Coll 29/73 'Ahwaz: grant of compensation to the Shaikh of Mohammerah on account of money he advanced towards the building of a consulate at Ahwaz' [‎7r] (15/331)

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THIS DOCUMENT IS THE PROPERTY OF HIS-BJBITANNIC MAJESTY’S GOVERNMENT
IN confirmation of my telegram No. 144 of the 27th M ay, I have
the honour to inform you that the'"Sheikh "of Mohammerah, Sheikh
Sir Khazal Jabir, G.C.I.E., K.C.S.I., died during the night of the 24th/25th May,
at his Tehran house. The local newspapers announced the fact on the
following day, adding that the body had been interred at the cemetery- of
Imamzadeh Abdullah. I forthwith sent a suitable letter of condolence, accom
panied by cards from various members of the staff of this Legation, to the
eldest locally residing son, Abdul Hamid.
2. The last member of this Legation to see the sheikh alive was the
oriental secretary, who went to his house on the 22nd May in order to pay
him a sum of money due on account of the rent of His Majesty s vice-consulate
house at Khorramshahr, which belonged to the deceased. Mr. Trott found
the sheikh fairly cheerful, in just the same state as he has been for the last
two years—that is, he was in bed, sitting up. His hair seemed to have
become whiter, and he complained of trouble with his eyes, which were
protected by dark glasses. But he spoke of plans for going up-country for
the summer, and reproached Mr. Trott for not having been to see him oftener.
He made no allusion to his situation vis-a-vis either his own or His Majesty s
Government.
3. No reply has hitherto been received to my letter of condolence. For
this reason the munshi A term used in the Middle East, Persia and South Asia to refer to a secretary, assistant or amanuensis. Munshis were employed in the British administration in the Gulf. bashi of this Legation was sent to make any enquiries
that he could from Muhandis-ul-Mamalik, who has been the sheikh’s agent
for some years. Muhandis-ul-Mamalik told Mr. Naimy this morning that,
as far as he could ascertain, the circumstances of the sheikh’s decease were
as follows:—
4. For some time past detectives have been, at the sheikh s request,
stationed at the outer door of his house in order to keep away the sheikh s
traitorous son Abdullah and some other persons which the sheikh did not
desire to see. On Sunday night, the 24th May, Abdullah somehow entered
the house. He tried to go to his father, but w T as stopped by one of the sheikh s
personal servants. A wordy dispute ensued, the detectives appeared; other
servants joined in ; and finally all the disputants, including Abdullah, were
taken to the police station and interrogated. They were not released till
late at night. During that night, therefore, the house was practically denuded
of its ordinary staff of servants.
5. In the morning it was noticed that the sheikh gave no reply when
a servant knocked at his door. His habit being to rise early, it was thought
that he must have overslept for once; an hour later a forced entry was
made and he was found to be dead. Dr. Luqman, who had been attending
him for some time, was immediately summoned and said that life had been
extinct for about eight hours. It is thought that he died from a sudden stroke.
Possibly this stroke was caused by the commotion of the night before. If so,
Abdullah, the sheikh’s evil genius so often in the past, finally caused his
father’s death.
6. So ends the sheikh’s eleven years’ enforced stay in Tehran. The
assurances which His Majesty’s Government gave him do not, as far as I
understand, extend in any way to his heirs. The Iranian Government, and
more especially its present ruler, have repeatedly broken their solemn promises
to the deceased; but I do not suppose that that fact weighs heavily on
PERSIA.
June 15, 1936.
CONFIDENTIAL.
^ ^ Section 3.
Copy No.
[E 3517/3066/34]
Mr. Butler to Mr. Eden.—(Received June 15.)
(No. 274.)
Sir,
Tehran, May 30, 1936.
[740 p—3]