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File 4722/1918 Pt 8 'Mesopotamia: Situation' [410r] (832/995)
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.
This document is the property of His Britannic Majesty's Government
I circulate herewith for the information of my colleagues a copy of a letter, dated
22nd July, from the War Office to 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.
on the subject of rebellious
outbreaks by Arabs in Mesopotamia.
w. s. c.
The War Office,
24£/i July, 1920.
It
\v 5 ■ •
121/3/1858 (M.I. 2).
X 9803 of 4.7.20
X 9315 of 5.7.20
X 9349 of 7.7.20
The War Office,
Sir, 22nd July, 1920.
1. I am commanded by the Army Council to forward, for the information
of Mr. Montagu, copies of the marginally-noted telegrams which have been
X 9376 of In 20 ^ rece i ve d f rom the General Officer Commanding, Mesopotamia, relative to the
X 9387 of loV^O situation on the Lower Euphrates.
413 of 12.7.20 J 2. I am to say that the Army Council, in view of this and recent similar
outbreaks in Mesopotamia, consider that the time has arrived when they must
ask Mr. Montagu whether he is confident that the local policy pursued by the
Political Staff in Mesopotamia is such as to minimize the chance of the
repetition of such practical demonstrations of Arab discontent.
3. It appears to the Council that the course of events in Mesopotamia
too often takes the form of punitive operations following upon an outbreak.
This may be due either to the fact that adequate warning has not been
forthcoming or that it has not been acted upon sufficiently promptly by the
military authorities. Preventive measures, political or military, calculated to
forestall the event would appear to the Army Council to be more desirable
from every point of view.
4. The Army Council are enquiring from the General Officer Commanding,
Mesopotamia, whether he received sufficient warning in the case of Poumeitha,
and, if so, what steps he took in anticipation of the situation, but at the same
time they would ask Mr. Montagu whether he is satisfied that the system
adopted by the Political Staff in Mesopotamia is sufficiently elastic to enable
local political officers to give timely information and assistance to the nearest
military commander.
5. I am to say that so long as the ultimate responsibility of the military
commander for security in Mesopotamia continues, the Council feel certain
that Mr. Montagu will share the opinion that it is as much the duty of the
Political Officers to assist the military situation by adopting timely measures,
conciliatory or otherwise, to avoid the necessity of the troops becoming
■ — at—
* These telegrams appear on pages 6 et seq. of my memorandum, dated 17th July (C.P. 1646).
(B20/334) 100 7/20 H & S, Ltd. 8424wo
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' [410r] (832/995), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/10/761, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100137804989.0x000021> [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