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Coll 6/43 'Pan Arab Congress 1933. Attitude of H.M.G. to a Pan Arab Movement' [231v] (463/1144)
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.
towards the non-Arab (and non-iviuslin) elements, in the
country* Moreover the underlying motive of Arab federation
is in its essence anti-foreign. It is inspired by a wish to
form a block of Arab States which will be strong enough to^
secure what are considered to be Arab rights in Pale’-stinc^^tid
Syria, to strengthen the independence of all the Arab countrie
concerned and to piesent a united front to foreign powers,
especially Great Britain and Prance.
6. Nevertheless it is I think in our interests to move with
tne stream and to continue to show sympathy towards the
movement as it develops strength. I take this view partly
because we shall only incur tne enmity of the Arabs if
we oppose the movement, partly because in spite of its
potentially hostile inspiration it need not necessarily^
be inimical to our interests, and indeed could in certain
circumstances be beneficial, and partly because we know
that the.jealousies and rivalries between the different
Arao countries will deprive it of much of its dangers.
7. Although, as I have mentioned above, public interest
in unity or federation is not now unusually active it is
inevitable that tne question will be raised by the Arabs
either in tne near or more distant future and it is
important that His Majesty’s Government should decide
beforehand the policy which it will be wise to follow
when this occurs. fhe advantage of securing french
agreement to any plan adopted should be borne in mind.
8. The countries concerned are clearly not yet ripe for
full coalescence but it would not I think be impossible to
evolve a practicable plan for a modest beginning. -*-he first
objective to be aimed at would have to be limited in .scope
and should I suggest be regarded more as a step towards
the removal of the artificial cultural and economic barriers
that have grown up between the Arab countries than anything
so ambitious as the organisation of any form of political
federation. With this principle in mind initial experiments
could be conveniently restricted to the adjacent territories
of Iraq.9 Syria,
Transjordan
Used in three contexts: the geographical region to the east of the River Jordan (literally ‘across the River Jordan’); a British protectorate (1921-46); an independent political entity (1946-49) now known as Jordan
and Palestine.
9 There axe many practical difficulties in the way of the
application of this idea but I think that through close study
of the prevailing conditions in each country means could be
found to overcome them. Cultural barriers could possibly
be removed by establishing closer harmony in school curricula
by periodical cultural conferences, by the publication of
journals of common interest to all, by.the exchange of
students in highei' educational institutions and similar
devices. The xemoval of economic barriers such as different
currencies, different tariff systems and in some instances
conflicting local interests would be a more- diilicult, bu y
no means an impossible task. As Dr. Magnes ol tne Hebrew
University in Jerusalem pointed out in a recent paper,
history ms shown that economic union can be organised
successfully before political union takes place and can
appripriately be made the first expression of the political
aims of countxies which desire to federate.
10 The fact that Syria has now been brought into the
Sterling Area is important and should simplify many aspects
of this problem.
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' [231v] (463/1144), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/2110, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100047229911.0x000042> [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