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Coll 6/67(3) 'Boundaries of South Eastern Arabia and Qatar.' [‎68v] (143/830)

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The record is made up of 1 volume (411 folios). It was created in 7 Feb 1935-20 Dec 1935. It was written in English. The original is part of the British Library: India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. Records and Private Papers Documents collected in a private capacity. .

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in/
says, it outs off a piece (though not really a large
piece) of the Murra Dira as colonel Dickson defines it.
This is a difficulty as we are more or less committed to
giving Ibn Baud the Murra Dira.
On the othetfhand, it
cannot be supposed that Colonel Dickson*s rough# nap is
geographically precise, and the Abu Dhabi^i experts are
quite as competent to say which particular wells are in
the predominent use of their own tribesmen. There is
therefore no real reason to suppose that by taking
Colonize Loch’s line we shall be doing anything inconsistent
with our decision to draw a line which will roughly give
ibn Baud the Murra Dira (also it may be pointed out that
we are giving him big slices of non-Murra Dira elsewhere).
Moreover, the two general considerations, Dos.l and 2,
mentioned at the beginning ofthis note are relevant in
this connection. The balance of argument therefore
seems definitely in favour of taking Colonel Loch's line -
though it must be admitted that he might have produced
more convincing arguments in favour of it. However, it
will obviously be necessary to s ee what the general
feeling of the Committee is on the point.
As regards the Eastern part of the line, the
•eign Office will no doubt press the suggestion to take
s *
the line to 55° 40’ instead of 55. In view of general
consideration Ho.3 above, it seems undesirable to go any
(du
further than 55. Reference should be made to Mr.Rendel's
remarks at Flag R in the minutes of the meeting on
September 24th. While it is undesirable to hold Ibn Baud
up against a large vacuum, there is no need to create a
large vacuum on his side. There is no evidence of his
exercising any authority up to or anywhere near meridian
55, and it is the present policy (except perhaps in the
North where there is no room to turn round) to draw a
i
line somewhere between the effective sovereignties
involved/
Ctuiu U ,
^pi? ftiM&d.'i
Q KAT'!

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Content

This volume primarily concerns British policy regarding the south-eastern boundaries of Saudi Arabia, specifically those bordering Qatar, the Trucial Shaikhdoms, Muscat, the Hadramaut and the Aden Protectorate.

It includes interdepartmental discussion regarding the approach that the British Government should take in reaching a settlement with King Ibn Saud [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd] over the demarcation of the boundaries.

References are made to various existing and proposed lines, including the 'blue line' and the 'violet line' – boundary lines that formed part of the Anglo-Ottoman Conventions, concluded in 1913 and 1914 respectively, a 'green line' and a 'brown line', which represent more recent territorial concessions proposed by the British to Ibn Saud, and a 'red line', which is referred to as the Saudi Government's claim for its country's south-eastern boundary.

The volume features the following principal correspondents: the Political Resident A senior ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul General) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Residency. in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. (Lieutenant-Colonel Trenchard Craven William Fowle); the Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. , Bahrain (Lieutenant-Colonel Percy Gordon Loch); His Majesty's Minister at Jedda (Sir Andrew Ryan); the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (Sir Samuel Hoare); the Acting Chief Commissioner, Aden (Lieutenant-Colonel Morice Challoner Lake); officials of the Colonial Office, the Foreign Office, the India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. , the Government of India's Foreign and Political Department.

The correspondence includes discussion of the following:

  • The extent of territory that the British should be prepared to include in any concession made to Ibn Saud.
  • The abandonment of the idea of a proposed 'desert zone'.
  • The future of the Treaty of Jedda of 1927.
  • Meetings held at the Foreign Office with Fuad Bey Hamza, Deputy Saudi Minister for Foreign Affairs, and Hafiz Wahba, Saudi Arabian Minister in London, during June and July 1935.
  • The eastern boundary of the Aden Protectorate.
  • The possibility of the British Government employing Bertram Thomas to carry out enquiries and investigations regarding the question of Saudi Arabia's south-eastern frontiers.
  • Wells and territories of the Al Murra [Āl Murrah] tribe.
  • Preparations for Sir Andrew Ryan's forthcoming visit to Riyadh for negotiations with Ibn Saud.
  • Abu Dhabi's claim to Khor-al-Odeid [Khawr al ‘Udayd].
  • Details of a British aerial reconnaissance of the Qatar Peninsula, which took place on 11 October 1935.

In addition to correspondence the volume includes the following: copies of the minutes of meetings of the Committee of Imperial Defence's Standing Ministerial and Official Sub-Committee for Questions Concerning the Middle East, dated 15 April 1935 and 24 September 1935 respectively; photographs of the Qatar Peninsula, taken during the aforementioned aerial reconnaissance; a map showing the route of the aerial reconnaissance.

The volume includes a divider which gives a list of correspondence references contained in the volume by year. This is placed at the back of the correspondence (folio 4).

Extent and format
1 volume (411 folios)
Arrangement

The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the rear to the front of the volume.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with 1 and terminates at the last folio with 411; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. side of each folio. The foliation sequence does not include the front and back covers.

Written in
English in Latin script
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Coll 6/67(3) 'Boundaries of South Eastern Arabia and Qatar.' [‎68v] (143/830), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/2136, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100046787904.0x000090> [accessed 14 May 2024]

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