File No. 704.0067/16
The Ambassador in Turkey (Morgenthau) to the Secretary of State
[Received February 15.]
Sir: I have the honor to transmit herewith, for the files of the Department and the information of the interested governments, a complete [Page 816] set, of three copies each, of all notes verbales addressed by this Embassy to the Sublime Porte, since the participation of Turkey in the European war, on the subject of violations of belligerent consular premises under our care by the Ottoman authorities in various cities of the Empire.
The actions of the authorities against which the Embassy has from time to time been obliged to protest in the notes above referred to consisted usually in breaking the seals affixed to the buildings by American consular officers, in searching the premises, and, in some cases, in removing the archives or other articles.
The Sublime Porte has replied to only two of these notes, viz., the Embassy’s No. 84, of November 8, 1914, relative to the Serbian Consulate in Constantinople, and the Embassy’s No. 611, of September 8, 1915, relative to the Italian Consulate at Aleppo, by its notes verbales. No. 58171/61, of December 3, 1914, and No. 74929/284, of December 9, 1915, respectively, copies and translations of which are also enclosed herewith.1
I have [etc.]
- Enclosures, consisting of 17 notes verbales to the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and two replies, not printed. The following extracts illustrate the language employed: From No. 87, November 12, 1914, relating to the violation of the British and French Embassies and Consulates and Serbian Legation in Constantinople: “By its present note the Embassy does formally and most emphatically protest against this violation of all the principles of international law and for which the Sublime Porte would be unable to cite a precedent. This Embassy leaves all the responsibility of this unjustifiable act on the Imperial Government.” From No. 112, December 7, 1914, relating to the seizure of British and French consular archives in Aleppo: “This Embassy cannot too strongly point out to the Sublime Porte the inadmissibility of such methods and most emphatically protests against the breaking of the official seal of the Consulate of the United States of America, a friendly power to Turkey, and the encroachment on the inviolability of the French and British consular archives. This Embassy asks the immediate return of the archives and an explanation of the action of the officials, and assurances that such violations of the seal of the United States will not be repeated.” From No. 372, June 23, 1915, relating to the removal of archives and furnishings from the British Consulate in Damascus: “In bringing the foregoing facts to the notice of the Imperial Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Embassy of the United States of America has the honor to renew the protest against the breaking of official American consular seals at Damascus which it has already presented, and to reserve, on behalf of the government with whose interests it is temporarily charged, all rights with respect to the presentation of future claims.” From No. 836, November 3, 1915, relating to the seizure of French consular archives at Beirut: “Referring to its previous notes to the Imperial Ministry protesting against similar actions by the local authorities in other parts of the Empire, the American Embassy most vigorously renews its protest against such an unwarranted violation of the official seal of the American Consulate General at Beirut, and at the same time also protests, on behalf of the French Government, against this further infringement of the well-established principles and usages of international law.”↩