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Coll 7/4 'Afghanistan: purchase of arms from Great Britain' [‎152r] (308/1146)

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The record is made up of 1 volume (568 folios). It was created in 2 Jan 1930-19 Feb 1935. It was written in English. 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

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No. 386/XI.
British legation,
Kabul.
Kay S, 1S33
Monsieur le Finistre,
I have the honour to invite a reference to my
- letter /°* _ 386/XI of the 27th N e hruary last regarding
a certificate issued by the Afghan Consul a t Karachi
to the effect that certain goods, contained in five
truntis ana one case, which had been imported per
S. S.WachtfeIs *, were the property of the Afghan Goverr
Kent.
The Director of the Western Department of the
Boreign Office who called on me on the 20th March,
alter explaining that the certificate was given in
error and that the contents of these packages consist
ing of a certain book, a sword, five pistols and a
quantity of cartridges were in fact the property of
Abdul Hadi Khan, late Minister a t Berlin, requested me
on behalf of the Afghan Government to recommend that
transit of these articles (with the exception of the
hook) should be allowed.
It will be realised by Tour Excellency that
mistakes of this mind in official documents signed by
Afghan Consuls, apart from the serious effect they are
likely to have on the credit of the Consuls themselves
and on that of their Government, constitute an infring
ment of the Treaty of 1S21 and I accordingly have the
honour to request that steps may kindly be taken to
ensure that mistakes of this kind do not recur.
In the present instance the Government of India
have, a s an exceptional concession which will form
no precedent for the future, accepted the request made
By the Afghan Government ana have given facilities
the property in question, other than the proscribec
book/

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Content

The volume contains correspondence regarding the purchase by the Afghan Government of arms, ammunition and explosives from a number of sources, including the War Office and British and French firms.

It includes communications between British officials (HM Minister in Kabul and the Foreign Office) and the Afghan Foreign Ministry and Afghan legations to Paris and London, regarding: requests to purchase and transport materials; negotiations over customs dues and transport costs; requests for the recommendation of arms firms; and the quality of materials supplied by private companies.

Folios 552-567 consist of a memo titled 'Applications for the Export of Arms and Munitions to Afghanistan', providing details of the procedures to be followed, and a copy of the Anglo-Afghan Treaty (1921).

The file also contains correspondence between British and Indian officials (the War Office, the Board of Trade, 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 Government of India Political Department, the Collector of Customs at Karachi) and a number of British firms, regarding: informal requests for permission to sell or transport munitions to the Afghan Government; applications for export licences; concerns over the quality and source of munitions; and details of alleged attempts by a German firm to supply arms, in possible violation of Article 170 of the Treaty of Versailles. The firms include: Messrs A Fleming; Gray, Dawes & Company; Mackinnon Mackenzie & Company; Imperial Chemical Industries Limited; and Machine Tools (India) Limited. The correspondence also includes information on the involvement of the French firm L'Office Générale de l'Air, and its dealings with Messrs A Fleming.

The volume includes a divider which gives a list of correspondence references contained in the volume by year. This is placed at the end of the correspondence (folios 4-5).

Extent and format
1 volume (568 folios)
Arrangement

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

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 570; 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 in Latin script
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Coll 7/4 'Afghanistan: purchase of arms from Great Britain' [‎152r] (308/1146), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/2173, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100056050956.0x00006d> [accessed 29 March 2024]

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