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Coll 20/2 'Administration: Question of abdication of Sultan; Succession and Subsidies; Question of abrogation of treaties with USA and France' [‎369v] (738/757)

The record is made up of 1 file (375 folios). It was created in 7 Oct 1930-26 Aug 1948. It was written in English and French. 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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2
* Lor. i, 472.
t Lor. i, 488-!).
J Lor. i, 4 , J9--500,
512-3.
§ Sir D. Bray to
Mr. Wakely, D.O.
1956, E.A., July 21
1921, 1’. 3588/21.
post, which is at present held by Major G. P. Murphy, Indian Army, lias
been maintained without interruption since its revival" 1 * after the separation
of Muscat from Zanzibar in 1861. In 1869 it was placed in strict
subordination to 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. .f Since 1867
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. has also held His Majesty’s Commission as Consul for
Muscat. Under the Muscat Order in Council A regulation issued by the sovereign of the United Kingdom on the advice of the Privy Council. of 1915 (see paras. 63-4
below), which replaced the Muscat Order in Council A regulation issued by the sovereign of the United Kingdom on the advice of the Privy Council. of 1867, the Political
Agent is the District Magistrate and Sessions Judge, and exercises his
powers subject to the jurisdiction of 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, j he limits of the Order are co-extensive with the territories and
territorial waters of the Sultan of Muscat and Oman.
5. \o specific reference was made to Muscat in the Report of the
Masterton-Smith Committee, and while, under the general principle embodied
m that Committee, matters of political significance on the north Arabian
littoral which may affect relations with Ibn Sand fall to be dealt with by
or m consultation with the Colonial Office, such matters rarely, if at all, arise
m Muscat, and political control may in consequence be regarded as resting,
as in the pre-war period, with the Government of India, subject to the
general control of His Majesty’s Government. Under the principles
embodied in the Masterton-Smith Report, the internal affairs of the State are
in any event the direct concern of the Government of India.
6. With the inconsiderable exception referred to below, expenditure in
Muscat is wholly borne by Indian revenues. That expenditure consists of
subsidies to the Sultan, of Durbar A public or private audience held by a high-ranking British colonial representative (e.g. Viceroy, Governor-General, or member of the British royal family). presents, and of the cost of maintaining
the 1 optical Agency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, headed by an agent. . The subsidies consist of an annual sum of Rs. 86,400,
« — -- — -eptember 1883 been wholly an
Indian charge),J and of the annual subsidy of Rs. 1 lakh One lakh is equal to one hundred thousand rupees paid since 1912
(see paras. 12 and 22 below) in compensation for the losses to the Sultan
arising out of the suppression of the arms traffic, which will cease with the
tenure of power by the present Sultan. These charges are fixed, and their
amount (loes not vary In the latest year for which authoritative figures are
available (1019-20) the cost ol the Political Agency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, headed by an agent. was Rs. 78,427, and in
the same year Durbar A public or private audience held by a high-ranking British colonial representative (e.g. Viceroy, Governor-General, or member of the British royal family). presents amounted to Us. 5,000.§ The solitary item
of expenditure shared with His Majesty’s Government is a yearly payment
in respect ol anti-slavery measures, the amount of which in 1926 was Rs. 73
-iyu» to 4tti October 1913
aiutan xaisai.
6. Hie dominating feature of the period between 1908 and 1913 is
the successful suppression, in agreement with the Sultan of Muscat of the
aims tiaffic from his State, and no other question of sufficiently ’o-eneral
interest to call lor reference in this Memorandum arose in the closing years
of the icign of Sultan Faisal. The rebellion of the Omani tribes which
bioke out some months before his death on 4th October 1913 beWs
pi incipally to i*cign of his successor. It is dealt with in a separate
section m paras. 43 to 52 below. P lldL e
The Suppression of the Arms Traffic from Muscat.
. J' At the beginning of the period a general prohibition of the arms
traffic was in force on the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. littoral save in Muscat. The Su tan
of Muscat had prohibited m 1891 the import or export of arms and
ammunition to or Irom Gwadur, i s dependency on tL Pw r./ i
»f ,S 98 Hi,,,,;,,,
arms from Muscat to India and Persia where the import of arms wasXga
and had empowered Persia and Great Britain to act on his behalf L 1 • ’
enforcing this prohibition within Muscat territorial waters In 1903 he" had
further agreed to the search by British and Italian ships of Muscat vessels
on the high seas suspected of carrying arms. But the import of arms X
M ,1 scab and their export, except to India and Persia, were still unprohib ted

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Content

The file contains letters, telegrams, minutes, and draft correspondence related to the abdication of Sultan Taimur bin Faisal of Muscat [Taymūr bin Fayṣal Āl Bū Sa‘īd] and the accession of his son, Said bin Taimur [Sa‘īd ibn Taymūr Āl Bū Sa‘īd] in 1932. The early correspondence concerns efforts to prevent Taimur from abdicating and to improve Muscat's flagging economy. Once the abdication is accepted several questions are raised and discussed, including:

  • the suitability of a successor and the arrangements for the accession of his son, Said
  • whether to continue both the Arms Traffic and Zanzibar Subsidy payments (this question is raised again in 1948)
  • the renegotiation of Muscat's treaties with the French, Americans, and the tribes of Oman's interior
  • whether to continue Taimur's personal allowance
  • Sultan Said's changes to government

Further correspondence within the file deals with the following matters:

  • requests for statistical information about Muscat from the Danish government for their yearbook in 1934 and 1935
  • a plea from Kamile Ilgiray, an ex-wife of former Sultan Taimur, to the British Government for help with her son's education
  • the question of the best time to inform the French, American, and Dutch governments of Sultan Said's succession
  • the whereabouts of former Sultan Taimur, including his visits to Saudi Arabia in 1933 and Japan in 1939.

The majority of the correspondence is between 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. in Muscat, Political Residency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, established in the provinces and regions considered part of, or under the influence of, British India. in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. , Government of India (Foreign Department), 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. , and Foreign Office. Further correspondence is from Sultans Taimur and Said, the French and Indian Governments, and several British political and diplomatic offices in Europe and the Middle East.

Extent and format
1 file (375 folios)
Arrangement

The file is arranged in chronological order from the back of the file 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 378; 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.

Written in
English and French in Latin script
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Coll 20/2 'Administration: Question of abdication of Sultan; Succession and Subsidies; Question of abrogation of treaties with USA and France' [‎369v] (738/757), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/2952, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100050222670.0x00008d> [accessed 29 March 2024]

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