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'File 61/20 I (D 75) Meeting between Kings of Iraq and Nejd' [‎182r] (373/418)

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The record is made up of 1 volume (208 folios). It was created in 7 Jan 1930-28 Nov 1930. It was written in English, Arabic 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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THIS DOCUMENT IS THE PROPERTY OF HIS BRITANNIC MAJESTY'S GOVERNMENT,
EASTERN (Arabia).
April 25, 1930.
CONFIDENTIAL,
Section 1.
[E 2171/111/91]
No. 1.
Sir F. Humphry s to Lord Pass field.—{Communicated hy Colonial Office, April 25.)
Mv Lord, Bagdad, March 15, 1930.
I HAVE the honour to submit the following report on the meeting of King
Faisal with King Ibn Saud on board H.M.S. " Lupin " in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. on the
22nd and 23rd of February, 1930.
2. Arrangements had been made for the steamship " Patrick Stewart to pick
up King Ibn Saud at Has Tanurah on the 20th February, and the King had been
requested to limit the number of his followers to fifty. Actually, he brought a surte
of 118, and, in spite of the captain's protests, insisted on embarking his whole
company and a large quantity of stores. King Faisal embarked at Basra on the
evening of the 21st February on board the " Nearchus," a ship of about 1,500 tons,
which is owned by the Iraq Goyernment. He was accompanied by a suite of twelye
persons including Naji Pasha An Ottoman title used after the names of certain provincial governors, high-ranking officials and military commanders. -al-Suwaidi, the Prime Minister, and Sir Kinahan
Gornwallis. I embarked myself on the same eyenmg with Air Vice-Marshal bir
Robert Brooke-Popham on H.M.S. " Lupin." ^
3. The rendezvous, which was 15 miles out to sea beyond the moutn oi tne
Shatt-al-Arab, was reached by all three ships in the early hours of the 22nd February,
and we anchored in line about 400 yards apart with H.M.S. " Lupm " m the centre.
After I had ascertained that my suggested programme for the conference was
acceptable to both Kings, arrangements were made for their Majesties to board the
c ' Lupin " at three minutes' interval under a salute of twenty-one guns e a ch- King
Ibn Saud was the first to come aboard accompanied by his two principal Ministers,
flafiz Wahba and Fuad Hamza, his private secretary, Yusuf Yasm and three others.
King Faisal followed with a suite of the same number, and I brought the two Kings
together on the quarter-deck. They seemed to eye one another with a mixture oi
curiosity and suspicion, but embraced in Arab fashion with every outward
appearance of cordiality. After each King had introduced the members of his suite
to the other, a move was made to the captain's cabin, which Commander
Sir John Alleyne had kindly placed at my disposal for the conference. 1 he two
Kings sat down side by side on a sofa and, after a few polite courtesies had been
exchanged, I welcomed them in the name of His Majesty's Government and said that
it had given much pleasure to my Government to be the means of lacilitating a
meeting which they confidently hoped would result in the strengthening of the ties
of friendship between the two Arab States and in the dissipation of any misunder
standings which had occurred in the past. Each King in reply expressed his
appreciation of the endeavours of His Britannic Majesty s Government to further
the cause of friendship between Nejd and Iraq, and to the generous thought which
had prompted them to bring about on board one of His Britannic Majesty s ships a
meeting which would otherwise have been so difficult to arrange.
4. After about half-an-hour's desultory talk, King Faisal, contrary to the plan
which had been arranged between us, made a lengthy statement on Iraq-JNe]d
relations, finally leading up to the disagreement on the subject of the desert posts
and enlarging on their pacific purpose and proved usefulness m the maintenance ot
order among the Bedouin tribes. King Ibn Saud gave this speech a patient and
impassive hearing, but, when it was finished, he said it was not his wish that the
friendliness of the meeting should be marred by the intrusion of controversial
discussions. He went on to say that he had made it a condition of his acceptance ot
the invitation to attend the meeting that no formal negotiations should be attempted.
I took this to mean that King Ibn Saud had no intention of discussing details m the
presence of the Neid and Iraqi Ministers, and I arranged for them to withdraw and
leave the two Kings alone with myself and Captain Holt, my oriental secretary. The
conversations were continued till evening without a result being achieved m any
direction. The Ministers were instructed to form themselves into a committee to
discuss the details of all outstanding difficulties, while the two Kings opened their
hearts to each other and confined themselves to questions of principle.
[84 bb—1] B

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Content

The volume contains correspondence relating to a meeting between King Faisal of Iraq and King Ibn Sa‘ud of Najd and Hejaz, overseen by the British. The main correspondents are Sidney Webb, Secretary of State for the Colonies, Francis Humphrys, High Commissioner of Iraq, Harold Dickson, 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. at Kuwait, Hugh Biscoe, 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. at Bushire, the Government of India, British Chargé d'Affaires at Jeddah, Charles Prior, 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. at Bahrain, Robert Clive, British Minister at Tehran, Captain Boyes, Commander of the Triad (at one point Senior Naval Officer in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. ), Captain Marr, Commander of the Patrick Stewart , Captain J. M. Alleyne, Commander of the Lupin (also at one point Senior Naval Officer), members of the Iraqi Government, and Ibn Sa‘ud.

The documents cover the following matters:

  • the planning and preparations for the meeting, including transporting attendees overland and by sea;
  • the costs of the meeting and who will bear them;
  • what subjects are suitable for discussion during the meeting, in particular the repatriation of a rebel leader, Ibn Mashhur;
  • the outcome of the meeting;
  • an unplanned visit to Bahrain by Ibn Sa‘ud, against British wishes.

Notable within the volume are the following documents:

  • a report by Alleyne, Senior Naval Officer, on the meeting (folios 164-172);
  • Humphrys' report on the meeting (folios 182-84);
  • a translation of an article in the Najd and Hejaz newspaper Umm al-Qura, dated 28 November 1930, that contains a detailed account of the meeting (folios 192-98).

Folios 199-201 are internal office notes.

Extent and format
1 volume (208 folios)
Arrangement

The volume is arranged chronologically.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the main foliation sequence runs from front to back (excluding covers), with encircled, pencilled numbers written in the top right corner of each folio. Foliation anomalies: 1, 1A, 1B, 1C; 104, 104A. An earlier and intermittent foliation sequence appears in the same position, in which the numbers are not circled.

Written in
English, Arabic and French in Latin and Arabic script
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'File 61/20 I (D 75) Meeting between Kings of Iraq and Nejd' [‎182r] (373/418), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/R/15/1/599, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100023510669.0x0000ac> [accessed 29 March 2024]

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