Iran - Andrew Burke [15]
A Lor from western Iran (for more on the Lors, see the boxed text), Karim Khan Zand (r 1750–79) grabbed power. Almost uniquely, he had little interest in warfare. Instead he is remembered for moving the capital to Shiraz, where he built the impressive Arg-e Karim Khan and the Regent’s Mosque (Masjed-e Vakil; ).
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THE QAJARS & THE CONSTITUTIONAL REVOLUTION
The Qajar dynasty was a disaster for Iran, transforming more than 2000 years of empire and influence into an international laughing stock in just a few decades. Following Karim Khan’s death in 1779, bitter and twisted eunuch Aga Mohammad Khan united the Azari Qajars and created a new capital in the village of Tehran. By 1795 he had wrested control of Persia from Lotf Ali Khan, but just a year later Aga Mohammad Khan was murdered by his own servants.
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Karim Khan Zand rose to rule much of Persia from a power base of just a few rural families. He is renowned as a more compassionate, humble ruler than any in Persian history, and he insisted upon being called vakil (regent) rather than shah.
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Both the Russians and British had their eyes on Iran. Russia was determined to gain access to the Persian Gulf and India, while Britain was equally determined to deny them. During the undistinguished reign of big-bearded Fath Ali Shah (r 1797–1834) Russia captured Georgia, Shirvan (today’s Azerbaijan), eastern Armenia and Daghestan, all semi-independent entities previously within Persia’s sphere of influence.
While responsible for a broad campaign of modernisation, Nasser al-Din Shah (r 1848–96) was generally more interested in collecting art, building museums and servicing his numerous wives. He sired hundreds of princes, all of whom took from the national treasury at will. Inevitably, the Russians asserted control over northern Iran while the British ran things in the south.
The Qajar shahs spent so much on luxuries – such as the Golestan Palace – that the treasury needed constant topping up through hasty sales of state assets. Foreign buyers were more than happy to pick up the bargains. In one notorious incident, Nasser al-Din tried to sell exclusive rights to exploit all Iran’s economic resources (including all the banks, mines and railways) for a one-off sum of UK£40,000 to be followed by payments of UK£10,000 for the next 25 years. He was made to cancel the deal once news of its absurdity leaked out.
When news broke of an attempt to sell the tobacco monopoly, discontent boiled over into revolt. In 1906 the third-last Qajar shah, Muzaffar al-Din (r 1896–1907), was forced to introduce an embryo parliament, the first Majlis, and a constitution. It became known as the Constitutional Revolution.
Worried that such a helpful shah was being weakened, Russia persuaded him to backtrack on his promises. The Majlis was attacked with artillery and in 1908 martial law and dictatorship were introduced by his ruthless son Shah Mohammad Ali, leading to an uprising in Tabriz in 1909 Click here. Shah Mohammad Ali was forced to abdicate in favour of his son, who was still a child. The furore soon died down and in 1911 Shah Ahmad quietly abolished the second Majlis.
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When Cossack-soldier-turned-king Reza Shah moved into the Green Palace he found the dazzling mirrored tiles and four-post bed to be a bit too much, so slept on the floor.
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During WWI both Britain and Russia occupied parts of Iran while the Turks ravaged the partly Christian northwest. Inspired by the new regime in Russia, Gilan (the west Caspian area) broke away in 1920 to form a Soviet republic under Kuchuk Khan.