Diary and Consultations of Mr Alexander Douglas, Agent of the East India Company at Gombroon [Bandar-e ʻAbbās] in the Persian Gulf, commencing 16 January and ending 31 July 1760

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 occasionally, the Factory An East India Company trading post. 's Council members William Nash and Dymoke Lyster, headed the consultations. They recorded the daily activities, the administrative decisions made, letters sent and received, and the significant political and military operations in the region.

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

• The French seizing the East India Company's ship Speedwell
• Reports of the country people attacking the Factory An East India Company trading post.
• News of Shaik Rama [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, also written as Rama and Rammah] of Julfar [Julfār in what is now Ra's al Khaymah, also written as Gulfar] seizing the effects of Moolah Ally Shaw [Mulla Ali Shah] in Ormuse [[Jazīreh-ye Hormoz, Hormuz, Ormuz, also written as Ormus]
• 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 Nasseir Caun [Nāṣir Khān Āl Mazkūr, Shaikh of Būshehr, ruled 1162-1203/c 1749-1788]
• The Imaum [Imam] of Muscat [also written as Muskatt] trying to entice the French ships ashore either at Muscat or Bourka
• Records of the activities of French and Dutch vessels
• Nasseir Caun sending his brother Jaffar Caun [Ja‘afar Khān] to Afseen [Afsin] to build a fort there
• Records of military engagement between Dutch and English ships
• Correspondence with William Hutchinson, Captain of the ship Godolphin regarding sailing orders
• The Benimine [Banu Mu‘in] and Charrack Arabs' [Al-'Ali, based at Charrack, modern (Bandar) Charak] confrontation with the Haram and Julfar Arabs over the Island of Kishme [Qishm, Qeshm]
• Records of a battle at Nandervash [Vandavasi or Wandiwash, south-west India] between French and English forces
• The arrival of wool from Cermina [Kerman, also written as Carmenia]
• Records of letters received from the Linguist (i.e. interpreter) at Carmenia advising on the amount of wool sent and the bills
• Accounts of damaged cloth delivered out of the Company's warehouse
• The Agent visiting the Cutwal [Kutwal from Persian, means the chief of a fort] of Ormuse castle
• The engagement between Nasseir Caun’s troops and the Julfar Arabs at Linga [Bandar-e Lengeh]
• Letters exchanged between the Factory An East India Company trading post. Agent and the President and Governor-in-Council at Bombay, and Council Members
• The President and Governor-in-Council at Bombay, Richard Bourchier resigning from his post, and Charles Crommelin taking over
• Records of the work of the Committee of Accounts
• The Bombay Council correspondence with the King of Siam regarding ship Northumberland which had been seized by his people
• Letters exchanged between the Resident at Bussorah [Basra, also written as Bossarah], William Shaw, and the Factory An East India Company trading post. at Gombroon
• Records of events taking place in Bussorah and Bagdat [Baghdad]
• William Shaw’s visit to the Bashaw An Ottoman title used after the names of certain provincial governors, high-ranking officials and military commanders. [ Pasha An Ottoman title used after the names of certain provincial governors, high-ranking officials and military commanders. ] of Bagdat and the good relations paved between the two
• The delivery of packets to the Court of Directors The London-based directors of the East India Company who dealt with the daily conduct of the Company's affairs. via Aleppo and Stambole [Istanbul].

The diary includes records of the arrival and departure of ships, including the Dragon , the Welcome , the Godolphin , the Swallow , the Fort William , the Royal George , the Duke of Dorset , the Drake , the Calcutta , the Monmouth , the Roumania and the Fuzeraboony .

Ships sailed mainly to and from Gombroon, Bombay, Bussorah, Bengall [Bengal], Surat, Muscat, Bushier [Būshehr], and Ormuse.

The diary includes abstracts of the standard account disbursements for each month. These cover the following: table expenses, garrison charges, house repairs, the Afseen Garden, merchandised charges, extraordinary charges, servants' wages, ships' charges, and hospital charges.

Extent and format

1 volume (56 folios)

Arrangement

The diary includes a table of contents (ff 3 verso The back of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'v'. -4 recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. ) recording the main events and their sequence. The diary itself is numbered 1-99, which corresponds to folios 5-54. 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 inside back cover with 57; 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 cover.

Pagination: the file also contains an original pagination sequence.

Written in

English in Latin script

Type

Diary

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/29/12

History of this record

Date(s)

16 Jan 1760-31 Jul 1760 (CE, Gregorian)

Subjects

AdministrationWool tradeVisitsShips

Places

CarmeniaOrmusCerminaJulfarMuscatCharrackBussorah

People & organisations

East India Company FactoryĀl Bū Sa'īd dynasty, Imam of Muscat and OmanResident, BussoraKarīm Khān ZandRaḥmah bin Maṭar al-QāsimīNāṣir Khān Āl MazkūrBanū Mu‘īn (Tribe)Āl Ḥarām (Tribe)Āl ‘Alī (Tribe)

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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 16 January and ending 31 July 1760, British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/G/29/12, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100000001251.0x000369> [accessed 3 October 2024]

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