Skip to item: of 794
Information about this record Back to top
Open in Universal viewer
Open in Mirador IIIF viewer

Coll 6/67(1) 'Boundaries of South-Eastern Arabia and Qatar.' [‎143v] (291/794)

This item is part of

The record is made up of 1 volume (392 folios). It was created in 13 Jun 1934-13 Dec 1934. It was written in English and Arabic. 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

This transcription is created automatically. It may contain errors.

Apply page layout

Mr. Rendel repeated that, if His Majesty’s Government should find it
possible to reach a satisfactory friendly agreement, they would not insist on the
legal aspect of the matter; but, in saying this, what they had in inmd was
something more than an agreement on this one question , they desned, in act, a
general agreement which should cover a number of questions outstanding between
the two Governments, for instance, the Koweit blockade. In regard to some wv
these questions, His Majesty’s Government would have certain desiderata, King
Jbn Saud would no doubt have his own desiderata in other directions. If the
frontier question could be satisfactorily settled as part of such a general agree
ment, the legal position of His Majesty’s Government could be left on one side.
His Majesty’s Government must, however, reserve their right to return to their
leo'al claims if for any reason a general settlement were not found possible. The
legal position, even if left in abeyance, remained unchanged, and His Majesty’s
Government were still prepared, if necessary, to uphold the legal validity of the
“ blue line.”
Sir A . Ryan concurred in this view. He added that, in pressing for a general
settlement, His Majesty’s Government were following the lead given by King
Ibn Saud himself, when he had suggested conversations with a view to clearing
up his whole position vis-d-vis of His Majesty’s Government.
Mr. Rendel suggested that the further examination of the frontier problem
might be allowed to wait until Fuad Bey received the instructions which he was
shortly expecting. Meanwhile, he felt bound to make it clear that there was,
in fact, a good reason why copies of the Anglo-Turkish Conventions of 1913 and
1914 had not been given to Ibn Saud after the Treaty of Jedda. King Ibn Saud
had at that time merely asked for copies of the agreements between His Majesty’s
Government and other Arab rulers. There had, therefore, been no question of
supplying him with copies of agreements between His Majesty’s Government and
the Ottoman Government. In any case, the “blue line ” was generally known
and appeared on several published maps.
Fuad Bey expressed himself as hopeful of reaching a settlement of out
standing questions. He added, however, that, although King Ibn Saud might
be willing to settle any present differences between himself and His Majesty’s
Government, he was anxious that there should not be any suspicion of what
Fuad Bey termed “ marchandage.” As regards the frontier problem, His
Majesty’s Government’s reservation of their legal rights might perhaps raise
difficulties. Would it not be better to leave the legal aspect out altogether,
confine the discussion to the actual facts of the present position, and treat each
question separately on its individual merits, as His Majesty’s Government had
always insisted on doing in the past ?
Mr. Rendel pointed out that in any general settlement, while problems were
naturally considered on their merits, they also had to be considered as inter
connected parts of a whole. So long as there was hope of a satisfactory general
settlement it would be possible to leave the question of strict legal rights in
abeyance, but it must always be understood that, if finally a general settlement
proved unattainable, a return could be made to the separate examination of each
particular case on its own merits. There was no question of what Fuad Bey had
called “marchandage.” The position was simply that the merits of any
particular question would have to be considered in the light of the overriding
merits of the settlement as a whole. It was a case of give and take and of taking
the long rather than the short view.
Sir Andrew Ryan emphasised his earlier remark that Flis Majesty’s Govern
ment were following King Ibn Saud’s lead. It was in accordance with King
Ibn Saud’s own wishes that His Majesty’s Government were in this case departing
from their more usual practice of considering each question in isolation, and were
agreeing to consider the various outstanding questions together. They realised
that if an attempt were made to deal with the frontier difficulty by itself, the
King’s strong feelings would make a settlement on a strictly legal basis difficult
and contentious; he gave as an instance the known reluctance of King Ibn Saud
to admit that he could be held to be bound by transactions with the former
Turkish Government.

About this item

Content

This volume primarily concerns British policy regarding the south-eastern boundaries of Saudi Arabia.

It includes interdepartmental discussion regarding the approach that the British Government should take in reaching a settlement with King Ibn Saud [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd] over the demarcation of the boundaries.

Much of the correspondence discusses the legal and international position of what is referred to as the 'blue line' (the frontier which marked the Ottoman Government's renunciation of its claims to Bahrain and Qatar, as laid down in the non-ratified Anglo-Ottoman Convention of 1913 and redefined and adopted in the Anglo-Ottoman convention of the following year), a line which is not accepted by Ibn Saud as being binding upon his government.

The volume features the following principal correspondents: His Majesty's Minister at Jedda (Sir Andrew Ryan); 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. (Lieutenant-Colonel Trenchard Craven William Fowle); 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. , Kuwait (Lieutenant-Colonel Harold Richard Patrick Dickson); 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. , Bahrain (Lieutenant-Colonel Percy Gordon Loch); the Chief Commissioner, Aden (Bernard Rawdon Reilly, referred to in the correspondence as Resident); the Secretary of State for the Colonies (Sir Philip Cunliffe-Lister); the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (Sir John Simon); the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs; officials of 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. , the Foreign Office, the Colonial Office, the War Office, and the Air Ministry.

Matters discussed in the correspondence include the following:

  • Whether the British should press Ibn Saud [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd] for a general settlement of all outstanding major questions.
  • The extent of territory that the British should be prepared to include in any concession made to Ibn Saud.
  • The British response to what are referred to as Ibn Saud's 'ancestral claims' to territories east of the blue line.
  • Sir Andrew Ryan's meetings with Ibn Saud in Taif, in July 1934.
  • Meetings held at the Foreign Office between Sir Andrew Ryan, George Rendel (Head of the Foreign Office's Eastern Department), Fuad Bey Hamza (Deputy Minister for Saudi Foreign Affairs), and Hafiz Wahba (Saudi Arabian Minister in London), in September 1934.
  • The boundaries of a proposed 'desert zone', suggested by Rendel, where Ibn Saud would hold personal rather than territorial rights.
  • Saudi-Qatari relations.
  • Whether tribal boundaries should be considered as a possible solution to the boundary question.

Also included are the following:

The Arabic material consists of one item of correspondence (an English translation is included).

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

Extent and format
1 volume (392 folios)
Arrangement

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

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 394; 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. A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.

Written in
English and Arabic in Latin and Arabic script
View the complete information for this record

Use and share this item

Share this item
Cite this item in your research

Coll 6/67(1) 'Boundaries of South-Eastern Arabia and Qatar.' [‎143v] (291/794), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/2134, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100056574349.0x00005c> [accessed 29 March 2024]

Link to this item
Embed this item

Copy and paste the code below into your web page where you would like to embed the image.

<meta charset="utf-8"><a href="https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100056574349.0x00005c">Coll 6/67(1) 'Boundaries of South-Eastern Arabia and Qatar.' [&lrm;143v] (291/794)</a>
<a href="https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100056574349.0x00005c">
	<img src="https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000000555.0x0002a0/IOR_L_PS_12_2134_0291.jp2/full/!280,240/0/default.jpg" alt="" />
</a>
IIIF details

This record has a IIIF manifest available as follows. If you have a compatible viewer you can drag the icon to load it.https://www.qdl.qa/en/iiif/81055/vdc_100000000555.0x0002a0/manifestOpen in Universal viewerOpen in Mirador viewerMore options for embedding images

Use and reuse
Download this image