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'File 73/7 II (D 22) Status of Koweit [Kuwait] - Baghdad railway, Anglo Turkish negotiations' [‎113v] (232/540)

The record is made up of 1 volume (268 folios). It was created in 24 Oct 1911-26 Dec 1912. It was written in English, French and Arabic. 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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a share in the surrendered portion of the line (Bagdad to the Gulf ) equal to that
of any other foreign country.
As matters stand, therefore, there are only two ways of keeping Germany
out of the Basrah-Kuwait line, if it is built.
The first way is that Turkey should build the line entirely herself, which
would be unacceptable to us ; the second is that Turkey should buy Germany out
of the Kuwait branch.
The second alternative is preferable, and when we reply to Turkey it will
probably be necessary to say that we cannot agree to any arrangement which does
not provide for this. Germany may, as a keen bargainer, suggest that we should
buy her out in return for some concession elsewhere. Our answer might be that
this is a matter for Turkey to arrange with Germany, as the concession would be
to her and not to us.
A. P.
Foreign Office, May 11,1912.
(Copy sent informally to the Army Department, for transmission to the Divi
sion of the Chief of the Staff).
{Received on 17th June 1912, with Political Secretary's letter No. 22, dated the 21st May
' 1912).
ASIATIC TURKEY AND ARABIA. [May 20.]
CONFIDENTIAL. Section 4.
[21302] No. 1.
Sir G. Lowther to Sir Edward Grey.—(Received May 20.)
(No. 408).
Constantinople, May 13, 1912,
Sir,
With reference to your despatch No. 99 of the 1 2th March last, on the subject of
the proposed construction of new buildings at the Bagdad custom-house, I have the
honour to transmit to you herewith copy of a letter which I have just received from
Sir R. Crawford informing me that all possible measures have been taken for the
temporary relief of the existing situation in Bagdad, but that they have been un
availing to meet the congestion, and that there is now no alternative but to proceed,
without further delay, with the construction of new depots. Negotiations are now
in progress for the erection of the new customs buildings on a site situated in con
venient proximity to that selected for the railway station and port to be built by
the Bagdad Railway Company.
It appears that there has been some friction between the Vali of Bagdad and
the company relative to the choice of a site for the future terminus of the railway.
The Vali insisted upon the station and port being built on the left bank, i.e., the
town side of the river; whilst the railway engineers were of opinion that the right
bank offered the best advantages for the full development of what will become an
important railway centre. The views of the railway company and their engineers
have now been adopted both by the Public Works Department and the Ministry
of War ; all the plans have been made and approved of by the department, and the
customs administration are now in a position to consider the measures which must
be taken to put an end to the disorder which reigns at the Bagdad customs, and to
relieve the congestion caused by the accumulation of goods intended for transit. In
the negotiations for the erection of the customs' premises near the railway terminus
on the right bank of the river, which are now proceeding between the customs and
the railway company, I understand the customs are anxious to ensure the removal
of the customs premises to the other side of the river, and therefore away from the

About this item

Content

The volume contains letters, telegrams, and memorandums pertaining to Anglo-Turkish negotiations brought on by the Baghdad Railway and particularly the extension to Basra. Correspondents include: Percy Cox, 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, William Shakespear, 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, Edward Grey, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Louis Mallet, Assistant Under-secretary of State for Near and Middle Eastern Affairs, Charles Marling, British Ambassador to Persia, Gerard Lowther, British Ambassador to Constantinople, George Buchanan, British Ambassador to Russia, Admiral Edmond Slade, the Board of Trade, the Government of India, 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 several private companies, including Trans-Atlantic Trust Company, Anglo-Persian Oil Company, Imperial Ottoman Bank, and Imperial Persian Bank.

The form of the negotiations was a series of memorandums containing proposals and counter-proposals. The issues and subjects discussed are:

  • ownership and control of the line;
  • custom duty increases in the region;
  • navigation of the Shatt al-Arab, including the establishment of a commission to oversee this;
  • transport of railway materials by the Tigris and Euphrates rivers;
  • delimitation of the Turkish-Persian border;
  • status and territorial limit of Kuwait;
  • other Gulf matters, including the statuses of Bahrain and Qatar, the suppression of arms traffic, piracy, and slavery, and the protection of pearl fisheries.

Folios 261-262 are a map showing the proposed territorial limits of Kuwait.

Extent and format
1 volume (268 folios)
Arrangement

The volume is arranged chronologically. At the beginning (ff. 3-4) is a subject index, in no particular order but grouped under several broad headings. The numbers refer to folio numbers from the secondary, earlier sequence.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: The volume is foliated from the front cover to the inside back cover, using circled pencil numbers positioned in the top-right corner of each recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. . There are two earlier foliation systems running through parts of the volume. The first uses uncircled pencil numbers in the top-right corner of recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. pages, and the top-left corner of verso The back of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'v'. pages. This foliation system numbers pages if they have content on them, which is the case for all rectos and some versos. This foliation system appears intermittently through most of the volume. The other foliation system uses circled blue pencil numbers in the top-right corner of recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. pages, and appears from folios 5 to 42. Numerous printed materials contained in the volume have their own internal pagination systems. The following foliation irregularities occur: 1a, 34a, 51B, 219B, 250B.

Written in
English, French and Arabic in Latin and Arabic script
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'File 73/7 II (D 22) Status of Koweit [Kuwait] - Baghdad railway, Anglo Turkish negotiations' [‎113v] (232/540), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/R/15/1/611, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100023826001.0x000021> [accessed 28 March 2024]

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