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File 4722/1918 Pt 1 'Mesopotamia: administration of policy and situation' [211r] (437/687)
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.
mf£^sBsss?sssi!ism
P 5244]
Prom Secretary of State to CM Commissioner, Baghdad ,. ,
28t/( November 1918. LaL
(hepeated, to V tceroy, Foreign Department.)
and ■rrf,/ 0 " 1 ' te ! egroms , 9906 and 9926, dated I6th November
nrimari l tn nl con ' es P 0 " de ““- Anglo-French Declaration was intended
o Fre^ ^ i ? ,W a CTeated Arab sue “
UI I lenca mtentimis. Ultimate status of all Arab provinces will be seftlerl
1 thlS , Sh0Ul ^ , b6 ^^tood by 'all concern eel
icanwlnle tbe Declaiation lays down that it is the policy of His Mai^stv’s
ojcmmeut to aid in establishing native Governments in the liberated areas
Subject to ZsTtUo ° U pulati ° nS W Government which they dislike.
ZUes. and Is set^fTn 0113 ’ We <1e81re . to ** »« Mesopotamia the
• ^^So ancl most settled Government possible, and we are orenared to
£”pi' r, ‘ ,,h «* ">** ."4 srcj s
Doubtless, owing to the local conditions and the absence of anv out
s anding Arab personality and of any class of persons qualified to ho h°“h
o nces it will bemecessary to establish at the outset a very large measure of
control TrerUin’l f0reign relati0DS Wi!1 be entirely Zder British
present no forma dec a ‘Vexation, and as far as can be seen at
piesent, no foimal declaration of protectorate. The position is more likelv
Th a dZsZt' differ , lat t Mpf t before th ® ' var ’ minns the capitulations.
oU-?nd Anri V materially from proposals in Sir t>. Cox’s Memorandum
a 22nd April, lour administrative action and official utterances should be
n ,y t ie all °ye principles, and you should be able to satisfy our friends
MieUr aie i n °i F 01pg -f? Ieav , e them iu the Inreh, and that the excellent work
the best fo™ o a f k nnt W1 p n0t ,6 mterrapted - Meanwhile, we are considering
i t. best tom of native Government to set up, and should be glad to receive
nirifo T 6 and aSS1Sta . nce of y° uraelf aud your advisers on this point. In
P ‘ , ' . al "? ar . 1 ' anxious to have authoritative statement of views of local
populations m the various areas affected on the following specific points : —
(1) Are they in favour of a single Arab State under British tutelage from-
tot Tf Nor , the y boundary of Mosul Vilayet to
Persian Gulf
The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran.
?
(d) If so, do they consider that new State should be placed under titular
Arab head ?
(3) Tf so, whom would they prefer as head ?
We attach great importance to obtaining genuine expression of local
opinion on these points and one that can fairly be placed before the world
as unbiassed pronouncement by population of Mesopotamia. Please take
necessary steps without delay. We should like you to consult Miss Bell and
any other officer specially qualified to advise, and to give us your ioint
opinions on the subject. Meanwhile, direct communications to' President
Wilson should not be permitted.
m
!i S' ■
I' . i
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