IOR/R/15/1/83

The file consists of secret letters sent to Samuel Hennell, British Resident in the Persian Gulf. The majority of this correspondence is from either the Government of Bombay [Mumbai], or the Secret Committee based at India House in London. These letters frequently contain enclosures (i.e. copies) of communications sent between the Government of Bombay, the Government of India, and the home authorities in Britain; this also includes correspondence with HM Consul-General to Egypt.

The principal correspondents in the file are as follows:

• Patrick Campbell, HM Consul-General to Egypt.
• George Eden, Governor-General of India.
• Thomas Henry Maddock, Officiating Secretary to the Government of India with the Governor-General, writing in the Secret Department.
• Rear-Admiral Sir Lewis Frederick Maitland, Commander of the East Indies and China Station.
• Lestock Robert Reid, Acting Chief Secretary to the Government of Bombay.
• Henry John Temple, Third Viscount Palmerston, Foreign Secretary for the United Kingdom.
• John Pollard Willoughby, Secretary to the Government of Bombay, writing in the Secret Department.

The subject matter concerns the conquest of Nedjd [Najd] by Khorshid Pasha [Khūrshid Pāshā] on behalf of Mahomed Ali Pasha [Muḥammad ‘Alī Pāshā al-Mas‘ūd bin Āghā], Viceroy of Egypt; and his subsequent efforts to subjugate Bahrein [Bahrain] and the Arab tribes of Oman. It therefore covers British efforts to prevent the further advancement of Egyptian forces towards the Persian Gulf; this includes their reaction to the voluntary submission of Abdoola bin Ahmed [Shaikh ‘Abdullāh bin Aḥmad Āl Khalīfah], Chief of Bahrein, to Egypt, and their efforts to coordinate the Arab tribes against the Egyptians.

The other main subject covered by this file is the diplomatic rupture between Britain and Persia [Iran]. The occupation of Karrack [Jazireh-ye Khark] by a British force from India, and the removal of the Residency from Bushire to that island are therefore covered as a result. The feasibility of an invasion of southern Persia is also discussed within the correspondence.

Topics featured in the correspondence to a lesser extent include the following:

• The reprimand of Lieutenant-Colonel James Shiriff, Commander of the British force at Karrack, for undermining the political position of the Resident.
• The strengthening of the Indian Naval Squadron in the Persian Gulf.
• The removal of Shaikh Nasir [Shaikh Nāṣir] from the island of Karrack.
• A visit to the Persian Gulf by Rear-Admiral Sir Frederick Maitland aboard HMS Wellesley.
• A report from Captain Aikins Hamerton and Captain John T Leslie on their mission to obtain mules for the British force at Karrack.
• The provisioning of two steamers for an expedition to navigate the rivers Euphrates and Tigris.

The correspondence in French only amounts to 5 folios (see ff 75-79), and consists of translations of Egyptian correspondence relating to British pressure on Khorshid Pasha to abandon his designs on Bahrein.

Please also note that in the file Mahomed Ali Pasha is also spelt Mehemet Ali, and there is a degree of variation in the spelling of Khorshid Pasha. Pasha is also frequently spelt Pacha.