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Coll 17/10(4) 'Internal: political situation; relations with HMG' [82r] (163/1031)
The record is made up of 1 file (515 folios). It was created in 10 Apr 1941-19 Mar 1947. 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.
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THIS DOCUMENT IS THE PROPERTY OF HIS BRITANNIC AaJESSY'S GOVERNMENT
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‘S’/r A. Cornwallis to- Mr. Eden. — {Received A pril 19.) V) ff!
( N °. Hi.) Z^a
Sir, Bagdad March 28, 1943. ^ (f
IN my despatch No. 24 of the 22nd January, I reported Iraq’s formal
declaration of war on the Axis Powers and her adhesion to the declaration
of the l nited Nations made at Washington on the 2nd January, 1942. This
action seems to have caused noticeable heartburning to neighbouring Govern
ments. Egypt, Syria, Persia and Saudi Arabia all hurriedly took stock of their
respective positions in relation to this event and, though their reactions varied
with their individual circumstances, all apparently felt that Iraq had cleverly
stolen a march on them.
2. In Iraq itself, the first tangible fruits of the declaration were a
conditional offer of a small armed force to help Great Britain and a praise
worthy effort to give more effective co-operation in providing grain supplies for
other countries in the Middle East. On the 8th February the Prime Minister
called on me to offer to send a force of a maximum strength of one mixed brigade
to Turkey, if the war should come there, and to detail a second brigade for duty
as garrison troops in Palestine or Syria. As I reported at the time, I do not
believe that service abroad would be well received by either the Iraqi army or
the public, and the political objections to the sending of Iraqi troops to
Palestine or Syria are grave and obvious. I accordingly welcomed your instruc
tions to tell the Prime Minister that, though His Majesty’s Government were
grateful for this offer, they had come to the conclusion that the best help that
the Iraqi army could give was to continue to co-operate in the protection of
military communications in their own country. Nuri
Pasha
An Ottoman title used after the names of certain provincial governors, high-ranking officials and military commanders.
took this decision
in good part, though he maintained, as was only to be expected, that I was at
fault in thinking that service outside Iraq would be unpopular.
3. Although Nuri
Pasha
An Ottoman title used after the names of certain provincial governors, high-ranking officials and military commanders.
would not commit himself publicly at the time of
Iraq’s declaration of war to help neighbouring countries in respect of cereals,
I made full use of the new situation in pressing home both on him and the
Minister of Finance that it was the duty of the Iraqi Government now that they
were belligerents to take energetic and determined action in order to provide the
barley so sorely needed in Persia and Turkey. After constant representations
a notification was eventually published on the 13th January fixing prices and
establishing Government control over ad sales of barley. The notification was
the Government’s first important endeavour to co-operate more fully on the
economic front and represented a major step towards proper control of cereals,
and stabilisation of cereal prices. The main points were—
(a) In the liwas of Bagdad, Hillah, Diwaniyah, Muntafiq. Kut, Diyala,
Amara and Dulaim the Government required all persons to surrender
any stocks of barley which they held in excess of their own require
ments for food.
{b) The prices fixed were I.D. 19 a ton for grain declared up to the
28th February; I.D. 17 a ton for later declaration up to the.
15th March and I.D. 15 a ton for stocks registered from the
15th March to the 31st March. Unregistered barley found after the
31st March to be confiscated with a nominal payment not to exceed
I.D. 10 a ton.
Even after the Cabinet had agreed to the measures which it embodies for the
control of barley, the publication of the notification was unexpectedly held up
at the last moment owing to the annoyance caused to the Minister of Finance by
some remarks made by the Prime Minister during a debate in the Senate on the
Government’s economic policy. The Prime Minister admitted that the Govern
ment’s action had so far been inadequate and unsuccessful, but promised better
measures in the near future. Salih Jabr felt that these remarks implied a
criticism of his own work as Minister of Finance and left the meeting determined
to resign. So soon as I learnt of this contretemps I saw both Ministers separately
Apd spo ke to each of the folly of breaking up the Cabinet at this juncture. The
About this item
- Content
This file is a continuation of IOR/L/PS/12/2862. It contains correspondence and memoranda regarding relations between HM Government ( HMG Her or His Majesty’s Government in London. ) and the Government of Iraq, and documents the reaction of 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 Foreign Office to political developments within Iraq. The file opens with descriptions of the situation following the coup d'état of Rashid Ali al-Gaylani, and documents the build-up to the Anglo-Iraqi War (2-31 May 1941), including the arrival of British and Indian troops in Basra (under rights granted in the Anglo-Iraq Treaty of 1930), arrangements to evacuate the Regent 'Abd al-Illah, British attempts to shore up support from the Turkish and Egyptian authorities, and Axis propaganda in Iraq. The papers then contain communications regarding the progress of the war, including reports on troop movements, the dispatch of war materials, the actions of Germany, Italy, France and Turkey, and Indian public opinion regarding the conflict. These papers consist of dispatches sent by the British Ambassador to Iraq (Sir Kinahan Cornwallis) to the Foreign Office, as well as numerous copy communications between the Senior Naval Officer in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. , the Commander in Chief of the East Indies Section, 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. Kuwait, the Viceroy of India, and HM Ambassador to the United States.
From the end of the war the file consists primarily of dispatches from Cornwallis to the Foreign Office, reporting on the return of the Regent, the pogrom against the Jewish community, the breaking of diplomatic relations with Vichy France and Japan, the trial of the coup supporters, the Iraqi declaration of war against Germany, Italy and Japan, the possibility of Iraqi membership of the United Nations, and the release of political prisoners from the Ammara [̔Amāra] concentration camp. The regular dispatches also contain details of various cabinet crises, and details of the domestic economic and military situation. The file contains a small amount of material for the years 1944-1946, including annual reports submitted by Cornwallis and his successor, Sir Hugh Stonehewer-Bird.
The file includes dividers which give lists of correspondence references found in the file by year. These are placed at the end of the correspondence (folios 2-4).
- Extent and format
- 1 file (515 folios)
- Arrangement
The papers are arranged in rough chronological order from the rear to the front of the file.
- Physical characteristics
Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 515; 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 2-514; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
- Written in
- English in Latin script View the complete information for this record
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Copyright: How to use this content
- Reference
- IOR/L/PS/12/2863
- Title
- Coll 17/10(4) 'Internal: political situation; relations with HMG'
- Pages
- front, front-i, 2r:15v, 17r:86v, 90v:105v, 107r:119v, 121r:298v, 300r:304v, 307r:373r, 379r:401v, 405r:515v, back
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence