Diary and Consultations of Mr Alexander Douglas, Agent of the East India Company at Gombroon [Bandar-e ʻAbbās] in the Persian Gulf, commencing 3 August 1754 and ending 31 July 1755.

Content

The volume is in the form of a diary, which contains records of consultations at the Gombroon [Bandar-e ʻAbbās] Factory An East India Company trading post. . The Chief Agent, Alexander Douglas, and the Factory’s Council members Richard Secker and John Parsons, headed the consultations. They recorded the daily activities, the administrative decisions made, letters sent and received, as well as visits to and from the Factory An East India Company trading post. . Records of significant political and military operations in the region are also preserved.

Among the main details and issues recorded in the diary are the following:

• Reports of the Ballooches [Baluch] entering Persia
• Reports of Ahmed Shaw Affghoon [Ahmad Shah Afghan Dorrani, also known as Ahmad Shah Abdali ruled 1747-1772; the forename is also written in the volume as Ahmet and Ashmed] taking the towns of Mushad [Mashhad], Neshabour [Nishapur] and Hiraut [Herat]; and building a city and calling it Amadabad [Ahmedabad]
• News of Ahmed Shaw appointing Nasseir Caun [Nāsir Khān Āl Mazkūr, Shaikh of Būshehr, ruled 1162-1203/c 1749-1788] as the Beglerbeg [Beglerbegi/ Beylerbeyi is Turkish and Azeri for Governor-General] of the Hot Countries
• News of Ahmed Shaw appointing Sharroock Caun [Shāhrokh Mīrzā Afshār, c 1734-1796, Governor of Kerman] as Governor of Carmenia [Kerman, also written Cermina]
• The enmity between Carem Caun [Karīm Khān Zand, Vakil Elected representative or attorney, acting in legal matters such as contracting marriage, inheritance, or business; a high-ranking legal official; could also refer to a custodian or administrator. of Persia, also written as Carim] and Azad Caun [Āzād Khān Ghilza'ī, d 1782, Beglerbeg of Azarbāijān]
• The arrival of wool from Carmenia
• Records of letters received from the Linguist (i.e. interpreter) at Carmenia advising on the amount of wool sent and the bills
• Records of a petition raised by Jacques Charles Hermet, formerly Linguist at Spahaun [Isfahan]
• Reports of Moolah Ally Shaw [Mulla Ali Shah fl 1740-1760], the Governor of Gombroon taking possession of the castle of Ormuse [Jazīreh-ye Hormoz, Hormuz, Ormuz]
• The appointment of William Nash as the Factory’s Secretary
• News of Moolah Abdul Carem Guialadary [Mulla Abd al-Karim Gallahdari, one of Nasseir Caun’s principal officers, also written as Kerim] revolting against him
• The enmity between Carem Caun and Nasseir Caun
• News of military engagement between Nasseir Caun and the Hoolah [Hawla] Arabs
• Records of the activities of French and Dutch vessels
• Records of shipped commodities such as cotton, iron, sugar, tin, copper, spices, salt, peppers, and coffee
• The appointment of Francis Wood, Resident for the Company’s affairs at Bunderick [Bandar-e Rīg]
• News of Moolah Ally Shaw’s forces facing those of Shaik Rama of Julfar [Raḥmah bin Maṭar al-Qāsimī One of the ruling families of the United Arab Emirates; also used to refer to a confederation of seafaring Arabs led by the Qāsimī tribe from Ras al Khaima. , Shaikh of Julfār] at the Island of Kishme [Qishm, or Qeshm].

The diary includes records of letters exchanged between the Factory An East India Company trading post. Agent and the President and Governor-in-Council of Bombay, (Richard Bourchier) and the rest of the council members. It also includes records of letters sent and received from the Resident at Bussorah [Basra, also written as Bussora] William Shaw. They cover details of the situation at Bussorah and Bagdat [Baghdad]; the activities of the Dutch and their fortification of Carack [also written Carrack, modern (Bandar) Charak]; the relations with the Turks; the affairs of some Armenian prisoners; ships sailing and arriving; and news received from the British Consulate at Aleppo. William Shaw also provides a detailed account of the conduct of two British subjects Robert Baldrick and Francis Walker, among the supra cargoes in the ship Prince Edward’s commission.

The diary includes records of the arrival and departure of ships, including the Neptune g alley, the Alice s loop, the Rose g alley, the Prince George , the Stafford , the Indian Queen , the Hardwicke , the Warwick , the Fezraboony [ Fayz Rabbani ], the London , the Kent , the Bridgewater , the Swallow , and the Cadaree .

The ships sailed mainly to and from Gombroon, Bombay, Bussorah, Bunderick, Bengal [also written as Bengall], Surat, Madras [also written as Madrass], China, Batavia [Jakarta], Mocha, Ormuse, Busshier [Būshehr, also written as Bussheir, Busshere, and Busshire] and the Mallabar [Malabar] Coast.

The diary includes abstracts of the standard account disbursements for each month. These cover the following: table expenses, garrison charges, the Afseen [Afsin] Garden, merchandised charges, extraordinary charges, stable charges, servants' wages, ships’ charges, and Factory An East India Company trading post. repairs.

Extent and format

1 volume (88 folios)

Arrangement

The volume includes one diary that includes a table of contents (folios 3 verso The back of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'v'. -5 recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. ) recording the main events and their sequence in the diary. The diary itself is numbered 1-162, which corresponds to folios 6-86. The papers are arranged in chronological order from the front to the rear of the diary.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with 1 and terminates at the last folio with 88; 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.

Pagination: the file also contains an original pagination sequence.

Written in

English in Latin script

Type

Archival file

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/G/29/8

History of this record

Date(s)

3 Aug 1754-31 Jul 1755 (CE, Gregorian)

Subjects

ShipsAdministrationWool tradeVisits

Places

OrmusCarmeniaBusshierJulfarBunderickCharrackKishmeBussorah

People & organisations

Ruler of the Afghan EmpireChief Factory AgentResident, BussoraĀzād Khān Ghilza'īRaḥmah bin Maṭar al-QāsimīNāṣir Khān Āl MazkūrShāhrokh Mīrzā AfshārKarīm Khān Zand

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Diary and Consultations of Mr Alexander Douglas, Agent of the East India Company at Gombroon [Bandar-e ʻAbbās] in the Persian Gulf, commencing 3 August 1754 and ending 31 July 1755., British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/G/29/8, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/node/9578> [accessed 10 October 2024]

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