![File 4722/1918 Pt 1 'Mesopotamia: administration of policy and situation' [‎131r] (271/687)](https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000000419.0x000289/IOR_L_PS_10_755_0273.jp2/full/!1200,1200/0/default.jpg "File 4722/1918 Pt 1 'Mesopotamia: administration of policy and situation' [‎131r] (271/687)")
File 4722/1918 Pt 1 'Mesopotamia: administration of policy and situation' [131r] (271/687)
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.
I
.v>
<c
3
Lln-jii
'"■ O I
<^L
/^f J 1 '
l i f :_s_2 _
I do not oftror-swim in the troubled waters of hi/h
politics but of late I have had a dip or two and I think I am
no'? justified in taking another.
It is very difficult if not impossible for a man of
one race to'interpret the thoughts and feelings of people of
anoo^er. ut I have how been more than two years in this
country and have been stationed at Amarah, Nasiriyeh, Basrah,
ahd Baghdad, in each place in close contact and daily inter--
course ,ith the local people, so that if any one has a claim
to interpret what is in their mind, I think I might be said
to be in that position. According to my view the statement
tnat the appointment of an Arab Amir is everywhere regarded
as an ideal solution of the present problem is wholly inaccu-
an< ^ s ^- e a |ing. Any such creation would of course be
intensely repugnant to both the Jew f Christian communities
"hile tne Moslems, whom I suppose we are most anxious to
please,are divided by two distinct lines of cleavage. There us
the deep seated distinction between °unni and fhiah and no less
between the townsman and the tribesman. I think the only
people to whom the idea of an Amir is welcome are a small
• Q unni clioue in Baghdad who see in this plan a method of keep
ing themselves in their old. position of advantage. I do not
beliave that ^hiah. opinion welcomes any such innovation, and
if there were an Amir he would inevitably be distasteful to
the one of the two religious factions. As for the tribesmen,
who are really the crux of the situation, they are of course
inarticulate and their views are hard to learn, hut there is
a phrase which is always on their lips which gives some
insight into their minds. ''La taqaddam wahid b f al thani ?f .
”Do not prefer one to the other ff is what they say. It shov s
how intensely, jealous and suspicious they are, hot without
reason, one. of another, and is a maxim which sne no one who
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
Use and share this item
- Share this item
File 4722/1918 Pt 1 'Mesopotamia: administration of policy and situation' [131r] (271/687), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/10/755, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100188328445.0x00002f> [accessed 10 June 2026]
https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100188328445.0x00002f
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_100188328445.0x00002f">File 4722/1918 Pt 1 'Mesopotamia: administration of policy and situation' [‎131r] (271/687)</a> <a href="https://www.qdl.qa/en/archive/81055/vdc_100188328445.0x00002f"> <img src="https://iiif.qdl.qa/iiif/images/81055/vdc_100000000419.0x000289/IOR_L_PS_10_755_0273.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_100000000419.0x000289/manifestOpen in Universal viewerOpen in Mirador viewerMore options for embedding images
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