File 1290/1905 'Mesopotamia: Oudh Bequest' [‎22v] (49/260)

Content

The volume contains correspondence relating to the distribution of the Oudh Bequest in Kerbala [Karbala] and Nejef [Najaf]. The correspondence is principally between the Government of India (Foreign and Political Departments), 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 the Foreign Office. There are many enclosures that include correspondence from the following:

• 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 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. (who also acts as the British Consul-General in Baghdad);
• Mirza Muhammad Hassan Mohsin, British Vice-Consul at Kerbala;
• several mujtahids (a person accepted as an authority on Islamic law) from Kerbala and Nejaf;
• J W Hose, Chief Secretary to the Government of the United Provinces.

The Oudh Bequest was an annual payment made by the Government of India to the mujtahids of the holy shrine cities of Karbala and Najaf. This payment was the interest on a loan given to the East India Company in 1825 by the King of Awadh, who instructed that it be used to improve religious learning and help the poor of Shia communities in Iraq.

The papers within the volume cover the discussion over how the bequest was to be distributed. This system of distribution underwent several changes over the years, owing to complaints of unfairness by potential recipients and corruption as perceived by the British. Included within the volume are several petitions from mujtahids and representatives of the Indian residents of Kerbala and Nejef for a fairer distribution of the funds.

The volume includes extracts from the summaries of events 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. that were produced on a monthly basis 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 Baghdad.

Extent and format

1 volume (126 folios)

Arrangement

The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the rear to the front of the volume.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1 and terminates at the inside back cover with 128; 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.

A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.

Written in

English and Arabic in Latin and Arabic script

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