File 2006/1917 'ARABIA: ARAB CONFEDERACY'

Content

The volume comprises correspondence, telegrams, summaries, reports, notes and other papers concerning the support given by Britain to the tribes of South Arabia [present-day Yemen] in 1917, chiefly in relation to Britain’s principal wartime aim of ousting the Turks [Ottoman Empire] from the region and securing the Aden Protectorate.

The papers notably cover:

• British relations with Saiyid Muhammad bin Ali bin Muhammad bin Ahmed bin Idris, the Idrisi [Sayyid Muhammad ibn ‘Alī al-Idrīsī, ruler of the Idrisid Emirate of Asir], including the 1915 agreement with the Idrisi in return for his attacking the Turks; financial assistance (subsidy) for arms, ammunition, hirelings and transport; the Idrisi’s recruitment of Hashid wa Bakil (also spelled Bakill and Bekil in this volume) and British doubts about the loyalty of these ‘mercenary’ (f 259) tribesmen; British concerns over the Idrisi’s effectiveness against the Turks and his predominating enmity towards Imam Yahia bin Mohamed Hamid-ud-Din of Yemen [Yaḥyá Muḥammad Ḥamīd al-Dīn, also referred to as 'Imam Yahya' in this volume]
• British policy towards the 'Arab Confederacy' of tribes formed around May 1917 (also referred to as the 'Yemen Confederacy' in this volume), including concerns over its potential effectiveness and lack of concrete victories against the Turks; and meetings with various Arab tribal chiefs explaining their intentions or applying for assistance from Britain
• British relations with the ‘neutral’ Imam Yahya, including a concurrently open-door and non-committal policy; avoidance of decisions or actions that could cause the Imam to stop ‘sitting on the fence’ and ally with the Turks; the Imam’s approach to the British in July 1917 offering support in exchange for territory, the removal of the Idrisi, and a position as sole leader in Yemen (the British politely declined the offer)
• Division of opinion 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 Aden, and the First Assistant Resident in Aden and Government of India, regarding the risks in either supporting or not supporting the Arab Confederacy; the viability and true aims of the Confederacy; and whether or not it was likely the Confederacy would to turn to Italy if Britain prolonged delaying assistance.

The principal correspondents are: Major-General James Marshall Stewart, 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. , Aden; Lieutenant-Colonel Harold Fenton Jacob, First Assistant Resident, Aden; Saiyid Muhammad bin Ali bin Muhammad bin Ahmed bin Idris, the Idrisi [Sayyid Muhammad ibn ‘Alī al-Idrīsī, ruler of the Idrisid Emirate of Asir]; Imam Yahia bin Mohamed Hamid Ud-Din of Yemen [Yaḥyá Muḥammad Ḥamīd al-Dīn] (also referred to in this volume as Saiyid Yehia bin Mohamed Hamid-ad-Din, Al Mutawakil, the Commander of the Faithful, and as Imam Yahia of San’a / Sana’a [Sanaa] and 'Imam Yahya'); senior officials of the Government of India at Simla [Shimla]; Secretaries of State and diplomats of the Foreign Office and 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. in London; General Sir Reginald Wingate, British High Commissioner in Egypt; Ronald William Graham, Foreign Office diplomat. Also included are translations and summaries of numerous communications from and between various chiefs of Arab tribes in Yemen.

The enclosures date from 1917 but some include content (mainly printed documents) dating from 1916.

The volume includes a divider which gives the subject number, the year the subject file was opened, the subject heading, and a list of correspondence references by year. This is placed at the back of the correspondence.

Extent and format

1 volume (295 folios)

Arrangement

The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the rear to the front of the volume.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with 1 and terminates at the last folio with 295; 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. Multiple intermittent additional mixed foliation/pagination sequences are also present. A previous foliation sequence in part of the volume, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out. The foliation sequence does not include the front and back covers, nor does it include the leading and ending flyleaves.

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/L/PS/10/683

Former external reference(s)

P 2006/1917

History of this record

Date(s)

Mar 1917-Nov 1917 (CE, Gregorian)

Subjects

AlliancesBilateral relationsArab nationalismFirst World War (1914-1918)Military support

Places

YemenArabian PeninsulaAden Protectorate

People & organisations

Government of IndiaForeign OfficeHigh CommissionerImam of YemenPolitical ResidentIdrīsī Imām of ʻAsīrFirst Assistant ResidentHarold Fenton Jacob

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File 2006/1917 'ARABIA: ARAB CONFEDERACY', British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/10/683, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100000000419.0x000241> [accessed 8 July 2024]

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