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File 3208/1908 Pt 4 ‘Persian Gulf: acts of piracy by Ahmed bin Selman near Katif [Turkish discourtesy to commander of HMS “Lapwing” at Katif]’ [158v] (312/358)
The record is made up of 178 folios. It was created in 9 Mar 1901-12 Aug 1908. It was written in English and French. 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
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4
boats residing on tho Coast of El-ICatr that they must be careful not to allow
leu botts to be used by these Bedouin marauders, as in future it will b-neces
sary to bold the owners of boats, which are used by the pirates!res^nsMe
I trust that you will accept this warning in the friendly spirit in which
it is sent, and that you will take steps to prevent piracies occurring in future.
Translation of a letter dated f rom She , ke AHMSo-Bm-TurKi, Thief of Katr
to 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.
, Busliire.
After Compliment *—1 have received vour letter dated K-deb Jsis i
understood contents which especially related to crimes committed atsTchicH^
;L f 7 b Ia i lr ( S - as regards tlte p.t the peoplc ofiatr
have, for the last tour years done notl.ing, and what the Beni Baiirs have
done is on account ot their sp.te against the Katr people. All ihis time man^
of the Beni Haprs have setteld in Katr and we ke p them in cheek from^om-
mitting misdeeds, but if they did anything we take them to tvk as far as
possible. Ihey gradually remove themselves and only a small number of them
remains m Katr now. ihey are not in Katr now and the piracy which they have
committed took place elsewhere than in Katr waters. This /ear none 0 Tthem
have remained in Katr. ihey are in the neighbourhood of Katr As the
Government of ail this territory appertains to the Turks who carry it on
hrongh the Mutasemf of El-Ha^a, I have no power to turn them^out, be
they Arabs or Beni Haps. Our relations with the Bedouin Arabs are of’the
same nature as of old and they are not iu accordance with law. We some
times fight them and sometimes live in peace with them. We are in such
relations wnh them. I am not responsible to them unless they have claims
against me and they are not responsible to me except when the/are under m/
obligation. For whatever they do and whenever they rob men" I exert mvself
and l do so to please the British Government. God knows that I do not fail iri
my endeavours. More thau this I cannot do. You say that the Katr and
Bahrein people do not take care of their boats and allow them to be used by
pirates by which they (the boat owners) suffer loss; do not believe that such is
the case. Also that they (boat owners) could prevent them (the pirates'! if tlicv
saw them near the shore; this is not possible, because the number of the crew is
small and they have no power to oppose or prevent.
ISo. .JSM-ii.A., dated Fort William, the 6th February 1902.
From-The Under-Secretary to the Government of India in the Foreign Depart
<*“*
Ij n m dll ’ ecte ^° ^knowledge the receipt of your letter No. 227 , dated the
28th December ld 01 5> on the subject of certain piracies which occurred off the
El-Katr peninsula during the years 1899 and 1900. in
2 . Your letter deals with three cases of piracy, two of which oocuriWI in
August 1899, while the third dates from August 1900. In the third case the
stolen property is valued at Rs. 315-8 only, but in the two earlier cases property
of the value of more than Rs. 12,000 is alleged to have been plundered ItE
understood that of the property stolen in the two piracies which occurred in
August 1899 a portion valued at about Rs. 2,067 has been recovered by Sheikh
Ahmed-bm-lhani, the Ruling Sheikh of El-Katr, but that no effort has been
made by him to recover the remainder of the property which was looted on
those two occasions or to exact redress from the Bedouins who committed the
* Secret E., November 1900, Nos. 61-69 (No. 64 ). smaller outrage at Graimia Pearl Bank
. i + • i- 1U August;* 1900. You now suggest
that, m order to ohtam compensation for the sufferers by these piracies thn
property of the El-Katr Chief in Bahrein should be attached, or that as an
alternative, the cases should be allowed to drop. A third alternative , which
was suggested in your letter No. 270, dated the 19th November 1900,’ would
About this item
- Content
Part 4 contains correspondence relating to attacks against Bahrain pearling dhows, committed by members of the Beni Hajir tribe and led by an individual named Ahmed bin Selman, in the waters around Bahrain and the Turkish administered territories of Katif [Al-Qaṭīf] and El Katr [Qatar]. The part’s principal correspondents include: 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 (John Calcott Gaskin; Captain Francis Beville Prideaux); 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. (Major Percy Zachariah Cox); the British Ambassador at Constantinople [Istanbul] (Sir Walter Beaupre Townley); the Ambassador to the Court of the Sublime Porte of the Ottoman Empire (Sir Nicholas Roderick O’Conor).
The correspondence covers:
- reports of the activities of Ahmed bin Selman and his followers in around the waters of Bahrain, Nejd, and the Qatar peninsula, including accounts of theft and violence committed against pearling dhows, as reported by 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;
- representations made by British officials to their Turkish counterparts, protesting against the acts described as piracy being committed from Turkish-administered territories in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. ;
- Government of India proposals for the provision of a boat for 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, and gunboat patrols of the pearl banks;
- a visit made by HMS Sphinx to the Nejd coast in 1905, in order to pursue enquiries against Ahmed bin Selman, which provokes an official complaint from the Ottoman Turkish Government (in French, f 108);
- the appearance in 1906 of Ahmed bin Selman in Doha of Al Bidda [Doha], representations made by British officials to the ruler of Qatar Shaikh Jasim bin Thani [Jāsim bin Muḥammad Āl Thānī], and further Turkish complaint at British interference on the Qatar peninsula;
- the visit of HMS Lapwing to Katif in 1907 in pursuit of Ahmed bin Selman, resulting in a show of ‘discourtesy’ by a Turkish official towards British naval officers, and subsequent British demands for an official apology, which is tendered by the kaimmakam [kaimakam] of Katif in June 1908 (f 8).
- Extent and format
- 178 folios
- Written in
- English and French in Latin script View the complete information for this record
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File 3208/1908 Pt 4 ‘Persian Gulf: acts of piracy by Ahmed bin Selman near Katif [Turkish discourtesy to commander of HMS “Lapwing” at Katif]’ [158v] (312/358), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/10/156/2, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100028917965.0x00007a> [accessed 19 April 2024]
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- Reference
- IOR/L/PS/10/156/2
- Title
- File 3208/1908 Pt 4 ‘Persian Gulf: acts of piracy by Ahmed bin Selman near Katif [Turkish discourtesy to commander of HMS “Lapwing” at Katif]’
- Pages
- 3r:107v, 109r:180v
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence