IOR/R/15/2/484

This file contains correspondence between British officials (primarily from the Foreign Office and the India Office) concerning two interrelated topics; the Persian Government's claim to sovereignty over Bahrain and discussions over whether or not Bahrain should be considered part of the British Empire for the purposes of the Import Duties Act of 1932.

The file contains two memoranda concerning the history of Bahrain:

1) 'Historical Memorandum on Bahrein' written by J G Laithwaite of the India Office, 1934 (ff 11-34); 2) 'The History of the Bahrein Islands' written by the Foreign Office Research Department, 1945 (ff 217-218).

A number of translations and cuttings of press articles related to the sovereignty of Bahrain (in Faris, Arabic, French and English) are contained in the file.

The file also contains letters in Arabic (with English translations) from the rulers of Qatar (f 155), Bahrain (f 157), Umm al-Quwain (f 165) and Abu Dhabi (f 169), sent to the British Political Agent in Bahrain in response to a letter informing them that their territories were to be granted 'imperial preference' as per the Import Duties Act, 1932 (f 154).