ‘this business is further suspended or delayed’ (f 442)Sheil’s investigations into alleged British captives in AfghanistanThe opinion of Sheil that the Persian Prime Minister has rejected recent overtures for an attack on Herat as it would involve the aggrandisement of the asef ood dowleh [Āṣaf al-Dawlah]The cholera outbreak, including; its spread in Persia and towards Bagdad [Baghdad]; Sheil’s belief that it will not extend to Europe; and its prevalence in Tehran causing the Shah [Shāh of Persia] to remain at his summer encampment, outside the citySheil’s report of anti-British ‘intrigues’ by Russian diplomats in Tehran in connection with Treaty negotiations at Erzeroom and dissent in HeartThe plea to Sheil of the Ameer of Kaeen [Amīr of Qaen] to intercede on his behalf to the Persian Government for the restoration to him and his son of their territories, and the Persian Prime Minister’s promise to guarantee the Ameer’s safe passage to Tehran and the restoration of his governorship (ff 420-421)The proposal by the Governor of Fars, supported by the Resident in the Persian Gulf, to engage a ship of war in ‘punishing the chiefs on the Persian Coast of the Persian Gulf who had committed aggressions on British commerce’ (f 417)Persian grievances regarding the Turkish ship of war anchored near Mohemmera [Khorramshahr, formerly Mohammerah]Orders issued by the Persian Government for the removal of Rasool Bey, Chief of Rewadooz [Rasūl Beg, Ruler of Ruwandiz or Rawandiz, Iraqi Kurdistan] and Ahmed Pasha [Aḥmad Pāshā], Governor of Sooleimaneeya [Sulaymaniyah] from Ooshney [Oshnaviyeh?] a frontier town in the Ooroomeeya [Urmia or Orumiyeh] district in Azerbijan [Azerbaijan].Physical description: 1 item (36 folios)
58. Persian Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: This part of the volume consists of copies of enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 116 of 1846, dated 12 October 1846. The enclosures, numbered 3-6 and dated 12 May to 15 July 1846, relate to Persian [Iranian] affairs.Enclosure No. 3 is a letter from HM Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary at the Court of Persia, Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Justin Sheil, to the Secretary to the Governor-General of India, forwarding a copy of a despatch from HM Consul at Tabreez [Tabriz], Keith Edward Abbott, addressed to HM Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, the Earl of Aberdeen, relating to the campaign of the Russian Army in Daghestan [Dagestan] in 1845.Enclosure Nos. 4-6 consist of letters from Sheil to Secretary to the Government of Bombay, forwarding under flying seals letters to the Secretary to the Government of India, enclosing copies of despatches addressed by Sheil to the Earl of Aberdeen, and to HM Ambassador at the Porte [the Sublime Porte, or Government of the Ottoman Empire], Sir Stratford Canning. The despatches concern matters including:Issues in relation to the conclusion of the Treaty of Erzeroom [Erzurum] between Persia and Turkey [the Ottoman Empire], including: Sheil’s efforts to obtain from the Persian Government adequate powers to enable the Persian Plenipotentiary at Ezeroom to conclude the treaty; Sheil complaining that he does not receive ‘proper or fair assistance’ from the Russian Minister to Persia in conducting the negotiations between Persia and Turkey; differences between the Persian and Turkish drafts of the treaty, on points including a tariff, and the possession of the Pass of Kerrind [Kerend-e Gharb] by Persia (this correspondence includes an enclosed copy of a document comparing a joint note by Sir Stratford Canning and the Russian ambassador at Constantinople [Istanbul], Monsieur Titow [Vladimir Pavlovich Titov], to the instructions issued to the Turkish Plenipotentiary, which is in English and French)Sheil reporting that ‘a respectable Afghan merchant’ who has lately arrived in Tehran from Khiva claims that an English man and an English woman are being held captive in KhivaSheil requesting HM Consul at Tabreez to remonstrate with the Prince of Tabreez about an infraction of a firman against torture, following a ‘Mussulman’ [Muslim] inhabitant of the city confessing to murdering and robbing property from the house of an Armenian women, and this man being imprisoned and tortured to force him to confess how he had disposed of the property, before it was ‘satisfactorily proved’ that he had falsely admitted to the crime. Sheil stating that he had obtained a pledge from the Prince that there should be no repetition of such scenes within his Government, and Sheil explaining that he had not complained to the Persian Ministers about the matter because the firman was issued by the Persian Prime Minister, Hajee Meerza Aghassee [Ḥājī Mīrzā (ʿAbbās Īravānī) Āqāsī], during the Shah’s illness without his knowledgeSheil’s unsuccessful attempts to ascertain the fate of Mr Wyburd [William Henry Wybard], from sources including: the Khaleefa [Khalifah] or Chief Priest of Merve [Merv] (from whom there are two enclosed letters); ‘Reuben’, ‘a Jew at Bokhara’; and the Asefood dowleh [Āṣaf al-Dawlah, also spelled Asofood-dowleh in this item], the Governor of Khorassan [Khorasan], who had sent Meerza Hassan [Mīrzā Ḥasan] to Bokhara [the Emirate of Bukhara] in search of Wyburd, with Meerza Hassan stating that he had been treated with distinction by the Ameer [Amīr] until the latter discovered that he was searching for an Englishman, at which point he ‘became exceedingly irritated’ and told him to leave Bokhara the next day, and also told Meerza Hassan that he was wholly ignorant of Mr WyburdSheil’s concerns about Russian influence, including: Sheil enclosing a copy of William Taylour Thomson’s report of his journey to the coast of the Caspian Sea, with Sheil highlighting the inferences which can be drawn from it on the present state of affairs in Asterabad [Gorgan] and the position of Russia there, including the Russian establishment at Ashor Ada [Ashuradeh], which Sheil states is essentially a military occupation; and the Russian Government resolving to place a permanent Consul in AsterabadNews received that the ‘Chief’ [Khan] of Khiva, Reheem Kolee Khan [Muḥammad Raḥim Qulī Khān], is dead and has been succeeded by his brother Baber Jan Khan [Abū al-Ghāzī Muḥammad Amīn Bahādur Khān], and Sheil’s suggestion that since the Chiefs of Khiva are ‘favourably disposed’ towards the ‘English’ Government, he could encourage this feeling by sending someone to offer congratulations on Baber Jan Khan’s accession and give a few presents to himReports that the Asofood-dowleh was engaged in collecting troops, for an unknown purpose, but had then unexpectedly countermanded his preparations for this and dispersed the forces he had assembledNejeeb Pasha [Gürcü Mehmet Necip Pasha, or Muḥammad Najīb Pāshā, Wali or Governor of Baghdad] complaining of the intention of the Persian Government to build forts on the frontier with Turkey at Mohummera [Khorramshahr, also spelled Mohemmera in this item] and Zohab [Sarpol-e Zahab]; the Persian Government sending engineers towards Bayazeed [Doğubayazıt], Zohab and Mohemmera for that purpose; and the engineers being withdrawn from the frontier following remonstrance from Sheil and the Russian Minister to Persia, Prince Dolgorouki [Prince Dimitri Ivanovich Dolgorukov]Nejeeb Pasha receiving instructions from the Porte to establish passport regulations and to levy a sum of six Piastres from Persian pilgrimsCommodore Hawkins having succeeded in obtaining from the ‘Chief’ or Governor of Kenn [Kish Island] the value of the British property which had been plundered from the wreck of the Company’s schooner Emilyby the Governor and inhabitants of the island, but having apparently exceeded the instructions given to him by the Resident in the Persian Gulf, Major Samuel Hennell, in demanding an additional sum of 1500 Tomans from the Governor of Kenn on account of treasure belonging to Persian merchants plundered from the vessel.The despatches include additional enclosed correspondence, including correspondence between Sheil and Hajee Meerza Aghassee.Physical description: 1 item (128 folios)
59. Affairs in Sinde, Lahore and Afghanistan
- Description:
- Abstract: This item comprises copies of enclosures to a despatch from the Government of India Secret Department (Fort William) to the East India Company Secret Committee, Number 4 of 1838, dated 21 February 1838. The enclosures are dated 7 August-25 November 1837.The primary correspondents are: Lieutenant-Colonel Henry Pottinger, Agent to the Governor-General for Sinde [Sindh]; William Hay Macnaghten, Secretary to the Government of India; Captain Claude Martine Wade, Political Agent at Loodeana [Ludhiana, also spelled Loodiana, Lodhiana and other variations in this item]; and Captain Alexander Burnes, on a Mission to Cabool [Kabul, this spelling also used in the item and other variations].Enclosures 3-23 (ff 544-615) comprise despatches between Pottinger and Macnaghten. The despatches concern: British relations with the Ameers [Amīrs] of Sinde and negotiations for the establishment of a British Residency at Hyderabad [also spelled Hydrabad in this item]; relations and disputes between the Ameers of Sinde; relations between the Ameers of Sinde and the Government of Lahore [also spelled Lahor in this item]; and general political and military affairs in Sinde.The papers notably cover:British threats to neither exert influence over Sikh Ruler Maharajah Runjeet [Maharaja Ranjit] Singh for the restoration of the Mazari [also spelled Muzaree in this item] districts to the Ameers nor to discourage the former from attacking Sinde, in response to the Ameers ‘procrastination’ regarding a British Residency in their capitalThe suspension of the Native Agent in Hyderabad for over-reaching his remit in negotiations with the Ameers regarding the Residency, and the appointment of his replacementThe return of Sindhian envoys from negotiations at the court of Runjeet Singh at Lahore, and Wade’s opinion that the Maharajah will not insist on the pecuniary conditions he has apparently imposed for the return of Mazari territory to the Ameers and for the withdrawal of the Sikh garrison at Rajan [Rajanpur or Rojhan?]Enclosures 24-59 (ff 616-766) comprise despatches between Wade and Macnaghten and between Burnes and Macnaghten. The despatches concern British policy towards and relations with the ruling parties in Afghanistan and with Maharajah Runjeet Singh; the latter two’s relations with each other notably over Peshawar [also spelled Peshawur in this item]; Afghan relations with Persia [Iran] and Russia; and general political, economic and military affairs in Afghanistan and the Punjab. Burnes’s despatches are forwarded to Macnaghten by Wade and often include Wade’s disparaging remarks on Burnes’s situation assessments and actions, in addition to his own political analyses.The papers notably cover and include:Intelligence regarding the political situation in Cabool, Kandahar [also spelled Candahar in this item] and Herat, forwarded by Charles Masson from Afghanistan (ff 617-619, ff 622-623, ff 640-642, ff 646-650)Information concerning Kambar Ali Khan [Qanbar ʿAlī Khān, also spelled Kumbar in this item], the Persian envoy sent to KandaharThe despatch by Dost Mahomed Khan [Dūst Muḥammad Khān Bārakzāy] of an envoy to the Ruler of Kunduz regarding a potential alliance (ff 621-624)Burnes’s arrival at Peshawar and conclusion that Runjeet Singh would privately like to return the territory to the governorship of Sooltan Mahomed Khan [Sulṭān Muḥammad Khān Bārakzāy], as it is a drain on his Government’s finances (f 632)Burnes’s arrival at Khaibar [Khyber, this spelling also used in this item], and meetings with Kour Kurruck Singh [Kaur Kharak Singh, also spelled Kour Kharak Singh in this item], during which he emphasises the commercial intentions of the British MissionWade’s refutation of Burnes’s assertion that it would be easy to open the road through the Khaibar Pass and develop commerce between Punjab and Afghanistan (ff 687-691)Burnes’s report on the ‘Political Power of the Sikhs Westward of the Indus’ (ff 708-715) with Wade’s observations thereon (ff 693-698), and notes by Wade on the history and military career of Runjeet Singh (ff 693-705)Burnes’s reception in Cabool, conversations with Dost Mahomed, and opinion of the latter’s aggrandizement ambitions at the expense of his ‘brothers’ in Peshawar (f 750)Concerns expressed by Wade and the Government of India that Britain should not overtly mediate between the Sikhs and Afghans regarding control of Peshawar, and that Burnes: does not appear to act on behalf of Dost Mahomed, which could antagonise Britain’s ally Runjeet Singh and the Kandahar Sirdars [Sirdārs, leaders]; encourages Dost Mahomed to reconcile with his brother Sooltan Mahomed Khan and with the Maharajah; and emphasises that Britain will not intervene until Dost Mahomed relinquishes all connection with PersiaBurnes’s reports on the relations of the Kandahar sirdars with Persia and the Russian minister at Tehran, including the possibility of Kohin Dil Khan [Kuhandīl Khān Muḥammadzay] sending his son with an envoy to Persia (ff 717-726)British policy of averting the extension of Persian and Russian influence over Afghanistan, maintaining the divided distribution of power in Afghanistan, and prioritizing British relations with the Sikh and Sindhian rulersBurnes report that Shah Kamran [Shāhzādah Kāmrān Durrānī], Ruler of Herat, has acknowledged allegiance to Persia and sent an envoy to Tehran (f 744)Wade’s concern regarding Runjeet Singh’s apparent growing infirmity of mind and ‘misgovernment’ (ff 674-675)The favourable reception at Lahore of a Nepalese Mission (ff 666-669)A rebellion in Kashmir (ff 670-672)A dispute between the rulers of Bhawalpoor [Bahawalpur, also spelled Bahawalpoor in this item] and Mooltan [Multan], causing disruption to the indigo trade in Cabool.Physical description: 1 item (233 folios)
60. Enclosure 73/6 to letter of 5 Nov 1827
- Description:
- Abstract: This item contains two letters written in French:1. A copy of a letter from the Secretary of the British Legation in Persia [Iran], Captain John Nicholl Robert Campbell, to Jean Paskevitch, Commander-in-Chief of the Russian troops in the Caucasus [Ivan Fyodorovich Paskevich-Erivansky, Governor-General of Georgia], dated 16 October 1827.Campbell states that he has been charged with conducting confidential talks to establish a durable peace between Russia and Persia by the East India Company Envoy to Persia, Lieutenant-Colonel John Macdonald Kinneir, and that he is ready to come to the Russian headquarters. He also forwards a letter from Macdonald Kinneir to Paskevitch.2. A copy of a letter from Paskevitch to Campbell, dated 7 October (Old Style) 1827.Paskevitch states that due to developments in the war with Persia [Russo-Persian War, 1826-1828] he is unable to receive Campbell in Erivan [Yerevan], and instead invites him to travel to Abbas-Abad [‘Abbasabad].These documents were originally enclosed, numbered 6, in Macdonald Kinneir’s dispatch No. 73 to the Chief Secretary to the Government of India, George Swinton, of 1 November 1827 (IOR/L/PS/9/71/84).Physical description: 1 item (2 folios)