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File 4011/1923 Pt 2 'PERSIAN GULF: NEGOTIATIONS 1928 HENJAM' [791r] (1586/1934)
The record is made up of 1 volume (962 folios). It was created in 6 Jul 1926-25 Jan 1934. 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.
- 4 SEP 1928.
SEP i«28
Cootidestial letter from the Hoh’ble the Poltticat
Guee, No. 279-S., oe 1928, hated the 2^121?^ im ™ FEESIAS
■iq In continuation of my despatch No. 259-8 dated flip 91 ^ r moo
telegram No. T,74, dated^ the 10th July 192^1
ith a note on his recent visit to the Arab Coast
Major Dickson,
my
honour to forward here-
pi ©pared by my Secretary
pjit away wr
u&n &
Though the Arabs are still excited and are awaiting the turn of events the
from his pilgrimage is controlling the
Shaikh of Dubai who has returned
situation and will not do anything against my advice unlessVe fail him.
A remarkable point is that his brother Shaikh Juma whom we have always
looked upon as the most level headed and wisest Shaikh on the Coast has none
Berserker in this matter. His advice always carries great wehdit and the
fact that he is seeing red cannot be neglected as a factor in the situation.
The
Residency
An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, established in the provinces and regions considered part of, or under the influence of, British India.
Agent Shaikh Isa bin Latif has acted with his customary
good sense and as will be seen absolutely refused to allow any wild actions
The Shaikh of Dubai also refused to allow a band of raiders to attack Hp
I sland and take away the women.
Certain facts stand out :—
1 . The Beni Yas, members of the tribe of the Shaikh of Dubai (the Beni
Yas are also at Abu Dhabi) went to Henjam under the permission of the Sultan
of Musca t some three generations ago, (the present Shaikh is about 80 years
old) This was before 1868 and thus occurred at a time when Henjam was
definitely claimed and ruled by the Sultan of Muscat. All this time, as stated
in my despatch No. 259-S., dated the 21st June, Persia had no representative
on the Island indeed there were no Persians there at all.
The Persians first placed their Customs Agent there in 1905 and as pointed
out in the despatch quoted this Official had to live in the' British Telegraph Con
cession under the immediate shelter of the Indo-European Telegraph Depart
ment Olerk-in-Charge.
The resident Arabs refused to acknowledge Persian Sovereignty of the
Island and this position they have maintained ever since : if then Henjam is
now admitted as Persian soil by us it is certain that the Arabs of the Beni Yas
have never accepted Persian nationality and still refuse under any conditions
to become Persian subjects. They have made it clear that they would rather
leave Henjam than do so.
They have intermarried throughout with the Beni Yas of the Arab Coast
gnd their commercial dealings and their pearling ventures are all^ connected
with that tribe. The Shaikh of Dubai points out that he and his tribe, have Bu
lakhs
One lakh is equal to one hundred thousand rupees
of
rupees
Indian silver coin also widely used in the Persian Gulf.
sunk in the concerns of the Henjam branch of their tribes.
The Beni Yas of Henjam are then under the Persian Naturalisation Act .of | / kif+C) ^eur> vrvu
1894, aliens just as much as any British Indian, or.the descendant of any British | f &
Indian, wEo resides in Persia is both under Persian and British law a Butish
subject.
They are thus still Arabs of Dubai and as the Foreign relations of iTe
Shaikh of Dubai are in our hands they perfectly rightly look to us tor their
protection.
2. If the Persians refuse to allow the Arabs to live at Henjam and hold
property as Arabs the Shaikhs of the Arab Coast will.give reciprocal tiea i •
There are many Persians some of them, who left Lingah in connec ion
the pearl trade, wdio are very rich with tine, indeed magnificent rouses, ^
towns of the Arab Coast. The Arab Shaiks will sequestrate their properties
and drive them out. Whatever treatment is given to the Arabs o e
of Henjam will be reciprocated on the Persians in general on the x .ia
. 3. The Shaikh of Dubai demands that as under our treaty he
with a Foreign power except through us, we must either act on _ ■ n irse
else, in this case, allow him to deal direct with the Persians. re Y,- . w ith
we cannot possibly allow, and therefore we have no option hut to ne^otia
the Persians on his behalf.
Major Dickson and my
Residency
An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, established in the provinces and regions considered part of, or under the influence of, British India.
A vent both state, and I a -,ree v
tlmt if we do not act on behalf of the Arabs of Dubai we - oV
Lc330FD | NA.nM cy.CFJTMA
to- */
. A-/ ^ ^
About this item
- Content
This volume relates to British policy regarding the Gulf island of Henjam [Jazīreh-ye Hengām], occupied in part, on and off, by the British since the late nineteenth century.
Interdepartmental correspondence refers to the establishment of a British telegraph station on the island in 1868, following a concession from the Persian Government, which was abandoned in 1881 but re-established in 1904. The correspondence also acknowledges that further developments since then, including the establishment of a wireless station and a naval coal depot, represent an encroachment by the British Government.
The main topic of discussion is the extent of the British claim (or lack thereof) to Henjam, and the continued use of the island as a fuelling and recreational station for British naval forces in the Gulf.
Related matters of discussion include the following:
- The possibility of consolidating the British position at Henjam by offering to surrender Basidu to Persia
- The British response to Persian forces expelling the Arab Shaikh of Henjam from the island in May 1928, in retaliation for the Shaikh attacking and looting the island's customs office the previous year
- The drafting of a protocol (as part of wider Anglo-Persian negotiations, which are referred to throughout) in 1929 between the British and Persian governments, setting out the terms for the British Government's surrender of its claims to Basidu and Henjam, in return for continued access to facilities at Henjam, possibly in the form of a lease
- The consideration of alternative locations for a naval station, in the event of it being necessary for the British to relinquish their hold on Henjam
- Whether the British should be prepared to offer the Persian Navy docking and refitting facilities at Bombay or Karachi, on 'favourable terms', in return for their continued use of the facilities at Henjam
- A request from the Persian Government in September 1932 for the immediate withdrawal of the British naval establishment, following the Persian Government's decision to use Henjam as the location for six recently purchased naval vessels
- The possibility of the British naval depot at Henjam being relocated either to Basidu or Bahrein [Bahrain].
The volume features the following principal correspondents: the British Minister in Tehran, the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, and officials of the Admiralty, the Foreign Office, 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. . Other 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 Viceroy of India; the Senior Naval Officer in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. ; the Foreign Secretary to the Government of India; the Persian Minister for Foreign Affairs; officials of the British Legation at Tehran and the Government of India's Foreign and Political Department.
Also included in the volume are the following: a précis of printed correspondence relating to British positions at Basidu and Henjam, covering the period 1821-1905 (ff 898-941); an 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. memorandum entitled 'Henjam. Position and Rights of His Majesty's Government in the Island of Henjam', dated 26 September 1928 (ff 723-726); copies of the minutes of two meetings of the Committee of Imperial Defence's Standing Official Sub-Committee for Questions Concerning the Middle East, dated 17 December 1931 (ff 249-262) and 10 October 1933 (ff 12-28); a copy of a memorandum by the Admiralty and the Foreign Office on the British naval depot at Henjam, dated 23 February 1932 (ff 197-208).
The French language material consists of correspondence from Belgian customs officials writing on behalf of the Persian Government, as well as articles from the aforementioned draft protocol, and correspondence between the Persian Minister for Foreign Affairs and the British Minister at Tehran. English translations are included in some but not all cases.
The volume includes two dividers which give the subject number, the year the subject file was opened, the subject heading, and a list of correspondence references by year. These are placed at the back of the correspondence (ff 4-5).
- Extent and format
- 1 volume (962 folios)
- Arrangement
The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the rear to the front of the volume.
The subject 4011 ( Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. Negotiations) consists of two volumes, IOR/L/PS/10/1094-1095. The volumes are divided into two parts, with each part comprising one volume.
- Physical characteristics
Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 964; 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 and French in Latin script View the complete information for this record
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Copyright: How to use this content
- Reference
- IOR/L/PS/10/1095
- Title
- File 4011/1923 Pt 2 'PERSIAN GULF: NEGOTIATIONS 1928 HENJAM'
- Pages
- front, back, spine, edge, head, tail, front-i, 2r:7v, 10r:46r, 47v, 49r:60r, 61r:68v, 71r:104v, 106r:117v, 119r:192v, 194r:241v, 243r:283v, 285r:288v, 290r:368v, 370r:401v, 405r:406v, 408r:422v, 425r:471v, 475r:487v, 489r:490v, 492r:516v, 521r:532v, 534r:565v, 572r:610v, 612r:612v, 615r:627r, 629r:654v, 660r:668v, 678r:692v, 694r:792v, 794r:802v, 805r:812r, 813r:854v, 855ar:855av, 855r:859v, 862r:870v, 873r:877v, 880r:911r, 912r:921r, 922r:922v, 924v:932r, 933v:939v, 940v:963v, back-i
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence