‘File 12/5 Wrecks of sailing boats and vessels in the sea and salvages’ [‎152v] (306/568)

Content

The file contains correspondence, statements made by nakhudas, bills and receipts, all related to incidents in which native vessels were wrecked or damaged in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. (and chiefly in the waters around Bahrain) usually as a result either of storms or collision with another vessel. The correspondence relates to: reports of the initial incidents; the salvage of cargo; rescue and repatriation of crews; the recovery of costs incurred by salvage and repatriation; insurance claims. 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 (numerous incumbents); the Director of Customs at Bahrain (Claud Cranbrook Lewis deGrenier); 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, who reports on shipwreck and salvage incidents on the Trucial Coast A name used by Britain from the nineteenth century to 1971 to refer to the present-day United Arab Emirates. , or involving boats from the Trucial Coast A name used by Britain from the nineteenth century to 1971 to refer to the present-day United Arab Emirates. .

The file includes details of numerous individual cases. The most significant cases in terms of paperwork involved include:

• the sinking of the Surab near Bushire in February 1931, with correspondence relating to: the repatriation of the crew back to Karachi; the Karachi authorities’ demands for repatriation costs to be paid by the Surab’s owner, leading to a dispute between the two parties (ff 8-30);
• a collision between the British India Steam Navigation Company steamer, the Varsova , and a fishing dhow A term adopted by British officials to refer to local sailing vessels in the western Indian Ocean. in the waters between Qatar and Bahrain, with correspondence relating to: the recovery of eighteen crew from the dhow A term adopted by British officials to refer to local sailing vessels in the western Indian Ocean. , which sank after the collision; failed attempts by the dhow’s owner, a Qatari subject, to make a claim in Bahrain over the loss; the Ruler of Qatar, Shaikh ‘Abdullāh bin Jāsim Āl Thānī’s intervention in the affair (ff 95-124);
• the foundering of a vessel, the Fatehkarim, off the Jazirat Shaikh Shuib in February 1941, and the repatriation to Karachi of its eight crew, with correspondence including copies of indemnity bonds for the eight crew members, to cover their passage back to Karachi (ff 181-198);
• in June 1943, attempts to repatriate twelve men from Um al Qaiwain [Umm al-Qaywayn] from Colombo, where their vessel was shipwrecked, with correspondence relating to the costs and difficulties of repatriating the men, presumably a result of wartime restrictions in maritime traffic (ff 219-229);
• enquiries, from September 1944 onwards, by a Bombay [Mumbai] company, Sopher & Company, who are attempting to make an insurance claim for a vessel lost near Khor Fakkan [Khawr Fakkān], while en route from Bombay to Basrah [Basra], with correspondence including copies of notes of protest, issued by the Government of Iraq (ff 241-261).

Extent and format

1 file (282 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 at the end of the file (ff 262-283) mirror the chronological arrangement.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 283; 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 present in parallel between ff 7-261; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and are located in the same position as the main sequence. A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.

Written in

English, Arabic and Persian in Latin and Arabic script

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