IOR/R/15/5/143

The volume contains correspondence related to the date gardens owned by the Shaikh of Kuwait, Aḥmad al-Jābir Āl Ṣabāḥ, in southern Iraq. In particular, the correspondence concerns the agrarian troubles in the Shaikh’s gardens caused by the tenants and the fellaheen working there who were refusing to pay revenue to the Shaikh.

In the volume, British officials discuss issues related to the land registration granted to the Shaikh by Sir Henry Dobbs, Revenue Commissioner, Basra, in 1915, and the importance of obtaining an original copy of the claimed Power of Attorney authorising the sale of the land by Ahmed Pasha al-Zuhair.

British officials correspond with the Shaikh and his lawyer, Jacob Gabriel. The lawyer in turn reported to the Political Agent, Kuwait, and to the Shaikh of Kuwait, on a few issues, including: the troubles caused by the fellaheen, procedures at the court in Basra, the Iraqi Government’s involvement in the case and the Iraqi Limitation Law.

The volume includes copy of legislations under the title "Fellah’s Rights and Duties" (ff 58-68) issued by the King of Iraq and published in Al-Waqa’i‘ Al-Iraqiyya newspaper. It also includes notes of a meeting (ff 101-114) held at the Foreign Office, on February 1934, between British officials discussing the date gardens case.