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File 4722/1918 Pt 8 'Mesopotamia: Situation' [16r] (40/995)
The record is made up of 1 volume (491 folios). It was created in 28 Jun 1920-11 Feb 1921. 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.
have modified their attitude is not known.
(h) TRIBAL»
There are three definite types of tribal Shaikh,
each representing a separate shade of opinion. Firstly,
there is the big shaikh whose influence extends to a tribal
group such as Khaiyun al .Qbaid, Salim al Khaiyun, Badr a!
Rumaiyidh, Barhud al Mughashghash. He has in the main
been powerful enough during these troubles to defy public
opinion and support Government. Secondly there is the
paramount shaikh of the tribe. He, it is, through whom
Government in the past has functioned. His interests are
bound up with those of Government and therefore at heart
he is pr^-Gcvernment, but in the face of tribal dissen
sions and a general feeling of hostility, he has been
obliged to adopt a neutral attitude if not an unfriendly
one in order to retain his influence and place. Of such
men are Gasid al Hahi and Hamuda bin Mza.il. Thirdly there
is the sectional Shaikh of the tribe who under the old
order was obliged to ’raja’ the paramount Shaikh. Under
present conditions he recognises no ruling house of the
tribe and this is to his liking for he becomes virtually
an independent ruler* Our system of administering through
the paramount Shaikh, while in accordance with tribal
tradition and conductive to economy of work, is undoubtedly
in places unpopular. And the hostility of the lesser
Shaikh is very largely a protest against this institution.
Unless Government bolsters up the paramount Shaikh, this
element of the Tribal system will in many cases notably the
Azairij, Khafajah, Hachcham, Bani &aid, disappear, and the
tribe must break up into numerous independent factions. It
is not the oppression of Government that is usually the
complaint of the lesser shaikh, but the oppression of the
Rais al Ummum. To him the name Hukuma connotes not a
complex machine whose function is to govern. Hukuma to
him is the local Hakim and the Hakim*s
Wakil
Elected representative or attorney, acting in legal matters such as contracting marriage, inheritance, or business; a high-ranking legal official; could also refer to a custodian or administrator.
in the tribe,
the paramaunt Shaikh.
He is unmoved by the cry of taulat al Arabiyah but
is
About this item
- Content
The volume consists of correspondence, memoranda, drafts, and departmental notes relating to rebellion against British mandatory rule in Mesopotamia [approximately corresponding to present-day Iraq], later known as the Iraqi Revolt of 1920.
The volume covers the period from the start of unrest in May 1920 to British imposition of control in October of the same year. The majority of the volume comprises reports from political officers across Mesopotamia on the situation in their respective divisions and districts.
Other matters discussed within the volume include:
- The suspected causes of the uprising, including fears of ‘Bolshevik’ and pro-Turkish influence
- Settlement of the border between Syria and Mesopotamia
- Military strategy and operations, including the need for reinforcements
- The severing of British lines of communication, particularly rail
- The efficacy and principles of the use of armoured cars and air raids as means of control following numerous cases of misidentification and disproportionate force that resulted in the deaths and injuries of innocent people
- Political and civil policy in the region
- Identification and arrest of some of the leaders of the rebellion
- The prominence of events in Mesopotamia in the British press
- The question of disarming the tribes following the suppression of the rebellion.
Principal correspondents include officials at: 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. ; the Office of the Civil Commissioner in Mesopotamia (from November 1920, the High Commissioner); the War Office; General Headquarters of the military in Mesopotamia; and the Government of India, Foreign and Political and Army departments.
The volume contains cuttings from several publications, including: The Times , The Statesman , The Observer , The Daily Herald , The Daily Mail , The Baghdad Times , and The Near East .
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. A second divider is included, for File 4722/1918 Part 7, entitled ‘Mesopotamia: Sir A. Wilson’s invitation to Syrian Baghdadis’. This was transferred to File 5268/20 Parts 1 and 2 (see IOR/L/PS/10/913).
- Extent and format
- 1 volume (491 folios)
- Arrangement
The volume is arranged in approximate chronological order, from the rear to the front.
The subject 4722 (Mesopotamia) consists of ten volumes, IOR/L/PS/10/755-764. The volumes are divided into twelve parts, with parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 11 and 12 comprising one volume each. Part 10 is missing. Part 7, entitled ‘Mesopotamia: Sir A. Wilson’s invitation to Syrian Baghdadis’, was transferred to File 5268/20 Parts 1 and 2 (see IOR/L/PS/10/913).
- Physical characteristics
Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with 1 and terminates at the last folio with 489; 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. Multiple intermittent additional foliation sequences are also present. The foliation sequence does not include the front and back covers, nor does it include the leading and ending flyleaves. The sequence contains one foliation anomaly, f 89a.
- Written in
- English in Latin script View the complete information for this record
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File 4722/1918 Pt 8 'Mesopotamia: Situation' [16r] (40/995), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/10/761, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100137804985.0x000029> [accessed 7 June 2026]
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Copyright: How to use this content
- Reference
- IOR/L/PS/10/761
- Title
- File 4722/1918 Pt 8 'Mesopotamia: Situation'
- Pages
- front, back, spine, edge, head, tail, front-i, i-r:i-v, 1r:89v, 89ar:89av, 90r:113r, 114v, 118v:120r, 121v, 127v:169v, 173r:192v, 194r:211v, 213r:223v, 225r:227r, 229r:261v, 262v:263v, 266r:279v, 280ar, 280r:293v, 294v, 295v:317v, 318ar, 318r:333v, 334v:341v, 342v:359v, 360v:400v, 404r:424v, 425ar, 425r:489v, ii-r:ii-v, back-i
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence