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Coll 6/43 'Pan Arab Congress 1933. Attitude of H.M.G. to a Pan Arab Movement' [208v] (417/1144)
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.
and most expeditious plan would Idg to prepare the draft of a
formal report for ciroulation to the Conmittee as a basis of
discussion* The report took account of the views which had
been expressed by the British Representatives in several of
the Arab countries concerned. It was to a large extent
negative in its conclusions. This might be a matter for
regret, but the logic of circumstances was inexorable# It
was clear from all the evidence obtainable that Arab Federation
on political lines lay outside the practical politics of the
moment, and that there was small hope in this direction of
finding a solution for the problem of Palestine#
THE COMMITTEE proceeded to consider the draft report
and the following were the main points made:-
(i) Referring to paragraphs 12 and IT'(d), COLONEL
SPRAGGETT said that at the last Meeting of the
Committee the Service Representatives had
stated what were the essential British . .
- ’ strategic interests in the Middle East# He
did not think it was possible to carry
consideration of this question further as eo
much would depend on the military position
after the war.
(ii) MR, BAXTER said"that we ought to have some idea
of what our post-war policy would be* Clearly
we should have to safeguard oil supplies and
communicatibhs.' Moreover it was to be anticipated
that the Arab States would draw closer together#
In these circumstances, from the politico-
strategic point of View could we not determine now
such questions, as,.for exemple, whether it was
necessary, to ; prevent the Sheikh of Koweit and
the Trueial 'sheikhs from turning towards some central
tendency on strategic grounds, Were these
grounds still valid? Again if it was clear that
• we required a naval base at Haifa, it might be well
to consider the question of the area in the
neighbourhood of the base which would be needed
for jits protection;, either from the-air, or-on
the ground* • ■.; : > ■ ■
(iii) MAJOR KIRWAN. oq ,the behalf .of the War Office
expressed agreement with Colonel Spraggett but
raised the question whether the Joint Planning
Staff might not:be invited to say now ‘What our
future, requirements were likely to be* ' Lv. ::0 ■.
(iv) GROUP CAPTAIN LONG on behalf of .the Air Ministry
expressed agreement .with Colonel Spraggett. He
considered that it was essential that our
present policy should be to keep such degree
of control now as to ensure that after the
war our minimum strategic requirements would
be met.
After further discussion it was agreed that the
Admiralty Representative should prepare, in consultation
with the Foreign Office and with the other Service
Departments, a revised draft of paragraphs 12 and 17 (d)
of : the Report taking into account the points made in the
discussion; and that the revised text of these paragraphs,
as agreed by the Departments concerned, should be
communicated to the Secretary as soon as possible.
-2-'
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
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Coll 6/43 'Pan Arab Congress 1933. Attitude of H.M.G. to a Pan Arab Movement' [208v] (417/1144), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/2110, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100047229911.0x000014> [accessed 14 July 2026]
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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