![‘Persian Gulf Gazetteer. Part 1. Historical and political materials. Precis of Turkish expansion on the Arab littoral of the Persian Gulf and Hasa [Al-Hasa] and Katif [Al-Qaṭīf] affairs.’ [‎76] (88/160)](https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000000884.0x0001b8/IOR_L_PS_20_C238_0089.jp2/full/!1200,1200/0/default.jpg "‘Persian Gulf Gazetteer. Part 1. Historical and political materials. Precis of Turkish expansion on the Arab littoral of the Persian Gulf and Hasa [Al-Hasa] and Katif [Al-Qaṭīf] affairs.’ [‎76] (88/160)")
‘Persian Gulf Gazetteer. Part 1. Historical and political materials. Precis of Turkish expansion on the Arab littoral of the Persian Gulf and Hasa [Al-Hasa] and Katif [Al-Qaṭīf] affairs.’ [76] (88/160)
The record is made up of 1 volume (80 folios). It was created in 1904. 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.
76
289. No action was taken by the Government of India, but tbe case was dis
cussed personally by Secretary with Colonel Kemball, during His Excellency
the Viceroy's recent tour in the
Persian Gulf
The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran.
, and the Bahreinese traders were
told by Secretary that the question was under consideration pending decision
about raising status of Bahrein
Agency
An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, headed by an agent.
and Vice-Consulate for Katif and Ojair.
290. A recent complaint was made by Tekchand Dwarkadas, a Cutchi
. merchant (referred to in paragraph 273)
Section E, May 1904, Nos. 6— . that the customs farmer demanded a duty
of 12 per cent, on the date exported from Katif to Cutch. Under the Commer
cial agreement between Turkey and Parsia dated 5th September 1903, the 12 per
cent, export duty on goods destined for Persia was abolished, and under
the arrangements existing before the treaty, a refund of 11 per cent, would have
been made on the dates exported to British Indian ports, but in the case of
dates exported to Cutch ports the full 12 per cent, duty would have been
levied and no rebate made. Now that the treaty referred to has abolished the
12 per cent, duties, there was, in the opinion of Colonel Kemball no longer
any reason for claiming the deposit in the case of the goods sent out to India and
elsewhere, Colonel Kemball, however, thought that little good would result from
attempting to obtain a refund of the over charges made, but if it were decided to
appoint a Consular representative at Katif, a good case would have made out for
such a step.
291. The question then of appointing a Consular officer at Katif was dis
cussed in the Foreign Department, and the following despatch addressed to the
Secretary of State (No. 3, dated the 31st Mareh ^£01):—
No. 74, Secret E., dated Fort William, the Slst March 1904.
From— The Government of India, Foreign Department.
To—The Right Hon'ble St. John Bbodeick , His Majesty's Secretary of State for India.
" We have the honour to forward^ for your information, copies of the correspondence noted
in the schedule annexed, regarding our commercial interests at Katif. Prior to the Ottoman
occupation of El Hassa, a flourishing settlement of Indian traders carried on business at this
port. In 1874 the place became the head-quarters of a Turkish Kaimmakairj; a Customs
House was instituted; aud official regulations have since been so used, ar rather abused, as to
destroy the British trade which had previously been established. An export duty of 1 per cent,
has practically been converted into one of 8 per cent, by the demand that a deposit of this
amount should be made on the value of all dates exported. This exaction was ostensibly intend
ed to prevent the diversion of cargo to the Persian coast, exports to which were previously
chargeable with a duty calculated at that rate. Every possible difficulty appears, however, to
have been placed in the way of obtaining a rtfund even on proof of the goods having readied
a British destination. Remonstrances have from time to time been lodged with the responsible
Turkish officials. In 1899 Colonel Meade, onr
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.
, reported
that, as the result of a protracted correspondence, the refund had been procured of a sum of
Rs. 5,012-9-0, out of a total amounting apparently to some Rs, 15,000 ; which certain traders
had been required to deposit in accordance with the practice which we have noticed. But the
abuse has not been checked.
2. Other complaints which have been received have charged the local officials with
deliberately hampering Indian traders by delays in Cuftom-hous« formalities, by prohibition
of the supply of transport, and by the use of quarantine regulations as a pretext for the
detention of Indian craft which had been cleas: of infected ports for periods entitling them to
exemption from restraint even under the most rigid sanitary rules. In 1900, Colonel Meade's
successor forwarded correspondence which showed that the
bania
Merchant of Indian extraction.
community at Katif had
been reduced from one of 70 or 80 persons to a single trader, and that a party of those were
still desirous of carrying on business at th« port had furnished the clearest evidence of the
harassment to which they had been subjected by expressing their willingness to pay in advance
the cost of maintaining a British Agent to protect their interests on the spot. In view of
the antagonism with the Turks into which we had been brought in other parts of the Gulf, we
deemed it inadvisable at the time to propose an attempt to obtain the recognition by the Porte
of a British representative at Katif. His Britannic Majesty's Consul, however, brought the
complaints which had been made to the notice of the Wali of Basrah, who undertook to issue
instructions to the Kaimmakam to remove the disabilities under which British traders laboured.
Later reports show that these representations have been ineffectual. In 1908 we were informed
that our traders still found difficulty in obtaining refunds of deposits, and we have recently
heard that illegal dues are still exacted in spite of the exemption of exports to Persia from the
duty which previously formed the pretext for such demands. The majority of the sufferers
About this item
- Content
Part 1 of a Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. gazetteer of historical and political materials, a précis of Turkish expansion on the Arab littoral of the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. , and Hasa [Al-Hasa] and Katif [Al-Qaṭīf] affairs. The précis was prepared by Jerome Antony Saldanha, whose preface (under which his surname is erroneously spelt Saldana) is dated 25 November 1904, and published by the Government of India Foreign Deptartment, Simla, India.
The preface is an historical outline of the struggle for political dominance in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. , including Portuguese, British, Wahabi [ Wahhābī A follower of the Islamic reform movement known as Wahhabism; also used to refer to the people and territories ruled by the Al-Saud family. ] and Turkish expansion. The chapters (titles shown in italics) deal with the subject in an roughly chronological fashion:
1. Early history of Hasa and Katif , including: references to the area in Arabic writing; the first known Arab colonists; and early references to the area in British (East India Company) records;
2. Conquest of Hasa by the Wahabis and Turkish expeditions into Nejd [Najd] and Hasa, and their results 1800-1865 , including: conquest of the area by the Wahabis; Turkish expeditions to the area, 1811-19 and 1836-40; Amir Feysal’s [Fayṣal ibn Turki Āl Sa‘ūd] nominal dependence on Turkey, 1855; troubles in Katif, 1859-62; Turkish protest against British proceedings at Damaum [Dammām], 1862; the British war against Amir Feysal, 1865-66; obsolete title of award of Arabia by an Abbasid caliph to the Ottoman Porte; Ottoman ambitions in Arabia (Holy Ottoman Empire);
3. Turkish expedition to Nejd and Hasa, 1871-72 , including: origins of the expedition; intelligence from 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. , Colonel Lewis Pelly; British policy in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. , and effects of the Turkish expedition on that policy; Turkish assurances to Britain, communicated to Bahrain (spelt Bahrein throughout) by Pelly; Turkish promise of non-interference with the rulers of the Trucial coast A name used by Britain from the nineteenth century to 1971 to refer to the present-day United Arab Emirates. ; narrative of the events leading up to and including the landing of the expeditionary force in Nejd; Turkish designs on Katar [Qatar], and their hoisting of the Turkish flag at Budaa [Al-Bidda]; Turkish naval activity in the Gulf, and Britain’s naval response; murder of a suspected Turkish messenger at Bahrain; reasons for the non-interference of the British Government in operations on land; further narrative of the expedition and affairs in Nejd; evidence of Turkish designs on Bahrain; Turkish assurances; relations between Turkey and Abuthabi [Abu Dhabi]; close of the Turkish expedition;
4. Internal affairs of Hasa and Katif, 1872-1904 , including: administration and internal organisation; and a list of governors at Hasa, including events of significance occurring during their rule;
5. Survey of the Katif coast, 1873-74 , including: British intentions and permission gained from the Ottoman Porte; complaints of British survey officers landing on the Nejd coast; written permission to land to undertake surveying.
6. Increase of Turkish military and naval forces in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. , and Turkish policy , including: a memorandum by Captain T Doughty on the state of affairs in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. ;
7. (1) Trade Relations of Hindu and other traders of Bahrain with Katif, and their disabilities , and (2) Proposal appointment of a consular officer at Katif ;
8. Piracies , including: piracies in Katif and Bahrain waters, 1878; ; revolt in Hasa and piracies in Katif and Bahrain waters, 1878-81; Turkish responsibilities and jurisdiction for the purpose of suppressing piracies in Katif waters, 1878-81; piracies in Katif and Bahrain waters in 1883; piracies in Katif and Bahrain waters in 1886; piracies in 1887-88; piracies in 1891-92; piracies in 1899-1900; piracies in 1902 and the proposal of the Chief of Bahrain to maintain an armed dhow A term adopted by British officials to refer to local sailing vessels in the western Indian Ocean. for the pursuit of pirates, 1902-03;
9. Murder of Sheikh Selman-bin-Diaij-el-Khalifa [Shaikh Salman bin Diaj Āl Khalīfah] , a cousin of the Chief of Bahrain and his party about 40 miles south of Katif. Question of satisfaction and compensation for it ;
10. Turkish designs on Oman and the rest of the East Arabian Littoral, 1888-1899 ;
11. Summary of British declarations against Turkish encroachments in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. and of the Porte’s assurances, 1871-1904 .
The cover of volume, on which the title is printed, also has a number of different pencil and pen annotations, marking former external references or numbering systems (‘P.2557/29’, ‘No.5’, ‘C238’).
- Extent and format
- 1 volume (80 folios)
- Arrangement
The volume is arranged into eleven chapters, preceded by a preface. Each chapter is organised by subheadings, and its paragraphs numbered. The paragraph numbers are continuous throughout the whole volume, beginning on 1 at the start of the first chapter, and ending on 553/553A at the end of the eleventh chapter. A contents page at the front of the volume (ff.4-5) lists the chapters by their headings and subheadings, with each referring to paragraph, rather than page, numbers.
- Physical characteristics
Foliation: The foliation sequence commences at the front cover, and terminates at the inside back cover; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right hand corner of the recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. side of each folio.
Pagination: The volume also contains an original printed pagination sequence, with page numbers located top and centre of each page.
- Written in
- English in Latin script View the complete information for this record
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‘Persian Gulf Gazetteer. Part 1. Historical and political materials. Precis of Turkish expansion on the Arab littoral of the Persian Gulf and Hasa [Al-Hasa] and Katif [Al-Qaṭīf] affairs.’ [76] (88/160), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/20/C238, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100023514031.0x00005a> [accessed 13 March 2025]
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- Reference
- IOR/L/PS/20/C238
- Title
- ‘Persian Gulf Gazetteer. Part 1. Historical and political materials. Precis of Turkish expansion on the Arab littoral of the Persian Gulf and Hasa [Al-Hasa] and Katif [Al-Qaṭīf] affairs.’
- Pages
- front, front-i, i-r:ii-v, 1:4, 1:2, 1:35, 37:40, 42:80, 82:108, 110:144, iii-r:iii-v, back-i, back
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence