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Coll 6/8(1) 'Printed Series: 1929 to 1938.' [‎177r] (358/1062)

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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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offensive. My Turkish and Iraqi colleagues are hio-hlv hiceiiQ^ n+ n
plimentary reference to the Saudi regime’s predecessors th "l-
then done, the sms committed, and the peace violated ” t ’ ^ ru, i3 . l0 ? dsile(: }
that when Ibn Sand came to Jeddah after the nilorimsera i, 1 ^ ledib ^ r ^niornied
of leading Jedawis, by greeting them with the fords. " I eoiwent the 'tWs
of every one of you.” UL tne Cllr oats
4. All obsevvei-s are agreed that Ibn Sand is at his wits’ end to obtain
money, and many affirm that he is feeling insecure. He certainly seems to nw
lost much ot the poise and balance which distinguished him in the early days
oi his Hejazi adventure. His present state of uncertainty, with its symptomatic
lack of control of ideas and expression, but not yet of action, seems to me to e
caused by a very real fear for his financial position, an increased feeling of
futility amid the complexities of government, and a growing sense of the hostility
which surrounds him in the Hejaz and the Moslem world outside. It was noticed
that during the forty-eight hours which he recently spent at Jedda he remained
outside the town, which he normally never fails to visit for some inspection or
other 5 indeed he hardly put foot outside the palace building*.
5* The. effect of these obsessions is aggravated by ill health. At my short
formal audience of the 1st May Ibn Saud was listless, and looked a very different
man from what he was a year and a half ago. His face had yellowed under
the skin and was pouchy, puckered, and much more lined. Dr. Naji-al-Asil,
who has had a number of private audiences in Mecca, confirms my impression
that Ibn Saud is physically very unwell and mentally obsessed by problems which
he cannot solve and Which he now fears to face. It is probable that he will
return to Riyadh as soon as he decently can, probably in less than a month’s
time.
6 . I may here mention that on the 1 st May Ibn Baud was polite, but distant.
He smiled once or twice, but had nothing to say. I purposely allowed two long
pauses to lengthen in order to draw, if possible, some reference to current topics,
such as the Minister’s absence. Ibn Sand at length broke the first silence with
a comment on the weather, which had already received adequate comment.
1 broke the second one myself with a request for permission to leave.
( 89 )
{Received on 14th August 1932, with Political Secretary’s letter No. 30, dated
28th July 1932.)
Enclosure in Foreign Office covering letter No. E.-3495|266|25, dated 20 th July
1932.
Letter prom His Majesty’s Minister, Jeddah, to the Foreign Office, No. 248,
dated the 16th June 1932.
On my return to Jeddah recently I found awaiting my attention your des
patch No. 120 (E.-1418|266|25) of April 7, enclosing copies of correspondence
between your department and the Colonial Office relative to the message of good
will sent by Ibn Sa’ud to His Majesty’s Government through the Political Resi
dent in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. in January. On June 5, I expressed in^ suitable terms
to the Acting Hejazi Minister for Foreign Affairs the gratification.with which
His Majesty’s Government had received the message and their desire to show
appreciation of it, although it had been sent on the occasion of an informal visit
and the Amir Feysal’s visit had subsequently provided the opportunity tor a
more direct and official exchange of courtesies. I asked Sheykh Yusuf Yasm lO
convey What I had said to His Majesty King ’Abdul ’Aziz.
2. I am sending a copy of this despatch to 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. .
( 90 )
(Received on 14th August 1932, with Political Secretary’s letter No. 30, dated
28th July 1932.)
Enclosure in Foreign Office covering letter No. E.-3497|2814|25, dated 26th July
1932.
Letter prom His Majesty’s Minister, Jeduaji, to the Foreign Office,
DATED THE 17tH J UNE li)o4.
“i..... a.™ .—w <*.
Lc2l4FD

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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.' [‎177r] (358/1062), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/2071, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100061765164.0x00009f> [accessed 28 March 2024]

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