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Annotated Copy of Persia and the Persian Question by George Curzon, with Inserted Papers [345r] (692/1814)
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.
f heir
/ 0 ? Uis first v
Ta ! m ’ which
r °i g ° ver »
lt ’ aild tocoun
16 w]l
m g pe 0 pi e
lem of the si
lai T governing
°PPosition th
on(1 visit to Eu
'tile, endeavom
bast
(Per.) A Persian custom allowing an individual to seek asylum at a designated location.
or sanct
‘shed, that was
illy designed
power having
tion. Orders
>e done away t
d. But the e)
prospen
di quiet
failures
e or a ^
other
toyal
was
itry:
blessed nature with
d us the manifestor
specially coinmittecl
es and property of
mpire of Irani ^
it incumbent on us,
nothing in ensuring
icir rights and t o
ition by oppress
secure in ttieir p el
169 .
THE GOVERNMENT 461
sons and property, shall, in perfect ease and tranquillity, employ them
selves in affairs conducive to the spread of civilisation and stability.
Therefore, for the information and re-assurance of all the subjects
and people of this kingdom generally, we do proclaim that all our sub
jects are free and independent as regards their persons and property ;
it is our will and pleasure that they should, without fear or doubt,
employ their capital in whatever manner they please, and engage in
any enterprises, such as combination of funds, formation of companies
for the construction of factories and roads, or in any measures for the
promotion of civilisation and security. The care of that is taken on
ourselves ; and no one has the right or power to interfere with, or lay
hands on, the property of Persian subjects, nor to molest their persons
or property, nor to punish Persian subjects except in giving effect to
decrees of the civil or religious law.
This proclamation was accompanied by a
Firman
A Persian word meaning a royal order or decree issued by a sovereign, used notably in the Ottoman Empire (sometimes written ‘phirmaund’).
to each
provincial governor, enjoining the strict observation of the edict,
and severe penalties for its infringement. The Shah further com
manded that both Proclamation and
Firman
A Persian word meaning a royal order or decree issued by a sovereign, used notably in the Ottoman Empire (sometimes written ‘phirmaund’).
c be read in all musjids
(mosques) and meeting-houses and thoroughly explained to the
people ; that they be circulated in all districts, small towns, and
even villages and encampments; and that bonds be taken from all
petty authorities, binding them to carry out the Royal commands. 5
The
Firman
A Persian word meaning a royal order or decree issued by a sovereign, used notably in the Ottoman Empire (sometimes written ‘phirmaund’).
concluded with these words : c Anyone disregarding
these orders will be punished in such a manner as to be the wonder
of all beholders. 5 This declaration or charter of the rights of the
subject is excellent in its way, and although it has made very little
difference in the provinces, has been honourably observed by the
sovereign himself; while its existence and public notification to
the representatives of the European Powers afford the latter a
reasonable ground for protest should any particularly scandalous
case of injustice be brought to their notice, and therefore to some
extent operate as a check upon the evilly-inclined.
It will be observed that the most needed reforms—viz., the
codification of the law and the construction of an independent
Proposed tribunal to confer a sanction upon the new decree and to
tion of the administer the law already existent—were left entirely
law untouched by the Royal Proclamation. Once more,
however, the Shah returned to the charge ; and at the time of my
visit to Teheran, in 1889, official circles in the capital were
stirred to their foundations by the intelligence that the king had
assigned to the Council of State the task of creating a new body
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 [345r] (692/1814), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, Mss Eur F111/33, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100157213845.0x000063> [accessed 5 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