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‘Military report on the British Protectorate of Aden and the Amir of Dala’s territories, with special reports on certain other tribes and adjoining border districts’ [‎97v] (199/490)

The record is made up of 1 volume (243 folios). It was created in 1905-1908. 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. .

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142
valleys of which that to the east of Kama descends to the Dala plain :
the others all find their way to the Wadi A seasonal or intermittent watercourse, or the valley in which it flows. A 1 Bun, the main artery of Jabal
Jihaf, and a tributary of the Wadi A seasonal or intermittent watercourse, or the valley in which it flows. Tabaghain which joins the River Tiban.
The surface of the plateau largely consists of rock, smooth, black and of
rounded contour on the top, but descending to the valleys in steep broken
slopes, often precipitous and in some cases forming perpendicular cliffs,
the most remarkable of which are those to the south and south-west of Dar
Gharasah. The locality is said to have been the site of the ancient city
of Rodda. At all events there is sufficient evidence of its having been
well populated in former days, in the shape of ruins, two disused ceme
teries of considerable extent and the remnant of a broad, well built road
at the south-eastern corner, indicating the main approa^i to the plateau.
The mosque and tomb of Nabi-Shaib—said to be one of the sons of
Jacob—is situated on the flat col connecting Kama with the upper plateau
and is held in veneration, throughout the neighbouring country. It has
been a favourite burying ground in the past but the largest cemetery is
that about 300 yards east of Maharras, and north of the ruins on the
adjacent hill. Besides these, numerous small groups of graves are to
be met with here and there. The plateau itself is separated into two
wel’-defined portions by valleys running north and south from a col about
50 feet below the upper or eastern portion. Beyond these valleys there
is a descent of about 100 feet, chiefly over rock, to the lower or western
portion which is itself divided by a valley running east and west and
separating into two at the village of Maharras. Another valley starting
in the vicinity of Dar Sha’ab runs westward, and enters the main boun
dary valley by a narrow gate under Jarna. These valleys are all highly
cultivated, the fields being formed by revetment walls, thrown across the
valley, one above the other in steps after the manner in general use
throughout this country. When the distance to be revetted exceeds ten
feet, two walls one a little set back from the other, are built, the interven
ing space forming a pathway or water channel or both. Kama is a good
example of a fortified Arab village. Its position is naturally strong,
though commanded from the north by heights within modern rifle
It consists of a few

^ Men.
Women.
Children.
Cattle.
Donkeys.
X3
C
rt
a- *5
v CC
c C
Kama ...
16
26
18
39
6
45
Maharras ...
10
12
l 5
25
2
7
Jarna
4
4
4
6
4
16
Sha’ab ,..
1
3
0
4
0
0
Gharasah
1
2
4
4
3
0
Total
32
47
4 «
78
IS
68
a tew well
a round tower,
and its position is not
range
built “ dars " and
connected by walls, on the summit
of the hill, having precipitous cliffs
on three sides. An outer line of
defence is formed by three dars on
the slope below' : the cattle sheds
are between the inner and outer
lines. It has a small tank but is
dependent for its water-supply on
a not very accessible well about
350 feet beneath. It practically
commands both upper and lower
plateaus. Maharras consists of
two blocks of which the southern
one is mostly in ruin, two small
dars being alone inhabited. This
village is not so well built as Kama
readily defensible, even from the point of

About this item

Content

The volume, a military report compiled in the Intelligence Branch of the QMG’s [Quartermaster General’s] Department and published at the Government Central Printing Office, Simla, is comprised of several sections, as follows:

  • section I, a Military Report on the British Protectorate of Aden , prepared by Captain Ernest Arthur Frederick Redl (ff 10-52), and including chapters on: geography; ethnography, with details of the different tribes living in the Protectorate; climate and health; natural resources; harbours and anchorages; communications; fortresses; history; native inhabitants’ administration; the military organisation and strength of native inhabitants; and political relations. A handwritten note is included in the report (f 49), and concerns the entitlements of Protectorate Chiefs to salutes, and issue to them of arms and ammunition, 1906;
  • section II, a Report on the Amir of Dala’s [Ad Dali’] Territories , prepared by Major J K Tod (ff 54-118), and including chapters on: geography; ethnography; climate and health; resources; communications; forts and fortified posts; history; administration, and military. Following the report is a gazetteer providing greater detail of the sixteen districts in Dala, including: topography; ruling families and allegiances; villages and population figures, including numbers of fighting men; water resources; agricultural and industrial activities;
  • section III, Reports on Haushabi, Subehi and Yafa’i Tribes, Turkish and North Western Border Districts and the River Tiban , divided into chapters, all prepared by Captain Redl unless otherwise specified, on: 1) the Haushabi [al-Ḥawshabī] (ff 120-130), and including a handwritten note, dated December 1905 (f 122), noting that the Sultan of Haushabi has agreed to abide by an agreement of 1895; 2) the Subehi tribes near the Turkish border (ff 130-144); 3) the districts of Turkish Yemen adjoining the British boundary (ff 144-165); 4) Tribes of the north-west frontier Region of British India bordering Afghanistan. (ff 165-172); 5) a memorandum of the Yafa’i [Yāfi‘] tribe, prepared by Captain Gonville W Warneford (ff 172-183); 6) The Wadi A seasonal or intermittent watercourse, or the valley in which it flows. Tiban (ff 184-185);
  • section IV, Routes (ff 186-228), detailing numerous routes between key points in Aden province, noting: distances; stages; nature of the terrain and its suitability for different modes of transport; available resources en route; territories crossed. A (duplicated) confidential memorandum, written by Captain G A F Sanders of the Aden Brigade, dated 24 August 1905, containing additional information for stages 5 and 6 of route 5 has been added to the volume (ff 195-198);
  • appendix I, a brief statement on inland trade between Aden and the Arabian mainland, 1903 (ff 229-230).

The volume is extensively illustrated throughout with fold-out maps, plans and illustrations, prepared by the Intelligence Branch (I.B.) and all of which describe the topography and terrain of the region. There are three maps included in a pocket at the end of the volume: a map of the Aden Protectorate (f 242); a view from the ruined village of Lakmat Magharam about one-and-a-half miles west of Sanah [Ṣanʻā'] (f 240); and a road sketch from Khalla through Awabil [‘Awābil] to the upper plateau of the Rubiatein [Ar Rubay‘atayn] tribe (f 241).

Extent and format
1 volume (243 folios)
Arrangement

The volume is arranged in four sections (numbered I-IV), with a single appendix. Sections I-III are arranged in numbered chapters while section IV is arranged in twenty-three numbered routes. The volume’s contents page (ff 6-8) lists the sections and their respective chapters/routes, with page numbers referring to the volume’s printed pagination system. A general index (ff 231-238) lists placenames referred to in the volume in alphabetically ascending order, also with page numbers referring to the volume’s printed pagination.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1 and terminates at the back cover with 243; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located 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.

Pagination: the file contains an original printed pagination sequence.

Written in
English in Latin script
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‘Military report on the British Protectorate of Aden and the Amir of Dala’s territories, with special reports on certain other tribes and adjoining border districts’ [‎97v] (199/490), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/20/59, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100034845247.0x0000c8> [accessed 5 April 2025]

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