Coll 6/8(1) 'Printed Series: 1929 to 1938.' [240r] (484/1062)
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. .
Transcription
This transcription is created automatically. It may contain errors.
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Enclosure in Foreign Office covering letter, dated 11th August 1931.
“O'” lETTER / E Dm T N E ^nB 1 ™ O^ 1015 ’ T ° H - M '’ s Charge d’Affmees,
J EDDA 3 l\ 0 . 308, DATED THE 7TH AUGUST 1931.
^ 1 ? 1 *J efere “ c ® t0 m y telegram to Sir A. Ryan No. 113 of July 14
o C f ms%Sv re s r Ve the / equest of Ki “g Ibn Saud for the assistance
of H's Majesty s Government in connexion with his desire to employ a
,, n 18 al i k ,f S r,^ tatu Ian |' m the Hejaz, I have to inform you that the
(Minister of the Hejaz and Nejd called at the Foreign Office on July “list
and raised this question. He explained that King Ibn Saud was anxious
to stabrnse his currency and to set the finances of his country on a firm basis
His. Majesty therefore desired to establish a State Bank, and was most
anxious to secure the services of a British bank for this purpose. He had
a ^ 0r u ln f 1 - y send a representative to England to interview suit
able banking firms, and the representative selected, Mr. Abdur Rahman
Qusaibi, was arriving in London that morning.
2. Sheikh Hafiz Wahba was informed that Sir Andrew Ryan had
already reported King Ibn Saud’s request for the assistance of His Majesty’s
Govt, in this matter, and that the necessary instructions had already been
telegraphed to Sir A. Ryan with regard to the reply to be returned to His
Majesty s enquiry. In that telegram, Sir A. Ryan had been instructed to
explain that, whilst His Majesty’s Government fully appreciated and
sympathised with the financial difficulties of the Hejazi Government, it was
impossible for them to depart from their long established practice of non
intervention in transactions between foreign governments and British banks.
In any case in England, unlike certain other countries, the banks were
wholly independent bodies, whose decisionis His Majesty’s Government
were not in a position to influence. The banks would therefore reach a
decision on any proposition which might be put before them on its commer
cial merits and not on political grounds. In these circumstances. His
Majesty’s Government had suggested that King Ibn Saud should appoint
a representative in London to explore the matter with the banks direct. It
appeared, from what Sheikh Hafiz Wahba had said, that the King had
already anticipated this advice.
3. The Sheikh stated that he recognised the inability of His Majesty’s
Government to intervene with British banks, as explained above, but hinted
that King Ibn Saud would be prepared to offer very substantial commercial
concessions to any bank willing to consider the business. He^ also explain
ed that while the King personally, and he himself, were eager to put any
business in British hands, the Russians were making efforts to establish
themselves commercially in the Hejaz and interested persons were trying to
persuade the King to deal with them.
4. The Minister was informed in reply that His Majesty’s Government
were aware that the Russians had been selling goods in parts of Arabia at
a very low price. If they attempted to do this in the Hejaz it would not
be possible for this country to compete with them, as British trade was in
private hands and was run on a commerial basis. It was of course entirely
for King Ibn Saud to decide whether or not he should encourage Russian
activities in his dominions.
5. As a result of this conversation, it was arranged that Mr. Zade of
the Hejazi Legation and Mr. Abdur Rahman Qusaibi should discuss the
position at the Department of Overseas Trade on the 23rd July with mem
bers of that department. They then stated to the representatives of
department that they were already in touch with the Eastern Bank w r it
which Mr. Abdur Rahman Qusaibi had had commercial dealings at Bahrein.
L632{C) f&pd
ENCLOSURE iN
ND( A FOREIGN SECRETARY’
Mo
tetter
Dared ? JAN 1332
Reodveo 2 5 JAN. 135?
About this item
- 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 View the complete information for this record
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- Reference
- IOR/L/PS/12/2071
- Title
- Coll 6/8(1) 'Printed Series: 1929 to 1938.'
- Pages
- front, back, spine, edge, head, tail, front-i, 2r:5v, 6v, 8v:10r, 11r:14r, 15r:20r, 21r:21v, 22v, 24v:26v, 27v:30r, 32r:41v, 43r:46v, 48r:48v, 49v:52v, 53v, 55v:58r, 59r:60r, 61r:70r, 71v:77v, 78v:79r, 80v:81v, 82v:93v, 95r:101v, 102v:104v, 106r:108r, 109v:110v, 111v:113v, 115r:120v, 122r:123r, 124r:126v, 127v, 128v:130v, 132r, 133v:137r, 139r:154r, 155r, 156r:157v, 159r:166r, 167r, 168r:171r, 172r:174r, 175r:175v, 176v:177v, 180v:181r, 182v, 183v:184v, 187v:188r, 191r:198r, 199r:199v, 200v:201r, 202r, 203r:203v, 206r:207r, 210r:211v, 213r:220r, 223v:224v, 226r:226v, 228r, 230v:234v, 236r, 237r:252r, 253v:257v, 259r:260v, 262r:262v, 264r:268v, 269v:276r, 277v:278v, 279v:281r, 282v:285r, 287r:288r, 289r:292v, 295r:296v, 297v:307r, 308r, 309r:316v, 318r:320v, 322r, 324r:325r, 327r, 329r:331r, 332r:335r, 336r:337v, 338v:345r, 347r:348r, 350v, 353v:358v, 360r:363r, 364v:365v, 366v:371r, 372v:375r, 376v, 377v:379v, 383r:383v, 384v:385r, 387v:389r, 390r:391v, 395v:400v, 401v:412v, 414v:420r, 422r:433v, 435v:437v, 440r:447v, 449r:449v, 451v:459r, 460r:463v, 465r:468v, 469v:471r, 474r:477r, 480r:485r, 486v:492v, 494r:507r, 508v:511r, 512r:513v, 514v, 516r:518v, 520r:522r, 523r:528v, back-i
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence
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