Abstract: The file is comprised of twenty-six manumission application cases numbered 31 to 56, cases 13 to 30 being contained in the Bahrain Agency file 'File A/11 II Slave cases Trucial Coast' (IOR/R/15/2/1852). The file contains a total of eighty-nine individual manumission applications, made to the Residency Agent at Sharjah ('Abd al-Razzaq Razuqi) and submitted to the Political Agent in Bahrain, for authorisation from the Political Resident. All of the manumission statements are included in the file, in both in English and Arabic, along with correspondence from the Residency Agent to the Bahrain Agency, and the Bahrain Agency to the Political Residency. All of the cases were straightforward in that manumission was unconditionally granted by the Political Resident.Physical description: Foliation: The main foliation sequence begins on the front cover and finishes on the back cover, and uses circled numbers in the top right of the recto side of each folio.
Abstract: The file is comprised of twenty-four manumission application cases numbered 58 to 80, and is a continuation of the Bahrain Agency file 'File A/11 IV Slave cases Trucial Coast' (IOR/R/15/2/1853). The file contains a total of ninety-three individual manumission applications, made to the Residency Agent at Sharjah ('Abd al-Razzaq Razuqi) and submitted to the Political Agent in Bahrain for authorisation from the Political Resident. All of the manumission statements are included in the file in both English and Arabic, along with correspondence from the Residency Agent to the Bahrain Agency, and the Bahrain Agency to the Political Residency. All of the cases were straightforward in that manumission was unconditionally granted by the Political Resident.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 301; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. Additional foliation sequences are also present in parallel in several sections of the file; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled. The sequence includes two foliation anomalies: f 207A and f 224A.
Abstract: The file contains correspondence and other papers relating to slaves' manumission applications heard at Sharjah. For each case, there is the initial correspondence, including the slave's manumission statement, sent from the Residency Agent at Sharjah ('Abd al-Razzaq Razuqi), followed by return correspondence from the Bahrain Agency confirming that a manumission certificate could be issued. Office notes at the end of each case briefly discuss the decision on manumission.In all but two cases included in the file manumission was granted, usually on the grounds either of the slave's ill-treatment by their master, or the prospect of them being sold. In two cases, the British Agent refused manumission: first in the case of a woman who, according to the Sharjah Agent, had visited 'places of prostitution' (folio 122), and second in the case of a man who was alleged to be already free (f 129). The cases featured in the file are also detailed in the Bushire subject file IOR/R/15/1/212.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 83; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. Three additional foliation sequences are also present in parallel between ff 118-123, ff 191-203 and ff 212-216; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled. The sequence includes two foliation anomalies: f 29a and f 172a.
Abstract: The file contains correspondence related to two slavery related incidents raised with the Political Agency in Bahrain. The first case (folios 1-22) involves two male ex-slaves who were apprehended by the Iranian police while travelling by boat to Henjam [Jazīreh-ye Hengām] to recover their belongings. One of the men escaped from detention and boarded HMS
Bideford, where his statement was passed on to the Bahrain Agency. The second case (folios 23-45) involves two men owned by the Saudi Arabian Chargé d'Affaires in Baghdad. Both men absconded to Bahrain, where their statements were taken down (folios 29 and 30-33). Both men were given manumission certificates, authorised by the Political Resident. One of the manumitted slaves later complained of being unable to find work in Bahrain, and requested permission to travel to India (folios 39-41). The office notes reveal that Agency staff considered the man 'lazy', and turned down his application for passage to India (folio 43).Physical description: Foliation: The foliation sequence starts on the first folio of the file and continues until 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. The following foliation anomaly occurs: f 1, f 1A. Additional foliation (since crossed out) appears on ff 24-41.
Abstract: The file contains correspondence and other papers related to slavery, received by or sent from the Political Agency in Bahrain. The majority of the papers in the file are related to manumission applications (over fifty in total), made by slaves in Bahrain or Muscat. In most instances, the slaves applying for manumission were owned by inhabitants of the towns of the Trucial Coast, and Agency staff in Bahrain make enquiries with the Residency Agent (then 'Abd al-Razzaq Razuqi) in Sharjah to assess the validity of slaves' claims. The replies from the Sharjah Agent, in English and Arabic, are included in the file.Besides manumission applications, the file also includes a small number of other items related to the slave trade, including a Government of Bahrain notice (in English and Arabic) on the proclamation of the Governor-General of India (folio 169); statements of debts and balances of accounts for indebted divers (e.g. folios 175-76, 188-89, 193-94, 248-49); allegations of slave trading in Kalba which incur the displeasure of the Political Resident, Lieutenant-Colonel Trenchard Craven Fowle (folios 264, 270, 292); and an unclaimed manumission certificate (folio 354).Physical description: Foliation: The main foliation sequence begins on the front cover and terminates at the back cover; these numbers are written and circled in pencil, in the top-right corner of the recto side of each folio. A second incomplete foliation sequence runs through the first part of the file between folios 2-30; this sequence is also written in pencil, but is not circled and is crossed out. A third incomplete foliation sequence runs through the second part of the file between folios 40-352; again, this sequence is written in pencil, but is not circled. Foliation anomalies: 1A and 1B.
Abstract: The volume contains correspondence related to over forty manumission requests heard at the Political Agency in Bahrain. The cases involve slaves that had escaped from the towns of the Trucial Coast, notably Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Ra's al-Khaymah. Enclosed with most cases is the slave's statement, and correspondence between the Agency and the Residency Agent at Sharjah, to verify the slave's story. The majority of the cases in the file involve male slaves aged between 20 and 30 years old, who were born in the house of their master, and had been engaged as pearl divers.Case no. 29 involves three slaves (statements folios 176-78) who had absconded to Bahrain from Abu Dhabi by boat. Shaikh Shakbut bin Sultan, Ruler of Abu Dhabi, requests that the boat the slave escaped in be returned to him (folio 184). Further correspondence reveals that ownership of the boat is disputed. The boat’s original certificate of registration, with stamps, is included in the file (folio 189).Physical description: Foliation: The main foliation sequence commences at the front cover and terminates at the back cover; these numbers are written in pencil and can be found in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. Foliation errors: 23A and 23B; 97A and 97B; 109A and 109B; 207A and 207B.Condition: There is a small amount of insect damage on some pages, although not sufficient to impair the legibility of items.
Abstract: The correspondence and other papers included in the file comprise two distinct parts. There is a significant chronological jump from the first part of the file relating to manumission cases, dated 1943, and the second part of the file, containing correspondence dated 1951.1) Seven cases relating to slaves seeking manumission at the Political Agency in Muscat. Each case includes manumission statements sent to the Bahrain Agency from Muscat. Where slaves absconded from the towns of the Trucial Coast, correspondence attempting to verify the slave's statement, exchanged between Agency staff and the Residency Agent at Sharjah, is included (folios 1-63);2) One item of correspondence from the Bahrain Passport Office to the Adviser to the Bahrain Government (Charles Dalyrmple Belgrave), dated 31 January 1951, and forwarded to the Bahrain Political Agency (folio 64). Enclosed with the letter (and included in the file, folios 65-73) are ten original Certificates of Identity, issued by the British Political Officer in Qatar, to slaves travelling to Bahrain for manumission. Each certificate contains information on the slave's name, age, profession, height, and their thumbprint.Physical description: Foliation: The main foliation sequence begins on the title page and terminates on the back cover; these numbers are written in pencil and can be found in the top-right corner of the recto side of each folio. ff 28-30 and ff 47-49 are circled due to the presence of two very short local foliation sequences. Foliation errors: 1A, 1B and 1C.
Abstract: The file contains correspondence and papers relating to a number of miscellaneous slave matters, brought to the attention of, or communicated from, the Political Agency in Bahrain, including the following: an incident involving a Persian [Iranian] man, who had previously been convicted of selling alcohol in Bahrain, and had tried to re-enter the country with forged papers (folios 3-7); correspondence with the Residency Agent at Sharjah regarding a man instructed to return from Sharjah to his native India, but who had absconded without notice to Bahrain or Qatar (folios 8-14); complaints by the Shaikh of Kalba over the theft of gold ornaments by one of his servants (folios 15-19); copies of an article (sent to the Agency by the Bahrain merchant Yūsuf Kanoo) that appeared in the Cairo newspaper
Al Shabab(30 June 1937), criticising the Bahrain Government's policy of the compulsory sale of land under foreign (but specifically Saudi, not British) ownership (English translations of the article are on folios 25-26 and 27-29, with an Arabic version on folios 30-31); slave manumission statistics for the region under the jurisdiction of the Bahrain Agency, April 1948-March 1949 (folio 36).Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 45; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. The file contains three foliation anomalies: f 1a, f 1b and f 1c.
Abstract: The file is comprised of extracts of correspondence and official notices, all referring to the manumission of slaves in the Persian Gulf. The contents of the file appear to have been compiled by staff at the Bahrain Political Agency over a number of years for reference purposes on how to deal with manumission cases.There is a printed copy of the 1913 manumission guidelines on folios 3-5, as well as the 1938 guidelines which superseded them (folios 19-20). There are also numerous extracts from specific manumission cases, letters and memorandums, all clarifying particular aspects of slavery in the Gulf region, for example, how to treat domestic slaves (folio 7), the 'mortgaging' of individuals (folio 8), the mistaken assumption that manumission certificate holders become quasi-British subjects (folio 10B), and British policy towards domestic slaves from Qatar (folio 23).Physical description: Foliation: The main foliation sequence begins on the front cover and terminates at the back cover; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and can be found in the top-right of the recto side of each folio. A second foliation sequence runs between ff 3-27; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled and can be found in the same position as the main sequence. Foliation errors: 10A and 10B.Condition: ff 3-5 bear insect damage, although not enough to impair the legibility of the text.
Abstract: This item consists of copies of a Political Despatch from the Government of India Foreign Department to the Secretary of State for India, dated 21 November 1873 and received by the India Office Political Department on 15 December 1873, forwarding copies of papers relating to the suppression of the trade in enslaved persons and the general condition of affairs in Zanzibar. The enclosures chiefly comprise copies of letters and reports of John Kirk, Political Agent and HM Consul in Zanzibar, including: reports on the geography and navigability of Latham Island and the Lufigi [Rufiji] River Delta; a description of Kilwa Kivingi [Kilwa Kivinje], the 'headquarters of the Zanzibar slave trade' (f 71); and a deposition and information elicited from a number of 'freed' or 'liberated' African men and women, received from HMS
Britonat D'Urban [Durban], Natal [KwaZulu-Natal], and taken down by various officials at that place.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description (used for referencing) commences at f 66, and terminates at f 84a, as it is part of a larger physical volume; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. The sequence contains five foliation anomalies: f 66a, f 67a, f 75a, f 76a, and f 84a.
Abstract: This item consists of copies of a Political Despatch from the Government of India Foreign Department to the Secretary of State for India, dated 26 December 1873 and received by the India Office via Brindisi on 19 January 1874, forwarding copies of a paper by the Political Agent and Consul-General, Zanzibar, in which he reports his visit to Mombassa [Mombasa] and his actions with regard to the Indian owners of enslaved persons at that place, which included the 'liberation of 221 slaves'.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description (used for referencing) commences at f 392, and terminates at f 396a, as it is part of a larger physical volume; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. The sequence contains five foliation anomalies: f 392a, f 393a, f 394a, f 395a, and f 396a.
Abstract: This item consists of copies of a Political Despatch from the Government of India Foreign Department to the Secretary of State for India, dated 13 February 1874 and received by the India Office via Brindisi on 9 March 1874, forwarding a copy of papers relating to the investigation, by the Political Agent and Consul-General, Zanzibar, into the actions of the officers of HMS
Daphnesubsequent to the seizure, by the Governor of Lamo [Lamu], of the dhow containing enslaved persons. The covering letter of the despatch is absent and only the enclosures are present.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description (used for referencing) commences at f 330, and terminates at f 332, as it is part of a larger physical volume; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.