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Coll 6/8(1) 'Printed Series: 1929 to 1938.' [‎36v] (77/1062)

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The record is made up of 1 volume (527 folios). It was created in 6 Jan 1929-15 Jan 1938. 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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34
familiar nickname, not only claims the whole of the Qatar Peninsula, including
a i-'n wn.nts for himself, but ha.s arnn+cU _m
concession
miliar nickname, not omy claims tnc l mciudins
hill that Ibn Saud particularly wants for himself, but has granted an oil
•ncession like an independent sovereign. Running down the coast are
various insignificant people whose only purpose in life seems to be to bar Ib n
Saud from the sea, from any oil that may be discovered there, and from any
pickings that might be got out of Imperial Airways. Finally, there is Bahrein,
which used to belong to Ibn Saud’s ancestors but now stands more or less
on its own feet, and which, moreover, has an oil well gushing away as if i n
mockery of the miserable seepings in the wells which have been bored in Rasa
And in all these territories His Majesty’s Government have “interests’*’
which prevent their being absorbed, as much to their own as to the general
advantage, in Saudi Arabia. Such is the picture which Ibn Saud may be
expected to paint to himself.
8. In these circumstances it is reasonable to suppose that although
Ibn Saud seems to have decided that on the whole His Majesty’s Government
are to be preferred to the Italians as freinds, the recognition of our interests
in Arabia puts a great strain upon a monarch who is not only ambitious but
probably insolvent too. It might be argued that the poorer Ibn Saud is the
less likely he is to engage in a policy of adventure, but my own opinion is that
on the whole a more generous view is justified, viz., that anything that in
creases his legitimate revenue is to be welcomed by His Majesty’s Govern"
ment, and any expenditure that might embarrass his finances is to be depre"
cated. To increase his revenue is not in our power, for without giving pil
grims money, as the Italians have done this year for propaganda purposes'
we can hardly do more to facilitate the accomplishment of the pilgrimage bv
British pilgrims than is done already. We can, however, apply the second
principle to any scheme which comes up for consideration. In my desnafrli
2 H• d M ed t f e > 10 n h February ’ 1 a PP Iied tilis principle to the suggestion
^ 1S Majesty s Government might perhaps help in the reconstruction
tW+b aU( V 0rtl(>n H 5 aZ Kailway > and opposed it chiefly on the ground
that the railway would be a fianancial liability to Ibn Saud and not an asset
I it could be shown that the railway would not be a burden on Saudi finances’
the proposal would, I think, deserve reconsideration. The principle enters
into the consideration of other questions affecting the relations of* His Ma
sssar"* “ kut „ & £
(84)
(Received on 22nd May 1937 with Political Secretary's letter No 18 dated
6 th May 1937.) ’ ®
Enclosure m Foreign Office covering letter, dated 29th April 1937
.ettek eeom Minister JeddVto Foreion Office, No. 40, dated the
12th April 1937. dated the
Mt? t?o ad . Jedda, March 23, 1937.
on the 17th March, a^wdac^afteTlbn Sa^fi 6 hlon % ht him to Jedda
my arrival at this post last"September ^ f s . first T a PP ear ance in Jedda since
bim I had myself only seen him once a fe d I 11611 , 1 P resented Mr. Rendel to
short call such as was paid by a U the W ayS before ’ andt hat only for a
was to be expected that Ibn S Jud would^hfw repr !?® ntatives in Jedda. It
of various matters affecting the relations W t0 U ' S ?j thl ? 0 PP ort unity to speak
and Sand, Arabia and after we had foci t 60 Hls Maty’s Government
with Sheikh Yusuf Yasin and Sheikh HafowffL 11188 011 current questions
snlfoT- L :v est y for a conversation on iff " a,dia we were invited to call
whteh m l h + T meeti ngs lasting some twit 61 " 8 ° f nmtual interest. This re-
Tatch tk t aV6 Iasted as i°ng had notMrT 8 I", 1 ? 0 " 6 6ach ’ and a fourtl1
% ” o “ 8,d •” ‘“ v "»
oFtheDcrf 1 } 6 a il leged reas °n for hisdepartur 13 ' + * eW ciays before Mr. Rendel’s
health of )!' y F( J re % n Minister might havp l 6 & a momen f when the presence
but inW^ J- 1 i e boy ’ aboa t whom h?Z r een ? garded as essential was the
a ion from other quarters doesnot 3 ?^ t0 exceedin gly anxious,
' a ° es not bear ^t the plea that the child

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Content

This volume compiles printed copies of letters, telegrams, memoranda and newspaper extracts relating to Britain's involvement across the Arabian Peninsula during the period 1929-1938. Whilst the correspondence encompasses all matters concerning British interests in the region, much of it relates to Ibn Saud [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd] and the Kingdom of the Hejaz and Nejd (later Saudi Arabia). Matters discussed in the correspondence include the following:

  • Reports of unrest in the Hejaz.
  • Relations between Imam Yeha Hamid-Ud-Din [Yaḥyá Muḥammad Ḥamīd al-Dīn, Imam of Yemen] and Ibn Saud.
  • Reports of raids and arms trafficking on the Transjordan Used in three contexts: the geographical region to the east of the River Jordan (literally ‘across the River Jordan’); a British protectorate (1921-46); an independent political entity (1946-49) now known as Jordan -Nejd frontier.
  • Reports of the proceedings of British naval ships in the Red Sea.
  • Details of the Akhwan [Ikhwan] revolt against Ibn Saud, including the movements of one of the revolt's leaders, Faisal Dawish [Fayṣal bin Sulṭān al-Dawīsh], and his surrender to the British in Kuwait.
  • Relations between Kuwait and Nejd.
  • Relations between Iraq and Nejd, including a proposed meeting between Ibn Saud and King Faisal [Fayṣal] of Iraq, and reports of a treaty of alliance between Iraq and Saudi Arabia.
  • Objections from the Hejaz Government to Royal Air Force aircraft flying over Nejd territory.
  • The purchase of arms by the Hejaz Government from Poland.
  • Ibn Saud's annexation of Asir.
  • The death of King Hussein [Ḥusayn bin ‘Alī al-Hāshimī].
  • Harry St John Bridger Philby's conversion to Islam, his mapping of Rub-al-Khali, and his reported spreading of Saudi propaganda in the Aden Protectorate.
  • The currency exchange crisis in the Hejaz-Nejd and the financial situation in the kingdom generally.
  • Reports on a survey of the water and mineral content of the Hejaz coastal area.
  • Relations between Soviet Russia and Saudi Arabia.
  • The emigration of Jews from Yemen to Palestine, via Aden.
  • British fears that Italy might harbour ambitions to annex Yemen.
  • Saudi oil concessions.
  • Italian-Saudi relations.

Prominent correspondents include the following: the British Agent (later His Majesty's Chargé d’Affaires) at Jeddah; His Majesty's Minister at Jeddah; the High Commissioner for Egypt; the High Commissioner for Iraq; the High Commissioner for Transjordan Used in three contexts: the geographical region to the east of the River Jordan (literally ‘across the River Jordan’); a British protectorate (1921-46); an independent political entity (1946-49) now known as Jordan ; 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; 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. (later Chief Commissioner, and later still, Governor), Aden; 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. ; His Majesty's Ambassador to Iraq; His Majesty's Ambassador to Italy; the Secretary of State for the Colonies; the Minister (and Acting Minister) for Foreign Affairs for the Kingdom of the Hejaz and Nejd (later Saudi Arabia); Ibn Saud; King Feisal of Iraq; the Prime Minister of Iraq; various officials of the Colonial Office, the Foreign Office, the Air Ministry, and the Admiralty.

The French material in the volume consists of several items of correspondence and a copy of a treaty between France and Yemen, which was signed in April 1936.

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.

Extent and format
1 volume (527 folios)
Arrangement

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

The items of correspondence are divided (roughly) into various sections. Each extract or item of correspondence within these sections has its own number, which is enclosed in brackets. These numbers proceed in ascending (and approximate chronological) order from left to right; however, the sections themselves proceed in reverse, from the rear to the front of the volume, in distinct groups (e.g. for 1929 numbers 1-23, which are located at folios 517-526, are followed by numbers 24-49 at folios 509-516, which are then followed by numbers 50-89 at folios 494-508, and so on).

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 529; 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.

Pagination: each section of correspondence within the volume (as described in the arrangement field) has its own pagination sequence.

Written in
English and French in Latin script
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Coll 6/8(1) 'Printed Series: 1929 to 1938.' [‎36v] (77/1062), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/2071, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100061765163.0x00004e> [accessed 2 July 2026]

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