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Coll 6/21(2) 'Saudi Arabia: Relations with H.M.G.: Saudi Legation in London and British Minister in Jeddah. Prolongation of Treaty of Jedda.' [188r] (375/761)
The record is made up of 1 file (379 folios). It was created in 14 Jan 1935-12 Apr 1947. It was written in English and Arabic. 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.
THIS DOCUMENT IS THE PROPERTY OF HIS BRITANNIC MAJESTY’S GOVERNMENT
EASTERN (Arabia).
March 22, 1937.
CONFIDENTIAL.
Section 4.
[E 1639/201/25 Copy No.
Sir R. Bullard to Mr. Eden.-—(Received March 22.)
(No. 33.)
Sir, Jedda, March 4, 1937.
ANT Moslems who expected that the pilgrimage would be made the occasion
either for the holding of a Moslem congress or for some less formal demonstration
of politico-religious solidarity will have been disappointed. In my telegram
No. 11, which I had the honour to address to you on the 25th February, I conveyed
a message from Ibn Saud, in which he stated that in reply to an appeal for
help from the Mufti of Palestine he had advised the mufti to await the finding
of the Royal Commission and to co-operate with the Palestine authorities in the
maintenance of law and order. According to my information the mufti did
not make any political speech throughout the pilgrimage, not even at the meeting
of the Saudi xTrab Toung Men’s Society at Mima, at which he was a guest. The
published report of this meeting represents the mufti as having been called upon
for a speech after a long series of other persons had either made speeches or
recited verses, and as having spoken on “ Islam and Modern Civilisation.” It
would be quite easy to make a violent speech about Palestine which would fit
this title, but I am assured that the speech was non-political.
2. It had been Ibn Sand’s custom for some years to give a dinner of about
a thousand covers to the leading men from the* various countries represented
at the pilgrimage. This year he gave four separate banquets for : (1) Indians;
(2) Egyptians; (3) “pilgrims from the Arab countries”; and (4) “pilgrims
from various countries.” The newspaper report mentions as among the “ various
countries ’ ’ China, the Sudan, and North, South and East Africa. The Malays and
Javanese are not mentioned, but it seems that, in fact, very few of these pilgrims
attend the Royal banquets. It is alleged that they are not remunerative as guests,
because they never make speeches praising Ibn Saud and do not write him up
when they get back to their own countries. The reason given in the press for the
division of the pilgrims into groups is that it gave the King an opportunity to
get into closer touch with them. The innovation would clearly have that effect,
but the splitting up of the pilgrims by countries would also make it more difficult
foi a hot headed speaker to make a pan-Islamic appeal, and this consideration
may have helped to influence Ibn Sand’s decision.
3. A striking feature of the pilgrimage was Ibn Saud’s endeavour to
convince the Moslem world of his orthodoxy. According to the published version
of the speech which he delivered at the Indian banquet, after speaking as he
has done every year about Allah and the Prophet and the Koran he said
“ As to the prescriptions of the sects, we are not against them in
anything. They are all our sects, whether Hanafi, or Shafai, or Maliki or
Hanbah. Our sect is based on proof wherever it may be found \i.e in the
Koran or the traditions of the Prophet], and if proof is lacking and there
is nothing to follow but ijtihad [deduction or interpretation by a person
of learning], then we follow the ‘ ijtihad ’ of Ahmad-bin-Hanbal.”
A similar statement was made by the King in the course of a private interview
whmh he gave to His Highness the Khan of Kelat. According to Khan Bahadur
Ihsanullah, the Indian vice-consul, who was present, the King declared that he
was a Hanbali, but that he respected the other three founders of the Sunni sects
and had adopted various points from their teachings. It does not appear from
the published leports that the King made similar declarations on any other
occasion, but the publication in the Umm-al-Qura of the declaration made at
the Indian banquet shows that it was not intended merely for Indian consumption
[956 y—4]
About this item
- Content
This file, like the previous volume (IOR/L/PS/12/2087), concerns relations between the British Government and the Government of Saudi Arabia.
The file largely consists of copies of Foreign Office correspondence, mainly between His Majesty's Minister at Jedda (Sir Andrew Ryan, Sir Reader William Bullard, Hugh Stonehewer Bird, and Stanley R Jordan successively) and officials of the Foreign Office. Other prominent correspondents include the following: the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs; His Majesty's Chargé d’Affaires to Jedda (Albert Spencer Calvert, succeeded by Alan Charles Trott); His Majesty's Ambassador in Baghdad (Sir Kinahan Cornwallis); Ibn Saud [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd]; Amir Faisal [Fayṣal bin ‘Abd al-‘Azīz Āl Sa‘ūd], Minister of Foreign Affairs for Saudi Arabia; officials of the Colonial Office and the War Office.
The correspondence documents the progression of negotiations for a general settlement between the two governments, which would result in the initial prolongation of the validity of the Treaty of Jedda (the treaty signed between Britain and Ibn Saud in 1927, which initially expired in September 1934) for a period of seven years from 1936 (and for another seven years from 1943).
In addition to discussing matters relating to the proposed general settlement (e.g. the eastern and south-eastern boundaries of Saudi Arabia, slavery regulations, arms traffic, and Saudi debts), the correspondence also documents various visits and meetings, including the following:
- The visit of Amir Saud [Āl Sa‘ūd, Sa‘ūd bin ‘Abd al-‘Azīz, heir apparent of Ibn Saud] to Britain (17 June-1 July 1935), accompanied by Fuad Bey Hamza, Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs for Saudi Arabia.
- Further meetings at the Foreign Office between Fuad Bey Hamza, Hafiz Wahba (Saudi Minister in London), Sir Andrew Ryan, George William Rendel (Head of the Foreign Office's Eastern Department), and other Foreign Office officials, in July 1935, following on from meetings in September 1934.
- Sir Andrew Ryan's meetings with Ibn Saud in Riyadh in December 1935 and in Jedda in February 1936.
- Four interviews held between Ibn Saud, Sir Reader William Bullard and George William Rendel, in Jedda, during March 1937.
Also discussed are matters relating to the Second World War, including:
- An exchange of letters between Ibn Saud and the British Prime Minister, Neville Chamberlain, in early 1939, which principally relate to Ibn Saud's concerns regarding his country's security in the event of the beginning of general hostilities.
- German radio broadcasts in Jedda during the first few weeks of the Second World War and their possible effect on the Jedda population.
- The possibility of Iraq and Saudi Arabia formally joining the Allies in the Second World War.
In addition to correspondence the file includes the following: a copy of a programme for Amir Saud's visit to Britain (ff 339-348); exchanges of notes (in English and Arabic) between the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the British Legation at Jedda, confirming the prolongation of the Treaty of Jedda, dated 1936 and 1943 respectively (ff 189-192 and ff 4-5); a sketch map showing air routes over Saudi Arabia and Iraq (f 31v).
Although the material in this file falls inside the date range of 1935-1943, the final document in the file does include an additional date stamp which is marked '12 April 1947'.
The file includes two dividers which give a list of correspondence references contained in the file by year. These are placed at the back of the correspondence.
- Extent and format
- 1 file (379 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 commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 380; 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 and Arabic in Latin and Arabic script View the complete information for this record
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Coll 6/21(2) 'Saudi Arabia: Relations with H.M.G.: Saudi Legation in London and British Minister in Jeddah. Prolongation of Treaty of Jedda.' [188r] (375/761), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/2088, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100048209024.0x0000b2> [accessed 19 April 2024]
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Copyright: How to use this content
- Reference
- IOR/L/PS/12/2088
- Title
- Coll 6/21(2) 'Saudi Arabia: Relations with H.M.G.: Saudi Legation in London and British Minister in Jeddah. Prolongation of Treaty of Jedda.'
- Pages
- 188r
- Author
- Āl Sa‘ūd, ‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal (xx Ibn Saud)
- Usage terms
- Public Domain