![Coll 7/37 'Afghanistan: sale of 25,000 1914 pattern rifles from War Office stocks and 7 million rounds of ammunition from Government of India stocks; negotiations with Afghan Government' [‎244r] (487/1201)](https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000000555.0x0002e6/IOR_L_PS_12_2204_0489.jp2/full/!1200,1200/0/default.jpg "Coll 7/37 'Afghanistan: sale of 25,000 1914 pattern rifles from War Office stocks and 7 million rounds of ammunition from Government of India stocks; negotiations with Afghan Government' [‎244r] (487/1201)")
Coll 7/37 'Afghanistan: sale of 25,000 1914 pattern rifles from War Office stocks and 7 million rounds of ammunition from Government of India stocks; negotiations with Afghan Government' [244r] (487/1201)
The record is made up of 1 file (598 folios). It was created in 13 Jul 1935-28 Mar 1941. 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.
TZ-. ^>^^1
CONFIDENTIAL.
^SPATCH FROM HlS MAJESTY’S CHARGE D’AFFAIRES, KABUL, TO HlS MAJESTY’S
♦Secretary of^State for Foreign Affairs, London, No. 94, dated the
2nd (received^Sth) September 1937.
I have the honour to enclose as an annexure to this despatch, and with reference
to correspondence ending with Katodon-86, a translation of a letter received by
me from the Under Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in regard to certain
defects found m the rifles being supplied by His Majesty's Government to the
Afghan Government.
2. This letter, which it is understood has taken some three months to dratt
in the Foreign Office from material supplied by the War Office in May last, refers
only to the first 9,000 rifles received. These rifles were inspected for major defects
by an Afghan Board consisting of representatives of the Ministry of Defence and
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the presence of the Military Attache of this
Legation. The following defects and deficiencies were noted' by the Military
Attache :—
Handguards, fore, split .. .. .. .. .. .. 725
Handguards, rear, split .. .. .. .. . . .. 15
Fore-ends, split .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 10
Butts, split .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 2
Swivels, nosecap, broken .. .. .. .. .. .. 2
Swivels, butt sling broken .. .. .. .. .. .. 2
Swivels, outer band broken .. .. .. .. .. l
Pullthroughs, missing .. .. .. .. .. .. 2
3. The Military Attache also saw 82 rifles,^muzzles, nosecaps, bolts, maga
zines, etc., of which were corroded. Some of these, in his opinion, could be made
serviceable by the use of emery paper or other rust remover. His attention was
also called to a number of rifles which bore traces of rust on external parts. He
was not present at the detailed examination and the figure of 2,200 rides quoted
in the letter from the Under Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs no doubt
includes both the above categories and also all rifles bearing the slightest trace
of rust. The Afghan Goverrunent have, however, confined their request for
replacement of defective parts to the 45 rifles enumerated in the list attached to
the letter.
4. Major Lancaster is of the opinion, which, however, he did not express to
the Afghan officials present, that of the rifles to which his attention was particu
larly called, at least ten were badly corroded and that it is possible that there were
more which he was not asked to examine. He therefore considers that the number
of 45 rifles stated by the Afghan Government to be seriously damaged is probably
not excessive.
5. It seems possible from
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.
letter No. P. Z. 3028/37, dated the 24th
May, 1937, that His Majesty’s Government might be prepared, as soon as the Mili
tary Attache has seen them and given his opinion that all or some of them suffer
from defects of a kind that render them unserviceable, to replace these rifles or
supply serviceable parts for them, since, in all, they amount to only *5 per cent,
of the total consignment in question. If, however, His Majesty’s Government
desire an expert opinion it might be possible if the Government of India agree, to
send them to India for inspection by an Ordnance Officer. I should be grateful
for your instructions on this point in due course.
6. Major Lancaster states that the 725 rifles with a split forehand guards re
ferred to in paragraph 2 of this despatch could certainly not be issued to troops in
their condition when he saw them and most of these are presumably included in the
725 rifles for which replacement of wood-work is asked in the letter from the Ministry
of Foreign Affairs. It would appear that, as reported in Katodon-86, much of the
damage to the wood-work of rifles, especially in the earlier consignments, was due
to the size of the boxes used and the method of packing. After deducting 9,000
from the total of 18,980 rifles now inspected by the Military Attache only 423
About this item
- Content
This file is a continuation of Collection 7/36, reference IOR/L/PS/12/2203.It contains correspondence between the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, the Secretary of State for India, HM Minister at Kabul, the War Office, the Government of India Foreign and Political (later External Affairs) Department, and 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. Political Department.
Much of the early correspondence duplicates that found in IOR/L/PS/12/2203, and concerns the Afghan Government's request for an additional 25,000 rifles plus ammunition, debates over the division of liability between British and Indian revenues, and discussion of possible payment options.
The rest of the correspondence concerns arrangements for shipping the arms and ammunition, and is accompanied by delivery invoices and reports on the quality inspections conducted prior to shipping. Details of the procedures, including examples of examiners' marks, and a sketch of the packing crates used, can be found at folios 262, and 234-238.
Prior to sale, the War Office had undertaken to perform firing tests on all the rifles for an additional charge. These tests were not conducted, and the file contains correspondence between 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 the War Office, discussing the best options for presenting this fact to the Afghan Government, options for conducting the tests or reducing the price of the order, and the potential damage that would be caused to Britain's reputation, and Anglo-Afghan relations.
The correspondence also concerns complaints by the Afghan Government that a number of rifles were damaged in transit or badly corroded. It documents the disagreement between the War Office, 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 the Government of India over the provision of replacement rifles and parts, and contains details of the eventual arrangements and final agreement with the Afghan Government (found at folios 117-122).
The file includes dividers which give lists of correspondence references contained in the file by year. These are found at the end of the correspondence (folios 2-3).
- Extent and format
- 1 file (598 folios)
- Arrangement
The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the rear to the front of the file.
- Physical characteristics
Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 599; 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.
- Written in
- English in Latin script View the complete information for this record
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Coll 7/37 'Afghanistan: sale of 25,000 1914 pattern rifles from War Office stocks and 7 million rounds of ammunition from Government of India stocks; negotiations with Afghan Government' [244r] (487/1201), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/2204, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100036310619.0x000058> [accessed 6 April 2025]
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- Reference
- IOR/L/PS/12/2204
- Title
- Coll 7/37 'Afghanistan: sale of 25,000 1914 pattern rifles from War Office stocks and 7 million rounds of ammunition from Government of India stocks; negotiations with Afghan Government'
- Pages
- front, front-i, 2r:121v, 123r:244r, 246r:367v, 370r:490v, 491ar, 491r:491v, 492ar, 492r:599v, back
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence