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'86/12-III CONFIDENTIAL A. 85 P.C.L. MUSCAT' [‎80r] (164/564)

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The record is made up of 1 volume (278 folios). It was created in 20 Oct 1937-31 Dec 1944. It was written in English 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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1937/
-4~
of conversation you spoke about the agreement to be concluded
between the Government and the Company to the same effect as
already stated and I did not understand or hear anything further
about this. On our arrival at Karachi Mr. Lamitte became ill,
but he recovered after a few days whereupon I called on you in
the hotel in which both of you were staying. In your presence
Mr. lamitte took from me a copy of the Agreement and the modifi
cations I had made with him and which had been added to the terms
and for which he gave me a receipt to the effect that he had
received the same for the purpose of xniag sending it to London
with other copies which he had with him as stated above. After
wards we signed a document purporting the receipt of money and
you attested the same. Then we went to the Eastern Bank at
Karachi and he introduced me to the Manager, paid me the money
which I credited to my account and closed the transaction.
Afterwards I left for Kashmir for a change of climate and that
was in the middle of July. After my return to Kuscat and your
return many days passed and you did not mention or write to me
anything in this connection. Before my departure to Delhi,
Mr. Larmitte arrived at Muscat and brought with him the copies
of the Agreement and asked me to sign some revisions made in the
agreement and I signed them. Ho mention was made to the effect
that the agreement depends on some other thing. The time of
I
my departure to Delhi came and/left, the visit ended and I came
to Bombay. You met me for discussing some cases and interviewing
Mr. Longrigg, one of the Managers of the said Company, who had
come from London and had asked for an interview. We met in your
presence, because you had brought him to introduce him to me and
to speak to me for him on the subject he bad come for and you then
left me. He called on sm me the next day and you were also there
but did not say anything about these matters. On 27th Hovember,

About this item

Content

The volume comprises correspondence between 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. , the 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 Muscat, the 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 Bahrain, 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. (Roland Tennyson Peel, John Percival Gibson, Francis Anthony Kitchener Harrison) , the Secretary to the Government of India (Sir Aubrey Metcalfe), the Sultan of Muscat and Oman (Sayyid Sa‘īd bin Taymūr Āl Bū Sa‘īd) and Petroleum Development (Oman and Dhofar) Limited (Ernest Vincent Packer, John Skliros, H H Wheatley) regarding the oil concession agreements concluded with the Sultan of Muscat for Dhofar [Zufār] and Muscat territory. Copies of the two concessions can be found at folios 17-47.

Included in the volume is correspondence relating to the political agreement between His Majesty’s Government and Petroleum Development (Oman and Dhofar) Limited including its presentation to the Sultan of Muscat; the Sultan’s concerns about the document and negotiation with 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. in order to agree a suitably amended version that satisfied all parties, including the decision by 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. to have a separate pre-emption agreement. Copies of the Political Agreement and Pre-Emption Clause agreement can be found at folios 93-98 and 132-135.

Also discussed is the decision by Petroleum Development (Oman and Dhofar) Limited to take up in 1942 the option of an extension on their exploration agreement for two years owing to wartime conditions and further discussion regarding possible methods of extending the exploration agreement to the end of the war and a period beyond. The conclusion of the discussion being the decision by the Company to take up their concession rather than attempt to negotiate any further extension. Also discussed are concerns by the Sultan of Muscat that the Company did not really intend to explore and develop a concession in his territory and were only really interested in preventing other companies operating there. The concession with the Shaikh of Ajman [‘Ajmān] (Rāshid Bin Ḥumaid Al-Nu`aimī) is also discussed in this context as the exploration of that territory had also not commenced on the outbreak of World War II and extensions to the exploration agreement were therefore also required.

Further correspondence relates to the Oil Undertaking made in 1923 by Sultan Taimur bin Faisal [Sayyid Taymūr bin Fayṣal bin Turkī Āl Bū Sa‘īd], formerly Sultan of Muscat and father of Sayyid Said bin Taimur. The correspondence centres around the assertion made by Sultan Said bin Taimur that the undertaking was not binding on him as his father had written a letter to the political authorities in 1923 stating that any such undertaking would not be binding on his successors unless specifically stated in the contractual agreement. Further correspondence concludes that the letter written by Sayyid Taimur bin Faisal in 1923 was received by 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. but was never responded to by him or forwarded on to 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. or Government of India and that they were therefore unaware of any such opinion or response and that as a result were prepared to consider a re-negotiation of the Sultan’s treaties and undertakings.

Also of interest within the volume are:

  • discussions about the Muscat Arms Subsidy which was originally granted to Sayyid Faisal bin Turki [Fayṣal bin Turkī Āl Bū Sa‘īd] including the conditions under which it was granted and the lack of clarity in the terms and conditions of the subsidy’s contract;
  • discussions regarding the Oman hinterland which the Company were interested in exploring but which was under the authority of the Imam of Muscat and the decision to wait until the following year to raise the question again as the Imam’s authority in that area was considered to be dwindling and the Sultan hoped then to be able to make arrangements with either the Imam of the tribes living there;
  • a memorandum prepared in the Petroleum Department, June 1938, looking at areas where petroleum concessions were mostly likely to be, or had been already been obtained, on the Arabian Peninsula (Koweit [Kuwait], Koweit Neutral Zone, Bahrein [Bahrain], Qatar, Trucial Sheikhdom’s, Aden Protectorate, Saudi Arabia, The Yemen, Muscat, and Oman) and looking at Petroleum Concessions Limited's refinery agreement and pre-emption clause.

The agreements and correspondence with the Sultan of Muscat are in Arabic and English.A series of file notes which were maintained as a record of the correspondence in the volume can be found at folios 264-276.

Extent and format
1 volume (278 folios)
Arrangement

The volume contains a table of contents on folio 3 comprising of subject headings and page references. The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the front to the rear of the file.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with folio 1 and terminates at the back cover with folio 280; 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 mixed foliation/pagination sequence is also present between ff 2-267; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled. These are located in the same position as the main sequence, except for some instances which are located on the verso The back of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'v'. . Pagination: a short pagination sequence is present at the back of the volume between ff 264-276; these numbers are written in pencil, and are located in the top outermost corners of each page.

Written in
English and Arabic in Latin and Arabic script
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'86/12-III CONFIDENTIAL A. 85 P.C.L. MUSCAT' [‎80r] (164/564), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/R/15/1/684, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100024507295.0x0000a5> [accessed 29 March 2024]

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