Dalyell Collection (Reel 10): Christmas party, Bahrain 1933-34

This film is held by the British Empire & Commonwealth Museum (ID: 1998/005/001).

Synopsis

Children's Christmas party in garden with parents. Celebrations to mark the accession of Shaikh Hamad bin Isa, the Shaikh of Bahrain, at Manama, Bahrain, January or February 1933. British Secretary of State for Air's arrival by plane at airfield in Bahrain (dated in accession files to 26 January 1934). Emancipated slaves dance outside the British Agency during Id al Fitr festivities, Manama, Bahrain. Visit by British Navy warships (HMS Colombo and others), and sail racing by cutters.

Production / Donor Details: These cine films were shot by Gordon Loch & Eleanor Loch-Dalyell, parents of British politician Tam Dalyell, during their service in the Empire. Lt.-Col. Loch (who took the name and arms of Dalyell of the Binns in 1938) served as an Intelligence and Political Officer in the Middle East and India from 1908 onwards. During the period of these films he was Political Agent in Gilgit (Kashmir) from 1924-27; in Mysore, Kathiawar and Rewa States from 1928-31; and in the Persian Gulf from 1932-37. He retired in 1938.

 

Context

Having graduated from Sandhurst, Lt-Col. Percy Gordon Loch entered imperial military service in 1905, joining the Indian army in the 2nd Battalion North Staffordshire Regiment at Multan. He was from a family with an established colonial pedigree – his father, William Loch, had been British Resident in Nepal, and numerous family members had served in India or elsewhere in the Empire. Among them was Henry Brougham Loch, a soldier and colonial administrator who had been governor of both the Cape and of Victoria (Loch 1934: passim). Gordon Loch continued this family tradition. Having been stationed first in the Punjab at Multan, in 1908 he joined the staff of Sir Percy Cox, British Political Resident in the Persian Gulf. In 1910 he obtained a position on the Irrigation Survey of Mesopotamia, before returning to India, where he held various posts between 1911-14. He was re-assigned to the Persian Gulf in 1913; in 1916 he was appointed Political Agent in Bahrain, and in 1918 he was moved to Kuwait. Between 1919 and the early 1930s, Loch held numerous posts, mostly in India – he was an under-secretary in the Indian Government for several years, before being assigned to Gilgit as the Political Agent, a post he then held in Mysore, Kathiawar and Rewa, before finally being appointed once more to the post of Political Agent in Bahrain, a position he held between 1932-37 (DNB, Galbraith 2000, 15-17). 

Loch had a significant family connection to the island Shaikhdom, as his great-great uncle, Francis Erskine Loch, had commanded HMS Eden on an expedition against the pirate kingdoms of the Gulf in 1818; his diary of the voyage survived and formed the basis for the book The Pirate Coast, written by Charles Dalrymple Belgrave, himself the personal financial advisor – a British appointed position – to the Shaikh of Bahrain 1926-57 (Belgrave, 1966). The expedition commanded by this elder Loch was intended to ‘once and for all put an end to piracy’ in the Persian Gulf (ibid., 37). A ‘Treaty of Friendship’ between Bahrain and Britain had been agreed in 1816, but this had not put an end to pirate activity against British interests, and the expedition was both punitive and coercive in nature. It resulted in the 1820 ‘Treaty of Peace’ signed by the Shaikh of Bahrain, stipulating that pirate ships would no longer be admitted to Bahrain’s ports. Of itself this did not guarantee any truly significant British influence (beyond a measure of control over shipping in the Gulf), and it was a treaty concluded in 1861 that transformed Bahrain into a British Protectorate, positioning Britain in control of both the defence of island and of the Shaikh’s relations with all major foreign powers.

Gordon Loch married Eleanor Wilkie-Dalyell of The Binns in 1928. The title, a baronetcy dating from 1635, can be passed along the female line, and after the death of her father in 1935 the estate passed to Eleanor; Loch took on the name in 1938, after his retirement. The 37 reels that make up the Dalyell Collection were shot by Eleanor Loch-Dalyell and Gordon Loch during the 1920s and 1930s. The films, frequently edited to include intertitles, cover a diverse range of subjects, from children’s parties to crocodile hunting; political events are shown in some films, but the majority of the footage is personal. Almost all the films show scenes in India or Bahrain (further films that do not show imperial subjects are held in the Scottish Film and Television Archive). The film-making and use of the camera is generally of a rather high standard: shots are well-composed, camera movement is generally careful, and local people – for instance, the dancers and musicians in the film shown here – are shot with an interested, almost ethnographic eye. 

 

Analysis

The film shown here is composed of several different sequences, with intertitles identifying the different events shown. All of the film takes place in Bahrain, beginning with a rather touching sequence of children playing with balloons at a Christmas party in the yard of the Political Agent’s residence (Lt-Col. Loch is identifiable in a jacket and plus-fours). As with many amateur film records of Empire, political events are mixed indiscriminately with personal or touristic footage, and the following sequence shows the celebrations that surrounded the accession of Shaikh Hamad bin Isa al Khalifah in 1933.

In truth, Shaikh Hamad had been in de facto local control of Bahrain for over a decade, and the accession was more a ceremonial occasion rather than a fresh transfer of powers. Against the original wishes of his aged father, Shaikh Isa, Shaikh Hamad had been installed with British backing to Bahrain’s most prominent administrative positions in 1921. It seems that his younger brother, Shaikh Abdullah, had been preferred, and there had been manoeuvring to that effect as early as 1919, when Abdullah had been sent on a deputation to Britain. Abdullah held numerous posts in the Bahraini administration, and in 1919 had also campaigned against British interference in the Shaikhdom’s affairs. In 1921 the ‘strong current of anti-English feeling’ that was detectable in Bahrain was blamed upon him and his associates. Pressure from the Political Agent succeeded in convincing the aged Shaikh Isa to remove Abdullah from all important posts, and immediately replacing him with the more tractable Shaikh Hamad. From this point onward Hamad was the primary point of contact for the British (his father already being ‘in his dotage’: (Al-Tajir, 1987, 20-35).

The death of Shaikh Isa in December 1932 thus rendered symbolically valid that which had been achieved practically in 1921. The official accession took place early in 1933, and the celebrations were in part organised by the Shaikh’s personal advisor, Charles Dalrymple Belgrave, who can be seen walking with the Shaikh and greeting other dignitaries as they review the Bahrain Police in this footage. In Belgrave’s memoir of his time in Bahrain, Personal Column, he recollects the occasion, which ‘provided an opportunity for celebrations and pageantry. We held what was known as a “Durbar”… in the hall of an old school, and Marjorie [Belgrave’s wife] and I spent much time planning the décor for the ceremony’ (Belgrave, 1960, 77). The event is also noted in the Bahrain Government Reports for the year, reports whose two annual sections – the Budget and the ‘Annual Report’ – were authored by Belgrave in his official capacity as ‘Financial Adviser to the Government, Bahrain’. Attendees and events were noted: ‘His Britannic Majesty’s Political Agent [Loch], representatives of the Navy and Air Force, the European and American community and about 500 of the leading Arabs, Qadis, merchants and notables attended the Durbar… For three days there were unprecedented and universal rejoicings; thousands of poor people were fed outside the Palace, tribal dances were performed, and the towns were decorated and illuminated’ (Bahrain Government Reports 1924-1956, ‘Annual Report for the Year 1351 [1932-33], 396-7). It is thus probable that this particular footage was shot by Eleanor Loch-Dalyell, as it seems that Loch himself would have been directly involved in some of the events pictured.

The Al Khalifah dynasty had ruled Bahrain since 1783, and the Shaikhdom was passed down the male line; Shaikh Isa, Hamad’s father, had acceded to the throne in 1869. Belgrave’s presence alongside the Shaikh is perhaps of greatest significance here, for in these few short minutes a strong sense is gained as to the depth of British penetration into the ruling hierarchy of the country. Belgrave accompanies Hamad as they inspect the police corps, and the impression is one of a chaperone with his charge. Shaikh Hamad may not have owed his title to the British, but he owed them his power, and to them was his power subordinated in the last instance; although his accession may have been the occasion for pomp and majesty, the two people who probably held the most practical power in the Bahrain of 1933 were in fact the British officials, Belgrave and Loch, who are seen at his side in this film.

Francis Gooding (March 2010)

 

Works Cited

Al-Tajir, Mahdi Abdulla Bahrain 1920-1945: Britain, the Shaikh and the Administration (Beckenham: Croom Helm, 1987)

Belgrave, Charles Dalrymple The Pirate Coast  (London: G. Bell and Sons Ltd, 1966)

Belgrave, Charles Dalrymple Personal Column (London: Hutchinson, 1960)

Galbraith, Russell Inside Outside: The Man They Can’t Gag (Edinburgh: Mainstream, 2000)

Bahrain Government Annual Reports 1924-1956 5 vols. (Gerrards Cross: Archive Editions, 1986)

Loch, Gordon The Family of Loch (Edinburgh: T. and A. Constable Ltd, 1934)

 

Titles

  • Dalyell Collection (Reel 10): Christmas party, Bahrain 1933-34 (Archive)
Series Title:
Dalyell Collection
 

Technical Data

Year:
1934
Running Time:
8 minutes
Film Gauge (Format):
16mm VHS
Sound:
Mute
Footage:
approx 200 ft
 

Production Credits

Production Details
See synopsis
 

Countries

 

Genres

 
 

Groups

This film belongs to the following groups.

Dalyell Collection

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 10): Christmas party, Bahrain 1933-34

Dalyell Collection (Reel 10): Christmas party, Bahrain... (1934)has video enhanced entry

Children's Christmas party in garden with parents. Celebrations to mark the accession of Shaikh Hamad bin Isa, the Shaikh of ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 11): Dhows. Shamal storm.... (1937)

Subjects include Shaikh Hamad's desert truffle hunt; an Arab dinner with Shaikh Hamad and Colonel Loch; a flying boat; visit ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 13): March past of police.... (1935)

March past of Police. Police work their camels. Police cadets exercise & dance round the Maypole. Sheikh watches parade. Thursday ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 14): Dhow shipping. Diplomats... (1935)

Dhows and fishermen at Bahrain, 1933-7. Dhow shipping off the cost of Bahrain. Hoisting sail Taking on provisions. Fishing from ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 15): Ootacamund, India 1930 (1930)

Fox hunting, domestic, ceremonial and countryside.

Production / Donor Details: These cine films were shot by Gordon Loch & Eleanor Loch-Dalyell, ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 18): Official visit. Bahrain... (1933)

Subjects include the visit of the Naval Commander-in-Chief of the East Indies Squadron, Vice-Admiral Dunbar Nasmith, November 1933; pearl fishing ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 21): Training working elephants... (1929)

Herds of elephants in the wild. British women watching elephants. Scenes of tented city in parkland and people strolling and ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 23): Muharram celebrations.... (1934)

Muharram celebrations. Street processions. Dancing. Carrying shrines. Visit of Lord Willingdon, Viceroy of India. Arrival at airfield of Vice regal ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 24): Zoo shots, India 1927 (1927)

Extended sequence showing the open air collection of the wild life in an Indian Zoo. Concentrating mainly on baby elephants ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 25): Hunting for crocodiles... (1929)

Crocodile hunting by the local plateau people (Mysore?) watched over by Col & Mrs Loch who undertake normal line fishing ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 26): New Delhi, Viceroy's... (1929)

New Delhi state buildings. Tattoo or formal parade by kilted Highland troops with bagpipes and drums in front of State ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 27): (Pish and Posh?) Working... (1929)

Sahib and Memsahib inspecting formal garden. Working camp of elephants. Washing elephants in river. Elephants with their calves and riders ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 35): Horse racing & hunting... (1929)

Large horse racing meeting at grand race course. Fashionable stylish race goers. Parades and racing. Hill country fox hunting meeting ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 37): Presentation of Viceroy... (1933)

General views of guests at the presentation of Viceroy Khareita to the Sheik of Bahrain. (Presentation not shown). Women in ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 38): Kunigal Stud Farm. India.... (1929)

Indian Stud farm (Kunigal) Christmas 1929. Groom exercises and parades lively black stallion in yard. Big herd of horses including ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 44): Gopinath, India 1930 (1930)

Indian sea rocky coast. Large thatched hut with Sahib and dog. Light house with Indian on camel. Dusserah at Rewa. ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 45): Bahrain and the Arial... (1931)

General views of Bahrain seafront and the Arial desert. Imperial Airways airliner landing. Gypsy Moth biplane at airstrip. Pilot and ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 46): Camels & Wells in Bahrain... (1930)

Camel riding. Local women drawing water from well and carrying it home. Bullock carts and their drivers. Englishman plays with ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 50): North-west frontier.... (1930)

North West Frontier. Local tribesmen. Defensive town walls. Market or Bazaar outside the high walls of fortified border town. Camel ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 51): India. 1930. Holy Men.... (1930)

Holy Men/Beggars set up begging bowls watched by Mensahib. Mountain fishing expedition by Memsahib and Sahib. Donkey carrying large paddle ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 59): India. Road making. Police... (1929)

Laden donkeys crossing river. Road gang prepring road surface with bullock team. Group of local farmers. British offical inspects detachment ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 60): India. Garden Games.... (1929)

Garden scenes.

Production / Donor Details: These cine films were shot by Gordon Loch & Eleanor Loch-Dalyell, parents of British politician ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 61): Army on North West Fronter.... (1929)

High level military inspection of newly built bridge over ravine.

Indian troops in action on north west frontier.

Dressage in grounds of ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 62): India/ Afghan Border... (1929)

British gentlemen exhibit their prize stallions as if for sale and they are inspected on open downland.

Long camel caravan train ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 65): North West frontier.... (1926)

Army camp with British army officers waiting for 'The Off.' Armoured Car exercises & inspection. Meeting of two tribal clanleaders ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 67): Bird shooting party.... (1930)

Bird shooting with large mixed British party and Indian retainers in flat country side. Display of kill. Shooters take a ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 68): Pet dogs at Mysore Residence,... (1929)

Great sport with pet dogs in the lawned garden of official residence (Mysore?).

Production / Donor Details: These cine films were ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 69): The Resident's lady plays... (1928)

The grounds of the Residence at Mysore where much sport is made with dogs. Bathing the dogs in the fountains. ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 49): Construction work. North... (1930)

Ahmadzar (North West Frontier?): Constuction of Dam by labouring gangs. Bullock teams and labourers. British man and woman on site. ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 53 ): Residence garden party.... (1929)

Mysore? British man and women in gardens of large Residence in the aftemath of a Garden party. Sahib and Memsabib ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 54 ): India: Bird shooting... (1929)

Sequences of bird shooting parties at Sardu(?) and Kandi, West Bengal. Shooting parties of Sahibs with fashionable Mensahibs in attendance ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 56) India: Mysore Resident... (1930)

Informal sequences with The Resident and guests in garden of Mysore Residency with foot balling Bishop. The Resident makes tour ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 57): India: Parachinar Durbar... (1929)

Shots of the Parachinar Durbar in the North West Frontier district close to the Afghan border and the Khyber Pass. ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 58): India: Crocodile fishing... (1929)

Fishing for crocodile in wide river. Dead crocodile brought to river bank to be examined and displayed by locals and ...

 
 

Archive Work Groups

Groups

This film belongs to the following groups.

Dalyell Collection

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 10): Christmas party, Bahrain 1933-34

Dalyell Collection (Reel 10): Christmas party, Bahrain... (1934)has video enhanced entry

Children's Christmas party in garden with parents. Celebrations to mark the accession of Shaikh Hamad bin Isa, the Shaikh of ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 11): Dhows. Shamal storm.... (1937)

Subjects include Shaikh Hamad's desert truffle hunt; an Arab dinner with Shaikh Hamad and Colonel Loch; a flying boat; visit ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 13): March past of police.... (1935)

March past of Police. Police work their camels. Police cadets exercise & dance round the Maypole. Sheikh watches parade. Thursday ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 14): Dhow shipping. Diplomats... (1935)

Dhows and fishermen at Bahrain, 1933-7. Dhow shipping off the cost of Bahrain. Hoisting sail Taking on provisions. Fishing from ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 15): Ootacamund, India 1930 (1930)

Fox hunting, domestic, ceremonial and countryside.

Production / Donor Details: These cine films were shot by Gordon Loch & Eleanor Loch-Dalyell, ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 18): Official visit. Bahrain... (1933)

Subjects include the visit of the Naval Commander-in-Chief of the East Indies Squadron, Vice-Admiral Dunbar Nasmith, November 1933; pearl fishing ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 21): Training working elephants... (1929)

Herds of elephants in the wild. British women watching elephants. Scenes of tented city in parkland and people strolling and ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 23): Muharram celebrations.... (1934)

Muharram celebrations. Street processions. Dancing. Carrying shrines. Visit of Lord Willingdon, Viceroy of India. Arrival at airfield of Vice regal ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 24): Zoo shots, India 1927 (1927)

Extended sequence showing the open air collection of the wild life in an Indian Zoo. Concentrating mainly on baby elephants ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 25): Hunting for crocodiles... (1929)

Crocodile hunting by the local plateau people (Mysore?) watched over by Col & Mrs Loch who undertake normal line fishing ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 26): New Delhi, Viceroy's... (1929)

New Delhi state buildings. Tattoo or formal parade by kilted Highland troops with bagpipes and drums in front of State ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 27): (Pish and Posh?) Working... (1929)

Sahib and Memsahib inspecting formal garden. Working camp of elephants. Washing elephants in river. Elephants with their calves and riders ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 35): Horse racing & hunting... (1929)

Large horse racing meeting at grand race course. Fashionable stylish race goers. Parades and racing. Hill country fox hunting meeting ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 37): Presentation of Viceroy... (1933)

General views of guests at the presentation of Viceroy Khareita to the Sheik of Bahrain. (Presentation not shown). Women in ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 38): Kunigal Stud Farm. India.... (1929)

Indian Stud farm (Kunigal) Christmas 1929. Groom exercises and parades lively black stallion in yard. Big herd of horses including ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 44): Gopinath, India 1930 (1930)

Indian sea rocky coast. Large thatched hut with Sahib and dog. Light house with Indian on camel. Dusserah at Rewa. ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 45): Bahrain and the Arial... (1931)

General views of Bahrain seafront and the Arial desert. Imperial Airways airliner landing. Gypsy Moth biplane at airstrip. Pilot and ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 46): Camels & Wells in Bahrain... (1930)

Camel riding. Local women drawing water from well and carrying it home. Bullock carts and their drivers. Englishman plays with ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 50): North-west frontier.... (1930)

North West Frontier. Local tribesmen. Defensive town walls. Market or Bazaar outside the high walls of fortified border town. Camel ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 51): India. 1930. Holy Men.... (1930)

Holy Men/Beggars set up begging bowls watched by Mensahib. Mountain fishing expedition by Memsahib and Sahib. Donkey carrying large paddle ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 59): India. Road making. Police... (1929)

Laden donkeys crossing river. Road gang prepring road surface with bullock team. Group of local farmers. British offical inspects detachment ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 60): India. Garden Games.... (1929)

Garden scenes.

Production / Donor Details: These cine films were shot by Gordon Loch & Eleanor Loch-Dalyell, parents of British politician ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 61): Army on North West Fronter.... (1929)

High level military inspection of newly built bridge over ravine.

Indian troops in action on north west frontier.

Dressage in grounds of ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 62): India/ Afghan Border... (1929)

British gentlemen exhibit their prize stallions as if for sale and they are inspected on open downland.

Long camel caravan train ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 65): North West frontier.... (1926)

Army camp with British army officers waiting for 'The Off.' Armoured Car exercises & inspection. Meeting of two tribal clanleaders ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 67): Bird shooting party.... (1930)

Bird shooting with large mixed British party and Indian retainers in flat country side. Display of kill. Shooters take a ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 68): Pet dogs at Mysore Residence,... (1929)

Great sport with pet dogs in the lawned garden of official residence (Mysore?).

Production / Donor Details: These cine films were ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 69): The Resident's lady plays... (1928)

The grounds of the Residence at Mysore where much sport is made with dogs. Bathing the dogs in the fountains. ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 49): Construction work. North... (1930)

Ahmadzar (North West Frontier?): Constuction of Dam by labouring gangs. Bullock teams and labourers. British man and woman on site. ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 53 ): Residence garden party.... (1929)

Mysore? British man and women in gardens of large Residence in the aftemath of a Garden party. Sahib and Memsabib ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 54 ): India: Bird shooting... (1929)

Sequences of bird shooting parties at Sardu(?) and Kandi, West Bengal. Shooting parties of Sahibs with fashionable Mensahibs in attendance ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 56) India: Mysore Resident... (1930)

Informal sequences with The Resident and guests in garden of Mysore Residency with foot balling Bishop. The Resident makes tour ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 57): India: Parachinar Durbar... (1929)

Shots of the Parachinar Durbar in the North West Frontier district close to the Afghan border and the Khyber Pass. ...

 

Dalyell Collection (Reel 58): India: Crocodile fishing... (1929)

Fishing for crocodile in wide river. Dead crocodile brought to river bank to be examined and displayed by locals and ...