File 4722/1918 Pt 8 'Mesopotamia: Situation' [488r] (989/995)
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.
Froifl Baghdad*
Dated June 28th, 1920,
(Received July 1st, 5 p.m*)
Q
MU
R» 7825. My telegram June 17th No. -*{? 734^^2
n , . «°f: ^.§2nd Mirza Mahome
Chief Mui uahid of Keroela with several a.dherents was'"afrested
^:. w . Keroeia, About cen^ extremist agitators had been arrested at
Hi 11 ah a few oays previously. All have been sent to Basrah
1 o r t in^*e rnmen ^ on Hen jam Island where accommodation is
available* *
The effect of these arrests has been excellent; agitation
nas (? liberally) subsided; confidence amongst Chiefs and tribes
nas been restored; revenue is coming in regularly and situation
is now once more practically normal on middle Euphrates; and
jnere has been a corresponding improvement in situation in all
rae Shiah districts except in Ilajaf which may still have to be
dealt with. I have not received a single r$e protest from any •
source against % imprisonment of son of Chief Muitahid, on the v
ovner nand i o is abundantly clear that our, action has given ,/ ,
•deart -o moderates who have now come into f 0 - strrriatM
, iL'tilA i n 3 ea f 1 y all Of the country divisions.vhave publicly (?-o.nudod
fa > o t -'pie-ca-se■)' extremist doctrines urged in Baghdad.
Basrah Divisional^ Council on June 22nd passed a resolution ,
dis-as so elating themselves from Baghdad politics aid expressing
confidence m present Administration.
^Very extensively signed manifesto to the same effect has bee,
received from Diwaniyah. Manifestos which wereufe circulated
in Amara- had to be torn up ‘as no influential person would sign
it or (? permit it to) be circulated.
It is note-worthy that developments in all these threatened
places recurred previous to the arrests and must be regarded as
re act! o ri&mn s ane r element against the extreme party & but^
moderate leaders are nevertheless much 'U^^ted that we
have taken t to support them as tribes who are always on look out
1 Iwk'tAt for/,beginning to get restive^ at the prospect of a weaker
^ Government.
There have been no further attacks of importance on pur Li
of Communication or on our advanced position Uppesr
ratew
s.t, Anah.
Decision bo establish Military Posts at Tel-Afar has had
used in Mosul is drawn.
Sul aim aniy ah and Arbil have been apparently wholly unaffected,
by recent agitation and situation is in"every respect most
satisfactory. Road from Arbil to Rowanduz and thence into f
Persia viS, Rayat is in good order, large caravans are passing and
the present regime appears suitable to all classes.
m . iL JH(
Nasiriyaji division is in some respects unsatisfactory Mr i 5
owing to the f^ct that districts watered by ^ are who! 1 r
inaccessible
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' [488r] (989/995), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/10/761, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100137804989.0x0000be> [accessed 6 June 2026]
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- 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
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