IOR/R/15/2/1836

The correspondence and other papers included in the file comprise two distinct parts. There is a significant chronological jump from the first part of the file relating to manumission cases, dated 1943, and the second part of the file, containing correspondence dated 1951.

1) Seven cases relating to slaves seeking manumission at the Political Agency in Muscat. Each case includes manumission statements sent to the Bahrain Agency from Muscat. Where slaves absconded from the towns of the Trucial Coast, correspondence attempting to verify the slave's statement, exchanged between Agency staff and the Residency Agent at Sharjah, is included (folios 1-63);

2) One item of correspondence from the Bahrain Passport Office to the Adviser to the Bahrain Government (Charles Dalyrmple Belgrave), dated 31 January 1951, and forwarded to the Bahrain Political Agency (folio 64). Enclosed with the letter (and included in the file, folios 65-73) are ten original Certificates of Identity, issued by the British Political Officer in Qatar, to slaves travelling to Bahrain for manumission. Each certificate contains information on the slave's name, age, profession, height, and their thumbprint.