Coll 6/39 'Kuria Muria Islands: Administration and Status of' [22r] (44/296)
The record is made up of 1 file (146 folios). It was created in 2 Feb 1929-27 May 1947. It was written in English and Swedish. 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.
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No .C/118.
From
To
Sir,
jr 33
ip*
v
OFFICE OF THE
POLITICAL RESIDENT
A senior ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul General) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Residency.
,
PERSIAN GU;
aboard H.M.S,
At Sea, dated the 8 |th April
Jo- ^
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IMOEXEf
The Hon 1 hie Lieut.-Col. ft’.H. «ay, CSlJ, C1E.,
Political Resident
A senior ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul General) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Residency.
, _PersianjGulf,
His Majesty*s Secretary of State for India,
^Tije
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.
, London•
/L
Uib JU k l/l 4
A^tT-Av sfc
I have the honour to report that by the ,
courtesy of the Senior Naval Officer
Persian Gulf
The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran.
on the 7th April I paid a visit to the Kuria Muria
Islands in H.M.S. ,f Wildgoose tl during my return journey
from Dhofar. Major Stewart
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.
Muscat was
also on board.
k
2. A full geographical description of the
islands is given in Volume II of Lorime^s Gazetteer
of the
Persian Gulf
The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran.
at pages 1043-1046. We passed
close by Haskiyah and Jibliyah islands which are still
white with guano, cruised all round Suda and landed
on Hallaniyah.
3. We examined Suda closely owing to a report
that a woman and her four sons were living on the
island, but saw no traces of human habitation and were
later able to confirm from the people on Hallaniyah
that Suda is uninhabited. When we approached Hallaniyah
a few men and boys appeared on a beach at the western
end of the island and I went ashore withjthe Senior
Naval Officer
Persian Gulf
The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran.
and 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.
. We
were greeted by two men and four or five boys. They
were all poor specimens physically and the boys were
miserably thin. They informed us that there are about
70 persons living on the island. They have been settled
on the island for a very long time and the oldest man
in the party who was about 60 said he was born on it.
They do not know to what tribe they belong but say their
language is Shihri, and that it is the same as is
spoken at Murbat. They also speak Arabic. They live
by fishing, but own no boats and catch their fish
mostly in basket-traps. The chief fish they catch is
the ^afi* which they dry. Boats from Murbat come from
time to time to buy their fish and give them millet and
other necessaries of life in exchange. Fishing-boats
also come from Masirah to catch shark. They own about
60 goats but there has been no rain on the island for
three years and the grazing is very poor. We were taken
to their village which is a small collection of stone
huts inside some low hills at the western end of the
island. Drinking water is said to be plentiful and we
saw one well near the beach. No inhabitants appeared
except the party who first met us and we were told they
were all fishing. The women had probably been hidden
in the hills. The best house in the village was said to
belong to one Nasir of Sur who had gone off with a cargo
of
About this item
- Content
This file concerns the status and administration of the Kuria Muria Islands [Jazā’ir Khurīyā Murīyā, Oman]. It features the following principal correspondents: the Political Resident A senior ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul General) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Residency. in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. ; the Political Resident A senior ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul General) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Residency. , Aden; the Governor of Aden; the Secretary of State for India; the Viceroy of India; the British Consul General, Harbin; officials of the Colonial Office, 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. , the Government of India's Foreign and Political Department, and the Government of Bombay From c. 1668-1858, the East India Company’s administration in the city of Bombay [Mumbai] and western India. From 1858-1947, a subdivision of the British Raj. It was responsible for British relations with the Gulf and Red Sea regions. 's Political Department.
The correspondence includes discussion of the following:
- A request for a concession to explore guano and phosphate deposits on the islands, submitted in 1931 by two residents of Harbin, China, named James Alexander Hunter and John B Kunst.
- The potential strategic importance of the islands.
- The transfer of control of the islands from the Political Resident A senior ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul General) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Residency. at Aden to the Political Resident A senior ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul General) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Residency. in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. in 1931.
- The separation of Aden from the Bombay Presidency The name given to each of the three divisions of the territory of the East India Company, and later the British Raj, on the Indian subcontinent. , under a new formation as a Chief Commissioner's Province, in 1932.
- The formal inclusion of the islands within the Aden Province in 1936, placing them legally under the administration of the Chief Commissioner of Aden.
- Whether or not administrative control of the islands should remain the responsbility of the Political Resident A senior ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul General) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Residency. in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. , despite the recent change to their legal status.
- The planned separation of Aden from British India, scheduled to take place on 1 April 1937.
- The visit of the Political Resident A senior ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul General) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Residency. in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. (Lieutenant-Colonel William Rupert Hay) to the islands in April 1947.
- The properties of specimens of ore given to Hay by inhabitants of Hallaniyah [Al Ḩallānīyah] during his visit to the island.
In addition to correspondence the file includes the following:
- A copy of an extract from the Aden Laws Regulation, 1891.
- An extract from an issue of The Gazette of India , dated 1 April 1932, announcing the separation of Aden from the Government of Bombay From c. 1668-1858, the East India Company’s administration in the city of Bombay [Mumbai] and western India. From 1858-1947, a subdivision of the British Raj. It was responsible for British relations with the Gulf and Red Sea regions. and the formation of a Chief Commissionership of Aden.
- A copy of the Aden Laws (Amendment) Regulation, 1936 – an amendment to the Aden Laws Regulation, 1932, confirming the Kuria Muria Islands' status as part of the Aden Province.
- A copy of an article on the islands, written by Hay and considered for publication in the Journal of the Royal Geographical Society .
- The aforementioned specimens of ore, given to Hay by inhabitants of Hallaniyah [Al Ḩallānīyah] during his visit to the island.
The Swedish material in the file consists of contact details provided in a letter addressed to the Colonial Office from a correspondent named as Alex Ewin [Axel Elvin, editor of Bonniers Konversations Lexikon, a series of Swedish encyclopaedias].
The file includes a divider which gives a list of correspondence references contained in the file by year. This is placed at the back of the correspondence (folio 2).
- Extent and format
- 1 file (146 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 (used for referencing) commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 147; 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. A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.
- Written in
- English and Swedish in Latin script View the complete information for this record
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Copyright: How to use this content
- Reference
- IOR/L/PS/12/2106
- Title
- Coll 6/39 'Kuria Muria Islands: Administration and Status of'
- Pages
- front, front-i, 2r:18v, 20r:93v, 96r:105v, 108r:120v, 122r:127v, 129r:144v, 147r:147v, back
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence