'File 10/3 VI Qatar Oil Concession' [‎89r] (189/481)

53
Lor. II,
1004-5.
Lor. II, 1007.
a " Xhe authority of the Sheikh only extends 2 miles inland, and, upon
.i. sea U miles South-West and 2| miles North-East, embracing on the
,t mentioned side part of the tract called Zora : his dominions are thus an
mdave in Shariah territory. There is no dependent village, and no Bedouin tribe Lor.II,53-4.
nwes allegiance to the Sheikh, who is of the Qaratisah section of the Na 1111 . a
political alliance and friendly relations, however, generally subsist between the
inhabitants of Ajman and the people of Baraimi."
Umm-al-Qaiwain. .
10. The Sheikhdom "has no clearly defined boundaries, but it lorms an
enclave An area of land belonging to one country and entirely surrounded by land of just one other country. in Sharjah territory. On the coast it reaches North-East to Jazirat-al-
Hamra and South-West part of the way to Hamriyah : the Siniyah island formed Lor. n,
bv Khor -al-Baidhah is thus included in it." Falaj A1 Ali (or Falai), about 16 < >•
miles South-East of Umm-al-Qaiwain town and perhaps 8 miles North-West ot
Dhaid village, is the only place of importance not on the coast which belongs to
Umm-al-Qaiwain.
Ras-al-Khaimah. , ^ -r^ i t ^ i •
11 At the date of compilation of Lonmer s Gazetteer Ras-al-Khaimah
was under the control of Sharjah and constituted the Northernmost district
in that principality. It has since again become an independent State.
It is described by Lorimer as " divided !rom the Ruus-al-Jibal district of the
Oman Sultanate on the North-East by a line which runs obliquely from Ras-ash-
Sha'am on the West coast of the promontory to a point between the village of
Dibah proper and Bai ah on the hast coast. On the West, from Ras-ash-Sha am
on the North to the South end of Jazirat-al-Hamra on the South, it is bounded by
the sea; and thence by a line, of which the course is indefinite, drawn across the
desert to the Southern extremity of the Jiri Plain. 1 he South-hast limit is an
imaginary line connecting the South end of Jiri with the East coast at a point
immediately south of Dibah.' The town of Dibah and village ot Wamm were
at the date of Lorimer's Gazetteer exempt from the jurisdiction of the Deputy
Governor (on behalf of Sharjah) and held in fief by a Wali who was first cousin
of the Sheikh of Sharjah.
Independent Oman.
12. This consisted in 1905 of a small tract lying between the Oman Sultanate Lor.II,1368
and Trucial Oman A name used by Britain from the nineteenth century to 1971 to refer to the present-day United Arab Emirates. , consisting chiefly of the districts of Jau and Mahadhah " which
is not subject to any recognised ruler and may therefore be styled Independent
Oman." It includes the important oasis of Baraimi.
13. The boundaries of Jau are indefinite, but the tract embraces Jabul Hafit, Lor. II,
with the villages uear the southern end of that range. It includes, at its north- 931-3,
western and most important part, the oasis of Baraimi, which lies a little south of 260-5.
a straight line drawn between the towns of Sohar and Abu Dhabi, about 65 miles
west by south of the former and 85 miles east by south of the latter. The oasis is
nearly circular and its diameter is about 6 miles. Its political position in 1905
was as follows : " Raraimi is independent, but the influence of the Sheikh of Abu
Dhabi in the district is strong and increasing. The ruins of the fort at Muraijib
bear witness to the hereditary connection of his family with Baraimi, and he has
recently acquired and is now engaged in developing an estate at Jahali, while
Masudi is being formed into a village by his eldest son. Moreover, a regular
tribute ... is paid him by the Dhawahir, who are numerically a majority in the
oasis. At the present time the Sheikh could probably seize Baraimi if he wished to
do so, hut his policy appears to be one of pacific penetration. The Nairn are the
original owners of the oasis and possession of the fort in Baraimi village still gives
them prestige and a local superiority over the Dhawahir. A few Manasir of the
Abu Khail section frequent the Baraimi oasis or its neighbourhood in summer."
U. Mahadhah is described as a plain in the heart of the Oman promontory, the Ltm n,
headquarters of the Beni Khab tribe, which, together with Jau, forms the greater 111/ - 21 -
part of Independent Oman. Mahadhah is probably situated 15-20 miles north-east
of the Baraimi oasis, but its exact position is uncertain. Its level is said to be
somewhat higher than that of Baraimi and its extent is described as about 6 miles
in any direction.
3076 P