'File 53/11 XIV (D 137) Kuwait Date Gardens in Iraq'

IOR/R/15/1/496

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The record is made up of 1 volume (240 folios). It was created in 3 Jan 1938-3 May 1938. 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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Content

This file contains correspondence between British officials regarding date gardens in southern Iraq owned by the rulers of Kuwait and Mohammerah. In particular, the correspondence concerns the Government of Iraq's decision to end the immunity from taxation (on the gardens) that had been granted by the British Government to the former ruler of Kuwait, Shaikh Mubārak Āl Ṣabāḥ and the Shaikh of Mohammerah, Khaz‘al bin Jābir al-Ka‘bī in return for their military support against the Ottoman Empire in WW1.

The correspondence discusses in detail a number of cases in the Iraqi courts regarding the gardens (by that time owned by the ruler of Kuwait, Shaikh Aḥmad al-Jābir Āl Ṣabāḥ) and attempts made by British officials in Iraq and Kuwait to mediate between the two sides. In the correspondence, British officials discuss whether or not the British Government should compensate Shaikh Aḥmad for the amount of tax he had been forced to pay by the Government of Iraq and exactly what area of land was covered by the 1914 promise. More broadly, the correspondence is focused on how the disagreement can be settled permanently and whether an agreement incorporating border demarcations and anti-smuggling measures could form a part of any final settlement between Kuwait and Iraq.

The file contains correspondence regarding the hiring of an Egyptian lawyer to assist in compiling the defence for Shaikh Aḥmad. Two Egyptian lawyers are discussed and hired: Tewfik Doss Pasha An Ottoman title used after the names of certain provincial governors, high-ranking officials and military commanders. [Tawfīq Doss[?] Bāshā] and Ahmed Rushidi Bey [Aḥmad Rashīdī Bey]. The file also contains reports regarding the cutting down of trees on Shaikh Aḥmad's estates in Fao by order of the Iraqi authorities.

The file contains the following documents:

Extent and format
1 volume (240 folios)
It is grouped into
Arrangement

File is arranged in chronological order, from earliest at beginning of the file to most recent at end.

An index of topics contained in the file is included on folio 1A. .

Physical characteristics

Condition: A bound correspondence volume (although some of the file's sheets have come unbound and are now loose).

Foliation: The file's foliation sequence commences at the title page and terminates at the fifth folio from the back of the volume; these numbers are written in pencil, and can be found 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 file contains the following foliation errors: 1, 1A and 1B; 14 and 14A; 215 and 215A.

Written in
English in Latin script
Type
Archival file

Archive information for this record

Access & Reference

Original held at
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.
Access conditions

Unrestricted

Archive reference
IOR/R/15/1/496
Former external reference(s)
A Series: 53/11 XIV Confidential Series: D 137

History of this record

Date(s)
3 Jan 1938-3 May 1938 (CE, Gregorian)

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'File 53/11 XIV (D 137) Kuwait Date Gardens in Iraq', British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/R/15/1/496, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100000000193.0x0001d5> [accessed 28 March 2024]

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