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'A Précis of the Relations of the British Government with the Tribes and Shaikhs of 'Arabistan By Lieutenant A T Wilson, Acting Consul for Arabistan' [‎10v] (25/143)

The record is made up of 1 volume (68 folios). It was created in 1912. It was written in English and Farsi. 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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6
They add that the growing strength of the Ka’ab, Muntafik and Bani
Lam Arabs constitute a growing menace to the peace of Basrah.
In November 1771 the Basrah factors wrote
“ Demands made in this country, unless supported by a respectable force, onh sti\e
to render the party who makes them contemptible.
The present Chaub is as avaricious as the former.”
He had lately blinded the eyes of “ Busboos,” the only surviving son of
Shaikh Salman.' “ Karim Khan in this year appears as commencing piracy on
his own account.
From this time onward the records to which the writer The lowest of the four classes into which East India Company civil servants were divided. A Writer’s duties originally consisted mostly of copying documents and book-keeping. has had access
have very little bearing upon the doings of the Ka’ab and their relations with
the British and Persian Governments. In December 1773, when the Ka’ab
were ordered by Karim Khan to send their ships to his assistance the Chief
of that tribe retorted by scuttling his boats and showing them in that condi
tion to Karim Khan’s envoy. During this year (1773) plague in Basrah
had been very severe and the total loss 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. was reckoned at
2 millions. It had disappeared by January 1774.
In this month the Ka’ab were ordered by Karim Khan to assist him in
his designs against the Turks : this they refused to do, and promised the
Turks that they would remain neutral. Shortly after this promise an attack
on the Turkish fleet by that of the Ka’ab, then lying at the Haffar, was only
prevented by the presence of English ships erf war.
In February 1775, the Ka’ab sacked ’Basrah in revenge for the execution
of an Arab by the Turkish authorities in Basrah.
In April 1776, Basrah was surrendered to the Persians, and in the
following month the Basrah Council write that :—
Had we not been acquainted with the Persian character, we would have formed a
most pleasing opinion of our future prospects under Persian rule.
Early in 1779, the Persians retired from Basrah, which was re-occupied
by the Turks (Karim Khan died in this year).
In May 1798, Mr. Manesty, British Resident at Basrah, reported to the
Governor-General of India that he was on intimate terms with desert and
other Arab Shaikhs and that British influence was firmly established in his
district.
At this point the Bombay Selections terminate; henceforward until
1890, when a British Vice-Consulate was established at Mohammerah the
only records available in regard to the affairs of the Ka’ab and of ’Arabistan
generally are those of the Bushire Residency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, established in the provinces and regions considered part of, or under the influence of, British India. . Those of the Basrah Consulate
are very meagre and throw^ little light on ’Arabistan affairs, though these
'! er ® d 1 ^! t . b J He . r Majesty s representative there, under the orders of
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. m the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. , until 1890. 1
1 For a complete list of the Shaikhs of the Ka ab, see annex to this chapte~

About this item

Content

This volume consists of a précis issued by the Government of India which provides comprehensive details regarding the history of relations between the British Government and the tribes and rulers of 'Arabistan. The volume is divided into eleven sections as follows:

  • I. British Interests in 'Arabistan;
  • II. 'Arabistan: Internal Politics up to the death of Haji Jabir and genealogical table of Shaikhs of Mohammerah, 1527-1881;
  • III. Shaikh Miz'als's rule, 1882-1897;
  • IV. Shaikh Khaz'al's rule, 1897-1910;
  • V. Shaikh Khaz'al and the Persian Customs;
  • VI. Shaikh Khaz'al: Political Relations with British Government;
  • VII. Piracies;
  • VIII. Turko-Persian Frontier Question;
  • IX. Shaikh of Mohammerah and Turks;
  • X. Irrigation in 'Arabistan;
  • XI. Acquisition and Tenure of Land in 'Arabistan with Annexes.

Between folios 51-70, the volume contains a number of appendices including copies of various relevant agreements. On folios 69-70, the volume contains the Persian text of a concession granted to the Nasiri Company for running ships from Ahwaz to Shushtar.

The volume was compiled by Lieutenant Arnold Talbot Wilson, Acting Consul for 'Arabistan. The printing statement reads, 'Calcutta: Superintendent Government Printing, 1912'

Extent and format
1 volume (68 folios)
Arrangement

The volume opens with a contents page (folio 4) followed by a prefatory note (folio 5), a list of relevant officials (folio 6), a schedule of appendices (folio 7), eleven chapters of text (folios 8-50) and ends with sixteen appendices (folios 51-70).

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the front cover with 1 and terminates at the inside back cover with 70; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located at 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 original printed pagination sequence is present in parallel between ff 8-65.

Written in
English and Farsi in Latin and Arabic script
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'A Précis of the Relations of the British Government with the Tribes and Shaikhs of 'Arabistan By Lieutenant A T Wilson, Acting Consul for Arabistan' [‎10v] (25/143), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/20/70, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100034861789.0x00001a> [accessed 29 March 2024]

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