IOR/L/PS/9/66B

The volume comprises correspondence, minutes, and reports relating mainly to political affairs of the Persian Gulf region. The correspondence consists of political despatches, with enclosed letters and reports, from Lieutenant-Colonel (Colonel from March 1885) Edward Charles Ross, Political Resident and Consul General at Bushire [Bushehr], to the Secretary of State for India.

The papers notably cover the following subjects:

• Political affairs in the Sultanate of Muskat [Muscat] and Oman, including: repeated threats against the authority of the Sultan, Seyyid Toorkee [Sayyid Turkī bin Sa‘īd Āl Bū Sa‘īd], from a coalition of tribes and tribal groups mainly led by the Sultan's youngest brother, Seyyid Abdul Aziz [Sayyid ‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin Sa‘īd Āl Bū Sa‘īd], Seyyid Ibrahim bin Ghes [Sayyid Ibrāhīm bin Qays, also written Ibrahim bin Kais in this volume], and Shaikh Saleh bin Ali [Shaikh Ṣāliḥ bin ‘Alī al-Ḥārithī], in the interior around Nizwa, along the Batinah Coast, and in the Sharkiyah [al-Sharqiyah] region; insurrections in Dhofar Province in February 1883 and May 1885; and the Sultan's various efforts and expeditions to respond to these troubles, with British support
• Relations between the Sheikh of Katr [Shaikh of Qatar, also written Guttur in this volume], Jassim bin Thani [Jāsim bin Muḥammad Āl Thānī], and the sheikhs of Bahrein [Bahrain] and Aboothabee [Abu Dhabi]
• Reports and allegations of 'piracy' in the region, with many of the accusations aimed at the Beni Hajir [Banī Hājir] tribe
• Complaints of ill treatment by Sheikh Jassim bin Thani made by the 'Banian' [South Asian traders, also written Banyan] community at El Bidaa [Doha], and the related question of Ottoman Turkish jurisdiction along the Arab Coast
• Affairs in Nejd [Najd], including reports of war between the 'Chief' of Jebel Shammar [Jabal Shammar], Mahomed-bin-Rashid [Muḥammad bin ‘Abdullāh Āl Rashīd], and the Wahabee Amir of Riadh [Wahhābī Amīr of Riyadh]
• Ceremonials observed by the Sultan of Muskat for New Year's Day and the birthday of Queen Victoria
• Reports of oppression of the inhabitants of Kateef [Qatif] by Turkish [Ottoman] officials
• Compensation claims of British merchants in Bushire against the bankrupt Persian merchant, Abdul Nubbee Dallal [‘Abd al-Nabī Dallāl]
• The appointment of George Lucas as Vice-Consul at Bushire in March 1883
• The question of a British Indian [South Asian] effort to set up pearl diving operations at Lingah [Bandar-e Lengeh] and attempts by the Political Resident to prevent it
• The Sultan of Muskat's health, including trips to Gwadur [Gwadar] for recuperation.

The principal correspondents include: the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf; the Political Agent, Muskat; the Residency Agent, Bahrein; HM Minister, Tehran; the Native Agent, El Bidaa; the Foreign Office; the Residency Agent, Lingah; the Shaikh of Bahrein; the Shaikh of Katr; the Sultan of Muskat and Oman; the British Resident in Turkish Arabia, Bagdad [Baghdad]; and numerous tribal, religious, and political leaders from Oman.