Papers of Sir John Malcolm relating to his diplomatic missions in Persia and to the country and history of Persia [‎216r] (446/1040)

Content

The papers relate to British relations with and diplomatic missions to Persia [Iran], notably John Malcolm’s missions of 1799-1801, 1808 and 1810, Anglo-Persian relations 1812, and the geography and history of Persia as affecting Britain’s position in India.

The contents of the three volumes are covered by one list of contents (in the Volume Part 1), which includes the document number stamped at the commencement of each document (1-72), the date, name of correspondent and (in most cases) the subject. The letters are originals unless otherwise stated.

Although not bound in this order, the five rough groups of papers are described here below in chronological order for purposes of narrative clarity, followed by the historical surveys.

Captain John Malcolm’s letters to Sir George Barlow, with related correspondence, 16 January 1801-4 April 1802. (Documents stamped numbers 1-40, ff 8-99.)

During this period Malcolm was Private Secretary to Lord Mornington [Richard Wellesley, later Marquess Wellesley], Governor-General of the (Bengal) Presidency The name given to each of the three divisions of the territory of the East India Company, and later the British Raj, on the Indian subcontinent. of Fort William, at Calcutta [Kolkata], and Barlow was a member of the Supreme Council of Bengal (appointed Provisional Governor-General in 1802). Malcolm’s letters were written during and after his return from his Mission to Persia [Iran] having arrived at Tehran in December 1799 and negotiated political and commercial treaties with the King of Persia [Fath-‘Ali Shāh Qājār] (signed January 1801).

The letters notably relate to:

• Malcolm’s journeys to and across India
• Administrative and financial matters
• A tiger hunt Malcolm joined
• Letters of introduction for patronage
• Affairs of the merchants at Patna
• Instructions from Wellesley for Barlow
• The recently ratified treaty with Persia
• Financial relief for the indigo contractors at Calcutta
• A request for C Buchanan’s position as Chaplain to 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. at Calcutta to be made official so that Buchanan can draw allowances
• Arrangements for the return of Lord Clive (Edward Clive, Governor of Madras) to Europe by sea
• Arrangements for couriers and shipping of Wellesley’s official dispatches to England
• Commendation for the recent army and navy action against Egypt.

General Malcolm’s letters, to Barlow, George Buchan, Secretary to the Governor of Madras, and Lord Minto, Governor-General of the Bengal Presidency The name given to each of the three divisions of the territory of the East India Company, and later the British Raj, on the Indian subcontinent. at Fort William, Calcutta, 16 April 1808-9 January 1809, and 6 October 1810. (Documents stamped numbers 41-52, ff 100-209.)

During this period Malcolm undertook two diplomatic missions to Persia, as envoy appointed by Lord Minto. Arriving at Bushire in May 1808 he did not get any further due to the predominating influence of the French at the Persian Court. After returning to India Malcolm travelled to and gathered a force at Bombay in readiness to either bolster or attack Persia or Turkey if either enabled the French to invade India through their territories. In March 1809, owing to the change of situation in Europe with France occupied in Spain, the British under Harford Jones’s embassy were able to conclude successful political and commercial preliminary treaties. Lord Minto re-appointed Malcolm in 1810 but although he was received by King he made no substantial progress.

The letters up to January 1809 cover:

• Malcolm’s preparations for potential military action against Persia from the Gulph [ Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. ], including personnel and escort, and his journey to Bombay
• British policy towards the Persians
• British policy towards the French regarding their apparent ambitions in India
• News of French military advances and Napoleon Bonaparte’s plans
• Franco-Persian relations
• Progress of the Russo-Persian war
• Dispatches for Lord Minto
• Activities and dispatches of Sir Harford Jones, regarding his more successful mission in Persia promoting Anglo-Persian alliances and military collaboration against Russia.

Followed by Malcolm’s lengthy account to Lord Minto on Persian affairs, dated 6 October 1810, (sent to Lord Minto from Bagdad [Baghdad]). It incorporates his analysis and opinion of the state of the Persian Empire, its history, geography, ruling dynasty (including character sketches of the King and major princes), the Persian Court, economy, society and culture. Particular attention is paid to: the territories between and routes through Persia and India; background to the current Russo-Persian war; the state of the Persian Army; the King’s policy towards his sons and chief ministers; political prospects for Persia after the King’s death; British and Persian policy towards each other since 1798 with particular reference the campaigns of Napoleon Bounapart [Bonaparte], and Russia and Turkey; diplomatic missions and Anglo-Persian agreements and alliances concluded by Malcolm and Harford Jones; Malcolm’s plan to attack Persia or Turkey from the Gulf, with a small force amassed in Bombay in January 1809, in the event of a French invasion of either country. Malcolm concludes with his suggestions for Britain’s future policy towards Persia, including a proposal to transform the irregular Persian Army into a standing army with British advisors and commanding officers as a means of repelling any invasion of India via Persia. He hints at the possibility of having to make Persia a dependency of Britain in the long-term. (Document 52, ff 142-209)

Copy official letters from Charles Pasley, Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. , Abushahr [Bushire], to Neil Benjamin Edmonstone, Chief Secretary to the Government of India (numbered 1-7, ff 396-460), and to Brigadier-General John Malcolm (numbered 1-10, ff 461-504), 17 January-7 April 1810, with related intelligence and translated Persian letters from members of the Persian Royal family and Persian ministers. (See also volume IOR/H/733 for related material). (Documents stamped numbers 71-72, ff 396-504.)

The letters relate to:

• Pasley’s journey from Bushire to Shirauz [Shiraz] to see Prince Hassan Ally Meerza [Ḥusayn ‘Alī Mirzā], Governor of Fars
• The progress of Sir Harford Jones’s Mission to Tehran
• Malcolm’s departure from Bombay on a parallel Mission to Persia
• Relations between the two different embassies
• Policy of the Prince at Shirauz and Persian Court towards Malcolm
• Malcolm’s activities and preparations at Bushire for advancing towards the King’s Court and uncertainty over whether or not to take valuable gifts
• Sir Harford Jones’s successful negotiations with the King and Crown Prince Abbas Meerza [Abbās Mīrzā Qājār, Crown Prince of Persia] and arrangement for a subsidy to the Persians to be funded from 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. at Bushire
• Confusion regarding instructions from HM Government, the Court of Directors The London-based directors of the East India Company who dealt with the daily conduct of the Company's affairs. and Lord Minto, Governor-General of India, to Harford Jones and Malcolm, the collision of authority and the impression given of the Government of India
• Sir Harford Jones’s establishing of his overriding authority over Malcolm’s embassy and the Bushire Resident
• Progress of the Russo-Persian War and relations between Turkey and with Persia.

Additional correspondents: John Briggs, Assistant; Jaafur Ali Khan [Ja‘afar ‘Alī Khān], Native Agent Non-British agents affiliated with the British Government. at Shiraz, providing intelligence from Shirauz; HE Meerza Shuffeea [Mirza Muhammad Shafi’ Mazandarani, Sadr-i A’zam (Prime Minister)]; HE Hajee Mahomed Hoossein Khan, Ameen ud/oo Dowlah [Hāji Muḥammad Ḥusayn Khān Isfahāni Amin al-Dawlah], a senior minister of state; Mahomed Nebbie Khan [Muḥammad Nabī Khān Shirāzī], Governor of Bushire; HRH Hoossein Ally/Ali Meerza [Ḥusayn ‘Alī Mirzā], at Shirauz, Governor of Fars; Prince Abbas Meerza, heir apparent (to his brother in Shirauz); Dr Andrew Jukes, East India Company official travelling with Pasley and subsequently onwards to Tehran acting for Malcolm; Sir Harford Jones, HM Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary A diplomatic representative who ranks below an ambassador. The term can be shortened to 'envoy'. .

Includes copies of Harford Jones’s renewal of his September 1807 authority from HM Government as Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary A diplomatic representative who ranks below an ambassador. The term can be shortened to 'envoy'. at the Court of Tehran, 6 November 1809 (f 494) and account of expenses in relation to the subsidy of 60,000 tomans 10,000 Persian dinars, or a gold coin of that value. to be provided to the Persian government (f 497)

Copy letters from Sir Gore Ouseley, HM British Ambassador to Persia, to Marquis Wellesley [Richard Wellesley, 1st Marquess Wellesley], Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (officially he had very recently resigned that post), Sir George Barlow, Governor in Council, and William Ouseley, with related documents, 15-26 March 1812. (Documents stamped numbers 53-56, ff 210-238.)

During this period the British Government directed diplomatic relations directly from London via their ambassador in Tehran.

The letters relate to the definitive (i.e. detailed) political treaty between Britain and Persia, notably background, motivation, difficulties met, role of Hartford Jones in concluding the initial preliminary treaties (political and commercial), reasoning behind each treaty article, its ratification by the Persian King (see f 227) and the supply of 30,000 English muskets (from India and England) for the standing army of 50,000 disciplined troops under Crown Prince Abbas Mirza, Heir Apparent. A copy of the political treaty of twelve articles to be ratified by the Heir Apparent is included (ff 228-238)

Document 53 (ff 210-211) comprises a letter from Ouseley to British Orientalist William Ouseley, 15 July 1812, instructing him, on behalf of Fateh Ali Shah [Fath-Ali Shah Qajar, Shah of Iran ‘the King’] and the East India Company, to examine the Persian shore of the Caspian Sea for suitable sites to build docks in which to construct a flotilla of war vessels, to examine the forests in the adjacent area for types of timber, the large harbours and rivers connecting to the Caspian Sea, iron and coal mines in Mazenderan [Mazandaran], local geography, and the state of ship building and commerce in the ports visited.

Copies of historical, geographical, socio-cultural, economic and political papers on Persia, compiled by British officials of the East India Company. (Documents numbered 57-70 and 72, ff 239-394, 505.)

• ‘An account of Futty Aly Khan [Fath’ ‘Ali Khan Qajar, Ilkhani The paramount chief of certain tribes in south west Iran. of Qajar Tribe], great grand-father of the present majesty, Futty Aly Shah [Fath-Ali Shah Qajar], and of his actions’ (wars) with a history of the dynasty’s territorial acquisitions and losses and conquest of Mazenderan, c 1798-1810, author not identified (ff 239-243)
• Report on Trade between Bombay and Persia, P S Maister, Custom Master, Bombay, and H Fawcett, for Jonathan Duncan, President and Governor in Council, Bombay, 3 December 1799 (ff 244-257)
• Report on the ‘Persian Gulf pirates’, history and religion, customs, of the Whabee [Wahabis], Turkish copper, and French trade, by Harford Jones, for G C Osborne, Political Secretary to Governor of Bombay, 1 December 1799 (ff 258-269)
• ‘Sketch of the History of Georgia during the last ten years to elucidate the rise and progress of the Russian connection with that country’, chronological account covering 1795-1804, by Charles Pasley, Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. , Abushahr, dated 20 Jan 1805, sent to Samuel Manesty, Resident at Bussora [Basra], 1 February 1805 (ff 270-289)
• Letter from Malcolm to Neil Benjamine Edmonstone, Secretary to the Governor, Bengal, 12 August 1807, setting out his sentiments on a ‘proposed attack of the Turkish Empire by an expedition fitted out from India against Bussorah [Basra] and Bagdad [Baghdad]’, a preventive policy in the Middle East to deter attacks on India from European powers (ff 290-306)
• ‘Rough Memoir respecting The Political Intercourse of France with Persia. [Taken from the correspondence]’, covering 1805-07, notably the French Mission in April 1805 under Envoy Antoine-Alexandre Romieu (who reached Tehran in September 1805 but died shortly after meeting the Shah) followed by the Mission led by Claude Mathieu de Gardane (1807-09), by unidentified author, c 1808-1812 (ff 307-333)
• Extract of a letter to the Governor-General at Fort William, containing information on the Persian Royal Family, with fold-out ‘Genealogical Table of the family of Kureem Khan of Persia [Karīm Khān Zand]’, by unidentified author, 7 May 1808 (ff 334-337)
• Letters from Captain Monier Williams, Surveyor-General, Bombay, to Malcolm, Osborne and Duncan, 13 Apr 1808-23 January 1810, containing geographical and topographical information relative to the countries between Persia and British possessions in India, particularly the southern part of Sind [Sindh] to the western frontiers of Goojerat [Gujarat] and Jhodpoor Territory (Jodhpur, also known as Marwar), i.e. where military operations were likely to take place should a French invasion occur, noting the strength of their armed forces in those areas (ff 338-365)
• ‘Memoir of the Construction of a Map of Persia and Countries lying between the Araxes [also known as Aras], Tigris, and Indus extending from Latitude 230 400 North and Longitude 440 to 700 East’, by William Wilke, Assistant Surveyor, 1 January 1812 (ff 366-379)
• Account of a visit to the ruins of Babylon, including historical background, undated and author not identified c 1800-1812 (however see W B Selby, Memoir of the Ruins of Babylon , 1859) (ff 380-394)
• Statement of the ‘Superficial content of each province [of Persia] in English square miles’ (f 505, Paper No. 72).

Extent and format

3 volumes in one slipcase (507 folios)

Arrangement

The papers are arranged in three separate volumes. The three volumes are covered by a single list of contents (in Volume Part 1), papers are stamped with a number at the commencement of each document, numbered 1-72:

Volume Part 1 covers Papers 1-52 (part), ff 1-200

Volume Part 2 covers Papers 52 (part)-66, ff 201-350

Volume Part 3 covers Papers 66-72, ff 351-509

Papers numbered 1-56 are arranged in three, generally chronological groups, commencing 16 January-4 April 1802; followed by 16 April 1808-6 October 1810; followed by March and July 1812.

Papers numbered 57-70 comprise a mixture of documents generally in chronological order commencing 1799 and ending c 1812

Papers numbered 71-72 are in chronological order commencing 17 January 1810 and ending 7 April 1810

Physical characteristics

Foliation: this file consists of three physical volumes. The foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover of volume one (ff 1-200), through volume two (ff 200-350), and terminates at the inside back cover of volume three (ff 351-509); 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.

Pagination: the original pagination sequence dating from the 1920s is also present in parallel; these numbers are also written in pencil and some are also circled, but as they have been superseded are therefore crossed out. This sequence correlates to the description found in Samuel Charles Hill's Catalogue of the Home Miscellaneous Series of 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. Records (London: HMSO, for 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. , 1927).

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English in Latin script

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