IOR/L/PS/10/426

Continuation of papers regarding the 1913 uprising of the Ibāḍī imamate and the tribes of the interior of Oman under the leadership of Sālim bin Rāshid al-Kharūṣī, against the authority of the Sultan of Muscat and Oman, Taymūr bin Fayṣal Āl Bū Sa‘īd.

The volume contains reports submitted by the Political Agent at Muscat [Lieutenant-Colonel R Benn, later Major L B Haworth], plus correspondence between the Agent, the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, the Chief Political Officer at Basrah, the Government of India Foreign and Political Department, and the Naval Commander-in-Chief, East Indies. The volume also contains translations of letters received from: the Sultan of Muscat, Taymūr bin Fayṣal Āl Bū Sa‘īd; the Imam Sālim bin Rāshid al-Kharūṣī; and the rebel leaders Shaikh Isa bin Salih al Harithi, and Shaikh Hamyar bin Nasir al Nabhani.

The following topics are discussed: the re-emergence of the rebellion in late 1914/early 1915; reports of attacks on British positions; the decision to move the Officer Commanding Headquarters to Muscat; rumours that Britain is weak in the region due to its military commitments in Europe; German propaganda, including incitement to jihad and rumours that the Kaiser has converted to Islam; communications between the Political Agent, Muscat and the rebels; attempts to negotiate peace; and proposals for military, customs and judicial reform in Muscat in return for a loan from the Government of India. The first fifty folios consist of papers regarding the hiring of a new Director of Customs, to implement reforms.

Details of the negotiations can be found at ff 135-42; a short history of the rebellion, compiled by the Chief Political Officer, Basrah, appears at ff 118-29; a detailed summary of the rebellion provided by the Political Agent Muscat is contained at ff 99-105.

The file includes a divider which gives the subject and part numbers, the year the subject file was opened, the subject heading, and a list of correspondence references contained in the file by year. This is placed at the end of the correspondence (folio 1).