Skip to item: of 1,186
Information about this record Back to top
Open in Universal viewer
Open in Mirador IIIF viewer

Coll 30/58 'Persian Gulf. Anglo-Persian Relations. Persian insult to British flag at Basidu' [‎179r] (362/1186)

The record is made up of 1 file (589 folios). It was created in 3 Aug 1933-31 Jan 1934. 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

This transcription is created automatically. It may contain errors.

Apply page layout

r,n
5.
6 a leroughi then said th-^t qv, u
the Shah upset at all
our recent activities at Basidu- w-
iau> we were said to he
cons truetinp' new Tmi i rH-nn-r.
, new buildings there; we had left a garrison
there for several weeks Thr- 8
, . v T There was a Significant pnuse
which I assumed to imply nresenop nf ■p-
iiy P resence of First Flotilla but no
menaon was actually made of it.
7 ‘ 1 Sald 1 C ° Uld hardl y ^lieve we were doing any
serious building at Basidu. Feroughi implored me to let
him know this definitely as it would help him with the
Snah. He hoped we were not even doing repairs. i sa id
I failed to see how it concerned Persia if we were. He
said if wnen we make treaty you are going to hand over Basid
why spend money on buildings there? (Evidently Shah think
that we intend to go back on this clause of draft treaty and
imagines we are fortifying Basidu).
8 . Sepabhodi tentatively suggested another help toward!
aving (. face) would be for us to remove garrison now at
Basidu. I said that if I asked for that as from the Persia:
Government reply would probably be exact reverse of what was
hoped, this stopped him dead.
9- Feroughi then returned to the question of "how are
you going to repair the situation?" I said the situation
had beer broken by the Persian navy and that any reparation
was due from that quarter and not from us. But he again tol:
me that unless we could help him he was done for and
Sepabhodi as well. "Are we friends" he asked. I answered
yes". "Then," said he, "we must not risk upsetting the
hah and spoil hitherto wonderfully favourable atmosphere for
negotiation". He quoted the Shah's message to the King aid
SepaWiodi

About this item

Content

This file contains correspondence between British diplomatic and naval officials concerning an incident on 31 July 1933 when four Persian naval officers landed at Basidu (a naval station on Qishm island used by Britain) and took down the British flag in the presence of witnesses including an Italian and a Frenchman. Subsequently, a Royal Navy vessel arrived at the station and the British flag was re-hoisted.

The correspondence discusses the details of the incident itself, its aftermath and its impact on Britain's relations with the Government of Iran. It also covers what steps were taken to 'restore British prestige in the eyes of the Gulf Arabs', including details regarding the dispatch of a royal navy flotilla to the region.

In addition to correspondence, the file also contains the following:

  • Relevant press cuttings regarding the incident and Britain's response (folios 78, 169, 311 and 364)
  • Copy of a circular clarifying the sequence of events in Basidu that was issued by the British authorities in the Gulf (folio 11)
  • 'Copy of a note dated the 14th August 1933, from the Head Clerk, H.B.M.'s Consulate, Bandar Abbas, regarding a conversation which recently took place between the Governor of Bandar Abbas and the Consulate Mirza' (folio 255)
  • 'Basidu Incident' a summary of events written by J V Creagh, Senior Naval Officer in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. (folios 329-331)
  • 'Extract from Cabinet Conclusions dated 5th September 1933 - Relations with Persia, Basidu Incident' (folios 370-376)
  • 'Legal Status of Basidu' (folios 398-399)
  • 'Cabinet: Relations with Persia - Basidu Incident. Memorandum by the First Lord of the Admiralty' (folios 413-415)
  • Cabinet Memorandum regarding Basidu Incident (folios 416-417)
  • 'Foreign Office Memorandum for submission to the Cabinet on the subject of the Flag Incident at Basidu' (folios 435-440)
  • A small sketch map marking the boundaries of 'British Basidu' (folio 536).

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 (589 folios)
Arrangement

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

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 591; 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
View the complete information for this record

Use and share this item

Share this item
Cite this item in your research

Coll 30/58 'Persian Gulf. Anglo-Persian Relations. Persian insult to British flag at Basidu' [‎179r] (362/1186), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/3775, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100060481229.0x0000a3> [accessed 23 July 2026]

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_100060481229.0x0000a3">Coll 30/58 'Persian Gulf. Anglo-Persian Relations. Persian insult to British flag at Basidu' [&lrm;179r] (362/1186)</a>
<a href="https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100060481229.0x0000a3">
	<img src="https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000000648.0x000156/IOR_L_PS_12_3775_0362.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_100000000648.0x000156/manifestOpen in Universal viewerOpen in Mirador viewerMore options for embedding images

Use and reuse
Download this image