Skip to item: of 898
Information about this record Back to top
Open in Universal viewer
Open in Mirador IIIF viewer

File 1707/1924 ‘Arabia:- Jeddah Situation Reports. (1924-1930)’ [‎399v] (803/898)

This item is part of

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.

Apply page layout

thousands of people, including nearly all the 0 ® CI f' b ’f a j t ^ u gh King Hussein’
for lack of transport, on foot. It seemed possible to that although Kmg Hussein
surrounded by a band of personal slaves and Syrian and Iraki o&Mrs was swear ng
to resist to the death, he might possAly abdicate to escape from the h^
nosition in which he stood between the Wahabi attack and the detection ot ms wnole
neonle I Accordingly asked His Majesty’s Government, on the 27th September,
AhJther I was Tight 5 * * 8 m assuming ^t if fang Husse^
the de facto head of the Government, but should not be
of the country It seemed necessary to adopt this policy m view of He intention
attributed to Ibn Sand to get rid of the Hussein family alto f ^ nomMes were^noi
not mentioned at the time, was the certainty that many of the notables weie not
enthusiastic supporters of Ali, and would prefer a provisional Government
unconnected with King Hussein or any of Ins sons. a Pri ap nmnoser! on
His Majesty’s Government telegraphed instructions m the sense proposed on
4 On the 3rd October the Amir Ail came to Jeddah and summoned a meeting
of the leading men of Jeddah and Mecca. He had been sent by his father, he said,
to explain thlt the situation was desperate, and to say that the King was prepared
to resign if they thought that that would improve the situation. The notables asked
for an hour to make up their minds, and, after some discussion, they got into com
munication with King Hussein by telephone and telegraph and asked him to abdicate
in favour of the Amir Ali. What happened then is related in the letters from the
notables to this agency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, headed by an agent. , which are sent as an appendix to this report. At nrst, Ixing
Hussein said he would accept anyone but Ali as his successor, his ostensible reason
being that, from the point of view of the Wahabis, there was no essential difference
between him and his son, while Ali, who had tried in vain to secure promises of
support from the British agent, and, it is believed, from other foreign representa
tives too, refused the offer of the throne, on the ground that the situation was hopeless
and that he had no desire to be a King for two or three days. The notables could
think of no alternative to Ali s accession but foreign intervention, and late at night
on the 3rd October a deputation, composed of four of the leading men in Jeddah—
the kaimakam, the Director-General of Customs, the President of the Municipality
and the Director of Education—came to the agency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, headed by an agent. , followed by a large crowd ot
supporters, to repeat their useless demand. They stated that the Amir Ali had gone
back on his promise to accept the throne if his father should abdicate, and that they
had no policy but to throw themselves on the mercy of His Majesty’s Government.
They asked for a British protectorate or mandate over the Hedjaz; failing that, for
the intervention of His Majesty’s Government to prevent the occupation of Mecca
by Ibn Saud; failing that, that, if they wrote to the Wahabis offering to negotiate,
I would send with their communication a letter asking the Wahabis to halt or to
refrain from massacre, or would intervene in some other way in the name
of humanity.” Finding that I was unable to accede to any of these demands, they
asked me to request the instructions of His Majesty’s Government. I replied that I
kept His Majesty’s Government informed of everything affecting their interests,
and in the execution of my duty I should report what had now occurred, but that, the
policy of His Majesty’s Government being shaped in relation to the Hedjaz, and
not to any particular ruler or form of Government the Hedjaz might have, there
was no reason to expect that it would undergo the least change. The deputation
then went back to the Amir Ali and again pressed him to take the throne. The
negotiations went on until midday on the 4th October, when he at last gave m.
The committee of notables thereupon sent out to the Wahabi leader a letter
5. There is little reliable information to be had in regard to the Wahabi torces.
Wken Ali came to Jeddah on the 3rd October he told me that the Wahabis were quite
close to such forces as he had, i.e., at Arafat, or nearer, and that there was nothing
to prevent their entering Mecca. There is no news of a further advance, and the
general belief is that the main body of Wahabis is back in Taif. The leaders are
belieimd to be Sultan-al-Din and the Shereef Khalid. The latter was employed under
King Hussein, but fled to Nejd some years ago, in consequence, it is said, of a quarrel
with the Amir Abdullah, who struck him on the mouth with his shoe. He became
{governor of Tarabah on its capture by the Wahabis, and is said to be Governor or
Taif noAv. There are constant rumours that Ibn Saud is at Tarabah, or even at Tail.

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

Use and share this item

Share this item
Cite this item in your research

File 1707/1924 ‘Arabia:- Jeddah Situation Reports. (1924-1930)’ [‎399v] (803/898), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/10/1115, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100084998363.0x000004> [accessed 29 March 2024]

Link to this item
Embed this item

Copy and paste the code below into your web page where you would like to embed the image.

<meta charset="utf-8"><a href="https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100084998363.0x000004">File 1707/1924 ‘Arabia:- Jeddah Situation Reports. (1924-1930)’ [&lrm;399v] (803/898)</a>
<a href="https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100084998363.0x000004">
	<img src="https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000000466.0x000084/IOR_L_PS_10_1115_0803.jp2/full/!280,240/0/default.jpg" alt="" />
</a>
IIIF details

This record has a IIIF manifest available as follows. If you have a compatible viewer you can drag the icon to load it.https://www.qdl.qa/en/iiif/81055/vdc_100000000466.0x000084/manifestOpen in Universal viewerOpen in Mirador viewerMore options for embedding images

Use and reuse
Download this image