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‘File 7/1 I RAF and naval bases in Bahrain’ [‎132r] (267/533)

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The record is made up of 1 volume (259 folios). It was created in 7 Nov 1933-23 Oct 1934. 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. .

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4. I told th&ikh 'Abaullah in one of the early talks
that I had mentioned the matter to you and tnat it was desirable
to settle the general question of the Civil List and kindred
matters; and that I would write to you,
5. Shaikh 'Abdullah came over urgently on the 24th May
and asked that the shaikh might have Hs.10,000/- to use towards
the expenses of his relatives' moves out of the towns for the
hot weatner and so on. I think that he hoped, if successful, to
get the 1 haiku to give him something towards the expenses of his
journey to the Lebanon!
I felt that in view of how well the Shaikh had halped
us over the acquisition and of his admirable reception of His
Excellency the Viceroy (which cost him something), it would have
been, and would be regarded as, scurvy treatmnt to make a
ooiplete reiusal, or even to work for further delay, so event
ually 1 gave him the 1x8.10,000/-.
6. Personally, i am very loath to connect the proceeds
of the acquisition with any argument over the finances of the
State, except to emphasise the one-third/two-thirds proportion,
and Shaikh 'Abdullah points out with some force that half the
balsnce is nothing like as much as one-third of the whole would
be, and that in the time of his Father the Shaikh would have had
the wholei 1 feel that tne Ghaikh has well earned a share, and
as he has himself refunded half a lakh One lakh is equal to one hundred thousand rupees to the Reserve (which is
a long move in the right direction for an Arab Euler), it would
be hard to refuse him the comparatively modest share for which
he asks, ite feels a natural diffidence in broaching the matter
to ne himself, but i know that he feels strongly that he has a
right to a portion and 1 would much prefer to approve his having
the balance of E8 .23,352/- without delay or bargaining.
if you approve, would you kindly telegraph the one
^ord *GHANT n .
7. i think that i should aad that a favourite device of
/our

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Content

The letters, telegrams and other items in the volume relate to the acquisition of land in Bahrain for the purposes of developing British aviation (both military and civilian) and naval facilities. The principal correspondents in the file are the Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. in Bahrain, Lieutenant-Colonel Percy Gordon Loch, the Adviser to the Bahrain Government, Charles Dalrymple Belgrave, and officials at 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. and Air Ministry in London. The land acquired at Jufair for naval facilities is discussed in detail in ‘File No. 5/7 I Jufair Naval Base’ (IOR/R/15/2/216).

In 1934 the British Government acquired four pieces of land in Bahrain: 1) an area, approximately 1200 x 1000 yards in size on Muharraq Island, for the development of an aerodrome; 2) a strip of the coast on Bahrain Island, approximately 800 x 400 yards in size, for use as a seaplane anchorage; 3) a large expanse of land at Jafair [Jufair], south of Manama, for the purposes of a British naval installation; and 4) a second plot at Jufair adjacent to the first, also for naval purposes. The correspondence indicates that Government officials in London were keen to acquire the land in question as expediently as possible, while trying to keep the identity of the purchasers (the Air Ministry) unknown.

The volume includes copies of public notices announcing the imminent acquisition of land (most in Arabic, folios 57, 58, 86, 87), copies of the title deeds (all in Arabic and with maps on the reverse, folios 179-82), details of the costs of acquisition, including excesses (folios 76, 77), and subsequent surveys of the acquired land (folios 210-17, 225-29). The volume also includes numerous large-scale maps, including sketch maps of the proposed areas for acquisition at Muharraq and Manama (folios 15, 16), and more detailed maps (accompanying reports) showing the boundaries and dimensions of all four areas of acquired land (folios 69, 83, 88, 194-98, 218-21).

Extent and format
1 volume (259 folios)
Arrangement

The volume’s content are arranged in approximate chronological order, from the earliest items at the front of the volume to the latest at the end. Office notes at the end of the volume (folios 245-60) mirror this chronological arrangement.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: The main foliation sequence starts on the first folio and ends on the last folio; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and can be found 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. A second foliation sequence is present between ff. 5-242; these numbers are written in either blue crayon or pencil, are not circled, and can be found in either the top centre or right corner of the recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. side of each folio. A third short incomplete foliation sequence is present between ff. 5-7; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and can be found in the same position as the main sequence.

The volume includes a number of fold-out maps: ff. 15-16, f. 69, f. 83, f. 88, f. 103, ff. 195-198 and ff. 218-221.

Written in
English and Arabic in Latin and Arabic script
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‘File 7/1 I RAF and naval bases in Bahrain’ [‎132r] (267/533), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/R/15/2/260, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100024148142.0x000043> [accessed 2 April 2025]

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