Middle East

The University of Exeter is fortunate to hold substantial collections relating to the Middle East. The archives are particularly strong in the area of the Persian Gulf, with notable collections including the papers of Sir William Luce (1907-77), British Governor of Aden (1956-60), Political Resident in the Gulf (1961-66) and Special Representative for Gulf Affairs (overseeing Britain’s withdrawal from the region) from 1970-72;  Sir Charles Belgrave (1894-1969), Advisor to the Rulers of Bahrain from 1926-57; the working papers of journalist Jonathan Crusoe (1953-91) relating to Iraq and Kuwait, and a small selection of documents and photographs belonging to diplomat Sir John Wilton (born 1921) relating to Qatar and Kuwait.

Material specific to Oman includes the personal papers and photographs of John Shebbeare (1919-2004), British advisor to the Sultan of Muscat and Oman, and the extensive collection of research papers and Omani manuscripts of John Craven Wilkinson.

Other highlights include the research papers of Egyptian scholar Nazih Ayubi (1944-95), the papers of journalist and Middle Eastern specialist Michael Adams (born 1920), copies of the papers of  Richard Howard Stafford Crossman (1907-1974) on Palestine in the late 1940s, material – including recorded interviews – relating to Professor Abdullah al-Fattah Muhammad El-Awaisi’s thesis on the Muslim Brotherhood, the personal diaries of Admiral G.H.P. White (1819-38), the papers of British diplomat and academic Sir John Richmond (1909-90) relating to the history of the Arab-Israeli conflict, a large collection of copies of political documents, papers of Henry Michael Barker relating to his family’s centuries-old involvement in Egyptian commerce, plus correspondence and reports relating to the political activities of brothers Nabih Al-Azmah (1886-1972) & Adil Al-Azmah (1888-1952) and the Kurdish research papers of Omar Sheikhmous.

Blog post archive