1.
Tehran
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Tehran is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. It is ranked 29th in the world by the population of its metropolitan area, in the Classical era, part of the present-day city of Tehran was occupied by a Median city that in the Avesta occurs as Rhaga. It was destroyed by the Mongols in the early 13th century, the capital has been moved several times throughout the history, and Tehran is the 32nd national capital of Iran. The city was the seat of the Qajars and Pahlavis, the two last imperial dynasties of Iran. It is home to historical collections, such as the royal complexes of Golestan, Sadabad. Large scale demolition and rebuilding began in the 1920s, and Tehran has been a destination for the migrations from all over Iran since the 20th century. Tabiat Bridge, which was completed in 2014, is considered the third symbol of the city. There have been plans to relocate Irans capital from Tehran to another area, due mainly to air pollution, to date, no definitive plans have been approved. A2016 survey of 230 cities by consultant Mercer ranked Tehran 203rd for quality of living, according to the Global Destinations Cities Index in 2016, Tehran is among the top ten fastest growing destinations. The origin of the name Tehran is uncertain, the settlement of Tehran dates back over 7,000 years. The present-day city of Tehran was a suburb of an important Median city that was known as Rhaga in Old Persian, in the Avestas Videvdat, Rhaga is mentioned as the twelfth sacred place created by the Ohrmazd. In Old Persian inscriptions, Rhaga appears as a province and it was a major area for the Iranian tribes of Medes and Achaemenids. From Rhaga, Darius the Great sent reinforcements to his father Hystaspes, in some Middle Persian texts, Rhaga is given as the birthplace of Zoroaster, although modern historians generally place the birth of Zoroaster in Khorasan. Derived into Modern Persian as Rey, it now as a city located towards the southern end of the modern-day city of Tehran. Mount Damavand, the highest peak of Iran, which is located near Tehran, is an important location in Ferdowsis Shahname, the long Iranian epic poem that is based on the ancient epics of Iran. It appears in the epics as the birthplace of Manuchehr, the residence of Keyumars, the place where Freydun binds the dragon fiend Aži Dahāka, during the Sassanid era, in 641, Yazdgerd III issued his last appeal to the nation from Rey, before fleeing to Khorasan. Rey was dominated by the Parthian Mihran family, and Siyavakhsh—the son of Mihran the son of Bahram Chobin—who resisted the Muslim Invasion, because of this resistance, when the Arabs captured Rey, they ordered the town to be destroyed and ordered Farrukhzad to rebuild the town anew. In the 9th century, Tehran was a well known village, but less known than the city of Rey, the medieval writer Najm od Din Razi declared the population of Rey about 500,000 before the Mongol Invasion
2.
Persian Cossack Brigade
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The Persian Cossack Brigade or Iranian Cossack Brigade was a Cossack-style elite cavalry unit formed in 1879 in Persia. During much of their history they were the functional, effective military unit of the Qajar Dynasty. Acting on occasion as kingmakers, this played a pivotal role in modern Iranian history during the Revolution of 1905–1911, the rise of Reza Shah. Together with a Swedish trained and officered gendarmerie, the Cossack Brigade came to comprise the most effective force available to the Iranian crown in the years prior to World War I. In spite of its name the Brigade was not a typical Cossack force as they were employed in the neighbouring Russian Empire, neither did it have the status of a guard unit. However, effectively it was an elite Cossack-style cavalry unit, as was asked to be created, late nineteenth century photographs show that Russian style uniforms were worn, in contrast to the indigenous dress of other Persian forces at the time. Such secondments were encouraged by the Imperial Russian Government who saw the Cossack Brigade as a means of extending Russian influence in a key area of international rivalry, after the October Revolution in 1917, many of these Russian officers left the country to join the White forces. The command of the Persian Cossack Division was subsequently transferred to Iranian officers, most notable among these officers was General Reza Khan, who started his military career as a private soldier in the Cossack Brigade and rose through its ranks to become a brigadier general. At the time of the Persian Cossack Brigades formation the Shah’s royal cavalry was described as having no training or discipline, the Qajar state at this point was very weak, lacking any professional military forces. In wars against the British the royal cavalry had been defeated, the Tsar Alexander II approved Russian military advisors travelling to Persia to fulfill the Shah’s request. The brigade was formed in 1879 by Lieutenant-Colonel Domantovich, a Russian officer. Russian interests and lack of funding slowed the development of the brigade into a professional fighting force. They possessed special privileges as a military caste. Domantovich made rapid progress with their training and the Shah ordered the strength of the new brigade to be increased to 600 men drawn from the regular army. The rapid progress of the Cossack Brigade caused concern in Russia due to fear that it may become a fighting force rather than a tool of the Russian government. Domantovich was dismissed as commander in 1881 and replaced by the less effective Colonel Charkovsij, Charkovsij added four artillery pieces to the arsenal of the Brigade in 1883 but made no other improvements. In 1886 Colonel Karavaev became commander, during his time, the Brigade faced with budget cuts and thus had its numbers diminished. In 1890 Colonel Shneur took over and was unable to pay the men, after many desertions, combined with a cholera epidemic, the strength was reduced to 450 men, and eventually cut down to 200
3.
Zia'eddin Tabatabaee
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Seyyed Ziaeddin Tabatabaee was an Iranian politician, Mayor of Tehran and the Prime Minister of Iran from February to May 1921 under Ahmad Shah, the last Shah of the Qajar dynasty. Born in Shiraz, Tabatabaee came to power in a coup détat with the help of Reza Khan Mirpanj, when Tabatabaee became prime minister, he was 33 years old. His career did have a start, however. In Shiraz, he first opened a newspaper called Banāy-i Islam, after Rad was shut down by the authorities, he then published another newspaper called Bargh, and became active in the Persian Constitutional Revolution. His political tendencies were perceived to be pro-British by many Iranians, however, when he went into exile in the Palestine in the 1930s, he received money from fascist Italy and promised an oil concession in northern Iran. The historian Ervand Abrahamian characterized Tabatabaee as a right-wing opportunist, in Palestine, he was also hired as a senior consultant by the government of Afghanistan with Britains backing. Tehrans government vehemently objected to this move, leading Kabul to back down on the initiative, Tabatabaee died at the age of 80 of a heart attack in Tehran. Pahlavi Dynasty List of Prime Ministers of Iran Abdolhossein Teymourtash Alí Rizā Awsatí, Iran in the Past Three Centuries, Volumes 1 and 2
4.
Mohammad Taqi Pessian
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Colonel Mohammad Taqi-Khan Pessian was a popular military leader of Iran. He is also known as being the first Iranian to successfully pilot an aircraft. Pessian was born into an aristocratic Azerbaijani family in Tabriz originating in the Caucasus, in Tabriz Mohammad Taqi was educated in sciences, Persian, Arabic and foreign languages. In 1907 he left for Tehran to continue his education and entered college in Germany where he became one of the first Iranians to learn to fly. After 5 years he took up the rank of Second Lieutenant in the Gendarmerie and he was promoted to Major when World War I broke out. In November 1915 as commander of the Gendarmerie in Hamedan he launched an attack on the pro-Russian Persian Cossack Brigade at the Battle of Musalla. His gendarmes managed to disarm the Persian Cossacks and Mohammad Taqi managed to some of the cossacks to join his forces in a patriotic speech he made to them after their defeat. Mohammad Taqi and Major Azizollah Khan Zarghami as Gendarmerie commanders could not defend Hamedan against an advancing Russian Caucasus Army which was superior in numbers, the gendarmes retreated to Kermanshah where they were defeated by the Russians, with many fleeing to the Ottoman Empire. August 1916 saw the return of gendarmes to Kermanshah but again were defeated, during his time in Berlin, he was trained as a pilot in the German Airforce and was rewarded with the Eisernes Kreuz Medal for shooting down more than 25 enemy aircraft during World War I. He also translated works from Persian to/from French, German and English, some of these included Alphone de Lamartine. He also wrote two books in Persian, Sargozasht-e yek javan-e vatandoust and Jang-e Moqaddas az Baghdad ta Iran, in 1920 Mohammad Taqi returned to Iran and joined the Gendarmerie. In June 1920 he was promoted to the rank of Colonel, on 3 April 1921 in a military coup with his small force of only 200 Gendarms, he had Ahmad Qavam, the Governor-general of Khorasan, arrested and sent him to Tehran where he was imprisoned. He then became head of the provincial Autonomous Government of Khorasan, for five continuous years after his death, on 3 October people of Khorasan mourned his death. He is buried in Mashhad, Khorasan in the garden that contains Nader Shahs tomb.33, No.4 October 1997. Institute of Iranian Contemporary Historical Studies, qatl-e Mohammad Taqi Khan Pessian, institute of Iranian Contemporary Historical Studies, Colonel Pessian Photos, Mehdi Jangravi
5.
Autonomous Government of Khorasan
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The Autonomous Government of Khorasan was a short-lived military state set up in what is now Iran. It was formally established on the April 2,1921 and collapsed a few months later, the area administered by the state was approximately 388,332 square kilometres and its capital was Mashhad. Selfimposed Governor-General Major Ismail Khan Bahador was second-in-command to Pesyan and after Pesyans death he tried to maintain Khorasans independence, from 24 August to 3 October. On April 2,1921, Colonel Pesyan, Chief of Gendarmerie of Khorasan has Ahmad Qavam the Governor-general of Khorasan toppled in a coup and has him arrested. Qavam and several other dominant figures in Khorasan were charged with Tax evasion charges which evidence were provided to Pesyan by a Belgian named Dubois who was Director of Revenue in Khorasan, in May 1921, Qavam is freed from prison and Tabatabaee is no longer Prime Minister. Qavam becomes Prime Minister and plans to revenge on Pesyan. As of May 30,1921 Pesyan declares that Khorasan is fully Autonomous, the committee starts a program of plans and reforms, however they face some fierce opposition by some tribal and religious leaders. Commenced between 2 April to 25 May Reform the military organisation of Khorasan and proclamation of martial law, the nizam and Gendarmerie were combined to form this new force. New soldiers were recruited for the new force. In April there were only 200 Gendarms while in October there were approximately 5,000, setup of a finance commission to investigate and assess revenue claims. This had outraged wealthy tribal chiefs and merchants, Reform of the shrine administration, this included steps to be taken against those shrine administrators who had consumed vast amount of shrines revenues. Subsidisine two local newspapers Sharq-e-Iran and Mihr-e-Monir to support the government of Seyed Zia Tabatabaei, commenced between 26 May to 6 Oct Impose of censorship in the telegraph office. Series of arrest of persons believed to have been collaborating with Persias Central Government of Ahmad Qavam, kumiteye Melli-e Khorasan issued a manifesto on 15 September 1921, and prepared a proclamation declaring Khorasan a republic which was postponed by Colonel Pesyan and never implemented. Sold a large amount of grain to a Bolshevik Food Purchasing Commission, extracted forced loans from the wealthy and auctioned off the belongings of the defeated tribal chiefs. Encouraged anti-British stance, pro-Soviet ideas and Persian Nationalist beliefs, imposed a poll tax on all travellers leaving Mashhad and 10% Tax on all exports. Encouraged export of goods to Afghanistan and Soviet Union, established a local Bank in September 1921. Striking of its own coinage was also considered, steps for the inception of a Department of Education were taken, Colonel Pesyan himself sunscribing money in the interests of female schooling. Several tribal leaders who had lost most of their wealth and belongings due to Pesyans reform programs were supported by Qavams government
6.
Persian Socialist Soviet Republic
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The Persian Socialist Soviet Republic was a short-lived Soviet republic in the Iranian province of Gilan that lasted from June 1920 until September 1921. It was established by Mirza Koochak Khan, a leader of the Constitutionalist movement of Gilan, the Jangal movement that had started in 1914 was further boosted and gained gravity after the victory of the Bolsheviks in Russia. In May 1920 the Soviet Caspian Fleet led by Fedor Raskolnikov, the British garrison in Anzali was soon evacuated without any resistance and the British forces retrieved to Manjil. Faced with the conflict between his movement and the united British and central government forces, Kuchik Khan considered several choices, Kuchik Khans second-in-command, Ehsanollah Khan Dustdar, had become a communist and an ardent advocate of an alliance with the Bolsheviks. Kuchik Khan, though hesitant and cautious towards such an idea due to both his religious and nationalist background, accepted and the Jangalis entered into an agreement with the Bolsheviks, the Soviets agreed to support him with ammunition and soldiers. Mirza offered to pay for the ammunition but the Soviets refused any payments, in May 1920, the Soviet Republic of Gilan, officially known as the Persian Socialist Soviet Republic, came into being. The Republic did not redistribute land to poor peasants which was considered as a position by the more radical forces of the Jangal movement. Therefore, soon arose between Mirza and his group of advisors on one side and the Soviets and the Iranian Communist Party on the other. On June 9,1920 Mirza Kuchik Khan left Rasht in protest and also to military confrontation. The Republic also lost support from the population due to the exceedingly high number of war refugees who began flooding the urban centers. By 1921, and particularly after the agreement achieved between the Soviet Union and Britain, the Soviets decided not to support the Soviet Republic of Gilan. The Russo-Persian Treaty of Friendship was then signed, ensuring peaceful relations between the two countries and resulting in the withdrawal of Soviet forces. Reza Khan Mirpanj, who had initiated a successful coup détat with Seyyed Ziaeddin Tabatabaee several days beforehand, the Soviet Republic of Gilan officially came to an end in September 1921. Mirza and his German friend Gauook left alone in the Khalkhal Mountains and it is said that his body was decapitated by a local landlord and his head was displayed in Rasht to establish the government’s new hegemony over revolution and revolutionary ideas. Historians have tried to analyze the factors contributed to the demise of the Jangal movement. The second option got more support and therefore Soviets signed the Anglo-Soviet Trade Agreement with the British in London which required them to retreat from Northern Iran, correspondence between Theodore Rothstein, the Soviet ambassador in Tehran, and Mirza Koochak Khan clearly supports this view. Constitutionalist movement of Gilan Jungle Party Tudeh Party Avetis Sultan-Zade George Lenczowski, Russia and the West in Iran. Ebrahim Fakhrayi, Sardar-e Jangal, Tehran, Javidan,1983, gregor Yaghikiyan, Shooravi and jonbesh-e jangal, Editor, Borzouyeh Dehgan, Tehran, Novin,1984
7.
Simko Shikak
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Simko Shikak was a Kurdish chieftain of the Shakak tribe. He was born into a prominent Kurdish feudal family based in Chihriq castle located near the Baranduz river in the Urmia region of northwestern Iran, by 1920 parts of Iranian Azerbaijan located west of Lake Urmia were under his control. He led Kurdish farmers into battle and defeated the Iranian army on several occasions, the Iranian government had him assassinated in 1930. Simko took part in the massacre of the Assyrians of Khoy and his family was one of the most prominent and politically active Kurdish families throughout Qajar reign from the late 18th to early 20th century. Sadiq Khan Shikak was one of the generals and governors in the Agha Muhammad Khans early Qajar state and was commanding a force of 10,000 soldiers, however, he was soon fell out of favor and Qajar monarch attempted to murder him. Sadiq Khan has been accused of taking part in the assassination of Qajar king in the town of Shusha in 1797. Among other prominent members of the family are Ismail Khan The Great and his son Ali Khan, Muhammad Pasha son of Ali Khan, many members of the family were murdered by the Qajar state such as Cewer Agha who was killed at Tabriz by the order of governor general. In 1905, the Qajar monarch Mozafar-al-Din Shah appointed Husein Qulikhan Nizamul-saltana as the governor of Azerbaijan. According to Iranian historian Ahmad Kasravi, Nizamul-saltana officially invited Cewer Agha to Tabriz in order to him on the border issues between Iran and the Ottoman Empire. Once Cewer Agha arrived in Tabriz, Nizamul-saltana ordered Muhammad Hussein Khan Zargham to invite Cewer Agha to his own residence, Cewer Agha was accompanied by seven of his guards including one of his uncles. Muhammad Ali Mirza, the Iranian Crown Prince, ordered his murder via telegraph sent to Nizamul-saltana, five of Cewer Aghas guards managed to escape from the murder plot in Tabriz in a ferocious battle and return to Chari castle. Cewers father, Muhammad Agha, sought help from Sultan Abdulhamid II in Istanbul to avenge the murder of his son, however Iranian envoy in Ottoman court managed to counter his efforts and according to some sources, Muhammad Agha was assassinated in a Qajar conspiracy in Istanbul. Murder of Cewer Agha caused outrage among the Kurds, moreover, many Iranian intellectuals and constitutionalists in Tabriz and Tehran condemned his assassination. There are different and conflicting views about Simko among Kurdish historians, after the murder of Cewer Agha, Simko became the head of Shikak forces. At this time, Iranian government was trying to assassinate him like the members of his family. In 1919, Mukarramul-Molk, the governor of Azerbaijan, with the help of Armenians, although the plot failed, but it revealed the intentions of the Iranian government, and propelled Simko into a turbulent period of political and military confrontation with Iran. Simko was in contact with other Kurdish nationalists such as Abdurrazaq Badrkhan, Seyyed Taha was a Kurdish nationalist who was conducting propaganda among the Iranian Kurds for the union of Iranian Kurdistan and Turkish Kurdistan in an independent state. He was also aware of the geopolitics and modern nationalism
8.
Khaz'al Khan al-Kaabi
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Khazal bin Jabir bin Merdaw al-Kabi GCIE KCSI, Muaz us-Sultana, and Sardar-e-Aqdas, was the independent Emir of the Sheikhdom of Mohammerah, located today in the Khuzestan province of Iran. The British were providing Khazal with meager shares of the Anglo-Persian Oil Company and they even considered Khazal as a possible king for Iraq. The Bani Kaab were the largest and most powerful tribe in the province, in the early 19th century the Bani Kaab had dissolved into a number of rival clans that often clashed and feuded with each other. Unlike previous leaders of the Bani Kaab, Jabir maintained law and order, Jabir also became the Imperial-appointed governor-general of the province. After Jabirs death in 1881, his son, Mazal, took over as tribal leader and Sheikh of Mohammerah, as well as the provincial governor-general. However, in June 1897 Mazal was killed, some accounts state that he was assassinated by his younger brother, Khazal, while others state that this was done by a palace guard under orders from Khazal. Thereafter Khazal assumed his position as Sheikh of Mohammerah, proclaiming himself not only the leader of the Bani Kaab and he then appointed his sons to the governorships of the various cities, towns and villages within his control, including Naseriyeh. Unlike his brother, Khazal had ambition and he had great vision for the future of Mohammerah and the Arabs. His rule in Mohammerah was Supreme and unhindered, a most astute politician and a far-seeing statesman with personal magnetism. He had ambition and was full of dreams, the rest of the province remained under the domination of Bakhtiari Khans, Lur tribal leaders, and Persian groups. Several of the Bakhtiari Khans, in particular, had entered into alliances with Khazal, the Qajar Shah made him an Officer of the Nishan-e-Aqdas in 1920. Once oil was discovered in Masjed Soleyman in 1908, by the Anglo-Persian Oil Company which later became the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company, eventually BP, the refinery was built and began operating in 1912. Khazal was knighted in 1910 and supported Britain in World War I, as part of the treaty they were given a monopoly of drilling in the province in return for an annual payment to Khazal, though the profits of the company vastly exceeded the annual payments. APOC had made Khaz’al extremely wealthy, not only was Khaz’al receiving revenue from oil production but he also owned a certain amount of shares in the oil company. In all Arabia and its Sheikhdoms, in Mesopotamia and Iran, from the Red Sea to the Caspian, in 1920, the Sheikh of Kuwait, Salim Al Mubarak Al Sabah, ambushed Ibn Sauds men over a border dispute between Kuwait and Najd. When Percy Cox was informed of this event, he sent a letter to Khazal offering the Kuwaiti throne to him or one of his heirs. Khazal, who considered the Al Sabah as his own family, do you think I can accept this. He then asked. even so, do you think that you have come to me something new
9.
Qajar dynasty
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The Qajar dynasty was an Iranian royal dynasty of Turkic origin, specifically from the Qajar tribe, which ruled Persia from 1785 to 1925. The state ruled by the dynasty was known as the Sublime State of Iran. The Qajar family took control of Iran in 1794, deposing Lotf Ali Khan, the last of the Zand dynasty. In the Caucasus, the Qajar dynasty permanently lost many of Irans integral areas to the Russians over the course of the 19th century, comprising modern-day Georgia, Dagestan, Azerbaijan, and Armenia. The Qajar rulers were members of the Karagöz or Black-Eye sect of the Qajars, Qajars first settled during the Mongol period in the vicinity of Armenia and were among the seven Qizilbash tribes that supported the Safavids. The Safavids left Arran to local Turkic khans, and, in 1554 Ganja was governed by Shahverdi Soltan Ziyadoglu Qajar, Qajars filled a number of diplomatic missions and governorships in the 16–17th centuries for the Safavids. The Qajars were resettled by Shah Abbas I throughout Iran, the great number of them also settled in Astarabad near the south-eastern corner of the Caspian Sea, and it would be this branch of Qajars that would rise to power. The immediate ancestor of the Qajar dynasty, Shah Qoli Khan of the Quvanlu of Ganja and his son, Fath Ali Khan was a renowned military commander during the rule of the Safavid shahs Sultan Husayn and Tahmasp II. He was killed on the orders of Shah Nader Shah in 1726, Fath Ali Khans son Mohammad Hasan Khan Qajar was the father of Mohammad Khan Qajar and Hossein Qoli Khan, father of Baba Khan, the future Fath-Ali Shah Qajar. Mohammad Hasan Khan was killed on the orders of Karim Khan of the Zand dynasty, like virtually every dynasty that ruled Persia since the 11th century, the Qajars came to power with the backing of Turkic tribal forces, while using educated Persians in their bureaucracy. In 1779 following the death of Karim Khan of the Zand dynasty, Mohammad Khan Qajar, Mohammad Khan was known as one of the cruelest kings, even by the standards of 18th century Iran. In his quest for power, he razed cities, massacred entire populations, the Qajar armies at that time were mostly composed of Turkomans and Georgian slaves. By 1794, Mohammad Khan had eliminated all his rivals, including Lotf Ali Khan and he reestablished Persian control over the territories in the entire Caucasus. Agha Mohammad established his capital at Tehran, a village near the ruins of the ancient city of Rayy, in 1796, he was formally crowned as shah. In 1797, Mohammad Khan Qajar was assassinated in Shusha, the capital of Karabakh Khanate, between 1747 and 1795, Erekle was, therefore, by the turn of events in Iran following the ongoing turmoil there, able to maintain Georgias autonomy through the Zand period. In 1783, Heraclius placed his kingdom under the protection of the Russian Empire in the Treaty of Georgievsk. In the last few decades of the 18th century, Georgia had become an important element in Russo-Iranian relations than some provinces in northern mainland Persia. On top of that, having another port on the Georgian coast of the Black Sea would be ideal, the consequences of these events came a few years later, when a new Iranian dynasty under the Qajars, emerged victorious in the protracted power struggle in Persia
Government of Persia
United Kingdom
Fathollah Khan Akbar