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Coll 6/67(3) 'Boundaries of South Eastern Arabia and Qatar.' [‎109r] (224/830)

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The record is made up of 1 volume (411 folios). It was created in 7 Feb 1935-20 Dec 1935. 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. .

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Shanna : I enclose herein a copy of a valuable sketch map prepared bv Colomd
rckson to illustrate the result of his recent enquiries.i 1 )
• ou are authorised to make such use as you think best of this infnr
mation; but you should be careful not to mve the imDressiou tW Mo 1 “
Government have in any way abandoned Ihek o!^
i^Bey Hamza in London, to basing the frontier solely on tribal considerations To
^do so might only encourage the belief that His Maiesty’s GkTrnment wiuW he
U^atmigralilir' 1 At y th frUltleS f ! ar§unlei ! t as t() 'the
fa f • At the same time ’ y° n should make the best possible use of thp
recognise the sovereignty ofi f ajeSty ’ S are offering to
of rtf itl ir I -P ty of Km g Abdul Aziz over practically the whole “ dira”
Bev Hamza a! th/tlIfe ofrt aS defined ^ th ? “formation communicated by Fuad
.bey iiamza at tire time of the conversations m London '
k rt lb: D ^ tei ; t f ese P reli . minar y observations you should, subiect to confirmation
by the Pohtica Resident in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. of the exact location of ieymiihs
A and B mentioned in sub-paragraphs (a) and (6) below, and to further tele
graphic instructions in regard to the eastern sector of the frontier dealt with in
sub-paragraph (c) below, make a formal offer of the following line as the boundary
0ttTr e Ld Ata^X f SaUdi f ra , bia 011 the one hand a “ d ‘he SheikhdZs S
yatar and Abu Dhabi (m special relations with His Maiesty’s Government! the
sultanate of Muscat and Oman, and the Aden Protectorate, on the other ’
(a) A line starting from a point on the eastern shore of the gulf known as
the Dohat-as-Salwa about 4 miles to the north-east of the settlement
ol (^asr-as-balwa, running thence in a straight line to a point, which
may for convenience of reference be called ££ Key-point A,” which will
probably lie at the western extremity of the salt lake known as
feabkhat-al-Amra.
(b) From this point the line will run roughly due south to a point to be known
as Key-point BA This point, when fixed, will be situated approxi
mately on the northern boundary of the Murra ££ dira) as drawn in
the light of the latest information in the possession of His Majesty’s
Government (i.e., on Colonel Dickson’s map (see paragraph 14 above)).
it is proposed to fix this key-point B at some well on the southern edge
of the district known as A1 Aqal (i.e., a short distance east of the
intersection of meridian 51° E. with parallel 24° N.) to which a
positive claim can be advanced on behalf of the Sheikh of Abu Dhabi.
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. is still making enquiries as to the precise
points at which these two key-points A and B could reasonably and
properly be fixed, and further instructions will be sent to you as soon
as his reports have been received and a decision has been reached by
His Majesty’s Government thereon.
(c) From key-point B it is proposed that the boundary should proceed,
generally speaking, in a straight line, but so as to leave the whole of
the Sabkhat Matti to Abu Dhabi to the intersection of parallel 22° N.
with meridian 54° or 55° E. and thence down whichever of those
meridians is decided on to its intersection with parallel 20° N. 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. is being consulted on the question of substituting
meridian 55° E. for meridian 54° E., as originally proposed, for this
sector of the line, and further instructions will be sent to you on this
point as soon as possible.
(d) Thence the boundary will run in an approximately straight line, but so
as to leave the Sabkhat Mijora in Saudi Arabia and the Ramlat
Mugshin in Muscat and Oman, to the intersection of meridian 52° E.
and parallel 19° N. (namely the south-eastern corner of the area—
the so-called ££ brown line ” concession—offered to Fuad Bey Hamza
in London last July), and thence in a straight line to the intersection
of parallel 18° N. with the ££ violet line” of the Anglo-Turkish
Convention of 1914.
(fi Not reproduced.

About this item

Content

This volume primarily concerns British policy regarding the south-eastern boundaries of Saudi Arabia, specifically those bordering Qatar, the Trucial Shaikhdoms, Muscat, the Hadramaut and the Aden Protectorate.

It includes interdepartmental discussion regarding the approach that the British Government should take in reaching a settlement with King Ibn Saud [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd] over the demarcation of the boundaries.

References are made to various existing and proposed lines, including the 'blue line' and the 'violet line' – boundary lines that formed part of the Anglo-Ottoman Conventions, concluded in 1913 and 1914 respectively, a 'green line' and a 'brown line', which represent more recent territorial concessions proposed by the British to Ibn Saud, and a 'red line', which is referred to as the Saudi Government's claim for its country's south-eastern boundary.

The volume features the following principal correspondents: 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. (Lieutenant-Colonel Trenchard Craven William Fowle); 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. , Bahrain (Lieutenant-Colonel Percy Gordon Loch); His Majesty's Minister at Jedda (Sir Andrew Ryan); the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (Sir Samuel Hoare); the Acting Chief Commissioner, Aden (Lieutenant-Colonel Morice Challoner Lake); officials of the Colonial Office, the Foreign Office, 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. , the Government of India's Foreign and Political Department.

The correspondence includes discussion of the following:

  • The extent of territory that the British should be prepared to include in any concession made to Ibn Saud.
  • The abandonment of the idea of a proposed 'desert zone'.
  • The future of the Treaty of Jedda of 1927.
  • Meetings held at the Foreign Office with Fuad Bey Hamza, Deputy Saudi Minister for Foreign Affairs, and Hafiz Wahba, Saudi Arabian Minister in London, during June and July 1935.
  • The eastern boundary of the Aden Protectorate.
  • The possibility of the British Government employing Bertram Thomas to carry out enquiries and investigations regarding the question of Saudi Arabia's south-eastern frontiers.
  • Wells and territories of the Al Murra [Āl Murrah] tribe.
  • Preparations for Sir Andrew Ryan's forthcoming visit to Riyadh for negotiations with Ibn Saud.
  • Abu Dhabi's claim to Khor-al-Odeid [Khawr al ‘Udayd].
  • Details of a British aerial reconnaissance of the Qatar Peninsula, which took place on 11 October 1935.

In addition to correspondence the volume includes the following: copies of the minutes of meetings of the Committee of Imperial Defence's Standing Ministerial and Official Sub-Committee for Questions Concerning the Middle East, dated 15 April 1935 and 24 September 1935 respectively; photographs of the Qatar Peninsula, taken during the aforementioned aerial reconnaissance; a map showing the route of the aerial reconnaissance.

The volume includes a divider which gives a list of correspondence references contained in the volume by year. This is placed at the back of the correspondence (folio 4).

Extent and format
1 volume (411 folios)
Arrangement

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

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with 1 and terminates at the last folio with 411; 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.

Written in
English in Latin script
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Coll 6/67(3) 'Boundaries of South Eastern Arabia and Qatar.' [‎109r] (224/830), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/2136, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100046787905.0x000019> [accessed 29 March 2024]

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