‘File 28/42 Persian Gulf War Trade Bureau Reports’

Content

The file comprises: 1) copies of extracts, or complete copies of, Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. Trade War Bureau reports, numbered 29 to 37, and issued weekly and dated between 15 August 1942 and 2 November 1942; 2) copies of correspondence concerning the re-export trade from the Arab Coast, chiefly from Dubai to Persia [Iran] and other countries.

The Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. Trade War Bureau reports are arranged by country (Persia, Iraq, Bahrain, Kuwait, Dubai) and by subject or commodity (sugar, tea, cotton, etc.). They contain extracts and intelligence gleaned from intercepted mail and telegraphic correspondence, chiefly from merchants but also from newspapers and other organisations, and report on a range of subject matter related to trade, including: suspected or known cases of smuggling, fictitious orders used to increase quotas, and the re-export trade from Dubai. Some of the reports contain intelligence relating to wartime developments in Europe, which is struck through in red or blue pencil. The final report in the file (ff 76-87) contains statistical tables showing trade in various commodities between India and the key ports of the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. .

Correspondence related to the re-export trade from Dubai chiefly takes place between 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 William Rupert Hay; Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Geoffrey Prior), 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 (Edward Birkbeck Wakefield), and 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 discusses the reasons behind the flourishing re-export trade from Dubai, methods of limiting the re-export trade, stock levels of sugar in the Gulf.

Extent and format

1 file (95 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 92-93) 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 95; 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 mixed foliation/pagination sequence is present in parallel between ff 2-94; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.

Two previous foliation sequences, which are also circled, have been superseded and therefore crossed out.

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/15/2/737

Former external reference(s)

Confidential Files: 28/42

History of this record

Date(s)

15 Aug 1942-5 May 1943 (CE, Gregorian)

Subjects

Interception of communicationMarket intelligenceSmugglingTrade (practice)ExportsImports

Places

Dubai

People & organisations

Political Resident, Persian Gulf

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Cite this record in your research

‘File 28/42 Persian Gulf War Trade Bureau Reports’, British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/R/15/2/737, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/node/9685> [accessed 20 July 2026]

Link to this record

https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100000000241.0x000085

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