Letter no.4787 of 1856 from Henry Anderson, Secretary to the Government of Bombay, to Commander Felix Jones, Resident in the Persian Gulf

Content

The letter and its enclosures relate to the slave trade, and the surrender of two slaves at Linga [Bandar-e Lengeh] to the Persian authorities, who were originally seized illegally by the British Agent at Bandar-e Lengeh. Anderson requests that Jones explain why he surrendered the two slaves, who had been imported from Zanzibar during the current season, adding that it is the opinion of his Lordship in Council that if British protection had been extended to the two slaves, they should not have been returned to slavery. The two enclosures are as follows:

1. Letter no.168 of 1856 (folios 277-78) from Commodore Richard Ethersey, Commanding Officer Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. Squadron, to Commodore Sir Henry Leeke, Commander in Chief of the Indian Navy, dated 2 September 1856, writing of the 59 slaves despatched on the Victoria to Bombay, with a description of their poor health; the incident in which two slaves at Bandar-e Lengeh requested British protection, but were deemed to have been seized illegally by the British Agent, and who have been handed back to the Bandar-e Lengeh authorities at the request of the Resident; the reaction of the female slave, having learnt that she was to be returned to the Persian authorities, instead of being sent to Bombay with the other slaves;

2. Statement (folio 279) of a female slave, aged 20 years, one of twelve slaves that were captured in the Bugla Large trading vessel. Maimoon by the Falkland , taken by Ethersey, dated 16 August 1856. In the statement the woman describes her origins, kidnap, journey to Muscat, and retrieval by ‘Europeans’, along with sixteen other slaves.

Extent and format

4 folios

It is part of

‘Vol 224 1856/57 Bahrain; Abu Dhabi; Sharjah, Ras al-Khaimah; Hamriya; Muscat and Bandar `Abbas; Slave Trade’

630 images

Ref: IOR/R/15/1/157

Written in

English in Latin script

Type

Letter

Access & Reference

Original held at

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.

Access conditions

Unrestricted

Archive reference

IOR/R/15/1/157, ff 276-279

History of this record

Date(s)

20 Oct 1856 (CE, Gregorian)

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Letter no.4787 of 1856 from Henry Anderson, Secretary to the Government of Bombay, to Commander Felix Jones, Resident in the Persian Gulf, British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/R/15/1/157, ff 276-279, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100024066926.0x000059> [accessed 17 June 2026]

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