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Annotated Copy of Persia and the Persian Question by George Curzon, with Inserted Papers [208v] (419/1814)
The record is made up of 2 volumes with inserts (898 folios). It was created in 1892-1924. It was written in English, Urdu and German. 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.
PERSIA
238
developments of the Muscovite earth-hunger which I have sketched,
and which might be fraught with peril to the harmonious relations
between the two empires. Here I will pause ; and will not go on
to suggest that, if a commanding necessity ever arose, such a posi
tion might very effectively be utilised by an Indian army for offence,
because I am loth to imagine a situation in which British or Indian
soldiers will ever again be required to march in fighting order
through Persia, or be forced into a policy of aggressive retaliation.
The map, however, will assist the reader to form his own judgment.
There remain, however, two questions of practical importance
viz. the engineering possibility of constructing such a line, and the
Engineer P ro ^ a ^ e returns that might be expected from the country
ing opened up. If the map be inspected, the physical con-
facilities , r ji • n ^ x ^
tour oi the region wall suggest that the most natural,
though by no means the shortest, method of reaching Seistan is by
the valley of the Helmund from Girishk or Kandahar. The greater
part of this distance—namely, that from Hazarjuft below the con
fluence of the Argandab to Rudbar, a distance of 160 miles—is
locally known as the Garmsel, or Hot Region, identical with the
Garmsir of Southern Persia. Ho part of this unhappy neighbour
hood has suffered more from the passions of man than the Garmsel.
In olden times it was the scene of active cultivation, and the site
of busy and populous cities. Brigands, outlaws, and the stormy
tiail of aimies have converted it into a sandy and untenanted
desert. But the testimony of those who have explored it, notably
of Hr. Bellew, who marched this way from India with General
Pollock, is enthusiastic as to the possibilities of recuperation. This
is what he says :—
The valley everywhere bears the marks of former prosperity and
population. Its soil is extremely fertile, and the command of water
is unlimited. It only requires a strong and just Government to quickly
recover its lost prosperity, and to render it a fruitful garden, crowded
with towns and villages in unbroken succession all the way from Sistan
to Kandahar. Under a civilised Government there is not a doubt
that Garmsel would soon recover its pristine prosperity, and then this
part of the Helmund valley would rival in the salubrity of its climate
t at o the Tigris at Baghdad. When the curse of anarchy and law
lessness is replaced in this region by the blessings of peace and order,
then Garmsel will once more become the seat of plenty. The advancing
civilisation of the West must some day penetrate to this neglected corner.
About this item
- Content
These two volumes are George Curzon's own personal annotated copies of both volumes of his book Persia and the Persian Question , which was published in 1892. Alongside the volumes are various loose papers relating to Persia [Iran], consisting of the following: received correspondence; newspaper cuttings; publishers' press releases; cuttings from various booksellers' catalogues; various journal and magazine articles; two items of printed official British correspondence; several prints of photographs and sketches; and a few handwritten notes by Curzon.
In most cases these papers, which range in date from 1892 to 1924, relate to the chapters in the book where they were originally inserted, suggesting that they were kept by Curzon with the intention of using them to inform a revised edition of the book.
Of particular note among the small amount of correspondence are two letters received by Curzon in 1914 and 1915 from retired schoolmaster and Islamic scholar Sayyid Mazhar Hasan Musawi of Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India (ff 5-9 and ff 44-53). These letters, which are written in Urdu and are accompanied by English translations, discuss in detail several inaccuracies found in the Urdu version of Persia and the Persian Question .
The various prints of photographs and sketches, which were originally inserted into volume two, are of different locations in the Gulf region. Several of these appear to have been produced in preparation for the publication of the second volume of John Gordon Lorimer's Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. , Oman and Central Arabia (i.e. the 'Geographical and Statistical' section) in 1908, as they are identical to the versions found in that volume.
Also of note among the loose papers are an illustrated article from Country Life dated 5 June 1920, entitled 'The People of Persia' (ff 36-37), and a printed family tree of the Shah of Persia [Aḥmad Shah Qājār], produced in preparation of his visit to Britain in 1919 (f 233).
Volume one of Persia and the Persian Question contains a map of Persia, Afghanistan and Beluchistan [Balochistan], which is folded inside the front cover (f 1).
The German language material consists of a publisher's press release for two books authored by German archaeologist Ernst Emil Herzfeld (ff 29-30).
- Extent and format
- 2 volumes with inserts (898 folios)
- Physical characteristics
Foliation: this shelfmark consists of two physical volumes. The foliation sequence commences at the first folio of volume one (1-463), and terminates at the last folio of volume two (ff 464-898); 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. Each volume contains a large number of loose leaves, which have been foliated in the order that they were inserted into the volume; for conservation reasons, these loose folios have been removed from the volume and stored separately. The foliation sequence does not include the front and back covers of the two volumes.
Pagination: the file also contains an original printed pagination sequence.
- Written in
- English, Urdu and German in Latin and Arabic script View the complete information for this record
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Annotated Copy of Persia and the Persian Question by George Curzon, with Inserted Papers [208v] (419/1814), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, Mss Eur F111/33, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100157213844.0x00001a> [accessed 19 June 2026]
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- Reference
- Mss Eur F111/33
- Title
- Annotated Copy of Persia and the Persian Questionby George Curzon, with Inserted Papers
- Pages
- 54r:135v, 147r:149v, 158r:180v, 183r:221v, 224r:224v, 227r:246v, 248r:257v, 259r:260v, 268r:362v, 364r:364v, 367r:388v, 390r:400v, 402r:416v, 419r:432v, 434r:444v, 448r:462v, 464r:471v, 475r:481v, 483r:513v, 516r:525v, 527r:544v, 546r:563v, 566r:598v, 600r:622v, 624r:656v, 658r:665v, 667r:675v, 678r:684v, 687r:688v, 691r:691v, 693r:693v, 695r:708v, 711r:721v, 724r:726v, 728r:729v, 731r:736v, 742r:742v, 746r:757v, 759r:761v, 763r:763v, 765r:765v, 772r:777v, 780r:789v, 793r:794v, 797r:809v, 811r:821v, 825r:840v, 843r:898v
- Author
- Curzon, George Nathaniel, 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston
- Usage terms
- Public Domain