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File 4722/1918 Pt 1 'Mesopotamia: administration of policy and situation' [67r] (142/687)
The record is made up of 1 volume (326 folios). It was created in 23 Oct 1918-2 Nov 1919. It was written in English, French and Arabic. 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.
-to
<)%. Civil Commissioner,^eg^rding thT^ppointment 68 ?^ °\ ^ oL Wilson ’
I think that at present there 8 is ^one in^liao who f ° r ‘ Iraq ’
qualifications to fit him for this high post The ne^ the , necessar y
of ‘Iraq depends on the efforts and kindness of this W Pn ±etj a ? d p J?^ eS8
become educated. e ss o± this just Government until they
Date as above. (Signed & sealed.) Mahmud Agha.
mi • Afte . r prayers for the just and great Government of Great Britain
this Government has made Iran evpppdino'l-tr i 1 vrieat rsntam.
places and the Shi'ah ‘Ulama^^of Islam” and^as intrS 6 ? 611 the
tranquility for the people by her wise statesmanship lutroduced P eac « and
She has also asked us to appoint an Amir.
character ? Can WC aPPOint SUdl aU 0Be Wllen we do not know or his
When the people have been taught by this Government then th
of such a choice may be suitably given to them. ’ en ^
duty 0U1> dUty 18 t0 Pr ° teCt the h0ly 1&WS ° f ° Ur reli S ion J and this is not our
Date as above. & Sealed - ) SaIYID Ahmad Babahahi.
i n „ a L (9) - i?' 11 re P^y message of the Civil Commissioner (may he live
long) regarding the appointment of an Arab Amir. V J
+i-nn tlle Pe ° p ! e of .^.raq are m need of elementary instruction and educa-
I ’l^ n ° Ur opiI1 J( )I1 ’ ^ 18 most suitable that the Government of Great Britain
Should carry on the work of this country until there is progress in ‘Iraq and
?heir r co“ S ° aS t0 be fit and qUaHfle<1 t0 Carr y °“ Government of
[Signed by the Naqib and 21 Merchants and Notables of NajafA
Dated 19th R.l. J
7 (10). In the name of God the Merciful the Compassionate.
As the Government^ of Great Britain has asked us to give our opinions
ns to what is most suitable for our future, namely, whether there should be
this ™Sntry 0 Ind n its e people any ° tller f ° rm ° f g0TerniD S bod y lor
Our reply to them is as follows: —
Firstly it is necessary that ‘Iraq, composed of the three Vilayets of
Mosul, Baghdad and Basrah, should remain under British protection.
Secondly, the present form of Government should continue so that the
people of Iraq may through this Government progress and find in them
selves capacity.
According to our opinion there is no one in ‘Iraq qualified to goveib
the country without the help and support of Great Britain.
We, the undersigned, are agreed in this our opinion which is the only
one of use for our future.
-r\ , [Signed by 36 Notables, Merchants and Mosque servants of NajafA
Dated 13th R.l. (December 18th, 1918). J J J *
Brom Shaikh Ali Shaikh Muhammad Ridha Kashif al Ghata.
To—The Political Officer, Shamiyah.
. ^ ®i nce the occupation of ‘Iraq, which extends from the bound
aries of Mosul to the
Persian Gulf
The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran.
we have not seen anything but general
peace, rest and tranquility.
At present there is no man having such qualifications as to be unanim
ously accepted as an Amir, who can carry on the government of this country,
as regards establishing laws, introducing* education, irrigation, and general
improvements. Therefore it is advisable for the present that things should
remain m the hands of the British Government until such a time as the
people are sufficiently advanced and educated to carry out the government
of their own affairs.
About this item
- Content
The volume contains correspondence, memoranda, reports, telegrams and minutes regarding the administration of, and situation in, Mesopotamia [Iraq] following the Asia Minor Agreement of 1916, more commonly known as the Sykes-Picot Agreement, between the French and British governments, and the Anglo-French Declaration of November 1918. The volume also concerns the subject of self-determination in Persia [Iran].
The papers notably cover:
- Discussion of advance interpretations of the 1916 Agreement
- The Anglo-French Declaration of November 1918, which publicised their intentions and policy in the former Ottoman territories of Syria and Iraq
- Presentation of the 1918 Declaration to the President of the United States of America by the French Ambassador to the US, Jean Adrien Antoine Jules Jusserand
- Disagreement between the British and French visions of the future administration of Mesopotamia
- The situation in southern Kurdistan
- The 1919 Paris Peace Conference
- Apprehensions of the Baghdad Jewish community about the tenor of the Anglo-French Declaration, including a petition to the Civil Commissioner, Baghdad, requesting to be made subjects of the British Crown
- Reaction to the Declaration from the across the Arab world
- Disagreement among the British over the form that Britain’s control in Mesopotamia should take
- The views of the principal sheikhs [shaikhs] of Mesopotamia on the 1918 Agreement
- Discussion among British officials of the benefits of control over Mesopotamia and the view of the Civil Commissioner, Baghdad, Arnold Talbot Wilson, on the situation in Mesopotamia
- Discussion of the potential candidates for the head of the new state of Iraq
- Reports on consultations with political and religious leaders and inhabitants from across Iraq on the future Government of Iraq
- The views of Sir Percy Cox and Arnold Wilson on the situation in Mesopotamia
- The question of the future political status of Mesopotamia, including the views of British officers serving in Syria and the Hejaz
- Discussion of the question of Iraqi self-determination.
Notable documents in this volume include:
- Text by Sir Percy Cox regarding ‘The Future of Mesopotamia’ (ff 308-310 and ff 270-272)
- Extracts from The Times , 26 November 1819, including a series of articles under the title ‘The Arab Campaign’ (ff 230-232)
- The statutes for the independence of Iraq (ff 127-130)
- A memorandum by Major W H Young regarding the future of Mesopotamia (ff 99-112)
- Copies of ‘Self-determination in Iraq’ in Arabic (ff 75-97) and English (ff 57-73).
The principal correspondents are: 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. , Political Department; the Governor-General of India; the Civil Commissioner, Baghdad; the Military Governor and Political Officer, Baghdad; Government of India, Military Department, the French Ambassador to the United States; and the British Embassy, Paris.
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.
- Extent and format
- 1 volume (326 folios)
- Arrangement
The contents of the volume are arranged in approximate chronological order from the rear to the front of the volume.
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 334; 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 mixed foliation/pagination 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 two anomalies: f 181a and f 181b.
- Written in
- English, French and Arabic in Latin and Arabic script View the complete information for this record
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Copyright: How to use this content
- Reference
- IOR/L/PS/10/755
- Title
- File 4722/1918 Pt 1 'Mesopotamia: administration of policy and situation'
- Pages
- front, back, spine, edge, head, tail, front-i, i-r:i-v, 1r:127v, 128ar, 128r:175v, 176ar, 176r:181v, 181ar:181av, 181cr, 181br:181bv, 182r:182v, 186r:229v, 232v:325v, 327r:334v, 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