!['File 53/11 VIII (D 98) Date Gardens of Shaikhs of Kuwait and Mohammerah' [‎76r] (168/576)](https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000000193.0x0001cf/IOR_R_15_1_490_0168.jp2/full/!1200,1200/0/default.jpg "'File 53/11 VIII (D 98) Date Gardens of Shaikhs of Kuwait and Mohammerah' [‎76r] (168/576)")
'File 53/11 VIII (D 98) Date Gardens of Shaikhs of Kuwait and Mohammerah' [76r] (168/576)
The record is made up of 1 volume (286 folios). It was created in 30 Sep 1933-30 May 1934. It was written in English, Arabic and Turkish. 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.
CONFIDSKTOAL. s POLITICAL
AGENCY
An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, headed by an agent.
,
No. 270, KUWAIT.
ojl'b Dated the 9th November 19 33.
• ri-H
Hu 1 V U - 3 3
From - • •■—— - —
Lt # -Colonel H#R»P #DjLc ^soii, C»I.S» f I^A^i
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.
, Kuwait;
To
The Hon'ble 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.
, Bushire»
Shaikh's Date gardens in , Ira^>
Sir,
I have the honour to report that in a receaat
oonversation which I had with Mr#Gabriel, the legal
representative of His Excellency the Shaikh of Kuwait in
f Iraq, the latter gave it as his very positive opinion
that the ^Istahlak^ Law had been originally introduced
by the 'Iraq aovernment mainly in order to enable them
to'get at* the Shaikhs of Mohammerah and Kuwait in the
matter of their large properties on the Shatt al Arab,
T&hich were exempt from taxation#
2 # Mr ♦Gabriel was equally positive that as soon as
they (the 'Iraq Government) could conveniently do so,
without raising too big an outcry against themselves,
especially from His Majesty's Government, they would revert
again to the old Turkish system of Land Tax i.e. the
'Khums' or 20 ^ of the crop system, #iich used to be
assessed on standing crops by measurement, and on date
gardens by the 'Jarib' or acreage calculation#
3# Mr-Gabriel when challenged by me <£5 to his reasons
for assuming that there would be such a change, replied
(a) that the 'Iraq Government were definitely losing some
15/SO
lacs
One lakh is equal to one hundred thousand rupees
of revenue (
rupees
Indian silver coin also widely used in the Persian Gulf.
) under the Istahlak system,
and could not possibly continue to lose this anount for
/ / r
About this item
- Content
This file contains correspondence between British officials regarding date gardens in southern Iraq owned by the rulers of Mohammerah and Kuwait. The correspondence discusses changes in legislation proposed by the Government of Iraq regarding the collection of land rent and land produce duties, and the impact of these changes to the ruler of Kuwait, Shaikh Aḥmad al-Jābir Āl Ṣabāḥ.
In particular, the correspondence concerns the Government of Iraq's decision to end the immunity from taxation (on the gardens) that had been granted to the former ruler of Kuwait, Shaikh Mubārak Āl Ṣabāḥ and the Shaikh of Mohammerah, Khaz‘al bin Jābir al-Ka‘bī by the British Government in return for their military support against the Ottoman Empire in World War 1.
The file contains details regarding a legal case brought against Shaikh Aḥmad by members of the Al Zuhair family regarding the ownership of some of his land holdings in Iraq.
Correspondence in the file states that the problems between Shaikh Aḥmad and fellaheen Arabic for ‘peasant’. It was used by British officials to refer to agricultural workers or to members of a social class employed primarily in agricultural labour. (agricultural workers) on his land - as described in detail in IOR/R/15/1/489 - had been resolved.
The file contains correspondence regarding Jacob Gabriel, the Armenian legal representative of Shaikh Ahmad (ff. 5-13) as well as minutes from two meetings held at the Foreign Office with representatives from the 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. , the Treasury, the Treasury Solicitor's Department and the Foreign Office (ff.167-183 & ff. 187-200).
The file also contains the following:
- An English translation of an article which appeared in the Iraqi newspaper Al Ahali in December 1933. The article accuses the Al Sabah family of 'meddling' with fellaheen Arabic for ‘peasant’. It was used by British officials to refer to agricultural workers or to members of a social class employed primarily in agricultural labour. in order to preserve control over their lands in Iraq (f.111).
- A copy (in Arabic) of Iraq's Land Laws (ff. 120-130).
- Detailed figures concerning the produce of Shaikh Aḥmad's lands and the amount of tax and export duties paid on them (ff. 214-227).
- Extent and format
- 1 volume (286 folios)
- Arrangement
File is arranged in chronological order, from earliest at beginning of the file to most recent at end.
- Physical characteristics
Condition: Formerly a bound correspondence volume, the file's sheets have been unbound and are now loose.
Foliation: The volume is foliated from the front cover to the inside back cover, using uncircled pencil numbers in the top-right corner of each recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. .
The following foliation anomalies occur: 1a-1e, 27a, 140a-140f, 142a, 146a, 237a.
- Written in
- English, Arabic and Turkish in Latin and Arabic script View the complete information for this record
Use and share this item
- Share this item
'File 53/11 VIII (D 98) Date Gardens of Shaikhs of Kuwait and Mohammerah' [76r] (168/576), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/R/15/1/490, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100023601520.0x0000a9> [accessed 23 April 2024]
https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100023601520.0x0000a9
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_100023601520.0x0000a9">'File 53/11 VIII (D 98) Date Gardens of Shaikhs of Kuwait and Mohammerah' [‎76r] (168/576)</a> <a href="https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100023601520.0x0000a9"> <img src="https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000000193.0x0001cf/IOR_R_15_1_490_0168.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_100000000193.0x0001cf/manifestOpen in Universal viewerOpen in Mirador viewerMore options for embedding images
Copyright: How to use this content
- Reference
- IOR/R/15/1/490
- Title
- 'File 53/11 VIII (D 98) Date Gardens of Shaikhs of Kuwait and Mohammerah'
- Pages
- front, back, spine, edge, head, tail, front-i, 1ar:1ev, 2r:5v, 7v:9v, 11v:14v, 15v:18v, 19v:27v, 27ar:27av, 28r:35v, 36v:37v, 41v, 44v:120r, 131r:140v, 140ar:140av, 141r:142v, 142ar:142av, 143v:146v, 146ar:146av, 147r:197v, 199v:237v, 237ar:237av, 238r:270v, back-i
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence