![‘Report on the administration of the Persian Gulf Political Agency and Muscat Political Agency for the year 1883-84.’ [‎43v] (26/166)](https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000000358.0x00023f/IOR_V_23_45_ No 198_0027.jp2/full/!1200,1200/0/default.jpg "‘Report on the administration of the Persian Gulf Political Agency and Muscat Political Agency for the year 1883-84.’ [‎43v] (26/166)")
‘Report on the administration of the Persian Gulf Political Agency and Muscat Political Agency for the year 1883-84.’ [43v] (26/166)
The record is made up of 1 volume (87 folios). It was created in 1884. 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. .
Transcription
This transcription is created automatically. It may contain errors.
24 ADMINISTRATION EEPOET OF THE
PERSIAN GULF
The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran.
POLIIICAL
January 1810. During this campaign Mutlak-el-Mutairy, who had been despatched from Nejd
with the advance of the Wahabee army, had arrived with Mohammed Nasir at Bereymee, from
whence on hearing of the British expedition he hastened to the aid of the Kowasim at Ras-el-
Khaimah. Being too late for that affair, he moved across to Shinas, which he reached just after
its fall. For three days the small British force awaited the Wahabee onslaught, but Mutlak
declined an engagement until Colonel Smith had embarked his troops, when he immediately
attacked the 'Omanis, and with such vigour that he completely routed them. On the depar
ture of the British, Sa'eed remained at Sohar, which Mutlak, after pillaging the country around
and massacring the inhabitants in revenge for the attack on Shinas, began to invest. Sa'eed
attempted negociations but failed; he was, nevertheless, soon able to compel Mutlak to raise the
siege, and the latter then proceeded with Mohammed Nasir to Semail, which very shortly sur
rendered to him. Sa'eed, returning to Muscat, strengthened the forts in the Batineh still
remaining to him, but the Wahabees were expecting reinforcements and were indeed already
masters of the position. In these straits he was strongly advised by the French Consul, M.
Dallons, to compromise with Mutlak, but, trusting in eventual aid from Bombay, Sa^eed declined
this advice. The Wahabees now raided ^Oman and harried the inhabitants at will, but Mutlak
had evidently found their subjugation a tougher task than he had anticipated. On the other
hand, Sa'eed's endeavours to rid the country of its foes were unavailing; his utmost efforts
were only equal to maintaining his own independence. He was unable either to assume the
offensive against the invaders or to contend with them in the field, and when, in April of the
following year 1811, Sa'eed, after repulsing Mutlak from the walls of Muscat, ventured to give
him battle in the Ma^Awal valley, he suffered a disastrous defeat. On several occasions Sa'eed
sent appealing letters and envoys to the Bombay Government praying for armed intervention
and support against his enemies, representing that his alliance with the British in the late
campaign had incensed the Wahabees against him and made them implacable in their enmity.
The request, however, was not complied with, as Government considered it impolitic to offend
the Wahabees or to undertake hostilities against them. Sa'eed then turned his attention to
Persia. It was arranged that his brother Salim should proceed to Fars and request aid from
the Governor-General of that Province. Provided with suitable presents, Salim accordingly
made his way to Shiraz, where the influence of Pishkush procured him the promised assistance
of 1,500 men. Accompanied by this auxiliary force under the command of Saadi Khan, sllim
icturned to Muscat early in 1812, and operations were at once renewed against the Wahabees.
In the meantime Sa eed, taking advantage of the Egyptian successes over the Wahabees in
Western Arabia, which had compelled the latter to concentrate their forces, despatched his
cousin, Hilal-hm-Hamad, against Zohara, and El Bahrein. The expedition was partially suc-
cesrful, and the W ahabee agent, AbduIla-bin-Ufeysan taken prisoner, but no advantage resulted
to Sa eed. The operations undertaken against the Wahabees on the arrival of the Persian con.
tingent were conducted by Sahm, who, in conjunction with Azzan-bin-Kais and Saadi Khan
marc ic against the Wahabees at Nakhl and obliged them to retire to Zikki; Semail also fell •
TT t00 £ar ' Salim and his IWnS were completely routed
by Mutlak at Zikki and driven back to Barka. Mutlak took his revPno-P hv " v i
evastating the Sharkiyeh as far as Eas-el-Had, leaving a bloody^c7 fL 'hi ^'Tn te
following year Sa'eed made preparations for a second expedition against RiU cl Kb I ^
purpose of reinstating the Kowasim Shaikh, Sul,an-b n-SaW
ZTt^i^ $7T*' t T"? \ Jeddal1 ' ^ eltrr
small fleet had been despatched with Shaikh Sultan to Ra=! p 1 Kl • ^ CO " 0 P eiall0n -' and a
unsuccessful. Mr. Bruce, the British Resident in ^ ^
time to make arrangements for the appointment of n Tv /• a arrived ^ Muscat at this
accompany bim to the pirate coast, to lend S tftle ^ ^ ^ t0
having instructions from Government to rpnpw /wf " ^ • operations. Mr. Bruce,
but the operation failed, and Sa'eed returned defeated toNlusI't Th'^ C '"'f s ' conl P lied '
quarrel and consequent operations ao-ainst tV W,1 l 1 " s es Pousal of Sultan's
gave fresh cause of offence at El CyLt an^ttrvT 11 ? f naturally
hostilities and been residing at Bereymee received ord t SOme time sas P«n d «i
ingly gathered his forces, quitted Bereymee ^nd m 1 ? ^ m0 ™ a S ainst Muscat. He aecori-
Azzan-bin-Kais made term's with
a personal interview and induced him to rpH™ \ 4i ' e to offer 0 PP osl tion, arranged
With this amount Mutlak returned f " d °^-
appear to have been disapproved by the Ami,- A , n ' a " donln S the cam Paign would
W by the Am,,. Another General, named El Azdakah, was
About this item
- Content
Administration Report on the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. Residency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, established in the provinces and regions considered part of, or under the influence of, British India. and Muscat Political Agency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, headed by an agent. for the year 1883-84, by Lieutenant-Colonel Edward Charles Ross, 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. , published by Authority by the Superintendent of Government Printing, Calcutta [Kolkata]. A copy of a letter from Ross to Charles Grant, Secretary to the Government of India (Foreign Department), dated 17 July 1884, is included in the report (folio 33), the original of which submitted the report to Government, under the following headings:
Part 1 ( General Report ), written by Ross (folios 34-39), containing summaries of local political affairs, and incidents or events of particular note for: Oman and the Pirate Coast; Bahrain; Nejd, El-Hasa [Al-Hasa] and El-Katr [Qatar]; Fars, including Lingah [Bandar-e Lengeh] and Bunder Abbass [Bandar-e ʻAbbās], and the coast between Bushire and Bandar-e Lengeh; Persian Arabistan; Persian Beloochistan [Baluchistan] and Gwadur; and Bassidore. The report also contains summaries of changes in official personnel (referred to as political establishment); British naval movements in the Gulf; and a summary of meteorological events observed at the Bushire observatory. Appendix A contains tabulated and graphical meteorological data for the year, supplied by the Bushire observatory.
Part 2 ( Administration Report of the Muscat Political Agency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, headed by an agent. for the year 1883-84 ), submitted by Lieutenant-Colonel Samuel Barrett Miles, Her Britannic Majesty’s 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. and Consul at Muscat, dated 9 June 1884 (folios 40-50), containing a summary of affairs at Muscat, including raids and fighting around Muscat in October 1884, between rebel forces and those allied to the Sultan of Muscat. The report also records changes to British official personnel at Muscat, and notes recent shipwrecks on the Muscat coast. Appendix A is a biographical sketch, written by Miles, of Sayyid Sa'eed-bin-Sultan, the Imam of Muscat.
Part 3 ( Report on Trade for the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. for 1883 , folios 50-105), comprising a short summary of the year’s trade, and followed by two appendices, labelled A and B, but arranged in reverse order: B) Supplementary notes on the care and culture of date trees and fruit, written by A. R. Hakim, Assistant to 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. ; A) tabulated data on trade, including data on imports and exports into and out of the Gulf ports of Bushire, Lingah [Bandar-e Lengeh], Bunder Abbass [Bandar-e ʻAbbās], Bahrain and the Arab (Oman) coast. An index to the trade tables can be found at folios 53-54.
Part 4 (
[at Muscat]), submitted by Miles, dated 9 June 1884 (folios 105-12), comprising a short summary of the year’s trade at Muscat, and an appendix containing tabulated data on imports and exports at Muscat (listed by commodity), and the nationality and average tonnage of vessels visiting Muscat.
- Extent and format
- 1 volume (87 folios)
- Arrangement
The report is arranged into four numbered parts, with lettered appendices containing further reports and statistical data after each. Two appendices following part two of the report are labelled in reverse order (B then A, instead of A then B).
- Physical characteristics
Foliation: There is a foliation sequence, which is circled in pencil, in the top right corner of the recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. of each folio. It begins on the first folio, on number 32, and ends on the last folio, on number 112.
Pagination: The volume contains an original typed pagination sequence.
- Written in
- English in Latin script View the complete information for this record
Use and share this item
- Share this item
‘Report on the administration of the Persian Gulf Political Agency and Muscat Political Agency for the year 1883-84.’ [43v] (26/166), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/V/23/45, No 198, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100023580328.0x00001c> [accessed 25 April 2024]
https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100023580328.0x00001c
Copy and paste the code below into your web page where you would like to embed the image.
<meta charset="utf-8"><a href="https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100023580328.0x00001c">‘Report on the administration of the Persian Gulf Political Agency and Muscat Political Agency for the year 1883-84.’ [‎43v] (26/166)</a> <a href="https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100023580328.0x00001c"> <img src="https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000000358.0x00023f/IOR_V_23_45_ No 198_0027.jp2/full/!280,240/0/default.jpg" alt="" /> </a>
This record has a IIIF manifest available as follows. If you have a compatible viewer you can drag the icon to load it.https://www.qdl.qa/en/iiif/81055/vdc_100000000358.0x00023f/manifestOpen in Universal viewerOpen in Mirador viewerMore options for embedding images
Copyright: How to use this content
- Reference
- IOR/V/23/45, No 198
- Title
- ‘Report on the administration of the Persian Gulf Political Agency and Muscat Political Agency for the year 1883-84.’
- Pages
- front, 31v:113r, back
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence