Skip to item: of 490
Information about this record Back to top
Open in Universal viewer
Open in Mirador IIIF viewer

‘Military report on the British Protectorate of Aden and the Amir of Dala’s territories, with special reports on certain other tribes and adjoining border districts’ [‎21v] (47/490)

The record is made up of 1 volume (243 folios). It was created in 1905-1908. It was written in English. 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.

Apply page layout

20
The Alawi.
The A'avri are a small tribe inhabiting the angle between the Haushabi
and Amiri territories and the Radfan mountains. Their principal village
is A 1 Kasb'a, in the Selat Hardaba, other villages being A 1 Khariba, As
Sauda, Al Hauta, Ad Danib, Jiml and Al Hajar.
The total population does not exceed 1,500, the fighting men num
bering about 500. They are under the rule of a Shekh who like other
rulers in South Yemen, originally administered the country for the Imam
of Sana’a and subsequently became independent. The Shekh receives a
stipend from Government of 60 dollars per annum, secured under Govern
ment Resolution of 14th May 1875, and a protectorate Treaty concluded in
1895. They are a friendly tribe, on bad terms with their neighbours the
Kotaibi. A good deal of land is under cultivation near the Selat Hardaba,
according to Hunter, about 1,000 acres. Jovvari is the staple crop. The
existing wells in the country contain, as a rule, a poor supply of water.
The inhabitants consist of tribesmen, and “ Raya ” or subjects, in
about equal proportion. Hunter states that the administration of civil and
criminal justice lies in the hands of the Shekh, but that an appeal lies
to the Kadi of Dufciyat, the Sufi colony in Amiri territory.
The Wahidi.
Little more information is available concerning the ccast-tribe, than
is contained in Colonel Hunter’s ‘‘ Arab tribes in the vicinity of Aden ”
from which the following is condensed. The Wahidi inhabit a stretch
of territory near the Wadi A seasonal or intermittent watercourse, or the valley in which it flows. Maifd which includes some 50 miles of coast
line extending from Ras al Kalb to a point west of Balhaf, where the
territory of the Duyaibi commences.
It is divided into 3 main districts—
r. Habban.
2. ’iizan.
3. Bir AH.
The principal places of (1) are—
Habban with some 250 houses and 2,500 inhabitants situated in the
midst of a plain about 3,000 feet high.
Hauta with some 200 houses and 2,000 inhabitants on the Wadi A seasonal or intermittent watercourse, or the valley in which it flows.
Amakfn.
Roda, Sh’ab, Tirdan and Arrakin.
The chief villages of (2) are—
’Izzan with some 300 inhabitants.
Kadur „ „ 1 000 „
Libya ,, ,, 600 ,,
Raida ,, ,, i,coo ,,
Radum ,, ,, 800 „
Other villages in Wahidi territory are Ras-al-Kalb, Bir Ali, Baihaf
^nu Ras-al-Majdaha. The population of Ras-al-Kalb is estimated at 2,000.
Bir-Ali and Balhaf contain very few inhabitants. The harbour of Bir Ali is
a small circular and safe bay, 1 mile long by i£ broad, exposed to winds
from the south.
1'he total population is estimated at 9,000 souls.

About this item

Content

The volume, a military report compiled in the Intelligence Branch of the QMG’s [Quartermaster General’s] Department and published at the Government Central Printing Office, Simla, is comprised of several sections, as follows:

  • section I, a Military Report on the British Protectorate of Aden , prepared by Captain Ernest Arthur Frederick Redl (ff 10-52), and including chapters on: geography; ethnography, with details of the different tribes living in the Protectorate; climate and health; natural resources; harbours and anchorages; communications; fortresses; history; native inhabitants’ administration; the military organisation and strength of native inhabitants; and political relations. A handwritten note is included in the report (f 49), and concerns the entitlements of Protectorate Chiefs to salutes, and issue to them of arms and ammunition, 1906;
  • section II, a Report on the Amir of Dala’s [Ad Dali’] Territories , prepared by Major J K Tod (ff 54-118), and including chapters on: geography; ethnography; climate and health; resources; communications; forts and fortified posts; history; administration, and military. Following the report is a gazetteer providing greater detail of the sixteen districts in Dala, including: topography; ruling families and allegiances; villages and population figures, including numbers of fighting men; water resources; agricultural and industrial activities;
  • section III, Reports on Haushabi, Subehi and Yafa’i Tribes, Turkish and North Western Border Districts and the River Tiban , divided into chapters, all prepared by Captain Redl unless otherwise specified, on: 1) the Haushabi [al-Ḥawshabī] (ff 120-130), and including a handwritten note, dated December 1905 (f 122), noting that the Sultan of Haushabi has agreed to abide by an agreement of 1895; 2) the Subehi tribes near the Turkish border (ff 130-144); 3) the districts of Turkish Yemen adjoining the British boundary (ff 144-165); 4) Tribes of the north-west frontier Region of British India bordering Afghanistan. (ff 165-172); 5) a memorandum of the Yafa’i [Yāfi‘] tribe, prepared by Captain Gonville W Warneford (ff 172-183); 6) The Wadi A seasonal or intermittent watercourse, or the valley in which it flows. Tiban (ff 184-185);
  • section IV, Routes (ff 186-228), detailing numerous routes between key points in Aden province, noting: distances; stages; nature of the terrain and its suitability for different modes of transport; available resources en route; territories crossed. A (duplicated) confidential memorandum, written by Captain G A F Sanders of the Aden Brigade, dated 24 August 1905, containing additional information for stages 5 and 6 of route 5 has been added to the volume (ff 195-198);
  • appendix I, a brief statement on inland trade between Aden and the Arabian mainland, 1903 (ff 229-230).

The volume is extensively illustrated throughout with fold-out maps, plans and illustrations, prepared by the Intelligence Branch (I.B.) and all of which describe the topography and terrain of the region. There are three maps included in a pocket at the end of the volume: a map of the Aden Protectorate (f 242); a view from the ruined village of Lakmat Magharam about one-and-a-half miles west of Sanah [Ṣanʻā'] (f 240); and a road sketch from Khalla through Awabil [‘Awābil] to the upper plateau of the Rubiatein [Ar Rubay‘atayn] tribe (f 241).

Extent and format
1 volume (243 folios)
Arrangement

The volume is arranged in four sections (numbered I-IV), with a single appendix. Sections I-III are arranged in numbered chapters while section IV is arranged in twenty-three numbered routes. The volume’s contents page (ff 6-8) lists the sections and their respective chapters/routes, with page numbers referring to the volume’s printed pagination system. A general index (ff 231-238) lists placenames referred to in the volume in alphabetically ascending order, also with page numbers referring to the volume’s printed pagination.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1 and terminates at the back cover with 243; 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.

Pagination: the file contains an original printed pagination sequence.

Written in
English in Latin script
View the complete information for this record

Use and share this item

Share this item
Cite this item in your research

‘Military report on the British Protectorate of Aden and the Amir of Dala’s territories, with special reports on certain other tribes and adjoining border districts’ [‎21v] (47/490), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/20/59, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100034845247.0x000030> [accessed 14 May 2024]

Link to this item
Embed this item

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_100034845247.0x000030">‘Military report on the British Protectorate of Aden and the Amir of Dala’s territories, with special reports on certain other tribes and adjoining border districts’ [&lrm;21v] (47/490)</a>
<a href="https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100034845247.0x000030">
	<img src="https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000000884.0x0003b8/IOR_L_PS_20_59_0049.jp2/full/!280,240/0/default.jpg" alt="" />
</a>
IIIF details

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_100000000884.0x0003b8/manifestOpen in Universal viewerOpen in Mirador viewerMore options for embedding images

Use and reuse
Download this image