"دليل الخليج. مجلد I. القسم التاريخي. الأجزاء Iأ و Iب. ج.ج. لوريمر ١٩١٥" [‎١‎٢‎٦‎١] (١٧٨٢/١٤١٦)

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a y0U Wl]1 bft P erfectI y convinced on maturely weighing the several
circumstances both a before andjsince our departure from Basrah
The irresolute conduct of Mr. Vfoore himself was certainly less worthy
o^ praise than that of the Mutasallim. That, after he had rashly
abandoned his original policy of non-intervention and actively
associated himself with the defence of Basrah, he ought to have remained
t ere to assist the Turks was not doubted at any rate by Mr. Parsons
who concludes the relevant portion of his narrative with the words :*
I Tlle poor Busso i'ians are deserted by those whose duty and interest
it was to assist them to the utmost of their power : had they been
80 a ® sisted not the whole power of Persia would be able to take the
city ; and Mr. Garden was evidently of opinion that Mr. Moore
had been guilty of a distinct breach of faith towards the Mutasallim,
and that it would be dangerous for him to return to Basrah even in
the event of an accommodation taking place between the Persians and
the Turks.
Basrah held out, largely on aceonnt of the determination which Surreader of
Snlaiman Agha was able by his personality to infnse into the defence ^ by the
tor more than a year from the date of its first being investod,-a cir- Ip'Smf
cnmstance from which we may perhaps infer, in view of the large
number of the mhabitants, that the blockade by the Persians cannot
have been very stringent.
At last on the evening of the 15th April 1776, by which time the
rc/ff" 8 R iT redllCe ' 3 dire straits and no hope remained of
.chef from Baghdad.t the leading Arab notables of Basrah and its
neighbonrhwd visited Sadiq Khan in his camp to arrange for the
surrender of the town ; and on the morning of the next day the transfer
of Basrah to the Persians was duly accomplished. The terms of capi-
"datiou were merely "that the inhabitants of Basrah should not be
molested w.th respect to their persons or families," and the Mutasallim
Shir "o-J - "j, 1 . 6 treated as priso ' >ers } 'J the victor, who scut them to
ra Z , Sadiq Khan, immediately upon the town being handed over
o im, caused it to be occupied by about 6,000 Persian troops under
the Vnt-Tr 3 ^ read " 8 to the Pasha of
Br t h u ° 0 r emraent ' ^ ">at in Mr. Pa re on,' the
nt,8h onght to have continued at Basrah (see page 180 of his book).
AleLoTanf 0Ii i™, r ir ° S " Ve ' "■ 403, ' of Masai, Van, Dijarbakr,
stanUnol p T" 11 " 6 0n Ba « 1 " M ^ ^ Co.'
BntKaril^/r, t I** ** هذه التواريخ تقريبية d « ,h 118 » P'opitiate the Persian,
Basrah g ho professed to be satisfied, did not abandon the sie S e of
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