PZ 4718/1934 ‘Historical Memorandum on Bahrein.’ [‎13v] (26/48)

Pol. Res. to
Govt, of
Bombay,
165 of
11.9.1869,
181 of
25.9.1869,
184 of
5.10.1869,
Teb. Desp.
No. 81,
14.11.1869.
Pol. Res. to
Teh. tel. of
14.11.1869.
15.11.1869.
Teh. Desp.
83 of
16.11.1869.
Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. is entrusted, from, the
™aZf the Gulf; hut whenever such a shM
arise a full communication respecting it shall bemad
to the Persian Governmentf'
Overthrow and Death ofSheihh Mi (August-September 1869)
86 In August— September 1869 Bahrein was invaded
by the ex-Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifah, "; ho "' as
by one Mohammed bin Abdullah, son of the Sheikh who had
uL n denosed in 1843 (paragraph 39 above). Ihe ruling
Sheikh Ali was defeated and killed,'while Sheikh Mohammed
bin Abdullah assumed the leadership of the usurping party.
87. Her Majesty’s Minister reported on 14th Kovember
1869 a conversation on this incident with the Persian
Minister for Foreign Affairs in the course of which
the latter admitted that Persia had not acquired sufficient
power or authority in that part of the Gulf to enable
her to repress acts of piracy and to maintain older, but
added that he hoped that before long the Shah’s authority
would be fully established at Bahrein, when full redress
would be given for losses suffered through the recent events,
and that in the meanwhile it would not be considered
necessary that the British authorities should undertake
coercive measures. Her Majesty’s Minister further reported
that “ Ali bin Khalifa having forwarded letters to this Court
admitting his allegiance to the Shah and offering his services
to the Persian Government,” an agent (Mirza Mehdi Khan,
who had been Persian Envoy to Bahrein in 1859 (para
graph 67 above)) had been despatched with a Royal Firman A Persian word meaning a royal order or decree issued by a sovereign, used notably in the Ottoman Empire (sometimes written ‘phirmaund’). ,
recognising Sheikh Ali bin Khalifah as Chief of Bahrein,
but that on receipt of the news of the murder of the Sheikh
by the ex-Sheikh Mahomed bin Khalifah, the Firman A Persian word meaning a royal order or decree issued by a sovereign, used notably in the Ottoman Empire (sometimes written ‘phirmaund’). had
been recalled and the name of the ex-Sheikh substituted (from
paragraphs 94-5 below it will be seen that these statements
subsequently proved to be incorrect in material particulars).
British Punitive Expedition (November—December 1869).
88. Punitive operations consequent on the murder of
Sheikh Ali were undertaken by the British Government in
November of the same year. Previous notification was given
to the Persian Government of the grounds of this expedition,
the object of which was stated to be “ to call the chief now
in possession of Bahrein to account for his breach of the
maritime peace and for the attack on Sheikh Ali bin
Khalifah, who had been placed in power by the British
Government.”
89. The Persian Minister for Foreign Affairs on receipt
of the notification in question stated that the ex-Sheikh
Mohammed bin Khalifah, who had, he said, been the cause
of the recent disturbances, had been killed (this was in fact
incorrect); that the Resident’s action would therefore be
useless, and that the Persian Government hoped that he
would be telegraphically instructed not to proceed to Bahrein.
He added that the Persian Government would themselves
keep the affairs of Bahrein by land in order and that should
anything happen to affect its affairs by sea they would
request the British Government to send a naval force to nut
affairs m order “ but up till now the state of affairs in
Bahrein had not fallen into disorder.”
90. The Persian agent referred to in paragraph 87 above
arriving m the Gulf at this stage addressed letters to Sheikh