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File 4011/1923 Pt 2 'PERSIAN GULF: NEGOTIATIONS 1928 HENJAM' [917v] (1841/1934)
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.
By all the reports hitherto received the Hon’ble the Governor is led to believe fl ‘i
other station would answer the purpose, ivhieh would not be as objectionable in the Z
the King of Persia as Kishm : the question therefore is, whether we are to submit toW^ '1
formerly suffered from the Joasmis, or to give offence to the King of Persia Judo-' 6 i
question on ils own merits the Hon’ble the Governor would not hesitate to decide 6
nutting a renewal of piracy. ° P ei "
The effects of His Majesty’s displeasure are very unlikely to lead to open war and it k
understood to be the recorded opinion of Sir John Malcolm, the best authority on such a si b
ject, that the possession of an island near the shore of Persia would be more likely to fix"
the King in the British interests than to drive him into hostilities. ^
But this is nerhaps a confined view of the case, and it may probably be the policy of
His Majesty’s Ministers to avoid giving any umbrage to Persia in any case where i/can
possibly be avoided. It will rest with His Excellency the Governor-General to decide that
question, and, in the meantime, General Smith should be requested to give his opinion
whether any place on the Arabian Coast would answer for checking piracy in the manner
designed from Kishm, without being exposed to the risk of attacks from the neio-hbourino-
Arabs, and without necessarily involving the British Government in the transactions of
those tribes.
With regard to the charges against Captain Bruce, it is almost impossible to reply to
them without documents to refer to, but the following are the observations that occur to Ike
Hon’ble the Governor
The object of the British Government was to preserve the peace of the Gulf, as it was
owing to the wars among the Powers who inhabit in its shores that the growth’of piracy
was encouraged. It therefore applied its whole attention to bring about a reconciliation
between the Imam of Maskat and the Utubis of Bahrein: at the same time it offered its
mediation to prevent hostilities against Bahrein on the part of the King of Persia, and even
to procure the latter a tribute rather than allow of war.
The proceedings were so far from inconsistent with each other that they sprang natu
rally from the same source, a desire to preserve the peace of the Gulf: at all events, the medi
ation between the Imam and the Utubis was the avowed act of 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 is in no respect imputable to Captain Bruce.
j.he capture of the Linga boats was the act of the officers of His Majesty’s Navy, mm
■whom Captain Bruce had not the least control. The destruction of them xvas however the
consequence of their own imprudent intercourse with the Joasmis.
Ihe Hon ble the Governor thinks he formerly proposed that the people of Linga should
be indemnified' for their losses and that orders were issued accordingly, if such ■was not the
case it would be advisable to ascertain where the discussion stopped.
Ihe Hon ole the Governor has no recollection of the affair of Charrack, but he does not
remember any transaction in which blame wms imputable to Captain Bruce.
It is hoped that these facts and such additional ones as the records may furnish, will
enable Captain A\ illoek to convince the King of Persia of Captain Bruce’s perfect freedom
from all offence against His Majesty; should His Majesty obstinately insist on his removal,
Captain Willoek can inform this Government and await a further reply.
In such an event as is above alluded to, the lion’ble the Governor would not hesitate
to recall Captain Bruce, as it is evident that nothing is more likely to prevent harmony and
confidence, than the employment of an obnoxious Agent; but Government would, in his
opinion, be bound to prevent that gentleman suffering the smallest loss, either of money or
credit by his recall. If he be permitted to be . . . . .in any respect
a loser, no British Agent will venture to assert the interests, or even obey the order's of his
own Government, vlien his doing so is likely to draw on himself the enmity of the Court to
which he is accredited.
The Hon’ble the Governor recommends that these remarks be communicated to the
Supreme Government, and Captain Willock, in the meantime, might be acquainted for tne
purpose of informing the King of Persia, that His Majesty’s message had been transmitted
to His Excellency the Most Noble the Governor-General in Council, v r ho will not fail to
give the fullest consideration to any just claims of His Majesty.
Captain A\illoek will no doubt, with his usual zeal for all branches of the public hug
est, seize every opportunity of impressing on the Court of Tehran the absolute necessity or a
station such as Kishm to keep down piracy and its perfect harmlessness in reference to the
dominions of Persia.
Action was taken by the Bombay Government accordingly.
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