'File 3/8 Affairs of Sh. Khaz`als sons.' [189v] (378/508)
The record is made up of 1 file (252 folios). It was created in 15 Mar 1942-17 Aug 1948. 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. .
Transcription
This transcription is created automatically. It may contain errors.
8
Conf. 12004,
No. 175.
E2003/2003/
34/1922.
E3121/6/34/
1922.
E4348/6/34/
1922.
E 4931/6/34/
1922.
E 5194/6/34/
1922.
E5379/6/34/
1922.
E6771/6/34/
1922.
E7202/6/34/
1922.
E7259/6/34/
1922.
E7260/6/34/
1922.
early negotiations between the Sheikh and the Central Government, but the
position at the end of 1921 was briefly as follows :—
The Sheikh had paid no maliyat since 1913 but, on the other hand, was
claiming from the Persian Government sums which he had expended during
the war in maintaining law and order in Arabistan without any assistance
from the Persian Government. After prolonged negotiations, in which
His Majesty’s Legation at Tehran had lent support to the Sheikh, Vossugh-
ed-Dowleh had agreed to waive the payment of maliyat for the war period
and to accept a moiety for six years as from 1920. Unfortunately, matters
were not put on a formal basis and the Sheikh was not fully satisfied and
refused to continue payment. Qawam-es-Sultaneh stated that neither his
Government nor the Majlis would accept the settlement to which Vossugh-ed-
Dowleh had agreed, but had offered to waive the war-time revenues in
exchange for the payment in full as from 1920. To this, however, the Sheikh
would not agree unless arrangements were made by which the Persian
Government would meet part of the recurring expenditure in maintaining
law and order in Southern Arabistan, and when, early in 1922, proposals
to this effect were advanced, he would accept no compromise in spite of $
advice from His Majesty’s Legation at Tehran, who regarded the proposed
terms as reasonable.
23. Matters took a new turn in April, 1922, when it was learned that the
Persian Government proposed to send troops into Arabistan to compel the Sheikh
to pay his revenue. The Sheikh now asked for British intervention, appealing
to the assurances given to him and declaring that the despatch of a small force
to Arabistan would lead to unrest and anarchy, with consequent loss to British
commercial interests. On learning of this, Sir P. Loraine requested the Political
Resident to see the Sheikh and speak to him seriously : the Sheikh had only
himself to blame, and while the British obligations to him were fully recognised,
they were clearly not intended to protect him from discharging hm obligations
to the Persian Government; the undesirability of the despatch of Persian troops
to Arabistan from the British point was also fully realised, but the Minister
of War (who was responsible) was an opponent of the Bolsheviks and might
therefore prove an asset to His Majesty’s Government, and Sir P. Loraine did^
not wish to take up a bad case with him; the first essential was, therefore, that
the Sheikh should come to a reasonable settlement with the Persian Government.
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.
, being unable himself to see the Sheikh, instructed His
Majesty’s Consul at Ahwaz to impress upon the Sheikh that, if he desired British
support in accordance with the 1914 assurances, he must fulfil his obligations
to the Persian Government, among the first of which was the payment of revenue.
This produced what appeared to be a satisfactory settlement, the Sheikh
promising to pay two years’ arrears of revenue on being released from payments
during the war. The matter was not, however, finally settled as the actual amount
of the arrears had not been fixed, but early in June Sir P. Loraine thought that
the matter could be settled without his intervention and did not think that the
despatch of troops to Arabistan was likely to materialise.
The despatch of Persian troops to Arabistan, 1922.
24. On the 18th July, 1922, Sir P. Loraine received information that the
Persian Government had despatched a force of 500 men for Arabistan and at once
caused representations to be made to the Minister of War and Prime Minister,
calling attention to the possible resultant dangers to Britisih interests. The Prime
Minister said that on grounds of prestige he could not recall the troops (which were
merely to form a bodyguard for the Governor at Shushtar) but expressed his and
Reza Khan’s readiness to give formal assurances to the Sheikh that the troops
would not interfere with the Sheikh’s territory or the Arab tribes. On the same
day Sir P. Loraine sent for two leading Bakhtiari Khans, explaining the situation
and the action taken; it was agreed that the interests of the Bakhtiari, the
Sheikh and His Majesty’s Government were identical in this matter and that the
Bakhtiaris and the Sheikh should support the representations of His Majesty’s
Legation; the Khans proposed force, but Sir P. Loraine said that this must
be absolutely the last resort and ought not to be necessary. The Foreign Office
were somewhat disturbed by the report of this interview and made it clear to
Sir P. Loraine that His Majesty’s Government must not be committed to
embarrassing obligations towards the Bakhtiaris; Sir P. Loraine was instructed
to employ all his efforts to induce the Persian Government to abandon any inten
tion as regards Southern Arabistan, but was informed that there seemed to be
About this item
- Content
This file relates to the heirs of Shaikh Khaz‘al [Khaz‘al bin Jabir bin Merdaw Āl Ka‘bī], the late Arab Shaikh of Mohommerah [Khorramshahr], and their requests for British assistance.
The first few items of correspondence concern Shaikh Khaz‘al's eldest son, Shaikh Chassib bin Khaz‘al [Shaikh Chassib bin Khaz‘al Āl Ka‘bī], who is now living in Iraq and who is reported to have requested permission from the British Embassy at Baghdad to enter Iran (most of the correspondence in this file refers to Iran as Persia), for the purpose of personally pressing his claims to property belonging to his father, which had been sequestered by the late Shah [Reza Shah Pahlavi].
The remainder of the file relates to Shaikh Chassib's brother, Shaikh Abdullah bin Khaz‘al [Shaikh ‘Abdullāh bin Khaz‘al Āl Ka‘bī], and his wish to return to live in Persia, apparently peacefully, which is treated with suspicion by British officials. Much of the correspondence discusses whether Shaikh Abdullah, who has taken refuge in Kuwait after an unsuccessful attempt to return to live in Persia, should be given a British pension or an allowance, in order to prevent him from attempting to return to Persia, since it is deemed unlikely that he will receive any compensation from the Persian Government for the loss of his father's property.
Also included in the file are a copy of a document from the Combined Intelligence Centre, Iraq, entitled 'The Sheikhdom of Mohammerah A Short History' and a Foreign Office report entitled 'British Relations with Khazal, Sheikh of Mohammerah'.
The principal correspondents are the following: 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. , Kuwait; 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 British Consul, Khorramshahr; 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. ; the Secretary of State for India; the Foreign Office; His Majesty's Ambassador, Tehran; His Majesty's Ambassador, Baghdad; the Ruler of Kuwait, Shaikh Ahmed al Jabir As-Subah [Shaikh Aḥmad al-Jābir Āl Ṣabāḥ]; Shaikh Abdullah bin Khaz‘al.
- Extent and format
- 1 file (252 folios)
- Arrangement
The papers are arranged in chronological order from the front to the rear of the file. Circled serial numbers (red for received correspondence; blue/black for issued correspondence) refer to entries in the notes at the rear 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 254; 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. Additional foliation sequences, one of which is written in pencil and not circled (between ff 3-131 and ff 143-224), and one of which is written in pencil and circled (between ff 1-253), have been superseded and therefore crossed out.
- Written in
- English and Arabic in Latin and Arabic script View the complete information for this record
Use and share this item
- Share this item
'File 3/8 Affairs of Sh. Khaz`als sons.' [189v] (378/508), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/R/15/5/178, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100030262304.0x0000b3> [accessed 9 October 2024]
https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100030262304.0x0000b3
Copy and paste the code below into your web page where you would like to embed the image.
<meta charset="utf-8"><a href="https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100030262304.0x0000b3">'File 3/8 Affairs of Sh. Khaz`als sons.' [‎189v] (378/508)</a> <a href="https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100030262304.0x0000b3"> <img src="https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000000831.0x0000a5/IOR_R_15_5_178_0380.jp2/full/!280,240/0/default.jpg" alt="" /> </a>
This record has a IIIF manifest available as follows. If you have a compatible viewer you can drag the icon to load it.https://www.qdl.qa/en/iiif/81055/vdc_100000000831.0x0000a5/manifestOpen in Universal viewerOpen in Mirador viewerMore options for embedding images
Copyright: How to use this content
- Reference
- IOR/R/15/5/178
- Title
- 'File 3/8 Affairs of Sh. Khaz`als sons.'
- Pages
- front, front-i, 2r:44v, 46r:55v, 58r:63v, 65r:66v, 68r:71v, 73r:80v, 83r:118v, 120r:120v, 122r:130v, 132r:143v, 145r:145v, 147r:162v, 164r:165v, 167r:198v, 202r:207v, 211r:216v, 219r:221v, 223r:227v, 230r:239v, 242r:253v, back-i, back
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence