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File 1707/1924 ‘Arabia:- Jeddah Situation Reports. (1924-1930)’ [202r] (408/898)
The record is made up of 1 volume (445 folios). It was created in 13 Mar 1924-18 Mar 1931. It was written in English. 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.
EASTERN (Arabia)
CONFIDENTIAL.
[E 3204/644/91] No _ 1
Consul Stonehewer-Bird to Sir Austen Chamberlain.—(Received July 21.)
(No. 73. Secret.)
Sir
I HAVE the honour to transnoit herewkh my report olSiffin'in'the
Hejaz during the period the 1st to the 30th June, 1927
r>„iu 2 '-R C0P f ie / S r 0f il 118 rep0r x t tJ? bemg sent to E SyP t 5 Jerusalem (2), Bagdad, Aden,
elhi, Beirut (for Damascus), Khartum (through Port Sudan), Singapore, Lagos (2^
I have, &c.
G. H. W. STONEHEWER-BIRD.
Enclosure in No. 1.
Jeddah Report for the Period from June 1 to June 30, 1927
THE period under review has witnessed the largest pilgrimage for many years,
in tne opinion of the Government it has established a record. The number of
pilgrims arriving in the Hejaz from foreign ports is estimated at roughly 140,000,
wtule the total number at Arafat was not less than 240,000. It was inevitable that
the sanitary arrangements made by the Government at Mecca and Arafat should
tall tar short of perfection. They were, in fact, frankly bad. A large sum of
money had been set aside for this purpose, but the Director of the Public Health
Department, when taxed by the King with his inefficient handling of the situation,
was hard put to it to explain how the money had been spent. There was no lack
ol water at Mecca, but the price rose to P.T. 15 a tin. Deaths from
sunstroke were numerous at Muna. The temperature reached 124 degrees (shade).
The Government admit a total mortality at Muna of 1,500 pilgrims, though the
figure is probably much higher. The official organisation was unable to cope
satisfactorily with the problem of removing the dead in a sufficiently short space
of time; the consequent sights and odours were so revolting that thousands of
pilgrims, including my Egyptian colleague, returned to Mecca without completing
their religious duties.
2. Security on the roads was complete. The number of cars available was
insufficient to meet all needs, and the tracks (there are no roads) were in a bad
state, but the introduction of motor-car services between Mecca, Jeddah and
Medina is an undoubted boon to the richer classes of pilgrims. There were no cases
of robbery or theft on the road. At Mecca, however, police control appears to
have been less effective than last year and numbers of pilgrims lost their money and
their passports in the precincts of the mosques.
3. The situation as regards shipping is in most cases satisfactory though
there is room for improvement as regards the supply of sufficient shipping for the
accommodation of returning Indian pilgrims. The arrangements made by the Holt
line for the transport of Malay pilgrims have as usual been excellent.
4. At the instigation of the
agency
An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, headed by an agent.
the local authorities established a commis
sion for the better regulation of the Indian pilgrim traffic. The commission collects
from the guides the passports and tickets of pilgrims as they arrive in Jeddah and
accommodation is booked for them in the order of their arrival. The system has
worked to the satisfaction of all parties; it was introduced to ensure fair treatment
to rich and poor alike; in the past it too often happened that the last 200 or 300
places on a boat were reserved for those willing to pay a premium. The aims of
the commission were to some extent defeated by the fact that many pilgrims holding
Shustari return tickets lost their turn as only two boats of that line were available,
with a carrying capacity of 2,491 pilgrims, while nearly 5,000 awaited repatriation.
The reintroduction of the deposit system is the only solution to the Indian pilgrim
problem. Shipping companies are now primarily concerned with not transgressing
[175 x _i]
1 'I
About this item
- Content
The volume mostly contains printed copies of despatches from HM Agent and Consul, Jeddah, to the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, enclosing reports on the situation in the Hejaz (also spelled Hedjaz in the file) [now a region of Saudi Arabia], from January 1924 to December 1930, and related enclosures to the reports. These despatches were sent to the Under-Secretary of State for India by the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. The volume also includes 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. Political and Secret Department minute papers, which include comments on the reports, and indicate that the reports had been seen by the Under-Secretary of State for India and the Political Committee of the Council of India.
The reports are monthly for January to August 1924, May 1925, September 1925 to March 1927, June 1927 to June 1930, and December 1930. Reports between these dates cover shorter periods, except July and August 1930, which are both covered by one report, and September, October and November 1930, which are also covered by one report.
The reports discuss matters including the actions of King Hussein ibn Ali al-Hashimi of the Hejaz, including his attempts to gain recognition as Caliph, and the military and financial situation in the Hejaz during the war between the Hejaz and the Saudi Sultanate of Nejd [Najd]. They report on events of the Hedjaz-Nejd war including: the capture of Taif (September 1924) and Mecca (October 1924) by Nejd; the departure of the ex-King Hussein from Jeddah; the fall of Medina and Jeddah and the surrender of the Hejaz to Sultan Abdul Aziz of Nejd [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd, also known as Ibn Saud] (December 1925); and the formal assumption of the title of King of the Hejaz and Sultan of Nejd and its Dependencies by Ibn Saud (8 January 1925).
The reports following the annexation of the Hejaz by Nejd cover internal affairs, including prohibitions introduced for religious reasons, the Hejaz Railway, the financial situation of the Hejaz-Nejd Government, and the Hejaz Air Force. They also report on foreign relations, including: the publication of an agreement, dated 21 October 1926, between Ibn Saud and Sayyid Hassan-el-Idrisi, establishing the suzerainty of Ibn Saud over Asir; relations between Ibn Saud and Imam Yahya of the Yemen; the situation on the frontiers between Nejd and Iraq, and Nejd and 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 the Treaty of Jeddah between Hejaz-Nejd and Great Britain (20 May 1927). They also report Ibn Saud being proclaimed King of the Hejaz, Nejd and its Dependencies (4 April 1927).
In addition, other frequently occurring topics in the reports are: the Pilgrimage [Hajj], including the arrival of pilgrims in the Hejaz, from India, Java and elsewhere, arrangements for the pilgrimage, the welfare of pilgrims, and the repatriation of pilgrims; and the slave trade and slavery in the Hejaz, including the manumission and repatriation of slaves.
The volume includes a divider which gives the subject number, the year the subject file was opened, the subject heading, and a list of correspondence references by year. This is placed at the back of the correspondence.
- Extent and format
- 1 volume (445 folios)
- Arrangement
The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the rear to the front of the volume.
The subject 1707 (Arabia:- Jeddah Situation Reports. (1924-1930)) consists of one volume only.
- 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 447; 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. An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 4-444; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
- Written in
- English in Latin script View the complete information for this record
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Copyright: How to use this content
- Reference
- IOR/L/PS/10/1115
- Title
- File 1707/1924 ‘Arabia:- Jeddah Situation Reports. (1924-1930)’
- Pages
- front, back, spine, edge, head, tail, front-i, 2r:88v, 90r:104v, 106r:108v, 110r:124v, 126r:128v, 129v:132v, 133v, 134v:137v, 139r:145r, 146r:161v, 162v:180v, 183r:205v, 206v:267r, 269r:271v, 273r:288v, 291r:308v, 309v, 310v, 311v, 312v, 313v, 314v, 315v, 316v, 317v:321r, 324r:335r, 337r:378v, 379v:381v, 383v:389v, 391r:393v, 395v:397v, 399r:400r, 402r:446v, back-i
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence