مجموعة ٣٠/٩٠ "المطالبة الفارسية بجزيرة البحرين" [ظ‎‎٤‎٨‎٥] (١٠٦٢/٩٨٣)

24
Pol. Res. to
Govt, of
Bombay,
165 of ‘
11.9.1*69,
181 of
25.9.1869,
184 of
5.10.1869.
Teb. Desp.
No. 81,
14.11.1869.
the Persian Gulf is entrusted, from the exercise of the
■ 7 , nunishina by prompt measures any violation of
TffJenaatZsby the Sheikh of Bahrein mUn a
reference \o the Court of Tehran would be attended with
embarrassing delays which might endanger the y ene ™
peace oi the Gulf; but whenever such a necessity shall
arise d full communication respecting it shall be made
to the Persian Government."
Overthrow and Death of Sheikh Ali (Augusl-Septemher 1809)
bin Abdullah assumed the leadership otthe u«mpmg par y-^
87 Her Majesty’s Minister reported on 14tli November
1869 ^ a conversation on this incident with the Persian
Minister for Foreign Affairs in the course of which
tt Tatter admitted "that Persia had not acqui^d suffie^nt
power or authority in that part of the Gulf to enable
her to repress acts of piracy and to maintain order, hut
added that he hoped that before long the onah s authority
would be fully established at Bahrein, when hid redress
would be given for losses suffered through the recent events
and that in the meanwhile it would not be considere
necessary that the British authorities should unuortahe
coercive measures. Her Majesty’s Minister further reported
that “ All bin Kbalifa having forwarded letters to this uo i t
admitting his allegiance to the Shah and offermg his services-
to the Persian Government, an agent iMuza Mehdi Phan,
who had been Persian Envoy to Bahrein in 18o9 (para-
cranh 67 above)) bad been despatched with a Royal firman,
recognising Sheikh Ali bin Khalifah as Chief of Bahrein
but that on receipt of the new T s of the murder of the blu ik
by the ex-Sheikh Mahomed bin Khalifah, the Turman had
been recalled and the name of the ex-Sheikh substituted (from
paragraphs 94-5 below it will be seen that these statements
subsequently proved to be incorrect in material particulars,.
Pol. Res. to
Teh. tel. of
14.11.1869.
15.11.1869.
Teh. Desp.
83 of
16.11.1869.
British Punitive Expedition (November— December 1869).
88 . Punitive operations consequent on the murder of
Sheikh Ali were undertaken by the British Government in
November of the same year. Previous notification was given
to the Persian Government of the grounds of this expedition,
the object of which was stated to be <k to call the cbiei now
in possession of Bahrein to account for his breach of the
maritime peace and for the attack on Sheikh Ali bin
Khalifah, who had been placed in power by the British
Government." ^
89. The Persian Minister for Foreign Affairs on receipt
of the notification in question stated that the ex-Sneikh
Mohammed bin Kbalifab, who had, he said, been the cause
of the recent disturbances, had been killed (this was in fact
incorrect); that the Resident’s action would therefore be
useless, and that the Persian Government hoped that he
would be telegraphically instructed not to proceed to Bahrein.
He added that the Persian Government would themselves
keep the affairs of Bahrein by land in order and that should
anything happen to affect its affairs by sea they would
request Idle British Government to send a naval force to put
affairs in order, “ but up till now the state of affairs in
Bahrein had not fallen into disorder.
90. The Persian agent referred to in paragraph 87 above
arriving in the Gulf at this stage addressed letters to Sheikh,