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Coll 17/4 'Iraq-Syria & Syria-Transjordan frontier: delimitation' [‎12v] (29/788)

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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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inIra<1 '- • - , officers of both parties, the
^"th" on Se7ou 0 ndT„d° thus fifing the starting-point of the frontier it was
reqUi On d A t p 0 ril de oth ne the Commission moved its -X^afi“
of the economic situation in th f P a i'‘furfished valuable information.
were invited to appear before the either side of the river and took evidence
frormthe “iS along the Euphrates of the semi-sedentary tribes
^hfSfiiSo^tn proceeded to
depofIts ' their
° f ‘fi^wTS^nSelwChair^n, arnvah to trans^the c-P^“a, in t.m
^“inVtale char^of the’enq^ry in the Sinjar sector, which was so important as to
CtotaTnprleeLi'on ApS'fiqS’.to Aleppo^wherethe Secretary o^the Commission
a^which'cofoiied^Goudomie^aml” Major U \Vi 1 lson Ca Adni < inistiative Inspector of Mosul, were present
The Chairman took advantage if the presence of a French military aeroplane m the camp
to make a first flight over the Sirrjar area.
Staying a week at Sukenia, the Commission, with the exception of M. Marrades, who was
well vished a number of villages on the southern slope of the mountain, and ascertained i
detail the conditions in which the Yezidi population lived. In particulai, ]t ®
at Beled Sinjar, the centre of the district, and had interviews with delegations of the Administrative
Council, the religious authorities, and the traders. . . , ,
When the time came to move camp to Senuni, north of the Sinjar, ^“"^“"^dties
at Mosul while the transfer was being carried out. It was very cordially r “ el ™ d ^ ^
there, and took advantage of the opportunity to obtain information regardm., the commeici
relations between this important centre and the frontier districts.
From Senuni, where a landing-ground had been made, several air reconnaissances were
carried out between May 6th and 12th, in particular as far as Albu Kemal, P 1185 /"® ^hi 'h
deposits. Colonel Iselin thus being given an opportunity to examine the de ‘ ads ° f * ls ar f ® a - ™ t L
the Commission had previously studied. Several flights over the Qara Chok Dagh as far as the
Tigris afforded a general view of the Kabur basin and the area known as the Bee de Canard
(Duck’s Bill) In the intervals, the Commissioners motored to the important villages oi Dara
Mamissa, and Adika, on the northern flanks of the Jebel Sinjar. Several days were also spent
in interviewing witnesses summoned by the assessors to inform the Commission as to the economic
relations between the Jebel and the towns of Hasseche and Kameshha, on the Syrian border.
When these witnesses were being heard in camp, the whole Commission was always present;
but when it visited the villages on the northern slope of the Sinjar, M. Marrades, who was still
not fit for motoring, was unable to accompany his colleagues.
On May 12th, the Commission left Senuni by car on the way to its last camp at Khanik,
on the Tigris, opposite Faish Kabur. On the way it stopped at the encampment of Sheik Ajil,
the supreme chief of the Shammar tribe of Iraq, with whom the Commissioners discussed the
general question of the tribes and their changes of pastureland.
From Khanik, reconnaissances were made by motor and on horseback along the Tigris and
the Qara Chok Dagh, and also in the Rumelan Keui area, and as far as the French post at Derik,
in the “Bee de Canard”.
Regarding its enquiry on the ground as completed, the Commission held a final meeting
on May 16th, at which the Chairman thanked the four assessors for their valuable assistance.
While Colonel Iselin, accompanied by the Secretary, went by air to Baghdad to pay a visit
of courtesy to H.M. the King and the Members of the Iraqi Government, M. Petersen and
M. Marrades returned direct to Beirut.
The Commission reassembled at Beirut on May 19th, and spent nearly a week in classifying
and working out the conclusions drawn from its work on the ground.
The Chairman and the Secretary left Beirut for Geneva by sea on May 25th. M. Petersen
left for Geneva the same day, via Ankara and Istanbul, where he obtained some additional
technical information.
The Chairman and M. Petersen met again at Geneva on June 2nd, and were rejoined on
June 8th by M. Marrades, who had been detained at Beirut.
1 See Official journal of the League of Nations, March 1932, pages 503 to 506 and 798 to 801.

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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' [‎12v] (29/788), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/2848, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100054845814.0x00001e> [accessed 29 March 2024]

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