Letter from Abbas Mirza to the President of the Board of Control, Charles Watkin Williams-Wynn, and a Translation of the Letter

Content

Translation of a letter from Abbas Mirza [Crown Prince of Persia, ʿAbbās Mīrzā A title of honour originally applied to princes, later to military leaders, and later still to secretaries, chieftains, and other ‘gentlemen’. Qājār] to the President of the Board of Control Formally known as the Board of Commissioners for the Affairs of India, it was established by an Act of Parliament in 1784 to supervise the activities of the East India Company. , Charles Watkin Williams-Wynn (IOR/L/PS/9/70/223 (1)), accompanied by the original letter in Persian (IOR/L/PS/9/70/223 (2)). In the letter, Abbas Mirza points to a history of Russian encroachments upon Persian [Iranian] territory, in contravention of the Treaty of Gulistan [signed between Russia and Persia in 1813], for which he believes Persia has never received any form of redress. He justifies Persian military operations against Russia on this basis and on the basis of the mission of the Russian envoy to Persia, Prince Minchikoff [Prince Aleksandr Sergeevich Menshikov], having no authority to reverse the most recent Russian encroachments into Persian territory. He argues that these encroachments represented the first aggression in the resulting war between Russia and Persia [Russo-Persian War, 1826-1828], and calls for British mediation between the two states, and for assistance in the war from the British.

This document was originally enclosed, numbered 1, in the letter of the East India Company Envoy to Persia, Lieutenant-Colonel John Macdonald Kinneir, to the Secret Committee Pre-1784, the Committee responsible for protecting East India Company shipping. Post-1784, its main role was to transmit communications between the Board of Control and the Company's Indian governments on matters requiring secrecy. of the East India Company of 8 May 1827 (IOR/L/PS/9/70/222).

Extent and format

1 item (5 folios)

Written in

Persian and English in Arabic and Latin script

Type

Letter

Access & Reference

Original held at

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.

Access conditions

Unrestricted

Archive reference

IOR/L/PS/9/70/223

History of this record

Date(s)

1827 (CE, Gregorian)

Subjects

DiplomacyRusso-Persian War (1826-1828)

People & organisations

Board of Commissioners for the Affairs of IndiaCrown Prince of Persia, Qajar dynasty

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Letter from Abbas Mirza to the President of the Board of Control, Charles Watkin Williams-Wynn, and a Translation of the Letter, British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/9/70/223, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100038378586.0x00036e> [accessed 9 August 2026]

Link to this record

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