'Extracts from Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf, Oman and Central Arabia by J G Lorimer CIE, Indian Civil Service' [‎12v] (29/180)

14
Instructions
to the
commanders.
Strength and
organisation
of the
expedition.
The voyage.
of the expedition.* A conciliatory convention was, if possible, to be arranged
with the piratical powers after the destruction of their vessels. Incidentally
topographical information regarding the country, and especially the ports, of the
Qawasim One of the ruling families of the United Arab Emirates; also used to refer to a confederation of seafaring Arabs led by the Qāsimī tribe from Ras al Khaima. was to be procured; and an " eligible island " was to be sought for in
the vicinity of the Qasimi coast, which it might be possible to occupy as a
maritime station or a 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. .
The instructions issued to the naval and military commanders in charge of
the expedition placed all these objects before them for attainment, except that
relating to the relief of Masqat from Wahhabi pressure; this last, if it entered into
the scheme at all, was apparently viewed as an indirect consequence, with which
executive officers were not concerned. Special stress was laid upon the complete
destruction of all piratical craft. From the political point of view extreme caution
was enjoined. Land operations of every sort were to be avoided, so far as possible,
and especially any conflict with forces in the service of the Wahhabi Amir; no
hostility towards the Wahhabis was to be expressed; and the supposed connection
of the Wahhabis with the Qawasim One of the ruling families of the United Arab Emirates; also used to refer to a confederation of seafaring Arabs led by the Qāsimī tribe from Ras al Khaima. was to be ignored, the latter being treated for
all purposes as an independent power, t The susceptibilities of the Persian and
Turkish Governments were to be respected to the utmost, and the local representa
tives of the former were to be assured, if necessary, that the operations against
the pirates covered no territorial designs. At Laft, though that place was no longer
under the control of the Saiyid of Masqat, the Qasimi shipping was not to be
destroyed without his express assent.
The naval force detailed for the expedition was placed under the command
of Commodore J. Wainwright of H.M.S. " Chiffonne," 36 guns, and consisted,
besides the flagship, of H.M.S. " Caroline," 36 guns; and of the H.E.I. Company's
cruisers " Mornington," 22 guns; "Ternate," 16 guns; "Aurora," 14 guns;
" Mercury," 14 guns; " Nautilus," 14 guns; " Prince of Wales," 14 guns; " Vestal,"
10 guns; "Ariel," 10 guns; "Fury," 8 guns; and " Stromboli," bomb-ketch.
The land force, conveyed in 4 large transports and commanded by Lieutenant-
Colonel Lionel Smith of His Majesty's 65th Regiment, amounted to about 1,411
fighting men, of whom 883 were Europeans and 528 natives of India; the European
portion was composed of His Majesty's 65th Regiment, the flank companies of
His Majesty's 47th Regiment, and a detachment of the Bombay Artillery. +
The armament, as a whole, was under the joint command of Captain
Wainwright and Colonel Smith.
By the death of Captain Seton, Resident at Masqat, a month before it sailed,
the expedition was deprived of its political adviser. § Mr. Bunce, who was sent
to take Captain Seton's place but probably possessed no local knowledge, was
ordered by the Bombay Government to remain at Masqat; he also expirecTbefore
the end of the year.
The expedition started from Bombay on the 14th of September 1809. Before
the ships had been 24 hours out of port the bottom fell out of the " Stromboli"
bomb-ketch, and she foundered, carrying with her an artillery officer, most of her
crew, and the main supply of heavy ammunition for the force. Masqat was reached
on the 24th of October, and here the expedition was joined by Captain Pasley
and other members of Sir John Malcolm's third Mission, then on their way to
Persia; these gentlemen " most handsomely volunteered their services," which were
accepted. Saiyid Sa 'Td, who was in a despondent mood, seemed to regard the
smallness of the armament with some dismay in view of the task assigned it; and
he did not, apparently, at this stage offer to co-operate. Pilots and small boats
for landing were, however, obtained; and on the 2nd November the expedition
left Masqat. An offer made by the Shaikh of Kuwait to join the British expedition
with his whole naval force and supply pilots for all the piratical strongholds was
* See Bombay Selections, XXIV, pages 131 and 305.
t In some earlier instructions sent to Captain Seton a sort of explanation to the Wahhabi Amir
of the action about to be taken against the Oawasim appears to have been contemplated; see
Bombay Selections, XXIV, page 43. The writer The lowest of the four classes into which East India Company civil servants were divided. A Writer’s duties originally consisted mostly of copying documents and book-keeping. has not been able to ascertain whether these
earlier instructions were cancelled or executed.
X According to Regimental Records there were 638 sepoys Term used in English to refer to an Indian infantryman. Carries some derogatory connotations as sometimes used as a means of othering and emphasising race, colour, origins, or rank. and the whole force only
numbered about 1,200 men.
§ Captain David Seton, of the Bombay Military Service, was Resident at Masqat, with two
short intervals, from 1800 to 1809. He died of fever at Barkah on the 2nd of August, 1809, and
was buried at that place. He was not a careful reader of his instructions, and the repudiation by
Government of the treaty which he arranged with the Emirs of Sind in 1808 (vide Kaye's Afghan
War) will be remembered; but he seems to have been an earnest and energetic officer, and his
death was much regretted.