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File 4722/1918 Pt 1 'Mesopotamia: administration of policy and situation' [309r] (633/687)
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.
r
^“pr«tirbS ham g ered ^ wpitulationu, and the right to
Which we should obviously do COntm ^y being one
adnhnistratioiido^corJhft^K 4 llave a nominal headpiece to the
thi nsTl 0 , ?? , Ct owu ioneign affairs under British guidance 1
and tire le^t 6 ’- ^ be P os ? il)k ' '<> <iud a local^ndidaie,
family of the Sherif of Mecca'^la^thhTfl? 1 ^ M lntroducm g on e of the
deplore the fnef that thr r • * a v V 11,1 P 10 e * ^ ^ lave always ventured to
one of the Pawns hi " ^scussion ot the future of Iraq with the Sherif, as
also expressetHnv views n^SPtiatJous with him, was ever permitted. 1 have
recoo-nisino-him as Kino-nf A* 11 fb 011 4 1 1 ' l x> btical and practical objections to
States In mv ooinirm ”> ‘ ra ila ancl Sovereign of a group of Confederate
remain Ki,n more reasonable solution would be that he should
Foretn Polers lf . d ^.>ve his own representative with
"V? ° n t ^ Y ! n t ie forei ^ n relations of the Iraq State ami of the
a m 1 p. 01 ] e ^ e p^ e ^ rab Potentates or States, should lie in cur hands. For the
less than Fin f ^ ^ tate a tlt l e nil ght he devised conveying something
vo il nndo he^Pf 1 0i ' Hakm and all the Confecferate Ruler!
tiFllolv Phce- 6 in F ap P r °P na f deference to King Hussein as Sherif of
llol \ i lace-, m the Hejaz. If considered essential in view of their com
irutments to the Sherif, His Majesty’s Government might even decide to
meni’^Tof i^r ^T* ^ v ” ° r T• aDnual subsid y in some form from the
e on ties of liaq, as recognition of his services to the cause of Arab indepen-
tlmHoHPW 6 War; 0r ’ aS “ relig ' 0US contribution towards the upkeep of
Observations on the more Detailed Issues.
. f 0n (I "U rerah authority, dynastic or representative, he discovered that
Lido command the necessary moral sanction in the country as a whole ? What
weight does Ling Hussein or his family carry with the local Arabs ?
In my opinion, wehaye m the Faqib of Baghdad and his family a dynastic
w !icii ' v oiiTu carry the necessary moral sanction, in the Baghdad
Vilayet undoubtedly, and, m my opinion, in Iraq as a whole. I believe they
could be brought to identify themselves with British interests. The present
Aaqib himself possesses a very great prestige and influence not only in
Mesopotamia but among the Mohammedans of India, and I feel sure" his
selection as Head of the State would be regarded as an appropriate solution
and be received with favour throughout India as well as Mesopotamia. The
Aaqifl considers himself superior, in purity of descent and nobility, to the
F 1 *™’ an( * 110 less important, and the introduction of a relative of the Sherif
. Mecca as Head of the State of Iraq would, in my opinion, be greatly
misunderstood and resented by the Naqib and his family, and thus tend to
alienate our most potent element of influence over the Arabs of Iraq. Xing
Hussein and his family carry no weight in Iraq, where only the most distant
mteiest is taken in him. In the early days of the Sherif’s entry into the lists,
when the question of giving him military help was being discussed, the
General Officer Commanding, Mesopotamia, was asked by the War Office
whether the failure or collapse of the Sherif would prejudice our military or
political interests in Mesopotamia. We replied after deliberate consideration
that the inhabitants had not been at all moved by his successes, and would, in
our opinion, regard his failure with complete indifference.
12. What materials exist for setting up a Local Administration or
Administrations of a suitable character ?
There is adequate Arab or local material available or in the making for
the subordinate services of the administration. The difficulty we are com
fronted with at present, and must be for some time to come, is to find
individuals suitable for higher posts in the administration, e.g., Mutessarifs,
S 17 B
IJ
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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File 4722/1918 Pt 1 'Mesopotamia: administration of policy and situation' [309r] (633/687), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/10/755, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100188328444.0x00004e> [accessed 9 June 2026]
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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