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Coll 6/67(1) 'Boundaries of South-Eastern Arabia and Qatar.' [‎270r] (544/794)

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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. .

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Amir Saud and the Turks y 1872-1873.
^ 124. A brief reference may be made to the relations between Sand and the
Turks as bearing on the question of the relation of the Saudi dynasty to the Turkish
power. In 1872 it was reported that the terms of the understanding contemplated p r ^ cig
were to be his recognition as the Chief of Nejd on condition of his paying the §150-6.
Turkish war expenses and the same yearly tribute as had been paid by the Amir
Feisul. There were certain supplementary conditions which are immaterial. Both
he and the Turks professed their anxiety for a settlement on this basis, but no
conclusion was reached. In 1872 a letter from Saud offered to invest the Resident
with full power of mediation with the Turks, but the negotiations which succeeded
again came to no conclusion. In 1873 Saud, now in a stronger position in Nejd,
sent Abdul Rahman, the father of the present Saudi King, to Bagdad, with a view
to the reaching of an agreement. Abdul Rahman was treated as a hostage and
detained until 1874, but negotiations proved unfruitful. In 1875 Saud died and Pol. A.
Abdul Rahman was elected Amir of the kingdom of Riyadh “ by the general Sept. 1875,
consent of the people.” Internecine quarrels between members of the Saudi family
continued from 1875 to 1880, but in the latter year it was reported that Abdulla
and his nephews (including Abdul Rahman) were living in peace and friendship.
The nephews possessed Kharj, Hotah, Harik, Aflaj, &c., and had followers of the
Ajman, Murra and Dowasir tribes.
Rise of the Ibn Rashid Family.
125. In 1881, however, the Ibn Rashid dynasty, assisted by the divisions among
the Saudis, gradually established themselves in control in Nejd, and the Saudis, who
in 1879 had been reported to exercise control only in Riyadh and the district
round it, sank into obscurity for 20 years. The Ibn Rashid dynasty of Hail had
from 1832 occupied the Jebel Shammar and its Sheikhs had paid homage to the
Saudis. The homage to the Saudis was gradually abandoned with the decay of Nejd Precis
the Wahabi State, and in 1876 Ibn Rashid is described as the greatest prince in § 201.
Nejd.” In 1888 Ibn Rashid decisively defeated the Saudis and captured Riyadh,
and his dynasty remained in complete control in Nejd until 1901. It may be
recorded, however, that in 1890-91, on the Saudis regaining Riyadh, both parties
wrote to the Mutasarrif of Hasa, Ibn Rashid to denounce Abdul Rahman as Nejd Precis
meditating an attack on Hasa; Abdul Rahman complaining of Ibn Rashid “and §217.
professing his obedience to the Turkish authorities, who were disposed to listen ^g 0
favourably to him.” The Ibn Rashid family throughout professed allegiance to the 4 o °_9 p e b
Turkish Government, though Turkish influence in their dominions appears to have 1891, 63-4.
been of the smallest; and even on the occasion of his capture of Riyadh in 1888
he posed as the officer or lieutenant of the Ottoman Government.
Consolidation of British Position, 1870-1901.
126. Between 1870 and 1901 H.M. Government had substantially strengthened
their position on the Arab littoral of the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. . In 1880 they had entered
into an exclusive agreement with the Sheikhs of Bahrein; in 1887 corresponding
agreements wmre concluded with the Trucial Sheikhs. In 1892 the agreements
both with Bahrein and with the Trucial Sheikhdoms were confirmed and
strengthened and control of the foreign relations of all the rulers in question
passed into the hands of the British Government. In 1899 the British Government
for the first time established relations on the basis of a positive written engagement
with the Sheikh of Koweit and laid the foundations of the situation which emerged
14 years later in the acknowledgment by Turkey under the Anglo-Turkish
Convention of 1913 of the autonomy of the Sheikhs of that principality.
Turkey established herself in Qatar in 1871 and remained in control throughout
the period 1871-1901. Her claim to the principality was never recognised by
H.M. Government, and considerable correspondence with the Turkish Government
took place during this period in connection with it.
IV.—1901-1914. From the Capture of Riyadh by Ibn Saud to the outbreak of the
Great War.
127. Between 1901 and 1913 Ibn Saud considerably reduced the importance of
the Ibn Rashid family and established himself in Nejd. In 1913 he drove the
Turkish garrisons out of Hasa. During almost the whole of this period he was in
frequent contact with H.M. Government, his object being to secure their protection
3076 Or

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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
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Coll 6/67(1) 'Boundaries of South-Eastern Arabia and Qatar.' [‎270r] (544/794), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/2134, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100056574350.0x000091> [accessed 29 March 2024]

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