D’Arcy Concession

Audience

The principals themselves were the chief audience for the concession. Other entities, however, formed part of a larger audience, and specific entries in the concession were addressed to them. Perhaps the most important audience was the Russian government. Because of the British presence in India, communications between the Asian subcontinent and Britain were essential. The British had installed a telegraph line through Persia that would allow India to keep in close contact with London. At the same time, Russia was also looking to expand its control in the area, and the competition between the two nations in the region—the “Great Game” described in Rudyard Kipling's novel Kim—was intensifying at the opening of the twentieth century. It was control over the region—or at least unlimited access to it—that was the major concern at this time, not the access to oil. The provision in the concession forbidding D'Arcy and his companies from entering the five northern provinces was meant to assure the Russians that the British would not be on their borders. At the same time, the article stipulating that D'Arcy could situate and build facilities himself was meant to inform the Russians (who had built several projects on behalf of the Persian government) that there would be limits on Russian influence. Even with the restrictions as to where oil exploration could take place, Britain was reassured that it would continue to have a presence in the Persian Gulf and that its lines of communication to and from India were safe.

Another audience, not anticipated at the time and not until D'Arcy was running dangerously low on funds, was investors who might underwrite some of the efforts. D'Arcy did not anticipate having this need, but as he ran through his fortune (over half a million pounds) in the years between the concession and the first oil strike, he needed support. The provisions of the concession were favorable enough to influence a private oil company, Burmah Oil, and eventually the British government to become major investors. Their subsequent investment would guarantee the exploration and drilling efforts until oil was found.

One group that was excluded was the Persian people themselves. While the concession, prior to signing by the shah, had to be formally ratified by the legislature, that was only a pro forma measure. The oil revenues did not in any way benefit the people of Persia (later Iran) until well into the twentieth century.