'File 86/1 V (D 96) Kuwait Oil'

Content

The file discusses the granting of oil concessions in Kuwait and within the Kuwait-Nejd [Najd] neutral zone (herein referred to as the neutral zone), and contains correspondence and reports 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. , Kuwait; 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. ; 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 Foreign Office; the Petroleum Department; the Anglo-Persian Oil Company (A.P.O.C.); the Standard Oil Company; the Eastern and General Syndicate Limited; the Kuwait Company and the Arabian Development Syndicate.

The reports in the file provide background information on the various oil companies interested in the concessions, and their various attempts to secure these concessions as well as any involvement they have previously had with concessions in Bahrain and Kuwait. Also included in the reports are opinions on the granting of concessions in Nejd by Bin Saud (also given as Ibn Saud) [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd] who held an equal right to any potential concession being granted in the Kuwait-Nejd neutral zone.

From folio 34 onwards the correspondence centres primarily on the formation of the Kuwait Oil Company, which is formed by A.P.O.C. and the Gulf Oil Company in an attempt to secure their oil interests in Kuwait and includes draft copies of both their proposed commercial agreement for a concession with the Shaikh of Kuwait (Shaikh Aḥmad al-Jābir Āl Ṣabāḥ) (folios 109-119, 265-275, 303-314), and of their proposed political agreement with His Majesty's Government. Minutes of meetings held 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. December 1933-February 1934 to discuss the proposed agreements and potential amendments to the clauses within them are also included. Some of the correspondence from A.P.O.C. is written on the company paper, the letterhead for which gives the company's contact information in both English and Persian.

Also included in the file are discussions on the formation of another new group, the Arabian Development Syndicate, which includes Abdulgani Ydlibi (also given as Abdul Ghani Adlibi), a Syrian from Manchester who secures authorisation from Ibn Saud to deal with oil and mineral rights within Nejd territory and who are interested in securing the concession for the neutral zone. There are also reports on this company from the British Consul in Jedda.

The file also contains expressions of the British Government's attitude towards, and opinions of, Major Frank Holmes, who had formally been the Chief Local Representative for the Bahrain Petroleum Company and was being proposed as a negotiator for the new Kuwait Oil Company, but who was not considered 'persona grata' by the British Government. Folio 346, within the office notes. contains notes written by 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. relating to Major Holmes, dated 18-23 November 1923, and expressing his opinion that Holmes would at some point return to the Gulf.

Extent and format

1 file (359 folios)

Arrangement

The contents of this volume have been arranged in chronological order.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: The file is foliated with a pencil number enclosed in a circle located in the top right recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. of each folio. The foliation starts on the first folio with numbering starting with 1A, 1B, 1c, 1D and runs through to 351 on the last folio with writing.

There is also a second incomplete sequence, written in pencil, in the top right corner, starting with 1A on folio 1 and ending with 342 on folio 343.

Written in

English and Persian in Latin and Arabic 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/15/1/641

Former external reference(s)

Confidential Series: D 96 A Series: 86/1 V

History of this record

Date(s)

1 Jul 1933-28 Feb 1934 (CE, Gregorian)

Subjects

Concessions, Oil, KuwaitMilitary policy

Places

Kuwait

People & organisations

Anglo-Iranian Oil Company LimitedArabian Development Syndicate LimitedKuwait Oil CompanyPolitical Agent, KuwaitSecretary of State for India, United KingdomEmir of KuwaitFrank HolmesArchibald Hugh Tennent Chisholm

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'File 86/1 V (D 96) Kuwait Oil', British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/R/15/1/641, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100000000193.0x000267> [accessed 17 July 2024]

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