Coll 20/5 'Muscat: Sur: Misbehaviour of Beni Bu Ali tribe; Aiqa customs post; Question of Air Action' [115r] (229/531)
The record is made up of 1 file (262 folios). It was created in 26 Nov 1931-12 Apr 1938. 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.
forecast or foresee their reactions to tne most innocent
measures or proposals, a fact of whicn I have had very
convincing experience myself in the last six months. I fully
anticipated,judging from my previous experience of him,that
When 1 visited Sur in December last I should be able to
persuade Shaikh Ali bin Abdullah to accept a customs post at
-aiqa: the influence of Shaikh Abdullah bin Rawwaf, the local
priest, V'as thrown into the scales against me and I failed.
During the recent operations at Sur His Highness the Sultan
of Muscat was convinced that the Bani Bu Ali would not
accept the customs post without some show of resistance:
the Shaikh’s first letter was very truculent and His Highness
argued that the Jenebeh, Bani Bu Hasan and other tribes were
watching,and that the loss of H Sharaf M would be tremendous
if they climbed down without any resistance. My personal xxsi
view was that the mani Bu Ali would yield to "force majeure"
and would tacitly accept the post,but would never give any
formal undertaking in writing to do so and would try to do
something to save their face. Actually what happened, I
understand, was that after the ultimatum was issued a
council of w a r was held, end the general opinion was in
favour of making some show of resistance. Then some four
or fiure of the leading Shaikhs of the Jenebeh went over to
xiiqa from Sur, and advised the Bani Bu Ali "not to be fools",
and we have now obtained from Shaikh Ali not merely a
written acceptance of tne customs post, but a further
letter from him, in reply to mine warning him against
molesting the post or attempting to evade customs, to the
effect that he has instructed his people not to molest the
post, and to pay their customs dues. The climb dov/n has
been complete and abject. It remains to be seen whether
they
About this item
- Content
The file contains letters, telegrams, minutes, notes, and draft correspondence relating to two incidents in Oman. The first, which the majority of the papers deal with, was the rebellious attitude of members of the Beni Bu Ali tribe, led by Shaikh Ali bin Abdullah al Hamudah. The papers, which concern efforts by the British to assist the Muscat authorities in bringing the tribe to order, cover the following matters:
- the proposal and consequences of a visit to Sur by the President of the Council of Ministers, Sayyid Said bin Taimur Al Bu Said [Sa‘īd ibn Taymūr Āl Bū Sa‘īd], and the Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. , Captain Reginald George Evelyn William Alban, to negotiate with Shaikh Ali in October 1931
- the effort to establish a customs post at Aiqa
- the question of the appropriate use of force
- arrangements for further visits in December 1931
- the seizure of dhows belonging to the Beni Bu Ali tribe
- the Government of India's disapproval of the Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. 's conduct
- letters of congratulations and thanks following the peaceful resolution of the crisis
- the question of when to restore Shaikh Ali's privileges.
The second incident covered by the file is the murder of a British Indian man by a member of the Shihuh tribe in June 1936. The correspondence discusses the action that should be taken.
The principal correspondents are 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. in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. , Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. at Muscat, Government of India (Foreign and Political Department), Foreign Office, Admiralty, Air Ministry, Senior Naval Officer in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. , Commander-in-Chief in the East Indies, 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. , Sultan Said bin Taimur, and Shaikh Ali of the Beni Bu Ali.
The file contains several reports, as follows:
- Report on the visit to Sur of 26 October 1931, by Captain Alban, 31 October 1931 (folios 223-26)
- Report on the 'Situation at Sur and Aiqa', with notes on the Bani Bu Ali tribe, by the Senior Naval Officer, Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. Division, 20 December 1931 (folios 137-51)
- Report on the crisis as a whole by Lieutenant-Colonel Hugh Vincent Biscoe, 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. in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. , 19 March 1932 (folios 97-108)
- Report on 'Operations at Sur, 4th-9th March 1932' by the Senior Naval Officer, Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. Division, 19 March 1932 (folios 85-87)
- Report on the situation at Sur a year after the crisis by Lieutenant-Colonel Trenchard Craven William Fowle, 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. in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. , 4 March 1933 (folios 74-76).
A sketch map of the area around Sur can be found on folio 193.
- Extent and format
- 1 file (262 folios)
- Arrangement
The file is arranged in chronological order from the back to the front.
- Physical characteristics
Foliation: the foliation sequence for this description commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 265; 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
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Coll 20/5 'Muscat: Sur: Misbehaviour of Beni Bu Ali tribe; Aiqa customs post; Question of Air Action' [115r] (229/531), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/2957, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100045791025.0x000020> [accessed 29 March 2024]
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- Reference
- IOR/L/PS/12/2957
- Title
- Coll 20/5 'Muscat: Sur: Misbehaviour of Beni Bu Ali tribe; Aiqa customs post; Question of Air Action'
- Pages
- front, front-i, 2r:15v, 17r:108v, 111r:226v, 230r:265v, back-i
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence