"ملف ٤/ ٦ الزيارات الرسمية بين قادة السفن البريطانية، وشيوخ البحرين والكويت وقطر والساحل المتصالح." [و‎‎٤‎٦] (١٢٨/٩١)

India Office»
POUF ILXhiHTlAL* Whitehallf
JSxt. 1162/47. London, S.W.l.
5th June, 1947.
My dear Baxter,
The Political Resident has sent heme lor consider
ation a note on various ceremonial matters ishich require to be
settled as a result of the transfer of the control of the
administration from the Grovommont of India to K.h. G.
Kxcept for the question of the flags to be flowi
no immediate decision seems to be required and you may f©el
that things can remain as they are until the Poreign Office
take over from the India Office in April of next year. You
may, however, like to have our views on the points raised
in Hay’s note and I set them do*n for convenience in this
letter.
( A ) Designation of Officers
We'agree with the Political Resident that there is
no necessity to change the designation of any of the officers
which have been in use for a long time and are well understood
in the area. The Political Agent at Muscat is already H.M.
Consul as well but we see no necessity for a change in the
description of the Political Agents at Bahrain and Kuwait.
( 0 ) ?. edonoe •
it seems only necessary to regulate the comparative
precedence between the Political Officers and Officers in His
Majesty's fighting services. Ac the Political Resident at
present ranks senior to all Plag, General and Air Officers,
it seems appropriate that, within his charge, he should continue
to enjoy this precedence and that the Political Agents should
rank with, but after. Captains, R.H., Colonels and Group Cap
tains in the R.A.P. and that the Junior officers should rank
with, but after, Lieutenant-Ccmrranders, Majors and Squadron-
Leaders «
(C) Salutes
I am inclined to think that the best solttion is to
leave the ntanber of guns as they are at present, and in any
case not to reduce the Salutes accorded to the Political Agents
below the 11 guns which they new enjoy.
(L) Plage
It seems clearly desirable that the Political Resident
should no longer f ly the 'Union Viceroy*' (which is, I believe,
a Union flag with the Star of India in the centre) but should
in future fly the Union flag with the Royal Arms in the centre
and the Political Agents the Union flag with the Tudor Crown.
(E) The Political Resident’s title of "Hon’blc 1 *
I expect you will feel that the time has now come to
drop this and we should not object if you so decide, but the
point about the use of the honorific in Arabic correspondence
should be brone in mind; this could perhaps be treated as a
local usage and left undisturbed.
(P) Uniform
The Political Resident’s suggestions seem to be
sensible, and we think that, at any rate until new incumbents
are appointed the Political Officers should continue to wear
the uniform they already possess.
3.W.Baxter Esq.,CMG, UC, Yours sincerely,
3d* S.P.D0MALD30N.