‘File 28/5 (a) I War. Proposed extension of export licensing system’

Content

The file comprises correspondence, memoranda and statistical data relating to the monitoring of imports and exports of important commodities into and out of Bahrain and the states of the Trucial Coast A name used by Britain from the nineteenth century to 1971 to refer to the present-day United Arab Emirates. , as part of the wider export license controls and Navicert system of trade and contraband control during the Second World War. The principal correspondents in the file are the Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. at Bahrain (Major Reginald George Evelin William Alban), the Residency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, established in the provinces and regions considered part of, or under the influence of, British India. Agent at Sharjah (Khan Sahib Saiyid ‘Abd al-Razzaq), and the Director of Customs at Bahrain (Claud Cranbrook Lewis DeGrenier).

The file includes:

• copies of correspondence exchanged between the 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. in London, the Government of India, and the Political Resident A senior ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul General) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Residency. in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. (Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Geoffrey Prior), relating to proposals for the extension of export control licenses and the Navicert system to the states of the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. . The correspondence includes a request for an estimate of annual imports and consumption of commodities in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. , and details of the decision to monitor on an ongoing monthly basis, imports and exports of important commodities, and commodities important to war purposes, at Bahrain and the Trucial Coast A name used by Britain from the nineteenth century to 1971 to refer to the present-day United Arab Emirates. (ff 50-51);
• following a request from the Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. at Bahrain (f 53), dated 11 June 1941, monthly submissions from the Customs Director at Bahrain of imports and exports of commodities at Bahrain, starting July 1941 and running through to December 1942;
• following an identical request from the Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. at Bahrain (f 54), dated 11 June 1941, monthly submissions from the Residency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, established in the provinces and regions considered part of, or under the influence of, British India. Agent at Sharjah for imports and exports of commodities at Sharjah and Dubai, starting July 1941 and running through to February 1943;
• statistics for the import and export of commodities at Bahrain, Sharjah and Dubai, collated from the reports received by the Customs Director at Bahrain and from the Residency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, established in the provinces and regions considered part of, or under the influence of, British India. Agent at Sharjah, forwarded to His Majesty’s Secretary of State for India at the 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. , the Secretary to the Government of India in the External Affairs Department, and the Political Resident A senior ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul General) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Residency. in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. ;
• correspondence and file notes (ff 355-356) relating to the need for an additional clerk at the Political Agency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, headed by an agent. in Bahrain, to handle the increased volume of work created at the Agency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, headed by an agent. by the War, including correspondence between the Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. in Bahrain, the Political Resident A senior ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul General) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Residency. , and representatives of the Customs House at Karachi, over the employment of one of latter’s own clerks at Bahrain (ff 112-113, ff 131-136);
• correspondence relating to a request from the Foreign Department, Delhi, for statistics on the amount of rice, wheat and wheat flour imported from India into the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. for the six-month period June to December 1942 (ff 304-310).

Extent and format

1 file (373 folios)

Arrangement

The file’s contents are arranged in approximate chronological order, from the earliest item at the front to the latest at the end. The file notes towards the end of the file (ff 355-370) mirror the chronological arrangement. Three papers are filed after the file notes (ff 371-374).

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1 and terminates at the back cover with 375; 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 also present in parallel between ff 355-370 and a mixed/foliation/pagination is in the file notes at the back between ff 355-370; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and are located in the same position as the main sequence.

Written in

English in Latin script

Type

Archival file

Access & Reference

Original held at

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.

Access conditions

Unrestricted

Archive reference

IOR/R/15/2/684

Former external reference(s)

Confidential Files: 238/5 (a) I 28/14 A

History of this record

Date(s)

28 Jan 1941-6 Feb 1943 (CE, Gregorian)

Subjects

Navicert systemSecond World War (1939-1945)Trade (practice)ExportsImports

Places

SharjahDubai

People & organisations

Director of Customs and Port OfficerNative Agent, Trucial Coast, Sharjah

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‘File 28/5 (a) I War. Proposed extension of export licensing system’, British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/R/15/2/684, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100000000241.0x00004d> [accessed 11 February 2025]

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