![Annotated Copy of <em>Persia and the Persian Question</em> by George Curzon, with Inserted Papers [‎853v] (1723/1814)](https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000001491.0x00033b/Mss Eur F111_33_1753.jp2/full/!1200,1200/0/default.jpg "Annotated Copy of <em>Persia and the Persian Question</em> by George Curzon, with Inserted Papers [‎853v] (1723/1814)")
Annotated Copy of Persia and the Persian Question by George Curzon, with Inserted Papers [853v] (1723/1814)
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.
'
568
PERSIA
the advantage, while in piece goods England will continue to
compete with her on rather better than even terms.
It is difficult to analyse the items composing this northern trade r
owing to the absence of any recent statistics. The latest figures
5 Re slit that I have seen relating to Resht are those of the year
Teheran 1883, which return the trade passing through the Custom-
house of Enzeli as: imports, 376,443/.; exports, 259,2504
total volume, 635,693/. The figures for the same year relating
to Meshed-i-Ser give the imports as 179,746/.; exports, lo5,/10/.;
6. Meshed- total, 315,456/. I cannot feel certain of the accuracy of
Teheran either of these computations. In both cases the entire
line carrying trade by sea is in Russian hands, and the bulk of
the imports will come from, just as the bulk of the exports will go
to, Russia. Unfortunately, the Russian trade reports do not distin
guish between the goods entering or leaving Persia at the several
Caspian ports, but lump their figures together with those of the
trade across the land frontiers.
Roughly speaking, the north-eastern zone consists of the
extensive and wealthy province of Khorasan, upon whose trade I
N.E. zone have dwelt at length in my first volume. The lines of
Astrabad strategical entry into this region, previously indicated,
line correspond with the main avenues of commerce. These
are two in number: the route for sea-borne goods from Gez, in the
south-east angle of the Caspian, to Astrabad and Shahrud—again
s. Ashk- a Russian monopoly—and the new line in connection with
Meshed the Transcaspian Railway at A shkabad, of which the same
lme control must be predicated. Prior to the opening of the
latter during the last decade, the Gez-Astrabad route was the main
avenue of entry for Russian merchandise into north-east Persia,
which from thaPbase was diffused throughout Khorasan, supplied
Meshed, and penetrated to Herat. The returns for the year 1881,
in which the Transcaspian Railway reached Ashkabad. and the
last year, therefore of the Gez trade route monopoly, were as
followsimports, 287,640/., of which 256,000/. were in piece
goods (chiefly from Moscow, although some came from England via
Constantinople); exports, 86,280/., of which nearly half was silk ;
total, 373,920/4 These figures, which were compiled by Colonel
Lovett, then British Consul at Astrabad, do not correspond with
1 I have seen the figures for 1883 given as: imports, £209,448 ; exports,
£274,515 ; but am at a loss to understand how the latter total could be explained!
j
*
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
Use and share this item
- Share this item
Annotated Copy of Persia and the Persian Question by George Curzon, with Inserted Papers [853v] (1723/1814), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, Mss Eur F111/33, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100157213850.0x00007c> [accessed 6 June 2026]
https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100157213850.0x00007c
Copy and paste the code below into your web page where you would like to embed the image.
<meta charset="utf-8"><a href="https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100157213850.0x00007c">Annotated Copy of <em>Persia and the Persian Question</em> by George Curzon, with Inserted Papers [‎853v] (1723/1814)</a> <a href="https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100157213850.0x00007c"> <img src="https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000001491.0x00033b/Mss Eur F111_33_1753.jp2/full/!280,240/0/default.jpg" alt="" /> </a>
This record has a IIIF manifest available as follows. If you have a compatible viewer you can drag the icon to load it.https://www.qdl.qa/en/iiif/81055/vdc_100000001491.0x00033b/manifestOpen in Universal viewerOpen in Mirador viewerMore options for embedding images
Copyright: How to use this content
- 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