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'File 8/16 Bahrain Intelligence Reports' [194r] (387/432)
The record is made up of 1 file (214 folios). It was created in 20 Jan 1941-31 Dec 1942. 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.
-3-
223. Currency - Bahrain 0
(i) The price of sovereigns has dropped fractionally from
Rs 56/8/- to Ps 56/-/-.
(ii) There are still no signs of a recrudescence of the gold
smuggling which took place earlier in the summer, and it seems
that 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.
's order of July 21st making bullion
brokers submit weekly statements of their transactions in gold
has proved to be an even greater deterrent to smuggling than was
expected at the time (vide para 149 (i) of Intelligence Summary
No o14 of 1942).
(iii) Reference para 186 of Intelligence Summary No.17 of 1942
in which a shortage of small coin in Bahrain was reported. The
shortage has become even more marked than it was, and bazaar trade
is suffering as a consequence. Neither shopkeepers nor their
customers possess small change, and the only means of obtaining it
is by purchase - at a substantial premium - from one or other of
the Ring of brokers who have made a corner of small coin. The
Bahrain Government were assailed by so many complaints from^the
public that they began devising laws and regulations prohibiting
the hoarding of small coin, penalising its sale at other than its
face value, and so on. They were eventually dissuaded from en
acting this legislation, which would certainly have had results
exactly the reverse of what was desired, and were advised to await
patiently the arrival of a large consignment of small coin which
the Eastern Bank had ordered from Bombay. Ps 30,000 in small coin
would already have arrived by the end of the period under report
had not the Captain of the steamer which was to bring it to Bahrain
refused to take delivery as there was no strong room on his ship.
The consignment is expected to arrive by another steamer early in
November. When it does arrive, and when so much small coin^is put
into circulation, members of the Ring will be put out of business
and will probably liquidate their own holdings. It may be observed
cn passant, that it is the contraction in their business in gold
which has led brokers to attempt a 'corner' in small coin. These
brokers have a considerable amount of capital, which they cannot
bear to leave idle. Operations on the gold market being denied t<
them, they naturally looked for an alternative method of making
their money productive. It will be interesting to see what new
scheme they embark upon when their present activities cease to b^
remunerative.
^24. Currency - Qatar.
That rupee notes are not welcomed in Qatar is evident
from correspondence which has recently taken place between Shaikh
Abdullah bin Qasim al Thani and Mr. Packer, Local Manager of
Petroleum Development (Qatar) Ltd. The Shaikh sent Mr. Packer
a cheque for Fs 20,000 cn the Eastern Bank, Bahrain, asking that t.e
proceeds might be sent to him in silver. Mr. Packer replies, t x
the proceeds of the cheque, if paid in silver, would amount nly
to Rs 19,100. The Shaikh was then in a quandary. It would revc][t
his whole being to accept Fs 19,100 when he was entitled to Fs20,000$
at the same time he was aware that rupee notes had nothing
their face value in purchasing power in his territory. Eventually
he decided to take the full Rs .20,000 in notes. The reasons for
this decision are conjectural, but probably the Shaikh came
reluctantly to the conclusion that for local purchases and payments
he would have to draw on his substantial hoardings of silver
rupees
Indian silver coin also widely used in the Persian Gulf.
while the notes could be used for purchases in India. The^follow-
ins extract from a letter sent by the Shaikh to Mr. Packer is
indicative of the annoyance which the whole affair occasioned him^-
I express my deep regret at this unexpected treatment
given me by the Bank. I understand from your letter that
the Bank Manager is unable to cash our cheque in s J lver -H},
full, but that he can do so if the sum is reduced by Ps 900/
We were not prepared for such dealings from the Bank or its
/ Manager.
About this item
- Content
The file contains fortnightly intelligence summaries produced by the Political Agency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, headed by an agent. at Bahrain for the years 1941-42. The reports, marked as secret, were sent to the Government of India, 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. , and numerous diplomatic, political, and military offices in the Middle East. Most of the reports cover a two week period, though due to holidays, tours, and work pressures some cover an entire month.
The reports are divided into short sections that relate to a particular subject, often closely connected to the Second World War. Contained within the file is intelligence on the following:
- international shipping and the activities of the Royal Navy, Royal Air Force, and commercial transport companies such as Imperial Airways Limited;
- the movements of British and Foreign subjects, and Arab notables;
- local affairs of Bahrain, as well as news from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Persia [Iran], and the Trucial Coast A name used by Britain from the nineteenth century to 1971 to refer to the present-day United Arab Emirates. ;
- economic matters and food supplies;
- foreign radio broadcasts and press, with a focus on anti-British sentiment;
- the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. Fighter Fund;
- defence matters;
- smuggling of gold and arms and the traffic of slaves;
- meteorological data;
- medical matters.
Folios 57-61 are correspondence relating to the alleged sinking of an Iranian dhow A term adopted by British officials to refer to local sailing vessels in the western Indian Ocean. by a British man-of-war in March 1941.
Folios 85-88 is a list of prominent individuals in Bahrain, compiled by 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, Reginald Alban, and submitted to the Political 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. in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. at Bushire.
Folio 122 is the statement of thirteen Qatari sailors who were aboard a dhow A term adopted by British officials to refer to local sailing vessels in the western Indian Ocean. sunk by a Japanese submarine on 12 April 1942.
Folio 176 is a telegram from the Government of India in New Delhi requesting that intelligence summaries differentiate between truly confidential content and that which can be distributed more widely.
Folio 190 is a letter, dated 15 October 1942, from Charles Geoffrey Prior, 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. , to Edward Birkbeck Wakefield, 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, regarding the risk of including information about the revival of the slave trade in the Gulf in his diaries due to their wide readership.
Included in the file is 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. and the Naval Officer in Charge at Basrah regarding prominent people of the region and events of the war.
On the inside of the front cover is the distribution list for the summaries.
- Extent and format
- 1 file (214 folios)
- Arrangement
The file is arranged chronologically.
- Physical characteristics
Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 216; 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.
- Written in
- English in Latin script View the complete information for this record
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'File 8/16 Bahrain Intelligence Reports' [194r] (387/432), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/R/15/2/314, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100025549536.0x0000bc> [accessed 4 January 2025]
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Copyright: How to use this content
- Reference
- IOR/R/15/2/314
- Title
- 'File 8/16 Bahrain Intelligence Reports'
- Pages
- front, front-i, 2r:215v, back-i, back
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence