File 3136/1914 Pt 5 ‘German War. Turkey. Hodeida consuls incident’ [43r] (94/336)
The record is made up of 1 volume (164 folios). It was created in 9 Nov 1914-16 Apr 1917. 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
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Having been cloaeiy aesociated with my hueband’s
vorx in the troublous province of Yn ’. <J< for over a decade
past,and taxing an interest generally in the affairs of
tiie iurxish Hinpire,it was somewhat with serious misgiving
that 1 had begun to regard the course of events in Turkey
since the middle of August last year.
About that time t my daughter and .1 had to leave
KODiilDAM temporarily owing to the sudden serious develop-
.nr. nt in the ooiitical situation at the Turkish capital.
,e remained in ADo>i; till the third week in October,and
seeing that there was no improvement in the existing statA
of affairs,but on the contrary,that the Turks were being
steadily dragged by Germany into the war against the
Triple Anter:te,the question naturally arose of quitting
our Arabian home until matters assumed their normal turn
once more.
ith this object in ffiittCanA in order to pack up my
household goods,we returned to Hodeid&h prior to talcing
our departure from there indefinitely.
e were hardly ready to leave,when news reached us
of bhe imminence of war with Turkey.
Instructions were simultaneously transmitted from
the embassy at Constantinople to our Consulate to clear
all British shipping from ports in the district,but that
ray hue band was to remain at his post till further orders.
There were no vessels in Yemen waters at the tine,
but it was presumed that one of his <aj esty ’ s ships
would be despatched on the actual outbreak of hostili
ties to convey us and other British sufcjGets.away from
ilOAiiilDAil.
iifhen that contingency arose,we found to our intense
disappointment that no warship was forthcoming to place
is in safety. I could not help thinking that the authori
ties concerned had,at t ic critical time,quite lor^otten
the existence at Uodeidah of a faithful servant of the
About this item
- Content
Papers relating to the incarceration by Turkish authorities of the British Vice-Consul at Hodeida (also spelt Hodeidah) [Al-Ḥudaydah], George Alexander Richardson, Richardson’s wife, Mary Richardson, and the French Vice-Consul at Hodeida, Monsieur Roux, in the wake of the destruction of a Turkish cargo vessel in Hodeida harbour by the crew of HMS Minto , on 4 November 1914. The file includes:
- Papers detailing diplomatic efforts to secure the release of the three prisoners. Papers refer to the Italian Government’s protest to the Turkish Government over the incident in Hodeida, in which the Italian Consulate was raided by Turkish officers, and the efforts of the Italian Vice-Consulate at Hodeida, Cavaliere Gino Cecchi, to secure the release of the prisoners.
- Richardson’s account of his capture, incarceration, and subsequent release on 6 February 1915 (ff 62-86).
- Mary Richardson’s own account of events (ff 43-58).
- A draft note from Arthur Hirtzel of 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. , addressed to the Secretary of State, conceding that HMS Minto had been instructed to ‘proceed up the Red Sea & destroy Turkish steamers and dhows’, and that HMS Minto had set fire to the Turkish vessel before the proclamation of war with Turkey was formally signed (f 60).
Other subjects covered in the file include:
- Prior to Richardson’s incarceration, discussion between the Foreign Office and Government of India over the entrustment of British Indian interests at Hodeida to the port’s Italian Vice-Consul (ff, 151-154, ff 159-162).
- After Richardson’s release, the Italian Vice-Consul’s assumption of British consular affairs at Hodeida, and the approval of his work amongst Government officials and members of the Indian merchant community at Hodeida (ff 18-37).
- Correspondence amongst British officials dated 1916 and 1917, enquiring after the prospect of formally recognising the work done by foreign consular officials at Aden, particularly that of the Italian Vice-Consul at Hodeida (ff 2-14).
- Extent and format
- 1 volume (164 folios)
- Arrangement
The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the rear to the front of the volume.
The subject 3136 (German War) consists of 6 volumes, IOR/L/PS/10/462-467. The volumes are divided into 6 parts, with each part comprising one volume. The part numbers are: 1, 2, 4, 5, 6 and 7. There is no part 3.
- Physical characteristics
Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the first folio with 1 and terminates at the last folio with 162; 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.
The foliation sequence does not include the front and back covers, nor does it include the leading and ending flyleaves.
- Written in
- English in Latin script View the complete information for this record
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Copyright: How to use this content
- Reference
- IOR/L/PS/10/465
- Title
- File 3136/1914 Pt 5 ‘German War. Turkey. Hodeida consuls incident’
- Pages
- 43r:58v
- Author
- Richardson, Mary
- Usage terms
- The copyright status is unknown. Please contact copyright@bl.uk with any information you have regarding this item.