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File 4011/1923 Pt 1 'PERSIAN GULF NEGOTIATIONS 1928-33. BASIDU.' [‎46r] (96/1306)

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The record is made up of 1 volume (649 folios). It was created in 22 Oct 1923-29 Nov 1933. It was written in English, French and Arabic. 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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7
Enclosure 1 in No. 1.
Paper A.
Memorandum by the 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. .
Status of Basidu.
I HE memorandum attached sets out in some detail the relevant facts since
1720, in so far as they are on record, bearing on the status of the British
concession at Basidu, in the Island of Kishm, in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. . The
concession in question is held under a written grant of 1820 from the Imam of
Muscat, at that period in effective possession of Kishm. The essential point in
issue is whether the Imam in making the grant in question in 1820 did so as
sovereign of Kishm or in his capacity as a tenant of Persia.
2. The matter was closely investigated in 1821 by an officer specially
deputed to the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. consequent on Persian protests against the landing
of a British detachment in the Island of Kishm under the authority granted by
the Imam. Great difficulty was even at that period experienced in reaching any
positive conclusion as to the strength or weakness of the Imam’s claims to
sovereignty. The difficulty in establishing the true facts is hardly less to-day.
A survey of the correspondence as a whole and of the history of the Island of
Kishm, in which Basidu is situated, in the century preceding 1820 tends to
suggest that the basis for the Imam’s claims is unsubstantial.
1720-94.
3. According to Lorimer's Gazetteer of the Persian Gidf, which is the
accepted authority on the history of the Gulf States, and which is based on
exhaustive local researches some thirty years ago by an officer of the I.C.S. of
great experience, it does not appear that the Arabs of the Oman Coast were
much in evidence in the neighbourhood of Bandar Abbas, or anywhere on the
Persian side of the Gulf, before the Afghan invasion of Persia which began in
1720. Consequent on the Afghan invasion in that year the Arabs of the Trucial
Coast (also described on this occasion as “ the Muscateers ”) established
themselves in Basidu, in the Island of Kishm, in which they were attacked and
defeated by a British naval force in April 1727. But Nadir Shah of Persia in
1737 not merely overran the South Persian coast, and so reimposed an effective
Persian control over areas such as the Island of Kishm, but extended his
conquests across the Gulf, and in 1737-38 occupied the Sultanate of Muscat,
from which Persia was expelled only in 1744.
4. In 1747 the Persian Governor of Bandar Abbas and its dependencies
entered into an alliance with the Jowasimi Arabs of the Trucial Arab coast;
consequent on which those Arabs appear to have established themselves between
1750 and 1765 in various posts in the Island of Kishm. But they were expelled
about 1765 from Kishm and the other dependencies of Bandar Abbas by Sheikh
Abdulla, who had been appointed ruler of that area by the Persian Vakil Elected representative or attorney, acting in legal matters such as contracting marriage, inheritance, or business; a high-ranking legal official; could also refer to a custodian or administrator. in
South Persia, and they had not regained their position so late as 1780.
5. From the above, it will be seen that there appears to have been no Arab
connexion of importance (as distinct from piratic raids) with the South Persian
coast, and with islands such as Kishm, at any rate for a considerable period
prior to 1720; that between 1720 and 1794 Arab invaders (apparently normally
from the present Trucial Oman A name used by Britain from the nineteenth century to 1971 to refer to the present-day United Arab Emirates. and not from the Muscat Imamate) were
established for varying periods, the total of which does not appear to have
exceeded some twenty years, in Kishm Island or in Basidu; that during the bulk
even of that period they were in occupation as the mercenaries of the local
Persian ruler; and that there is no suggestion at any stage of an abandonment
by Persia of her claims to sovereigntv over Bandar Abbas and its dependencies,
including Kishm. It would appear difficult, if not impossible, on the facts
recorded to base any Muscat claim to sovereignty over Kishm on the history of
that island between 1720 and 1794.

About this item

Content

This volume relates to the British occupation of Basidu, situated on Kishm [Qeshm] Island in the Gulf, close to the south coast of Persia [Iran], and occupied by the British since the early 1820s. It is stated in the correspondence that the site had been used mainly as a coal depot for British naval vessels until 1913, and that since then it has been retained on 'political grounds', as a potential bargaining asset in negotiations with Persia.

The correspondence primarily concerns the British claim (or lack thereof) to Basidu, in the event of the Persian Government questioning Britain's ongoing occupation. It covers the history of Basidu's status and the various existing agreements that relate to it, as part of an attempt by the British to gather documentary evidence to support their claim. Also discussed are a number of reported incidents at Basidu, involving British representatives and the local Persian authorities, mainly regarding customs, taxes, and the presence of the British naval guard. In addition, the correspondence touches on Anglo-Persian relations in general, with occasional references being made to ongoing treaty negotiations between the two countries.

The volume's principal correspondents are as follows: 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. ; the British Minister in Tehran; the Senior Naval Officer in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. ; officials of the 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. , the Foreign Office, the Admiralty, and the Government of India's Foreign and Political Department. Other notable but less frequent correspondents include the following: the Foreign Secretary to the Government of India; the Viceroy of India; the Commander-in-Chief of the East Indies Station; the Law Officers of the Crown.

Included with the correspondence are several related documents, including the following: two sketch maps (f 622); copies (in English and Arabic) of a treaty dated 1856 between Muscat and Persia, in which the Imam of Muscat acknowledges Kishm Island as being part of the Persian Empire (f 179 and ff 221-223); draft and final copies of an 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. memorandum dated 18 October 1933, outlining Britain's understanding of the history of the status of Basidu from 1720 to 1928, including extracts from nineteenth century reports and related correspondence (ff 46-54 and ff 123-159); a submission of reference, prepared by the 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. and the Foreign Office, for the Law Officers of the Crown, requesting the latter's legal opinion on the strength of the British claim to Basidu (ff 43-45 and ff 67-83); a copy of a secret report on Basidu, prepared by the Commander-in-Chief at the East Indies Station, containing extracts from the East Indies Station's records and notes from the Senior Naval Officer in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. (ff 16-38).

The Arabic language material consists of the aforementioned treaty text. The material written in French consists of small extracts from correspondence and treaty articles. It should be noted that there is no material covering the years 1924 and 1925.

The volume includes two dividers, which give a list of correspondence references contained in the volume by year. These are placed at the back of the correspondence (ff 4-5).

Extent and format
1 volume (649 folios)
Arrangement

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

The subject 4011 ( Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. Negotiations) consists of two volumes, IOR/L/PS/10/1094-1095. The volumes are divided into two parts, with each part comprising one volume.

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 651; 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, French and Arabic in Latin and Arabic script
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File 4011/1923 Pt 1 'PERSIAN GULF NEGOTIATIONS 1928-33. BASIDU.' [‎46r] (96/1306), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/10/1094, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100077104051.0x000061> [accessed 29 March 2024]

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