![Coll 6/43 'Pan Arab Congress 1933. Attitude of H.M.G. to a Pan Arab Movement' [‎49r] (98/1144)](https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000000555.0x000288/IOR_L_PS_12_2110_00100.jp2/full/!1200,1200/0/default.jpg "Coll 6/43 'Pan Arab Congress 1933. Attitude of H.M.G. to a Pan Arab Movement' [‎49r] (98/1144)")
Coll 6/43 'Pan Arab Congress 1933. Attitude of H.M.G. to a Pan Arab Movement' [49r] (98/1144)
The record is made up of 1 file (570 folios). It was created in 21 Dec 1932-5 Mar 1948. It was written in English and French. 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.
c r~/>
- 3 -
10. It must protably be recognized that ^® p ^ c ?® s | h ° r ear i y
failure of the Arabs' attempts to federate depend in dl ^
stages on the goodwill of the Western powers.Itis haraiy
possible to fail to remark that up t? date ™ere tea eeen^a^
complete absence of constructive 5£ tl f’ovnnt t Hisou?e - apart from
the Alexandria Protocol to solve the
Levant
A geographical area corresponding to the region around the eastern Mediterranean Sea.
dispute aparu
a vague offer by Egypt to mediate.
forget that history is merely repeating itself, ior ^00^
was bombarded after the last war. as mus ._xl.py. 4-uq French
issue in Syria is.not merely a question of whether the^frencn
qtav or cet out, it is a question of whether they go wiwi a
trtat? of without one. Direct rule by them end. Even if
our own policy did not preclude us from forcing them upon Ara
nations, P the French are themselves bound ^L^^^^ious loose
declaration of Syrian independence. But there are va.no s
ends to be tiefup beforo P the mandatory nower astheFrench
still legally are,'can go.. Syria and.Lebanonmustfirst give
guarantees about the religious minorities. Even “ n ° rQnch
strategic issues are raised, it is pnlv fair tha * pr ^ c ng
should continue to have the sane P5 lvl l?So3 ns the America s,
namely to maintain religious and educational institutions, a
which they may teach intrench.
12. It would be a bold thing.to say that Russia is in any way
harkine the insurgents! but it is more than likely that the .
aigns^f divergence between the Great.Powers, ^95J!i? lch R^?f a a
is largely responsible, have had considerable Russia
Sffi? a ” d s “h h r?Kfi e ou!rSa?^i;kw
qfi:e-old ’’Drans nach Suden" the signs of which are apparent in
North Persia. It will be recalled that Russia's recognition
of the independence of Syria and theLebanonwasconditional
their not giving a specially favoured position to any one
European power.
13. Unquestionable economic and strategic intepesta demand
that Great Britain maintain her position in the Middle East, but
this is no longer to be secured oy the old means of mandates,
subsidies^ adders, and so forth! We have officially pledged
ourselves to promote Arab unity, and it would be a fatal blow to
our credit in Arab eyes if we were ever to go back on the
w Eden Declaration”. .
The salient passage of this runs.-
H The Arab world has made great strides since the
settlement (sic) reached at the end of the last war,
and many Arab thinkers desire xor uhe Arab peoples a
creator degree of unity than they now enjoy. In
reaching out towards this unity they.hope for our
support? No such appeal from pur friends should go
unanswered, ft seems to me both natural and ^iSh
that the economic ties between Arab countries,and th
political ties too. should be strengthened. . N.M.lr.
for their part will give their full support to any
scheme that coimands general approval.
About this item
- Content
This file concerns the British Government's response to the Pan-Arab movement during the 1930s and 1940s. Much of the correspondence refers to the prospect of an Arab federation, although the use of the word 'federation' is noted in some of the correspondence as being a mistranslation of the original Arabic expression, which would be more accurately represented by the words 'unification' or 'unity'.
Significant subjects of discussion include:
- Arab party politics in Palestine.
- Iraqi-Egyptian relations.
- Italian propaganda in the Middle East.
- The future of Palestine.
- Britain's post-war policy in the Middle East.
- Whether the Arab states should be induced to make a wartime declaration in favour of the democracies (i.e. the Allies).
- The formation of the Arab League (also referred to as the Arab Federation in the correspondence).
- Details of the Pact (also referred to as Covenant) of the Arab League, signed in Cairo on 22 March 1945.
- Whether representatives of the Arab League should be present at the Palestine Conference in London, in 1947, in addition to representatives of Arab states.
Notable correspondents include the following: 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 High Commissioner for Iraq; His Majesty's Ambassador in Baghdad; the High Commissioner for Egypt; His Majesty's Ambassador in Cairo; the High Commissioner for Palestine; His Majesty's Minister at Jedda; the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs; the Minister of State in the Middle East; officials of the Foreign Office, 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 Commonwealth Relations Office, and the Indian Political Service The branch of the British Government of India with responsibility for managing political relations between British-ruled India and its surrounding states, and by extension the Gulf, during the period 1937-47. 's External Affairs Department; Noury Said [Nūrī al-Sa‘īd], Prime Minister of Iraq; George Antonius, Lebanese-Egyptian author and diplomat.
Also included with the correspondence are the following:
- Extracts from Palestine police summaries dating from 1933 to 1936, produced by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) in Jerusalem.
- A printed copy of a paper on Arab federation by the Foreign Research and Press Service, dated 20 June 1941.
- Copies of documents produced by the War Cabinet's Standing Official Sub-Committee for Questions Concerning the Middle East (also referred to as the Middle East (Official) Committee), including minutes of meetings (1941-1942) and a copy of a report on Arab Federation, dated January 1942.
- A copy (in French) of the Protocol of the Preparatory Committee for the Arab Congress, dated 7 October 1944.
- Copies of the Pact/Covenant of the recently formed Arab League (consisting of a printed copy in French, distributed by the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and an English translation of the full Arabic text, which includes a passage that was omitted from the French version).
The French material consists of the aforementioned Protocol and Arab League Pact, plus one item of correspondence and a copy of a newspaper extract.
The file includes two dividers which give a list of correspondence references contained in the file by year. These are placed at the back of the correspondence (folios 2-3).
- Extent and format
- 1 file (570 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 for this description commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 571; 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. Two previous foliation sequences, which are also circled, have been superseded and therefore crossed out.
- Written in
- English and French in Latin script View the complete information for this record
Use and share this item
- Share this item
Coll 6/43 'Pan Arab Congress 1933. Attitude of H.M.G. to a Pan Arab Movement' [49r] (98/1144), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/2110, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100047229909.0x000065> [accessed 17 July 2026]
https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100047229909.0x000065
Copy and paste the code below into your web page where you would like to embed the image.
<meta charset="utf-8"><a href="https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100047229909.0x000065">Coll 6/43 'Pan Arab Congress 1933. Attitude of H.M.G. to a Pan Arab Movement' [‎49r] (98/1144)</a> <a href="https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100047229909.0x000065"> <img src="https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000000555.0x000288/IOR_L_PS_12_2110_00100.jp2/full/!280,240/0/default.jpg" alt="" /> </a>
This record has a IIIF manifest available as follows. If you have a compatible viewer you can drag the icon to load it.https://www.qdl.qa/en/iiif/81055/vdc_100000000555.0x000288/manifestOpen in Universal viewerOpen in Mirador viewerMore options for embedding images
Copyright: How to use this content
- Reference
- IOR/L/PS/12/2110
- Title
- Coll 6/43 'Pan Arab Congress 1933. Attitude of H.M.G. to a Pan Arab Movement'
- Pages
- front, front-i, 2r:6v, 9r:24v, 27r:59v, 61r:62v, 73r:78v, 82r:93v, 95r:103v, 105r:106v, 111r:111v, 113r:115v, 118r:120v, 122r:132v, 134r:152v, 158r:199v, 201r:265v, 273r:354v, 356r:381v, 384r:394v, 398r:407v, 410r:516v, 518r:565v, 567r:571v, back
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence