Political (External) Collection 28: Persia (Iran)

The sub-series 'Collection 28: Persia (Iran)' covers a wide range of topics affecting British interests in Persia [Iran], as reported by the HM Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary (Ambassador from 1944) in Tehran, and other officials at Tehran (the Counsellor, and Military, Press and Air Attachés). The sub-series also contains a large number of consular diaries, and trade and intelligence reports, submitted by British Consuls, Consul-Generals, and Vice-Consuls posted to consular districts across Persia, including at: Ahwaz [Ahvāz], Kerman, Khorramshahr [Mohammerah], Meshed [Mashhad], Seistan [Sistan] and Qain [Ka'īn], Tabriz, Shiraz, Isfahan, Bandar Abbas [Bandar-e ʻAbbās]. Subjects covered by the files include: Britain's diplomatic relations with Persia; the activities of the Persian Government and the Shah of Persia, Reza Shah Pahlavi, including his attempts to modernise (along European lines) Persian government administration and Persian society; Persian tribes; Persian trade; railways; the frontiers between Iraq and western Persia, and between British Baluchistan (part of present-day Pakistan) and eastern Persia; the Anglo-Persian Oil Company, including its relations with the Persian Government; the Anglo-Soviet invasion and occupation of Persia, 1941-1946; British and Soviet propaganda during the occupation; social and political unrest in Persia after the Second World War, and in particular in Azerbaijan in 1946. IOR/L/PS/12/3498 is an empty file.

The files belong to the Department Papers: Political (External) Files and collections 1903-1950 series and are arranged according to their collection number (28). Each individual file reference consists of the collection number '28' followed by an oblique stroke and a unique, sequential file number, for example, Coll 28/1, through to Coll 28/134. This file number is further subdivided, if another part file on the same topic was created, for example: Coll 28/127(2). The numeral '2' represents file part '2'. Gaps in the various sequences described above indicate missing or weeded files.

IOR/L/PS/12 - Collections 29 & 30; IOR/L/PS/18 & 20; IOR/R/15; Coll 28/13 Trade: conduct of trade with foreign countries to be on a basis of reciprocity; bulk purchase by Persian government of total requirements of tea, sugar, etc: Transferred to E & O Dept: see IOR/L/E/8/232-4; Coll 28/34 Judicial: Persian Company Registration Law: Transferred to E & O Dept; see IOR/L/E/8/201; Coll 28/66 Persia and Persian Gulf postal administration: File cancelled: see Coll 35/14, IOR/L/PS/12/4117; Coll 28/70 Franco-Persian relations; See Coll 28/1, IOR/L/PS/12/3390; Coll 28/123 Anglo-American-Soviet declaration:File amalgamated with Coll 44/51, IOR/L/PS/12/4558; Coll 28/135 Tehran: embassy monthly reports of events in Persia: Transferred to Commonwealth Relations Office, file F2540/26

Available for research unless otherwise stated