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Coll 6/8(1) 'Printed Series: 1929 to 1938.' [‎162v] (329/1062)

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The record is made up of 1 volume (527 folios). It was created in 6 Jan 1929-15 Jan 1938. It was written in English and French. 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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46
(4) Qatar. —The A.P.O.C., acting on their own initiative hut with the
object of transfer to the I.P.C. secured an exclusive option from the Sheikh to
cariy out geological investigations for a period of two years with the right to
apply for a concession vuthin that period. A draft concession approved by the
I.P.C. has recently been submitted by the A.P.O.C. to the Sheikh.
(5) Koweit Neutral The present position in regard to this area i 0
not clear. It may be true that Major Holmes’s primary object in coming to
Jedda in April 1933 was to obtain Ibn Saud’s consent to a regrant, so far as
the Saudi Government are concerned, of a concession for this area. But it
may also be the case that so far as Ibn Sand is concerned, he has included the
Neutral Zone with the Hasa Concession. This position is at present under
consideration by His Majesty’s Government.
(6) Farsan Islands. —There has been no. activity since 1928 and both the
Shell and the Anglo-Persian have recently informed the Petroleum Depart
ment that they are not interested any longer in obtaining a concession over
these islands.
August 5, 1933.
(46)
{Received on 4th Novevmber 1933. with Political Secretary’s letter No. 43, dated
, 19th October 1933.)
Enclosure in Foreign Office covering letter dated 12th October 1933.
Letter from His Majesty’s Charge d’affaires, Jedda, to the Foreign Office,
No. 285, DATED THE 9tH SEPTEMBER 1933-
No. I.
With reference to Mr. Hope Gill’s despatch No. 160 of the 31st March
1932 F. 140-N.|32), paragraph 4, relative to the activities of Mr. K. 8.
Twitchell in regard to the Jedda water supply, I have the honour to report that
water has again been brought to Jedda from the wells at Waziriya, and the
event was ceremonially inaugurated on the 26th August in the presence of the
Minister of Finance, local notables, and a large gathering of townspeople. As
the result of the discovery of a fresh spring, to the south-east of the wells
themselves, w r ork has been in progress for some months past, under the direction
of Sheikh Muhammad Dehlavi and experts of the Mecca water supply of Aiu
iZubeyda. The water has been led through the old pipes, put down in Turkish
times, and now falls into the Idarus reservoir, situated on the outskirts of one
of the poorer quarters of the town. The present rate of flow, according to
Mr. Twitchell, who still shows active interest in this undertaking, is 40 gallons
per minute, and this, he says, it wull shortly be possible to increase to as much as
three times that amount on the completion of work on a second conduit which
runs alongside the first, but wdiich is not yet connected over its entire length.
2. Mr. Twitchell points out that here there is an ample and cheap water
supply sufficient for the needs of the towm, wdiose present rate of consumption
he places at 38 gallons per minute. Although other local experts would estimate
the local rate of consumption at probably not- more than 24 gallons per minute,
it may be conceded that the new 7 source of supply is more than sufficient, is
cheap (for it costs nothing at the Idarus reservoir), and at present is reasonably
safe at source. The Indian Medical Officer attached to this Legation recently
conducted an analysis of the water, chemically and bacteriologically, and
pronounced it to be fit for consumption. The total water consumption of Jedda,
therefore, may be expected to increase, particularly as the poorer classes are
able to draw as much as they require for the mere trouble of carrying it away.
3. From past.experience, however, considerable doubt is expressed as to the
prospects of AA aziriya water becoming a permanent factor in the town’s water
supply. The doubt is not diminished by reports that, although from Waziriva
to Has Qaim (a .place 5 kilom. from Jedda) the conduit has been cemented and
is at present fairly sound, over the remaining distance the nipes are old and
rotten and require constant care to prevent leakage. Sheikh Muhammad Dehlavi
has unsuccessfully approached the Jedda municipality in an endeavour to get
the pipe-line thoroughly repaired, and has now placed the matter before Ibn Sand,
stating his pieferonce for a cement conduit over iron piping’.

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Content

This volume compiles printed copies of letters, telegrams, memoranda and newspaper extracts relating to Britain's involvement across the Arabian Peninsula during the period 1929-1938. Whilst the correspondence encompasses all matters concerning British interests in the region, much of it relates to Ibn Saud [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd] and the Kingdom of the Hejaz and Nejd (later Saudi Arabia). Matters discussed in the correspondence include the following:

  • Reports of unrest in the Hejaz.
  • Relations between Imam Yeha Hamid-Ud-Din [Yaḥyá Muḥammad Ḥamīd al-Dīn, Imam of Yemen] and Ibn Saud.
  • Reports of raids and arms trafficking on the Transjordan Used in three contexts: the geographical region to the east of the River Jordan (literally ‘across the River Jordan’); a British protectorate (1921-46); an independent political entity (1946-49) now known as Jordan -Nejd frontier.
  • Reports of the proceedings of British naval ships in the Red Sea.
  • Details of the Akhwan [Ikhwan] revolt against Ibn Saud, including the movements of one of the revolt's leaders, Faisal Dawish [Fayṣal bin Sulṭān al-Dawīsh], and his surrender to the British in Kuwait.
  • Relations between Kuwait and Nejd.
  • Relations between Iraq and Nejd, including a proposed meeting between Ibn Saud and King Faisal [Fayṣal] of Iraq, and reports of a treaty of alliance between Iraq and Saudi Arabia.
  • Objections from the Hejaz Government to Royal Air Force aircraft flying over Nejd territory.
  • The purchase of arms by the Hejaz Government from Poland.
  • Ibn Saud's annexation of Asir.
  • The death of King Hussein [Ḥusayn bin ‘Alī al-Hāshimī].
  • Harry St John Bridger Philby's conversion to Islam, his mapping of Rub-al-Khali, and his reported spreading of Saudi propaganda in the Aden Protectorate.
  • The currency exchange crisis in the Hejaz-Nejd and the financial situation in the kingdom generally.
  • Reports on a survey of the water and mineral content of the Hejaz coastal area.
  • Relations between Soviet Russia and Saudi Arabia.
  • The emigration of Jews from Yemen to Palestine, via Aden.
  • British fears that Italy might harbour ambitions to annex Yemen.
  • Saudi oil concessions.
  • Italian-Saudi relations.

Prominent correspondents include the following: the British Agent (later His Majesty's Chargé d’Affaires) at Jeddah; His Majesty's Minister at Jeddah; the High Commissioner for Egypt; the High Commissioner for Iraq; the High Commissioner for Transjordan Used in three contexts: the geographical region to the east of the River Jordan (literally ‘across the River Jordan’); a British protectorate (1921-46); an independent political entity (1946-49) now known as Jordan ; 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. , Kuwait; 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. (later Chief Commissioner, and later still, Governor), Aden; 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. ; His Majesty's Ambassador to Iraq; His Majesty's Ambassador to Italy; the Secretary of State for the Colonies; the Minister (and Acting Minister) for Foreign Affairs for the Kingdom of the Hejaz and Nejd (later Saudi Arabia); Ibn Saud; King Feisal of Iraq; the Prime Minister of Iraq; various officials of the Colonial Office, the Foreign Office, the Air Ministry, and the Admiralty.

The French material in the volume consists of several items of correspondence and a copy of a treaty between France and Yemen, which was signed in April 1936.

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.

Extent and format
1 volume (527 folios)
Arrangement

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

The items of correspondence are divided (roughly) into various sections. Each extract or item of correspondence within these sections has its own number, which is enclosed in brackets. These numbers proceed in ascending (and approximate chronological) order from left to right; however, the sections themselves proceed in reverse, from the rear to the front of the volume, in distinct groups (e.g. for 1929 numbers 1-23, which are located at folios 517-526, are followed by numbers 24-49 at folios 509-516, which are then followed by numbers 50-89 at folios 494-508, and so on).

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 529; 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.

Pagination: each section of correspondence within the volume (as described in the arrangement field) has its own pagination sequence.

Written in
English and French in Latin script
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Coll 6/8(1) 'Printed Series: 1929 to 1938.' [‎162v] (329/1062), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/2071, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100061765164.0x000082> [accessed 26 June 2026]

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