!['Turkish Arabia: Being an Account of an Official Tour in Babylonia, Assyria, and Mesopotamia, 1886-87' [‎8r] (15/72)](https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000001452.0x0002df/Mss Eur F112_384_0018.jp2/full/!1200,1200/0/default.jpg "'Turkish Arabia: Being an Account of an Official Tour in Babylonia, Assyria, and Mesopotamia, 1886-87' [‎8r] (15/72)")
'Turkish Arabia: Being an Account of an Official Tour in Babylonia, Assyria, and Mesopotamia, 1886-87' [8r] (15/72)
The record is made up of 1 volume (35 folios). It was created in 1888. It was written in English and Persian. 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.
On the present occasion the public servants consisted (at first starting) of one Arabic
writer
The lowest of the four classes into which East India Company civil servants were divided. A Writer’s duties originally consisted mostly of copying documents and book-keeping.
, four horsemen of the
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.
escort, one groom,
Camp fol owers. water-carrier, and two tent-pitchers. By degrees
three horsemen and several servants were sent back for the sake of lightening what Per
sians call the il kdr -wan" and Arabs, the " kdjila. ,>
For the public and private baggage and followers sixteen mules had to be taken.
Two of these were laden with skins of drinking water,
Kafila
A train of travellers; a caravan; or any large party of travellers.
at starting. ^ least as many more with forage. In these regions
not the humblest camp-follower is expected to walk.
Section II.—Transport.
In
Turkish Arabia
A term used by the British officials to describe the territory roughly corresponding to, but not coextensive with, modern-day Iraq under the control of the Ottoman Empire.
wheeled carriage is seldom seen as yet outside the larger towns,
though sometimes an old mulla, or infirm official, will take
either an ancient carriage of European extraction or a very
primitive local ark into unlikely places. The late Commander-in-Chief of the Baghdad
Corps d'Armee, besides starting public conveyances drawn by ponies between the town
and suburbs, introduced a number of ponderous mule-waggons for delivering soldiers'
rations. The rumbling of these in the narrow streets sounds like thunder, and they are
blamed for the fall lately of several old houses. They are too unwieldy for outside use ;
but considering (i) how flat on the whole this country is, and (2) that a mule can
draw four times the weight he can carry, there is no doubt any number of properly made
baggage-carts, Bombay tongas, and even Bengal ekkas, could here be utilized with the
best results. If ever this have to be tried, one good mode of doing so would be this—-
Mule gear equally for
draught and paclc.
so that the animal might be worked equally in harness and under a pack. The above
is after a design put forward by Captain G. Gaisford, in a paper contributed to the
" Journal of the United Service Institute of India" a few years ago.
In towns this is in great request. Large classes of Arabs make a profession of
carrying burdens on their backs ; and a Kurd in particular
Human transport. w ni take it as a compliment to be told he is as good as a
mule! Peasants also, both men and women, are accustomed to carry loads of produce
to market towns. Thus there would probably be no difficulty in organising in Turkish
Arabia trains of carriers on a large scale. The Indian dull, or litter, is here represented
by the Persian takht-i-rawdn, the poles of which rest on mules; but if human bearers "
were wanted there would be plenty of them. The Arab having no notion of caste
will do almost anything for money, without bestowing a thought on whether his fathers
and grandfathers did it before him.
As the case stands it is on the backs of camels, mules, ponies, and asses that the
traffic of the country mostly proceeds. These are to be
Baggage animals. hired or bought largely at centres like Baghdad and
Mosul; but by no means everywhere. The advantages and disadvantages of hiring, as
against buying, are pretty evenly balanced. On the one hand, animals do infinitely
better with their owners than with servants ; on the other, it is impossible to prevent the
owners of hired transport from having a voice as to what routes are practicable. On
the whole, recent experiences have been all in favour of hiring, provided it is done
About this item
- Content
This volume is a printed account of the official winter tour of 1886-87 in Babylonia, Assyria and Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq) undertaken by Colonel William Tweedie, Bengal Staff Corps, 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 Turkish Arabia A term used by the British officials to describe the territory roughly corresponding to, but not coextensive with, modern-day Iraq under the control of the Ottoman Empire. (Iraq) and His Majesty's Consul-General at Baghdad. The purpose of the tour was to visit the Vice-Consulate of Mosul in Upper Mesopotamia and the Consulate at Bussorah [Basra], as well as Indian subjects residing in Karbala and Najaf, the two centres of Shiah pilgrimage. In addition, the author identifies it as an opportunity to see the inhabitants and features of Turkish Arabia A term used by the British officials to describe the territory roughly corresponding to, but not coextensive with, modern-day Iraq under the control of the Ottoman Empire. more generally (folio 7). The report was published by the British 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. Baghdad on 24 May 1887, and printed by the Superintendent of Government Printing, Calcutta, India in 1888. This copy was presented by the author to George Curzon (see inscription on folio 2v).
The volume contains a table of contents (folio 5), list of maps and illustations (folio 6), and note on Arabic and Persian transliteration and names (folio 6v). The volume includes the following sections: 'Section I.- Marching in Turkish Arabia A term used by the British officials to describe the territory roughly corresponding to, but not coextensive with, modern-day Iraq under the control of the Ottoman Empire. '; 'Section II.- Transport'; 'Section III.- Equipment'; 'Section IV.- From Tigris to Euphrates'; 'Section V.- Across Al Jazîrah [al-Jazīrah]'; 'Section VI.- Localised Bedouins east of Tigris'; 'Section VII.- Through Al Hawîja [al-Ḥawījah] to Kirkûk'; 'Section VIII.- Kirkûk to Sulimânîa [Sulaymānīyah]'; 'Section IX.- Sulimânîa to Mosul'; 'Section X.- Mosul to Sinjâr Hills', including details about the Yazîdîs [Yazidis]; 'Section XI.- Sinjâr to Der on the Euphrates'; 'Section XII.- Right bank of Euphrates, from Der to Rumâdi [al-Ramādī]'; 'Section XIII.- Southern Shâmîya'; 'Section XIV.- Karbalâ and Najaf'; and 'Section XV.- Baghdad to Bussorah and back, by steamer', including details on Arab coast of the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. and Muhamarah.
Illustrations include: 'Resident's Camp, Turkish Arabia A term used by the British officials to describe the territory roughly corresponding to, but not coextensive with, modern-day Iraq under the control of the Ottoman Empire. , 1886' (folio 7v); 'Mule gear equally for draught and pack' (folio 8); 'Arab pâlân [ pālān , pack-saddle]' and 'Persian pâlân' (folio 9); 'Arab Camel-rider: and Saddle' and 'Horseshoe of Arabs, Persians, Turkomans, Afghans, and others' (folio 9v); 'Picqueting chain and peg (forefront)' and 'Arab and Persian paiwand' (folio 10); 'Arab rashma [ rashmah ]: including (1) rashma proper, or (iron) nose-band: (2) idhâr [ ‘idhār ] , or headstall: and (3) rasn [ rasan ] (lit. rope) or rein' (folio 10v); and 'Flying camp: Sinjâr to Karbala (all three tents Baghdad-made)' (folio 24).
Maps include: 'Map Accompanying Account by Resident, Turkish Arabia A term used by the British officials to describe the territory roughly corresponding to, but not coextensive with, modern-day Iraq under the control of the Ottoman Empire. , of his Winter-Tour, 1886-87' (folio 4v); 'Sketch of Map of Route from Hît to Tikrît crossing lower portion of Al-Jazîra' (folio 14v); 'Mosul Pashâlik, 1887' and 'Plan of Mosul Town (After Capt. F. Jones), 1852' (folio 18v); and 'Straightest route (across Syrian desert) for camel riders only, between Baghdad and Mediterranean, as followed by late (Consular) dromedary post' (folio 27).
- Extent and format
- 1 volume (35 folios)
- Arrangement
This volume contains a page of contents (folio 5) which references page numbers.
- Physical characteristics
Condition: Folio 34 includes annotation (likely by Curzon) and a section of text has been cut out and removed.
Foliation: The foliation sequence commences at the front cover, and terminates at the inside back cover; 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. Pagination: The volume also contains an original printed pagination sequence.
- Written in
- English and Persian in Latin and Arabic script View the complete information for this record
Use and share this item
- Share this item
'Turkish Arabia: Being an Account of an Official Tour in Babylonia, Assyria, and Mesopotamia, 1886-87' [8r] (15/72), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, Mss Eur F112/384, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100023643185.0x000011> [accessed 24 April 2024]
https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100023643185.0x000011
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_100023643185.0x000011">'Turkish Arabia: Being an Account of an Official Tour in Babylonia, Assyria, and Mesopotamia, 1886-87' [‎8r] (15/72)</a> <a href="https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100023643185.0x000011"> <img src="https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000001452.0x0002df/Mss Eur F112_384_0018.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_100000001452.0x0002df/manifestOpen in Universal viewerOpen in Mirador viewerMore options for embedding images
Copyright: How to use this content
- Reference
- Mss Eur F112/384
- Title
- 'Turkish Arabia: Being an Account of an Official Tour in Babylonia, Assyria, and Mesopotamia, 1886-87'
- Pages
- front, front-i, 2r:29r, 30v:35v, i-r:i-v, back-i, back
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence