'SUMMARY OF THE PRINCIPAL EVENTS AND MEASURES OF THE VICEROYALTY OF HIS EXCELLENCY LORD CURZON OF KEDLESTON, VICEROY AND GOVERNOR-GENERAL OF INDIA IN THE FOREIGN DEPARTMENT. I. JANUARY 1899-APRIL 1904. II. DECEMBER 1904-NOVEMBER 1905. VOLUME IV. PERSIA AND THE PERSIAN GULF.' [‎171v] (347/386)

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No. 77 (Secret—External), dated Fort William, the 31st March 1904*.
From—The Government of India in the Foreign Department,
To The Right Hon'blb St. John Beodrick, His Majesty’s Secretary of State
for India.
"We haye the honour to refer to the correspondence ending with your
Secret telegram No. 104-C., dated the 18th November 1903, on the subject of
a Protectorate Treaty with Sheikh Ahmed-bin-Thani of £1 Katr.
2. The decision of His Majesty’s Government that no agreement should
at present be concluded with this Chief appears to have been based on two
main considerations, first, that such a Convention would constitute a disturb
ance of the status quo which, in view r of the promise of the Turks to cancel the
appointments of Mudirs in El Katr which they had made in violation of the
understanding to respect the status quo, was held to be unjustifiable, and,
secondlv, that the influence of Sheikh Ahmed was on the wane, and that an
ariangement with His Majesty’s Government would only be used by the Chief
to retrieve his diminishing influence.
3. With reference to the former objection, we observe that His Britannic
Majesty's Ambassador at Constantinople is of opinion that, though the formal
declaration of a protectorate might he considered contrary to the spirit of our
recent repiesentations to the Porte, we might be justified in making an
agreement with the Sheikh, with the object of securing the maintenance of the
position which the remonstrances of His Majesty’s Government have so far
partially preserved, and of excluding the possibility of foreign interference in
the future. We concur in Sir Nicolas O’Conor’s view. We submit that the
action of the Turkish Government and of their local officials has not been such
as to require any excess of forbearance on our part: the more so in that, so far
as we are aware, they have failed to carry out the undertaking given by the
Grand Vizier more than six months ago that their recent nominee for the
Mudirate at Wakra should formally be deprived of his title ; while we observe
that so recently as the 28th December 1903 Mr. Crow reported to Sir Nicolas
O’Conor the arrival at Basrah of a battalion intended for the El Katr Peninsula.
At any rate the Turkish Government could hardly object to our entering into
friendly relations with the successor of Sheikh Muhammad-bin-Thani, with
whom Colonel Pelly concluded a treaty on 12th September 1868.
4. As will be seen from his letter* which we now enclose, we called for a
•From the offg., 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 report Irom our 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. , No. 33, dated the 12th Febiuary 1904. Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. as to the truth of the
rumours that the influence of Sheikh Ahmed was diminishing. We agree with
the view expressed by Colonel Kemball; and we would add that there is nothing
in the history of our relations with the Trucial Chiefs to justify the apprehen
sion that we shall, by renewing our relations with the Thani family, incur the
inconvenient obligations anticipated by His Majesty's Government.
5. The status quo which His Majesty’s Government desire to recognise
and maintain includes the withdrawal by Turkey of any claim to administrative
control or suzerainty over the Peninsula ; and it was contemplated that, pro
vided the Porte accepted the position and promptly withdrew the Mudirs at
Wakra and Zobara, it might be undesirable to enter into any agreement amount
ing to a protectorate Treaty with the Sheikh. The failure of the Turks to act
up to their assurances in this matter, coupled with the intelligence received
from Colonel Kemball as to the status of the Chief, seems to us to leave His
Majesty’s Government free to reconsider the matter ; and we suggest that the
time is now opportune for concluding an agreement with Sheikh Ahmed sub
stantially resembling those entered into with the Chiefs of the Southern littoral,
including the provision that he should not (1) enter into relations with, (2) re
ceive the representative of, or (3) cede territory to, any foreign Power. We
consider that it is desirable to consolidate such influence as we possess in El Katr,
with special reference to the question of the Pearl Fisheries in the Gulf, as to
which we have recently addressed you. The El Katr fisheries were extra
ordinarily productive in 1903.