"ملف ٤/ ٦ الزيارات الرسمية بين قادة السفن البريطانية، وشيوخ البحرين والكويت وقطر والساحل المتصالح." [و‎‎٤‎٧] (١٢٨/٩٣)

u \v
Reference the ceremonial in connection with the Political
Resident’s Official visit to Muscat•
2. On receipt of information that your visit was to be official
I discussed the ceremonial procedure with fir* Jamali the Sultan’s Secretary
and we agreed verbally on the programme to be followed. Later I sent him
a v/ritten copy of the suggested programme asking him to confirm that orders
would be issued for a salute to be fired from Mirani Fort and for the usual
guard to be provided in the Consulate premises, ^fter some delay I received
a letter confirnung the salute and saying the guard would be provided at
Bait al Barza. I at first thought this t^Be merely a slip and asked the
Treasury Officer to call on the Secretary and clear up the discrepancy.
It then turned out that under instructions from Saiyid Shihab, he had
deliberately notified me that the guard would be at Bait al Barza and not
the Consulate since Saiyid Shihab maintained that this was where the guard
was customarily provided. I referred the matter back but got no satisfaction.
Finally I called on Saiyid Shihab and managed to convince him that for the last
three years anyway, the guard had been provided in the Consulate. I maintained
that this was in accordance with the agreement drawn up by Major Hickinbotham
in consultation with the Sultan and approved by the Sultan. Saiyid Shihab
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i
eventually agreed that the guard should be provided in the Consulate compound
this year; maintained that the procedure drawn up by Major
hickinbotham and the Sultan must have been altered since from his own
)
personal knowledge he recalled that when you paid your first official call
in Muscat in 1941 when he was representing the Sultan, the guard.was drawn
up at Bait al Parza. He therefore would provide the guard without prejuidice
to his objection which he would reserve the right of raising on the Sultan’s
return. After my meeting with Saiyid Shihab I consulted rqy records for the
year 1941 and find that Saiyid Shihab T s contention that the guard on that
occasion was provided at Bait al Parza and not at the Consulate is correct.
I do not know the reason for this change in the accepted procedure.
SIAN C
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CON
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