Saudi Arabia--Hamilton, Lieut.-Col. R.E.A.

Folio (330 x 205mm.), [2pp.] (title, verso blank), 30pp., PEN AND INK ILLUSTRATION OF AN ARAB WELL on page 3, paper watermarked "Original Cream Laid Kent", pencil marginalia and underlinings, a few manuscript notes and corrections in pencil (by the author?), original pale green cloth-backed printed boards with title on upper cover, upper hinge detached, binding rubbed

Cefntilla Court (seat of Lord Raglan), bookplate. Hamilton's daughter Julia married Fitzroy Richard Somerset, 4th Baron Raglan in 1923

The condition of this lot is as described in the catalogue description
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

A HIGHLY IMPORTANT DIARY RECORDING SECRET MEETINGS BETWEEN HAMILTON, OFFICIAL REPRESENTATIVE OF THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT, AND IBN SAUD. HAMILTON RELATES IBN SAUD'S DREAM OF AN "EMPIRE OF ARABIA", AND HIS PERSONAL OBSERVATIONS ARE AN INVALUABLE SOURCE OF INFORMATION ON ANGLO-SAUDI DIPLOMACY IN THE YEARS LEADING UP TO THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA. THIS COPY PRIVATELY PRINTED FOR THE AUTHOR. 

Lieutenant-Colonel Robert Edward Archibald Hamilton (1871-1956) was Political Agent in Kuwait from 1916 to 1918. In November 1917 Hamilton was despatched with St. John Philby to Riyadh to discuss continuing tensions between Ibn Saud and Husayn bin ‘Ali, the Sharif of Mecca. Hamilton's journey from Kuwait to Riyadh began on 9th October 1917, accompanied by various servants and camel escorts, $2000 and £100 in cash, and with letters from the Sheikhs of Kuwait and Mohammerah to Turki and Abdul Aziz bin Saud (p.1).

Reaching Riyadh on 13th November, he received an immediate audience, "sat on the right of Abdulaziz Bin Saud. The whole length of the top wall was unoccupied except the two of us... Afterwards went for private talk in the Maktab, or office, of bin Saud" (p.18). There follows a long conversation in the palace with Ibn Saud, who complains that the British are not helping him enough and that the sole reason that Sharif Hussein bin Ali is having success with his rebellion is, because he fought against Ibn Rashid. Ibn Saud then says that for to overthrow the House of Rashid he needs the support of the British. 

Hamilton remained in Riyadh for three weeks meeting Ibn Saud and his family and supporters on many occasions, "He likes to think that the Shereef's power is very temporary, built on our largesse only. As soon as the money fails, the tribes will return to their old allegiance and look to Nejd as the fountain of liberty, secular and religious. Hence his interest in the Wahabi revivalist movement called the Ikhwan. His religious leadership will, he hopes, in the long run carry him on some such way to the Empire of Arabia - the dream of all the Bin Sauds" (17 November, p.22).

His diary contains much about his journey to and from Riyadh, his assessment of Ibn Saud, and the current political situation in the region. In Riyadh he rendezvoused with Philby and Cunliffe-Owen, about whom he explained to his hosts "I must wait for the arrival of these two officers from Hassa and see any instructions they might be bringing with them" (p.21). Their arrival on 30th November is followed by entries for the following two days in which he tersely remarks "Interviews. Went for a ride [walk] in afternoon" (p.24). Hamilton also refers to T.E. Lawrence (p.11) and Captain William Shakespear (p.12). Throughout the diary, in the left-hand margin, he records details the temperature, barometric readings, distances covered and time taken. On Hamilton's final day in Riyadh, the 5th December, Ibn Saud presented him with two Arabian oryxes, a male and a female, as a gift for King George.

THIS PRIVATE EDITION MAY BE UNIQUE. There are no official stamps or imprints to indicate it is a government publication. The official version of Hamilton's diary (with names added in Arabic) was printed for the British government in a very small number of copies in May 1918; and we can trace it in the British Library only (IOR/R/15/5/104).

TOGETHER WITH:
[Hamilton, R.E.A.] The Master of Belhaven. The Arabian Carpet and other verses. Stirling: Eneas Mackay, 1948, FIRST EDITION, 8vo, original red cloth, DUST-JACKET. This is a collection of poems "inspired by the author's love for Arabia; some by his war service; all by a true sense of human values and loyalties, and by a poet's eye for natural beauty". RARE. We can locate only 3 copies of this work in institutional libraries. NOT IN THE BRITISH LIBRARY.