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Coll 17/16(1) 'Iraq. The Assyrian Crisis' [349r] (708/1036)
The record is made up of 1 volume (514 folios). It was created in 17 Jun 1933-31 Aug 1933. 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.
nQCU MENT IS THE PROPERTY OF HIS BRITANNIC MAJESTY'S GOVE^W^BW
PASTERN (Iraq).
rfiNFIDENTIAL.
July 18, 1933.
^9
Section 1
No. 1.
;E 3901/7/93]
Mr. Ogilvie-Forbes to Sir John Simon.—(Received July 18.)
Bagdad, July 13, 1933.
Bagdad, July 13, 1933.
/ oj r uaguaa, d my 13 , l\)66.
i I CLOSED my despatch No. 430 o f the 6th July with a brief comment on
l 1 CLOIS^JJ my aespatcn i>u. tou u i uie otn uuiy witn a bnel comment on
^ Major Thomson’s references to the Dashtazi settlement area. This matter has
' ^ foonuii nf enmp f*nnnPirn If IVTninr TVirkTYicrv^’o *
been to me the cause of some concern. If Major Thomson’s criticisms are true,
there is danger that by tacitly approving expenditure by the Iraqi Government
for settling Assyrians in what is already known to be poor, if not useless, land
both His Majesty’s Government and the British officials concerned in selecting
the ground, doing surveys and preparing the estimates would make themselves
a laughing stock. I have accordingly suggested to Mr. Edmonds that this point
should receive immediate attention before the Iraqi Government commit them
selves to spending the sum voted. The acting Financial Adviser also confirms
Major Thomson’s fear that the Dashtazi scheme may cost considerably more than
the £13,000 assigned, and considers that it will be difficult to obtain a
supplementary grant from Parliament.
2. I understand that Major Thomson is of opinion that the Champaishi
area, which he suggests as an alternative, could accommodate all the Assyrian
families who are in need of land. Although it is low-lying on the Tigris, about
42 miles north-west of Mosul, it is close to mountains and to areas already settled
by Assyrians, and many Assyrians would like to settle there. I am also informed
that the land was bought by its present owner for about £2,000, that he might
be willing to sell, and that it is of such a nature that settlement could be speedily
begun. Once a start was made the waverers would flock to register their claims.
3. I enclose copy of a letterfrom Mr. Edmonds covering correspondence^)
with the Administrative Inspector, Mosul, on the subject of the Mar Shimun’s
return. From this you will see that Colonel Stafford somewhat hesitatingly
arrives at the conclusion that, while the Alar Shimun’s return would be eventually
desirable, he should not be allowed to return on his own terms and against the
wishes of the Iraqi Government.
4. A copy of this despatch is being sent by air mail on the 13th July.
Original by bag.
I have, &c.
G. OGILVIE-FOEBES.
(*) Not printed.
[851 s—1]
About this item
- Content
The volume contains papers regarding the Assyrian Crisis in Iraq during 1933. It primarily consists of correspondence between HM Ambassador to Iraq (Sir Francis Humphrys), HM Chargé d’Affaires to Iraq (George Ogilvie-Forbes), and the Foreign Office.
The papers document the negotiations between Mar Shimun XXIII Eshai – the Patriarch of the Church of the East – and the Government of Iraq, regarding: the spiritual and temporal authority claimed by the Mar Shimun; the Assyrian Settlement Scheme; areas designated for settlement; and clashes between Assyrians, Iraqis and Kurds.
Ogilvie-Forbes and Humphrys reported on the movement of Assyrians into Syria, requests to the Syrian and French authorities that they be allowed to remain, proposals to disarm the group, and clashes with Iraqi troops when numbers of Assyrians returned to Iraq. The papers also document the proposed arrest or exile of the Mar Shimun by the Government of Iraq, and the volume also contains copies of letters exchanged by the Mar Shimun, the Iraqi Interior Ministry, and King Faisal.
The papers document the worsening crisis, including reports of looting and village burning at Dohuk [Dahūk], the murder of Assyrian prisoners by Iraqi armed forces led by Bakr Sidqi, and the Simele Massacre of August 1933. These papers include reports submitted by the Head of the British Military Mission in Iraq (Major General Rowan Robinson), the Administrative Inspector at Mosul (Colonel R S Stafford), and Major D B Thomson of the Assyrian Settlement Office. The file concludes with reports on the Simele Massacre, arrangements for the arrival of Mar Shimun and his family in Cyprus, the work of the Refugee Relief Commission in Mosul and Dohuk, and the establishment by the League of Nations of a Small Minorities Commission to investigate the crisis.
The volume includes a divider which gives a list of correspondence references contained in the volume by year. This is placed at the end of the correspondence (folio 1).
- Extent and format
- 1 volume (514 folios)
- Arrangement
The papers are arranged in rough chronological order from the rear to the front of the volume.
- Physical characteristics
Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with 1 and terminates at the last folio with 510; 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. The foliation sequence does not include the front and back covers, nor does it include the leading and ending flyleaves. An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 1-510; 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/12/2872
- Title
- Coll 17/16(1) 'Iraq. The Assyrian Crisis'
- Pages
- front, back, spine, edge, head, tail, front-i, i-r:ii-v, 1r:16r, 19r:31v, 33r:38v, 41r:83v, 87r:88r, 91r:237v, 239r:240v, 243r:343v, 348r:351v, 353r:353v, 355r:420v, 422r:431v, 433r:435v, 437r:445r, 446v:489v, 492r:492v, 498r:503v, 506r:510v, iii-r:iv-v, back-i
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence