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Coll 17/4 'Iraq-Syria & Syria-Transjordan frontier: delimitation' [‎12r] (28/788)

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The record is made up of 1 volume (386 folios). It was created in 1 Jun 1921-27 Oct 1932. 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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— 13 -
received tyth* representatt^ of° RM Ihe by ^ C r ommissi »“rs were ve.y cordially
Commissioner in Iraq, and by certain members o' tbe r y S rancis Humphrys, H.B.M. High
interviews during the succeeding days h Government, with whom they had several
^The Commission desires to thank them lor their kind assistance in the organisation of its
possible, left Damascus by SroplaneTn March aqth. 11 ^ colleaglles at Baghdad as quickly as
by a sudden storm, such aJ'froqmmtlv arisesTn^hose ^t^wn b ! tween Rutba and Ramadi
conjectured. Probably the pilo? flyiX low in order trPfii 5 ' yj hat ha PP €ned th ™ can only be
the sand-clouds, which are carried Ve r 8 y Wh bX r cal^ “ as “ b y
and was destroyed. The three occunants i ol„ , l ij ' "‘ad'me crashed at full speed
killed instantaneously. oc ™P a nts, Colonel de Reymer, the pilot and his assistant,
were
and ^danAuthorities'tcTundertakifTsearch forthwFt^Ori delay ’- aSked the Irad '
but the search was made very difficult by bad atmospherk condkklill NoTFmdTteySxhorns
^ ^ ~ * the^aeroplane
The Commission at once went to meet the party which was bringing back the bodies of Colonel
whenSTeyCeFetekeTrBSrJ reSted ^ ” the Baghdad MUitar y Hos P lta1 '
x xt At th l de Parture, a moving ceremony took place in the 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. Park, in the presence
of the coffins of the three victims. The King’s representative, the High Commissioner, and all
the members of the Iraqi Government and the Diplomatic Corps associated themselves with
this last tiibute. Detachments of British and Iraqi troops rendered the funeral honours. The
coffins were then placed in a militaiy aeroplane, which conveyed them to Damascus, accompanied
by another machine carrying the members of the Commission.
The High Commissioner, M. Henri Ponsot, attended by the civil and military authorities,
was at the Damascus aerodrome awaiting the arrival of the aeroplane, which was met by three
French flights.
As soon as the aeroplane landed, the last honours were paid by the troops of the garrison,
and the body of the Chairman, Colonel de Reynier, was then conveyed to Beirut, and afterwards
to Switzerland.
We desire to pay a heartfelt tribute to the memory of Colonel James de Reynier.
His energy, clearsightedness, and uprightness made him eminently suitable for the delicate
task with which he had been entrusted; in a few days, he had gained the high esteem and complete
confidence of those who had to work under him, and his death was a very real grief to them.
At the request of the two mandatory Powers concerned, the Commission was authorised
by the Secretary-General of the League of Nations to continue its work provisionally, pending
the appointment and arrival of the new Chairman.
It was then decided what method was to be followed in the enquiry. 1 he Commission was
to proceed to the frontier zone and endeavour to collect on the spot all information that might
be of use. It was to study the area, travelling all over it, visiting the villages and questioning
the inhabitants.
This work was to be greatly aided by the new 1:200,000 maps which had been piepaied
jointly lay the topographical departments of the two Governments for the Commission s special use.
Transport of various kinds had been placed at the Commission s disposal by the Governments
concerned. Convoys of motor-cars, escorted by motor machine-gun detachments supplied y
the two parties, had been organised. In addition, to facilitate long-distance reconnaissance
the Officer Commanding the British Air Force detailed a large transport aeroplane capable o
carrying all the members of the Commission and the assessors. Later, a field wireless station
was erected in the camps, also by the Royal Air Force.
Being thus enabled to move about with ease, the Commission succeeded m carrying out a
very full enquiry in each sector of the frontier in a comparatively short space of t^e. Whereve^
additional information was felt to be necessary, the Commission applied to the as .
two parties, who replied by written notes to the questions put to them.
Further, availing themselves of the right granted to them to call lo( !al
cases, the assessors summoned before the Commission numerous repre
POPU To tl0 exdude all possibility of intimidation and to inspire the witnesses eonfidence,
they were questioned in the sole presence of the mterpietei o ^ p ^ J ^ ma j n confidential,
summoned. They were also given an assurance that their statements won
Having made all necessary arrangements, the Commission occupied its first camp, close
40 Its^iS^'Sk&stAtctor, which is complete de^t ^ ^“rSdtnVS
of a topographical nature. It was required so as b , • x IQ ^ 0 ^ new frontier-line

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Content

Papers regarding negotiations to amend the borders between French-mandated Syria, and British-mandated Iraq and Trans-Jordan. The papers discuss the boundaries established by the Sykes-Picot Agreement and the Treaty of Sèvres, the British push for the inclusion of Amadiyah within the Iraq mandated territories, and the issue of tribal groups crossing border regions. The papers primarily consist of communications between the Foreign Office, the Secretary of State for the Colonies, and the High Commissioner for Iraq, with occasional commentary from 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. Political Department.

The file also contains copies of treaties, minutes and appendices from the Committee of Imperial Defence, Standing Sub-Committee for Questions Concerning the Middle East, and minutes and documents circulated by the Council of the League of Nations, including:

  • Memorandum by the High Commissioner for Iraq, stating objections to the frontiers established by the Treaty of Sèvres, including two maps, ff 375-380.
  • Minutes and appendices of the Foreign Office meeting of 13 July 1931, including copies of the Humphrys-Ponsot Draft for Combined Reference to the Council of the League of Nations, and a copy of the Agreement between HMG Her or His Majesty’s Government in London. and the French Government respecting the Boundary Lines between Syria and Palestine from the Mediterranean to El Hammé, Treaty Series No. 13 (1923), ff 315-349.
  • Papers circulated at the Committee of Imperial Defence Sub-Committee meeting of 8 September 1931, including correspondence with the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs concerning the Beirut formula, ff 238-314.
  • Minutes of the Committee of Imperial Defence Sub-Committee meeting of 23 September 1931, including a sketch map of the Syria-Trans-Jordan frontier, and a report by the British Resident at Trans-Jordan, ff 141-209.
  • Second report by Sir Francis Humphrys on his negotiations in Paris regarding the Syrian frontier, and annexes comprising draft agreements, ff 67-75.
  • Excerpt minutes of the 65th Session of the Council of the League of Nations, 9 December 1931, including copies of the joint request for arbitration submitted by Britain and France, ff 48-66; plus minutes of the sessions on 31 October 1931, and 30 January 1932, ff 37-46.
  • Copy of the League of Nations Mandate, Report of the Commission entrusted by the Council with the Study of the Frontier between Syria and Iraq, Geneva, 10 September 1932 (Official reference: C. 578. M. 285. 1932. VI), ff 6-28, which includes four maps (IOR/W/L/PS/12/2848 (i), IOR/W/L/PS/12/2848 (ii), IOR/W/L/PS/12/2848 (iii) and IOR/W/L/PS/12/2848 (iv)).

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

Extent and format
1 volume (386 folios)
Arrangement

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

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 388; 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. An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 4-385; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.

Written in
English and French in Latin script
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Coll 17/4 'Iraq-Syria & Syria-Transjordan frontier: delimitation' [‎12r] (28/788), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/2848, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100054845814.0x00001d> [accessed 28 March 2024]

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