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Coll 28/67 ‘Persia. Annual Reports, 1932–’ [‎266r] (531/644)

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The record is made up of 1 file (320 folios). It was created in 6 Dec 1933-27 Mar 1947. 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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improvement was embarked upon, on routes by which goods could be carried
to Russia. The quantity of goods carried in 1941, however, was not so great
as to arouse any lively gratitude in the Soviet authorities. Indeed, they were
inclined to gird at real or imaginary delays, and the Soviet railway commission
was manoeuvring to try to obtain a larger, if not a preponderant, share in the
^management of the north-to-south railway.
45. In mid-October a secret message was received from the new Shah,
saying that he would like to see His Majesty’s Minister fairly often, alone and
without the knowledge of the politicians : he felt that some of his Ministers
distorted the truth for their own ends, and mentioned various constitutional
and administrative questions on which he would like Sir R. Bullard s advice.
He wished, he said, to have the support of the British Lmpire and to work in
close agreement with His Majesty’s Legation with the greatest discretion. His
Majesty’s Minister replied that, while he would ask for instructions, he was
sure that it would not be possible for him to be received without the knowledge
of the Persian Cabinet and of the Soviet Ambassador. Ihe Shah then sent
word that he realised the difficulty for a Minister, but hoped that the counsellor
might see him—say twice a week. His Majesty’s Minister reported to the
Foreign Office, saying that while he sympathised with the Shah’s wish to learn
how best to serve his country, that object could not be attained by the attachment
of the Shah to one Power exclusively. Sir R. Bullard foresaw obvious
objections to frequent visits, whether secret or open : the Shah would tend to
regard His Majesty’s Government more and more as a bulwark against Soviet
Russia, and on the" other hand might be encouraged to feel that he understood
public business and to intervene in the affairs of Government. Ihe Shah had
vet to consolidate his position, though criticism was dying down, and should
follow a non-political role. If he became publicly identified with His Majesty’s
Government he would suffer for our real or alleged mistakes and we for his;
our relations with the Persian Government would be embarrassed, and the
Soviet Government would have ground for their so far baseless suspicions and
might set dangerous forces in motion. Sir R. Bullard concluded by suggesting
that the Shah should see all foreign representatives and all foreigners of
distinction, so that if he happened to see the British rather more often than
others, it would hardly be noticeable. This policy was approved by the Foreign
Office. In fact the Shah did see His Majesty’s Minister and the counsellor,
for one good reason or another, several times before the end of the year, besides
o-iving to the military attache an audience at which he talked very frankly.
He did not, unfortunately, adopt the practice of seeing the heads of other foreign
missions and so missed an opportunity to get a more general conception of
world affairs. Whenever he did see the head of a foreign mission he made
a good impression. He showed perhaps disproportionate interest in the army,
but this was natural in view of his own army service and of the importance
which his father had attached to military affairs. In foreign politics he showed
his wisdom, firstly in accepting whole-heartedly the necessity to work with the
Allies, and secondly in maintaining that his Government were harming their
own cause as well as that of their allies, by their failure to support it by active
pro-Ally propaganda.
46. The Berlin broadcasts in Persian continued to exercise a great
influence upon the classes of the population which have access to wireless
receivers, and news items from v Axis sources continued to appear in the local
press, though in a much smaller proportion than before the occupation. It
was thought better to reduce the proportion gradually rather than to stop all
Axis news in the press at once. The treaty, provided for the establishment
of a complete tripartite censorship. The official application of this provision
had to await the signature of the treaty in January 1942, but a complete scheme
for the censorship was sanctioned, early in November, and although the Chief
British Censor did not arrive until the 30th December, and then without any
‘ staff, a good beginning was made unofficially with the control of telegrams and
the Persian Government even agreed, though with some reluctance, to abandon
completely all wireless communication with Axis countries. With the assistance
of a succession of volunteer helpers a censorship of outgoing press messages
was set up, and if that did not work to the complete satisfaction of the foreign
iournalists, this may be attributed partly to the fact that messages are bound
to be delayed and often badly blue-pencilled which have to run the gauntlet

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Annual reports for Persia [Iran] produced by staff at the British Legation in Tehran. The reports were sent to the Foreign Office by HM’s Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary A diplomatic representative who ranks below an ambassador. The term can be shortened to 'envoy'. at Tehran (from 1943, Ambassador to Iran). The reports cover the following years: 1932 (ff 2-50); 1933 (ff 51-98); 1934 (ff 99-128); 1935 (ff 129-165); 1936 (ff 166-195); 1937 (ff 196-227); 1938 (ff 228-249); 1939 (ff 250-251); 1940 (ff 252-257); 1941 (ff 258-266); 1942 (ff 267-277); 1943 (ff 278-289); 1944 (ff 290-306); 1945 (ff 307-317); 1946 (ff 318-320).

The reports for 1932 to 1938 are comprehensive in nature (each containing their own table of contents), and cover: an introductory statement on affairs in Persia, with a focus on the Shah’s programme of modernisation across the country; an overview of foreign relations between Persia and other nations, including with the United Kingdom, British India, and Iraq; Persia’s involvement in international conventions and agreements, for example the League of Nations and the Slave Traffic Convention; British interests in or associated with Persia, including Bahrain and Bahrainis resident in Persia, 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. at Bushire, the Anglo-Persian Oil Company, Imperial Bank of Persia, and the Imperial and International Communications Company; political affairs in Persia, including court and officials, majlis, tribes and security; economic affairs in Persia (government finances and budgets, trade, industry, agriculture, opium production); communications (aviation, railways, roads); consular matters; military matters (army, navy, air force).

Reports from 1939 to 1946 are briefer in nature, Reports from 1941 onwards focusing on the Anglo-Soviet occupation of Persia, and the role of United States advisors in the Persian Government’s administration.

The file includes a divider, which gives a list of correspondence references contained in the file by year. This is placed at the back of the correspondence.

Extent and format
1 file (320 folios)
Arrangement

The file’s reports are arranged in chronological order from the front to the rear of the file. Each report for the years 1932-1938 begins with a table of contents referring to that report’s own printed pagination sequence.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 321; 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.

The file contains one foliation anomaly, f 308A

Pagination: Each of the reports included in the file has its own printed pagination system, commencing at 1 on the first page of the report.

Written in
English and French in Latin script
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Coll 28/67 ‘Persia. Annual Reports, 1932–’ [‎266r] (531/644), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/3472A, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100056661168.0x000084> [accessed 28 March 2024]

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