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File 1707/1924 ‘Arabia:- Jeddah Situation Reports. (1924-1930)’ [374r] (752/898)
The record is made up of 1 volume (445 folios). It was created in 13 Mar 1924-18 Mar 1931. It was written in English. 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.
i
FThis Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty’s Government.!
EASTERN (Arabia).
CONFIDENTIAL.
E 1781/10/91]
Aon
& O u
i o, B
[March 23, 1925.]
Section 1 .
No. 1.
Consul Bullard to Mr. Austen Chamberlain. - (Received March 23.)
(No. 17. Secret.)
Jeddah, February 28, IWb.
- HAVh the honour to enclose a report on the situation covering the period the
11th to the 28th February.
2. Copies of this despatch and of its enclosure are being sent to India, Egypt,
Khartum (through Port Sudan), Jerusalem, Bagdad, Beirut (for Damascus), Aden,
Singapore, Bushire, Koweit, Bahrein and Muskat.
I have, &c.
R. W. BULLARD.
Enclosure in No. 1.
Report for the Period February 11 to 28, 1925.
(Secret.)
THERE is no military activity on the part of the Wahabis to report, except the
continued shelling of the town of Jeddah. With an occasional day’s rest their guns
fire for an hour or two every morning and evening. Not a single object of military
importance has been hit. There are civilian casualties every day (about eighty
persons in all have been killed and over 100 wounded), but so far as is known no
foreign subject has been hurt. The quarter near the King’s “ palace,” where the
foreign representatives live, has had at least its fair share of the shelling. The
agency
An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, headed by an agent.
buildings have been hit by three shells, and all the other consulates have been
hit or narrowly missed, but no serious damage has been done so far.
2. The so-called armoured cars have fully established their futility. Three of the
Russian mechanics were persuaded to take one of them out with a party of cavalry,
who made an attempt (apparently unsuccessful) to put two enemy guns out of action.
They tell me that the Wahabis did not seem in the least alarmed at the car, but tired
at it with rifles at short range. Many bullets passed through the plating, and the
Russian who was driving was severely wounded. One of his companions managed to
take his place and to keep the engine running, an important consideration, as these
cars can be started only by a crank worked from outside.
3. The third and last of the Russian aviators has left, and the mechanic who was
wounded in the car has gone to Egypt with one of his compatriots. Thus there are
only two Russians left—mechanics. The four Germans are still here. Two of them
have been emplojmd in training men to use some old flame-throwers, which were left
in the Hedjaz by the Turks. One of the Germans claims to be an air pilot, and to be
willing to fly if paid in advance, but he has not made a flight yet.
4. On about the 15th February a body of Palestinian soldiers, which gradually
increased to some 150, refused to obey orders. They fired over the heads of the
officers who tried to approach them, and said that they would do nothing until they
received the two months’ arrears of pay due to them. Finally, the King went out to
them and promised them that they would be paid in five or six days. Similar
promises had been made before, but the soldiers went back to work. To the general
surprise, the promise was kept.
5. News has been received from a source usually reliable that the Hedjaz
authorities have been recruiting men in some territory or territories near Aden, and
propose to bring several hundred of them to Jeddah soon. Lest they should embarrass
us by trying to sail from some port under our control, His Majesty’s Government have ****
been informed. ^
6. Five men accused of political agitation and/or correspondence with the Wahabis y
have been arrested and sent to Akaba. One of them has been openly pro-Wahabi
ever since the war started, and there is probably good evidence against the others.
Nevertheless, all five are being allowed to return. The whole population being
indifferent, if not hostile, to the fate of the Hedjaz Government, Ali probably feels
that there is no strong case for singling out five men for punishment.
[892 z—1]
1
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About this item
- Content
The volume mostly contains printed copies of despatches from HM Agent and Consul, Jeddah, to the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, enclosing reports on the situation in the Hejaz (also spelled Hedjaz in the file) [now a region of Saudi Arabia], from January 1924 to December 1930, and related enclosures to the reports. These despatches were sent to the Under-Secretary of State for India by the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. The volume also includes 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. Political and Secret Department minute papers, which include comments on the reports, and indicate that the reports had been seen by the Under-Secretary of State for India and the Political Committee of the Council of India.
The reports are monthly for January to August 1924, May 1925, September 1925 to March 1927, June 1927 to June 1930, and December 1930. Reports between these dates cover shorter periods, except July and August 1930, which are both covered by one report, and September, October and November 1930, which are also covered by one report.
The reports discuss matters including the actions of King Hussein ibn Ali al-Hashimi of the Hejaz, including his attempts to gain recognition as Caliph, and the military and financial situation in the Hejaz during the war between the Hejaz and the Saudi Sultanate of Nejd [Najd]. They report on events of the Hedjaz-Nejd war including: the capture of Taif (September 1924) and Mecca (October 1924) by Nejd; the departure of the ex-King Hussein from Jeddah; the fall of Medina and Jeddah and the surrender of the Hejaz to Sultan Abdul Aziz of Nejd [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd, also known as Ibn Saud] (December 1925); and the formal assumption of the title of King of the Hejaz and Sultan of Nejd and its Dependencies by Ibn Saud (8 January 1925).
The reports following the annexation of the Hejaz by Nejd cover internal affairs, including prohibitions introduced for religious reasons, the Hejaz Railway, the financial situation of the Hejaz-Nejd Government, and the Hejaz Air Force. They also report on foreign relations, including: the publication of an agreement, dated 21 October 1926, between Ibn Saud and Sayyid Hassan-el-Idrisi, establishing the suzerainty of Ibn Saud over Asir; relations between Ibn Saud and Imam Yahya of the Yemen; the situation on the frontiers between Nejd and Iraq, and Nejd and 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 ; and the Treaty of Jeddah between Hejaz-Nejd and Great Britain (20 May 1927). They also report Ibn Saud being proclaimed King of the Hejaz, Nejd and its Dependencies (4 April 1927).
In addition, other frequently occurring topics in the reports are: the Pilgrimage [Hajj], including the arrival of pilgrims in the Hejaz, from India, Java and elsewhere, arrangements for the pilgrimage, the welfare of pilgrims, and the repatriation of pilgrims; and the slave trade and slavery in the Hejaz, including the manumission and repatriation of slaves.
The volume includes a divider which gives the subject number, the year the subject file was opened, the subject heading, and a list of correspondence references by year. This is placed at the back of the correspondence.
- Extent and format
- 1 volume (445 folios)
- Arrangement
The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the rear to the front of the volume.
The subject 1707 (Arabia:- Jeddah Situation Reports. (1924-1930)) consists of one volume only.
- 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 447; 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. An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 4-444; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
- Written in
- English in Latin script View the complete information for this record
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File 1707/1924 ‘Arabia:- Jeddah Situation Reports. (1924-1930)’ [374r] (752/898), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/10/1115, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100084998362.0x000099> [accessed 24 April 2024]
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Copyright: How to use this content
- Reference
- IOR/L/PS/10/1115
- Title
- File 1707/1924 ‘Arabia:- Jeddah Situation Reports. (1924-1930)’
- Pages
- front, back, spine, edge, head, tail, front-i, 2r:88v, 90r:104v, 106r:108v, 110r:124v, 126r:128v, 129v:132v, 133v, 134v:137v, 139r:145r, 146r:161v, 162v:180v, 183r:205v, 206v:267r, 269r:271v, 273r:288v, 291r:308v, 309v, 310v, 311v, 312v, 313v, 314v, 315v, 316v, 317v:321r, 324r:335r, 337r:378v, 379v:381v, 383v:389v, 391r:393v, 395v:397v, 399r:400r, 402r:446v, back-i
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence