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'Handbook of Arabia. Vol II. 1917' [30] (34/542)
The record is made up of 1 volume (271 folios). It was created in 1917. It was written in English and Arabic. 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
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30
COMMUNICATIONS
B. EASTERN ROUTES (Nos. 8-14)
Of those making for the Centre, one group starts from Zobeir
(Basra) or Koweit, and goes to Boreidah, and by divergence to the
right, near Zilfi, to Shaqrah or Riyadh. The other group starts from
ports on the midway shore of the
Persian Gulf
The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran.
. Qatif or 'Oqair, and
troes in the first place to the Hasa Oasis, and thence to Riyadh.
A direct route also connects Koweit and Riyadh, but, though followed
by Pelly in 1865, it is not much used, owing to the length of the
waterless stages to be covered and the lack of camps along its line.
Further there are link-routes between Koweit, Hasa, and Qatif.
The line Zobeir (or Koweit)-Boreidah is of great importance as a
section of the chief trans-peninsula route, which starts from Mecca
or Medina and traverses Qasim. For the passage both of trade and
(in less degree) of pilgrims no other cross-Arabian track compares
with it. The eastern section is rendered passable by the Batin
depression—the lower course of
Wadi
A seasonal or intermittent watercourse, or the valley in which it flows.
Rummah—which offers
a line of deep, but possible, wells for nearly 300 miles. In the first
third of it, owing to the larger rainfall of the Gulf littoral, not only
are these wells to be relied on, but also watering-plaees are scattered
thickly over a wide area to the south of the Batin, and therefore
cross-routes come into it, at such points as Riqa'i, Hafar, and
Ajibbah. But, owing to the uncertainty of the wells along the line,
stages have not been defined so precisely on Routes Nos. 8 and 9
as on other Arabian routes.
(i) Routes from Zobeir and Koweit to the Centre
These are all subject to raids by the Muteir, and if there is active
war between this tribe and the Shammar of Ibn Rashid, they are
very unsafe. In their latest stages they come within range also of
the Ateibah, who are particularly to be feared in Sedeir. The tribes
of the Gulf littoral (Beni Khalid, 'Ajman, &c.) are seldom found in
force so far north.
Route No. 8, from Zobeir to Boreidah, joins that from Koweit to
Boreidah (Route No. 9) at Riqa'i, and the section common to them
both, from Riqa'i to Boreidah, is described under the latter route.
It will suffice here to note that the section from Zobeir to Riqa'i,
as a camel-track, presents no important physical obstacles. Halting-
places are optional, since there are neither wells nor important
camping-grounds.
Supplies. There is no water between Zobeir and Riqa'i, at which
About this item
- Content
This volume is A Handbook of Arabia, Volume II, Routes (Admiralty War Staff, Intelligence Department: May, 1917) and contains details on routes in the Arabian Peninsula, as well as information on transport and lines of communication arranged on a geographical basis. Chapters concerning meteorological information, hygiene and disease, and vocabularies have also been incorporated. The volume was prepared on behalf of the Admiralty and the War Office. The sources from which the routes have been compiled, together with notes on directions and distance, appear at the head of each chapter, while some sections have been compiled on the basis of native information. Authorities cited include: George August Wallin, William Gifford Palgrave, Carlo Claudio Camillo Guarmani, Lady Anne Blunt, Charles Huber, Julius Euting, Gerard Leachman, Gertrude Bell, Anders Christian Barclay Raunkiær, William Henry Irvine Shakespear, and John Gordon Lorimer.
The volume includes a note on confidentiality, title page, and a 'Note' on the compilation of the volume. There is a page of 'Contents' that includes the following sections:
- Chapter 1: Methods of Transport;
- Chapter 2: Communications, A. Northern Routes, B. Eastern Routes, C. Central Routes, D. Western Routes, E. South-Western Routes, F. Southern Routes, G. Souther-Eastern Routes;
- Chapter 3: Routes, A. Northern Routes, B. Eastern Routes, C. Central Routes, D. Western Routes, E. South-Western Routes, F. Southern Routes, G. Souther-Eastern Routes;
- Chapter 4: Meteorological Observations;
- Chapter 5: Hygiene and Disease;
- Chapter 6: Vocabularies;
- Appendix: Note on the System of Transliteration and Glossary of Topographical and Common Terms;
- Index;
- Plates.
There is also a 'List of Maps' and a 'Note on the Spelling of Proper Terms'.
There is one map contained in this volume: 'Map 5. Key Map of Routes'. In addition, there are nine plates by Douglas Carruthers, Captain William Henry Irvine Shakespear, Captain Gerard Leachman, and Lieutenant-Colonel Samuel Barrett Miles.
- Extent and format
- 1 volume (271 folios)
- Arrangement
The volume is arranged in chapters. There is a contents page, list of maps, alphabetical index, and list of plates.
- Physical characteristics
Foliation: There is a foliation sequence, which is circled in pencil, in the top right corner of the recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. of each folio. It begins on the front cover, on number 1, and ends on the map which is inserted at the back of the volume, on number 271.
- Written in
- English and Arabic in Latin and Arabic script View the complete information for this record
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'Handbook of Arabia. Vol II. 1917' [30] (34/542), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/20/E84/2, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100023896534.0x000024> [accessed 7 March 2025]
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Copyright: How to use this content
- Reference
- IOR/L/PS/20/E84/2
- Title
- 'Handbook of Arabia. Vol II. 1917'
- Pages
- front, front-i, i-r:i-v, 1:534, ii-r:ii-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