Skip to item: of 360
Information about this record Back to top
Open in Universal viewer
Open in Mirador IIIF viewer

Coll 30/13 'Persian Gulf: Henjam Naval Base; Question of Transfer to Bahrein [Bahrain]; Survey of Khor Kaliyeh Bay' [‎142v] (284/360)

The record is made up of 1 file (178 folios). It was created in 29 Oct 1928-21 Sep 1933. 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

9
* Sir H. Wiliocks’
Desp., May 10 1820.
p, 35.
Persian Note of
Dec. 9 1820. p. 36
(16).
p. 49 (3).
p. 52.
pp. 15, 59.
p. 4.
Pol. Res. to G. of I.,
Aug. 14 1926,
P. 3847/26.
t Aitchison, xii,
Ixi, article 6.
Lor. i, 2106.
Precis, pp. 14, 16.
p. 18.
reckon those dominions as appertaining to me but as appertaining to the
Honourable Company.” The Imam simultaneously instructed the Sheikh of
Kishm to give every assistance in the embarkation and conveyance of the
troops. Various places were occupied in the island for the purpose in
question, before a decision was finally taken in favour of Basidu in 1822.
6. An immediate protest in strong terms was received from the Persian
Government against the British occupation of Kishm, and a reference to the
lease granted by the Imam was met by a statement that Muscat was itself a
dependency of Persia, and a fortiori Kishm and Henjam, which depended
from Bunder Abbas.* Sooner than risk a rupture of friendly relations with
Persia, it was decided to remove the British detachment from the town of
Kishm. This was done in February 1822, but the Government of Bombay From c. 1668-1858, the East India Company’s administration in the city of Bombay [Mumbai] and western India. From 1858-1947, a subdivision of the British Raj. It was responsible for British relations with the Gulf and Red Sea regions. ,
in their letter repudiating the unauthorised agreement which had been
entered into by Captain Bruce with the Prince Governor A Prince of the Royal line who also acted as Governor of a large Iranian province during the Qājār period (1794-1925). of Pars, which had
'inter alia recognised Persian sovereignt} 7, in Kishm, made it clear to the
Persian Government that their action was without prejudice to the decision
on the question of the respective rights in the island of the Imam of Muscat,
and of Persia, and that the island would be restored by His Majesty’s
Government to the Imam, from whom they had leased it. As, however, no
equally convenient naval station could be found in the Gulf, Basidu was
again occupied in 1823, from which year until 1879 it remained the head
quarters of the naval squadron in the Gulf. No protest appears at the time
to have been made by Persia against its re-occupation, since the date of
which the British flag has flown in the concession.
7. In 1853 the Persian Government expelled the Muscat representative
from Bunder Abbas and its dependencies (including apparently Kishm),
and the agreement finally reached between Persia and Muscat in 185G
involved not only the payment of an increased rent to Persia by the Sultan
of Muscat, but the recognition as Persian territory “ of the two islands of
Ormuz and Kishm, which had been dependencies of Oman.”
8. During the Anglo-Persian War of 1855 Basidu was constantly used as a
British depot, but neither in 1853, 1856, 1864 (when the British occupation
was confirmed under Article 6 of the Telegraph Agreement with Sultan
Thoweymee of Muscat,f then lessee of the island from Persia), on the
renewal of the Persian lease to Muscat in 1868, or on the forcible termination
of that lease in the same year by Persia, was any exception taken by Persia
to the British occupation.
9. The legal position of Basidu, which had been raised in 1863 by a claim
from the Persian authorities, which would appear to have been rejected, for
the surrender of a slave who had taken refuge in the concession, was again
raised by a similar demand in the spring of 1868, and by a murder committed
in the same year in the Naval Station.
10. The question was exhaustively considered by the Government of
India, who as a result, on 8th September 1868, informed the Government of
Bombay that in their opinion “the station in question cannot properly be
considered as British territory. It is perfectly true that we have occupied
Basidu either as a naval or coaling station for half a century. But the
island has always been treated by us as a dependency of Bunder Abbas ;
and Bunder Abbas and its dependencies, including the island of Kishm, and
consequently Basidu, have been leased to the Sultan of Muscat by the Shah
of Persia under circumstances with which the Government of Bombay From c. 1668-1858, the East India Company’s administration in the city of Bombay [Mumbai] and western India. From 1858-1947, a subdivision of the British Raj. It was responsible for British relations with the Gulf and Red Sea regions. is
perfectly familiar. ... It follows in such circumstances ... as
the British Government holds possession of the town of Basidu by permission
of the Sultan of Muscat, while that potentate'derives his lease of Kishm
which includes Basidu, from the Shah of Persia . . . that Kishm must still
be considered as Persian territory. There may be some obscurity as to the
exact nature of our derivative title to the town of Basidu, and it mav have
been thought that our rights over the town existed by continued usage, or
that we had obtained^ a prescriptive title; but, in looking closely into the
question, it becomes evident that our rights are subordinate to those of Muscat
which again are, admittedly, entirely subordinate to those of Persia, and have

About this item

Content

This file contains correspondence between British officials concerning the removal of a British naval depot on Henjam Island and its relocation to Bahrain. The correspondence includes a broader discussion of Britain's position in Persia and its impact on the country's role in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. generally. The early correspondence in the file on folios 159-179 is related to a survey of Khor Kaliya Bay in Bahrain.

In addition to correspondence, the file contains the following:

The file includes a divider, which gives a list of correspondence references contained in the file by year. This is placed at the back of the correspondence.

Extent and format
1 file (178 folios)
Arrangement

The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the rear to the front of the file.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 180; 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. A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.

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

Coll 30/13 'Persian Gulf: Henjam Naval Base; Question of Transfer to Bahrein [Bahrain]; Survey of Khor Kaliyeh Bay' [‎142v] (284/360), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/3724, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100042691061.0x000055> [accessed 29 March 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_100042691061.0x000055">Coll 30/13 'Persian Gulf: Henjam Naval Base; Question of Transfer to Bahrein [Bahrain]; Survey of Khor Kaliyeh Bay' [&lrm;142v] (284/360)</a>
<a href="https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100042691061.0x000055">
	<img src="https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000000648.0x000120/IOR_L_PS_12_3724_0285.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_100000000648.0x000120/manifestOpen in Universal viewerOpen in Mirador viewerMore options for embedding images

Use and reuse
Download this image