Abstract: The file concerns the removal of the Dowasir [Dawāsir] (also spelled Dawasir) tribe from Bahrain following disturbances between the Dowasir and other Bahraini communities.The correspondence is mainly between the Political Agent, Bahrain (also spelled Bahrein) and the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf. Other correspondents include Shaikh Hamad, Deputy Ruler of Bahrain [Ḥamad bin ‘Īsá Āl Khalīfah]; Charles Dalrymple Belgrave, Adviser the Government of Bahrain; Bin Saud, Sultan of Nejd [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd]; and British naval commanders in Persian Gulf. Enclosures to correspondence from the Political Resident to the Political Agent, Bahrain include copies of correspondence with the Government of India and the rulers of Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain.The papers covers the following:reports from the Political Agent, Bahrain;relations between the (Sunni) Dowasir and Bahraini Shiahs (also referred to as Baharnah);reported aggression by the Dowasir against Baharnah, June 1923;involvement of Bin Saud;confiscation and sale of property belonging to the Dowasir by the Government of Bahrain;departure of two thirds of the tribe to the island of Raka, October 1923;the Dowasir reported to have gone to Dammam [Dammām], November 1923;involvement of the Royal Navy, November 1923;the Ruler of Kuwait, Shaikh Ahmad al-Jabir as-Subah [Aḥmad bin Jābir Āl Ṣabāḥ] agrees to deny the Dowasir entry to Kuwait, November 1923;involvement of Shaikh Hamad of Bahrain;the Dowasir and pearl diving;terms for the readmission of the Dowasir to Bahrain, and return of their property, 1927.The Arabic content of the file consists of approximately twenty letters (with translations) between British officials and local rulers, including Shaikh Hamad of Bahrain and Bin Saud.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 167; 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 7-161; these numbers are written mostly in crayon, with a few written in pencil, and are located in the same position as the main sequence.A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.
Abstract: This volume is Part III of Volume 1 of the
Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf, ’Omān and Central Arabia(Government of India: 1915) compiled John Gordon Lorimer. The contents are divided into two sections and contain genealogical tables of Persian Gulf and Arabian ruling families, and one map, housed in pockets.Genealogical Trees:'Table of the ruling Āl Bū Sa’īdī families of ’Omān and Zanzibar' (folio 2A, inside 'Pocket No. 1');'Table of the ruling Qasimi family of Shārjah in Trucial ’Omān' (folio 4, inside 'Pocket No. 2');'Table of the ruling Āl Bū Falāh (Bani Yās) family of Abu Dhabi in Trucial ’Omān' (folio 5, inside 'Pocket No. 3');'Table of the ruling Āl Bū Falāsah (Bani Yās) family of Dibai in Trucial ’Omān' (folio 6A, inside 'Pocket No. 4);'Table of ruling Āl ’Alī family of Umm-al-Qaiwain in Trucial ’Omān' (folio 7, inside 'Pocket No. 5');'Table of the ruling Āl Bū Kharaibān (Na’īm) family of ’Ajmān in Trucial ’Omān' (folio 8A, inside 'Pocket No. 6');'Table of Qāsimi family formerly ruling Lingeh' (folio 9, 'Pocket No. 7');'Table of the ruling Āl Tānī (Ma’ādhīd) family of Dōhah in Qatar' (folio 10A, 'Pocket No. 8');'Table of the ruling Āl Khalīfah (’Atbi) family of Bahrain (Sheet No. 1)'. (folio 11, 'Pocket No. 9');'Table of the ruling Āl Khalīfah (’Atbi) family of Bahrain (Sheets Nos. 2 and 3)' (folios 12A and 12B, 'Pocket 10');'Table of the ruling Āl Subah (’Atbi) family of Kuwait' (folio 13, 'Pocket No. 11');'Table of the ruling (Wahhābi) Āl Sa’ūd (’Anizah) family of Southern Najd (Sheets Nos. 1,2 and 3)' (folios 14, 15 and 16, 'Pocket No. 12');'Table of the ruling (Wahhābi) Āl Sa’ūd (Anizah) family of Souther Najd (Sheets Nos. 4 and 5)' (folios 17 and 18, 'Pocket No. 13');'Table of the ruling Āl Rashid (Shammar) family of Jabal Shammar' (folio 19, 'Pocket No. 14');'Table of the ruling Abul Khail (’Anizah) family of Buraidah in Qāsim' (folio 20, 'Pocket No. 15');'Table of the ruling Salaimi (Sabai) family of ’Anaizah in Qāsim' (folio 21, 'Pocket No. 16');'Table of the Qādirīyah (Saiyid) family of the Naqībis of Baghdād in Turkish Irāq' (folio 22, 'Pocket No. 17').There is also one map:'Chart Showing the Pearl Banks along the Arabian Shore of the Persian Gulf between Ras Tanurah and Diba, vide Page 2253 of Part II' (folio 27, 'Pocket No. 25').The geneaological tables were compiled by Lorimer in 1906 and 1907 and some were based on information provided by John Calcott Gaskin, Francis Beville Prideaux, and Stuart George Knox, Political Agents at Bahrain and Kuwait, as well as a number of native informants. The tables typically contain named (in Arabic and English) and unnamed individuals, chronological lists of rulers, and notes on the compilation and arrangement of the tables, and references to other parts of the
Gazetteer.The volume is labelled on the spine as 'For Official Use'.Physical description: Foliation: The foliation sequence is circled in pencil, in the top right corner of the recto of each folio. It begins on the first folio with text, on number 1, and ends on the last folio with text, on number 30.Foliation anomalies: folio 2 is followed by folio 2A; f. 6 is followed by folio 6A; folio 8 is followed by folio 8A; folio 10 is followed by folio 10A; folio 12 is followed by folio 12A and folio 12B; folio 13 is followed by folio 13A; folio 18 is followed by folio 18A; folio 20 is followed by folio 20A.
Abstract: Bushire Residency correspondence, inwards and outwards. The correspondence is mainly concerned with the recovery of fines exacted against the rulers of the Trucial Coast. The reasons for the fines include breaching the maritime peace, abducting of slaves, and plundering of pearls. Topics include:Recovery of financial penalties levied for breach of maritime peace from various rulers on the Gulf coast including the Sharjah Chief; Himreeah [Hamriyah] Chief; Lingah [Bandar-e Lengeh] Chief; Shaikh of Koomjar; Charrack. A table 'Return of Cash received from Shaikhs between 28th January and 17th February 1860' is given on folio 207;Joasmee [Qasimi] Chiefs dispute with the Sharkeeyeen [Sharqiyin] tribe at Dibba. The Joasmee chief Shaikh Sultan bin Saggar [Saqr] attempted to correspond with the Indian Government who referred him to the Resident in the Persian Gulf, Commander Felix Jones, who refuted his complaint;Commendations passed by Captain Felix Jones, Resident in the Persian Gulf, on Lieutenant Carpendale, Commander, Her Company's Corvette
Falklands, for recovery of fines from the Shaikhs of Sharjah and Himriyah;Correspondence directing the 'Aboothabee chief not to aid the Imaum of Oman against his brother, the Sohar Chief' (subject 14);Attack on Aboothabee [Abu Dhabi] in 1856 (subject 18);Slave traffic connected with Joasmee Chief and East Coast of Oman.The correspondence is mainly in English except for the following letters in Arabic: f 152; copy of letter from Senior Officer to Shaikh Zaid bin Khalifah, Aboothabee (f. 177); copy of letter from Senior Officer to Shaikh Abdullah bin Rashid of Oomulqawein [Umm al Qaywayn]; letter from Sheikh Sultan bin Saggar [Saqr] to Haji Yakoob (ff 179-180) ; Haji Ahmad (f. 181); Correspondents include: Commander Felix Jones, Resident in the Persian Gulf; Henry Lacon Anderson, Secretary to Government, Bombay; Commodore Griffith Jenkins, Commander, Persian Gulf Squadron; Hajee Yakoob, British Agent in Sharjah; rulers of Trucial Coast.Physical description: Foliation: Foliated with pencil number in top right front corner of each folio from front to back excluding covers and blank pages. Foliation anomalies: 1A,1B,1C,1D
Abstract: The volume is entitled
Supplementary List of Undertakings etc, of a Confidential Nature between the Trucial Chiefs of Oman and the British Government, 1911-1912. There are also two duplicate copies of the same item. One of the copies is inscribed 'Received under Foreign and Political Department endorsement 147 E.A. of 22.6.16'.The volume contains transcribed documents in English followed by corresponding documents in Arabic. The documents comprise correspondence between the Political Resident and Trucial Coast chiefs concerning pearling concessions and the lighthouse on Tamb Island.The volumes are accompanied by an unbound file copy of IOR/R/15/1/735.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence runs through all four volumes, commencing at 1 on the front cover of the first, and terminating at 64 on the back cover of the last. These numbers are written in pencil, are enclosed in a circle, and appear in the top right hand corner of the recto page of each folio. Foliation anomalies: ff. 1, 1A, 1B, 1C.
Abstract: Genre/Subject Matter:View in Linga [Lingeh] of a group of pearl divers – here described as Swahili, but possibly simply East Africans. A group of five women sit along a reed mat in the foreground at right and centre, while in the middleground at right and left further groups of men and women stand and sit, for the most part facing away from the camera. Further figures can be seen in the background at centre and left. Palm trees line the horizon.Inscriptions:Lower left, below image, in pen: ‘Linga.’Upper left, above image, in pencil, crossed-out: ‘a’Lower right, alongside image, in pencil: ‘23’Lower right, below image, in pen: ‘Swahili Pearl Divers.’ ‘(Jan. 1918)’Physical description: Dimensions:70 x 96 mmCondition:The image is in good condition.Foliation:'a'; '23'Process:Silver gelatin print
Abstract: Genre/Subject Matter:View in Linga [Lingeh] of a group of pearl divers – here described as Swahili, possibly simply East Africans. A group of women stand at left facing away from the camera and towards a group of men who are making music with drums.Inscriptions:Lower left, below image, in pen: ‘Linga.’Upper left, above image, in pencil, crossed-out: ‘b’Lower right, alongside image, in pencil: ‘24’Lower right, below image, in pen: ‘Swahili Pearl Divers.’ ‘(Jan. 1918)’Physical description: Dimensions:70 x 95 mmCondition:The image is in good condition.Foliation:'a'; '23'Process:Silver gelatin print
Abstract: A printed précis of correspondence on various Persian Gulf subjects, prepared for the Foreign Department of the Government of India, Simla, in July 1911 (Part I) and July 1913 (Part II). The document is divided into two parts. Most subjects relate to Turkish claims to sovereignty in the region, including the presence of Turkish garrisons, and were chosen and prepared because of the negotiations between the British and Turkish authorities connected to the Baghdad Railway plans.Part I (folios 2-35) covers various subjects and is organised into eleven chapters, each devoted to a different topic or geographical area, as follows: Chapter I, British interests in the Persian Gulf, Extent of Arabian littoral; Chapter II, Extent of Hasa and Katif [Qatif], Claims of the Turks to the whole of Eastern Arabia, Extent to which Turkish claims on the Arabian littoral are recognised by His Majesty's government, Proposed arrangement with the Turkish Government defining their sphere of influence on the Arabian littoral; Chapter III, Turkish occupation of El Bida [Doha], Extent of the Katar [Qatar] Peninsula; Chapter IV, Turkish designs on Katar, Policy of His Majesty's Government; Chapter V, Trucial Chiefs (Pirate Coast); Chapter VI, Maskat [Muscat] and Gwadar; Chapter VII, Kuwait; Chapter VIII, Um Kasr [Umm Qasr], Bubiyan and Warba; Chapter IX, Bahrain, Zakhnuniyeh [Zahnūnīyah] and Mohammerah [Korramshahr]; Chapter X, Proposed British action consequent on Turkish aggression; Chapter XI, Pearl fisheries. There are three appendices containing further correspondence relating to the main text.Part II (folios 36-60) relates entirely to the Baghdad Railway and the negotiations between the British and Ottoman authorities that the proposal of the railway initiated. The negotiations covered several matters, including: the political statuses of Kuwait, Bahrain, and Qatar; the location of the railway's terminus; the ownership of the railway; and the creation of a commission for the improvement of navigation in the Chatt-el-Arab [Shaṭṭ al-‘Arab]. It opens with an introduction of the related issues (folios 37-41) followed by the relative correspondence (folios 42-53). It ends with the draft agreements (folios 53-60) - never ratified - drawn up by the two powers.Physical description: Foliation: the sequence commences at the front cover, and terminates at the inside back cover; 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 printed pagination sequence.Condition: folios 59 and 60 have both been torn in two corners, resulting in the loss of some text.
Abstract: The volume comprises two printed documents. The first is guidelines for the manumission of slaves, printed by the British Government’s Foreign Office Press, and issued to the Political Resident at Bushire. Part one of the guidelines is for the Persian shore of the Persian Gulf. It outlines the authorities (treaties) for manumission, grounds for manumission, and the procedures for manumission. The second part of the guidelines deals with the Arabian shore of the Persian Gulf. Bahrain, Muscat and the Trucial Coast are dealt with separately.The second printed document in the file is a set of guidelines for dealing with the various scenarios in which economic disputes might arise between captains, divers and merchants in the pearling industry in the Gulf. The guidelines are for use by British agents and representatives in Bahrain, Kuwait, Bandar-e Lengeh and the Trucial Coast. The emphasis in the rules is on the honouring of debts as a means to ensuring the financial stability of the pearling industry, and sets out the obligations of divers to their captains, duties of captains to their divers, captains to other captains regarding loans, and captains to their debtors.Physical description: Foliation: The volume is foliated in the top-right corner of each recto. The two printed reports that comprise the volume each have their own internal pagination systems.
Abstract: The first part of the volume (folios 2 to 146) covers the period 1922 to 1927, and concerns proposals for reforms in the Sheikhdom of Bahrain, and their subsequent implementation and impact on the kingdom. This part of the volume contains letters exchanged between the Political Agent in Bahrain (Major Clive Daly until September 1926, thereafter Major Cyril Barrett) and the Political Resident (Lieutenant-Colonel Arthur Trevor or the Acting Resident Lieutenant-Colonel Stuart Knox until April 1924, thereafter Lieutenant-Colonel Francis Prideaux), and the Political Resident and the Foreign Secretary of the Government of India. British officials discussed proposals for economic and political reforms in Bahrain, with particular attention paid to tax changes intended to redress the imbalance between what Bahrain's Sunnis and Shias were obliged to pay. Also discussed were the financial reorganisation of the customs house and regulation of the pearl diving industry, reform of the Bahrain judicial system, land registration and revenues, and the institution of a Levy Corps force. British officials also discussed the relationships between themselves and between members of the al Khalifa ruling family, in particular Isa bin Ali Al Khalifa and his son Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa. The abdication or removal of Isa, and the installation of Hamad, are discussed at length.The last part of the volume (folio 147 onwards) spans the period 1929-1930, and is chiefly comprised of correspondence between the Bahrain Agent (Colonel Geoffrey Prior), Political Resident (Barrett to November 1929, thereafter Lieutenant-Colonel Hugh Biscoe) and officials from the Government of India. This part of the volume concerns fears on the part of the Government of India that Britain is too heavily involved in Bahrain, and asks questions of whether the number of British officials in Bahrain can be reduced. Included are two lengthy reports by Prior and Barrett in June and August 1929 respectively (folios 147-162, 165-185) outlining Britain's historic intervention in Bahrain, and stressing the importance of its continued presence.Physical description: Foliation: The foliation sequence begins on the front cover and finishes on the back cover, using circled pencil numbers in the top-right corner of the recto side of each folio. A second foliation sequence is also present between ff 2-118; these numbers are written in blue crayon, circled and can be found in the same position as the main sequence. The following foliation anomalies occur: 1A, 1B, 1C, 1D, 1E and 1F; 137A and 137B.The following folios are fold-outs: 17-18, 51-52, 64-65, 86, 106-107, 221 and 227.The volume is tightly bound to the extent that the text on some items disappears into the gutter, making it difficult to read.
Abstract: The volume contains printed copies of Government of India confidential correspondence, relating to the Bahrain reforms. The majority of the letters contained in volume are printed copies of correspondence originally sent to the Government of India either by the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Lieutenant-Colonel Arthur Trevor or Acting Resident Lieutenant-Colonel Stuart Knox), or the Political Agent at Bahrain (Major Clive Daly). Much of the correspondence featured in the volume can be found in the original (or as office copies) in a number of files in the two Bahrain Agency subsubseries ‘File 9 Bahrain Reforms’ (IOR/R/15/2/127-138) and ‘File 8 Miscellaneous’ (IOR/R/15/2/121-126), and the Bushire Residency subsubseries ‘File 19 Bahrain’ (IOR/R/15/1/314-77).The printed correspondence contained in the volume covers a range of subjects:Events leading up to the programme of reforms carried out in Bahrain: allegations of the oppression of Bahraini subjects by members of the Āl Khalīfah family, violence, the deteriorating economic situation;The reforms proposed and implemented by British officials: replacement of Shaikh ‘Īsá by Shaikh Ḥamad as defacto ruler, economic reforms, judicial reforms, pearl diving industry reforms, customs house reforms;Specific incidents of violence involving Sunnis and Shias, or Najdis and Persians.Some of the papers in the volume are accompanied by duplicate copies:Folios 61-64 are duplicates of folios 57-60;Folios 68-69 are duplicates of folios 66-67;Folios 81-84 are duplicates of folios 77-80.Physical description: Foliation: The volume is foliated from the front cover to the inside back cover, using uncircled pencil numbers in the top-right corner of each recto. Most of the items in the volume are printed items that have their own internal pagination systems, using printed numbers in the top-right corners of recto pages and the top-left corners of verso pages, or centred at the top of both verso and recto pages. The following foliation anomalies occur: 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d, 1e, 1f.
Abstract: The file comprises correspondence, statements and other papers related to a collision which took place on 12 August 1929, twelve miles off the coast of Bahrain, between a steamer, the SS
Bandra, operated by the British India Steam Navigation Company (BISN), and a dhow, working on the pearl banks in the area.The first portion of the file contains witness statements made by various individuals at the Political Agency in Bahrain, including those by Commander Arthur Danbrook, in charge of the SS
Bandra, and Hassan bin Muhammad bu Ali, the nakhuda on the pearling dhow (ff 5-22).The second portion of the file contains correspondence relating to Hassan bin Muhammad bu Ali’s claim against the SS
Bandraand the BISN, chiefly concerned with the value of pearls lost when his dhow sank. Correspondence includes: discussion between British political officials over the best means of formal inquiry into the incident, in consequence of the nearest marine court being located in Bombay; suspension of Captain Danbrook by the BISN; repeated petitions made by Hassan bin Muhammad bu Ali for financial redress; the Government of India’s decision not to convene a marine court (f 61), and the recommendation by the Political Resident that Hassan bin Muhammad bu Ali file a suit at Bahrain’s mixed court (f 60); confirmation of an out of court settlement agreed between Hassan bin Muhammad bu Ali and the BISN (f 72).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 76; 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 4-75; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and are located in the same position as the main sequence.
Abstract: This file contains correspondence related to the pearling industry of Bahrain and the reforms of the industry that were enacted by the British during the 1920s.The correspondence discusses the status of the industry prior to the reforms, the nature of the relationship between the ship captains (Nakudas) and the pearl divers and the impact of the reforms - especially their positive impact on the condition of the divers.An example of a Nakuda's general account is included on folio 16.Physical description: There is one incomplete foliation sequence and one complete foliation sequence. The complete foliation sequence is circled in pencil, in the top corner of each folio. It begins on the front cover, on number 1, and runs through to 42, ending on the inside of the back cover of the volume.