Skip to item: of 30
Information about this record Back to top
Open in Universal viewer
Open in Mirador IIIF viewer

'Persian Gulf - Turkish jurisdiction along the Arabian coast (Part III)' [‎17r] (27/30)

This item is part of

The record is made up of 1 file (15 folios). It was created in 2 Dec 1881. 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.

Apply page layout

27
* Nejd. This term has been rather
loosely applied to the coast districts of El
Hassa and Kateef, as -well as to that portion
of Central Arabia to which alone it strictly
belongs. See Memo, by Mr. W. Blunt, in
Foreign Office letter of 2nd July 1880
(Home, No. 484), according to whom Nejd,
properly so called, is independent, in all but
name, of the Porte.—A. W. M.
t Political, No. 67, dated 27tb May 1881.
J Aitchison, ^ol. VII., p. 70.
§ For a Note by Sir C. Aitchison, when
Foreign Secretary, which has a bearing on
this question, and takes a different view, see
this Memo., Part I,, pp. 16 and 17.—A. W. M.
|| Secret, No. 83, dated 27th May 1881.
Enclosure ,12.
^ See Memo., Part II., pp. 39, 42, 50.
l * Political, No. 79, dated 24th June 1881.
ft Secret, No. 145, dated 30th October
1881. Enclosure 3.
Gulf was informed that a person had arrived at
Bussorah, bearing a message from Abdallah-bin-
Feysal, Amir of Itiadh,* to the effect that although
all the Nejd tribes had allied themselves with him,
and were ready to attack El Hassa and El Kateef,
he had restrained them, proposing that those places
should be farmed by him from the Turkish Govern
ment, and adding that on the answer to this pro
posal depended the action of the tribes.f Nothing
however, seems to have come of this.
On the whole, it is perhaps not going too far to
say that, as between us and the Turkish Govern
ment, the territorial question has been shelved, not
solved, and that our attitude towards the petty
Chiefs and tribes on the Guttur coast still remains
to be determined.
The Government of India now formally refer for
the orders of Her Majesty's Government the question
what that attitude is to be as regards Jasim-bin-
Thani, Chief of El Bidaa.
His position towards the Turks has been already
stated, more than once. As will have been ob
served, he is in constant communication with the
British Resident in the Gulf, and his father in 1868
concluded a formal agreement! with the then
Resident (Colonel Pelly), by which he bound him
self, amongst other things, " on no pretence what-
" soever at any time to put to sea with hostile
" intention, and, in the event of disputes or mis-
" understanding arising, invariably to refer to the
" Resident."
The Government of India remark that this
agreement had something of a personal character,
and that its force may be held to have been
weakened if not annulled by the Turkish assumption
of authority over El Bidaa. § Nevertheless, it is to
be observed that a letter from Jasim to Colonel
Ross, dated 9th March 1881, contained a distinct
reference to it as a " Treaty. "||
In May last Jasim wrote to the Resident to the
effect that he proposed to settle some of his people
at Odeid, a place which has been ruled to belong to
the Chief of Abuthabi, one of the Trucial Chiefs,
and therefore beyond the limit of anv possible
Turkish jurisdiction direct^f < indirect: .
The fact was. Colonel Ross wrote to the Govern
ment of India, Jasim was uneasy about his position
both with the Turkish Government and the Bedouin
tribes, and would gladly, if he saw his way, come
again under the protection of Government, and
wished to prepare a place beyond Turkish limits to
which he would have recourse himself in emergency.
His proposal was, however, inadmissible, and he was
so informed.**
In reply, Jasim wrote (3rd May) that the Chief
of Abuthabi had nothing to do with Odeid, which
was part of Guttur, which belonged to the Wahabis,
and was therefore Turkish, so far as the mainland
was concerned, adding, " the seas and what is
" connected with it are under the British Govern-
6364.

About this item

Content

A printed memorandum written and compiled by Adolphus Warburton Moore for the Political and Secret Department of 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. , and dated 2 December 1881.

The document is a continuation of ' Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. - Turkish jurisdiction along the Arabian coast (Part II)' (IOR/L/PS/18/B19/2) and broadly addresses the same issues, namely, how to respond toTurkish claims to sovereignty along the southern coast of the Gulf that could potentially impinge on Britain's commitments with local rulers (in Bahrain and the Trucial Coast A name used by Britain from the nineteenth century to 1971 to refer to the present-day United Arab Emirates. ) and their security responsibilities at sea (the suppression of piracy).

The document summarises correspondence from the previous two years (1879-1881) that had dealt with the matter, beginning with an outline of the opinions of officials from the main departments and institutions involved: the Foreign Office, the Government of India, and 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. (whose opinion Warburton represents). Other correspondents include officials from the Residencies and Agencies in both the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. and 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. , as well as the Ambassador at Constantinople.

The documents cover several topics, including:

  • The threat to Bahrain from the Beni Hajir tribe and Ottoman ambitions to extend their sovereignty to the island, including the Turkish plan to build a coal depot on the island as a pretext to further political involvement;
  • Questions of how to police the waters under Turkish authority;
  • How Britain should deal with Shaikh Jasim [Jāsim bin Muḥammad Āl Thāni] of El Bidaa [Doha];
  • Turkish claims to parts of the coast of Guttur [Qatar].

The document concludes with the perceived outcomes of the discussions, including closer ties with the ruler of Bahrain, who, in December 1880, agreed not to open relations with any foreign power other than Britain.

The author quotes extensively from the correspondence and other sources, notes on which are to be found in the margin throughout.

Extent and format
1 file (15 folios)
Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation for this description commences at folio 4 and terminates at folio 18, as it is part of a larger physical volume; 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. An additional foliation sequence is also present in parallel between folios 4-197; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and can be found in the bottom right corner of each folio.

Pagination: the document also has an original printed pagination sequence.

Written in
English in Latin script
View the complete information for this record

Use and share this item

Share this item
Cite this item in your research

'Persian Gulf - Turkish jurisdiction along the Arabian coast (Part III)' [‎17r] (27/30), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/18/B19/3, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100023807397.0x00001c> [accessed 28 March 2024]

Link to this item
Embed this item

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_100023807397.0x00001c">'Persian Gulf - Turkish jurisdiction along the Arabian coast (Part III)' [&lrm;17r] (27/30)</a>
<a href="https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100023807397.0x00001c">
	<img src="https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000000788.0x0003dd/IOR_L_PS_18_B19_3_0027.jp2/full/!280,240/0/default.jpg" alt="" />
</a>
IIIF details

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_100000000788.0x0003dd/manifestOpen in Universal viewerOpen in Mirador viewerMore options for embedding images

Use and reuse
Download this image