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Annotated Copy of Persia and the Persian Question by George Curzon, with Inserted Papers [395v] (793/1814)
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.
552
PERSIA
Of the life and character of the Kurds, it would appear f roni
the apoplectic sputterings of some newspapers that a prejudiced
and erroneous impression prevails. They are commnrn
Occupation . ^ miuniy
and spoken of, lor instance, as though they were all nomads
character ^ anc ] ? f or the most part, monsters of iniquity 5
The impeachment against the evil-doers amongst them is quite
sufficiently strong without including the innocent in the attainder
By far the greater part of the Persian Kurds are sedentary and
pastoral. A great many of them farm and till the ground on the
plains and hill-slopes; an even larger number keep herds of sheep
goats and cattle, from which they make excellent cheese and butter ♦
and the extent of their nomadic habits is in most cases that in the
summer months they move into camps on the higher acclivities
above the settled villages which they inhabit in the winter.
Nomad Kurds are to be found particularly in Turkish territory,
and on the border: and perhaps the wealthiest and most indepen
dent of the tribes belong to this class, the cultivators of the soil
and shepherds being, as a rule, deplorably ignorant and poor. As
regards their character, every variety may be found in their
midst, from the typical robber chieftain to the harmless peasant,
and from the dashing warrior to the miserable thrall. Those who
know them best, deny that they are naturally either cruel or
fanatical, and credit them with a rude hospitality and high courage.
When excited, however, they are as ugly customers as can be
encountered. Their position amid hostile and craven communities,
whose religions they abhor, and in territories whose governments
they abominate, tempts them to anarchy and turbulence. Ruled
by a strong but just hand, there is no reason why they should not
become an orderly community, very useful for purposes of warfare,
mstea o a bogey to frighten the missionaries and scarify the
readers of the ‘ Daily News.’ At the present time they are not,
\; l .y ia ^ e in r T ul key, of much avail for military purposes, being
a dieted to plunder and impatient of restraint. In the Russo-
_ r ar ] e y aie sa, id to have done more harm than good.
rom the Persian Kurds, who are more civilised, several regiments
are raised for the Persian army; one of which, from the Guran
s ric , was or two years, 1834—6, commanded by Sir Henry
aw mson, when m the service of Mohammed Shah. Down to
. 6 P resent ceil tury, the Kurdish cavalry were in many parts clad
m chain armour, in which, together with their long lances and
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 [395v] (793/1814), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, Mss Eur F111/33, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100157213845.0x0000c8> [accessed 4 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