Ahmad Kasravi's History of the Iranian Constitutional Revolution

Introduction

Thank God that He has granted us success and that we are now beginning the second edition of this History. The first edition was completed under the title The Eighteen-Year History of Azerbaijan because when we began it, we only intended to write about the events in Azerbaijan from the beginning of the Constitutionalist Movement through the eighteen years that followed.Kasravi serialized his History in Peiman, his monthly magazine, from volume 2, number 1 to volume 7, number 9 (Dei 1313 to Khordad 1321 = December 1934 to May 1942). But when we set to work, we noticed that the events of Tehran and Azerbaijan and other places were inseparable. Moreover, as soon as a few issues of the monthly Peiman, in which we were serializing the History, appeared, many readers became interested and wrote up and sent us what they knew and sent us their memoirs or their recollections of others. They were alsoReading همچنین for هچنین. of great help in sending newspapers, books, documents, and pictures. It was as if a group of people had been jolted into action. Because of this help, it was only right for me to devote myself to the events occurring throughout Iran, in Tehran, Azerbaijan, Gilan, and other centers of liberalism. So for these and other reasons, halfway through, The Eighteen-Year History of Azerbaijan became The History of the Iranian Constitutional Revolution,II:9 of P, published in Bahman 1314 (January 1936), gives this explanation for a change of title; however, the title itself was not changed in subsequent volumes of this edition. and we now commence the second edition with that name, a better and more appropriate one. It should be known that in this edition, many facts and illustrations have been added (particularly in the first section), and indeed, it has become a new book.

As for the other reasons which compelled me to write The History of the Iranian Constitutional Revolution, I list them here:

First, thirty years had passed and no one who participated in the movement or who could collect information had come forth to write about it. I saw that the stories were being lost and that no one would be able to gather them in the future. How would others write about a movement which occurred in our time if we did not write about it?!

Second, the constitutional movement started with the pure-hearted but ended with the corrupt. Elements were at work, within and without, which destroyed it, bringing it to naught. The result was the country in chaos, the government powerless, and affairs in disarray. The people did not know how it started [4] and why it ended or why the movement failed. Understanding these mysteries was not easy, and even if someone were to go and collect the facts concerning them, these mysteries would be little understood and remain confusing.

Third, it is the way of feeble-minded people to always notice the powerful, the famous, and the grand in these matters and ascribe great deeds to them and to forget those who actually performed these deeds. This kind of thinking is very common in Iran and there were many examples of this in the events surrounding the Constitution. For example, Their Eminences Tabataba'i, Behbehani and others brought about the constitutional movement in Iran. But one finds Mirza Nasrollah Khan Moshir od-Dawle extolled in newspapers and books as its founder, although this Moshir od-Dawle had exerted not one bit of effort for its sake. Indeed, as we shall see, he connived with Mohammad 'Ali Mirza to destroy it. The only thing he did was to replace 'Ein od-Dawle after the latter was dismissed and act as prime minister when Mozaffar od-Din Shah issued the decree for the Constitution.Give references. Possibly, find references to how he had been “extolled'' in the Pahlavi-era literature.

In The History of the Awakening of the Iranians, Amir-e A`zam, who did nothing, is presented flatteringly as one of the leading liberals.NoteRef4He is praised effusively for his wisdom and valor, “serving his country from beginning to end” and therefore meriting his biography and his picture being placed in Nazem ol-Eslam’s history. (I:212, note 1.) A biography of him published in TBI (I:163-168) depicts him as someone educated both in traditional and in Western learning, having learned French, and an aide to his father, Sepahsalar, of whom Kasravi had much good to say. Being ordered to drive the liberal clergy out of Shah ‘Abdol-‘Azim ([give reference]) where they were taking refuge, he instead returned them with dignity and then brought them before the Shah. (In fact, as Nazem ol-Eslam himself shows in his actual description of the event, he was simply used by the Prime Minister to convince the clergy to blunt the its opposition to him (I:359-60) and that his falling out with his uncle the Prime Minister was a misunderstanding on the latter's part. (I:466)) He is credited with getting the Shah to issue his rescript for convoking a House of Justice, the forerunner of the constitutional-parliamentary system. He later served as governor of Astarabad, where he played a role in disarming the tribes. Thus, if Kasravi is exaggerating somewhat, it is surprising that such a bit player in the constitutionalist drama is made the subject of such a saccharine biography. In Sharif-Kashani, Vaqe'at-e Ettefaqiye dar Ruzegar, this figure's role in the affair of the refuge at Shah ‘Abdol-‘Azim is always depicted in the most sinister tones. See, e.g., p. 50, where he reprints a message to Sayyed 'Abdollah Behbehani along these lines and the anonymous letter which called him the instrument of bribing susceptible refugee clerics (p. 52). Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, however, is very impressed by him, considering him to have been a sincere constitutionalist. Although they did not trust him, being a nephew of 'Ein od-Dawle, they were soon won over by him and saw how he was honestly trying to make peace between the quarreling parties. When 'Ein od-Dawle saw that his position was hopeless, he used this figure to attract his opponents and reach a compromise. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, pp. 303-304) On Sayyed Sayyed 'Abdollah Behbehani and corruption according to the British reports, see Russia and Britain in Persia, especially pp. 309-310, and 496, note 122. 'Ala ol-Molk, who was an infamous enemy of liberty and who, during the Little Autocracy, was sent to Petersburg on behalf of Mohammad 'Ali Mirza to silence the Russian liberal press, which was protesting Liakhov's crimes,See here. His mission to St. Petersburg is particularly ridiculed in Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, pp. 997-1001. and to encourage the Tsar to once more station Liakhov in Iran, is counted among the liberals, and his biography is even included.Although Nazem ol-Eslam Kermani shows that 'Ala ol-Molk was, as Iran's ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, an obedient servant of Amin os-Soltan in getting three Iranian pan-Islamists extradited and sent to their deaths ([give reference]) as Iran's ambassador to the Ottoman Empire (I:12, 14; see the current translation, p. 143), he allows him to exonorate himself as actually having tried to save them by explaining to Amin os-Soltan the virtues of his victims' ideas. (I:15). This explanation is rendered particularly improbable by a statement by a famous comrade of one of the three pan-Islamists published in ibid. in which he says, “It was the Iranian ambassador's ['Ala ol-Molk's] hatred that caused them to be arrested.” (I:101) The author credibly gave him high marks for how he governed his native province of Kerman and eliminated certain abuses (I:215) and the interest he took in education. He is eulogized for this as for many other things in the biographical sketch of him there (I:494-95). Among other things, it is claimed there about him that “during the time of absolutism and constitutionalism, he behaved so as to give the patriots and liberals hope in him,” something which is difficult to reconcile with what was written about him elsewhere in the book. In the Introduction to P, Kasravi presents the following incriminating declaration from 'Ala ol-Molk published in Shams, a liberal Iranian journal published in Istanbul: (II:4-5) His Excellency [the Tsar] and his servants have always sought the well-being of His Royal Person [the Shah] ... One is fully grateful to the person of General Liakhov and we thank him for his worthy services. Although it is reported that the people of Iran complain about Colonel [ sic] Liakhov, this is a pure lie. The great general did nothing more than his duty. The Shah is completely grateful to him. It is surely not hidden from your blessed throne that for some time, the disorder and disturbances of the ignorant and the activities of a bunch of nobodies have caused a great injury to foreign trade, particularly Russian trade. Now (God be praised!), because of the measures taken by the officers, ease and order have been restored everywhere but Azerbaijan, and the cause of this disorder is one Sattar, whose occupation until recently has been brigandry, and who has gathered two or three hundred other brigands and openly robs the people and murders and loots. Europeans do not realize that they have no other occupation than robbery. The Shah has sent forty thousand armed soldiers against them. I hope that they are wiped out soon. Sattar will not hold out long, since he has no more than two or three hundred people with him. It appears that `Ala ol-Molk regretted his collaboration in the execution of the three pan-Islamists; he subsidized the publication of Mirza Aqa Khan Kermani, the most famous of the three, and “somewhat made it up to him and gladdened his soul and made it pleased with him.” (I:12) It should be said that Mirza Aqa Khan Kermani was Nazem ol-Eslam's teacher. As for his mission to St. Petersburg, Nazem ol-Eslam reported it rather honestly: The day after... the [Iranian] parliament was bombarded, ['Ala ol-Molk] was ordered... to go abroad. The apparent reason was to console the Tsar of Russia on the death of his uncle, but actually it was to learn what other countries were thinking about Iran's constitution and to see what their attitude was toward Iran. The biography closes with lavish praise for its subject.NoteRef5 NoteRef3It should be said that at the time he was composing P, Kasravi expressed only admiration for The History of the Awakening and its author, titling the latter as “Blissful Soul,” the Kasravite benediction for expired heros. (P, I:12) It was only by the time he wrote the introduction to the second volume that he turned against the book and its author. On the other hand, Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, makes the same point in his history of the period about Nazem ol-Eslam's praise of people unworthy of it. Indeed, he goes further and writes, Nazem ol-Eslam Kermani, although he made himself out to be a follower of the late graced Tabataba'i, or, to put it better, to confirm that he was a constitutionalist, fixes himself to that great man, had comings and goings with the absolutists and made propaganda for them to get bribes and to protect his interests. He specifically accuses him of being an agent of Farmanfarma's son Nosrat od-Dawle who, as governor of Nazem ol-Eslam's home province of Kerman, was responsible for the bloody persecution of constitutionalists there. He also accuses him of exaggerating the role of the secret society of which he was a member. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 9-10) Elsewhere he declares, “What is certain is that Nazem ol-Eslam's writings, except for the mention of events and the description of events which everyone has seen and knows about and cannot be distorted or altered, are mostly forgeries and far from the truth.” He continues by saying the Nazem ol-Eslam was an insignificant figure in the constitutional movement but uses his History to portray himself as one of its central leaders while repeatedly describing Sayyed Jamal od-Din, who was something of a spiritual father to Dr. Malekzade in his youth, as cowardly and weak. (ibid., p. 268) One can imagine that Dr. Malekzade's objection might have something to do with the short shrift given to his father and constitutionalist martyr, Malek ol-Motekallemin, in The History of the Awakening. Indeed, Dr. Malekzade includes an otherwise gratuitous account of his very own secret society (whose members he now names) which includes fifty-four of the luminaries of the period (excluding Nazem ol-Eslam, of course!), at least four of whom have left memoires behind, none of which mention their author's participation in secret societies. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran p. 236, ff.)

The Iranians are so ignorant of what is good for them and what is bad and their minds are so feeble, so degraded is their thinking that they did not recognize the evil of those many ministers and others who were so two-faced towards the Constitution and emerged from the Bagh-e ShahThe seat of the royalist coup against the Constitution. and took their places in the Beharestan.The home of the Iranian parliament. They did not recognize their evil nature and did not demand an explanation. No one considered them bad people until we wrote about them.

Two classes participated in the constitutional movement: One was made up of ministers and courtiers, the prominent and the grand, the other, of bazaaris, the forgotten and the simple. Few were righteous in the former and few were not in the latter. In any case, this class of the forgotten and the simple did the work and history should be written in their name.

But since the feeble-minded and base-natured want the opposite, they have not been idle lately but have set to work standing the facts on their head and hiding the truth. If history writing were left to them, the feeble-minded, they would doubtless try to turn all the facts on their head and dedicate it to the wrong class.

Fourth, the people of Iran are afflicted with disparate beliefs.The disunity Iranian society was, in Kasravi's estimation, one of its primary afflictions. See Ervand Abrahamian, “Ahmad Kasravi, the Integral Nationalist of Iran” in Elie Kedourie (ed.), Towards a Modern Iran (London: Frank Cass Publishers, June, 1979) One cannot find ten people who have chosen the same way and mode of thought among themselves. The Constitution provided another expression of these conflicts: [5] there would be many discussions in the anjomans and a whole series of childish and baseless speeches would be heard. Constitutionalism was a movement in which thousands of worthy and pure men struggled and for which thousands of youths lost their lives, yet fools, in their ignorance, would greatly belittle it and say, “It was something which others presented and then took back.”It is a common belief among Iranians that the constitutional movement was a result of British intrigue. That the British connived at its demise, however, it not generally disputed by historians of the period.

Several ills are combined here: First, ignorance and unawareness, for these people know nothing of the history of the movement and its secrets. Second, jealousy and selfishness, for they do not have the eye to see nor the ear to hear the good deeds of others. Third, their own or their fathers' opposition to the freedom movement. Although they now enjoy the fruits of the Constitution,The reader is asked to recall that the editions of the History were written under the rule of Reza Shah, who abrogated the Constitution. they have not yet purged the spite from their hearts. The combination of these factors has led them to utter such vileness and stupidity. Since the history of the movement was [un]written and no one was correctly informed about it, no one answered them.

Fifth, as we have said, the forgotten and the simple did the work in the constitutional movement, but since certain people wanted the movement to remain unsuccessful, these zealous men were shoved aside and mistreated, their lives being made as bitter as possible. (This in itself is another heart-rending story.) It would be a terrible wrong for the very names of such people to vanish and no gratitude be expressed for them in history and their righteousness remain obscured. This would not please God nor would honesty and pure-heartedness allow it. Moreover, it would have constituted a grievous loss, whether from the standpoint of the progress of the nation and the country or the propagation of meritorious qualities.

Sixth, many of the events which occurred in Iran during the time of the constitutional movement were written up in the European newspapers and books, but, of course, their writers were only after their own countries' interests, and they distorted these events.In fact, in his introduction to P (I:11), Kasravi expresses strong appreciation of historians like Browne and Rabino (who “brightened the Iranians' eyes”). He favorably quoted Mirza Hosein Khan Danesh who equated Browne's ink with Sattar Khan's sword. If we had not written this History, they would have become definitive documents and done Iran harm.

Seventh, one of the problems with Iranians is that they are so quick to forget the past. We see how the masses have forgotten those dark days gone by and how they are not satisfied with the comforts which they enjoy today. They must always have the times of darkness and chaos set clearly before their eyes.

No matter how we considered it, this History had to be written. So we felt we had no choice and set to work on it. After much effort, we were able to publish a correct edition of it. Since some good people founded a Company and took the burden of expenses for paper and printing upon themselves, I thank them and will discuss the Company and the names of its founders in the final part of the book.In Peiman, VI:12 (Esfand 1319 = March 1941), an article, “On the Second Printing of The History of the Iranian Constitutional Revolution” (its first printing having been as a separate edition published after it had been serialized in Peiman), Kasravi reports that the publication was funded by the Sherkat-e Sahmiye Chapkhaneye Peiman, the Peiman Press Stock Company. In the same issue, a gallery of Peiman's secondary supporters is published: Mssrs. Vakilpur, Afje'i, and Daneshvar of Isfahan, Mssrs. Hariri, Mehdiye, Eslami, and Solhi of Tabriz, Mr. Khatibi of Reza'iye, Mr. Taheri Shahab of Sari, Mr. Dahlavi of Save, Mr. Mansuri of Shapur, Mr. Neqva Pakbaz of Ferdaws, Mssrs. Aryanpur and Shokuhian of Maraghe, Mr. Haqqani of Marand, Mr. Kasma'i of Malayer, Mr. Habashi of Miane, Mr. Farohi of Miandoab, Mr. Jalali of Nahavand. In the sixth volume, page 648, a photograph of the leaders of Peiman is printed, including Hasan Eqbali, Mohammad Maleknezhad, Kasravi himself, Reza Soltanzade, Morteza Modarresi, and Mohammad Feyzi. Biographical informataion about these people should be preserved.

[6] Here, I must note a few matters:

First, some who consider themselves historians include me among their number. I remind them that I am not an historian and am not among their ranks. It is common that someone attempts a task but is not a specialist in the field concerned.

Second, what I have published in this History is mostly from information which I had or searched for and obtained—from books, magazines, and memoirs (a list of which I will publish in the final part).Kasravi never lived to write this. We have attempted to provide a list of this material.

In any case, this book is a product of research, reflection, and understanding. It might be included among the documents of the history of Iran. Let others, if they wish, make use of these writings and credit them in their writings in the name of the book (and not in my name). The manner that certain people in Iran have adopted, of taking articles or books and altering them by tinkering with them and then palming them off as their own, is very vile. People who do this must ever be considered vile.

Third, to the extent possible, we will not put the title Aqa before names. It conveys no meaning and provides no information. Men call each other Aqa when addressing each other and this is a display of mutual respect. But there is no place for this in the History except for where it is a permanent part of a name, and then we have had to retain it.

As for titles, we would have liked not to have used them either. We have been forced to do otherwise for several reasons: First, many people are known by their titles and we do not know their names. Second, it is mostly titles which are referred to in the telegrams and writings we will produce, and it would not do for us to write the History in two different styles, using only names [in the text] and titles [in the documents]. Third, one must try to depict the events as they developed in a history and to get as close to the truth as one can. Deleting titles would not be appropriate since it would not portray things as they really were.

We have exposed the evils and shortcomings of that time. One of these shortcomings and evils were these honorifics, and in no way should we change them and not expose them.

It is true that titles have disappeared, but it should be kept in mind that the various crowns and cloaks of that time have also disappeared. Just as we show these crowns and cloaks in pictures and consider them useful in illuminating history, so there is no reason for us to dispense with titles.

The same holds for Khan and Mirza and the names of cities which have been changed. We will keep them the way they were in those days until we come to the time when they were removed or changed.

Tehran. February 1941

Ahmad Kasravi

Chapter 1: How did the Iranians Awaken?

In this chapter is are discussed the events in Iran from the times of Haji Mirza Hosein Khan Sepahsalar to the beginning of the constitutionalist movement.

Iran before the Constitutional Movement

We know that when Nader Shah was killed, the greatness his efforts had given Iran vanished. But Iran was still included among the renowned countries of Asia, and if Karim Khan and his successors did not add anything to the country, neither did they subtract from it. But in the times of the Qajars, Iran became very weak and lost much of its greatness, prestige, and renown. This was chiefly because the world had changed and countries had stirred but Iran remained in the same state in which it had been.

More than fifty years passed between Karim Khan Zand's death in 1157Kasravi has solar year 1293; it should be 1193. [1779] and 1212 [1834] and Fath 'Ali Shah's in 1212Kasravi has solar year 1249; it should be 1349. [1834]. In this brief period, there were violent movements and unparalleled historical events in Europe such as the French Revolution, the rise of Napoleon and his incessant wars, the movement of the masses, progress in the art of war, the appearance of new machinery, and so on. As a result, great and powerful governments arose. Iran was ignorant of these changes and upheavals and benefited from them not at all. In fact, neither the Qajar kings nor the nation's agitators took any notice of these movements and changes. They lived on in their own old ways, oblivious.

The result was that two powerful, great, and alert governments arose, one to the north of Iran,The Russian Empire. the other to its south,The British Empire. and Iran remained weak and ignorant between them. The dimwitted Qajar kings were indeed not fit to rule in such a time.

They learned nothing from history. Fath 'Ali Shah's successive defeats at the hands of the Russians and Mohammad Shah's and Naser od-Din Shah's defeats at the hands of the British led to severe losses for Iran and terribly diminished her greatness, but this did not awaken the Qajar Shahs or the Iranian masses. [8] Fath 'Ali Shah, Mohammad Shah, and Naser od-Din Shah succeeded each other and carried on as ever. As for the people, they passed their days under their rule, eyes closed and ignorant. It was only in the last years of Naser od-Din Shah's reign that there was a little stirring and awakening among the people.

These shahs would not do anything themselves, nor would they allow others to. Mirza Abol-Qasem Qa'em-e Maqam was an able Minister in the time of Mohammad Shah and performed his duties properly. But Mohammad Shah killed him and replaced him with Haji Mirza Aqasi.

In Naser od-Din Shah's time, Mirza Taqi Khan Amir-e Kabir tried to put Iran in order and showed competency in both diplomacy and statecraft. Naser od-Din Shah killed him and replaced him with Mirza Aqa Khan Nuri. Again, Haji Mirza Hosein Khan Sepahsalar went to work and showed awareness and ability. But Naser od-Din Shah did not support him, nor did the people appreciate him and his deeds.

Haji Mirza Hosein Khan Sepahsalar

In 1288 [1870], Naser od-Din Shah summoned Sepahsalar from Istanbul.Properly speaking, he was not yet Sepahsalar, this being a title, as Kasravi points out, which was only to be bestowed on him later. Having noted this, we follow Kasravi's usage. First he made him Minister of Justice and then Prime Minister. He was a good and capable man. Having recently spent time in Istanbul and other places, he was aware of what was happening in the European countries. He therefore wanted to rouse Iran and to put the government's operation in order. He checked the governors' unbridled rule and eliminated bribery. One good thing he did was to create ministries and a royal court on the European model. There had previously been ministries but they lacked order and specified jurisdictions. The Shah or the Prime Minister would interfere in everything and give the orders. Sepahsalar decided that there was to be one Prime Minister and nine ministries: the Ministry of the Interior, the Foreign Ministry, the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Taxation, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Public Works, the Ministry of Trade and Agriculture, and the Ministry of the Royal Court. Tasks were divided among them so that each ministry would concentrate on its own work and be free and independent within its jurisdiction but would be accountable to the Prime Minister. These ministries, along with the Prime Ministry, were to be called the Grand Court. The important affairs of the country were discussed in the presence of the Prime Minister in the Council of Ministers, which met twice a week.

I have the bill concerning this which was written on 12 Sha'ban 1289 [11 October, 1872] and received the Shah's signature. Reading it, one sees clearly how insightful and capable Sepahsalar was.A copy of it appears in the introduction to The History of the Awakening. [–AK] (I:139-142) Indeed, this section is a almost entirely a summary of The History of the Awakening's discussion of Sepahsalar. (During his time there was also talk of building a railroad and a concession for it was granted to the British, but we do not have any information about the details.This refers to the 1872 Reuters concession, see Firuz Kazemzadeh, Russia and Britain inersia, 1864-1914 (Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 1968), Chapter 2, where the terms of the concession are laid out (pp. 105 ff.) The concession included the privilege to work any new mining and irrigation projects and a monopoly on tax farming, among other far-reaching grants. Sepahsalar was the concessions “chief proponent.” (p. 111))

This good man wanted the Shah to know about the nature of European governments and about the cooperation between king [9] and people, and how advanced they were. He wanted to win him over to his ideas about Iran. He therefore thought it best to get him to go to Europe and observe. It was at his urging that the Shah set off for Europe with Sepahsalar in 1290 [1873].

But this journey resulted in a setback, for in Sepahsalar's absence, those who were dissatisfied with what he had doneIdentified as the courtiers in The History of the Awakening, I:135. took the opportunity to tell the mullahs: “Sepahsalar wants to make Iran like the land of the Franks and has given a concession to the English for a railway.” The mullahs, i.e., [10] Sayyed Saleh 'Arab and Haji Mullah 'Ali and others, were shocked by this. They rose up against Sepahsalar. They declared him an atheist and wrote a letter to Naser od-Din Shah demanding that the Shah not bring Sepahsalar back to Tehran with him.The History of the Awakening adds that they threatened that they would not recognize him as Shah. (I:135) This letter reached the Shah in Rasht, and since the mullahs were very powerful in those days, the Shah had no choice. He made Sepahsalar governor of Gilan, left him there, and returned to Tehran without him.See Kazemzadeh, pp. 111-118, for details on the diplomatic and domestic politics of this tour.

However, the Shah summoned Sepahsalar back to Tehran the next year and made him Sepahsalar [Commander in Chief] and Foreign Minister. Haji Mirza Hosein Khan conciliated some of the mullahs and was again involved in important matters. In 1295 [1878], he once more convinced the Shah to go to Europe while he himself pursued his ideas. But the Shah was not convinced at heart, some of the mullahs persisted in their enmity, and one of the neighboring countries would not desist from sabotaging his work. Thus Sepahsalar's ideas came to nothing and the Shah dismissed him from his post and sent him to govern Khorasan, where he passed away in 1298 [1881].

Mirza Malkom Khan and Sayyed Jamal od-Din

In 1306 [1889], Naser od-Din Shah made his third trip to Europe. This time, he took along Mirza 'Ali Asghar Khan Amin os-Soltan, who had replaced Sepahsalar as Prime Minister. But these journeys did no good. The Shah became devoted to the idea of a legal code after he returned from his travels and instructed Mirza 'Ali Khan Amin od-Dawle to write a code of laws for Iran. The newspaper Akhtar considered this a herald of Iran's progress and wrote as much.Document But, as has been recorded, all this was in vain. Instead of concluding that Europe's power and greatness were a result of the cooperation between government and people and then rousing his people and doing useful things, the Shah was overwhelmed by the sight of such power and greatness and lapsed into despair, behaving more impotently and basely before his neighbors. This condition was exacerbated by the fact that his closest advisor and confidant was Amin os-Soltan, whose sole desire was to be in power, rule the people, and take and give as he pleased. He exercised all his guile and wits to this end and submitted to foreigners' demands in order to stay in office.

Because the Shah was overwhelmed and powerless and Amin os-Soltan was crooked and ill-intentioned, foreigners, particularly the British, were given concessions during the last years of Naser od-Din Shah's rule. The most notorious of these was the Tobacco Concession. As we will relate, all this inflamed the masses.

Two of the people in Naser od-Din Shah's time who were concerned about the people and the country and struggled to awaken them were Malkom Khan Esfahani and Sayyed Jamal od-Din Asadabadi.

Malkom was an Armenian from Jolfa, Isfahan. He was a member of the civil service [11] and reached a high post. He went to Europe and, apparently, embraced Islam. This man was knowledgeable and intelligent and knew the truth about the policies of the European governments towards Asia. He was, therefore, concerned about Iran's situation. And so he struggled to awaken the people. He was Haji Mirza Hosein Khan's confidant when the latter was Prime Minister.

Mirza Malkom Khan's writings all show how aware and knowledgeable he was. This is doubtless why he was an enemy of Naser od-Din Shah's autocracy and Amin os-Soltan's selfishness and crookedness, and why he protested the concessions given to foreigners, exposing the harm they would bring. In any case, Malkom belonged to a group of Freemasons and his writings are influenced by this. Since we do not know anything about this group's ideas and intentions, we will not pass judgment on Malkom in this matter.The role of Freemasonry in the Iranian constitutional revolution has been an object of intense speculation among a certain class of Iranian historians. For a positive view of the role of Freemasonry in Iranian thought, see Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran (pp. 88-89), who declares that after his death, the leading constitutionalist mojtahed, Sayyed Mohammad Tabataba'i, was discovered to have been a high-ranking Freemason himself. (ibid., p. 173)

Mirza Malkom Khan wrote a newspaper in Persian which was printed in London,Qanun. copies of which we have. He lived two years into the constitutional movement, residing in Europe.Mirza Malkom Khan's record is rather more spotty than TMI would indicate. See Hamid Algar, Mirza Malkum Khan (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1973) and Russia and Britain inersia, especially pp. pp. 242-247.

As for Sayyed Jamal od-Din, he went to Iran twice. The second time (1307 [1889]), he was expelled on the Shah's orders. The Sayyed was a brave man and denounced the Shah's autocracy and Amin os-Soltan's greediness. He inspired the people, agitated them, and attracted a following. However, Sayyed Jamal od-Din's efforts in Iran and Egypt and the Ottoman Empire never really came to anything. His disciples exaggerate when they talk of him.For example, Mohammad Pasha Makhzumi, author of Memoirs regarding Jamal od-Din Afghani wrote this concerning the Sayyed's expulsion from Iran: “When news of this spread, Jamal od-Din's friends rioted against the government, and rivers of blood almost flowed in the gutters.” This is a pure lie. [–AK] The quotation is from Khatirat Jamal ud-Din al-Afghani al-Hoseini (Dar ul-Fikr, Damascus, 1965), p. 32. This book was written between 1892 and 1897, soon after the sayyed died, under the rule of Sultan 'Abd ul-Hamid, with its author fearing for his life. (ibid., p. 1) Without entering into a discussion of the entire book, it must be said that the section on the sayyed's stay in Iran (ibid., pp. 29-32) is based almost entirely on the author's fancy. According to him, after the sayyed wandered around Arabia, he received an invitation from Naser od-Din Shah. He lived with Isfahan's “wise and shrewd” governor Zell os-Soltan, “who saw in the sayyed a good guide for both the Shah and Iran.” He was then introduced to the Shah and became “his special advisor, so that no order was given in the kingdom without Jamal od-Din's having seen it.” At the same time, the sayyed worked for the complete administrative reform and the arousal of the people to participate in the kingdom's affairs. The Shah gradually noticed what the sayyed was about, and the sayyed realized this, and so asked permission to travel for a change of atmosphere. Permission having been granted, he went to Russia. After touring the cities of Russia and meeting statesmen and scholars, word of his hatred of the British brought him to the Tsar's attention. The Tsar invited the sayyed to his palace where they had a long conversation. In the course of the conversation, the Tsar asked the sayyed what his difficulties with the Shah were, and the sayyed replied that they were over his belief in rule by consultation, which appalled the Shah. The Tsar stated his agreement with the Shah on this issue, “for how could a king agree to be ruled by his peasants?” The conversation having taken a definite turn for the worse, as the author writes, the sayyed's departure was less friendly than his welcome, and he was forced to leave Russia. He then wandered Europe denouncing the Shah and calling for a constitutional government. He met the Shah in 1889 in Munich when the Shah was touring Europe on his visit to the Paris Exposition. The sayyed apologized to the Shah for the extremity of his attacks on him, and the Shah granted him permission to accompany him. But on his return to Iran, princes and scholars deluged him to benefit from his wisdom. The Shah spoke with him, and the sayyed explained to him the benefits of constitutional rule. But the sayyed's explanation only confirmed the warning he had received from his Grand Vazir, that his ideas would do absolutely no good for the kingdom. Sensing his declining fortunes, the sayyed asked to be allowed to go to Shah ‘Abdol-‘Azim. Having been granted permission, he left, trailed by a crowd of grandees and scholars. He addressed them, and his words stirred the country far and wide. The Shah, now thoroughly alarmed, sent five hundred horsemen to the sayyed's residence and drove him, suffering from a high fever, out of the country and far from his followers. The author concludes this discussion saying, “As soon as news of Jamal od-Din's banishment in such a fashion spread in Iran, his friends and followers rose up and rebelled in such a fashion that the Shah's government caused riveres of blood to flow…”

The Sayyed tried to do great things but did not know how to go about doing them. In those days, he never forgot about himself. In such efforts, the first step is to forget about oneself. The Sayyed would have achieved better results if he had devoted all his energies to enlightening the people and developing ideas instead of going from one court to another.Kasravi is here writing against his apparent source, Nazem ol-Eslam Kermani, Tarikh-e Bidariye Iranian, which includes a lengthy hagiography of Sayyed Jamal od-Din in its first volume.

As for the second time, Naser od-Din Shah had seen the Sayyed in Munich and summoned him to Iran, but we do not know why and for what task and with what promises.Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, Tarikh-e Enqlelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, pp. 90-92, reproduces a very favorable memoir of the Sayyed by the Iranian military hero 'Abbas Mirza. It explains the otherwise puzzling behavior of the Shah in inviting the sayyed to Iran and then putting him under virtual house arrest by saying that while the Shah was in Britain, he was urged to invite the sayyed to Tehran in order to better control him, and so the Shah sent the Sayyed on a mission to St. Petersburg and then invited him back after it was “accomplished.” His disciples say that he was promised the prime ministry, but this is not credible. In a country like the Iran of those days, the Prime Minister's post was not given so easily and freely. Besides, the Prime Minister knew about Jamal od-Din being summoned to Iran, and it is obvious that he did not invite him to take his place. Of course, it could be said that the Sayyed himself expected to obtain [12] such a post from the Shah.

Sayyed Jamal od-Din's Letter to Naser od-Din Shah

We have a letter in Persian from the Sayyed to Naser od-Din Shah which, it is said, was written while he was taking refuge in ‘Abdol-‘Azim. Since this letter would shed a little light on why the Sayyed returned to Iran, we reproduce it here in full:This letter appears in the introduction to The History of the Awakening [I: 82-87], and we take it from there as is, with the errors contained in it. [–AK]

Submitted before the lofty Sublime Port and His Exalted Sublime Highness, His Excellency, King of Kings, Shelter of Islam.

In Munich, when I was delighted [?—AK] by being included among those with permission to accompany the royal retinue, His Honor the Prime Minister, Amin os-Soltan, in that very same sublime presence, thought it good that This Humble One should first go to Saint Petersburg in order to attend to certain urgent matters, and come to Iran after taking care of them. His Majesty the King of Kings (May God please augment his domain!) approved of this.

On the evening of that noble day, His Honor the Prime Minister spoke with This Humble One for five hours. To summarize what he said: First, it is not fair for the Russian government and men of consequence and newspaper proprietors to make him the target of their dartsReading “BRJLS” as “BRJAS,” “borjas,” i.e., target, at the suggestion of R. M. McGlinn. Kasravi indicates that he could not understand the text here as transcribed. and behave in a hostile fashion towards himAmin os-Soltan began his career as a staunch anglophile and switched sides only when it became apparent that the British cause was hopeless. See Kazemzadeh, Russian and Britain inersia, e.g., p. 194, 251, 267, and 272. It is not surprising that the Russian press would attack him. because he, i.e., His Honor the Prime Minister, is neither king nor sovereign and has not the power to bind and loose. Moreover, the issues of the Karun River, banks, and mines arose before his being elevated to the post of Prime Minister. The most that could be said was that, as luck would have it, their implementation fell during his administration.The Karun River flows by Ahvaz to the Shatt al-Arab. Access to it was coveted by the British as a means of navigating from the Persian Gulf to the interior. Its opening in 1888 by royal decree shocked Russian public opinion and outraged the Tsarist government. (Kazemzadeh, Russian and Britain inersia, e.g., p. 195-96). Amin os-Soltan is justified in his pleading, since the British campaign to open this river had been underway for over a decade before it succeeded, a mere year into his term.

So upon entering Saint Petersburg, we were to exculpate and vindicate him and transform the Russian ministers' false ideas about him and and confirm his good intentions towards the Russian government.

Secondly, he requested that This Humble One should personally tell Monsieur Giers,Nikolai Karlovich Giers. Appointed Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs in 1875, promoted to Foreign Minister in 1882, he guided Russian foreign policy since 1879. He was “a gray, cautious, uninspired but professionally competent diplomat. Seen by the militarist element in Russia as an obstacle. (Kazemzadeh, Russian and Britain inersia, p. 59) Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, and his aides, NikolaiFor VYLNKALY.It is unclear to whom this refers. and ZinovievFor ZYNWWYB.Ivan Alekseyevich Zinoviev, the Russian Minister in Tehran. Son of a professor of Oriental languages in the Lazarev Institution, from which he himself would graduate. “[P]erhaps the ablest representative Russia had ever had in Iran, [he] knew Persian, as well as some Turkish and Arabic, and was intimately familiar with the country where he had made his diplomatic career. His devotion to Russian imperialist ideals was a great as his mistrust and dislike of Great Britain.” (Kazemzadeh, Russian and Britain inersia, pp. 74-75, 162, 203) He spent over twenty years as Russia's representative in Iran and left Iran, after which he became the Director of the Asiatic Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1883. (ibid., p. 171, 173) that he, i.e., His Honor the Prime Minister, is prepared unconditionally to confirm his good intentions: that if the Russians provide us with a solution, he would resolve the problem of the Karun, banks, and mines in the space of a few days and would restore [them] to their former state.

Since This Mere One thought that the success of the aims of His Honor the Prime Minister was precisely the King's satisfaction and the Islamic people' weal, we returned to Saint Petersburg and tried to win over several people whom we considered sympathetic to us regarding policies towards the lands of the Orient, such as General ObruchevAdjutant General N. N. Obruchev, the creator of the Russian General Staff and a participant in the military reforms of the 1860-70s. He participated in the Special Conference on Persia of February 1890. (Kazemzadeh, Russian and Britain in Persia, p. 232) in the military and General Dichter in the Ministry of the CourtDocument and General Ignatiev, former Russian ambassador in Istanbul,Count Nikolai Pavlovich Ignatiev. As ambassador to Constantinople (1864–1877), he pursued a pan-Slavist policy which led to the Russo-Turkish war of 1877-78 and an increase in Russian power in the Balkans. Was also, incidently, the prime mover behind the pogroms against the Jews in the early 1880's. and Mme. Novikov,For NWDPKF. Olga Novikoff, as she was known outside Russia ((1862-1910). “During the Anglo-Russian crises between 1876 and 1904 Novikoff was an unofficial lobbyist in England for Russia and for the Pan-Slavic cause…” (“Guide to the Novikova Collection”) an influential lady generally active regarding diplomatic problems between England and Russia. We got them to agree with us. In the space of two months, we met twenty times with Monsieur Giers and his aides. Before we addressed the intentions of his Honor the Prime Minister, we first tried, through political argumentation and with the help of those who shared our views, to confirm that [13] it is in the interests of the Russian government in the lands of the Orient to always behave peacefully, amicably, and courteously towards the Iranian government, rather than with harshness and hostility, all the while reminding them of the kindness and generosity of his Majesty the King of Kings, Shelter of Islam, regarding the AtrakA river originating in the mountains of Khorassan and emptying into the Caspian Sea. In 1882, Iran and Russian signed an accord making the Atrak River a frontier between the two countries. The region was under the sway of Turkoman tribes. and the lands of the TurkomansThe Russians long insisted that it was they and not the Iranians who had broken Turkoman power and felt that it was they who should excersize the authority over the areas now liberated from Turkoman depredations. This quarrel dated back to Russia's creeping annexation of Khiva in the early 1870's. (Kazemzadeh, Russia and Britain in Persia, pp. 11-12, 27, 32) and other places. When we considered that this primary point had been made and accepted and their attention diverted and the fires of their wrath cooled, we then raised the issue of His Honor the Prime Minister's intentions, saying that the Prime Minister himself told us in Munich to communicate to you the fact that if you indicate a policy which will not lead to war and destruction, he is prepared to solve the problem of the Karun, banks, and mines and restore the former balance between the governments of Russian, Iran, and England. We spoke of this matter in such a way that, as far as possible, we might exculpate His Honor the Prime Minister and demonstrate his good intentions towards the Russian government. We even wrote to him twice about these matters from Saint Petersburg. After repeatedly asking about His Honor the Prime Minister's good intentions, Monsieur Giers and his aides said, “We must consult on this matter with the Minister of War and the Minister of Taxes first and submit the results of our consultations to the Emperor and then, if a diplomatic way is found by which one might resolve the issue, we will tell you in person what you might tell His Honor the Prime Minister by way of reply. Of course it would be better if this matter be resolved in such a way as not to lead to hostilities between our government and the government of Iran.”

After several rounds of consultations, they decided upon two principles [politik], one for themselves and the other for His Honor the Prime Minister. They told us that if His Honor the Prime Minister desires to close the gates to future dangers, in response to [your] mission, expound upon these two principles on our behalf. If each of us bases the development of our policies [politik] on these two policies, the issues would resolve themselves without destruction or strife, and it would be a cause for satisfaction for all concerned. This Humble One was pleased that, by God's power, after learning all about the secret Russian policies in the lands of the Orient, we were able, on our own, to perform a service to the government of Islam, and to make the Prime Minister pleased with us.

When we arrived in Tehran, we paused before the city and informed His Honor the Prime Minister. His Honor assigned me to stay in Haji Mohammad Hasan Amin oz-Zarb's house, saying that his son would be our host. This Humble One did not move from my place for three entire months except once, and then only after a month when we had the great honour of attending [the Shah], and we were honored by the royal favor. All this time, His Honor the Prime Minister asked This Humble One absolutely nothing concerning what had transpired in Saint Petersburg or the answer to the problem for which he had sent us there. Indeed, during this time, we sent notes to him several times asking after him. He promised a lengthy meeting. But after a while, when the state of affairs was asked about, I responded that so far there had been no request for information from the Prime Minister and that we did not even know why. When the disinterest of His Honor the Prime Minister became known to the Russian Ministry, they considered all This Mere One's pleading [14] and arguments and clever promotion in Saint Petersburg to be recourse to all manner of trickery, insults, and contempt or even political stratagems intended to uncover the thinking of the other side. (Would that it had been requested! The thinking of the other side would have been uncovered!) They sent a telegram to their embassy in the House of the Caliphate, Tehran, saying, “Sayyed Jamal presented some verbal promotion on behalf of the Prime Minister. If the Prime Minister wants to enter into these matters, let him speak directly and officially with either the Russian mission in Tehran or with the Iranian mission in Saint Petersburg. If Sayyed Jamal od-Din, who has presented views unofficially, says anything further of this sort, it will not be accepted.” (“There is no power and no strength except in God.”Common expression of exasperation.) “Having traveled with much trouble, he returned in retreat to his point of departure.” (Astonishing!) “The knot once unbound, is bound again a second time.” (Astonishing!)

His Majesty, the Shelter of Islam, by his God-given knowledge of diplomacie knows the results of such activity better than anyone else. When His Honor the Prime Minister was informed of the contents of this telegram, contrary to all the political customs of the world, instead of expressing regret that the thinking of the Russian ministers in this matter was not investigated and that their replies were not heard, he told 'Arab Saheb,A certain Grigorovich, “a Russianized Arab,” who, among other things, was the translator for the Russian legation in Tehran in the late 1870. He was very well connected in Iranian society and expert at ferreting out government secrets by mingling with the highest levels of Iranian officialdom. He continued his work well in the 1890s. (RBP, pp. 167, 273) “I had never said anything to Sayyed Jamal od-Din about advocating [our views] to the Russian government and I never sent him to Petersburg.”Moved the original parentheses. (“We are God's and to Him do we return.”Koran, ii:156. Uttered by Muslims in a state of mourning.) What a double game, what idle thinking, and what a rotten result! How can the road to danger be blocked and annihilation be avoided with this policy? “Needlessly sowing doubt in hearts and filling hearts pointlessly with hatred; May God the Exalted protect us from the noxious effects of these actions by His omnipotence!...”In Arabic. Find the source. And most amazing of all, after we had heard promises of honor and praise for us from the blessed tongue of His Majesty the King of Kings, Haji Mohammad Hasan Amin oz-Zarb said, “It is His Majesty the King of King's pleasure that This Mere One [ i.e., Jamal od-Din] leave Tehran and reside by the shrines of the city of Qom.” However [much] we examine hisXWD, refering to the Prime Minister. inner thinking,Reading NYAYA for XBAYA we do not know the reason – Is it because, through arguments and other means, we persuaded the Russian government of the policy and good intentions of the Iranian government? Or because we went to Saint Petersburg at the behest of the Prime Minister and tried to clear his name and demonstrate his good intentions to the Russian government? Or because we brought about solutions to problems as the Prime Minister had desired, by dint of sheer effort? Although regret is appropriate for this experience, the reward I obtained in this first reception has been sufficient for me not to think of Iran ever again, yet I consider the King of King's word as sacred and wanted it to be known that, contrary to what had been said, I am both well-meaning and obedient. Moreover, what kind of plot is it which these babblers contemplate? May God be with you! If, God forbid, what has transpired turns us away from a policy of friendship, what reproach would be upon me? Praise God! The disturbing imputations of enemies ever drive these possessors of meager minds and miserable souls to confuse the brilliant and piercing mind of His Majesty, the King of Kings, against This Mere One. Lo, we reside at the shrine of His Holiness ‘Abdol-‘Azim until the command, whatever it might be, is issued from the Source of Might.

We pray to exalted God [15] that He may assist you with justice and righteousness, aid you with wisdom, and uphold your dynasty with His might and guard it against the intrigues of traitors. Amen.In Arabic.

The mere

Jamal od-Din el-Hoseini

The Beginning of the Iranian People's Awakening

We said that concessions were granted to foreigners in the latter years of Naser od-Din Shah's rule. First, a concession was given to the British in the time of Sepahsalar to build a railroad from Bushahr to Gilan. This must be considered a mistake on the part of Sepahsalar. This concession was never implemented and was retracted after ten or so years and forgotten.This was the Reuter's Concession proposed in 1872 and signed in 1873. It was almost immediately nullified by the Iranians, who came to see Reuters as a fraud. TMI's description of the concession is only the tip of the iceberg. See Kazemzadeh, Russia and Britain inersia, chapter 2, which has Sepahsalar interested in the scheme out of pecuniary motivations. But in 1890, Naser od-Din Shah granted other concessions, the best known of these being the Tobacco Concession. The people saw no harm in this. Until that time, the masses were not concerned with what was good or bad for the country and did not raise questions about government affairs. But since these concessions expanded the foreigners' base in the country and the European presence in Iran was spreading, the people, particularly the mullahs, could not abide it and complained. These events opened the people's eyes and the tobacco concession was nullified because of their resistance movement.Here, the thrust of Kasravi's writing is quite different than Nazem ol-Eslam's (I:25): The important people of Iran, including the clergy, were aware of how dangerous and damaging this would be, that sums of money would be obtained and not spent on the country's prosperity, but on the pension of some prince or the feeding of some mullah's boy or trips to the land of the Franks or the needs of a pretty lady... The country would be dominated and thoroughly infiltrated. On the Tobacco Regie, see Kazemzadeh, Russia and Britain inersia, Chapter 4.

This concession was very bad for Iran. The sale of all tobacco for the country, whether domestic or for export, was given over to one Englishman in exchange for an annual fee of £ 15,000, to be paid to the government along with a commission of one quarter of the proceeds. In the Ottoman Empire, where there was less tobacco than in Iran, only the domestic sale of tobacco was given over to a company in exchange for an annual fee of £ 700,000 to be paid to the Ottoman government, along with a commission of one fifth of the profits. Do you see the difference?

The people did not know about these calculations, but they were worried because the foreigners had obtained a base inside the country. Then again, it offended them that the tobacco which they planted would be sold to one foreigner at a low price, to be re-sold for a high price.

Only one man held the concession, but in London a company was set up for him at the cost of £ 650,000,The company had a net worth of this amount. Kazemzedeh, Russia and Britain inersia, p. 250. and its employees started working in Iran in the spring of 1308 [1891].

The people were discontented from the very start, and the merchants, through the mediation of Amin od-Dawle, wrote a letter appealing to the Shah. But since the Shah and Amin os-Soltan had granted the concession themselves and supported it, nothing came of this appeal. On the other hand, when the company's employees went to every city and set to work, discontent mounted and eventually jolted the people into action.

Tabriz went into action first.The History of the Awakening does not take up the Tabrizis' leadership in this matter. Kasravi is clearly using a different source. The people [there] tore up the notices which the company had pasted to the walls and posted agitating writings in their place. Amir-e Nezam Garusi was Mozaffar od-Din Mirza's agent and Governor of the city. The Crown Prince asked him to [16] deal severely with the people and punish the rebels. Amir-e Nezam would not agree to do this and resigned from office.The British seem to have considered him a Russian agent and therefore disinclined to put down anti-British agitation, behind which they saw the Russian hand. (Kazemzadeh, pp. 258-59)

The company had no choice but to try to be conciliatory and so suggested that its employees in Azerbaijan be Azerbaijani only, but the people would not accept this and persisted in their agitation and activity.

After Tabriz, Isfahan went into action, and after that, Tehran became agitated. Everywhere, the clergy took the lead. Haji Mirza Javad in Tabriz, Aqa Najafi in Isfahan, and Mirza Mohammad Hasan Ashtiani in Tehran and others became involved. From Samara, the great mojtahed Mirza Mohammad Hasan of Shiraz sent a telegram to the Shah and exposed the harm the concession was causing, and asked that it be torn up.That telegram, and others that were exchanged in Iran between the government and the ulama are included in the History of the Awakening of the Iranians.[-AK] The History of the Awakening emphasizes the role of the clergy alone and downplays the other centers, especially Azerbaijan.

The problem was becoming serious and the Shah did not know what to do about it. First, he asked that domestic sales be taken back from the company and that only exports be given over to it. But the people and the clergy were not satisfied with this and would not desist from their struggle. The clergy had something else in mind, i.e., to boycott the company and get the people to stop smoking their pipes and water pipes. So the Mirza of Shiraz issued a fatwa banning pipes and water pipes and as soon as this edict was telegraphed to the cities, the people, great and small, men and women, rich and poor, accepted it wherever they were.The provenance of this fatwa is something of a mystery. One school of historians insist that it was a forgery perpetrated by followers of Jamal od-Din “Afghani” with which the Mirza of Shiraz simply went along. Dr. Mehdi Malekzade claims that the fatwa was indeed written by the Mirza of Shiraz but under the instigation of Sayyed Jamal od-Din. In any case, it is clear that this fatwa was delivered rather late in the agitation and can only be said to have spread it. The boycott which followed was indeed complete. Malikzade recalls being at a party in the tent of the powerful Qajar prince Kamran Mirza Nayeb os-Saltane. He alone brought his water pipe, and when he offered others to take a puff on it, no one dared accept. Kasravi overlooks what all other historians of the period remark on—the breaking of this boycott by the powerful Tehran mojtahed Sayyed 'Abdollah Behbehani; when the above-mentioned prince ordered the Tehran clergy into his presence, only he declared the fatwa void, having been bribed with a thousand pounds by the concessionaires. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 97) The tobacco shops were completely closed and pipes and water pipes [17] set aside.

This happened in a way which caught all the foreigners by surprise. The company had no choice but to complain to the Shah and ask for help. The Shah wanted to make a test of strength of it and sent a message to the Mirza of Ashtian saying that he must either smoke a water pipe in public among the people – thus disobeying the fatwa – or leave Tehran. He chose to leave and prepared to do so.According to Dr. Malekzade, he was ordered to deliver a sermon on the topic, but gave the sermon without mentioning waterpipes. When specifically asked about the matter after the sermon, he declined to answer. He then presents the details of the confrontation between this cleric and the government. (TEMI, pp. 97-98) But the people became agitated and would not allow it. When a group of them crowded around the Citadel and demanded to be allowed inside, upon the orders of Aqa Bala Khan (who later became Sardar-e Afkham), the soldiers fired and eight were killed and twenty or more wounded.TMI seems to be conflating two stories. This massacre occurred after the Regie had been nullified, in January 1892. (Kazemzadeh, pp. 263-264) As the revolt steadily intensified and the foreigners in Tehran and other places became frightened, the Shah had no choice but to negotiate with the Company and grant it £ 500,000 to nullify the contract. This happened in Jomada I 1309 [December 1891]. The £ 500,000 were withdrawn from the Imperial Bank, which had just been founded, and given to the Company. This was the Iranian government's first debt.On the haggling over the debt, see Kazemzadeh, pp. 265-66.

The story ended after about six months of action and agitation. This could be considered the first movement of the Iranian people. Although it was the doing of the clergy and was not uninfluenced by the Two Neighbors' rivalry, it is to be considered a valuable event and must go down in history. To see what the people were afraid of and to provide an example of the thoughts and feelings of the times, we produce here part of a text which was doubtless penned by a clergyman. It was posted during the days we have been discussing:

The People's DiscourseSee The History of the Awakening, I:46-49. Material omitted by Kasravi are inserted in brackets.

Regarding the issue of tobacco and the English license-holder and the report about prohibiting its use which has been attributed to the people's leaders:

It is submitted by way of introduction that one of the sure and sound principles of all possessors of reason is that he who owns a certain place must block the possibility of outsiders entering it. If a wise man considered it likely that a certain person, howbeit a close acquaintance, might, if invited to stay for a while in his home, claim possession, and that he might not be dislodged except with difficulty, the owner would order [?-AK] that he not be permitted to enter in the first place. So much the more ought the owner be fully vigilant and protect every breech and opening of the house if he had an enemy with powerful claws who could be expected to massacre the household in its sleep or prepare to murder the owner. He should not rest, but should thoroughly exam that home's strengths and weaknesses.

Moreover, the people in this realm have no character and the rulers no firmness. For many treaties have been signed and when it was in the interest of king and country to dissolve one, it was dissolved and the enemies who were assured by the solemn agreement were brought low after lording it over them.

Moreover, it is clear as the noonday sun from experience, which is based on repeated observation, [18] and established upon the principles of proof and the ways of power and repeatedly witnessed from the character of the English people and their cunning and scheming over the peoples of India and Egypt and other places that their treaties are baseless. The seizure of India was begun in the name of trade and the English subjugated its subjects and even settled some of their own people there so that finally, without trouble or fuss, they came to dominate the whole country and thus did [not] abide by their original agreement. They conquered Egypt the same wayKasravi has “BDYN” while his source has “BH HMYN.” and now [these troublemakers]For “they” in Kasravi. are about to take over the kingdom of Iran. (I seek refuge in exalted God from that!) They have conquered Fars, Islam's beachheadThe Arab invasion of Iran, the Qadesiyya, passed through that province. and in the borderland of Khorasan, the venerable resting place of the Eighth Imam [(Upon whom be peace!)],The Eighth Imam was buried in Mashhad, a major pilgrimage site for Shiite Muslims throughout the world. they have set up a separate barracksKasravi here corrects The History of the Awakening, which writes ??? ?? ??, “a city with such” to ??????, “a municipal police station” or “a city barracks.” and have stocked it fully and completely with weapons.This is almost impossible; Khorrasan was solidly in the Russian sphere of influence and a British garrison would never have been tolerated there. What led the tobacco concessionaire to construct such a huge building, a so-called warehouse for tobacco, at Bagh-e Ilkhani, which overlooks the entire city, including the citadel?A Bagh-e Ilkhani exists, but in Shiraz, which was firmly in the British sphere of influence. They built for it a wall four cubits thick made of plaster and brick, like an armored vessel, and surrounded it with cannons. How can it not be that it was upon their government's instructions that they could rent the storage place of Amin [ol-Molk] for themselves alone? Indeed, it is suspected that all the extravagant expenses for this come from the ruler of their kingdom; else, how can a merchant have three and a half or six million to pay for the concessions? How will it be possible to recoup the capital outlay from these poor people of Iran? How can one be sure that, among the cargoes of textile and tobacco and so on, they will not bring cannons and muskets to this place to use them when the need arises and completely demolish the entire city? Giving up to thirty tumans to officials for so-called “inspection” and assigning servants to surround the place are clear indications of high hopes and ambitious schemes. Eliminating a suspected, nay, anticipated harm is necessary by reason.This, too, has been quoted from The History of the Awakening, and the errors which it contained have been left in place. Since the remainder of the article is very nonsensical, it is not quoted. [-AK]

[And since the Imam of the Age, the Proof, b. Hasan (God hasten his advent!), who is completely attentive to the Shiites and the survival of the rule of the King of Iran and of whom they say, “His existence is grace and his survival is grace,”Document. so out of grace, he had commanded via the noble pen of His Esteemed Honor, the Kiblah of the Congregation, His Eminence, Hojjatoleslam Haj Mirza Mohammad Hasan of Shiraz (May his lofty shadow lengthen!), who is of the elite of the servants of God and the partisans of the gallant Imam (Upon whom be peace!) and who has spent nigh unto ninety years in limitless exertions in the service of the clear Holy Law and in spreading the Faith of the Seal of the Prophets (S.), and entrusted himself to the sacred Imam of the Age: “Today, using tobacco in any way is equivalent to warring against the Imam of the Age.” Indeed, these thoroughly noble words, rich in meaning, are among the lofty conceptions and words uttered by the tongue of the Lord of the Age (God hasten his advent!). They had such a great impact in the hearts of commoner and noble, wise and ignorant, that it would not have been possible to force the people to useAmmended from “to prevent the people from using.” tobacco with a thousand cannons and muskets. It is as if the herald of the Imam of the Age (God hasten his advent!) had called out, “Oh followers of the Imam (God hasten his advent!)! Saving Islam depends on preventing the domination of the infidels and 'God will not allow the rule of the infidels over the believers.'”Koran, iv:141. Giving tobacco over to the infidel, like the other things, causes their domination, infiltration, and spread of influence and it will surely lead to giving over the Shiite government into their evil hands.

[Thus, all the people must now give up what can be done without, lest God give an order later. Protecting Islam's testicles is among the explicit principles of the Faith and the specific divine precepts. It is obligatory for every single Muslim to do without what he can and the essence of our issue is not among the innovative judgments and positions, obedience to which is only obligatory for the followers [of a particular religious authority], but is like a commandment in an absolute matter, in which obedience to the commandment of a religious judge is obligatory, conclusive, and necessary for other mojtaheds and followers. According to the judgment of His Holiness Sadeq (Upon whom be peace!),Imam Ja'far, the Seventh Imam, the most important as a source of doctrine. “Verily, if he judges our judgment and does not accept it, it is as if he has belittled a judgment of God and repudiated it to us. He who repudiates it repudiates us and he is as one who attributes partners to exalted God.”In Arabic. Document. The commandment of the Hojjatoleslam Mirza [of Shiraz] (May God lengthen his lofty shadow!) is as the commandment of the Proof, the Imam of the Age, for the people, and violating his commandment is like violating the commandment of the Imam (God hasten his advent!) and evil doubts about His Eminence's commandment's existence are like evil doubts about the Koran, about whether it was the word of a creature or the commandment of the Creator, aside from the fact that his writing and seal themselves have been seen.Here the author is trying to anathematize those who suspect that this document was a forgery (as is widely suspected in modern scholarship. Document.) These noble words are like lofty conceptions which have occurred to this learned master, who is among the spiritually developed and godly people and the elite of God's proximates.The household of Imam 'Ali. And the withdrawal from the mission which occurred during the Great OccultationThe final vanishing of direct contact with the Hidden Imam. is not in contradiction with lofty conceptions occurring to one of the elite, having descended upon Sheikh MofidRegarding this outstanding medieval theologian, Martin McDermott writes that, according to his Awa'il al-maqalat “It is rationally possible … that the Imams and even other outstanding men of their following may be able to hear the voices of angels without, however, seeing them.” He adds, “By asserting the possibility of others hearing these angels, he is keeping the way open for the Imamite party's continued contact with the preternatural even during the time of the occultation of the Imam.” (The Theology of al-Shaikh al-Mufid, Dar al-Mashreq, Beirut, 1978) and others. “We take refuge in God from the evils of actions and from slips of the tongue and we take refuge in Him.”]Document.

The Newspaper and the School

Naser od-Din Shah ruled for fifty years, and in his time, willy-nilly, relations between Iran and Europe increased. Many things like telegraphs, telephones, post offices, mints, gas lights, police stations, and the like were borrowed from the Europeans. Ministries were set up on the European model, and academiesThe original uses the singular. [dar ol-fonun] were set up to teach French and bits of other subjects, one in Tehran, another in Tabriz. Also, a newspaper and a school [debestan] were set up which we will discuss here since they are related to the events of the mass movement.

Newspapers in Iran were first set up by the government, so the first newspapers were official. We know of few newspapers in Persian from Naser od-Din Shah's time which were not state-run. Here, we only mention Akhtar, which was printed in Istanbul.

This was a worthy newspaper and its writers were zealous and good men, and as [19] we have said, they wrote intelligent and useful articles during the events surrounding the Tobacco Concession.Actually, Kasravi never mentioned Akhtar in connection with this movement. These articles were among the stimulants of the Iranian people's awareness.

As for the school, we must consider Haji Mirza Hasan Roshdiye its founder. To make this account comprehensible, we must first describe the maktabs:

It should be understood that before the Constitution in Iran, there were two kinds of study in Iran: one in the madreses, in which people who wanted to become mullahs would study, and the other in the maktabs, where children learned how to read and write.

There were many madrases in Iran, several in each every town, and the talabesTalabe in Arabic means “searchers after,” and is not supposed to be singular, but since in Iran and the Ottoman Empire, it is used in the singular and each one is called a talabe, we follow this practice, too. [-AK] who were enrolled in them studied Arabic grammar and syntax, logic, the tenets of Islam, jurisprudence, philosophy, etc. These madrases were widespread and flourishing at the beginning of the constitutional movement in Iran in which, as we will see, the talabes played a role.

As for the maktabs, first it must be understood that only the grandees,This word [a'yan], too, is not supposed to be in the singular in Arabic, but it is used in Iran and the Ottoman Empire in the singular. It refers to courtiers and the wealthy and powerful. [-AK] the rich and the merchants would send their children to study there. They only wanted them to learn reading and writing for their work in the Court or the bazaar. The subjects which exist today did not exist then, and the mass of people saw no need for study.For a long time in Iran, reading and writing was properly only for the mirzas, or princes, and so “mirza” took on two meanings, one, a prince, and the other, one who could read and write. To this day, someone who can read and write is called a “mirza.” [-AK] Moreover, an ineffectual and incorrect way to teach the alphabet was used in the maktabs. It took about one year for the student to learn his alphabet well and be able to read and write words. When a boy got to the maktab, first he learned to read his alphabet, and then the jozv-e 'amm (the last parts of the Koran), beginning with the chapter Qul a'udu,The reason for this is that the length of the Koran's suras appear in order of their length, with the longest first. and then the rest of the Koran (backwards, beginning at the end), and then the Golestan, Jame' 'Abbasi, Nassab, Tazassol, Abvab-e Jinan, Tarikh-e Naderi, and Tarikh-e Mo'ajam,Document. one after the other, and so they learned Persian and after a few years, they were able to read and write it.

Moreover, the students' lingering in the maktab, their behavior towards one another and the behavior of the akhund who ran the maktab were not laudable. The students would sit on mats spread out on the ground, shoulder to shoulder, and the akhund would be perched above them on the window ledge and [20] teach the lesson to the students one by one, all by himself, and have them recite it back, and teach penmanship. Some [akhunds] would write letters for others on the side (for a fee). The students would play around and joke with each other. Whoever could not recite his lesson fluently or write nicely would have his hands or feet beaten.

This is what a maktab and the style of teaching there meant, and since most of those who ran a maktab would choose a mosque and turn it into a maktab, they would call them mosques, too. As for [21] Haji Mirza Hasan, he was a mullah's son in Tabriz. He had gone to Beirut in his youth, saw the schools there, and learned about how they taught. When he returned to Tabriz, he decided to found a school on their model,They called these “madrases,” too, but since they are called “debestans” in Persian, we refer to them as such. [-AK] in their style. It was in 1305 [1888] that he started working on this and, like a maktab principal, adopted a mosque in Sheshkalan. Also as in a maktab, the students would be seated on the ground. However, a blackboard was put in front of them and the alphabet was taught them in a simple and new way (the way used today) and they would recite Persian lessons from simple books. He kept the students clean and regulated their comings and goings. Finally, he hung a sign over the door upon which was written, Roshdiye's Madrase.One of those who studied his first lessons there was Mr. Sabri, who is now in Tehran; most of this information comes from him. [-AK] Although nothing of the new subjects were taught and he proceeded very cautiously, the mullahs expressed their displeasure on the excuse that that the alphabet was being changed and presented in a new way.Document. What was the new technique, why did the mullahs feel offended/threatened by it? They finally got him expelled from the mosque. Thus he wandered for several years, from place to place. He met hostility from the people wherever he went until he obtained the courtyard of the Sheikh ol-Eslam Mosque, which had itself been an old madrase. There, he had the rooms cleaned and set up a school with his own money, providing benches and a blackboard and other equipment, and students gathered around him. He stayed there for some time, but since the mullahs were objecting, the talabes poured in one day and smashed the benches and blackboards and tore the school to pieces.

Haji Mirza Hasan Roshdiye remain in Tabriz no longer, but went to the Caucasus and Egypt. He stayed there until Amin od-Dawle became governor of Azerbaijan. When the latter heard about the primary schools and the advances which had appeared in the field of education there, he invited Roshdiye to Tabriz by telegram. Once again, Roshdiye founded a magnificent primary school in Sheshkalan, which provided the students with a uniform and lunch. Amin od-Dawle covered all its expenses. So things stood until late 1314 [mid-1897], when Amin od-Dawle was summoned to Tehran and brought Haji Mirza Hasan with him to found a primary school there, too. The school in Tabriz was given over to Roshdiye's older brother.

Amin od-Dawle and His Deeds

After Naser od-Din Shah, the succession passed to his son, Mozaffar od-Din, in 1313 [1896]. This Shah did not even possess his father's craftiness. There could be no hope for Iran's well-being at his hands. But he showed sympathy and good wishes and spoke about the country's weakness and disarray and made promises. The people, who had been stirred by the events around the Tobacco Concession and had become concerned about what was good and bad for the country, were pleased by these words. Amin os-Soltan [22] was still in power, but the Shah removed him after a year and summoned Mirza 'Ali Khan Amin od-Dawle to Tehran from Tabriz and installed him in power saying, “Do not be afraid of anyone, strive for the country's progress.”

Amin od-Dawle was well regarded.The liberal writer Dr. Mehdi Malekzade had this to say about him: He was educated in classical and modern learning. He had good penmanship and his Persian writing was on an estimable level. He spoke French well and was knowledgeable about the history of nations. He was not unacquainted with philosophy. He was a good-natured man with a firm but gentle disposition (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 114). When he arrived in Tehran, he set to work, since the Shah too wanted things set to rights. As we have said, he set up a school together with Roshdiye and worked to support it. Moreover, since he believed that the chaotic state of affairs was due to the absence of a legal code, he decided to set up a code of laws and to get the Shah to accept them. He also tried to restrain the governors' and courtiers' bribery and tyranny and to put the country's income and expenditures in order. The work on the primary school proceeded nicely. Amin od-Dawle brought the Shah there and raised a sum of 36 thousand tumans (360,000 rials) from himself, the Shah, and others, which was given to the primary school. He also set up the Education Society to inspect the primary school's work and spread knowledge. When the people saw the Shah and Amin od-Dawle's interest in the primary school and became aware of the difference between these and the madrases, they turned to them and willingly sent their children there.

But nothing came of Amin od-Dawle's other ideas. In Habl ol-Matin, there appeared a discussion between Mozaffar od-Din Shah and Amin od-Dawle, which we should reprint here:Check source.

The Shah said, “The kingdom of Iran is very far behind in acquiring what is demanded by the times. We must work hard to catch up to our neighbors and surrounding countries. So it would be absolutely inappropriate to delay implementing reforms or dally in our work. We must devote ourselves to reform, the sooner the better; it is late. Let us hasten with two horses hitched to the wagon to reach the station. Your Honor Amin od-Dawle, we consider you to be the cause of the delay in implementing the reforms in which we, in our absolute power, believe. We have been fully aware of this. If we were not aware of our limitations, we would not have given you such an order. We have commanded you, in absolute certainty, resolutely and steadfastly to devote yourself with all haste to the necessary reforms, even if they go against our absolute authority. Henceforth, no excuses will be accepted. Give the order for reforms and they will be signed as soon as they are presented.”

Amin od-Dawle replied: “May I be your sacrifice! Your Most Exalted Royal Highness' most holy intentions and sacred goals, in their entirety, encompass and drive all the progress of the people and the government. They are my thought and my guide. But there is one other obstacle ahead which, as long as it is not removed, will not allow us to set affairs on a completely sound footing, and that is the fiscal reform of the government. And the government's finances cannot be reformed without necessary expenditures. We need to borrow to meet these extraordinary expenses. We cannot borrow domestically these days. I am about to take out a small loan from a [23] neutral government such as Belgium or the like, and will then prepare all the reforms on a sound basis and a correct foundation in accordance with the royal command. Starting today we will get to work on the task's foundations so that we will execute every order correctly in accordance with the blessed command.”

Obviously, this discussion did not occur at the beginning of this Shah's reign (as Habl ol-Matin wrote). There are two very odd things here: First, since the Shah was so athirst to quickly implement a code of laws and set things to rights, where did Amin od-Dawle's feebleness come from?... Second, since the Shah had such hopes and aspirations, why did he remove Amin od-Dawle and restore Amin os-Soltan? Clearly, powerful hidden forces were involved. The fact is that in this time, the Northern Neighbor was at work and was exerting itself mightily in its efforts to intervene in Iran's affairs. In any case, Amin od-Dawle, for all his goodness, was not a brave and capable man. Otherwise, with such cooperation from the Shah, he would have overcome the difficulties.

It is written in The History of the AwakeningThe author writes (I:157-158): … the enemies of the people and the government and the foes of the Faith and civilization …, who considered the existence of such a great person an obstacle to their illegitimate interests and their scheming and plotting, incited disturbances on all sides like evil Satan and, by spreading lies and deceit, summoned the people, high and low, against these reforms which were entirely in their interest. The hearts of His Excellency's favorites and his confidants were filled with vengefulness because they would not attain their corrupt desires such as an increase in gifts and stipends and toyul and the like… They shamelessly petitioned Mozaffar od-Din Shah all they could on every pretext and for any reason, nor did they show any shame before God and king… The late graced Haj Sheikh Moshir od-Dowle submitted, to Mozaffar od-Din Shah out of enmity, that if Amin od-Dawle were to retain his post as prime minister for one more month, he would destroy the Qajar dynasty. This claim coincided with the arrival of Amin od-Dawle's article to the Shah in which it was written first, that the Shah's stipend ought to be known and fixed so that other matters might be determined. At this point, the members of the Shah's retinue submitted to the Shah, “The Shah of Iran has always given stipends and his subjects were the beneficiaries from his dinner spread and his gifts. Now the people should give a stipend to the Shah… This could only mean that Amin od-Dawle is contemplating the dissolution of the monarchy's absolute power… In addition, the late graced Amin od-Dawle once declared to the late graced Mozaffar od-Din Shah that it was in the interest of the government of Iran to unite with the Ottoman government and recognize the Ottoman Sultan as the Commander of the Faithful and the Caliph of Islam. This idea, too, was given presented to Mozaffar od-Din Shah in a distorted form. that malicious people were trying on all sides and they spun lies and incited everyone to hate [Amin od-Dawle]. “The hearts of His Excellency's favorites and his confidants were filled with vengefulness because they would not attain their corrupt desires such as an increase in gifts and stipends and toyul and the like. Others believed the deceitful promises and forebodings of the traitor to the dynasty and the people, the destroyer of society [Amin os-Soltan—AK].Kasravi inserts the word “va” (and) between this sentence and the next, making it appear that the dupes of these enemies were submitting these petitions. They shamelessly petitioned Mozaffar od-Din Shah all they could on every pretext and for any reason.”

It is written there that Haj Sheikh Mohsen Khan Moshir od-Dawle, I.e., Amin ol-Molk. [-AK]. who was an enemy of Amin od-Dawle, told the Shah “If Amin od-Dawle keeps his post for one more month, he will bring down the Qajar dynasty.” This was said to him just when Amin od-Dawle had delivered a bill to the Shah which said: “First the Shah's monthly stipend must be limited, so that a limit could be put on the stipends of others.” “Then,” the History continues, “some of the Shah's confidants submitted to him that it was the King of Iran who had always bestowed stipends and that his subjects were the beneficiaries of his spread of food and his generosity; now the people are to give a stipend to the Shah, making the King an employee of the people. This could only mean that Amin od-Dawle is scheming to undo the monarchy's absolute power.” It adds: “This is what Haji Sheikh Mohsen Khan said, and this slander came at the same times as opposition and hostility from some of the clergy. Hostility was being expressed from two sides.”

The History observes further on that some of the courtiers and insiders, Koran in hand, stopped the Shah and, complaining and crying against Amin od-Dawle, wept bitterly as they asked for his dismissal.This episode does not appear in The History of the Awakening.

All this is true, but as we have said, in addition to this and aside from the disruptive efforts of Amin os-Soltan and his agents, another important factor was at work here, and even Amin od-Dawle was not able to do anything about it.

[24] Also in those days, three Belgians (Naus and two othersPriem and Engels.) were invited and put in charge of Customs. Until that time, Customs was not organized properly, and the government had farmed it out to certain people. When the Belgians came, they set up a Customs bureau on the European model. This was a good thing, but we will see what enemies of Iran these Belgians were and what damage they did. Naus must go down as one of the evil names in the history of Iran.The History of the Awakening properly credits the hiring of the Belgians to Amin od-Dawle. (I:157) Kasravi is not alone in his approval of the decision to hire the Belgians. See, e.g., Taqizade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:331-332 for a discussion of the general corruption of Customs before their arrival and what their administration meant. Another of their duties was to rectify the mint, which was antiquated and corruptly run by Amin oz-Zarb and Amin os-Soltan after him. Taqizade accuses Naus of allying himself with the latter to arrange a scheme under which Naus would secretly give Amin os-Soltan a kickback of 300,000 tumans from Customs in order to have a free hand in administering it. He claims that Engels had protested Naus' corrupt practices until he felt forced to resign. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, reprinted in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:332-334) For all that, he does not hesitate to write that the administration the Belgians ran was highly efficient and resulted in a manifold increase in income. (ibid., p. 334)

Iran's Loans

In the spring of 1317 [1899], Amin od-Dawle left his post. He did not stay in Tehran, but left for Gilan. On the other hand, Amin os-Soltan left Qom for Tehran and once more became the Prime Minister (and it seems that he received the title of Atabak at this time.)

In the meantime, there was talk of obtaining a loan. The Shah was very short of money. Moreover, since he was ill, the doctors were recommending him to go to Europe and bathe in the mineral waters there, and he needed money for this trip as well. As we have seen, the idea of obtaining a loan had been current since the time of Amin od-Dawle, who had wanted to request one from Belgium or some other neutral country. But he evidently did not succeed and, ultimately, there were talks with the British government, which would lend the Shah one million two hundred thousand pounds, taking the customs revenues from the South of Iran as collateral. But it was slow to respond. Meanwhile, Atabak had gone to work and turned to the Russians and got the job done through the mediation of Mirza Reza Khan Arfa' od-Dawle, Iran's ambassador in Saint Petersburg. The Russians took the customs revenues from the North of Iran as security and they lent Iran twenty-two and a half million rubles at 5% interest [25] for seventy-five years, stipulating that the Imperial Bank's debts (five hundred thousand pounds to nullify the tobacco concession) should be paid from it and that Iran would not seek loans from any other country until this loan was repaid.The search for new loans is documented in Kazemzadeh, Russia and Britain inersia, Chapter 5, where it is explained that Amin od-Dawle was able to secure a loan from the very reluctant British, but it was later sabotaged by Amin os-Saltane, whom Amin od-Dawle had elbowed out as Prime Minister and was now making a comeback by securing a loan from the Russians.

This happened during the Christian year 1900 (1317). The official newspapers that reported this wrote that the Imperial Bank loan would be repaid from this money, the Ahwaz dam (the construction of which had been discussed since Naser od-Din Shah's time) would be built and water would be brought to the waterless city of Qazvin, and that other things would be done for the sake of prosperity.Document.

However, only the Imperial Bank loan was paid off, and the rest was dissipated: In the summer of that year, the Shah, Atabak and others set out for Europe and busied themselves for a while with touring and sightseeing in Russia, France, the Ottoman Empire, and other places, ran through all the money, and returned to Iran with empty purses.“The Shah's tript to Europe in the summer of 1902 had cost Persia an enormous sum of money. The 10,000,000 rubles borrowed from Russia in April were spent before the end of the year.” (Russia and Britain inersia, p. 448.)

This behavior of theirs badly offended the people and there was discontent. The people attributed all evils to Atabak, and regarded him as a tool of the Northern Neighbor's policy. Although he was of Georgian stock, they thought he was an Armenian, and this was taken as further evidence of his hostility towards Iran.Of Amin os-Soltan from this time, Firuz Kazemzadeh writes, “though selfish and venal, [he] was doing his best to prolong the life of his country, begging and buying for her at least a few years of apparent independence.” Russia and Britain inersia, p. 374.

Their discontent was only increased by Atabak's behaviour in relation the general schools. After Amin od-Dawle's downfall, the Education Society stopped supervising the Roshdiye General school and paying for it and founded other schools, so that it was said that crooked hands had found their way to its money. The people attributed all this to Atabak and regarded him as an obstacle to the people's awakening and the country's progress. A large faction of the courtiers and others spoke very badly of him, and one faction of them opposed him.

The History of the AwakeningI:469-70. says, “Sheikh Yahya Kashani wrote an article about the abuse of the Education Society and Atabak's hostility and sent it to be printed in Habl ol-Matin.Document. When this article was printed and reached Iran, a secret society which had been set up in opposition to Atabak and was trying to bring him down invited Sheikh Yahya, the article's author, to join that society. He wrote other articles and sent them to Habl ol-Matin.Document. Gradually, the journal SorayaExplain Soraya. also spoke up, and it too published an article.Document. Because of this, Atabak barred Persian journals from reaching Iran.

But the activists did not stop. They issued clandestine publications and sent them here and there in packets. Since some of those involved were close to the Shah, they placed these letters on the Shah's table.Dr. Malekzade names Mo'tamed-e Khaqan Sadri. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 125) The Shah would pick them up and read them without knowing who wrote them and brought them to him. At the same time, the Roshdiye General school, which was still under the supervision of Amin od-Dawle and was managed in his absence by Sheikh Hadi Najmabadi,The pre-eminent liberal clergy of his time. He died a little before the Constitution was granted. (Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, pp. 170-171) [26] inevitably became a center for denouncing Atabak and his works, since he had made things difficult for its staff. In addition to Sheikh Yahya, who was a teacher in the school, Sayyed Hasan, brother of Habl ol-Matin's proprietor, and Mosmer ol-Molk, one of the members of the secret society, also went there and denounced Atabak while the students and teachers were being fed their lunch at the school, and encouraged the teachers to denounce him during their lessons.Although the people named in this last sentence were members of the secret society, there is no mention of this activity of theirs in The History of the Awakening, Kasravi's source on this matter.

This offended Atabak. He pursued the activists through Police Chief Aqa Bala Khan.Sardar Afkham. The History of the Awakening. Since the Roshdiye General school was very suspect and the school's principal, Mohammad Amin, had given information to Atabak's agents, he conveyed, through the principal, an invitation to Mirza Hosein,For Hasan, which is Roshdiye's own name; The History of the Awakening has it correct. Roshdiye's younger brother, to come to Qolhak, supposedly for a tour and a party. He was brought before Atabak and from him they learned what was happening at the general school.The History of the Awakening tells a different story: A certain Khan Baba Khan was able to infiltrate the school as school inspector and got Mirza Hosein, the brother of Mirza Hasan Roshdiye, to join him, and he brought him to Qeytariye. Mirza Hosein accepted three hundred tumans and wrote that he knew that his brother, along with Sheikh Yahya [Kashani], Aqa Sayyed Hasan of Habl ol-Matin, Mirza Mohammad 'Ali Khan, and Mosmer ol-Molk were all Babis and were the ones behind all this mischief and that they had written all these letters. [See below.] I:471.

However during the same days, one event suddenly unveiled these goings on. What happened was that another clandestine letter was written. In it, the matter of the Russian loan came in for much criticism. It included a qaside written by Fakhr ol-Va'ezin Kashani about Atabak, several lines of which are reproduced below:See The History of the Awakening I:470-71. The lines in brackets were removed by Kasravi; I have restored them from his source. It is the publication of this poem which, Nazem ol-Eslam claims, led Amin os-Soltan to pursue the measures mentioned in the previous paragraph; thus, Kasravi reverses the sequence of events as portrayed in his source.

Son of an Armenian, do not bother the Muslims. Do not deliver the Realm of the Faith into the infidel's hands. In the end, the Shah will destroy your house of oppression. Why, then, must you build its portico to the heavens? When the scythe of zeal appears in the people's hands, It will sweep clean the garden of the filth of your existence. [You have exposed the privates of man and woman in your cruelty. So be it, I remove from you your covering.] Your licking of the Russians' bowl will do no good, For this black bowl kills the guest in the end.

The Shah was in Niavaran. It so happened that when Movaqqar os-Saltane put a packet containing a clandestine letter on his table, the Shah, who was standing in front of a mirror, saw what he was doing and realized that it had been Movaqqar os-Saltane who had been taking these letters and leaving them on the Shah's table. When he was pressed and a stick taken to his feet, he was forced to reveal the names of the society's members one by one,This is not mentioned in The History of the Awakening, Kasravi's apparent source. It would appear that, having covered for the treachery of Roshdiye's brother, Kasravi (or his unknown source) needed to manufacture an event to explain how the secret society came to be exposed. The balance of this paragraph is an elaboration of The History of the Awakening, I:471. and so Aqa Bala Khan arrested the following upon the Shah's orders: Sheikh Yahya Kashani, the author of the articles; Sayyed Hasan, brother of Habl ol-Matin's proprietor; Mirza Mehdi Khan Vazir-e Homayun, Minister of the Post and a member of the Shah's entourage on his trip to Europe; Mirza Mohammad 'Ali Khan Qavam od-Dawle, a wealthy courtier and a bitter enemy of Atabak; Naser-e Khaqan, a servant of the Shah and a member of his entourage on his trip to Europe; Movaqqar os-Saltane, a son-in-law of the Shah; Mosmer ol-Molk, a Caucasian who had come to Tehran who, since he had made preserves [konserv] out of fruit, received the title Konserv from the Shah and received a monthly stipend from him; [27] Mirza Sayyed Mohammad Mo'taman-e Lashgar Nuri; and Mirza Mohammad 'Ali Khan Nuri.These names appear in the same order as they do in The History of the Awakening, except for the last, which does not appear there at all.

It was night when Mirza Mohammad 'Ali Khan was being arrested and they [sic] had been sleeping on the roof. He fellThe History of the Awakening adds “or was pushed.” I:471. in the tumult and died a few hours later in the Municipality's office. Sheikh Yahya was seated, hands bound, on a horse and sent off to Ardebil. Sayyed Hasan was sent to his village, Mobarakabad, out of respect for his brother and through the intercession of 'Ein od-Dawle, who was the governor of Tehran.The History of the Awakening (I:471), says: They detained Aqa Sheikh Yahya that night in the home of 'Ein od-Dawle, who was then the governor of Tehran, and took out his papers and examined them, but found nothing. Then next day, they brough Aqa Sheikh Yahya and Aqa Mirza Sayyed Hasan to the village of Mobarakabad, which was 'Ein od-Dawle's property and in the vicinity of Tehran. Aqa Mirza Sayyed Hasan was imprisoned there and, out of consideration for his brother,... who was the editor of Habl ol-Matin, he was detained in the orchard of Mobarakabad. This is in apparent contradiction to the statement made on the same page that on the day after his arrest, Sheikh Yahya was dispatched, hands bound, to Ardebil. Kasravi wisely resolves this by choosing the second version. The others were each sent to a different place. Haj Mirza Hasan Roshdiye took refuge in Sheikh Hadi Najmabadi's house and was unharmed.His situation is not mentioned in The History of the Awakening. If not for Mozaffar od-Din Shah's soft-heartedness, few of them would have remained alive.

These events were exaggerated in the Russian newspapers, which called them “a plot against the Shah.”Document. They occurred in Jomada II, 1319 [September-October 1901].

These events had no effect on Atabak and the Shah, however. It was but a little later that they wanted once again to go shopping for loans and to tour Europe. Once more, they got a loan of ten million rubles from the Russian government, and this time, they gave that government a concession to build a railroad from Jolfa via Tabriz and Qazvin to Tehran. Again, in the summer of 1320 [1902], Shah, minister, and entourage set out for Europe. This time, they also went to London. They returned to Iran after several months, purses once more empty.Dr. Mehdi Malekzade recalls that he participated in a secret society led by Yahya Dawlatabadi which posted clandestine jellygraphed statements, a first in Iran, denouncing the loans. He lists as members of the society his father, Malek ol-Motakallemin, Aqa Mirza Mohsen, the brother of Sadr ol-'Olema, Mirza Soleman Meikade, Haji Mirza 'Ali Mohammad Dawlatabadi, Mirza Mohammad 'Ali Khan Nosrat os-Soltan, Sheikh Rafi' Tari, and E'tezad ol-Hokama. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, pp. 124-125)

The People's Resentment of the Belgians What made these trips more repugnant and increased the people's resentment were stories of the Shah's extravagant gifts and the ignorance of some of this entourage which were spread by word of mouth and embellished upon. For example, it was said that the Shah had earthFertilizer? This story is reported in Kawkab-e Dorri, vol. 1, no. 9 (23 Rabi' I 1325 = May 7, 1907). for his rose garden sent from Europe. Mirza 'Ali Mohammad Khan Kashani, a writer for Soraya and Parvaresh in Egypt, who had gone on the first trip to Europe and accompanied the Shah and his circle and dispatched news about the voyage for his paper, complained strongly about the Shah's companions' ignorance and negligence. He related the following story which an Iranian had told him:Document.

I heard in Petersburg that the Russian government paraded twenty thousand of its first-rate soldiers before His Royal Highness just for show, and His Royal Highness praised them. One of the attendants who was nearby said in Turkish, “I could defeat all these twenty thousand with the five hundred cavalry under my charge.”

Amir Bahador-e Jang said this, and other stories of his stupidity were told.

The Shah, the Prime Minister and the other ministers and grandees would go and tour Europe for several months. [28-29] They would freely spend the money obtained by putting the country in debt. After all this, they would bring back nothing of any use to the country but return after having repeatedly disgraced themselves. The worst thing was that factions appeared amongst them while they were in the foreign countries, one faction led by Mirza Mahmud Khan Hakim ol-Molk being anglophilic, the other, led by Atabak, being russophilic. In this way, they exposed their childishness and worthlessness to the foreigners, who took up their pens and wrote articles about this and ridiculed them.

This resulted in a sharp decline in the government's prestige in the eyes of the people and the people despaired of the Shah and the Court. In the meantime, the matter of Customs and hiring the Belgians added to the resentment and deepened the people's despair.

As we have said, in 1898,The text gives the Persian year 1287, i.e., 1908-09. when Amin od-Dawle was prime minister, three Belgians were brought in and put in charge of Customs. Their chief was Naus, who was at first given the post of General Manager of Customs and had to conduct the Customs work under the Prime Minister's control. But the next year, when the Shah left for Europe, Naus took the title of General Minister of Customs on the excuse that the Prime Minister would accompany the Shah, and they gave Naus full absolute power in his work.

They went to work and set up a Customs Bureau on the model of the European countries and also changed the tariff system. The Shah decreed that various new forms of exactions, such as road tolls and weighing-house dues and accommodation fees and so on, be raised from Iranian caravans and merchants, while foreign merchants only had to pay the customs duty at the border.In this regard, see Esteqlal-e Gomrakiye Iran. [–AK] In fact, this refers to the customs regime under Naser od-Din Shah before Naus's arrival. See ibid. pp. 142-144, where the mechanism for relieving the foreign merchants was the power of foreign countries to dictate to Iran the privileges of their respective subjects in there. The author, Reze Safinia, later says that the lifting of these internal tolls was decreed by the Shah, soon before the Shah appointed Naus. (ibid., pp. 148-151) It should be said that Safinia was no friend of Naus. (e.g., p. 191 ff.)

No harm was seen in all this: the people were unaware of the Belgians' hidden aims and ill intentions, which had not yet become apparent. In spite of this, the merchants and the mullahs in Bushahr, Shiraz, Yazd, Isfahan, and Tehran expressed their discontent for two reasons: First, the merchants were disinclined to have a foreigner put in charge of the country's affairs and the mullahs, for the their part, being afraid of any innovation, went along with them. Second, the merchants considered the customs tariffs set by the Belgians detrimental to their interests. In 1900The text is again off by ten years. when the Shah was traveling to Europe, the merchants of all these cities became agitated. They complained to the government and negotiated with it to no avail. The negotiations dragged on until after the Shah's return.

The government paid no attention to these appeals. Moreover, the Belgians were being increasingly abusive and discriminated openly between Iranian merchants and foreign ones and even between Christian and Muslim Iranians, being particularly hard on the Muslims. When this resentment was added to the dissatisfaction over how loans were being obtained and the tours of Europe, an [30] outcry erupted. The people considered the Shah to be simple-hearted and weak and figured that all these ills were the fault of Mirza 'Ali Asghar Khan Atabak.

In those days in Iran, power was in the hands of two groups: one was the courtiers and the Shah's confidants, who could get through to the Shah. The other was the clerics, who could stir up the people. Atabak had enemies among both groups.

In The History of the Awakening it says:I:209-10. While the Shah was in Europe (on his second trip), the mojtahed Sayyed 'Ali Akbar Tafreshi and Sayyed Mohammad Tabataba'i, along with [Haji Mirza Abol-Qasem] the Friday Imam and others, formed a society with several courtiers. They pledged themselves to struggle to bring Atabak down and wrote out an oath and swore by it. But when Atabak returned from his trip, Eqbal od-Dawle Kashani, who had taken a copy of the oath, showed it to Atabak and told him all about it, telling his comrades that his bag had been lost and that someone else had found it and sent it to Atabak. When Atabak found out about this, he sent five hundred tumans to Sayyed 'Ali Akbar and tried to appease him. He sowed division among the rest and sent those among the courtiers whom he considered his enemies to remote regions.

He made Hakim ol-Molk, whom he considered his rival and enemy, governor of Gilan and kept him away from Tehran. Not long after Hakim ol-Molk had arrived in Gilan, he died suddenly. The people believed that Atabak had poisoned him, and this was counted as another of his crimes.The History of the Awakening adds the corroborating detail that one of his aides died a similar death. I:210.

And so discontent mounted daily, and in the spring of 1321 [1903], according to Browne,E. G. Browne, The Persian Revolution (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1910 and Frank Cass & Co. Ltd., London, 1966), pp. 106-107. disturbances broke out in Tehran and Yazd. It was worse in Yazd, where it ended with the murder of Bahais. This happened in June, and then in August and September, there was more Bahai-killing in both Yazd and Isfahan.Browne refers to the victims as Babis.

It will seem strange that people who were angry over customs tariffs, were complaining about Belgians being hired to manage customs, and were offended by Atabak and his inclination towards a foreign neighbor would vent their wrath on Bahais. What link could there be between these events and the Bahais?... This is a mystery which would require a lengthy explanation, and here we must leave it and move on.

In the meantime, in Tabriz, another strange event occurred.Document. A mullah named Mirza 'Ali Akbar, (who from that time on adopted the name of Mojahed, and who lives to this day in Tabriz and is known by that name) was passing by a tavern in Armenestan when a drunkard came out and offered him a cup of wine (in common terms, he was being polite). The Mirza, who was a hot-tempered man, quick to anger, was very much taken aback. When he returned enraged to the madrase and related the event, the talabes became agitated and went to the house of Mojtahed Haji Mirza Hasan and dragged him out and brought him to the mosque (the Shahzade Mosque) on the grounds that “the clergy has been insulted.” [31] In the meantime, since the merchants were upset over the Belgians and what was happening to Customs and since merchants in other places were discontent, they used this event as an excuse to close the bazaar. They then went to the mosque and, since the mullahs had not forgotten how upset they were over the general schools, all these resentments merged and they said, “Monsieur Priem must go and the taverns, hotels, and madrases must close.”

Monsieur Priem was one of the Belgians and the head of customs in Azerbaijan. The mullahs hated the hotels, since they were an innovation and had been opened by Armenians and Caucasians and wine was sold there. The madrases were those general schools, of which several had by then opened in Tabriz.

The bazaars closed and there was an uproar for two days over all this. Mohammad 'Ali Mirza, who was the Crown Prince and governed Azerbaijan, had to issue a rescript saying, “To those assembled at Shahzade Mosque: I have just now dismissed Monsieur Priem and ordered the taverns, hotels, and general schools closed. Disperse.”

When this proclamation was read, the talabes poured out and looted the taverns, hotels, and schools, and there was a great riot. One of the general schools which was looted during this riot was the Kamal general school, which was directed by Mirza Hosein Khan, who published a newspaper also named Kamal. After this event, he stayed in Tabriz no longer, but went to the Caucasus and Egypt.

Monsieur Priem, whom Mohammad 'Ali Mirza had dismissed, went to stay in Basmenj. Ten or twenty days later, when the disturbance settled and the talabes and others had done their looting and were going about their business, Mohammad 'Ali Mirza sent a coach and returned him to the city. Now it was Mojtahed Haji Mirza Hasan whom he compelled to leave town, and he left for Tehran.

These events occurred in Rabi' II, 1321 [July, 1903].Browne summarized these events, but we have obtained the above details from Mr. Javad Nateq. [–AK]

Atabak's Downfall and 'Ein od-Dawle's Prime Ministry This discontent made it difficult for Atabak to keep his post. The tools of this man's policy were to glad-hand the people, stay on good terms with his supporters, and pay off the mullahs and others. He had always been successful with this policy, but this time, those tools were blunted and there were some people who had risen up against him who would not take money or fall for tricks. This time, some mullahs had emerged who knew the ways of the world and were well aware of the damage Atabak's policies were doing to the country and who persisted in their concerns and their zeal. In Tehran, Tabataba'i continued to be an enemy of Atabak, and it so happened that Haji Sheikh Fazlollah Nuri, a majestic and famous mojtahed of Tehran who had just returned from Mecca, joined him in opposing Atabak.Compare The History of the Awakening (I:210) where the reason for the Sheikh's interest in resisting the government is explained as the Prime Minister's refusal to pay the debts the Sheikh had incurred on the haj, contrary to the way he used to distribute money among the clergy so liberally. The remainder of this paragraph is an embellishment of ibid (I:210-11). Moreover, in Najaf, Mohammad Kazem Khorasani [32] and Haji Mirza Hosein Tehrani (son of Khalil), who were prestigious at that time, were both committed to Iran's affairs and expressed their anger at what Atabak was doing, writing letters to certain people in Iran.Kasravi's apparent source, The History of the Awakening, does not mention the names of these mojtaheds, and imputes political-factional motives to the clergy in the Shiite shrines in Iraq. Finally, Habl ol-Matin, which had suffered at the hands of Atabak and had become his bitter enemy, struggled against him through its agents, both in Najaf and elsewhere.The Baku oil millionaire Zein ol-'Abedin Taqiev sponsored the free distribution of Habl ol-Matin in Najaf, and this had a noticeable impact on the thinking of the Najaf mojtaheds. (Karim Taherzade Behzad, Qiam-e Azarbayjan dar Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, pp. 438-439; see also Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, pp. 206-207, where the author notes that the editor's brother was living in Najaf at the time and that the journal was eagerly received particularly by the young talabes.) In 1320, this millionaire sent an emissary to Najaf to ask for a fatwa on the matter of girls' education in modern-style schools. (After some deliberation, they determined that it was unobjectionable.) (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 206) The Najaf clergy's dissatisfaction finally had its effect and it was broadcast everywhere that it had declared Mirza 'Ali Asghar Khan an infidel. This emboldened the people. At the same time, some in the Court came to talk to the Shah and conveyed to him what was happening and persisted in denouncing Atabak.

The History of the Awakening says:I:211.

Mozaffar od-Din Shah sat in council with the people of the Court and told them: “I would not be afraid to dismiss Amin os-Soltan except that I am worried that everything will fall apart if that happens.” 'Ein od-Dawle and his brother Sepahsalar promised to keep things running smoothly and that they would not allow affairs to get out of control.

To summarize: Towards the last ten days of Jomada II, 1321 [the end of August and the beginning of September 1903], Atabak fell from his post and 'Ein od-Dawle replaced him as Prime Minister. Atabak did not stay in Iran, but left for Europe. During those same days, a letter with the seal and signature of the Najaf clergy was distributed declaring Atabak an infidel. It is said that this letter was forged by Sayyed Mohammad 'Ali, brother of Habl ol-Matin's proprietor, who was in Najaf, and it is obvious from the style it was written in that it is indeed counterfeit. We reproduce it below.

In His blessed and exalted name.

It has not remained hidden before the entire people of Islam, particularly the residents of Iran, that the domination of unbelief and foreign rule over the honorable creatures of Islam and the granting of liberty to the deluding Babi sect (may God forsake them!) and the spread of abominations and the permitting of the sale of alcohol in Iran has reached the point that there is no room for delay and procrastination; it is escalating every day. And since there is no sign of anything being done to control and eliminate these fearful deeds, and since it has been confirmed and verified to us that all corruption is based on the First Person of the exalted government of Iran, Prime Minister Mirza 'Ali Asghar Khan, and that the King of Islam, His Highness Mozaffar od-Din Shah of Iran (May God preserve his rule!) is pious and subject-nurturing to the highest degree and has had and still has the highest degree of concern with protecting the borders of the Muslims, and this traitor to the government and the people of Islam has deluded that sacred person regarding this corruption, we saw no choice but to reveal that which lies unseen in the heart. Therefore, in accordance with the instructions of the shariat and to protect Islamic honor, these being absolutely obligatory upon each Muslim, we have judged him to be wicked by nature, and infidel in essence and an apostate to the congregation.

Therefore, let it be know to all the Muslims and every the believer that from now on, contact with Mirza 'Ali Asghar Khan's moisture is not permitted;According to Shiite doctrine, moisture communicates the impurity of an infidel. his commands are like those of jibtA baseless, evil practice, such as witchcraft. and taghutBeyond simple unbelief, an imposition of unbelief on others. and he will be resurrected among Yazid b. Mo'awiye's minions.Yazid was the caliph under whom Imam Hosein and his followers were massacred.

[33] “The Exalted One said unto [Mohammad], 'God will never put infidels over Muslims.'”Koran, i:141. “Verily we complain to Thee over the absence of our Prophet and the occlusion of our Master [the Hidden Imam].”From the Du'a Iftitah, recited every night on Ramadan.

On the day 21 Jomada II [September 14, 1903].

The most humble Mohammad osh-Sharabiani (seal), the most humble sinner Mohammad Kazem ol-Khorasani (seal), Mohammad Hasan ol-Mamaghani (seal), the sinner, son of the late Mirza Khalil who is received into God's grace, [Haji Mirza Hosein Tehrani] (seal).Copies were made of this article (in Istanbul, it seems) and sent everywhere. Mr. Zia od-Din Nuri has a copy of it and we have quoted it based on that text. In The History of the Awakening it is written that it was one of the reasons Atabak was deposed. But its date of composition is several days before he was deposed and it is impossible that an article could be written in Najaf, copied in Istanbul or other cities, and reach Tehran and fall into the people's hands and have its effect in a few days. It surely reached Tehran after Atabak was deposed. But talk of Atabak's having been declared an infidel, which his enemies had spread, was current before this article existed, and the Najaf clergy, for its part, shunned him. Moreover, this is why they were silent about this forged letter. [-AK] See TBI (I:130), where the author writes that, in addition to the Shah's bankrupting the country with his trips abroad, Atabak's alleged execution of Hakim ol-Molk raised a commotion among the clergy, which believed that all the corruption arose from Atabak. “… [T]hey issued a fatwa declaring him an apostate and asked the Shah to dismiss him. He instantly dismissed him and he left Iran.”

The Talabes' Arrest 'Ein od-Dawle began his tenure as Prime Minister. Since he was one of the critics of Atabak's doings when the latter was in office, the people hoped he would do good things. For his part, he tried to be conciliatory. Thus, he permitted the return to Tehran of Sheikh Yahya, who was living in Ardebil and was still alive due to the protection of the governor there, Prince Emamqoli Mirza.As described in The History of the Awakening, I:472. Kasravi obtains his material from Ibid., I:211. He also allowed into Iran Habl ol-Matin and other Persian newspapers which had been banned for four years. It is even said that he invited its proprietors to move their offices to Tehran, but they did not accept this.Dr. Mehdi Malekzade mentions that the editor's brother, Mirza Sayyed Mohsen, and Sheikh Yahya Kashi, had been imprisoned under Atabak and had been freed by 'Ein od-Dawle. It was because of such attention and concern that Habl ol-Matin completely supported 'Ein od-Dawle; in fact, it must be said that it sold out to him (as we shall see.)

In those days, something amazing happened in Tehran. We had said that in the cities of Iran, there were big madrases for the talabes. These students, most of whom had come from the countryside or from other cities and who stayed in those same madrases, lived on a monthly stipend which would be given to each of them from the income of the madrase's waqf property. They would study by going to the house of a mojtahed, singly or as a group, where they would learn fiqh and osul, logic, and so on. Sometimes, they would gather around a mojtahed or Friday Imam to find support or for money. They were generally the mojtaheds' tools, or better, their “shariat army.”

Tehran, too, had big madrases with many waqfs. In those days it happened that there was a fight between the talabes of the Mohammadiye Madrase (in the bazaar) and those of the Sadr Madrase (in the forecourt of the Shah Mosque). Since the Mohammadiye Madrase had a larger waqf property, the talabes of the Sadriye [i.e., Sadr] Madrase tried to get their hands on it and settle there themselves. Some of [34] the great mullahs supported them. In any case, since this was a minor affair, 'Ein od-Dawle did not pay attention to it. But Atabak's supporters, who wanted to stir up a riot, and some of the greedy mullahs, with their personal ambitions for prestige, seized the opportunity and fanned the flames.

The History of the AwakeningI:212. In this passage, Kasravi has summarized the material on that page. mentions the names of Sayyed 'Ali Akbar Tafrishi, his son, and Friday Imam Haji Mirza Abol-Qasem, along with Amir Khan Sardar, Salar od-Dawle, Sho'a' os-Saltane, and others who lent support to one side or the other. In short, the fighting between the talabes once more reached the point where they went to kill each other with daggers and swords. Some were beaten up or were left lying on the ground wounded.

The governor of Tehran went and arrested the gang leaders, but one of them, Mo'tamad ol-Eslam Rashti,“with a group of others..." Ibid., I:213. took refuge in the house of Sayyed 'Abdollah Behbehani, a prestigious mojtahed, and Blissful Soul Behbehani protected him.

The talabes of the Sadr Madrase were angered by Behbehani over this, and since the Friday Imam supported them,“...the Friday Imam, who had for some time nursed thoughts of avenging himself on His Eminence Behbehani for what he did to his father,... set the talabes into motion by telling them that if you beat His Eminence Behbehani, Prince 'Ein od-Dawle will treat you with kindness and you will each receive a stipend of one or two hundred tumans.” Ibid., I:213. Taqizade adds that the Friday Imam and his brother were son-in-laws of Mozaffar od-Din Shah. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:330) they boldly decided to seek vengeance on Behbehani. One night, when Behbehani was passingLeaving Sheikh Fazlollah's house. Ibid., I:213. in front of the Shah Mosque, a gang of talabes armed with knives and swords poured out and attacked him and his companions. The History of the AwakeningI:213; the remainder of this story is, with minor changes in emphasis, from I:214. says that His Eminence's mule bolted and carried him home without his being hurt. But others said that he, too, was struck.

'Ein od-Dawle paid no attention to these events, since he considered Behbehani a supporter of Atabak and was angry with him.It was well known that Sayyed 'Abdollah Behbehani was a long-time ally of Atabak. See, for example, Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran (p. 221, 248). He might even have had a hand in them himself. But when a group of mullahs rose in support of Behbehani and persisted, 'Ein od-Dawle had no choice but to do something, and got the mullahs to promise not to intervene. He then ordered the arrest of the talabes. In an intimidating demonstration of his severity, he was very harsh. He imprisoned fourteen talabes. They were:

Sheikh Ahmad Khorasani, Sheikh 'Ali Akbar Eshtahardi, Sheikh Baba Eshtahardi, Sheikh Esma'il Rashti, Haji Mirza Aqa Hamadani, Sheikh Ja'far Tonakaboni, Sayyed Hosein Qomi, Sayyed Taqi Qomi, Sheikh 'Ali Hamami, Sayyed 'Azizollah Qomi, Sayyed 'Ali Qomi, Sheikh Abu Taleb Qomi, Yadollah Qomi, Sheikh 'Abdol-Hosein Hamadani.

When they were arrested, they were all seated in a cart with an escort of five hundred horsemen, driven through the streets of Tehran and sent to the barracks which were outside the city. There, each was beaten with sticks.Ibid. adds the detail that they were “in complete disgrace while about twenty thousand looked on.” They were detained an extra day, according to this source, “because Amir Bahador told Salar-e A'zam that... the eve of mid-Rajab is not auspicious to go against a sayyed, and there were some sayyeds among the offenders.” I:214. A day or two later, each of them was seated on a mule and chained together in two groups of seven and sent off to Ardebil.

This behavior of 'Ein od-Dawle offended everyone. No one had ever seen talabes treated in such a manner before. [35] In those days, people had a great deal of respect for mullahs and talabes, particularly if they were sayyeds. Many believed that if someone were to disparage even an akhund's shoes, he had become an infidel.Taqizade, fifty years after the event, had this to say about 'Ein od-Dawle: In fact, 'Ein od-Dawle's struggle with the Tehran clergy and their corrupt institution was the struggle of a powerful and strong government with the Jewish mess and corruption and chaos of mullah-play. The people saw in the mullahs, aside from their corruption and mischief, a base of support against the government's absolutism and unbridled oppression and considered them the embodiment of popular national opinion and the center of social power and the refuge of the oppressed… The people needed the mullahs as a shield behind which they could advance their claims while the mullahs used the pople to implement their needs and so the mullahs had no choice but to pay attention to the people's needs. (“Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran” in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:328)

They were very angry in Tehran and elsewhere. In Zanjan, the people closed the bazaars and decided to rush out and free those arrested from the government's horsemen. The horsemen had no choice but to pass around the city.Finally, after two months, 'Ein od-Dawle released them upon the Zanjanis' insistence.—AK

In Tehran, Behbehani sent a message to 'Ein od-Dawle saying, “I thank you, and I have forgiven the talabes. Free them.” 'Ein od-Dawle answered tactlessly: “I did not arrest them to please His Eminence, so that he might be grateful and free them when he wants.” This answer increased Behbehani's anger with 'Ein od-Dawle.Ibid., I:214.

These events occurred in Rajab 1321 [September-October, 1903]. It was the first event which demonstrated 'Ein od-Dawle's behavior and what an autocrat he was.Ibid. goes on at great length about the suffering of the detainees. I:214-220.

A Customs Treaty with the Russians and New Tariffs

Amin os-Soltan had gone, but the fruits of his enmity remained. In the winter of that year, a customs treaty was signed with the Russians and a new customs tariff based on it was issued. This treaty had been prepared by Naus, and the Shah had signed it in the year 1319 [1902] after his return from his second trip to Europe, and the treaties were made in 1320 [1903].NoteRef1The loan was furnished by the British through Naus. (Russia and Britain in Persia, pp. 448-449) But it was not until February 1903Kasravi uses the solar calendar date Bahman 1282 = February 1904, which is wrong. See Marvin Etner, Russo-Persian Commercial Relations, 1828-1914 (University of Florida Press, Gainesville, 1965), p. 49 and note of the present work. that it was implemented.

This treaty and the tariffs were completely to Iran's detriment. They would inevitably result in the Iranians' losing what little tool production, textile weaving, and so on they had, in a decline in trade, and even damage to agriculture and herding. In the end, the Iranians would be helpless and out of work and have to emigrate to the cities of the Caucasus and other places or fall on hard times in their own country and be compelled to favor a foreign neighbor.The loan was actually small, “L 300,000 at 5 percent, repayable over twenty years from the income of the Caspian fisheries. If such income proved insufficient, postal revenues, as well as the customs receipts of Fars and the Persian Gulf ports, would be used.” (Russia and Britain inersia, p. 449) TMI seems to be referring to a Russian loan which was being negotiated with the Iranian government in 1905. See Russia and Britain inersia, p. 471 ff.

Let those who want to find out about this treaty and these tariffs, what the Northern Neighbor intended by concluding it, and what damage it would do to Iran, read The Independence of the Customs of Iran.Esteqlal-e Gomrukiye Iran (Ferdawsi Press, Tehran, 1307 = 1928)

In this book, a secret is revealed: the treaty and tariffs had been prepared several years in advance. From this, we can penetrate other mysteries. We understand that negotiations about this began during the time of Blissful Soul Amin od-Dawle and we can say that one of the causes of Amin od-Dawle's downfall was his disagreement with this treaty and these tariffs. We also understand [36-37] that Naus' rapid rise and his elevation to the post of Minister of Customs were to prepare the way for such a treaty. On the whole, it must be said: The Northern Neighbor took advantage of the Shah's indecision, Amin os-Soltan's corruption, and the people's ignorance and got its way through the Belgians and others.

It was not for nothing that Shuster called Naus a tool of the Russians and “a notorious protegé” of theirs.Morgan Shuster, The Strangling of Persia (The Century Co., 1912, republished by Mage Publishers, Washington, D.C., 1987), p. 313. Russia and Britain inersia writes of how Naus had been made a tool of Russian policy by E. K. Grube, the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Discount and Loan Bank of Persia. See particularly pp. 422 and 487. Again, it is not without reason that [Reza] Safinia writes,pp. 159, 178. “The signing of this treaty was the heaviest blow dealt the independence of Iran since the treaty of Turkmanchai.”

It is shameful enough that a king or a prime minister should entrust an untested foreigner with such an important post which could end either in the prosperity of a country or its ruin. Even if Naus had sealed a treaty which benefited Iran, assigning him such a task would still have been an unforgivable crime for Mozaffar od-Din Shah and Atabak.

This tariff accord placed a light duty on goods coming from Russia to Iran but a heavy one on goods which were to enter Russia from Iran and on those coming from India or France or other places to Iran. So it was not only damaging to Iran, but to all other countries. The British were therefore very incensed by it and the government had no choice but to sign a new tariff treaty with them before a few months had passed to keep their merchants from suffering losses.Again, this particular accord granted a loan to the British and not to the Russians.

But the Iranians' losses were not remedied; they had to live with them for better or for worse. This tariff regime became another cause of popular discontent and exasperation, exacerbated by the evil behavior of Naus and the other Belgians, which infuriated the people.

1322 [1904] passed calmly because of 'Ein od-Dawle's aggressiveness. But in early 1905, another event occurred in Tehran: A photograph of Naus and other Belgians in which men and women were attending a ball fell into someone's hands. Each one was wearing a different costume (various Iranian outfits) and Naus himself had wound a turban around his head and thrown a cloak over his shoulders like a mullah.

This ball had occurred two years before, but this picture was found at a time when, in the first place, the people were very angry over Customs and its Belgian employees and, in the second place, Behbehani was upset with 'Ein od-Dalwe and, finally, Atabak's agents had not relented and were continuing to make trouble for 'Ein od-Dawle. Since Moharram was approaching and the mullah's business would become brisk, the photograph was given to them and they used it as an occasion to raise a hue and cry that Naus “had mocked Islam and insulted the clergy.” First, Blissful Soul Behbehani himself mounted the pulpit at his home and recalled Naus' evil activities. He concluded by bringing up the story of the picture, saying, “ Mozaffar od-Din Shah must be asked to dismiss Naus.” Then other mullahs, such as Sadr ol-'Olema, Haji [38] Sheikh Morteza (son of the Mirza of Ashtian), Sheikh Mohammad Rezaye Qomi, and Sayyed Ahmad Tabataba'i (brother of Blissful Soul Tabataba'i), followed suit. Each of them mounted the pulpit and denounced Naus. This uproar lasted until the Moharram services ended and in the meantime, the year 1323 [1905], in which the constitutionalist movement was to begin, approached.TBI provides the detail that the picture was seen in Amin os-Soltan's room by members of a secret society founded by Sayyed Mohammad Tabataba'i, who passed it on to Aqa Mirza Mostafa Ashtiani, a cleric allied with the liberals, who obtained it from an aide of Amin os-Soltan and copied it. (I:220)

'Ein od-Dawle, in his aloofness and ambition, did not take this uproar seriously. The Shah, too, ignored it. Therefore, nothing resulted from this discontent and these denunciations. The tumult subsided when Moharram ended. But it was not all over, as we will see. It was then that Blissful Souls Behbehani and Tabataba'i concluded a pact with each other and the freedom movement began, as we will explain in the second chapter. Here, at the end of this chapter, we will discuss a few more things to illuminate the events.

The Progress of General Schools

As we have seen, the idea that there had to be a law in the country and that the people should live in accordance with it dates from the times of Haj Mirza Hosein Khan Sepahsalar. We are not aware of any such idea among the Iranians before this. Then, the first stirring among the masses and the beginning of the people's awakening occurred during the tobacco concessions. It must be said that this first stirring among the people of Iran did not die down. From that day forth, the people's awakening and their concern for the affairs of the people and the country advanced in one direction and grew at a rate which few believed.

A sign of this was first the daily-increasing spread of general schools. For, as we have said, these schools first appeared in Iran in 1314 [1896] when Amin od-Dawle, through Roshdiye, opened them, first in Tabriz and then in Tehran. For a while, there was only one such school in Tehran (the Roshdiye). But after a while, popular interest led to others being founded. At first, some of the mullahs expressed hostility to them and some of them wanted to write books in support of the old way of teaching the alphabet, but in the meantime, two mullahs of good repute supported the general schools: One of these was Blissful Soul Sheikh Hadi Najmabadi, who was himself an educated, free-thinking, and good man. After Amin od-Dawle's downfall, he took charge of, supported, and protected the Roshdiye General school. The other was Blissful Soul Sayyed Mohammad Tabataba'i, who himself founded a general school called Islam and did not refrain from supporting and encouraging the people to support these schools to the best of his ability. The interest shown by these two in general schools silenced the others. Despite all the hostility towards them which Atabak expressed and all the displeasure which he never concealed, these schools spread from year to year. We see how in 1900, four or five years after the first one was founded, twenty-one general schools had been set up (seventeen in the capital and one each in Tabriz, Bushahr, Rasht, and Mashhad). These were all founded by the people themselves, who covered their expenses; they were independent of the government.

[39] The mass of people realized how harmful illiteracy was. They had seen the difference between the madrases and the general schools with their own eyes, and so turned to the latter with hope and enthusiasm. One of their good practices was to hold a celebration wouldw the school courtyard at the end of the year when the students would take their exams. The fathers and the students and others would be invited. When they saw how a little boy could, in two or three months' study of the alphabet, learn to write so faultlessly on the blackboard any word he was told and how the older students could recite the names of the countries of Europe and America and all kinds of facts, they were delighted and contributed eagerly. It often happened that the guests would contribute enough to cover the expenses of a general school for a year in such a celebration.

By 1906, when Mozaffar od-Din Shah granted the Constitution, the general schools had become very popular. Few cities did not have one or two or more such schools. The people's attachment to them reached the point that they had exaggerated ideas about them. Many thought that the cure for the country's ills was these general schools and that when young people graduated from them, all misery would vanish. Whenever a [school] celebration was held, announcements of it would be printed in the newspapers. There was boundless rejoicing and congratulations all around. This finally reached the point where Ahmad Beg Aqayov,The renow Caucasian Muslim intellectual. See, e.g., Holly Shissler, Between Two Empires: Ahmet Agaoglu and the New Turkey (IB Tauris, London, 2002). who published HayatA liberal daily published by 'Ali Mardan Bey Topchibashev between mid-June 1905 to mid-September 1906. in the Caucasus, himself an educated man who showed concern for Iran's affairs, spoke up and revealed the childishness of such thought among the Iranians.Document

In discussing general schools, we have to mention Haji Zein ol-'Abedin Taqiev.Document. After being maligned by the Soviets, he is being made into a national hero by the Azerbaijan Republic. He was a wealthy man of world renown. He was generous and made valuable donations. In 1900, he sent an appropriate gift to the new-founded children's schools of Iran via the Education Society: A bundle of large wall maps, notebooks for the students to write on, and some books in twenty-one packages for each of the twenty-one general schools of Iran. He sent four thousand rubles to the Roshdiye general school and five hundred for the Sadat general school.According to Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, this school was founded by Haji Mirza Yahya Dawlatabadi for sayyeds and orphans. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, pp. 118) Another school of this period, founded by Sayyed Mohammad Tabataba'i, was Eslam, run by his son, Sayyed Mohammad Sadeq. He mentions several other schools, and concludes that “hundreds” of such modern schools were founded before the constitutional revolution. (ibid., pp. 120-121)

The Spread of Newspapers

A second sign of progress was the spread of newspapers and the people's interest in them. As we have said, previously, most newspapers had been government-run. The only other ones we know of were Akhtar of Istanbul,Star. 1875-1895 or 1896, edited by Aqa Mohammad Taher Tabrizi. A pioneer liberal nationalist magazine. See “Akhtar” in E. G. Browne, Theress andoetry of Modernersia (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1914 and Kalimat Press, Los Angeles, 1983) Hekmat of Egypt,Wisdom. 1892-93, edited by Mirza Mehdi Tabrizi, formerly of Akhtar. (“Hekmat,” Mohammad Sadr-Hashemi, Tarikh-e Jarayed va Majallat-e Iran (Kamal, Isfahan, 1363)) and Qanun of London.Law. 1890-1905, irregularly. Iranian liberals of the fin de siècle era generally acknowledged a heavy debt to it for its ideological blend of limited monarchy, the rule of law, and Islamic slogans. It is discussed in an admiring way by Browne in his Persian Revolution (pp. 35-42). For a less flattering portrait of the magazine and its editor, see Hamid Algar, Mirza Malkum Khan: A Study in the History of Iranian Modernism (University of California Press, Los Angeles, 1973) A facsimile edition of it has recently been published. But after this movement began and progress was made, a few other newspapers appeared, of which the most famous were Habl ol-Matin of Calcutta,Documented elsewhere. Tarbiat of Tehran,Education. Edited by Mirza Mohammad Hosein Esfahani Zoka ol-Molk, December 1896-March 1907. SorayaThe Pleiades. Weekly, Cairo, October 1898-October 1900. Edited by Mirza 'Ali Mohammad Khan Kashani. and [40] Parvaresh of Egypt,Education. Weekly, Cairo, June 1900-March 1907, edited by Mirza 'Ali Mohammad Khan Khashani. and Al-HadidIron. 1897 and then June 1906-September 1907. Edited by Mirza Sayyed Hosein Khan, who had lived in Russia for some time and learned Russian and, among other things, become a follower of Jamal od-Din “Afghani.” It was later edited by Aqa Sayyed Mohammad Shabestari Abuz-Zia, who went on to become a leading constitutionalist fighter. and 'Adalat of Tabriz.Justice. Edited by Sayyed Hosein Khan.

If we were to discuss their writers, we should say that some were good and some were bad. We have mentioned the good qualities of Akhtar's writers. Its articles awakened many people. Haji Mirza Hasan Roshdiye, the founder of general schools, said,Document.

What prompted me to go off to Beirut and learn about new methods of instruction was an article in Akhtar.

One day, I was [41] reading it with my father and saw that in Europe, only ten out of a thousand are illiterate, but in Iran, ten out of a thousand are literate. This is because of bad teaching techniques and the difficulty of the alphabet lessons. Schools on the European model should be founded in Iran. This article had a great effect on my father and me, and although I am the son of a mullah and should have gone to Najaf to do mullahs' studies, I went to Istanbul, Egypt, and Beirut with my father's agreement. In these lands, I learned about the latest in the new ways of education.

This is an example of how a pure-hearted and good word does its work.

The writer for Hekmat, Mirza Mehdi Khan Tabrizi, is one of this good sort. I rarely saw his newspaper, but I know of its high quality. He was an educated man and wrote books, too, as well as “patriotic” poetry. It is said that he went to Tehran in 1900 and that Atabak did not stint in welcoming him and treating him kindly. He obtained for him the title Za'im od-Dawle and an annual stipend of three hundred tumans from the Shah, but so far as we can see, it did not divert him.

We have already discussed Qanun and its author, Mirza Malkom Khan.

The publisher of Tarbiat was a court poet and his newspaper was like a court poet's works, full of flattery. For example, he went before Sho'a' os-Saltane and then wrote a long article in praise of him saying:Document.

After becoming acquainted with His Heavenly Excellency, I reflected and saw that I was faced with a possessor of keen-eyed wisdom and that I was conversing with an angelic intelligence. I do not think that His Excellency, son of the King of Kings, was aged sixteen or seventeen, but by the Creator of Years and Months and the Illuminator of the Moon and Sun, in all the sixty years of my life, from childhood to old age, I do not recall anyone with such wit and sagacity. In God's name, I never saw anyone of such discriminating speech, of such a discerning mind, the essence of knowledge, the soul of acumen, in fine, possessed of a mind radiant as the sun and a memory more fluent than the clouds, and ranging from precision and perception concerning matters from the important affairs of state and government business to the graces and charms of culture, poetry, letters, and so on. I have not seen the point he did not understand nor the writing he has not read.

As for Soraya, it was first written by Mirza 'Ali Mohammad Khan Kashani. The voice of its vigorous articles reached everywhere, but then he left and founded Parvaresh, at which point Soraya lost its value. When I saw it in its sixth year, 1322 [1904], printed in Tehran and written by Sayyed Farajollah Kashani, I found that it had become greatly debased.

One of Soraya's ugly features was the conflict it started with Habl ol-Matin and its insulting use of very silly and base speech in referring to Habl ol-Matin's proprietor. Sometimes, Habl ol-Matin would speak about law and “ the rule of the shariat,” and this is how Soraya answered:Document.

Regarding a king who is more generous than all preceding kings and more just than all the just kings of the world, why do you go on with fairy tales and idle talk about the rule of the shariat and rule without the shariat and consider every ironmonger or menial laborer or greengrocer [42] fit to scrutinize government policy?... This is the talk of one possessed. What good is it?... Such rejected impertinence belongs to Sayyed Jamal [Asadabadi]. What do you have to say, Sayyed Jalal without jamal [beauty]?!

When Atabak left, Habl ol-Matin attacked him.Document. But its rival was a covert supporter of Atabak (and doubtless got paid for its support), and this is how Soraya replied:Document.

Accusing any one of the servants of the King of King's court of error is tantamount to an accusation of that Holy Court, let alone accusing the man who for a century has been the government's master judge and scribe and the chosen and trusted one of two prestigious kings, the select of the whole world.... Then it should be said (Refuge is with God!) that for a whole century, two kings did not know as much as Habl ol-Matin, and that is not so. One king has the wisdom of forty ministers, one minister the wisdom of forty wise men. We common people of the bazaar, what do we know of the secrets of government and the practical wisdom of rulership?

Parvaresh was one of the best newspapers during its first year, when I saw it. Its writer, Mirza 'Ali Mohammad Khan [Kashani], was a zealous and educated man and wrote stirring and vigorous articles. In 1902,Kasravi incorrectly has the Persian solar year of 1289=1910-11. when Mozaffar od-Din Shah traveled to Europe for the second time, he left for Europe from Egypt and met with the Shah's ministers and the rest of his entourage, writing some very thoughtful and good articles for his magazine.

Al-Hadid was written by Sayyed Hosein Khan, a good man who, in his newspaper, which was later brought out under the name 'Adalat, wrote good articles which avoided flattery.

Habl ol-Matin

As for Habl ol-Matin, it requires separate treatment. This weekly paper was greater and more famous than all the other newspapers of the time. It was printed in India and was able to speak freely. One of the things which increased its circulation was that Haji Zein ol-'Abedin Taqiev sent it a great deal of money so that it could to be sent free to the clergy in Najaf and other places. This is how a connection between the journal and the clergy developed, and Blissful Soul Sheikh Hasan Mamaqani who was then one of two the two Sources of Emulation (the other being Fazel Sharbiani) praised Habl ol-Matin and encouraged the people to read it.In P (I:186-187), Kasravi recalls in addition Mirza Jabbar Iravani and Mirza 'Abdor-Rahim Bolbole'i as championing reform in Iran.

This newspaper published articles about Iran's diplomatic difficulties and showed great concern and provided much guidance. It published sharply critical articles when the loan was obtained from Russia (for which it was banned from entering Iran for four years). It repeatedly prescribed law and constitutional government (or the rule of the shariat). This newspaper became very dear to the people, who considered its writer, Sayyed Jalal od-Din Kashani (Mo'ayyed ol-Eslam), to be a good man. In fact, he was an opportunist. Whenever he saw hope for his own interests, he forgot about struggling for the good of the people and the country.

[43] We find a great deal of flattery in his newspaper. Its writer would praise like a poet anyone who had just taken office and was untried, not having had a chance to accomplish anything. When Naus became Minister of Customs, he wrote,Document. “His Honor Monsieur Naus springs from the Belgian aristocracy and is righteous and capable. He was invited by the government to be the manager and official of customs of the Protected Realms of Iran a year ago and has been singularly honored by becoming General Minister of Customs of Iran.” It is typical of its flattery and extravagance to have exalted an unknown foreigner in this manner.

Mo'ayyed ol-Eslam wrote a lot of excessive flattery about Crown Prince Mohammad 'Ali Mirza, Arfa' od-Dawle, 'Ein od-Dawle, and others. As we have said, when 'Ein od-Dawle became the Prime Minister, Habl ol-Matin sold out to him; at that point, one could only call it “'Ein od-Dawle's Journal.” We will write about how despicably it treated the efforts of Blissful Souls Tabataba'i and Behbehani.We should document the above material within reason. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran pp. 221-222)

Newspapers in Iran, whether before or after the Constitution, did not have their own policy, and so they kept contradicting themselves. Habl ol-Matin was no exception. So it was that in one issue, you would see many things written about how just Mozaffar od-Din Shah was or Crown Prince Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's efforts and enlightenment, and the next issue would be given over to whining and complaining about the Iranian people's problems, the governors' tyranny, or the disordered and ruined state of the country.Find examples.

In fact, they wanted to struggle for Iran, but they also wanted to eat and get rich while they were at it. This was the way of the mass of the activists.

In one issue of Habl ol-Matin,Document. I saw two articles by one man (Yusofzade of Hamadan): One was in praise of pan-Islam and recommended it to the people, the other in praise of socialism, enumerating the benefits of that way of living. Neither the writer nor the publisher recognized the contradiction.

[44] With the exception of Amin os-Soltan, who had hurt Habl ol-Matin, this paper praised and flattered anyone who became a minister, whether before the Constitution or during the Little Autocracy or the time of the Russian Ultimatum and the closing of the House of Consultation.Give examples.

This is the way newspapers were in those days. They had both good and bad qualities. On the whole, they were valuable, and we can consider them one of the causes of the people's awakening. For aside from the good ones, which provided valuable guidance, even the bad ones were useful, for by talking about Europe, its progress and power, knowledge and inventions, and so on, they informed the people, and this too added to the stirring and awakening.

It so happens that the first war between the British and the Transvaal and then the Russo-Japanese war began at that time. These wars lasted several years and the newspapers wrote reports about them. The awakened read them with delight and were very moved by them. These stories had a big impact on Iran. The heroism of a handful of people in the Transvaal, their valiant resistance against a great power like Britain, and the defeats they inflicted several times upon this government's army, as well as the Japanese armies' preparedness, the competence of their generals, and the series of victories they won stirred the Iranians deeply. Japan, which had only recently been a forgotten country and had achieved such stature thanks to a constitution and the arousal of the people, taught a great lesson to the Iranians and affected everyone.On the impact of Japan on Iranian thought, see Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran (pp. 87-88). Stories about this war became so widespread and well known that “Port Atur” [Arthur] and “Marshal Oyama” and “General Gropatgin” [Kropotkin] and so on entered the popular idiom.Document. For instance, if someone was being arrogant or boastful, they would say, “What, have you conquered Port Atur, the way you're boasting?!”I have examples. Many writers wrote lavish praise of the Japanese people's patriotism, their goodness, or their wisdom. One of the worthy things about the newspapers, as we have said, was that they informed the people of these great world events. Moreover, that this was attracting the people's attention was a sign that their stirring and awakening was progressing.Some of the above should be documented.

Talebof's Books and Ebrahim EbrahimBeg5Beg's Travelog

Talebof's books and Ebrahim Beg's Travelog must be counted among the causes of the Iranians' awakening. These too, had a great impact.

'Abdor-Rahim Talebof was from Tabriz and, as he himself wrote, the son of a carpenter who had gone to the Caucasus in his youth, accumulated wealth there through hard work and toil and then retired to Vladiqafqaz. He was an educated man and knew a great deal of physics, chemistry, astronomy, and so on. He wrote many things, but we will examine only two of them: Ketab-e Ahmad [Ahmad's Book] and Masalek ol-Mohsenin [The Ways of the Beneficent].

In Ketab-e Ahmad, which is in two parts and nicely printed, Talebof talks with his imaginary son, Ahmad, teaching him in simple terms. He discusses, among other things, the Europeans' progress and the Iranians' backwardness. It is a very valuable and sweet book.

In Masalek ol-Mohsenin, several people leave Tehran on a scientific expedition. They set off for Mount Damavand with their equipment and provisions. The book is about this expedition, but meanwhile, the writer discusses the people's condition and their country's problems. It is also a very sweet and valuable book.

(One error which appears in this book is that Talebof believes that this side of the Alborz mountains, like the other side of those mountains, is forested and full of trees.Document This is not so.)

Some of the mullahs, as was their way, declared Talebof an infidel and kept the people from reading his books, but this is merely a sign of their ignorance.

As for Ebrahim Beg's Travelog, anyone who read it in those days and remembers what a sensation coursed through them as they read knows its value. This book relates the story of a youth, the son of an Iranian merchant with a business in Egypt who, along with his tutor, Uncle Yusof, goes to visit his country, Iran. The author weaves into its plot what the youth sees in the capital [and] other cities—the people's ignorance, their preoccupation with useless things, the mullahs' deceitfulness, the governors' tyranny, the government's negligence, and so on—in simple and sweet words and sorrowful tones. The mass of Iranians, whose nature was polluted with these problems and who did not suspect that there could be a life other than the miserable kind they lived, were, you might say, woken up by reading this book and were greatly moved by it. One can find many people who were awakened by reading this book, became ready to struggle for their country's improvement, and joined with other activists.

It was because of its effect on its readers that some were unhappy about its being distributed among Iranians and, until recently, people would read it in secret.

This book was in three parts, and the above refers only to the first part. The other two parts were not as impressive. They were written later and did not yield similar results.

As for its author, he was not known in those days, but after the Constitution was granted and there was freedom, the name of Haji Zein ol-'Abedin Maraghe'i, a merchant of Istanbul, appeared in the third section of the book. People would not believe that such an intelligent book could have emerged from the pen of a simple merchant [46] and some of [his] enemies said that the first section had been written and printed by Mirza Mehdi Khan (one of the writers for the newspaper Akhtar) and that Haji Zein ol-'Abedin wrote the second and third parts after Mirza Mehdi Khan's death and took credit for all of it. They argued that the writing style of the first section closely resembled that of articles in Akhtar and that, moreover, the second and third parts were different from the first in every way. But this is not acceptable. The second and third parts, which were doubtless written by Haji Zein ol-'Abedin, themselves show their author's awareness and complete worthiness, and if there is some small difference compared to the first section, it is true that in many books not all sections are uniform.Document. Check the translations.

One might suppose that Mirza Mehdi Khan or another enlightened writer helped Haji Zein ol-'Abedin, and this would not diminish the value of the haji's efforts. Even if we considered Haji Zein ol-'Abedin to have been simply the printer and distributor of this book, we would have to congratulate him and have his name go down in history. The mere printing of such a book in those days could have meant the printer's death. It is not right to ignore some one's goodness out of jealousy.

The only complaint one might have about Ebrahim Beg concerns the pointless poems and sayings which are appended to the end of the third book. Aside from that, we have another criticism of Haji Maraghe'i which we shall relate in its proper place.Document.

Patriotic Poems

As we want to note everything related to the awakening of the Iranians, we should also recall some of the patriotic odes which some poets wrote in those days. Iranians have been plagued by poetry for many years, and have suffered a lot for it.For a summary of Kasravi's views on Persian poetry and the controversies surrounding it from the perspective of one of his followers, see Mohammad Ali Jazayery, “Ahmad Kasravi and the Controversy over Persian Poetry,” International Journal of Middle East Studies 4 (1973), pp. 190-203 and 13 (1981), pp. 311-27. But sometimes harmless poetry is written, among which we count these patriotic odes.

When Iranians became acquainted with the European way of thought and life, they also became acquainted with the theme of homeland and patriotism, and people wanted to write poems on this subject which the newspapers would publish. One good thing about newspapers was that they printed and popularized such poems.

The poets of Iran are rhymesters. In most poems, they construct a line for the sake of one rhyming word. To be plainer, they always sacrifice substance for sound. They even wrote this way in these odes. Thus, you would see in an ode of thirty couplets with no more than four or five actual ideas. For all that, it was good that they wrote them; it was much better than going on with mindless ghazals. So we present a few examples here.

[47] One of these poets, Haji Mohammad Esma'il Monir Mazandarani (said to have lived in or around Tajan), wrote:

If a spider has her web, a man has his homeland. Like the spider, spin threads around your homeland. The spider spins her web to protect her lair. Be not less than the spider, O neglecter of the homeland! The wise consider patriotism the essence of the Faith.A hadith popular among liberal Muslim nationalists was, “Love of the homeland is from the Faith.” The meaning of the Faith is doubtless patriotism. If a sheikh knows not the meaning of homeland, excuse him. This homeland's name is Iran, come, listen to me.

In another poem, he says,

The enemy has surrounded your country. O people, is this not shameful?! Recall the zeal of those at rest in the ground, The exalted honorable ancestors, your family....

… As long as your load is wine and your work, gambling, You are all, great or small, without sense or shame. The evil of both of the east and the west travel about your realm, But your king is traveling in others' lands.

Another of these poets was Mirza Hasan Khan Badi'.He passed away two years ago in Tehran. [-AK] He lived in Basra and Khuzestan. In one of his odes, he declared:

Why do you not see the homeland's sorry state?! Why do you not hear the homeland's bitter plaint?!

Mirza Mehdi Khan Hekmat and Talebof also wrote such odes, but since we do not want to present all of them, we will let these few examples suffice.

Chapter 2: How Did the Constitutional Movement Begin?

In this chapter, we discuss the events in Iran from the beginning of the constitutionalist movement to the decree for the Constitution.

The Two Sayyeds' Alliance

In mid-March 1905, when the Moharram of 1322 was approaching, there were protests against Naus from many pulpits in Tehran. After concluding the tariff treaty, Naus, instead of being prosecuted and driven out of the country, found his stature increasing day by day. In addition to being Minister of Customs, he now became Minister of Post and Telegraphs and Head of Passports and even a member of the Government Council. He was very cruel to the people. To the extent he could, he gave administrative work only to Armenians. It was said that he was of Jewish descent.Annette Destré, the author of Les fonctionaire Belges au service de laerse, 1898-1915 (Acta Iranica, Troiseième série, vol. VI, Brill, Leiden, 1976), based, among other things, on Joseph Naus' papers, has communicated to me that this does not appear to be the case. Personal communication. A telegram from Najaf is reproduced in Mohammad Mehdi Sharif-Kashani, Vaqe'at-e Ettefaqiye dar Ruzegar (p.22) which refers to “Monsieur Naus the Christian.” See also the merchant's telegram in ibid., p. 25. Similarly, according to Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, Sayyed 'Abdollah Behbehani referred to him as “the Christian.” (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran p. 230)

The people were very incensed with him. Behbehani and his followers took advantage of the picture we mentioned of Naus in his cloak and turban, and used it as an excuse to denounce him. Certain people printed many copies of the picture and had them distributed among the people.

To all appearances, it was Naus' resignation which was being demanded, but Behbehani really wanted to try to bring down 'Ein od-Dawle. Just as the mullahs had brought Amin os-Soltan down a few years before, he now wanted to overthrow his successor.

As we have said, the Shah and 'Ein od-Dawle paid no attention to this uproar, and Naus doubtless simply laughed it off. The uproar ended with Moharram, but Behbehani secretly continued his struggle. He hoped to ally himself with one of the great clerics of Tehran in order to fortify his position, and it was during those days that the alliance between him and Blissful Soul Sayyed Mohammad Tabataba'i began.

In The History of the Awakening, it says:I:272.

Mo'tamad ol-Eslam Rashti came before His Eminence Tabataba'i on behalf of His Eminence Behbehani to receive a promise of collaboration. His Honor at first discouraged him, but finally declared, “If His Eminence Aqa Sayyed 'Abdollah Behbehani were to change his goal and there be no personal spite involved, I will cooperate.”

He then went to Haji Sheikh Fazlollah's house. He [49] emerged thoroughly discouraged. Indeed, the sheikh frightened him by saying, “What does this mission have to do with you?! Even if 'Ein od-Dawle would not challenge the sayyed, he would finish and destroy you.”

From there, he left for Haji Mirza Abu Taleb Zanjani's house. At first, he, too, frightened Mo'tamad ol-Eslam, but finally he pledged neutrality, neither to help nor to hinder.

He then met with Sheikh 'Abd on-Nabi, who said, “I must meet with His Eminence Aqa Sayyed 'Abdollah myself.” Mo'tamad ol-Eslam said, “Set the time and place for the meeting.” The sheikh answered, “I will not go to His Eminence Sayyed 'Abdollah's house. And if he were to come to my house, news of this will reach 'Ein od-Dawle, and he would be angry with me.” So it was decided that they would meet each other outside of Tehran in Ibn Babaveih.

After being apprized of all this, His Eminence Aqa Sayyed 'Abdollah said, “If His Eminence Tabataba'i is with me, that suffices. Sheikh 'Abd on-Nabi is a nobody. If Haji Mirza Abu Taleb does not oppose this, that is enough for me. As for Haji Sheikh Fazlollah, he is friends with 'Ein od-Dawle these days, but in a few days, he too will despair of him.”

This alliance between the Two Sayyeds began in the first days of spring, 1323 [1905]. One must consider these days to be the beginning of the constitutionalist movement.Indeed, in P, Kasravi declares that “the Two Sayyeds are rightly considered to be the two kind fathers of Iran.” (I:152) Tabataba'i's answer should be pondered well: “If His Eminence Aqa Sayyed 'Abdollah were to change his goal and if there be no personal grudge involved, I will cooperate.” From this, it is apparent that this good man wanted to free Iran from the grip of oppressors and autocrats and considered the removal of some 'Ein od-Dawle a minor matter. Similarly, what Behbehani said was also commendable: “If His Eminence Tabataba'i is with me, that suffices.” From this, it is clear that he accepted Tabataba'i's advice and had turned from mere opposition to 'Ein od-Dawle. These remarks show how good and wise each of them was.Kasravi is quoting Nazem ol-Eslam's memoirs of a meeting of a secret society of Iranian nationalists he claims to have founded. In his recollections of the fifth session of this meeting, he recalls himself saying, It is best that we, first of all, awaken those around His Honor Aqa Sayyed 'Abdollah and get them to understand the exigencies of the times. Indeed, let us do something to make His Honor unite and ally with His Eminence Tabataba'i. Second, let us try to have their negotiations take on a humanitarian [or: nationalistic (naw'iyat)] quality, and turn personal grudges into humanitarian motivations. Then we shall succeed. The members of the society confirmed this with full earnest and enthusiasm and decided to have several members talk with His Eminence Behbehani's companions and advise him to strengthen the bonds of unity and concord between the Two Established Sayyeds. He then goes on to recommend that this maneuvering be supplemented with the organization of a mass underground movement based on cells of thirty. (I:269) That Kasravi himself omits all this probably does no damage to his History's accuracy. Needless to say, the cells of thirty would never be mentioned again. More to the point, Nazem ol-Eslam immediately after this reports that the meetings, as described by Kasravi, had already transpired anyway! (I:272) Kasravi's high estimation of the Two Sayyeds dates at least to P, where he says, “When God wants a people to progress, he grants them competent leaders. In this movement, too, God raised up competent leaders, particularly the Two Sayyeds, who behaved with tremendous sagacity. On the one hand, they stood by their word, while on the other they never showed haste or extremism or cut off relations with the Court.” (I:19)

Each of them had a following, and some of the lesser mullahs were linked to them. When they allied, they formed a real force, and we will see how their strength increased day by day.

The author of The History of the Awakening, who was himself a protegé of Tabataba'i and participated in these events, and from whose book most of this information is gathered, did not write about why the Two Sayyeds forged an agreement with each other or what they thought or what they discussed. But it is clear from their actions that these two were thinking from the very beginning about a code of laws and a constitution and a House of Consultation, but had wisely decided to proceed by gradual steps to achieve their ends.It should be said, though, that Nazem ol-Eslam reported many views among his comrades about Sayyed 'Abdollah's motivations, from crass political motivations (his alliance with Amin os-Soltan) to patriotism and religious zeal. Authors other than Kasravi generally admit that Sayyed 'Abdollah was corrupt. Even his follower Mohammad Mehdi Sharif-Kashani (p. 140) reproduced clandestine pamphlet which denounced him as such. For example, (p. 143) it was a mixture of “human intellect and personal interest” which impelled him to take an interst in the groups fighting for justice and become an ally of His Eminence Sayyed Mohammad [Tabataba'i]. The rest of the clergy and talabes chimed in, whether they understood or not… Even His Eminence Sheikh Fazlollah was obliged to go along with it hypocritically… All in all, the true word “justice” was on everyone's tongues… A group of secret angels from the World of Humanity, who publically and behind the scenes repulsed evil and beckoned the good and trumpeted secret matters did not withhold one iota in helping orally or materially. Unfortunately, just when these efforts were bearing fruit, the true word 'justice' utterly vanished. In particular, His Eminence Sayyed 'Abdollah's institution sold it out altogether, he himself, his sons, his household, and his servants committed injustice. This was particularly so recently, when the door to confidential contacts with Amir Bahador was opened through Mirza Mostafa [Ashtiani] and Mirza Mohsen, when His Eminence's eyes were gladdened by Bahador money and his blessed mind blossomed… His eminence Sayyed 'Abdollah ruined and voided everything with his greed. After listing a number of alleged corrupt deeds of Sayyed 'Abdollah, the author scolds him and advises him to stop being so greedy for, among other things, money from 'Ein od-Dawle and Amino s-Soltan. On the other hand, see idem., p. 124, where the minutes of a meeting include a pamphlet which states that “His Eminence Hojjatoleslam Sayyed 'Abdollah had previously behaved as everybody knows, but has changed his ways and is completely transformed and supports the people.” Moreover, “Although His Eminence Sayyed 'Abdollah had previously been so hostile towards His Eminence Sayyed Mohammad that they declared each other infidels, they are now so united that it is as if they were lovers because of freedom.” This is strongly challenged by a participant who lists the bribes Sayyed 'Abdollah had taken only recently. He also publishes a clandestine pamphlet accusing Sayyed 'Abdollah fomenting dissent with Sayyed Mohammad. (p. 143) (See also p. 16, where Sharif-Kashani freely admits that Sayyed 'Abdollah had been bribed by Amin os-Soltan into breaking the ban on tobacco during the tobacco revolt.) It is possible that this was written due to the author's friendship with Ehtesham os-Saltane, whose honesty and fidelity to constitutional principles he defends and whose side he takes when he, as president of the Majlis, attacked Sayyed 'Abdollah. (p. 149 and 157 ff.) Dr. Mehdi Malekzade allows that Sayyed 'Abdollah was “ignorant of the history of the peoples' revolutions and the policies of progressive parties around the world,” but writes that he was “courageous, patient, determined, stout-hearted, understanding, and knowledgeable about politics.” His most useful quality was his ambition. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran p. 247) It was useless to appeal to modern ideas such as popular government or an assembly of delegates. He was perhaps not even ready to listen to such talk. Whenever they wanted to base their alliance on ideological or political revolution or the elimination of the absolutist government's institutions, Behbehani would not allow it and drove such people away from him. So the solution was to choose a common goal in the interest of each side and not utter anything about liberalism or constitionalism, and this common goal was opposition to 'Ein od-Dawle… Through doing this, they could harness his ambition and thus have access to his material and morale capital. (ibid., p. 249-250) According to this version, the way for this alliance was paved by the unceasing efforts of a small army of liberal activists who used all their wiles to win Sayyed 'Abdollah over. (ibid., pp. 251-253) See also note . For a summary of the Persian literature attacking Sayyed 'Abdollah's seamier side, see Heidar Khan 'Amuoghli, chapter 16.

As we have said, in the previous ten or so years, Iran had begun to stir because of certain people's efforts. It kept advancing and had by now come a long way. Iran only needed a capable leadership to bring it to the right goal. These Two Sayyeds became this leadership.

[50] The claim that the Two Sayyeds and the rest were unaware of constitutionalism and that others put this word in their mouth in 'Abd ol-'Azim or in the [British] legation cannot be made by the pure-hearted. There are many people in Iran who cannot do anything themselves but keep trying to disparage the valuable work of others and foolishly say such things.

The pioneers of the movement in Iran had known for twenty or thirty years what a constitution was and how people lived in Europe. Every year, people had been traveling to Europe and would return with information from there and they had been writing about law and constitutionalism in the Persian newspapers for some years.Eloquent enough testimony on the impact of travel to Europe on Iranian through can be found in Dr. Mehdi Malekzade's Tarikh-e Enqelab-Mashrutiat-e Iran, pp. 84-85. While Naser od-Din Shah had tightly controlled Iranians' ability to travel to Europe, “the most important thing” his successor, Mozaffar od-Din Shah, did was to open the doors to contact with Europe, and this, according to Dr. Malekzade, contributed to an awakening among the Iranian people. (ibid., p. 112-113) Admittedly, the vast masses and the people in the bazaar did not know about it, but this [51] is not to say that the Two Sayyeds were also ignorant.

If they did not know what a constitution meant and did not want it, then for what did they struggle and show such resolve? In the hope of achieving what great aim did they suffer a hundred hardships?!...

Doubtless they knew for what they were fighting, and as we shall see, the two of them made an agreement to ally with each other and take advantage of every event in order to take a step forward.NoteRef2Taqizade has an interesting perspective on the meaning of this alliance: Aqa Sayyed Mohammad Tabataba'i, who in fact must be considered the purest of the Tehran clergy and the true apostle of the Iranian revolution strengthened the nationalist movement which had begun with all his might and with extraordinary ourage. He would go to the pulipit at night and woul preach against absolutism with full severity… Aqa Sayyed Mohammad Tabata'i was personally a pure-hearted man who loved liberty and freedom and had a pure character and was without personal motivations. Indeed, the pure soul of the revolution was manifested in him at the time, and he was the revolution's unselfish standard-bearer. However, he was himself very simple-minded and endlessly superfuicial and lacking in depth and bereft of reason and strategy. He was very quick to anger and nearly insane. He followed whatevere this one or the other saidand was gullible, so much so that if if were not for the good organization and wise strategizing of Aqa Sayyed 'Abdollah, who guided various parts of the people and both the clergy and Aqa Sayyed Mohammad Tabatab'i like children, the thread of affairs could have come apart at any moment. Aqa Sayyed Mohammad Tabataba'i lacked a firm vision and determination and courage and completely panicked during magor events and would usually speak contrary to what he had originally said. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:327) In a sense, Taqizade is damning Sayyed 'Abdollah with faint praise here. He later on points out that he was largely interested in restoring his patron, Amin os-Soltan. (ibid., p. 330)

The Tehran Merchants' Exasperation with the Belgians

In the meantime, there was talk of the Shah's going to Europe. For the third time, he and the ministers and their entourage took a fancy to visit Europe, and they prepared to go. While weeping and wailing was rising from every corner of the country, they calmly prepared to travel. But before they left, a small disturbance broke out in Tehran: the merchants had had enough of their mistreatment at the hands of the customs officials and closed their arcades and caravan stations and took refuge in 'Abd ol-'Azim.

Naus and his colleagues were being openly hostile toward the people and did not stop at enforcing the agreed-upon tariffs, but sought manifold increases in duties and taxes and resorted to force to extract them. The merchants sent a letter to 'Ein od-Dawle, but he ignored it.TBI, from whom Kasravi summarized this material, wrote that indeed, “to the latest petition which the merchants sent via Sa'd od-Dawle complaining about Naus, 'Ein od-Dawle replied, without having read it, 'What kind of thuggery are the merchants up to? I'm going to bind them all to a cannon's mouth.' It was at this point that 'Ein od-Dawle reluctantly accepted Sa'd's suggestion as mentioned below. (I:294) Finally, at [Commerce Minister Mirza Javad Khan] Sa'd od-Dawle's request, it was decided that there be a discussion in which the chief merchants and Naus would participate. When the meeting was held at the Court, the merchants showed how tariff duties several times greater than what had been fixed were being exacted. Since Naus could not answer, he insulted the merchants in the presence of 'Ein od-Dawle, Sa'd od-Dawle, and others.According to TBI, he refered to the merchants as pedar sukhte, sons of burnt fathers, a common Persian insult. Nazem ol-Eslam quipped that, had someone else said it, he might have understood this to be a reference to how the Qajar dynasty had burned all their fathers. The merchants were particularly insensed that this insult had come from the “unclean lips” of an infidel and refered to Muslim merchants. (I:294) EveryoneEveryone but 'Ein od-Dawle, who, according to Nazem ol-Eslam, was so greedy that he was willing to overlook the insult. (TBI, I:294) was incensed by his behavior and the meeting broke up and nothing came of it. So on Friday, 10 Safar [April 16], the arcades and caravan stations and cloth bazaars were closed and the merchants, cloth dealers, and others took refuge in 'Abd ol-'Azim. One of their leaders was Haji Mohammad Esma'il Maghaze'i and another was Haji 'Ali Shalforush. They were not without ties to Behbehani and Tabataba'i, and in The History of the Awakening it says that before leaving for ‘Abdol-‘Azim, they went to His Eminence Tabataba'i's house and told him what was happening and received instructions as to what to do and how to react.TBI, I:294. Nazem ol-Eslam adds that the merchants also wanted thereby to have him set the secret society he was heading in motion.

Habl ol-Matin's correspondent went to them and asked what they wanted and wrote about this at length for his newspaper.Document.

They raised three issues: 1) They complained about the new customs tariffs and related the harm they would do to the country and the merchants. 2) They complained about the customs officials' tyranny and the exorbitant sums of money they were taking from Iranian merchants. 3) They exposed Naus' hatred and hostility toward the Iranians and called for his dismissal, saying that he was a Jew and had a particular hatred for the Iranians.Not in TBI. It can be expected that this is from Habl ol-Matin.

[52] And so five or six days passed. In the meantime, Mohammad 'Ali Mirza came from Tabriz to Tehran and wanted to become vicegerent in his father's absence. He sent someone to the merchants and tried to mollify them, promising that after the Shah went on his trip to Europe and returned, he would ask him to dismiss Naus and have him expelled from Iran. Moreover, since he knew that behind the merchants stood Behbehani, he went to his house in person and tried to mollify him, too. As a result, the disturbances subsided. By the time the Shah moved to Bagh-e Shah and prepared to leave for Europe, the leaders no longer wanted to pursue this matter any further.TBI, I:295.

The Shah and his entourage remained in Europe for four months, more or less, touring around until they returned to Iran. It was on this trip that it was said the Shah brought along an entourage of sixty-eight. Nothing happened in Tehran in his absence except that Behbehani tried to augment his forces and gather allies. Also, in Fars, the people had become exasperated with the injustices of the Shah's son, Sho'a' os-Saltane, and complained and appealed for justice. Sho'a' os-Saltane bought villages belonging to the Crown Lands from the government. He used this to laid hands on villages which people had bought from the government in Naser od-Din Shah's time and seized the people's property by force.Often, the people had no documentation; but even if they did, their land was seized anyway. (TBI, I:395) “… the Shooa-es-Sultaneh, the Shah's younger son, who was a by-word even in Persia for extortion and injustice.” Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, No. 3, January 1907) This led the people to complain and appeal for justice, sending telegrams to the clergy and the government.TBI (I:303, 394). The following incident, which is reported in TBI (I:308), is mentioned in P (I:70) and then subject to a letter of protest in the issue of Peiman (II:9, pp. 593-595) following the issue in which it was published: The History of the Awakening reports that after the Shah returned from his trip abroad, one of his entourage, who was a member of Sayyed Mohammad Tabataba'i's patriotic organization, placed a packet containing a call for Europeanizing reforms. Having read this, the Shah said, “An organized judicial administration must be set up and a law for such like that which governs foreign judiciaries must be promulgated.” He then told members of his inner circle, “If the Iranian government is to be constitutional like the rest of the governments, I will be relieved and so will my subjects.” Amir Bahador-e Jang, who was present, submitted, “If the Shah declares this one more time, I will disemboweled myself and commit suicide!” With this, the poor Shah fell silent. In P, Kasravi reports this declaration and calls this an example of how “childishness, flattery, villainy, aggression, and atheism” are gathered in one person. Fine, stupid dummy! If a people of twenty million not want a House of Justice, what can it do?... And besides, what harm would if have done your Shah if you had disembowel yourself? Finally, … you lied… History has shown well that instead of a House of Justice, a House of Consultation opened in Iran and the Shah expelled you from Iran and you were still alive and did not disembowel yourself. This led to one of Amir Bahador-e Jang's relatives, N. Bahadori of Tabriz, to write a letter of protest. He says that “Blissful Soul Hosein Pasha Khan Amir Bahador-e Jang” has suffered thousands and thousands of such slights by unfair people. He said that this courtier said this years later, after Mozaffar od-Din Shah had died. Kasravi answers that he had been impressed with Mr. Bahadori's intelligence and pure-heartedness, but stands by the historical record.

Disturbance in Kerman In the meantime, things were happening in Kerman, too. The people of that city were divided into two factions: one, the Karim Khanis (or Sheikhis) and the other, the Motasharre's (or Bala Saris). These two factions lived apart from each other and there was rivalry and hatred between them. Sometimes, certain people would incite them to fight.Kasravi, interested as he is in using this incident to attack his favorite target, i.e. the factionalism which was wracking Iran before the advent of Reza Shah, neglects an important point that Nazem ol-Eslam raised, that the Sheikhis were immensely more wealthy than their Motesharre' neighbors, and that much of the sectarian hatred the common Motesharre's felt for the Sheikhis was the hatred the poor have for the wealthy. ( Ibid., I:310-11) In those times, it so happened that one Sheikh Barini came to Kerman and mounted the pulpit and began insulting the Karim Khanis and incited the Motasharre's against them.Nazem ol-Eslam describes him as “a bizarre creature …, a youth of twenty five, tall, with a huge turban, …, tiny eyes and a narrow beard like a Turkman. …. Sometimes he would denounce the Zoroastrians and the Jews [Reading Yahud for the current edition of TBI's Honud (Hindus), which seems improbable given what appears below.] and called them infidels upon whom one must make war, whose property may be legitimately seized and whose blood may be legitimately shed by the Muslims. Sometimes he would denounce usury and profiteering. Most of the time he would spew pure filth and obscenities from the pulpit, denouncing the Sheikhi sect, calling them deluders and deluded who had made innovations in the Faith and ridiculing their sheikhs. He would even remarry those who had been married by Sheikhi clergymen. Since the common people considered his sermons valuable, they gathered around him, and thousands surrounded him wherever he went. It was clear that trouble was brewing.” (TBI, I:310) One Rokn od-Dawle, a prince and the governor of the province, drove the sheikh out of the city, but the people revolted and called for his return. The governor, out of weakness and incompetence, gave in and returned the sheikh, who resumed fanning the flames of Motasharre' hostility and vengefulness.Nazem ol-Eslam described him as an old-fashioned prince who ran the province like a family business. It is significant that he based his power on a Sufi sect associated with Ebrahim Khan Zahir od-Dawle. (TBI, I:309)

In the meantime, one Haji Mirza Mohammad Reza, a cleric of Kerman who had studied in Najaf for yearsHe received his license to be a mojtahed from Akhund Khorasani, a leading constitutionalist mojtahed and a hero of Kasravi's. (TBI, I:311) “His family never earned its bread like mullahs, but by agriculture.” (TBI, I:394, footnote) and had become a mojtahed, returned to his city, his heart full of ambition for religious leadership. He, too, seized the opportunity and joined with Sheikh Barini in fanning the flames of chaos.It will be noticed that Kasravi takes a relentlessly hostile attitude towards Haji Mohammad Reza. It seems likely that this had much to do with this mojthaed's political trajectory; when the Shah issued a rescript restoring the Constitution after the June 1908 coup against it, this mojtahed participated in a movement of anti-constitutionalist clerics deploring this move on the grounds that constitutionalism was in violation of the shariat. (See page 762.) The text of his responsum appears in Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran (pp. 895-896), where the author insists that the mojtahed had been pressured into issuing this statement. Kasravi's source provides an important detail here which he omits: (I:311) The trouble-makers requested a responsorum from His Eminence concerning the Sheikhis and wrote out a request in accordance with their prejudices. But His Eminence would not answer. His Honor Aqa Sayyed 'Ali, the son of the late graced Aqa Sayyed 'Abbas, who had also studied for some time in the 'Atabat and had received his license to be a mojtahed from His Honor Aqa Sayyed Kazem Yazdi [who would become a well-known anti-constitutionalist mojtahed] said and wrote clearly, immediately after his arrival in Kerman, that the Sheikhis are unclean … [Some khans and sayyeds] went into action and beseiged Haj Mirza Mohammad Reza's door, saying that it was impossible that we allow infidels to rule over Muslims. They raised a hue and cry, and when His Honor Haj Mirza Mohammad Reza went to the mosque at night, this mob gathered in the mosque and screamed. In fact, there is no indication in Kasravi's source that Haj Mirza Reza Mohammad had a hand in the events.

Since the Karim Khanis were weakened,Kasravi gives no reason they should feel this way. In fact, it was because the vice-governor, to whom the nominal governor had literally sold his power, and with whom the Karim Khani Sheikhis were allied, had finally been deposed by the central government after numerous appeals by the people of Kerman because of his gross corruption. (TBI, I:312) [Haj Mirza Mohammad Reza] decided to seize the mosque which they used and which had a large waqf property and turn it over to one of his relatives. He came with a group of people to seize the mosque, and since the Karim Khanis resisted and the governor stationed some farrashes and tofangchis at the mosque gates and they fired on the people, several were killed and several wounded.Kasravi's source actually says that the people fled in the direction of Haj Mirza Mohammad Reza's house when they saw the well-armed government troops massed in front of them and when his men heard the mob approaching, they assumed that they were about to attack the house and that it was they who fired into the crowd, wounding forty and killing several. “Most of those who were killed were children and infants who had no intention but to flee from being harmed by the government forces.” (TBI, I:312) It is very interesting that Kasravi has the governor, whom he admirers, carrying out the violence and exonorates the cleric, whom he despises. News of this reached Tehran [53] before Mozaffar od-Din Shah returned from Europe and while Mohammad 'Ali Mirza was still vicegerent. The latter dismissed Rokn od-Dawle from his post as governor and sent Zafar os-Saltane, who was also a prince, to replace him. Zafar os-Saltane hurried to Kerman.

However, Haji Mirza Mohammad Reza did not desist and the people's rioting did not subside.Kasravi here continues to make Haj Mirza Mohammad Reza the villain of the piece. In fact, Nazem ol-Eslam reports that just before Zafar os-Saltane departed for Kerman, he visited Sayyed Mohammad Tabataba'i, who urged him to make Kerman a model of what Iran should look like according to the values which they shared. He urged him in particular to ally with Haj Mirza Mohammad and said that he would write to the latter and ask him to cooperate with Zafar os-Saltane. On the other hand, the same source reports that the old governor said that he, too, wished to see the Sheikhis humiliated and urged Haj Mirza Mohammad Reza to stir up trouble and show that it was not only himself who was incapable of containing sectarian violence. (TBI, I:313-14) After Zafar os-Saltane arrived, another unlaudable event occurred. His Eminence's followers descended upon the Jews' houses and broke their vats and spilled their wine on the ground. The governor wanted to prevent this rioting and sectarian strife and send the people back to go about their business. He sent someone to negotiate with Haj Mirza Mohammad Reza.As his admirer, Nazem ol-Eslam, writes, at a rawzekhani, Haj Mirza Mohammad Reza, as was his want, was sitting among the common people, one of whom objected that a neighbor was selling wine. He gave this offender some sage counsel, whereupon he repented and poured the vats of wine out. The trouble-makers, now that they could no longer pick on the Sheikhis, then used this as an excuse to attack the homes of Jews and break “a few glasses of their wine” in Haj Mirza Mohammad Reza's name, something of which the author exonorates him. (TBI, I:314) Dr. Malekzade, too, held this mojtahed in high esteem. He does mention that he had insulted the Sheikhis badly, but says that the latter took advantage of the fact that the governor had just arrived to depict him as an immediate threat to the province's stability and the governor allowed himself to be duped. Although 'Ein od-Dawle realized the damage the lashing of this mojtahed had done and moved quickly to remove him, the mistreatment of this mojtahed poisoned relations betweent he government and the clergy. (TEMI, pp. 138-139) But instead of getting the people to disperse and the riot to subside, the ambitious mullah, in order to heighten the people's frenzy, pretended that it had suddenly occurred to him to go on a pilgrimage and that he wanted to go to Mashhad, and one day suddenly left his house for that destination.TBI is not clear on this, but it seems that Haj Mirza Mohammad Reza somehow felt offended or even threatened by the governors' question, and it was then that he decided to leave. (I:314) But the people poured out and stopped him and returned him to his house. The governor had no choice but to disperse the people, so he sent a detachment of soldiers and tofangchis to Haji Mirza Mohammad Reza's house.Kasravi seems keen on showing that it was inevitable that the governor would wind up firing on the people. In fact, Kasravi's source suggests that agents of the trouble-makers told Zafar os-Saltane that the people were coming for him, backed by the former governor, Rokn od-Dawle, to show that it was not only the latter who could not control the province's sectarian violence. When relatives of the former governor came before Zafar os-Saltane recommending that he send the cavalry and infantry and seize the trouble-makers, he paid them no mind, always wanting to end the matter peacefully. He tried to send an emmissary to Haj Mirza Mohammad Reza, but the trouble-makers would not let him through. “I will not order killing and violence, nor will I be content that anyone's honor be wounded,” Nazem ol-Eslam has him say. (TBI, I:314-15) They arrived, shooting.Nazem ol-Eslam provides the detail, “[A]mazingly, they wept as they shot … Their commander … wept like a widowed woman.' (TBI, I:315) They shot two dead and the riotersNazem ol-Eslam calls them Haj Mirza Mohammad Reza's morids, or followers. (I:316) abandoned Haji Mirza Mohammad Reza's house and its vicinity, everyone fleeing and only women remaining. The tofangchis entered the house, seized Haji Mirza Mohammad Reza along with several of his people, and pushed them along in disgrace, playing music.Nazem ol-Eslam reports that the soldiers started looting the women of Haj Mirza's household. He continues: (I:316) When news of this reached His Eminence in his study, he came out and said, “Why are you troubling the poor women? If I have committed an offense, here I am. These poor women have offended no one.” The men all escaped and hid and the women led His Eminence the Mojtahed, weeping and wailing.

They brought those arrested to the governor's office and tied Haji Mirza Mohammad Reza himself and three other mullahs to a pillory and their feet were beaten with sticks.Nazem ol-Eslam does not try to exonorate the governor and states that this was done on his orders. He adds, however, that the governor begged Haj Mirza's forgiveness and blamed his actions on the advise of the former governor's two brothers. It is also worth noting that he reports that the military officers present at the torture of the clerics threatened to resign if it were to continue, since it was an affront to the clergy. (I:316, 317) They were then expelled from the city and sent off to Rafsanjan. His Eminence's followers were only able to crowd into his house and hold a rawzekhani and weep and beat their heads. This they did for several days, during which the prayer-leaders refused to go [54] to the mosque and recite prayers.

This behavior of Zafar os-Saltane, which was very appropriate, was considered a great sin in those days. Bastinadoing mojtaheds was unimaginable to the people. Moreover, the story did not reach Tehran the way it had actually happened. Haji Mirza Mohammad Reza's household and supporters wrote a letter and told the story the way they wanted to. Therefore, the Two Sayyeds were offended and considered it another case of 'Ein od-Dawle's autocracy and disregard for the clergy.Nazem ol-Eslam leaves it unclear how 'Ein od-Dawle figured in, or was understood to have figured in, this affair. At one point, he seems to implicate the Mojtahed in keeping him from continuing on to Mashhad. (I:319) In the second telling of the impact of the affair in Tehran, he is implicated only later by Sayyed 'Abdollah Behbehani. (I:320-24) They had become powerful through their alliance and were looking for an excuse to attack the government and denounce it and stir up the people. In addition, it was Ramadan, and the means for accomplishing their task were at hand. They took advantage of all this. The next day, Thursday, 17 Ramadan [November 8], the events in Kerman were addressed from most of Tehran's pulpits and 'Ein od-Dawle was denounced, along with the governors whom he was sending to the provinces. Blissful Soul Tabataba'i himself mounted the pulpit and spoke and caused the people to weep. Sadr ol-'Olema did the same. The preacher in the old Sepahsalar Mosque, which belonged to Behbehani, sermonized upon this episode in his presence and upon his instructions.

Haji Sheikh Fazlollah Nuri and other clerics who were not allied with the above clerics and who secretly supported 'Ein od-Dawle remained aloof, but the government had no choice but to recall Zafar os-Saltane from Kerman.

One night during those days (the night of 24 Ramadan [November 15]), Behbehani went to Tabataba'i's house and the two held secret deliberations and their oath of alliance became firmer from that night on.Nazem ol-Eslam reports on a “secret and private” meeting between Tabataba'i and Behbehani at the former's house on that night in which they discussed the Kerman affair. He reports that their friendship and alliance was strengthened through it. (ibid., I:324)

The Destruction of the Bank Building

In the meantime, another event was occurring. A Russian bank bought the site of a dilapidated madrase and an old graveyard in the center of town and built a big and strong building for itself. Tabataba'i and his allies were displeased with this and discussed it among themselves.

Those who know the old lanes of Tehran know that there is a mosque behind the Cobblers' Bazaar called the Khazen ol-Molk Mosque and a ruined shrine called the Sayyed Vali Shrine and that there was a vacant lot between these and the Cobblers' Bazar. There was a madrase there sixty or seventy years ago called the Chal Madrase, and a cemetery. The madrase gradually fell into disrepair and was abandoned by the talabes, and the place was finally occupied by coal dealers. The cemetery, too, fell into disuse since the government was preventing the burial of the dead within the city. Some people would go and buy some of its perimeter from clerics and build houses for themselves there. The clerics did not refrain from selling and contracting out on the grounds that one may sell a waqf which had fallen into disuse [55] and found another waqf from the proceeds.

Then, since the Russian Loan Bank needed a site to build a building in the city, people remembered that one could buy this vacant lot from the clergy for money. The Bank had Mostashar ot-Tojjar buy the land. First, he went to Tabataba'i, who answered that this was a waqf and a cemetery for Muslims.According to TBI, from which Kasravi took this material, the bank first bought the surrounding houses “at an enourmous price.” (I:325) It was only then that the bank approached Tabataba'i over buying the madrase land. One could not buy it nor could one disinter the dead and replace them with a building.According to Kasravi's source, the issue of the cemetary never came up; it was simply an issue of waqf land, particularly when it included a mosque. (TBI, I:325) Giving up on him, the buyers went to Haji Sheikh Fazlollah.After first going to other clerics. (TBI, I:325) He did not restrain himself, selling the madrase and the cemetery to Mostashar ot-Tojjar for seven hundred and fifty tumans, and he turned it over to the bank.“The waqf nature of this madrase and this graveyard is not known or certain. Assuming that it is a waqf, it can be sold for charitable purposes and so I have sold it for 750 tumans so that, exalted God willing, I might construct a better madrase.” (TBI, I:325) The houses which people had built around it were also bought and digging and tearing down and laying a new foundation were begun.

Tabataba'i and his allies were unhappy with this, and digging up graves offended the people.

In The History of the Awakening, it says:I:325.

Tabataba'i sent a letter to the president of the bank saying, “Destroying the lands of a cemetery and a madrase is not sanctioned by any law. I will not allow this land to remain at your disposal. Founding buildings in this place is a waste of your money.” He replied, “I bought it from Mostashar ot-Tojjar and he has the documents.”

Tabataba'i then wrote letters to Foreign Minister Moshir od-Dawle and Minister of the Interior Moshir os-Saltane expressing his displeasure and that of the people over this matter and exposing the damage being done.The full text of his statement (from TBI, I:325-26) is: First, it is impermissible for waqf land and a mosque to be meddled with. Second, meddling by foreigners in a madrase and a waqf and a Muslim cemetary is an insult to all Muslims, indeed, to Islam. Third, building this building in the vicinity of the Khazen ol-Molk Madrase and the Sayyed Vali Shrine is a great danger, since after the building is constructed, foreign subjects will settle in it and the talabes of the Khazen ol-Molk Madrase and the Shrine attendants will make an outcry over the illegitimate activities and the noises emitted by said foreign subjects, and this will inevitably lead to conflicts and troubles. Fourth, the construction of this building in this neighborhood is contrary to the government's interests, since this building is near government buildings, in particular the Citadel, and there is something in this not hidden to anyone. They both answered: “It is land which belongs to a foreign subject bought through one of the great clerics. The Foreign Ministry also recognizes it. Therefore neither the government nor anyone else has anything more to say about the matter.” They sent Tabataba'i a copy of the sales certificate which they had obtained from Haji Sheikh Fazlollah. He again replied: “This deal is in violation of the shariat and we had told the bank as much before.”

And so the discussion went. Word of these events even reached Najaf, and some of the clerics there also expressed dissatisfaction. But the bank ignored them, and some two hundred workers and laborers were chosen to do the construction.

Tabataba'i raised this matter a number of times and complained and protested. The fact is that he was taking advantage of the situation, seeking to further arouse the people and take another step in the direction of their ideas. It can be supposed that this is why Behbehani went to Tabataba'i's house (on the evening of 24 Ramadan [15 November]) and that their secret discussions also concerned this.

The bank was busy erecting the building, and these two were busy plotting to tear [56] it down.

Mostafa Ashtiani (the youngest son of the Mirza of AshtianHaji Sheikh Morteza Ashtiani.) was an effective activist in Behbehani's and Tabataba'i's work. This youth was very clever, wise, able, and generous, and demonstrated a talent for influencing people and motivating them. The Khazen ol-Molk Mosque and its madrase, right next to that same newly-constructed bank building, belonged to his family and the talabes there as well as the people in the area were connected with his family, too, so this young man was more involved in this than any one else and he exerted most of the effort.

One night, during the last third of Ramadan (first third of November), the Sayyed Vali [Shrine]'s chief superintendant came to Tabataba'i's house and brought this news: While they were digging up the graveyard that day, they exhumed the bones of a dead woman who it was known had been buried there a year ago, and the workers there had not bothered to put them into a cistern for exhumed bones;Nazem ol-Eslam: “and they threw this corpse in a degrading way into the well which had been dug to cover the bones of the dead,” i.e., the workers were obeying the rules, but this still ignited the rage of the neighbors. (TBI, I:326) that the shrine attendants and talabes were rioting, descending upon the place and driving the workers from the site; and that there would be a clash and a riot the next day as well. Blissful Soul Tabataba'i answered, “Hold your peace and do nothing so that we can remedy the situation and not allow a riot to break out.”

The next day, since there was still fear of a riot breaking out, the governor of Tehran and the police department dispatched some farashes and police. Mirza Mostafa Ashtiani sent a message to the president of the bank saying that this matter would not be settled with farash and police, and that force would do no good.

November 17 (26 Ramadan) was the last Friday of Ramadan, and on such a day, the mosques are filled with crowds of people. Haji Sheikh Morteza Ashtiani himself mounted the pulpit at the Khazen ol-Molk Mosque and related with a great wailing and railing the story of the graveyard's being dug up and the building being constructed. Given the attachment Muslims had for graveyards and the reverence they had for the clergy, it is apparent what affect this railing and wailing had. The people were primed for action.This is an elaboration on the statement in Ibid. that the Haji Sheikh had made a speech on the site of the waqf. (TBI, I:327)

A meeting was held that evening in the Ashtianis' house in the presence of the Two Sayyeds and others, and a plan of action was drawn up. Mirza Mostafa took it upon himself to have the half-built bank building pulled down the next day.No plan and no promise to have the bank destroyed is mentioned in TBI.

On the next day, Saturday, November 18 (27 Ramadan), Tehran saw a rare and astounding sight: Haji Sheikh Mohammad Va'ez [Soltan ol-Va'ezin] went to the pulpit in the evening in the presence of Haji Sheikh Morteza and related the story of the bank again. First, as is the mullahs' way, he discussed the proscription of usury and of cooperation with infidels and so on. He then came to digging up the graveyard and building [57] the bank and masterfully said: “Their Eminences the clergy have protested and expressed their anger to the government in this matter and nothing has come of it. But we hope to write an appeal to His Majesty Mozaffar od-Din Shah himself; may this yield a result.” In this way, he prepared the ground and said, “Now, youThe text drops the ? in ??? so that it reads “we” instead of “you.” should take the trouble to visit the dead, your ancestors, to bid a final farewell to the graves and the bones therein, and recite the Fatehe for them and make their souls happy [, for this very day and the next, this cemetery will be trampled on by the Russians.]”TBI, I:327. So saying, he descended from the pulpit and went before the people and turned towards the half-built bank building. When the two hundred-odd workers and laborers who were busily at work building saw the crowd, they left off work and fled, and no one tried to stop them.

When this crowd approached, the talabes and Their Eminences' relatives and the people who had been mobilized went to work digging up and pulling down the building. When other people saw this, they did not stand aside but, man and woman, large and small, got busy turning the building into a ruins. The din and the frenzy were amazing and, in short, it did not take two hours to tear down the whole building. The only sign of its having been there were broken bricks, girders, and tools lying scattered about.Nazem ol-Eslam reports that after this was done, children came to demolish what was left. (TBI, I:327)

Some said that Mirza Mostafa had paid forty men and twenty women three tumans each and prepared them to do this.

Thus did the Two Sayyeds and their allies, by the power of cooperation and pure motives, do what they said they would. Obstructing prosperity and destroying a newly-constructed building is not in itself something we would praise. But in this event, and in the struggle which the Two Sayyeds were advancing in the name of the people of Iran, it was laudable.

This act added to their prestige and power and gave the people another shake. At the same time, [58] it greatly offended Haji Sheikh Fazlollah, who had sold the land to the bank and was considered a major rival of the Two Sayyeds, and his standing among the people declined precipitously. Similarly, other mullahs fell from view.

The bank wrote a complaint and appealed to the government. It said that twenty thousand tumans had been spent on this labor. The Shah ordered that it be compensated for this loss and that nothing be done to the clergy.

The activists did not abandon the field of struggle, and in the few remaining days of Ramadan, they continued to denounce from the pulpit 'Ein od-Dawle's autocracy and negligence and the various provincial governors' tyranny.

The cruelty and enmity of Naus and the other Belgians, Sho'a' os-Saltane's tyranny in Fars, and Zafar os-Saltane's bastinadoing of Haji Mirza Mohammad Reza in Kerman were issues which arose one on top of the other.Zafar os-Saltane, on his return to Tehran, begged Sayyed Mohammad Tabataba'i's forgiveness, which was obtained only after intercession from one of the latter's sons. He confessed those sins he was willing to and blamed the rest on the sons of the previous govenor. The government sent him to govern Urmia, but he was unable to, nor was he able to live in Tabriz. And so he wandered around the villages. 'Ein od-Dawle sent Farmanfarma to replace him as governor of Kerman and told Haj Mirza Mohammad Reza that he would escort him back in pomp. (TBI, I:371) Ultimately, the Haj Mirza declined to see Farmanfarma and refused to allow himself to be escorted by him back to Kerman, but continued on to Mashhad. This angered Tabataba'i, who saw it as a violation of the agreement 'Ein od-Dawle had made to have him escorted ceremoniously back to Kerman; the latter pleaded that he could not stop a cleric from making his pilgrimage. So 'Ein od-Dawle sent a telegram asking the Haj Mirza to come back to Kerman and make the pilgrimage later. Tabataba'i told him that this was an affront to the holy man, who did not wish to be told to turn back from his pilgrimage only to be, as he saw it, exiled from his home province. In any case, the Haj Mirza was swarmed with adoring throngs who shredded his mullah's cloak, believing it to be blessed with miraculous powers, so that he had to get a new one several times. He was freed, according to Nazem ol-Eslam, after 'Ein od-Dawle was deposed. He later joined the anti-constitutionalist clergy. (TBI, I:393-94)

In the meantime, the governor had mistreated a mullah in Qazvin. Something similar happened in Sabzevar. These were added to the list.No details about this are mentioned in TBI.

'Ala od-Dawle Bastinados the Merchants Ramadan ended, the mosques emptied out, and the mullahs had no choice but to quiet down. But in the meantime, a thoughtless act by Tehran governor [Mirza Ahmad Khan] 'Ala od-Dawle got them back into action and opened a field of struggle for them.

What happened was that sugar had become expensive in Tehran and other cities, its price going from five to seven krans.Per man; TBI, I:331. This was said to have been because of the outbreak of the Russo-Japanese war and the ensuing disturbances and insecurity in Russia, for Iran's rock sugar used to be shipped from Russia. Tehran governor 'Ala od-Dawle, an arrogant and harsh man, wanted to get the rock sugar merchants to lower their prices and tried get this done through force and brutality. The fact is that 'Ein od-Dawle was vexed when he heard about the merchants' seeking refuge in ‘Abdol-‘Azim and decided to wreak vengeance on them and intimidate the clergy as well, and it was upon his instructions that 'Ala od-Dawle did this.As observed in TBI, I:331. Sharif-Kashani, Vaqaye'-e Ettefaqiye dar Ruzegar (p. 28), reports that 'Ala od-Dawle had been put up to this by the author's friend, Roshdiye in order to stampede the merchants into allying themselves with the clergy.

On Monday, December 12 (14 Shawwal), seventeen merchants were summoned to the mayor's office. Several of them went, and although they were not rock sugar merchants and said as much in answer to 'Ala od-Dawle, 'Ala od-Dawle did not listen and ordered that some of them be tied to the pillory and bastinadoed.

In the meantime, Haji Sayyed Hashem Qandi, a major rock sugar merchant and a worthy old man who did good, having built three mosques in Tehran and now was laying the foundations for a fourth, was brought over.In TBI, there is no mention of a fourth mosque, but he was said to have repaired bridges and roads. He was also said to have made the pilgrimage to Mecca three, to the 'Atabat four, and to Mashhad five times.

[59] 'Ala od-Dawle asked him angrily: “Why did you raise the price on your rock sugar?...”

Haji Sayyed Hashem said: “Because of the outbreak of the Russo-Japanese war, rock sugar was scarce, and it still is less expensive in Tehran than in other cities.”

“They say you organized a cartel [contract] for rock sugar.”

“We did not organize a cartel, we buy from another merchant, and even if we had a cartel, it could not succeed in this state of war and chaos.”

“You must put in writing that you will sell rock sugar at the previous prices.”

“I cannot write down such a thing. But I do have one hundred crates of rock sugar which I present to you, and I will never trade again.”

Commerce Minister Sa'd od-Dawle's secretary entered during this exchange and whispered in 'Ala od-Dawle's ear, “Haji Sayyed Hashem is an honorable and worthy merchant. The Commerce Minister sent me to ask that he be treated with respect.”

'Ala od-Dawle became agitated over this message. When he found out that Haji Mir 'Ali Naqi, Haji Sayyed Hashem's son, had come before the Minster of Commerce, he became furious. In the meantime, Haji Sayyed Esma'il Khan, an artillery sergeant who was also a rock sugar merchant, was brought into the chamber. When he entered, he did not bow as is done in the Court, but simply greeted 'Ala od-Dawle as one does with other people.

This heightened 'Ala od-Dawle's rage and he ordered him to be bound to the pillory with Haji Sayyed Hashem and beaten. When Haji Sayyed Hashem's sonWho had, according to TBI, just entered. (I:332) could stand it no longer and [tore himself out of the farashes' grip and]TBI, I:332. threw himself over his father's feet, 'Ala od-Dawle ordered that they leave the others' feet and that they now tie him to the pillory and bastinado the son five hundred times.

In the meantime, the dinner cloth was being spread and lunch prepared. 'Ala od-Dawle sat by the cloth and he had the beaten men sit around it, too. [He said, “Bismillah! Gentlemen, come and eat lunch,” and left that room and went to the dining room. He summoned Aqa Sayyed Hashem with a group of others and said, “Sir, when it's stick time, it's time to have your stick; when it's lunch time, it's time to have your lunch.”]TBI, I:332. In Persian, the helping verb is not the verb to be, but the verb to eat. The merry torturer is making a witticism.

He detained them after lunch, wanting to force a written statement out of them about lowering the price of rock sugar.

But in the meantime, outside, the city was in an uproar and the people were closing the bazaar in support of the merchants.

When Foreign Minister Moshir od-Dawle heard about this, he wanted to head off the crisis and sent someone to invite Haji Sayyed Hashem and the others before him. He treated them in a kind and conciliatory way, acknowledging that 'Ala od-Dawle had mistreated them. But this attempt at a resolution came too late. The city was in chaos by then and what should not have happened had already occurred.

'Ein od-Dawle paid no attention to this. It was clear that these beatings had been executed in accordance with his instructions. Commerce Minister Sa'd od-Dawle went before him and expressed great anger at Tehran governor 'Ala od-Dawle's intervention into the merchants' affairs. 'Ein od-Dawle replied, “This was done with my permission.”

[60]

Incident at the Shah Mosque

As we have said, the merchants of Tehran had connections with the Two Sayyeds and their allies. They cooperated in their struggles and protected each other. So when they heard about 'Ala od-Dawle's cruelty and Haji Sayyed Hashem and the others being bastinadoed, they shut the bazaars down that evening and headed for the Shah Mosque and raised an agitated uproar there. This was doubtless done with the Two Sayyeds' prior knowledge.

And so the day passed. The Friday Imam invited certain of their leaders to his house by night and treated them kindly and expressed his support for them. He said: “You closed the bazaars this evening and many people did not know what was happening. Close the bazaars again tomorrow and bring the clergy to the mosques so that you might make some headway by cooperation with them.”

The merchants had wanted to do this anyway, but the Friday Imam's words increased their enthusiasm. The next day, they did not reopen the bazaars but crowded into the Shah Mosque again and sent for the clergy that evening. They drew them all out, with the exception of Haji Sheikh Fazlollah, who did not show up, and brought them to the mosque. The Friday Imam came as well and greeted everyone warmly.

It seems that he wanted to bring disgrace upon the heads of the Two Sayyeds and undo their efforts and had told 'Ein od-Dawle of these intentions. This has been written about and reports of the event confirm this, too. The Friday Imam, Haji Sheikh Fazlollah, and others could not bear the Two Sayyeds' growing prominence and the people's devotion to them, and since there was a world of rivalry between these two parties, such success for the latter offended the former very badly, so they could not refrain from enmity or hostility.

In any case, the Friday Imam nursed spiteful feelings towards Behbehani, as is written in The History of the Awakening.This entire episode, with the exception of a few comments by Kasravi, is from TBI, starting on I:333.

On top of all this, cooperation and friendship with the country's Prime Minister could yield great advantages. We will see how the Friday Imam profited from all this.

Haji Sheikh Fazlollah was aware of what was happening behind the scenes, and so he stayed out of sight and did not go to the mosque.Nazem ol-Eslam first states that he hid in his inner quarters because of his friendship with 'Ein od-Dawle. (TBI, I:333-34) He later says that he had inside information and that the Friday Imam himself warned him to stay away. (TBI, I:339) But the rest came, met, deliberated, and decided to demand 'Ala od-Dawle's dismissal from the post of governor of Tehran as punishment for his cruelty. They would also ask the Shah to set up an assembly to redress the people's grievances. The Two Sayyeds and their allies knew full well that 'Ein od-Dawle would not accept such demands; they simply wanted a means to fight him and agitate the people.

When they decided on this course of action, they asked a preacher to mount the pulpit and state their demands before the people. Sayyed Jamal od-Din Esfahani,Born 1289 AH into a powerful religious family, which included a powerful Najaf mojtahed, Sadri Esfahani. He was attracted to philosophy and esoterica. He soon entered into a close friendship with Malek ol-Motakallemin. He contributed to Habl ol-Matin and the Iranian émigré press in Egypt. This preacher spoke both eloquently and in the common idiom and had a cheerful countenance. The common people, in turn, adored him. With his vast knowledge of Islamic tradition, he was able to illustrate his message with examples from the religious literature. (TEMI, pp. 165-166) who had come to Tehran several weeks before, had been going to the pulpit at the Shah Mosque where he expressed concern for [61] the people and said useful things and expressed his anger at 'Ein od-Dawle and others. So it was he whom they chose to go to the pulpit. Sayyed Jamal did not wish to do this. But the Friday Imam insisted and instructed him on how to start his sermon, telling him what to say and how far he should go.

Some of those present were suspicious of the cooperativeness shown by the Friday Imam towards the Two Sayyeds and his interest in the people's affairs. They told Behbehani: “This is how he is acting, but he has other things in mind. Beware.” Behbehani ignored this and said: “What God wills will come to pass.” It was close to nightfall when Sayyed Jamal mounted the pulpit and read a verse from the Koran, as preachers do, and then said: “Their Eminences who are here are the Leaders of the Faith and the Successors of the Imam. All have joined hands and want to uproot oppression [and innovation]. The people of Islam and all the clergy are with them, and any cleric who is not here, if he is not with them, it is out of his own uncooperativeness and is no loss for us.” (He meant Haji Sheikh Fazlollah.)This is a paraphrase of Nazem ol-Eslam's version; however, the differences do not seem important. (TBI, I:334) He then recalled 'Ala od-Dawle's cruelty towards the merchants and brought his sermon to the point of saying, “If His Majesty, the King of kings, is a Muslim, he will deign to cooperate with the distinguished clergy and hear [62] the clergy's disinterested petitions …. If not, if .…”This is what it says in The History of the Awakening. Others, who were supporters of the Friday Imam, wrote that he said, “The government's statesmen who are content with such acts being committed are laying the foundations of oppression. They obviously enjoy the King of Islam's favor. Such a king is in no way needed.” [-AK]

The Friday Imam did not allow him to continue his sermon, and suddenly cried out, “O godless sayyed, O unbeliever, you've shown disrespect to the Shah. O infidel, O Babi, why did you insult the Shah?...”

Sayyed Jamal stood at the pulpit shocked by this outburst. Those present were most confounded. Sayyed Jamal, keeping a grip on himself, said: “I did not insult the Shah. I said: 'If not, if.' It is obvious what 'if' means.” The Friday Imam, who had something else in mind, did not listen, but yelled, “Drag this Babi down, beat him....Hey boys, where are you?...”Nazem ol-Eslam has the two engaging in a more extended textual discussion which the Friday Imam breaks off only when he sees he is being gotten the better of. (TBI, I:335) Having said this, his attendants and government farashes, who had been organized beforehand, descended on the people with clubs and daggers. Some even had pistols. Meanwhile, someone set into motion the pure water cartA cart used to wash the unclean in a mosque. [-AK] in the mosque hallway, and the people, on hearing the grinding of its wheels, thought that they were bringing up cannon. Since it was dark and they had not lit the mosque's lights, the people panicked in that darkness, with the clamor of the attendants and farashes and the grinding of the cart wheels. The crowd, terrified, tried to flee, and the mosque was in complete chaos. The Two Sayyeds stood their ground and called out to their people: “Do not fight back.” In the midst of this, people told Tabataba'i, “The Friday Imam might want to do Behbehani harm.”“kill Aqa Sayyed Jamal od-Din Va'ez, treat His Eminence Behbehani disrespectfully.” (TBI, I:335) Tabataba'i ordered his followers to gather around Behbehani and evacuate him. Tabataba'i himself, since his slipper-bearer had fled, went to his house along with some others, barefoot. Sayyed Jamal Va'ez, who had descended from the pulpit, was standing in a corner of the mosque, frightened out of his wits and fearing for his life.Dr. Mehdi Malekzade bitterly rebukes Nazem ol-Eslam, Kasravi's source, for this depiction of a cowardly preacher. See note .Tabataba'i's sons“son and some sayyeds and some of this servants” (TBI, I:335) Mir 'Abdol-Hadi was the name of the youth who saved the preachers life. (Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 268) found him and took him to their own home.

And so the Friday Imam executed his plan and performed a service for the government and 'Ein od-Dawle.Sharif-Kashani, Vaqaye'-e Ettefaqiye dar Ruzegar (p. 29), claims that the idea for this provocation was 'Ala os-Saltane's. His people spread the rumor that the Two Sayyeds and others had been beaten up. I have seen a letter which one of Haji Sheikh Fazlollah's followers had written to someone, in which he considers this a victory. He wrote: “The Friday Imam could not bear it and ordered Sayyed Jamal Va'ez to be dragged from the pulpit and they prepared to beat and club him. In the meantime, His Honor Aqa Sayyed 'Abdollah Behbehani, His Honor Aqa Sayyed Mohammad Tabataba'i, Aqa Sayyed Ahmad, and the others were thoroughly beaten up.” But these are lies, and there are still hundreds who are still alive who were there that night and know what happened.

[63] After Blissful Soul Behbehani was carried out, he went to Khan Marvi Madrase and Sadr ol-'Olema and others gathered around him. Moreover, Sayyed Jamal od-Din Afje'i, Haji Sheikh Morteza, and others came before Tabataba'i.Dr. Mehdi Malekzade claims it was only Sayyed Jamal od-Din Afje'i who came before Tabataba'i. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 271) In the meantime, Amin os-Soltan's supporters, who hoped to get something for themselves out of this struggle, started in and went before Behbehani and Tabataba'i and helped them.

Tehran was going through an historic night. Meetings were held in hundreds of places and everyone was thinking of the next day. The activists had suffered a defeat and it was clear that 'Ein od-Dawle and his supporters would follow up on their victory and that something would happen the next day, too. It was also clear that his opponents were too weak to hold out.

Blissful Soul Tabataba'i thought of a very fitting solution:Sharif-Kashani, Vaqaye'-e Ettefaqiye dar Ruzegar (p. 29), claims the credit for this idea for himself. Indeed, the author places himself in key events in the constitutional movement. See, e.g., ibid., pp. 84-87. that they not remain in town the next day, but take refuge in ‘Abdol-‘Azim. He told the people in the house:That night, most of the clerics set up a society in His Eminence Tabatab'i's house … . to obtain instructions. After much discussion, His Eminence said,” etc. (TBI, I:339) “Now that things have reached this point, let us finish the job and proceed now with what we had been planning to do three months from now. If we stay in town tomorrow, 'Ein od-Dawle will incite the Friday Imam and the people and there might be a fight between our people and the Friday Imam's, and then it would be like a Heidari-Ne'mati riot or a brawl between neighborhood gangs, and our demands would be forgotten.This last phrase does not appear in Nazem ol-Eslam's account. Moreover, the merchants are involved. If we do not support them, it would be inappropriate, and if we do, [they will deceive the people and the courtiers] will say, 'We wanted rock sugar to become cheap and the mullahs will not allow this.' On the excuse that they wanted to raise food prices and that they are protecting the city's security from riot, they will arrest and exile many people. So it is better that we leave the city in a few days and go to ‘Abdol-‘Azim.”Bracketed material suppllied from TBI, I:339-40.

Those present agreed to all of this and sent a message to Behbehani.Behbehani had been offended and humiliated and his personality would not allow him to suffer in silence, and so he accepted Tabataba'i's idea. (Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 271) They spent the rest of the night working towards this aim. Sayyed Jamal Va'ez had to go into hiding and did not emerge. Nazem ol-Eslam Kermani (the author of The History of the Awakening of the Iranians) brought him to his house by night.

Habl ol-Matin supported and praised 'Ein od-Dawle and its editor's brother, Sayyed Hasan, who was in Tehran, attached himself to 'Ein od-Dawle and worked for him. It was silent about the events which had been occurring over the previous month. Then, after a few months, when this paper had to report on them, its “Reporter in Tehran[”] (doubtless none other than Sayyed Hasan himself) wrote foolish insults about the clergy. When he got to these events, he wrote:Document.

In any case, the people gathered, and forcibly dragged the clerics out of their houses and crammed into the Shah Mosque. Even up to nightfall, a large portion of the assembled crowd attacked in all directions and descended on clerics' homes and dragged out whichever one they came upon and brought him to The Shah Mosque. Most of the clerics, like Their Eminences Aqa Sayyed Reihanollah and Aqa Sheikh Fazlollah [64] and so on, did not show themselves to the people or participate in this action. Finally, the crisis mounted and the rabble was ready to start a regular conflagration and burn their harvest and openly turn against the government. Of course, the government did not calmly sit by. The poor and the weak were being trampled upon, children orphaned, and women widowed so that the seditious could eat their fill. Foreigners, who had their hands in this matter, laughed to themselves.

God was gracious. The Friday Imam stood apart from the crowd and the mob, who had been inflamed with a puff, were damped with a spit and dispersed at a single signal. The next day, the bazaar opened earlier than ever and busily went about its own business. It was as if absolutely nothing had happened the previous day. Only a few clerics, a bunch of disciples, a few merchants, and a number of talabes remained, setting out for the sacred shrine of His Holiness ‘Abdol-‘Azim. May God by His munificence repair the corruption of the Muslims' affairs...

This is an example of how the cynical distort matters and how they pass themselves off as having pure and good intentions for the people.Kasravi in P (I:29-33) produces a telegram by the Tabriz clergy supporting the clergy who had taken refuge in Shah Mosque published in the Calcutta Habl ol-Matin.

The Activists' Departure for ‘Abdol-‘Azim

On Wednesday, December 14TBI has December 13. (I:340) (16 Shawwal), the activistsKasravi substitutes the word “activist” for Nazem ol-Eslam's “clergy.” left Tehran one by one and set off for ‘Abdol-‘Azim. They were, for the clergy, Behbehani and his household, Tabataba'i with his household, Haji Sheikh Morteza [Ashtiani], Sadr ol-'Olema, Sayyed Jamal od-Din Afje'i,Taqizade recalls that Sayyed Jamal od-Din Afje'i was the son-in-law of Haji Mirza Hasan Tehrani, one of the three prominent constitutionalist mojtaheds in Najaf. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:330) At the time of these events, he was in his eighties. (Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 749) Mirza Mostafa [Ashtiani], Sheikh Mohammad Sadeq Kashani, and Sheikh Mohammad Rezaye Qomi.

As they were leaving, in droshkies or on horseback, one after the other, the government at first did not want to allow them to pass. The Friday Imam's attendants and government farashes stood by the city gate and tried to bar their way. So things ended with pistol shots and scuffling.Indeed, Nazem ol-Eslam reports that when one of the activists fired a few shots in the air, the soldiers fell back and let his droshky through. (Ibid., I:343) The farashes beat one Modir oz-Zakerin. Out of fear that word of this would reach town and the people would close the bazaar again, 'Ein od-Dawle sent orders that they not be impeded.

And so the activists left the city and a group of others traveled with them.

For his part, 'Ein od-Dawle commanded that the merchants be compelled to open their shops and that if anyone did not open his shop, it would be plundered. Farashes came to the bazaar and opened shops by force. They looted the wares of the one or two shopkeepers who resisted.

'Ein od-Dawle wanted to completely ignore the activists and to get his way by force. After they left, he gave gifts to the Friday Imam, Haji Sheikh Fazlollah, and others, not letting their efforts go unrewarded. The Khazen ol-Molk and Khan Marvi madrases, which had been under the custodianship of Haji Sheikh Morteza, were given over to Mullah Mohammad Amoli (who, it was said, had originally been the custodian before Haji Sheikh Morteza usurped it by force) and the Friday Imam, respectively.“The pious, who had believed in and thought well of [Akhund Mullah Mohammad Amoli], when they realized that his meddling with [the Khazen ol-Molk Mosque] was without Haj Sheikh Morteza's permission and in violation of the laws of Islam, refrained from praying there and lost their belief in him. Things reached the point where his service as Friday Imam, which had never been been performed before less than two or three hundred believers, now only included one or two of his relatives. He therfore left the mosque and stopped performing Friday services.” (Ibid., I:346) Sharif-Kashani, Vaqaye'-e Ettefaqiye dar Ruzegar (pp. 37-38) says that his congregation declined from “some five hundred to about twenty family members and followers.” He also provides a more detailed list of religious institutions transferred. Ibn Babaveih, which had been under the custodianship of Sadr ol-'Olema, was also turned over to the Friday Imam. In addition, he gave the old Sepahsalar mosque and madrase, which had been Behbehani's, to Haji Mirza Abu Taleb Zanjani [65]. So 'Ein od-Dawle satisfied each of them with his rewards.

Moreover, it was in those days that the Friday Imam became a son-in-law of the Shah. Movaqqer os-Saltane had ties with the liberals and had been known to have been an enemy of the Shah. When the Shah went on his previous trip to Europe and Mohammad 'Ali Mirza became Vicegerent, Movaqqer was arrested and detained upon his orders and forced to divorce his wife. The mullahs considered this divorce to have been forced and said that the woman could not be given to another husband, and they denounced Haji Sheikh Fazlollah, who had administered the divorce. Despite this, she was now given to the Friday Imam, and Haji Sheikh Fazlollah read the marriage contract.All but this last fact is in Ibid., I:345.

This was what was happening in Tehran. As for ‘Abdol-‘Azim, after the activists got there, the talabes of the Sadr and Dar osh-Shafa madrases,A madrase which used to face the Shah Mosque courtyard, and which has now fallen to the street. [–AK] despite these institutions being under the Friday Imam's custodianship, showed no fear, but were the first to join them. Other talabes followed. Many preachers followed them, too. Only a few merchants were present. All in all, two thousand people rallied.In stating this, Nazem ol-Eslam emphasizes that these were two thousand “clerics, sayyeds, talabes, and preachers,” and that the merchants were slinking away in their homes. (ibid., I:344)

For days, Haji Sheikh Mohammad or Sheikh Mehdi Va'ez would mount the pulpit and deliver sermons. Haji Mohammad Taqi Bonakdar and his brother, Haji Hasan, paid their expenses from the money which arrived from merchants and others. As we have said, Amin os-Soltan's supporters were cooperating with [66] them and they, too, contributed money then. (According to Browne, they contributed thirty thousand tumans.Compare Browne, The Persian Revolution, pp. 113-114.) On top of this, some of the princes and courtiers sympathized with them and also contributed money, each for a different reason. Salar od-Dawle, the Shah's son, was then governor of Kurdestan but aspired to become Crown Prince, and Haji Mirza Nasrollah Malek ol-Motakallemin Esfahani had come to Tehran in order to further Salar od-Dawle's aspirations and gave the clergy money to divide amongst themselves.Sharif-Kashani, Vaqaye'-e Ettefaqiye dar Ruzegar (p. 39) says that he contributed 25,000 tumans, Moshir od-Dawle contributed five hundred tumans while advising the Shah that he had not choice but to issue a rescript in the refugees' favor. Dr. Mehdi Malekzade confirms “the long-standing relationship” between his father, Malek ol-Motakallemin, and Salar od-Dawle, and that he went to Kurdistan to get him to ally with the liberals. He is aware of the prince's “arrogance” but is less critical of him than the other historians. He says that he fell under the spell of Malek ol-Motakallemin's “eloquence and powerful ideas,” quoting one of the prince's men as saying that “despite his pride and arrogance, he became putty in Malek ol-Motakallemin's hands.” (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 258) According to The History of the Awakening, four hundred tumans reached Tabataba'i.I:345. Browne wroteReading ????? for ?????. that Mohammad 'Ali Mirza also sent money, but we have no information about that.“Most conspicuous amongst these were Muhammad 'Alí Mírzá…, and the Amínu's-Sultán, who, with a third person unknown to me by name, contributed some 30,000 tumáns (£6000) to the maintenance of the bastís…” (The Persian Revolution, p. 113-114)According to Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, the secret committee led by his father paid the expenses of the exodus. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 274)

Their number and splendor increased daily. One surprising thing was that Sheikh Mehdi, Sheikh Fazlollah's son, turned his back on his father and joined them with a few others.Nazem ol-Eslam heaps praises on the sheikh's son's piety, learning, and the simplicity of his way of life. TBI, I:346. He is followed by Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, who adds that he had a revolutionary temperament and believed in liberal values. He recalls that although he found his way into a secret society allied with his Malek ol-Motakallemin, the society members distrusted him. He recalls that Sheikh Mehdi would be imprisoned in the Bagh-e Shah after the June 1908 coup against the Constitution but was soon freed due to his father's status and that he died fighting for the constitutional cause before the Constitution was restored. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 275) Apparently he was brought back to life after the restoration, since he witnessed his father's execution in the dawn of that period. He claims that when he got word of the coup, he rushed to the Majlis with two thousand followers to protect it, but the crowd was massacred by Russian forces. (ibid., p. 765)

When 'Ein od-Dawle saw the progress the activists were making, he became worried and tried to find a solution. He sent one Salar As'ad to ‘Abdol-‘Azim with a few cavalry and a squad of soldiers to guard them. On the other hand, he wanted to sow division among the activists' leadership by giving money, and sent a message to Tabataba'i offering twenty thousand tumans to break with Behbehani and return to the city.TBI, I:347, where Nazem ol-Eslam adds that, had he given the mullahs money in the first place, they would have kept quiet and all this business would have been avoided. Kasravi reverses the order of events as reported in his source; first, 'Ein od-Dawle tried bribery, then he tried force. Dr. Mehdi Malekzade believes that this was an indication that 'Ein od-Dawle saw Tabataba'i as a tool of Behbehani who could therefore be bought. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 276-267) Blissful Soul Tabataba'i ignored this.

Then he decided to get them out by trickery and exile each of them to a different place. He sent Amir Bahador-e Jang to do this. One bitter cold day, he came with two hundred cavalrySharif-Kashani, Vaqaye'-e Ettefaqiye dar Ruzegar (p. 38), says he arrived with five hundred cavalry. and a few coaches and carts to ‘Abdol-‘Azim. He gathered the clerics around him and said: “The Shah sent me to bring you before him so you could talk to him and ask of him what you want. I myself will withhold nothing in this. [My sincere devotion to the glorious clergy and the seed of the Prophet and Fatema is known to great and small.]”Ibid., I:347.

The clerics did not agree to go. Amir Bahador said: “I have no choice but to bring you out of here, even if it comes to destroying this place and killing people.” In the meantime, Afje'i had angry words with him, and when Afje'i insulted the Shah's name,“Because of some ass who has wedded the daughter of an ass, must we be slaughtered and scattered in the wilderness?” So Nazem ol-Eslam, who goes on to explain that Afje'i had intended to say “wife” instead of “daughter,” refering to the Friday Imam who desired the wife of Movaqqar os-Saltane and the daughter of the present Shah. Amir Bahador apparently recognized the reference and took it as an insult to the Shah. This, and the bracketed material in what follows, is from TBI, I:347. Amir Bahador, as was his way, ingratiated himself with the Shah. Since his master's name had been insulted, he screamed in revulsion[, “Sayyed, you are insulting the Shah. Oh, how can I live and this sayyed insult my lord and master, my patron? Either I should kill myself or kill this sayyed!”] and fainted, falling to the ground unconscious.

For his part, Haji Sheikh Morteza was frightened by this commotion and he, too, fainted.

A great tumult ensuedAmir Bahador's men reached for their guns and prepared to shoot. (TBI, I:348) until the people finally managed to bring both of them around. After some negotiations, the Two Sayyeds softened and agreed to get into the coaches and go to the city. But in the meantime, some of Amir Bahador's men revealed what was happening and told some of Their Eminences what 'Ein od-Dawle was up to. So Tabataba'i's sons and others became agitated and prevented the Two Sayyeds from leaving and would not let them pass. A tumult broke out again, and men and women of all the groups on the scene mixed together and blocked the cavalry. The bazaar at ‘Abdol-‘Azim closed down because of the tumultuous screaming and crying, and everyone in the area gathered and the tumult grew ever greater.A vigniette: Salar-e As'ad was seen in Shah ‘Abdol-‘Azim gambling. When asked why he was desecrating this sacred precinct with such a violation of the shariat, he replied, “What Ibn Sa'd did on his mission [in fighting Imam Hosein and his comrades at Karbala], such as blocking water and bread from the sons of Fatimah and breaking the good and pure hearts, I, too, am doing on my mission. Since he did this on his mission, I don't want to fall short!” He offered his resignation, saying that he would not go up against the sons of Fatimah and the Prophet's seed, i.e., sayyeds. (TBI, I:348-49)

[67] When Amir Bahador saw all this, he did not crack down, but decided that he would complete his task that night after the people had dispersed. He told the clerics, “I am going. Think about things until this evening. May it turn out well.” Having said this, he left.

When news of this reached Tehran by telephone, there was talk, and an uproar erupted there as well. The people decided to close the bazaars and rebel. When the Shah found out about this, he telephoned Amir Bahador, instructing him to return.

This increased the activists' determination, and more people left the city to join them. 'Ein od-Dawle sent a message saying, “Send someone reliable to come and talk to the Shah in person and let the Shah know what you want.” They agreed to do this, but 'Ein od-Dawle kept rejecting on one pretext or another whomever they proposed until they chose Ahmad Tabataba'i (Blissful Soul Tabataba'i's brother). 'Ein od-Dawle accepted him and sent a coach and some horsemen to bring him to town, and he entered the city riding with his sons. First he saw 'Ein od-Dawle, then the Shah, and they spoke. But when he returned to ‘Abdol-‘Azim, Their Eminences there were suspicious of him and did not credit his negotiations. It later became known that there was a secret connection between him and 'Ein od-Dawle.

They wanted to talk directly with the Shah and raise the demand for 'Ein od-Dawle's dismissal, among other things. 'Ein od-Dawle, for his part, wanted to be the Shah's intermediary and desired that all negotiations be conducted through him. And so some came up with a different idea.Malek ol-Motakallemin and Haj Mirza Yahya Dawlatabadi. (TBI, I:358) They would make the Ottoman ambassadorShams od-Din Bak, “a liberal and gnostic friend of Iran.” (TEMI, p. 291) His efforts rent the iron curtain 'Ein od-Dawle had drawn around the Shah, permitting the Shah to be in contact with the people. (TBI, p. 294) their intermediary and convey their demands to the Shah through him. When they raised this with the ambassador, he accepted. So Their Eminences met, consulted, and listed their demands as follows:

Removing 'Asgar Garichi from the road to Qom. (This man had the government concession for coach and cart driving for the road to Qom and had badly mistreated the travelers on it.Taqizade writes that he was Caucasian and a Russian subject. In addition to controlling traffic from Qom to Tehran, he also controlled traffic to Isfahan and Kermanshah. His brother in law, incidently, became a prominent constitutionalist and later nationalist activist, Mahmud Mahmud. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:347) The Qom clergy and talabes had always complained about this and appealed to the Tehran clergy. Since the Two Sayyeds wanted to win over the Qom clergy and talabes, they adopted this slogan as one of their own.);
Recalling Haji Mirza Mohammad Reza from Rafsanjan to Kerman;
Returning the Khan Mervi Madrase's custodianship to Haji Sheikh Morteza;
Founding a House of Justice for all of Iran [so that there be a House of Justice in every region (balad) of Iran which would examine the petitions and complaints of the subjects and act on them with fairness and equality.]TBI, I:358. (We will discuss this later);Haj Mirza Yahya Dawlatabadi, in his memoirs, Hayat-e Yahya (Ferdawsi, Tehran, 1983), declared that he added this demand while waiting to present them to the Ottoman ambassador, saying that the Ottomans would only present demands which had a general quality, and were not tied to political squabbles. To prove this assertion, he relates that those taking refuge seemed never to have heard of such a demand before, after it was announced that the Shah would accept the demands. (II:22-24) Nazem ol-Eslam disputes this last point, but says that he is willing to believe that the clergy taking refuge had neglected to include this point in their demands and that Dawlatabadi had noticed this and corrected the oversight. (The story does not get simpler with the retelling!) (I:358-59)
Implementing Islamic law for all the people of Iran;
Removing Monsieur Naus from heading Customs and Taxation;
Removing 'Ala od-Dawle from the governorship of Tehran;
Not lowering pensions and salaries by ten shahis for each tuman. (This had been decided upon a year before.)The idea was originally that the cost of stamps and other expenses in processing these pensions should be borne by the recipient. Taqizade saw this as an essentially clerical demand, since “the clergy had free-loaders and pensioners gathered around themselves who were vehemently opposed to the treasury administration set up by the Belgians.” (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:331)

[68] The Ottoman ambassador brought these demands before Foreign Minister Moshir od-Dawle, who brought them before the Shah and read them to him in 'Ein od-Dawle's presence. It seems that the Shah had not known about their demands until that day. He told the Ottoman ambassadors, “Write that Their Eminences' demands are accepted and that they will be returned to Tehran with pomp and respect.” He then turned to 'Ein od-Dawle and said: “Return Their Eminences with respect.” 'Ein od-Dawle said, “I will obey, but their return is suspended pending measures to be taken these next two or three days.” This was the result of the Ottoman ambassador's mediation.

And so the days went by. The activists (also called the migrants), passed the bitter cold days in that sanctuary.It was at this point, according to Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, that the issue of provisions became acute. An appeal to the merchants turned up nothing significant, and so Malek ol-Motakallemin had Salar od-Dawle, who was then in prison, contacted and reminded that should the refugees lose, all hope for his release would be lost as well. The imprisoned prince authorized the payment of eight thousand tumans. This not being sufficient, he contacted his friend Haji Mirza 'Ali Sarraf, a powerful banker from Isfahan, and Jahanian, a powerful Zoroastrian merchant, and obtained a loan of seven thousand tumans from them. These debts were paid off through the sale of part of his estates in Isfahan after he was martyred. (Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 292-293) In the Blue Book it says,KA, p. 5. The English original says, “… the refugees had published their statement of grievances in a clear and striking form. They appealed to the patriotism of the Persian people and to the beliefs and traditions of true Mussulmans…” (“Memorandum furnished by His Majesty's Legation at Tehran, January 1907: Summary of Events in Persia for the year 1906” in Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, No. 3, January 1907) “The migrants wrote their appeal out in a simple and moving language and printed it and distributed it among the people,” but we have no information about such an event. All we know is that they sent their appeal to the people through the preachers. Every day since their departure, Haji Sheikh Mohammad or some other preacher would go to the pulpit and, in preacher fashion, recite a verse from the Koran or something from the hadiths and in the meantime sermonize about the governors' tyranny, 'Ein od-Dawle's autocracy, and the people's problems. There was still no mention of the words “constitution” or “liberty,” but one was able to speak freely for the first time about how bad the government was and show commitment to the people.

The Shah Accepts the Demands

'Ein od-Dawle made his nephew, Amir Khan Sardar, governor of ‘Abdol-‘Azim. It was clear that he had come to deal with the matter of the migrants. They did not go out to see him, but ignored him. But he sent them a message: “I have come to return you to the city, and if you allow me into your presence, we can discuss our goals.” They told him to come. He came and saw Their Eminences and they held talks.On Amir Khan Sardar, see note .

It was agreed after one or two meetings that the activists would send representatives to 'Ein od-Dawle to talk with him. They chose four people: Tabataba'i's elder son Mirza Abol-Qasem, Haji Sheikh Morteza's brother Mirza Mostafa Ashtiani, Sadr ol-'Olema's brother Mirza Mohsen, and Behbehani's son-in-law Sayyed 'Ala od-Din. They were Their Eminences' agents, and most things were to be done by them.

They came to Tehran on the evening of Tuesday, January 9, 1906 (13 Zul-Qa'da) and went to 'Ein od-Dawle's house and negotiated with him. 'Ein od-Dawle kept them in his house on the excuseReading ??????? for ????????. that he was reporting on the negotiations to the Shah, saying: “You must stay here tomorrow night, too.” It is apparent that he did not want them to be allowed to return, but instead wanted to exile each of them to a different place. 'Ein od-Dawle had been told that everything was in their hands and that Their Eminences had agreed to return to the city, but that they would not let them. And so 'Ein od-Dawle wanted to get rid of them and thus clip the clergy's wings.

[69] The next day, news of this spread both in the city and in ‘Abdol-‘Azim. In ‘Abdol-‘Azim, Their Eminences grew despondent and dejected. As for the city, the Shah had gone to Amir Bahador-e Jang's house that day for lunch, and it was there that they told him that the city was in chaos and that the people had closed the bazaars.“When the Shah alighted from his coach, a woman stood before the Shah with a petition … and another petition was given to the Shah as he was entering Amir Bahador's house … The content of the petitions were both roughly, 'Oh, you who have had the crown of the monarchy placed on your head and the staff of the monarchy placed in your hand, dread the day when the crown is taken from your head and the staff taken from your hands!' It was then that the Shah was told about the state of the city.” (TBI, I:361) When the Shah asked why, they said: “Because Their Eminences' representatives are being detained and the people think that they are going to be exiled from the city.” The courtiers wanted permission to use force to prevent a disturbance and to get the people to reopen the bazaars, but the Shah did not grant permission.

When the Shah was returning from lunch, the people crowded in front of his path. Women gathered around his coach and screamed, “We want Their Eminences and the Leaders of the Faith. [We are Muslims and consider their commands obligatory to follow.] Their Eminences have performed our marriages, Their Eminences lease our houses. [All of our affairs are in Their Eminences' hands.] O King of the Muslims, please have the leaders of the Muslims respected. [O, King of the Muslims, do not let the Islamic clergy be abased and made low.] O King of Islam, if the Russians and English attack you, the thirty million people of Iran will fight a jihad on the order of Their Eminences....”The material in brackets is restored from TBI, I:361. Many things like this were said. Women were very active that day, despite their head-scarves and veils.

The Shah went to the Citadel. On the other hand, Amir Bahador and others went to the bazaar to get the people to open the bazaars. But try as they might, it did no good. In the meantime, 'Ala od-Dawle also patrolled the streets lest they too close. He saw Sayyed Hasan Saheb oz-Zamani in Jabekhane [Armory] Street, near Sabze Meidan [Green Square] in the book-binder's shop, sitting, talking with some people. Since he knew him to be one of the activists, he ordered him to be dragged out and said: “O seditious sayyed, you really did it, then!” Saying this, he beat him about the head and face with a stick. He then said that he should be whipped.“He gave the poor honorable sayyed a thrashing.” (TBI, I:362) The shops on these streets closed down to protest this cruelty and the people all at once prepared to resist.Nazem ol-Eslam recalls that, while heading to Shah ‘Abdol-‘Azim with Sayyed Jamal od-Din in the aftermath of this event, “a mob saw the sayyed and hurled themselves at the sayyed's droshky and kissed his hands and feet … saying, 'A curse upon the enemies of the sayyeds!'” (TBI, I:362)

The Shah told 'Ein od-Dawle: “Surely you will implement Their Eminences' plans and will bring them to the city by tomorrow. If not, I will go and bring them myself.” The Shah's insistence left 'Ein od-Dawle no choice but to calm the clergy any way he could and bring them to the city. That day, he informed the people at ‘Abdol-‘Azim by telephone that the Shah had accepted their demands. But the people were not convinced. They did not reopen the bazaars, and a great crowd of people left the city for ‘Abdol-‘Azim.Kasravi conflates the closing of the bazaar out of defiance, which preceeded the beating of the sayyed, with the fact that the people closed their shops and left to escort the clergy from Shah ‘Abdol-‘Azim, which was apparently not considered an act of resistance. (TBI, 363) The traffic between the two cities was such that it was as if they had been joined together. The people were all agitated.TBI, I:359. Kasravi puts the incident of the beating of the sayyed before the Shah's acceptance of the demands, thus simplifying the story as it was presented in his source. In the latter work, political turbulence, including the beating of the sayyed, is still followed by the Shah's acceptance of the demands.

'Ein od-Dawle took Their Eminences' letter and wrote a letter himself to the Shah, and thus gave the appearance of mediation. He listed Their Eminences' demands in his own words and sent all this to the Shah. The Shah answered Their Eminences' letter and wrote above 'Ein od-Dawle's letter that he accepted their demands. He then issued a separate rescript for a House of Justice, which was Their Eminences' major demand. We reproduce here 'Ein od-Dawle's letter with the list which he made of their demands, along with the rescript for a House of Justice:Kasravi's source, TBI, presents a number of declarations from the clergy to the Shah and from the Shah to the clergy which Kasravi omits.

[70]

'Ein od-Dawle's Proposal to the Shah

May I be a sacrifice before the jewel-like dust of the feet of the Master of Servants, Your Most Sacred, Puissant, and Splendid August Majesty.

It is not hidden from the Sun-like mind of His Most Puissant Imperial Majesty (May our soul be his sacrifice!) that for This Born Slave, forty years have so far elapsed from his first having the honor of sweeping the ground before the Most Lofty and Sacred One. Always, in every mission, he has sought the increase of prayers for the person of the Peerless Blessed One. In no wise has he ever been negligent towards this end. As for the proposal of Their Eminences the clergy, who have had no other aim than to pray for and eulogize [the Shah], and have always been busy with their task of praying [for the Shah], events have transpired in such a way that the basic intention has been lost, and now they have had This Mere Born Slave intercede before [71] the Most Lofty Threshold and attract the interest of the Peer of Nobility, the King, to render successful their petitions, that they might busy themselves with praying for the Blessed August One, in the hope of royal clemency. And since their petitions are based purely on prayerfuless, he ['Ein od-Dawle] delivers it before the Blessed Threshold and is hopeful that it will have the honor of receiving royal favor.

Their Eminences' Aims

Simply for the sake of the Most Sacred Blessed Person's well-being, please decree the price of stamps waived; it would be a cause of increased prayerfulness for the commoners. Although the government will suffer some loss here, This Mere Servant submits that if the petition is granted, for the sake of the execution of a good deed, the prayerfulness of the clergy, and the hopefulness of the laity, I myself will compensate for it so that no loss will befall the dynasty, and a cause of an increase in prayers for His Most Sacred Person would be provided as well.
Regarding the disrespect shown to Haj Mirza Mohammad Reza, since he is one of those who pray for the dynasty, let there be an expression of clemency. This would be a cause of increasing the hopes and prayers of the distinguished clerical estate.
Appeals regarding the evil deeds of 'Asgar Garichi, in charge of the road to 'Eraq, have reached the Lords of the Sublime Government, and those under him have been disciplined by the government. Please declare that 'Asgar himself is dismissed from his post and that the government is considering his chastisement, that he know the gravity of his offenses and that it be a cause of hope and prayer for all the subjects. And please grant particular concern for the petitions of the other great Eminences, too, that they also be responded to.
That His August Royal Highness might respond to the petitions of all the subjects and all the wronged, let there be an order to found a government House of Justice, to lift the burden of oppression from the oppressed in justice and righteousness and to execute justice, regardless of who is concerned.

His Majesty Mozaffar od-Din Shah's Rescript

Most Noble Honorable Atabak the Great

As we have been pleased repeatedly to state, our intention of founding a government House of Justice for the execution of the compulsory commandments of the shariat and the comfort of the subjects is the most necessary of all important goals. So in order to implement this sacred intention, we explicitly command it be established that the just Islamic law, composed of establishing the pure shariat's commandments and ordinances, be speedily promulgated throughout the Protected Realms of Iran, in such a way that there shall be no difference between classes of subjects, and untoward favoritism and partisanship in implementing justice and policies, as we will point out in this code of law, shall be sharply and sternly prohibited. By the same directive, you shall surely write a booklet in accordance with the canons of the obligatory shariat and draft its articles and submit it to be promulgated throughout the provinces. Instructions for an Assembly will also be issued in a proper fashion. [72] Surely these kinds of petitions from the distinguished clergy, which will cause an increase in prayers for us, will always be accepted. Proclaim this very statement of ours throughout the provinces.

Month of Zul-Qa'da 1323 [January 1906].

“Houses of Justice”

Before we pick up the thread of the history, we must say a few words here: What is a “House of Justice?” Why did the clergy want one? As we have seen, the “House of Justice” ['Adalatkhane] was the same thing which we call the judiciary ['Adliye]. It was a bureau in which judges would take up people's appeals and judge them. But was there not such a bureau already? And again, what was so valuable about it that a group of the clergy's leaders should leave the city and suffer such hardship to demand it? Here, a few things must be known:

First, in those days in Iran, there was no judiciary. Although in fact there was a ministry which bore this name and Nezam ol-Molk was titled Minister of Justice during the time which we are discussing, things were done autocratically in this judiciary just as everything else was, and its members said and did whatever they pleased. Forbidding distinctions between the powerful and powerless, wealthy and poor and investigating justly, were unknown in this ministry. The fact is that in those days, the mass of people had less of a need for a judiciary because they tended less to crime. Moreover, most disputes would be settled by the mullahs, the elders, and the neighborhood leaders.See P, where the same point is made, in addition to the following: “[I]n Iran, which is an Islamic country, the laws of that religion had to be applied.” (I:17) But sometimes injustices would be suffered at the hands of the courtiers or others and they would trespass against the common people's property. It was in those cases that the need for a court of justice would arise, and this did not exist in Iran. So Their Eminences included the demand for such a bureau among their other demands and they considered it necessary.

Second, in order to set up courts as demanded by the clergy, law had to be implemented, and this in itself was a step towards the country being governed by laws. It would bring the activists closer to their goal.

Third, as we have seen, the activists had no choice but to flee to ‘Abdol-‘Azim. The Friday Imam had dealt them a defeat through his deeds, and it was feared that this would be pursued.The Friday Imam's victory was bittersweet. According to Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, before this exodus, thousands of people would throng to the Shah Mosque to hear Sayyed Jamal od-Din preach and then pray behind the Friday Imam. Now, no one but his servants would pray behind him. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 272) So Blissful Soul Tabataba'i thought that, for safety's sake, they should take refuge outside the city, and this was a very wise and appropriate idea. In this way, they minimized their losses and recovered their strength. But how long could they stay there? Tabataba'i and Behbehani knew well that if they stayed there very much longer, many of those who took refuge there would lose enthusiasm, despair, and tend to disperse because each of them had left behind his home and children and [73] had abandoned his job and trade and had joined together in hopes of success. As soon as a little despair would find its way into their hearts, they would not stay but return. The idea of risking one's life for the people's liberation and patiently suffering privation had not found a place in the people's hearts, and such self-sacrifice could not expect from them. Except for the Two Sayyeds and several others, the activists were not consciously struggling towards a goal. In such circumstances, leaders must carry their allies forward gradually and not push them beyond their capacity for struggle.

And not only the followers: one could not be confident in some of the leaders, either. The History of the Awakening relates an amazing story about Tabataba'i's brother, Sayyed Ahmad, and his sons. It says:I:357. “The Friday Imam sent a message saying, 'Certain people who know your secrets and spread a quilt over you at night inform us about what you are doing. Do not be so confident about these friends of yours.' Because of this message of his, Their Eminences became suspicious of Modir oz-Zakerin, and they drove him out from their midst.” Then Modir oz-Zakerin wrote a long story about ties between 'Ein od-Dawle and Sayyed Ahmad Tabataba'i and his sons, which is told in its entirety in The History of the Awakening.TBI, I:349-58. Since we do not know whether it is true or false, we will not repeat it here, but it seems that suspicions existed and, as we wrote, when 'Ein od-Dawle asked for a representative from those who took refuge and they chose Sayyed Ahmad and he went and agreed on things with 'Ein od-Dawle, the clergy would not accept these agreements.

They could not hold out any longer because of these suspicions, and it was best and wisest for those taking refuge to return to the city with honor, having achieved one result. At that point, they could not have hoped to achieve a better result than the House of Justice. But these two men always strove consciously, and we shall see later that they were not satisfied with a mere House of Justice, and revealed their ultimate demand, a Majlis.Dr. Mehdi Malekzade writes that they had no such idea, but when they saw that they had trapped themselves in a situation in which a great effort had been made to win a few relatively insignificant goals, his father, Malek ol-Motakallemin, suggested the idea of demanding a Majlis elected by the people and a constitutional government. On hearing this, Tabataba'i went from tears to a cry of joy. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 297) However, less than ten pages later, the author has the Two Sayyeds declare that the time is not right to demand a Constitution and a Majlis, but only a “House of Justice.” (ibid., p. 303)

The Return of Those Taking Refuge

When the documents were prepared, it was decided that the activists would return to the city on Friday, January 11 (15 Zul-Qa'da).So in Ibid. Kasravi writes Friday, 16 Zul-Qa'da. On that day, upon the Shah's orders, Amir Bahador (Minister of the Court), Eqbal od-Dawle, Nasr os-Saltane, Shams ol-Molk ('Ein od-Dawle's son), and other courtiers, went in great splendor to ‘Abdol-‘Azim in royal coaches led by horses trimmed in gold and silver. They went to ‘Abdol-‘Azim to bring Their Eminences back to the city. The bazaars closed and crowds of people headed for ‘Abdol-‘Azim. Amir Khan Sardar telephoned, and the city's droshkies and coaches brought all the emigrants back. Many of the nobility and magnates also sent their own droshkies and coaches. They even made the rail line between Tehran and ‘Abdol-‘Azim free. The people crowded and crushed against each other so that there was concern that some would be killed.Sharif-Kashani, Vaqe'at-e Ettefaqiye dar Ruzegar (pp. 46-47), recalls that cows and sheep were sacrificed before the returning refugees. As for the government officials, they all “came into the presence of Hojjatoleslam Behbehani; some expressed their satisfaction and gratitude, some rolled their eyes and snickered.”

[74] In ‘Abdol-‘Azim, three hours before noon, a pulpit was set up [in the middle of the Hamze Shrine's yard]Ibid., I:363, from which this passage is copied. and Haji Sheikh Mohammad Va'ez mounted it and read the Shah's rescript in the presence of all the clerics, courtiers, and others. Then Sheikh Mehdi Va'ez and Sayyed Akbar ShahAkbarShah17, both renowned preachers, went to the pulpit and re-read the Shah's rescript and the activists' demands and expressed their joy and gratitude.Gratitude towards whom? In Ibid., it is towards Amir Khan Sardar, i.e., Nazem ol-Eslam's friend Amir-e A'zam. (See the discussion in Kasravi's introduction.) Kasravi eliminates this, evidently suspecting that his source is giving his friend undue honor. Similarly, Kasravi does not repeat Nazem ol-Eslam's claim, which he makes in the margins of his work, that it was Amir Khan Sardar who paid the expenses for running the line between Tehran and Shah ‘Abdol-‘Azim for free. Ibid., I:363, note 3, and 364. The people called out in a loud voice, “Long live the King of Islam!” and “Long live the Iranian nation [mellat]!” According to The History of the Awakening of the Iranians, , this was the first time that the expression, “Long live the Iranian nation!” had been heard and the first time that the people prayed and celebrated in the in the name of the nation [tude].I:364. Nazem ol-Eslam adds, To this day, the people of Iran did not dare to say “Long live the Iranian nation!” in public. And so this meeting did not please Amir Bahador, Nasr os-Saltane, and Shams ol-Molk. First, there was no mention of them made, the prayers of the clerics were for the Shah, the clergy, and Amir Khan Sardar. Second, this cry of “Long live the Iranian nation!” was new to their ears and they did not know what ethnicity and nationality meant.” Kasravi here skips an interesting passage: The Shah's rescript having been read, two leading clerics mounted the pulpit and declared that the entire clergy is unanimous in demanding the formation of a House of Justice, that the Shah has, in his perfect clemency, granted a rescript for it, and there should be no more oppression, and so the clergy will return to the city. The talabes, evidently fearing a trap by 'Ein od-Dawle, then declared that unless the ambassadors confirmed this rescript, they would not allow the clerics to return, some even saying that if Sayyeds Behbehani and Tabatabai were fooled by 'Ein od-Dawle, they should be shot to avoid popular disorientation and disillusionment. The clerics responded that the Shah had so far never broken his word and that it had been witnessed by the Crown Prince and the Prime Minister, and it would be an affront to the King of Islam to have the ambassadors of foreign nations countersign his rescript. To this, the talabes replied that they did not want the Shah's rescript countersigned, but that it be issued by the Ottoman ambassador so that it would be recognized and the Prime Minister would be left with no excuses. They promised that if the rescript is not acted upon, they would all return to Shah ‘Abdol-‘Azim. In the meantime, the rumor was spread that it was the Babis who were trying to block a reconciliation between crown and clergy, and this cleared the talabes from the field. See also I:381, where the older clerics are considering accepting 'Ein od-Dawle's blandishments and Tabataba'i's sons argue again that it would be inappropriate to meet with him before the Shah's rescript is implemented and other talabes say that first their Marvi Madrase had to be returned. Finally, where TBI uses the term mellat, Kasravi renders this Arabic word as tude; in P (I:18-19), he uses the term mardom (which is closer in meaning to “people” than tude, which has more the meaning of “the masses.”) On the threats against the Two Sayyeds, according to Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, four of the liberals who were taking refuge in Shah 'Abdol-'Azim—Sayyed Mohammad Reza Mosavat, Jalal ol-Mamalek Iraj, Sahhafbashi, and 'Abdol-Khaleq Sedehi—took it into their heads to assassinate Tabataba'i and Behbehani should they compromise with 'Ein od-Dawle. When word of this got out, the Two Sayyeds were suitably abashed and refrained from making any such compromises. The uncovering of this plot opened the eyes of the clergy to what was at stake in this movement. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 293-294)

One hour after noon, the coaches were prepared and the caravan set off. The Two Sayyeds sat in the King's coach of six horses along with Haji Sheikh Morteza, Sadr ol-'Olema, and Amir Bahador. The rest found room in another coach. The people sat in droshkies. Horses were led before them. And so they all set off in great splendor. When they entered the city, they passed among the people and drove along the streets and disembarked before the Golestan Palace.Why did they disembark before the palace gates? The talabes and sayyeds determined that Their Eminences disembark at the gates and mount donkeys and asses [the customary mode of transportation for Muslim clerics, this being a sign of humility and simplicity] so that the people might attain the benefit of kissing their hands. Not that Their Eminences were disinclined. In any case, Court Minister Amir Bahador noted that if the clerics continued to dawdle like this, they would keep the Shah waiting, and this would be inappropriate. And so Their Eminences returned to their carriages and the adoring throng was beaten back by the palace attendants. (TBI, I:367-368) The clerics entered the Citadel and, after visiting 'Ein od-Dawle, went before the Shah escorted by him and Moshir od-Dawle. The Shah received them with great simplicityNazem ol-Eslam mentions that this was the first time that the clergy and the Shah had a simple conversation, that ordinarily it was for the Shah to give the orders and the clergy to listen in respectful silence. At most, a minister might beg to be allowed to say a word or two, but in this case, the clergy spoke their minds openly. Indeed, the Shah did not even use the royal we. (TBI, I:368) and, after asking after their health and bidding them welcome, said, “I myself wanted to set up a House of Justice before you asked for it. In the middle of Sha'ban [mid-October], I told Nezam ol-Molk to set one up. From now on, whatever you want, tell me about it. [I am ready to implement your aims. My pride is to spread the Faith of your Ancestor.]So TBI, I: 368. It seems from Kasravi's source that the Eminences received were the Two Sayyeds, and the Ancestor refered to was the Prophet Mohammad. “Their Eminences thanked him in response. Then the Shah complained, “Why did you not talk to me regarding the bank building and act without informing the government?” Tabataba'i answered, “Moshir od-Dawle and Moshir os-Saltane are both here, I told them many times and even wrote a letter, and here is the answer they gave.”

In the meantime, since the people outside were waiting for the clerics and were becoming impatient,Kasravi's source adds that they were raising a tremendous commotion and making the Shah anxious. In the meantime, a sizeable contingent of other clerics and sayyeds had entered the Citadel. (TBI, I:368) he sent the clerics on their way.Nazem ol-Eslam does not fail to mention that Their Eminences thanked Amir-e A'zam for his efforts and that the Shah gave him a berylium ring from his own finger by way of thanks. Kasravi has no interest in including this. (TBI, I:368) When they left, the people rallied around them with a great joyous clamor. Whichever went to his house, a throng of people went with him and escorted him to his doorstep. Thus did those who had taken sanctuary returned to the city after a month. They had left so miserable and powerless and returned so esteemed and powerful.In terms of clerical politics, Nazem ol-Eslam recalls that the Friday Imam wisely went out of his way to congratulate the returning clerics and stayed on their side up to the bombardment of the Majlis. (I:369)

The next day, the people flocked to see the Two Sayyeds and the others. They illuminated the city on Saturday night and held a celebration for the House of Justice and were very happy. 'Ein od-Dawle visited the clergy and dismissed 'Ala od-Dawle as governor of Tehran as they had requested.

News of these events also reached the European newspapers, and they reported them with praises for the clergy, but they interpreted the House of Justice to be a parliament or a consultative assembly. They reported the story in their papers as a revolt of the clergy against the government, writing that the institution of autocracy had been uprooted from Iran, that the Shah had granted the people liberty, that a house of consultation would be set up, [75] and that freedom of speech and pen would be instituted. So they had quite an exaggerated idea of what had actually happened.This is rather exaggerated. The London Times of January 23, 1906, carried the following brief article titled “Reform in Persia”: St. Petersburg, Jan. 22 The following advices have been received here from Teheran:– About a thousand merchants and mullahs recently left the city in order to protest against the government of the Shah, and proceeded to the village of Shah-Abdul-Azim. With a desire to avoid disorders and bloodshed, the Shah effected a compromise with them on the basis of the convocation of a representative assembly elected by the mullahs, merchants, and landowners under the presidency of his Majesty. The assembly is to be known as the House of Justice, and is to exercise administrative and legislative powers. Equality for all in the eyes of the law will be proclaimed, and all favouritism will be abolished. The unpopular Governor of Tehran has tendered his resignation. It is feared that the representatives of the people will demand the dismissal of the Belgian Customs employés and of the Belgian Minister of Customs and Postsw, M. Naus.

'Ala os-Saltane, the Iranian ambassador in London, published a letter in which he called the outbreak of revolution a lie.In a news article published in the London Times of Febrary 2, 1906 titled “Reforms in Persia,” it says: Reuter's Agency is requested by the Persian Legation to state that the news published in St. Petersburg and recently reproduced in some of the London papers to the effect that “about a thousand merechants and mullahs had left Teheran in order to protest against the Government of the Shah” and that his Imperial Majesty “wish a desire to avoid disorders and bloodshed effected a compromise with them on the basis of the convocation of a representative Assembly,” and that “this Assembly is to be known as the House of Justice,” is somewhat exaggerated and inaccurate. There were no merchants whatever concerned in the matter, neither was there any cause for an intention of protest against the Government. The information is appartently based on a dispute which lately arose among a section of the mullahs, some of whom, to the number of 40 or 50 fearing that they would bge punished or sent away by the Government, took sanctuary at the Shrine of Shah Abdul-Azim. After they had remained there for a month they were assured of pardon and returned. As regards the “house of Justice” mentioned in the message, it probably refers to a proposed Palace of Justice on the same principles as those of Europe—an idea which the Shah has been cherishing for some years past, and for the realization of which he made a special point of closely stydygin the system and the procedure of the Courts of Justice of the various European countries which his Majesty visited during his recenht jouyrneys. And it goes without saying that such a Court would have purely judicial functions. In any case, he, too, gave a distorted description of the events, writing: “There was a slight falling out between the government and the clergy and the clergy took refuge in 'Abd ol-'Azim which is a few kilometers from Tehran. The Shah, in his kindness, ordered that their anger be assuaged and that they be brought back to Tehran. It had been the Shah's desire from the first day to grant a house of consultation, a legal code, liberty of the pen, and to set up a judiciary, and he granted these things of his own volition.” Evidently, proper information had not reached the embassy, either.

[76] Even more amazing, Habl ol-Matin's proprietor, who translated these articles from the English newspapers,Document. considered all this to be true and celebrated the Shah's granting of the House of Consultation and liberty, along with much praise and flattery. He filled several columns without even mentioning the word clergy or thanking them for their troubles, which is another example of his bad character. Even worse, when articles reached this paper from Tehran and it became known that the events were of a different sort, that the Shah had not granted anything of his own volition alone and, moreover, that 'Ein od-Dawle was displeased, he fell completely silent and, as we have said, reported what happened a few months later along with insults and abuse directed towards the clergy.Document.

'Ein od-Dawle's Ill Intentions

February passed happily. The people placed hope in the good news from the government and awaited the opening of the House of Justice. There was talk among the people of a legal code being written. The clergy visited each other and gained new prestige among the people. I saw a letter, the author of which was an enemy of the movement, in which he complained that when Behbehani went to Tabataba'i's house candelabras were carried before him and people escorted him, front and back, poets chanting poetry.This is confirmed in ( Ibid., I:370)

It seems that it was in those days that the clergy went to visit 'Ein od-Dawle.Indeed, 'Ein od-Dawle visited the Two Sayyeds. ( Ibid., I:370) Dr. Mehdi Malekzade reports that when word of this visit leaked to the public, there was mass revulsion. Clandestine pamphlets were published warning the people that the clergy was about to sell them out. Malekzade only reports that Behbehani visited 'Ein od-Dawle. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 336-338) He then quotes Haji Mirza Yahya Dawlatabadi and Ehtesham os-Saltane as saying that Ehtesham os-Saltane tried to broker a meeting between him and Malek ol-Motakallemin and Tabataba'i to convince the latter to meet with 'Ein od-Dawle to agree to the organization of a Majlis provided that it was secretly guided by a secret committee of liberals and statesmen. This Tabataba'i agreed to, and a meeting was held with 'Ein od-Dawle. The proposal won 'Ein od-Dawle's approval. As Dawlatabadi explained, 'Ein od-Dawle was not against a Majlis or a constitution, but was concerned with Behbehani, who was allied with his political enemy. 'Ein od-Dawle the tried to stab the liberals in the back by using his contacts with Habl ol-Matin to attack the constitutionalists as people who were dancing to the tune of those who want to turn Iran into a republic and spread a new religion. The editors of this journal broke with him instead. (ibid., pp. 341-346) Tabataba'i told him: “This House of Justice which we demand will be a loss for us first of all, for the people will be comfortable and not oppressed and need us no longer, so the doors of our houses will be closed. But since your life and mine are through, do something which will leave a good name for yourself in this world. Let them write in history that 'Ein od-Dawle was the founder of the Majlis and the House of Justice, and let this remain your legacy in Iran.”Source unknown. It is odd that Kasravi has Tabataba'i refer to an “Assembly.”

'Ein od-Dawle did not reply, but on hearing the word Majlis, he knitted his brows. The fact is that he did not want to listen to this talk, and although he was compelled to return the activists to Tehran and to give them the Shah's rescript, he wanted to ignore all this and find a way to weaken the activists and get rid of them. He himself wanted to make Iran great, but how? Through autocracy. His newspaper, Habl ol-Matin, carried a column, entitled, “A New Reform, or the Prime Minister's Sublime Thoughts,” with lengthy articles.Document. 'Ein od-Dawle was an ignorant man who had grown up in the autocratic Court. It offended him to hear the words Law or House of Consultation or to see the people take an interest in the country's affairs. And so he was an enemy from the bottom of his heart. The only one of the clergy's demands that he satisfied was 'Ala od-Dawle's dismissal as governor of Tehran, and he completely forgot about the rest.Sharif-Kashani, Vaqe'at-e Ettefaqiye dar Ruzegar (p.47) reports how the clergy's boys visited 'Ein od-Dawle one by one, hoping to derive personal benefit from their newly-acquired prestige, only to be turned away empty-handed. In the meantime, 'Ein od-Dawle was preparing for martial law in Tehran.

In mid-February, something unanticipated happened: On the evening of Tuesday, January 8 (12 Zul-Qa'da), Commerce Minister Sa'd od-Dawle and Dr. Mohammad Khan Ehya ol-Molk were taken from their houses and driven out of the city, Sa'd od-Dawle to Yazd, [77] and Dr. Mohammad Khan to Mazandaran.

Their crimes were not known, except that Sa'd od-Dawle was a refractory man and, as we have said, had stood up to 'Ein od-Dawle, taking issue with what Naus and 'Ala od-Dawle were doing and supporting the merchants.Taqizade writes that Sa'd od-Dawle had been secretly egging the merchants on. (“Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran” in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:325) Such behavior offended the arrogant and egotistic nature of 'Ein od-Dawle, who in those days was Iran's dictator and was being called Prince Atabak the Great. As Sa'd od-Dawle himself would say, they drove him out of Tehran on foot and Cossacks scourged him along the way, not refraining from any cruelty.

Dr. Mohammad Khan was Amin os-Soltan's doctor, and it seems that this itself aroused 'Ein od-Dawle's enmity. Nazem ol-Eslam asked him why he was exiled and he said that he himself did not know.Ibid., I:378-390.

These people were not among the activists, and their expulsion need not have offended the latter. But since the people thought that the autocracy was over and had fixed their hopes on freedom, they were startled by this unexpected event and were depressed. But they let it pass and reassured themselves, since there was talk that a law for the House of Justice was being written.

In March, another event occurred: Sayyed Jamal Va'ez was exiled from the city. As we have said, Sayyed Jamal had been living hidden in Nazem ol-Eslam's house since the night of the Shah Mosque events.Sayyed Jamal's story is related in Ibid., I:340-43. But on the last night of the activists' stay in ‘Abdol-‘Azim, Nazem ol-Eslam took him and brought him to ‘Abdol-‘Azim with Mo'in ol-'Olema of Isfahan and he stayed there for a few hours (half-hidden) until he returned along with the rest and went home. But 'Ein od-Dawle had not forgiven him and would sometimes mention his name with fury, and so Sayyed Jamal lived in fear. It was in late February that Nayyer od-Dawle, who had succeded 'Ala od-Dawle as governor of Tehran, wrote a letter to Haji Sheikh Morteza saying, “It is best that Sayyed Jamal leave for a pilgrimage to Mashhad. I will pay the expenses of the trip myself.” Clearly, 'Ein od-Dawle wanted to expel Sayyed Jamal, and this was the first demonstration of his enmity. The talabes wanted to riot and not let him go, but the Two Sayyeds restrained them.The talabes argued that “Today they are exiling Sayyed Jamal; tomorrow they will exile you,” refering to Sayyed 'Abdollah Behbehani. The latter argued that it was more important to preserve the fragile peace between crown and clergy. ( Ibid., I:372, from which this passage is taken.) Behbehani sent Sheikh Mehdi Va'ez before 'Ein od-Dawle to mediate,The prior mediation efforts of Amir-e A'zam are not mentioned by Kasravi. Ibid., I:372. but he would not accept him and said, “It would be absurd to accept this request of His Eminence [Behbehani]. Sayyed Jamal absolutely must not be in Tehran during the ten days of 'Ashura, for his sermons from the pulpit will foment rebellion and chaos.” He swore, “If Sayyed Jamal does not leave, I will kill him myself, but if he does leave, I promise to bring him back after 'Ashura and that the Shah will grant him a thousand tumans to cover the expenses of his trip.”

Behbehani had no choice but to accept, and told Sayyed Jamal to head for Qom. In The History of the Awakening, it says,Ibid., I:373, from which the bracketed material is taken. “Aqa Sayyed Jamal said, 'The goal of all of us[, the distinguished clergy, the talabes, the preachers, and the merchants,] is only that the Shah grant a Consultative Assembly. If I thought that the granting of an Assembly depended on my being killed, I would be completely satisfied and prepared [78] to be killed.' His Eminence Behbehani declared, 'This expression is premature, do not use it. Suffice it to use the expression 'House of Justice' until the time is right.”

In any case, on Monday, February 21 (26 Zul-Hijja), Sayyed Jamal left Tehran with his son and a servant.One of Sayyed Jamal's friends said, “God knows that [Sayyed Behbehani] did whatever was in his power so that you would not have to go, but it came to nothing.” Sayyed Jamal replied, “A few nights ago when I was in the presence of His Eminence, I submitted that if it were in the interests of this noble nation of Iran that I be killed, I am ready to sacrifice myself and my children for this sacred cause. I am completely happy to migrate to Qom in any case.” The sayyed then refused the thousand tumans, writing, “Although Your Servant is thoroughly honored to be a recipient of the munificence of the King of Islam (God eternalize his rule!), I refrain from accepting this sum since my only intention is to obey the command of the King of Islam and uphold the sacred shariat.” Nazem ol-Eslam remarks that rejecting this tremendous sum, despite his own poverty and indebtedness, probably saved his life, since when the Shah (who had despised the sayyed for an apostate) saw him leave in such a state of misery and poverty, he told 'Ein od-Dawle, “Opposing sayyeds has evil consequences.” A crowd gathered as he left and the talabes offered to close the bazar and madrases, but Sayyed Jamal talked them out of it. In the meantime, a child was born to him and named Reza, as he was willing (razi) to satisfy (reza) God. (TBI, I:373-74) He spent the ten days of 'Ashura in QomWhere he was treated with great respect. (TBI, I:374) and then returned. The activists refrained from holding a reception for him,This would have been provocative. (TBI, I:374) but treated him with great kindness.Nazem ol-Eslam has Sayyed Jamal meeting 'Ein od-Dawle on his return to Tehran and pleading that all he wants is an “Islamic constitutional monarchy.” It is also reported that he finally accepted the thousand tumans “travel money” at this point, although he continued his agitation from the pulpit. ( Ibid., I:375)

During the ten days of Moharram, 'Ein od-Dawle set up a rawzekhani, wanting to attract the clergy or their sons and families.See TBI, I:380. Nor did he stint on spending money on this, [79] and his agents busily visited the clergy and their sons and tried to appease them. But nothing came of this. 'Ein od-Dawle wanted to sow divisions between the Two Sayyeds and draw Tabataba'i to himHe sent a sayyed to convince Tabataba'i to establish friendly relations with Amir Bahador, sweetening his argument with an offer of five hundred tumans. (TBI, I:377-38) and get rid of Behbehani.Actually, this same emissary tried to recruit Behbehani, too. (TBI, I:378) But Tabataba'i's valiance and good character would not allow this.Kasravi's source, Nazem ol-Eslam, credits himself with nipping this plot in the bud. (TBI, I:377-78) 'Ein od-Dawle pursued one of Sayyed Mohammad Tabataba'i's sons, Aqa Mirza Abol-Qasem, during the migration to Shah ‘Abdol-‘Azim, recalling their past friendship and promising favors. He later had an emissary try to bribe him with a gold watch and a sum of money, which he refused. Amir Bahador tried to bribe him and Aqa Mirza Mostafa Ashtiani with twenty thousand tumans to keep them from calling for the execution of the Shah's decree. (TBI, I:380) See I:488, where this same Aqa Mirza Mostafa Ashtiani tried to bribe Aqa Mirza Abol-Qasem on behalf of 'Ein od-Dawle.

In the meantime, the activists perceived 'Ein od-Dawle's bad intentions. Their hopes diminished and they resumed the struggle. The clergy, under the guise of having parties, met for discussions twice each week. Moreover, the talabes formed groups and held meetings.Nazem ol-Eslam has Aqa Mirza 'Ali Qomi say, One night, when the talabes were beating their breasts in the home of Sadr ol-'Olema, a talabe quipped, “I hear different sounds from each breast being beaten. One says Dabir ol-Molk, another, Salar od-Dawle, another, Amin os-Soltan, another, someone or other. Each one beats his breast to advance the one he likes to leadership or the succession to the throne or the prime ministry or the status of Hojjat ol-Eslam. So it occured to us to form an anjoman of talabes to differentiate the talabes from the rest and to serve the homeland and separate from those who are out to promote individuals. In general, Nazem ol-Eslam remarked, the politicians were falling over each other to associate themselves with the clergy. (TBI, I:381) One of their activities was to write clandestine leaflets and jellygraphs and distribute them in secret.One such leaflet is reproduced in TBI, I:382-384. Should I translate it?

And so winter ended, and a Persian year which would be an historical one for Iran, began. The people spent the new year's holiday between hope and fear.

Towards the beginning of April, there was a night meeting between 'Ein od-Dawle and Tabataba'i. This is what happened: Ehtesham os-Saltane, who was considered a man with a good reputation and who had just left the German embassy, visited Tabataba'i's house and spoke to him about 'Ein od-Dawle and what he was doing.Nazem ol-Eslam is uncertain as to whether this is out of patriotism or whether 'Ein od-Dawle had put him up to it. (TBI, I:392) He asked him to visit 'Ein od-Dawle so that the two of them could meet alone together and talk, claiming that knotty problems would be untangled in this way. Blissful Soul Tabataba'i acceptedHe knew Ehtesham os-Saltane and considered him a righteous and pious man. As to visiting 'Ein od-Dawle, “I am ready to sacrifice my life for the cause, let alone meet with 'Ein od-Dawle.” (TBI, I:392) and visited 'Ein od-Dawle's house by night, in the dark, and the two men met alone and deliberated. 'Ein od-Dawle asked for a Koran and swore upon it that, “I agree with your goal and give my word that an Assembly will be set up with due speed. I consider your cause sacred, and I have neglected it to this day because I wanted to remove the obstacles before it. I now promise you that in a few days, a true House of Justice will be set up.”

Tabataba'i was encouraged by this oath and promise, and returned. But nothing came of it,As Nazem ol-Eslam commented, “The word of night is erased by noon.” and in those very days, the affair of the meeting in the Bagh-e Shah occurred, in which it became known that all this talk was a lie.

The Meeting in Bagh-e Shah

At this time, Mozaffar od-Din Shah was staying in the Bagh-e Shah. On Tuesday, the first of May [4 Rabi' I, 1324],VER (p. 60), which carries a different account than what follows. The hero in either case, Ehtesham os-Saltane, was, together with the author, a founder of a secret society of five people. (ibid., Introduction, p. x) 'Ein od-Dawle set up a meeting there, wanting to consult with the ministers concerning the House of Justice and implementing the Shah's decree. As we have said, 'Ein od-Dawle had never wanted to submit to the activists' demands. Aside from the fact that he did not want to drop the reins of autocratic rule, since he was unlearned, he was repelled by and hostile to the notions of law, parliament, and so forth. So he insisted on not accepting the activists' demands. In any case, he did not want the whole sin to rest on his shoulders but wanted others to be in league with him. This was what the meeting was about, and [80] he had given some of the ministers instructions beforehand.In addition to giving these reasons, Nazem ol-Eslam credits the agitation of the popular organizations for forcing 'Ein od-Dawle to convene the meeting. (TBI, I:384)

'Ein od-Dawle started the discussion by saying: “All of you know that His Majesty the King has issued a rescript for a House of Justice. Although I had given the order and they have written its regulations and have now finished, I have resisted it and now that the mullahs have not relented and are publishing clandestine leaflets, consider yourselves if it is better that we implement the decree or drive the mullahs to despair and answer them with the government's forces.”This material is an accurate summary of TBI, I:384-388. It is confirmed in Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, No. 3, January 1907).

Those present all remained silent. He raised the issue once more and repeated his question.

Ehtesham os-SaltaneDescribed as “a pious and wealthy man … who maintained humanitarian interests over personal ones. (TBI, I:385) answered: “It would be better [for the government]TBI, I:385. to execute the rescript, for otherwise, it will lose the people's esteem. Moreover, founding a House of Justice will do it no harm.”

Amir Bahador-e Jang (Minister of the Court) said, “Not so. It would be better for the government if the rescript not be implemented. If the House of Justice were to be set up, the son of the king would have to become equal to the son of some fruit vendor. Then no governor could intervene and would be barred from getting extortion.”

Ehtesham os-Saltane said, “Honorable Minister of the Court, that's enough. How much extortion?! How much oppression?! How miserable and poor do you want the people to be?! Have a little concern for the people. Do not make the people even angrier with the government, do not make the clergy the Shah's enemy.”

Hajeb od-Dawle said, “If a House of Justice were to be set up, the government would be destroyed.”

Naser ol-Molk, the Minister of Finances, who had been to Europe, said, “Yes, just so. It is not yet time to set up an Assembly in Iran. A House of Justice would not be right for this government.”

Amir Bahador spoke up once again: “Honorable Ehtesham os-Saltane, you, a Qajar, should not consent to this house losing the monarchy.”

Ehtesham os-Saltane answered, “The dynasty's progress and increasing power lies in its cooperation with the people. Today, good fortune has befallen the governmentOr, as Kasravi's source has him say, “its lucky star has risen.” (TBI, I:385) because the people are about to do good things.“are about to reform defects” (TBI, I:385) You should be grateful and [cooperate with the people] and overcome defects hand in hand with the people and make the government worthy and credible and pass a legal code which all would obey. Enough oppression, do not ruin the Shah's name, do not disgrace the government.” “none might violate. Enough getting income.” (TBI, I:385)

Amir Bahador turned to 'Ein od-Dawle and said: “Ehtesham os-Saltane wants to eliminate the Shah's might.”

Ehtesham os-Saltane said: “I hope to see our king and benefactor become mighty like the German and English emperors. You want him to become like the Khadiv of Egypt or the Amir of Afghanistan.”

[81] Amir Bahador said: “As long as I live, I will not permit a House of Justice to be set up. You go and live in Germany and be the German emperor's servant. My master, my king does not need such services.”

When the discussion reached this point,“When he achieved his end and its continuation was not in his interest.” (TBI, I:386) 'Ein od-Dawle interrupted, saying, “I must submit this discussion before His Majesty and ask the Shah himself for instructions.”

And so the meeting adjourned. 'Ein od-Dawle did not want the people to say that he alone was objecting and would not allow a House of Justice to be set up; he wanted them to know that other ministers agreed with him. Since in this meeting Ehtesham os-Saltane did not follow the rest and expressed sympathy for the people, he was sent to Kurdistan a few days later, supposedly to supervise border affairs. For as we shall see, the Ottoman army was in the meantime violating the border and there were a series of negotiations and conflicts. The people considered this his exile from Tehran, and this found him a place among the liberals (just as Sa'd od-Dawle's being driven out had done for him.)Embellished from TBI, I:386.

Tabataba'i's Letter to 'Ein od-Dawle

This was in early May. The people's despair mounted on hearing about the meeting, what the ministers said there, and the way Ehtesham os-Saltane was treated afterwards. They once again pressured the Two Sayyeds and other leaders. Tabataba'i wrote a letter to 'Ein od-Dawle, which we reproduce here with some minor deletions.We restore these deletions, based on the text published in TBI, Kasravi's source. Most of the deletions Kasravi indicated by ellipses, but some major ones he did not.

What became of all those confidences and promises and agreements?

Surely you are well aware of this country's desolation and this people's grinding poverty and the dangers which surround this land. It is also obvious, as you know, that the way to put all these things to rights lies entirely in founding an Assembly and the unity of the government and the people and the men of the government with the clergy. The strange thing is that knowing the disease as well as its remedy, you see fit to do nothing. These reforms will come to be implemented soon, but we want them to be done by our own king and Atabak, not by the Russians and the British and the Ottomans. We do not want them to write in the history books that the government was destroyed in the time of Mozaffar od-Din Shah and that Iran was ruined in the time of that king [and the Shiites became so abased in that time.] Danger is imminent and time is short and this patient is on the verge of dying, the outlook for recovery is dim. Is it fitting to delay in curing such a disease? Is it right to postpone the remedy? I swear by exalted God, by all the Prophets and Imams, that with a little delay and procrastination, Iran will go. [Praise God, Your Majesty the Prince is a Muslim and, unlike your predecessors, believes in the shariat and Judgment Day. Please note, then: What answer will you have for the Commander of the Faithful (Upon whom be peace!) when he declares, “Iran alone was the government of my followers, why did you destroy Iran and demolish the Shiites' government?”]No ellipses indicated in the text. If I have been and am being presumptuous, forgive me, for Iran is my homeland, my honor is in this country, my service to Islam is here, my strength is completely dependent upon this government. I see this government falling into the hands of foreigners and all my status vanishing. So I shall strive to guard this kingdom as long as I have breath. In fact, if necessary, I will give up my life for this cause. [The Lord of Martyrs (Upon whom be peace!) lost his life, children, and relatives to save the Shiites. If not for that great man's martyrdom, the very name of the Shiites would have vanished. Is it then fitting that you deliver up this land to the clutches of the foreigners for free, making these few Shiites weak and miserable?] Today, we must put aside selfish interests [82] and be prepared to sacrifice our lives for the sake of God [and the preservation of this creed]No ellipses indicated in the text. alone [and not wonder w]hyNo ellipses indicated in the text. this should be done in the name of this person or that. Time is short and the issue is important, this is not the time for such thoughts. I am ready to put aside everything for this, to put aside prestige. If accomplishing this depends on my being in Your Excellency the Prince's mansion and removing shoes and being the door man, I am ready (for the people and the elimination of oppression). Your Excellency! I swear to God and the Prophet [(Upon whom be God's blessings and peace!) and Pure Fatimah and the Guiding Imams]. Drop whatever is in your lap; please do not have this realm and these people become prisoners of the Russian or the English or the Ottoman. What about the oath? What about the Koran?Referring to the oath taken during the night meeting between them, refered to above. Our oath for this task was to found an Assembly, otherwise, we had nothing in common. In short, [if] you order that measures be taken for this task, we, too, are ready and cooperative. But [if] you give no orders, I will act single-handedly. Do or die; it makes no difference to me which, for I prepared myself for death and then went into action. Nothing is left of my life, pleasurable experiences are impossible, so my pleasure lies in accomplishing this work and my ultimate hopes are in performing this task or giving up my life for its sake, for it is a cause of divine forgiveness and earthly honor for me and my successors to leave a great name for myself in the pages of history through this task. They will curse us if this work remains undone, just as we do not speak well of our ancestors. So I humbly implore you to do this deed, the sooner the better. Procrastination over it even for a day will have a lethally poisonous effect. Right now, the Ottoman evil cannot be repulsed without this Assembly and the unity of the people with the government and the men of the government with the clergy. Other benefits should be mentioned. For now, I shall not trouble you any longer. Farewell.

It should be noted well that in this letter, instead of “House of Justice,” “Assembly” and “unity of the government and the people” are mentioned. The fact is that now the Two Sayyeds and their allies had taken another step forward and were gradually unveiling their ultimate demand, a Consultative Assembly and a Constitution.

One amazing thing is written in The History of the Awakening:TBI, I:392. “When 'Ein od-Dawle read the letter, he saw the word 'single-handedly' [yektane] in the sentence which said, 'I will act single-handedly,' and thought it said 'Sunday' [yekshanbe] and became afraid that there would be a revolt on Sunday, and so he brought into the city several detachments of the soldiers from the barracks outside the city and had them guard the citadel and guard houses, and told the Shah: 'The mullahs want to rise up in revolt on Sunday [and kill the Shah.' In any case, the Shah was frightened.]Restored from TBI, I:392 in place of Kasravi's ellipses. Moreover, a hue and cry was raised among the people that a 'jihad' was to be launched on Sunday, and 'Ein od-Dawle sent a letter to the Two Sayyeds and others, a mixture of threats and promises. Sunday came and went, and nothing happened. But the people realized that the government was afraid of the activists,“… that it was possible for even the Prime Minister to be frightened and to make the Shah scared of the people.” (TBI, I:392) Nazem ol-Eslam later says that members of the Court and the Shah's haram eunics and confidants tried to stir the Shah to be angry at the mullahs. (TBI, I:393) and this emboldened them.

The Mashhad Disturbances and News of Them So relations between the activists and the government once again came apart, and the activists resumed their protests. In the meantime, events presented them with an opportunity. The people of Fars, who had appealed for justice that year and gotten no results and quieted down, appealed yet again, [83] and sent one telegram after another to the government and the clergy. They also sent a telegram to Crown Prince Mohammad 'Ali Mirza. Sho'a' os-Saltane had gone to Europe by then,To take a cure. (TBI, I:395) but his agentsHis deputy, Sardar-e Mokarram. (TBI, I:395) kept seizing people's villages from them and became harsher.When the people took refuge, the deputy governor had them fired on “to preserve order,” killing over twenty. Some took refuge in the British legation. (TBI, I:395) As a result of these appeals and the people's persistence, the Shah dismissed Sho'a' os-Saltane as governor of Fars and sent 'Ala od-Dawle to replace him, but the people's villages were not returned.TBI, I:397. The activists took this as yet another opportunity to denounce the government and stir up the people.

News then arrived of a disturbance in Mashhad. What happened was that a certain Haji Mohammad Hasan brought bread and meat to the city under a contract [cartel] and set a very high price for them. [84] The people fell into hardship and complained. But since the governor, Asef od-Dawle, and others were in on it with him, there was no one to whom they could appeal. They gradually decided to rebel, and bands of people formed up and went this way and that. No one paid any attention to them or tried to stop them. Finally, the talabes went into action and joined up with them. One of them, a Caucasian named Ra'is ot-Tollab, came forth and rallied the people to him. He sent someone to summon Haji Mohammad Hasan to come before him and obtained a statement from him in writing saying that he would make bread and meat cheap in three days. Haji Mohammad Hasan wrote this and came out and, with Asef od-Dawle's knowledge, went and recruited tofangchis. On the third day, the people expected that bread and meat would be cheap, and since there was no sign of this being fulfilled, they once again formed groups, and Ra'is ot-Tollab went to Gawhar Shad Mosque with the other talabes and set up a base and went into action. Ra'is ot-Tollab sent a group of talabes and other people to seize Haji Mohammad Hasan and bring him back. When they went into action, the people shut down the bazaars and a group of bazaaris joined them. In the meantime, Haji Mohammad Hasan had assembled tofangchis from ???????, a village of his.Described as “of Mongol decent (barbaris) and Sunnis” in TBI, p. I:399. The governor dispatched two hundred horsemen as well. They went to Haji Mohammad Hasan's house and in the caravan station next to it and waited. The talabes and the people, who were not aware of what was happening and never suspected such a thing, reached Haji Mohammad Hasan's house and wanted to break down the door by force and go inside to seize Haji Mohammad Hasan. At first, the talabes and the people were received with sticks and stones and then, suddenly, with musket shot. When they heard the musket shots, they turned and fled, and some who had been hit by bullets fell. The tofangchis pursued them, firing on them from the rooftops to drive them into the courtyard of Imam Reza's mausoleum.In the meantime, the crowd had fled towards a nearby bank; Cossacks detailed to protect it joined the tofangchis in attacking the crowd. (TBI, I:399) Even in that courtyard, they showed no mercy, and kept firing at them. A great many of them were hit; about forty died. The rest recovered after a while. This is what resulted from the poor people's rebellion.This passage is clearly not taken from the parallel passage in TBI, I:397-401; Haji Mohammad Hasan is refered to as Haj Mo'aven ot-Tojjar. There is no mention of Ra'is ot-Tollab; instead, a pair of sayyeds, Haj Ebrahim and 'Abbas, both Russian subjects, are mentioned as being considered the chief instigators of the crowd. There is no mention of them extracting an agreement from anyone to lower bread prices. In any case, the blame for the disturbance is placed squarely on the policies of Khorasan's governor, Asef od-Dawle, whom TBI describes as a pious pederast, punctilious in his devotions and cruel and heartless in his treatment of his subjects. In particular, he is described as systematically hoarding the grain of any city he can put under his influence. The honest mullahs stood with the starving people, whose pitiful cries of hunger are described as filling the “felicitous precinct” of the Imam Reza's mausoleum. The Chief Superintendent of the mausoleum was blamed for the disturbances. When Asef od-Dawle, who saw him as a useful scapegoat, demanded that he disperse the crowd, he pointedly replied that it was the governor who had the firepower necessary to disperse ten thousand starving people. Seeing that the governor was ignoring their complaints, the people raided the mausoleum's stores of silver; their fury even drew the talabes to join them. When it became known that these treasures were being seized, the crowd swelled. Meanwhile, word spread that Asef od-Dawle had cornered the market in grain with the connivance of Haj Mo'aven ot-Tojjar. The mob, composed of “unthinking children, aimless adults, and simple sayyeds” headed for the Citadel. Mo'aven ot-Tojjar, having anticipated trouble, barricaded himself there with his armed men. The rest of the story is told along Kasravi's lines, with the exceptions indicated, up to the point where the crowd is dispersed. Nazem ol-Eslam adds that Asef od-Dawle, realizing that the rioting would turn into an armed uprising the next day unless something were done, then approached the mausoleum's Chief Superintendent and urged him to restrain the pair of turbulent sayyeds, which he does. The sayyeds, realizing that the Chief Superintendent is now in league with the governor, left. The governor, hearing this, ordered the Chief Superintendent to seize the two. Hearing that a pair of Russian subjects were about to be seized, the Russian consulate stepped in and put them under its protection, refusing to prosecute them, as demanded by the governor. The governor finally bribed the two sayyeds to keep away from the crowd, diverted traffic from around the mausoleum, and promised to lower food prices. And thus an explosive situation was defused.

This happened in early April; news of it reached Tehran later that month, but in a distorted form. It was rumored that the Imam Reza Dome had been fired upon by order of Asef od-Dawle and that he did not respect the sanctuary. This greatly offended the people, vastly increasing their dissatisfaction with the government. It affected everyone. In those days, the people's beliefs were different.This last sentence is a refrain which appears throughout the History to express the author's insistence that the people now know better than to be be concerned with Shiite preoccupations.

The activists seized upon this as another opportunity. Blissful Soul Tabataba'i himself mounted the pulpit, recounted these events, and wept copiously. Also, some people published clandestine leaflets about it.This is a summary of TBI, I:400-401. A clandestine leaflet on the general misery of the population and the delay in the implementation of the Shah's promises is reproduced in Ibid., I:401-403.

Tabataba'i's Letter to Mozaffar od-Din Shah In these days, Tabataba'i wrote a letter to the Shah himself and made copies of it, sending it six different ways so that one of them would reach him in any event. We present a copy here:See TBI, I:403-405. The material in brackets is restored from TBI Nazem ol-Eslam makes it appear that it was written either under the inspiration or under the pressure of clandestine leaflets sent to the clergy.

[85]

The Patriots' Cry from the Heart

Submitted to His Highness, the Most Sacred Sovereign (May God immortalize his reign!).

Since you have personally commanded, “Whenever you have a petition, send it to me directly,” the Blessed Mind is being intruded upon with this petition. These days, they do not let us, who pray [for you], through and do not let our petitions be honored by the Blessed Presence. In this situation, if His Majesty be mistaken on some matter, how can we rectify this error? Merely for the sake of advancing their designs, they have portrayed us, the prayerful, as enemies of the dynasty and the Royal Person and they have confused the Blessed Mind so that if we petition against the corruption of their activities, it is not accepted.

By exalted God, [the noble Prophet, the Commander of the Faithful (Upon whom be peace!), Sadiqe the Pure,Fatimah, the daughter of the Prophet Mohammad. and the Imam of the Age (God hasten his advent!)], we swear that we the prayerful love His Highness. Night and day we beseech of exalted God the health and longevity of the Blessed Existence. Why should we not want a kind and merciful king, devoid of greed, forgiving? His Highness' government is our ease and comfort. The aims of those who pray for you will appear under His Majesty's reign. Is it possible to not love such a king? Far be it! Whether our aim is of this world or the next, whether our motivation is leadership and attracting influence or service to the shariat, it is all of this reign. We know how the clergy live in other countries. Iran is the country and the place where we who pray for you achieve our goals. We must strive for the advancement of Iran and to free it from danger. It is impossible to be an enemy of this dynasty. Reason does not dictate that we, the prayerful, be silent in the face of these dangers and desire the dynasty's disintegration. They do not allow His Majesty to be apprized of the state of the realm and the damage and dangers facing it, the subjects' misery and the governors' tyranny and so on, and unpleasant facts. They continuously submit that the kingdom is prosperous and orderly and remote from danger, that the subjects are at ease and busily praying, and that no unpleasant matters have arisen or will arise.This device of claiming that the Shah is not informed of the bad consequdences of his government's policies is often thought of as a polite way of bringing said consequences to his attention. However, as a correspondent for The London Times writes, It is doubtful whether … the Shah had been made acquainted with the facts or had realized the gravity of the growing discontent amongst his people. Completely given up to a life of self-indulgence, the only cares of State which as a rule seriously preoccupy him are those connected with the emptiness of his Treasure, and naturally the Ministers and courtiers who surround him are not disposed to risk their tenure of Royal favour by obtruding unpleasant truths upon him until it has become absolutely impossible to withhold them.

Majesty! The kingdom is in ruins, the subjects are distressed and begging, the trespassing hand of the governors and officials is outstretched against the subjects' property and honor and life, the tyranny of the governors and officials is limitless. They carry off whatever of the subjects' property their fancy requires. They obey the power of their wrath and lust, whatever it desires and demands, in beating, killing, and destroying. From where did they accumulate all their mansions and furnishings and money and land in such a short time? It is all the property of the wretched subjects. This is the wealth of those same poor people, of whose condition His Highness is aware. In such a short space of time, through the subjects' property, they have become masters of financial power and wealth. Last year, girls from Quchan were taken in lieu of forty-five kilograms of wheat's worth of taxes, which they did not have and could not give, and sold to the Turkomans and Armenians of 'Eshqabad at fabulous prices. Ten thousand subjects from Quchan fled from this oppression to Russia, thousands of Iranian subjects have migrated from the oppression of the governors and officials to foreign countries to subsist working as porters and laborers, to die in misery. It is impossible to express the condition of these people, their oppression, in the brief space of a petition. All these matters are hidden from His Highness and do not allowed him to know about them so that he might do something. If the current state [86] of this kingdom is not set to right, it will presently cause it to become annexed to foreign kingdoms. Surely His Highness would not be content for it to be written in history that in the time of his rule, Iran was scattered to the winds, Islam was weakened, and the Muslims were made miserable.

Majesty! For all these troubles, there is the Assembly of Justice, i.e., an assembly composed of all the peoples' estates, an assembly which would respond to the appeals of all the people and in which king and beggar would be equal. His August Majesty knows the benefits of this assembly better than anyone else. If there were such an assembly, it would eliminate this oppression, make prosperous the ruins, not allow foreign greed into the kingdom, the English would not take Sistan and Baluchestan, the Russians would not take some other place, the Ottomans would not be able to trespass against Iran.

The condition of bread and meat, which are the major sources of the people's food and is vital for them, is very bad. Most people are deprived of both. His August Majesty has ordered that measures be taken to ameliorate this condition. Some well-meaning people were ready. But alas, others, who at some point received an enormous sum from the butcher and the baker, do not allow these goals to be achieved or the people contented.

The state of the soldier, who is the protector of country and nation, is kept hidden from His Highness. He is even deprived of his meager rations and wages and mostly earns his sustenance by coolie labor, and even this is forbidden him. Many of them perish every day from hunger. No worse defect than this can be imagined for a kingdom.

We passed thirty days full of hardship in [the shrine of His Holiness] ‘Abdol-‘Azim until the royal rescript on founding the desired Assembly was issued. We gave thanks and in gratitude for this favor a great illumination was held and there were celebrations. We passed the days waiting for the contents of the rescript to be implemented. Nothing happened. Everything was evaded. In fact, it was plainly stated, “This will not be done,” and “To found an Assembly is to oppose the monarchy,” not realizing that a sound monarchy which is not in decline has an Assembly and that without an Assembly, a monarchy is meaningless and perishable.

“Majesty! Please do not let fifteen million souls, the king's children, be prisoners of one man's tyranny. Please do not shield your eyes from your fifteen million children for the sake of one tyrant. Much is to be said, I will not trouble you any more for now. I pray that you carefully consider this petition and that you command a solution before it is too late, so that the kingdom not be lost and that a group of poor subjects who are as your Majesty's children not be made miserable prisoners of foreigners.

The command of the Most High is to be obeyed.

Mohammad b. Sadeq el-Hoseini et-Tabataba'i.

An answer to this letter was received, to the following effect:This reply is preceded in Ibid, by a long passage, originally published in Nazem ol-Eslam's magazine Kawkab-e Dorra, in which is described an elaborate attempt to smuggle the above letter to the Shah and the terrifying risks those involved had to take. (Ibid., I:406-07)

His Honor Aqa Sayyed Mohammad Mojtahed.

We read your petitions and have ordered AtabakThe Prime Minister, 'Ein od-Dawle. to implement your objectives. For your part, do not shirk your duties and pray. Surely you shall silence any troublemakers with sage advice and quiet disturbances and not be content that my ire consume all.This letter is translated into Kasravi Persian from its source in TBI, I:408, but its sense is preserved.

[87]

The Exiling of Roshdiye and the Others from Tehran The clergy realized that the answer had come from 'Ein od-Dawle himself and that their letter had never reached the Shah. The fact is that at the time, the Shah was suffering from paralysis. He could do nothing but tend to himself, and 'Ein od-Dawle became freer. He decided to step up his resistance to the activists and eliminate them. Moreover, he started another major operation: changing the Crown Prince. He wanted to replace Crown Prince Mohammad 'Ali Mirza with another of the Shah's sons. It was said that he would choose Sho'a' os-Saltane. It is not known where 'Ein od-Dawle had gotten this idea or what inspired it; doubtless, its source was in diplomacy. What was apparent was that he wanted to draw the princes, like Sho'a' os-Saltane, Salar od-Dawle, and others, over to him and then make one of them Crown Prince, or, to put it better, Shah, so that he could remain Prime Minister forever.TBI, I:462. In this passage, Nazem ol-Eslam describes how 'Ein od-Dawle saw former Prime Minister Amin os-Soltan behind much of the trouble, and believed—the author implies that this is false—that Sayyed Behbehani was soley motivated by restoring his patron to power.

In any case, this came to nothing but talk and accomplished only two things: Mohammad 'Ali Mirza became 'Ein od-Dawle's EinVsShah42enemy and leaned towards the activists; and the princes, who each wanted to become Crown Prince, leaned towards 'Ein od-Dawle, and some of the princes who had tended towards the activists now withdrew from them.TBI, I:462. In this passage, Nazem ol-Eslam also describes how former prime minister Amin os-Soltan's money was seen as being behind much of the trouble, and that it was believed—the author implies falsely—that Sayyed Behbehani was soley motivated at restoring his patron (Amin os-Soltan) to power. In another passage, he discusses how 'Ein od-Dawle tried to cultivate the clergy, particularly how he bribed Sheikh Fazlollah Nuri, with whom he had previously been at odds, and Sho'a' os-Saltane. (I:410-11)

In June (Rabi' II), the Two Sayyeds and their allies decided to go to a mosque every night and not let the people alone. Behbehani would go to the pulpit at the Sar-e Polak Mosque on Thursday nights and Tabataba'i would go to the pulpit in the Chale Hesar Mosque on Monday nights. In the meantime, some of the people said silly things, for example, that one must wage a “jihad” against the government. They spoke this way without making any preparations for a jihad, but most of them hoped that since the soldiers and cannoneers were Muslims, they would not resist if the clergy were to raise one. So they distributed clandestine leaflets along these lines and a clamor arose from among the people and it was said that the activists were going to gather in Tabataba'i's house and charge out to fight. Such talk became so widespread that it frightened 'Ein od-Dawle. I have seen a letter in which it is said that Atabak [i.e. 'Ein od-Dawle] sent his jewelry out of his house. Whether or not this is true, it is an example of how terribly frightened he was. On the other hand, 'Ein od-Dawle kept the army outside the city ready to bring it in whenever he saw any activity and to arrest whomever he wanted and kill whomever he would. One night, Tabataba'i addressed this subject from the pulpit and spoke wisely, saying, “I hear it said here and there that the mullahs are contemplating a jihad. This is a lying rumor contrary to the facts. We are not preparing for war or for a fight. Our king is a Muslim. It is inconceivable to declare a jihad against a Muslim king....” He [88] then gave the people sage counsel and instructed them to be patient and calm and restrained them from doing anything rash.TBI, I:411-12, except for the letter, which does not appear in TBI.

'Ein od-Dawle wanted to put a stop to these night meetings in the mosques. He announced that no one was to be outside past three hours into the night and instructed the police department to arrest and throw in prison anyone who was seen in the streets or alleys after that hour. This created problems for the people. Many were arrested every night because of this.“One night over a hundred merchants and respectable people who were coming home from the bazaar or from visiting their friends were arrested” an hour before the curfew was in effect. When they objected to this, they were sent home with apologies. But when they requested that their looted valuables be returned, they were imprisoned for having insulted the forces of order. (TBI, I:412) A bugle would be sounded three hours into night every night and they would arrest whomever they ran across after that. First they would empty their pockets, bags, and wallets, and then they would send them to jail.TBI reports that the security forces would take a regular “fee” from whomever they met to release them, one tuman for their chief, ten shahis for themselves. If they were poor, they were simply given a sound beating and/or left to rot in jail. (TBI, I:412-13) There follows a short digression on the prison system. It is then related how Sayyed Behbehani was fooled by Sheikh Fazlollah Nuri into excommunicating the Shah. The Shah had allowed into the country some Armenians associated with an attempt on the Ottoman Sultan's life, and the Sayyed was asked about the status of a Muslim who protects the life of an infidel who tries to assassinate a Muslim king and gave the expected reply. There follows a strongly armenophillic digression. I:415-26.

In addition, 'Ein od-Dawle wanted to drive certain hot-heads out of the city and intimidate others. Perhaps he wanted to thus clip the activists' wings and seize their effective allies and drive them away. On the night of Friday, June 16 (23 Rabi' II), three people, Haji Mirza Hasan Roshdiye, Majd ol-Eslam Kermani, and Mirza Aqa Esfahani, were arrested in their homes. Each of them was turned over to a different team of cavalry from the guard-post and sent to Kahrizak, and from there, each of the three was bundled into a droshky with cavalry [89] and sent to the Kalat-e Naderi.The fate of the three is discussed in TBI, I:427-42. Majd ol-Eslam wrote a volume, Safarnameye Kalat (Isfahan University Press, Esfahan, 1969) based on his memoirs of this exile, an exile he shared with Mirza Aqa Esfahani. Its first chapter provides a very graphic picture of his arrest and the character of the farrashes as a class.

None of these three were with the band of activists. Roshdiye was the founder of the general school, and himself an outspoken and fearless man who did not refrain from speaking against 'Ein od-Dawle here and there. Majd ol-Eslam Majd26was one of 'Ein od-Dawle's agents and, it was said in those days, a “raportchi” for him, and earned his bread from his establishment. But seeing that the activists were making headway, he farsightedly wanted a place for himself among them, too, and so he would sit and denounce 'Ein od-Dawle here and there.Majd ol-Eslam, according to the introduction to Safarnameye Kalat written by his grandson, Mohammad Khalilpur, had worked with Malek ol-Motakallemin and Sayyed Jamal Va'ez to found a modern school in Esfahan several years before the constitutionalist revolution, only to have it closed when the clergy rallied mobs to attack it. After this episode, he became interested in journalism, contributing under a pseudonym to Soraya, Habl ol-Matin, and Parvaresh. This landed him in serious trouble with the powerful governor, Zell os-Saltane, and the Friday Imam of Isfahan personally threatened to have him murdered, accusing him of Babism. Escaping to Isfahan, he joined with Adib ol-Mamalek, who was publishing Adab. ( Ibid., x-xi) It is possibly significant that Adab was published by Adib ol-Mamalek, who had found favor with the autocratic governor of Tabriz, Amir-e Nezam. (Taqizade, Tahiyeye Moqaddamat-e Mashrutiat dar Azarbayjan, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:386) Majd ol-Eslam's position is ambiguous in Ibid. When he first comes under suspicion, Nazem ol-Eslam trusts him, against the advice of his guide, Sayyed Tabataba'i, with the fate of Sayyed Jamal od-Din, who was wanted by 'Ein od-Dawle and was under Nazem ol-Eslam's supervision (Ibid., I:345) He apparently had ties with his secret society upon Nazem ol-Eslam's invitation. (I:414) Nazem ol-Eslam's protection of Majd ol-Eslam is doubtless because he was Nazem ol-Eslam's student in Arabic grammar, according to Mohammad Khalilpur (Safarnameye Kalat, p. ix) On the other hand, because of the charges against him, he felt the need to demonstrably denounce 'Ein od-Dawle, and it was this, according to Nazem ol-Eslam, which led him to run afoul of the Prime Minister. Majd ol-Eslam tried to ingratiate himself with the Prime Minister by publishing flattering pieces about him in Adab, for which he even obtained a tidy sum, along with his crony, Mirza Aqa Esfahani. However, when he moved, some documents which exposed his real politics fell into the wrong hands, leading to his fall from grace. (TBI, I: 429) It remains to be said that Kasravi's hostility towards Majd ol-Eslam came relatively late. There is no sign of this in the discussion of this figure in P. (See especially I:95) Dr. Mehdi Malekzade has kind words to say about Majd ol-Eslam, who was, in any case, in his father's clique. This is rather surprising given his harsh words for Nazem ol-Eslam (see note ). After completing his studies in Isfahan and reaching the level of ijtihad, he came to Tehran and joined forces with Malek ol-Motakallemin and Sayyed Jamal od-Din Va'ez. He stresses his eloquence and fearlessness in attacking the government's corruption. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran pp. 224, 433) Perhaps under the influence of Kasravi, in the context of discussing his mourning for Atabak after he was assassinated, he later calls him an opportunist. (ibid., p. 492) In any case, he finally admits that with the bombardment of the Majlis, Majd ol-Eslam managed to worm his way into the Court's good graces to the extent that when Tehran was captured by the constitutionalist forces, they wanted to have him shot, although the order of execution was stayed by his friends among the leading constitutionalists, and he was imprisoned for a year and then exiled back to Kerman. (ibid., p. 500) Mirza Aqa had just come back from Istanbul and recommended himself to 'Ein od-Dawle as an expert on law and suggested that he himself write the law being called for.He saw that his interest lay in cultivating 'Ein od-Dawle, and came to Iran for this reason. On the one hand, he pursued this policy, on the other, he wrote liberal articles for Habl ol-Matin, as 'Ein od-Dawle came to find out. And so, the Prime Minister prevailed upon him to write up a code of laws. The result terrified 'Ein od-Dawle, the very man on whom he had pinned his hopes. He also had ties with other liberal activists such as Malek ol-Motakallamin. Finally, Nazem ol-Eslam mentions documents which came to light just before his History was published which deepened national opinion's doubts about his integrity. TBI, I:430. Dr. Mehdi Malekzade is also unenthusiastic about this character: He was “to some extent not uninformed about the civilized world. He had an obstinate and ambitious nature. Since he was inclined to win fame and show his learning and knowledge, he mostly spoke about the progress made by the European countries and criticized the state of Iran in meetings.” He then adds, “Let it not remain unsaid that Mirza Aqa Esfahani… would make himself out to be a liberal and a patriot. After he had won fame and credibility among the people and was elected as representative to the National Consultative Assembly, he became acquainted with Mohammad 'Ali Shah and became a spy, inflicting irreplaceable losses on constitutionalism…” (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran p. 224-225) Since he was an ostentatious and ambitious man, he would speak here and there about law and liberty and the situation of the peoples of Europe.

But when 'Ein od-Dawle arrested the three, he spread the story to the effect that they were Babis (Bahais) and sent a message saying this to Tabataba'i, who was trying to mediate for Majd ol-Eslam. To fool the people, he then ordered that three merchants who were known for their Bahaism be arrested, imprisoned, held for a while, and then released after being fined one hundred and fifty tumans each.TBI, I:428.

A few nights later, the heart-rending incident involving Mehdi Gavkosh occurred. He was considered the neighborhood gang leader of Sar-e Polak and gathered the local youths and mashhaddis around himself. Since he was a follower and supporter of Behbehani, he would lounge around the coffeehouses and boldly denounce 'Ein od-Dawle. When 'Ein od-Dawle, who was ever furious with Behbehani and whose heart was filled with rage towards him, heard that one of his followers had shown such boldness, he was beside himself and decided to vent his wrath on poor Mehdi's head. He gave the order for his men to descend on Mehdi's house by night and spare nothing in their power. They arrested him, beat his pregnant wife so badly [with clubs and daggers] that she lost her child, threw one of his [four or five year old] sons into the courtyard pool and drowned him, and beat and wounded [or murdered] the rest, big and small. In the midst of this wickedness, they did not neglect to plunder the contents of his house as well. The next day, when Mehdi was brought before 'Ein od-Dawle, he ordered his men to give him a severe whipping and, after all that, they threw him in prison. Nothing was heard of him for a long time, and everyone thought he had been murdered.The material in brackets is taken from TBI, I:442-43, from which Kasravi took this passage.

This cruel behavior of 'Ein od-Dawle offended the people.From Ibid., I:443: Although in the age of absolutism, worse suffering would be imposed on the people, their houses would be looted, people murdered, children drowned or burned to death, a reason would be attached to these deeds to cover for them. Thus, they would say that so-and-so was a Babi and that his home should be looted, his property was legitimate for seizure, his wife was licit, his children may be killed. Or that so-and-so was a criminal or a renegade, all his property may be destroyed, his very name and that of his family blotted out from the earth. But this savagery of 'Ein od-Dawle had a great effect since Mehdi Gavkosh could be called neither a Babi nor a renegade nor a thief nor anything else. Let us say that he was an enemy of cows [ gavkosh = cow butcher], and therefore of His Excellency the Prince; his wife and unborn child and innocent infant children were guilty of nothing. In a footnote, Nazem ol-Eslam reports that after his release under the constitutional regime, when the constitution's enemies appeared to be getting the upper hand, out of sheer terror of being rearrested, he committed suicide by eating opium, so badly had he been beaten and scourged by 'Ein od-Dawle and so severely had he suffered in prison. (ibid., I: 443, note 1) Finally, we should note that Nazem ol-Eslam felt that Mehdi Gavkosh was a bit of a nobody, for whom, had he been seized in broad daylight, “no one would have gone to his aid or stop the government agents.” (I:477) Some became terribly intimidated and stood aside. Others became more furious and determined to struggle than ever. All in all, the situation became graver and more difficult.

Meanwhile, since Jomada I [July] had arrived, the people mourned as they did every year on the thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth day of that month [July 5, 6, and 7] because these were the days when the Prophet of Islam's daughter [, Fatima,] died and set up rawzekhanis. During one of these days (the [90] fourteenth [sixth]), Blissful Soul Tabataba'i mounted the pulpit among a very crowded congregation and said some very worthy things. People wrote down what he said, and The History of the Awakening reports it all.I:444-53. Kasravi's quotes include some deletions, but they accurately convey what is being said. The “people” who transcribed the speech was Lava od-Dawle, a member of Nazem ol-Eslam's secret society. This speech seems to me very significant; perhaps it can be put in an appendix?

This wise man first mentioned the Shah and spoke well of him, but said that he was sick and that his words were not allowed to reach him.This was actually said later in the speech. He then declared that in order to provoke the Shah against us, it was being said they say we do not want the Shah, that we are constitutionalists and want a republic. But all we want is a House of Justice, “an assembly in which a group could meet and redress the sufferings of the people and the subjects.” He then recalled the injustices committed by the government men and dwelled on the events in Fars and so on. He continued, saying: “O people, it is your duty to eliminate oppression.” He then talked about Osman's tyranny and his overthrow in the early days of IslamIn Ibid., I:447: During the time of His Holiness, the Commander of the Faithful [Imam 'Ali] (Upon whom be peace!), the people of Egypt went before him to complain about the behavior of Osman [the caliph who had usurped Imam 'Ali, about whom even many Sunnis have mixed feelings]. His Holiness declared, “Which is more numerous, the number of oppressed or the number of oppressors?” “The number of oppressed is greater.” “Then the oppression is your own fault.” The people understood and gathered and eliminated Osman, put a stop to his deeds, and uprooted oppression. and said, “Today, too, the cause of oppression is one person, namely, Atabak. Take care of him....” Although he had shunned constitutionalism, he brought his speech to the point of criticizing autocracy (estebdad) and its faults, and denounced it openly.

In the course of his talk, he recalled Mehdi Gavkosh's heart-rending fate and complained about how hard life in Tehran had become: “A man looks for a doctor to cure his son of diphtheria. They arrest the poor fellow and hold him until morning. When he returns in the morning, his son is dead. Someone's wife is pregnant. They go after a midwife. He is arrested. By morning, both the woman and child have died. What deed shall I describe?! If you only knew what oppression has been going on these nights! Indeed, the people are not rebels against the government. The one word, justice, does not call for such an uproar, such suffering.” Next, he said, “People, awaken, know what ails you, find the cure for it, and do something about it.” He then said, “Every illness has a cure, and the cure for autocracy is council and consultation.” In conclusion, he said, “If it takes one year or ten, we want justice and a House of Justice, we want the law of Islam enforced, we want an Assembly in which king and beggar would be equal before the law.” So without rending the veil, he conveyed his intentions to the people and encouraged them.In the course of his sermon, Sayyed Mohammad related the following drollery by way of complaining how his audience was not taking his words to heart: (TBI, I:446) The story of you and I is like the story of that preacher who is preaching at the pulpit. At the foot of the pulpit is someone who is weeping more than anyone else and is beating his head and chest. The preacher tells the people, “It would be good if all of you be as impressed and moved as this wise man. See how he weeps and how the sermon affects him? It's obvious that this old man is wise and sensible and understands.” The old man said, “By God, I don't understand a word His Eminence the preacher is saying.” The people said, “Then why are you crying and beating your head and chest?” “Because of loss, loss, because of separation, separation.” “It'd be good if you'd speak more plainly and relate the cause of the loss and your weeping and wailing.” “The reason for my weeping is this: When His Eminence the preacher speaks, his beard bobs up and down and I remember a goat which I had and I remember that he had a beard like the His Eminence the preacher's and it bobbed up and down just like His Eminence's.

Naser ol-Molk's Letter to Tabataba'i

When 'Ein od-Dawle heard what Tabataba'i had said, openly denouncing autocracy and, moreover, saw how influential heFor “they.” was, he took another tack. He had Naser ol-Molk, who had studied in England and was considered an educated and good man and made himself out to be pious as well, write a letter to Tabataba'i telling him that Iran was not yet ready for a constitution and that he should now try to increase the number of general schools in Iran and set to order those which already existed and so prepare the people for constitutionalism.Nazem ol-Eslam makes the interesting point that (TBI, I:462), It is striking that Naser ol-Molk, for all his writing this and that about public schools in his letter, could not even organize the Sepahsalar Madrase when he was vice-regent, even though this was his personal responsibility and his religious, civil, and governmental obligation.

This was an excuse to which enemies have always resorted, disguising their hostility as far-sightedness [91] and friendship. Naser ol-Molk wrote a letter which we must reproduce here, but since it is very long and includes a lot of pointless chatter, we omit some parts of it.This material is restored between brackets in what follows, in accordance with the text as it appears in TBI. Tabataba'i's greatness and perceptiveness in action is apparent because he did not fall for such a letter's deceitfulness and did not allow himself to weaken.Nazem ol-Eslam says that the decision to have Naser ol-Molk write this letter was arrived at during a secret meeting. It is unclear how Nazem ol-Eslam could have found out about it. We note that Dr. Mehdi Malekzade in his history of the constitutionalist revolution brands the letter a forgery. He claims that he asked Sayyed Mohammad Sadeq, the son of Sayyed Mohammad Tabataba'i (who was by then dead), about the letter and that Sayyed Mohammad Sadeq told him that Naser ol-Molk had written his father denying his authorship of it. (TEMI, pp. 176-77). He also expresses his admiration for Naser ol-Molk, who, despite his conservativeness, kept himself from being contaminated by Court intrigues against the Constitution. This seems entirely unlikely; why would Naser ol-Molk denounce such an incriminating letter in such a way that no one would know about it? In any case, Dr. Malekzade has an unreservedly hostile attitude towards Nazem ol-Eslam, most likely because he felt that he had given the role his martyred father played short shrift in his TBI. (We have cited examples of Nazem ol-Eslam's treatment of Malek ol-Motakallemin above. For another example, see TBI, I:499-500. Dr. Malekzade's comments appear in TEMI, pp. 8-10).

Submitted before the Lofty Sacred Presence.

Your Servant is among those who praise Your Eminence's blessed existence. In fairness, I see you feel for the homeland's suffering and that you are motivated by the people's progress and have noticed the misery of your kind and hope to find a cure for these sufferings, that you might open the gates of happiness and good fortune over this [ancient] people which is on the verge of extinction. And so I understand that all your screaming and yelling are not uttered out of selfish motives. Your goal is to cure the people's ills. But I am most sorry when I see that in your extreme eagerness and haste to cure this patient you do not know for which cure to reach and with which remedy to begin to improve this patient's condition. You think that the way to cure the illness and restore health is to jog the sick man around. To this poor sick man who is not even able to move, has not taken food into his stomach for a long time, cannot keep his body from disintegrating, and cannot even twitch or utter a word, you take the scourge and beat him to get him to run and jump out of a ditch. You try to stick a joint of half-cooked camel meat into this wretch's mouth for him to gobble down, he whose intestines have shriveled and dried and whose guts and bowels have ceased to function because of his disease and not having eaten. It is clear what the result of this cure and this food would be. A skilled doctor who diagnoses the disease first uses the medicines appropriate at each point. If he cannot feed him via the throat, he drips a thick, runny stew in to his mouth drop by drop until his strength gradually returns. [Again, if that does not work, he reaches his stomach some other way.] Next, he holds him under his arms, and takes a few steps around the room with him every day. Then he brings him to the courtyard and the garden and gently walks him around until, gradually, he recovers his strength to run and jump.

Today, advocating an Assembly of Representatives and insistence upon a law of equality and going on about total liberty and justice (as it exists in all the fortunate civilized nations) in Iran is just like the story of scourging and cramming down a joint of camel meat. Let the omnipotent and omniscient God of the Universe witness that in these appeals I am not being circumspect towards anyone. My only aim is to tell the truth and clarify the roots of the problem and nothing else. Not every place in the vast kingdom of Iran is like the streets of Tehran. There are mountains, steep hills and forests, ravines, lions, wild and fierce animals, Lurs and Kurds, Shahsevans, Qashqais.Ellipses indicated. [Surely the kings of kingdoms everywhere are as fathers with respect to their subjects. Their discernment regarding the subjects and the people is greater than that of the people themselves and they love them more than their own person. I swear by the Lord of the Ka'ba and Minna that His Highness Nicholai II, Emperor of Russia, is not acting on a whim in defending autocracy and in not giving the people liberty. Rather, out of royal discernment and paternal love, he does not consider the people qualified to be free. He does not yet find sufficient wisdom and preparation for them to be able to administer themselves. So a]ll this talk, which in every part of the modern world would be a source of prosperity, honor, and pride, would in today's Iran mean, in Your Servant's opinion, so much chaos, destruction, misery, insecurity, and thousands of troubles because we still have not the knowledge and preparation to establish and implement the new system. Spreading these words would have people forget the awe and dread of the present power. You can imagine what the result would be! [92]

We have not become a partridge and we have forgotten how to be a crow! Suppose, if you please, that today the Possessor of Slaves, His Imperial Majesty, would, of his complete and full volition, issue a rescript bestowing complete liberty and order Your Esteemed Sacred Person, Your Esteemed Eminence, lofty Hojjatolislam, to set up an Assembly of Representatives. What would you do? You would need at least a thousand cultivated men aware of the needs of the age, learned in international law, so that this one Assembly could be convened. Now there remain the other branches and departments which are all interrelated and need learned members. I pray that you objectively and disinterestedly, as is the natural manner of Your Honorable Eminence, and not in a partisan or willful way, name two hundred such men for Your Servant. But in the meantime, please do not forget that if someone knows all of Arabic and Persian poetry by heart, and to understand what he says one requires a dictionary and a grammar, and all his words were from Maqamat-e Hariri,A classic by Hariri Al Abu Muhammad Al Qasim Ibn 'Ali (1054 - 1122) which has become “a standard textbook in all the Muslim countries and is being taught even now in the Madarsas of the India-Pakistan sub-continent. These are tales filled with humour, adventure, poetry linguistics and grammar.” An English translation titled “The Assemblies of al-Hariri” was published in 1867 and 1898.(M. Nauman Khan / Ghulam Mohiuddin) this would not be sufficient or acceptable for his membership in this Assembly. Rather, the members should be people who, when asked, “Why is it that our money is declining every day although its silver content is not more alloyed than that of the frank, the mark, the shilling, the yen, or the rupee?” would be able to say what could be done about it, or be able to confront issues in other political, financial, commercial, agricultural, and military subjects as needed today for a people's life and progress and to bind and loose. I believe, in fact, I am certain, and I swear to its truth, that if you would please choose among the people fairly, you would not be able to find one hundred such people in all of Iran. So what are you shouting about?... Why are you beating your breast with stones?...

' target='_blank'> http://www.salaam.co.uk/knowledge/biography/viewentry.php?id=709) this would not be sufficient or acceptable for his membership in this Assembly. Rather, the members should be people who, when asked, “Why is it that our money is declining every day although its silver content is not more alloyed than that of the frank, the mark, the shilling, the yen, or the rupee?” would be able to say what could be done about it, or be able to confront issues in other political, financial, commercial, agricultural, and military subjects as needed today for a people's life and progress and to bind and loose. I believe, in fact, I am certain, and I swear to its truth, that if you would please choose among the people fairly, you would not be able to find one hundred such people in all of Iran. So what are you shouting about?... Why are you beating your breast with stones?...

Fine, so what is the conclusion of your servant's long-winded remarks, what is your servant's point? Is my point to restrain Your Eminence from these zealous measures, whose aims can be summarized as the people's welfare, happiness, [splendor,] and dignity? No, by God! Is my point to be a flattering partisan of the people in government? No, by God! Rather, I want to achieve these same results in a sound fashion which will lead to a sound conclusion. So if you will permit me, I will submit this method to you, on the condition that you please consider it carefully and fairly.

Is it certain [93] that we have the [learned] men necessary to change the current conditions and choose new ways and systems (that is, learned in contemporary knowledge)? O God, we need the learned [man]. By God we need the learned. By the Koran, we need the learned. By the Prophet, we need the learned. By Morteza 'Ali,Imam 'Ali. we need the learned. By Islam, by the Ka'ba, by the Faith, by the creed, we need the learned, we need the learned, we need the learned!!!!

So it is clear, and you will agree, that ultimately the way to progress and equality and justice and happiness and sovereignty and dignity is the existence of knowledge and people wise in the needs of the age.

And so, on the Day of Reckoning, in the court of complete and absolute justice in the presence of Your Great Ancestor,The Prophet Mohammad, of whom Tabataba'i would have been a descendent, being a sayyed. the Iranian people will clutch Your Eminence's hem, saying, “My God! Our happiness and fortune were not in the hands of the king or in the hands of Atabaks or Prime Ministers. They were not in the hands of the ministers. They were only in the hands of Their Eminences who could have done something and did not. They left us miserable and unfortunate and imprisoned by foreign powers.”

Your Lofty Eminence, though, will [surely] answer this, saying, “By God! You know it all: How I and my companions have done everything. We went to His Holiness ‘Abdol-‘Azim. We wrote sharp letters. We received harsh replies. What nights we passed in trembling and what days we passed in hardship, but we did not accomplish anything. What was our fault?”

The people will answer, “All these measures of yours were improper, useless and ill-founded because they were done incorrectly. The way to have proceeded would have been to educate us in accordance with the exigencies of the age and free us from ignorance and blindness so that we might prepare our honor and good fortune in the light of knowledge.” And then they will argue in the following manner and prove that the means to spread knowledge was in the hands of Their Eminences the clergy alone and no one else's. I am sure that Your Exalted Esteemed Eminence will then not have an answer. Let me submit this as an allegory. Then let me devote myself to the essence of the matter.

Today, Their Eminences of the clergy, i.e., those who are in agreement with Your Eminence and feel for the Faith, the homeland, and the people, and who sincerely want to bring this people to the pinnacle of happiness, are surely like someone who has all sorts of grain and provisions and meat and oil stored in numerous warehouses and who, along with a vast throng of his family and children, are famished to the point of death and beg from door to door for a loaf of bread. Or like someone who poured all the ingredients into a kettle and has arranged firewood under the kettle, and in one hand has a handful of gunny and in the other, a lit torch, and runs to the neighboring houses for an ember to ignite what is under the kettle and does not notice that he has a fire in his own hand to put the gunny over and ignite.

Enough of relating wisdom through allegories. Let me submit this matter and conclude the petition with a prayer for Your Blessed Being. None of the civilized countries have reached the pinnacle of glory and happiness without the government and the people uniting, turning their hearts towards each other, eliminating their weaknesses through cooperation, and preparing the means of national progress, and this cooperation and unity is not given to any government or people [94] except when the people and each and every member of that nation is illuminated by the light of knowledge and learning and are educated. No king or emperor has of his own good will limited himself and made the people a participant in rulership and consultation except His Highness the Mikado, Mutso Ito of Japan, and [since] the rise of Japan's lucky star is one of the astonishing events of the age, and there is no better specimen today of a drill-master for the negligent, sleepy nations than Japan,Here, he speaks at length about Japan and its constitution. [–AK] [if you will allow me, I will submit a brief history of that noble people and that great emperor.

[If one refers to histories, there was no people to be seen more savage than the Japanese. The organization of this kingdom until 1868, i.e., thirty eight years ago, was as follows: there was an emperor called the mikado. The dynasty had been in his same family for two thousand and four hundred years. But the mikado was king only in name. In fact, the tycoons were the true rulers. A tycoon was supposedly nominated and appointed by the mikado, but the tradition was current that the Mikado's power was only as great as signing the tycoon's decrees and not a particle of intervention into the kingdom's affairs was allowed him. Since the mikado was the religious and spiritual chief as well, he was always hidden in the inner sanctum. The tycoons had all the power. They dwelled in another city and were typically called the manifest king and the mikado the hidden king. The whole kingdom of Japan was divided into eighteen provinces and each province was ruled by one of the Great Princes, who were themselves always fighting and quarreling with each other and never listened to the mikado's command. If anyone counted, it was the tycoon.

[This continued until the year 1868, when the mikado who was the father of the current mikado died, and this mikado replaced his father as mikado at the age of seventeen. The tycoon of the age died at the same time. Two of the greatest of the provincial princes rushed to the city, entered the Royal Palace, kept the young mikado imprisoned under their guard, and began to rule in his name, issuing commands for the mikado and dispatching them from the Royal Palace. Since the post of tycoon had gradually become inherited, they made the former tycoon's son, still only a child, the tycoon. The first thing those two princes who ruled in the name of the Mikado accomplished was to overthrow the office of tycoon and combine the manifest and hidden rulers in the person of the Mikado. Almost two years passed in this manner until the young Mikado's mental powers matured and he removed the Princes and took the reins of the monarchy in his hands alone and became the ruler.

[In the third year of his rule, he went on a journey to the continent of Europe and became enamored of their condition, organization, and education. He became aware, through careful examination, of the fact that all that progress was due to the unity of the people and the government and the absence of autocracy. He became determined to effect the same thing in his own realm, but he well realized that one could not give liberty to an ignorant and uneducated savage people and that one can have absolutely no hope in ignorant people. So with thorough haste, he made education zeal's counsel and invited thousands of expert instructors in every discipline and industry from the various Frankish realms and sent millions of students from Japan to the Frankish schools. He got busy training the people with the speed of lightning until, after eighteen or twenty years had passed and three or four classes of wise students had graduated, the savage thoughts and ideas were completely transformed in the kingdom of Japan.

[In the year 1889, which is seventeen years ago, he saw that the people had become a little educated so that they became capable of taking care of their own affairs. He immediately announced and granted a constitution and liberty. Parliamentary Assemblies were set up and the people started to get to work. And so in the space of sixteen or seventeen years, he brought himself to the point where he could show the Russian government such a day as you have seen.The defeat Japan handed the Russian Empire in 1905.

[Our Crowned Father, His Most Sacred Imperial Majesty Mozaffar od-Din Shah (May God immortalize his reign!) is stages ahead of the Mikado in his prior convictions and thoughts on civilization. But despite the fact that as soon as he was enthroned, he acted with complete earnest in founding schools [madrases] and spreading education, he accomplished nothing.]

A few inadequate schools have been set up these past eleven years, schools in name alone. The reason they have not been able to make progress as the Mikado did, Your Servant believes, is that since the Mikado is also the spiritual and religious leader, the Japanese people considered him to be the authority;awlwa al-'amr. See Koran, iv:59. his commandments were more influential and the obstacles to implementing his holy thoughts much weaker. So, founding public schoolsMadraseye melli, clearly Naser ol-Molk's translation of the British term for schools not run by the government. in Iran is the obligation of Their Eminences the clergy, scholars, and leaders of the Faith. By a fortunate coincidence and the essence of the pure Islamic divine law, a basis for public schools and the means of spreading knowledge does not exist anywhere else in the world as it does in Iran. When the other nations awoke from their slumber [of negligence], they fell to thinking about educating and training their people. How they suffered, how they toiled, to found a single school. But in Iran today, there are thousands of schools, present and prepared, which all possess explicit waqfs and sound management. In Tehran alone, we have nearly one hundred and thirty-five public schools, big and small. In the Iranian provinces, there are even public schools in the villages. We must have three thousand schools in all of Iran. But because of mismanagement, all these darling means have remained wasted and useless, not doing a dinar's worth of good for the people.

Some cowherd from Taleqan or some farmer from Mazandaran at the age of twenty enters a madrase, occupies a chamber, and consumes the fruits of the waqf. His body is removed from the madrase when he is seventy, still puzzled over what to make of the mim as a part [ tarkib] of al-kalamatThe following bracketed material is supplied by Nazem ol-Eslam in the margin of this letter as an explanation of this expression. [The author of Anamuzaj entered a madrase late one night. He saw a light in a chamber. He entered and saw a powerfully-built, long-bearded talabe pouring over a book, lost in study. He meekly and humbly said, “I am a stranger, I have no place, allow me to spend the night in this chamber.” The chamber's resident became incensed and said, “Hey fool, you have taken me from my studies and spoiled my concentration. Go and sit in this corner, keep still, and leave me in peace.” He sat in a corner. After a while, he noticed that this talabe never removed his eyes from a certain spot in the book. He thought to himself, “What kind of book is this and what obscure point is this fellow pondering?” He craned his neck with complete circumspection and saw that it was the book Anamuzaj and that it was the first page which was absorbing the talabe. So he said, “Honorable akhund, what book is this and what matter is giving you trouble? I am interested in wisdom and perhaps I know something and can be of some assistance.” The akhund, thoroughly annoyed, said, “It is Anamuzaj. The author says: 'Al-kalama mofradun.' In its parts, the aleph is the aleph of the interrogative.The aleph is a mark of the interrogative in Arabic grammer. The lam is the letter of the prepositionThe lam marks the preposition “to” when prefixed to an Arabic noun. and kaf is the kaf of comparison.The kaf is the Arabic comparative particle. But what is this mim and ta for?" The author of Anamuzaj said, '“May the corpse washer wash your parts [tarkib]! That mim is the mim of marg [death] and the ta is the ta of tabut [coffin]. Go drop dead! Al-kalama is itself a single word and has no parts.”] and nothing has changed from the first day. [In fact,] we have made these public schools of ours into places of idleness. In all this time, what licensed mojtahed has graduated from Iran's madrases? Your Servant is not submitting that they thoroughly demolish the teaching methods of the madrases, this being contrary to the shariat and opposed to the endowing benefactors' intentions.These having legal force. Your Servant would dare swear that the current form of our public schools are in no way in accordance with the endowing benefactor's intentions. So with a little determination and effort, let Their Eminences the clergy find these madrases' proper sense and let them become public schools, not caravan stations and taverns. What Their Eminences have the power at their disposal to do is to join together and write an organized programme, i.e., curriculum for study and classes for the talabes and fix the periods of study. Arrange these two things and prepare what is needed... Let them make a period of studies of contemporary knowledge compulsory in this curriculum for each madrase. Twelve years will not pass before two classes of students will have graduated from these madrases. Then the realm of Iran will have enough learned men [95] who can put into practice knowledgeably and clear-sightedly what they are now talking about uselessly.

Exalted God, the blood flows from my heart when I think that so many resources at our disposal and already in existence are lying so unused and wasted. Although this plan for the public schools is a very simple matter (that is to say, if the clergy is so inclined and in accord), it is important and great enough that its founder and their great names will be remembered with a thousand blessings and prayers.

I, Your Servant, have presented the singular essence of this sacred thought before Your Blessed Presence and, in my opinion, I will have a bounteous reward in the world of humanity and Islam. Now the development, amplification, detailed analysis, and elaboration of this great task depend on numerous discussions and meetings. Since Your Servant does not have the implements of gelatinUsed by dissidents to produce underground literature. and writers and scribes and my bad eyesight is another great obstacle to publishing much, I beseech you to [send] the text of this, Your Servant's petition, before the luminous glance of the other great Eminences who are in agreement with Your Eminence on these lofty thoughts.

I beseech God that he bestow great health, glory, and good fortune to the blessed being of Your Eminence, and all the great Eminences.

[If you wish to know the possessor of this sacred idea, which one might justly describe as a hidden treasure, (i.e., if this idea suit your blessed taste), after Their Eminences have all concurred to effect it, seek him in the 'Abdollah Khan Madrase through his esteemed, wise, and discerning honor His Eminence the Shari'atmadar (May exalted God grant him peace!) He is prepared to present a pamphlet on arranging this to the Blessed Presence so that effecting it can pass from potential to practice in complete ease.]

Your servant, loyal to the government, serving the homeland, loving the people, name forgotten.

The Killing of Sayyed 'Abdol-Hamid

So the activists and the government faced off. It was clear that 'Ein od-Dawle's recklessness had shattered their relationship and that there would be further episodes. Haji Sheikh Mohammad Va'ez, in addition to his previous deeds, did not hold his tongue in those days, but denounced what 'Ein od-Dawle was doing.This material is taken from TBI, I:478-481. This book also includes a biography of Haj Sheikh Mohammad Va'ez Esfahani Soltan ol-Mohaqqeqin by his son (TBI, I:185-200) and gives events in roughly the same order, with slightly different embellishments and details. The account is confirmed in Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, No. 3, January 1907) which says that a woman informed his would-be rescuer (see below) of the arrest. 'Ein od-Dawle ordered him to be arrested and on Wednesday, July 9 (18 Jomada I),The original says Wednesday, 17 Jomada I in I:189 and Wednesday, 18 Jomada I in I:478. two hours into the day, Ahmad Khan Yavar suddenly rushed at Haji Sheikh Mohammad from behind with a detachment of soldiersFifty (TBI, I:189); two hundred (TBI, I:478). while he was riding his donkey along with one of his servants in the neighborhood of Sar-e Polak.Nazem ol-Eslam comments that this was a mistake of 'Ein od-Dawle's; all one needed was one farrash. When Haji Sheikh Mohammad heardI:188. For Kasravi's “saw.” them, he reined in his donkey and stopped.The sheikh's son says, instead, that he told his servant, “Don't worry, their business is with me, not you.” (TBI, I:188) In what follows, it will be seen that Kasravi has no patience for Nazem ol-Eslam's hagiographic treatment of the sheikh. Ahmad Khan came up to him and said,”Bismillah! Let's go.”

He asked, “Who am I to you? And where are we going?”

He said, “You are Haji Sheikh Mohammad Va'ez and you must come with us to 'Ein od-Dawle's house.”Nazem ol-Eslam's version adds “and then to prison.” (TBI, I:478)

He realized that they were not arresting him through a misunderstanding and that he had no choice but to surrender to them. The soldiers surrounded him and turned and headed for 'Ein od-Dawle's house.Ibid. adds that the sheikh recommended that the soldiers trail behind him and only one soldier accompany him, since if they were to surround him, the people might make trouble. The arresting officer rejected this suggestion. (TBI, I:190; see also I:478) But when they approached the Haji Abol-Hasan Me'mar Mosque and Madrase, the talabes there realized what was happening and, along with the people in the bazaarlet, stopped them.The sheikh's son says that the people asked what was going on and the sheikh replied that he was being taken to 'Ein od-Dawle, but the soldiers were not from the area and did not know him, absolving them of the way they were treating him. The by-standers urged him to be patient. (TBI, I:190) Ahmad Khan did not want to contest them, and made Haji Sheikh Mohammad dismount from his donkey and locked him up in the nearby armory.Again, the sheikh's son says that his father predicted that the people would try to free him if he was interned there and that there would be trouble, but the arresting officer ignored him. (TBI, I:190) Nazem ol-Eslam merely said that he confirmed to the sheikh that he was helplessly being wronged and communicated to the people that the oppressors were well-armed. (TBI, I:478) The people crowded around the armory.In the meantime, the soldier detailed to guard him, an aging and ailing man, complained with touching humility to the sheikh about his mistreatment and abuse under 'Ein od-Dawle and how his commanding officer had given them bullets and ordered that they use them on any “akhund or sayyed” who disobeyed them, concluding (TBI, I:190), Oh guest, … if you are the servant of the Lord of Martyrs [Imam Hosein], let them imprison you that this people be awakened [just as Imam Hosein allowed himself to be martyred so that the negligent Muslims would be inspired to rise up against the Ummayids] and demand their rights. And not let 'Ein od-Dawle swallow so much of what is theirs. After this, he wept bitterly and declared that God would protect him. Just then, the sound of men and women could be heard outside the prison, all the bazaars closed, and the people rushed to the barracks.

In the meantime, news of this reached Behbehani. He sent his son, Sayyed Ahmad,Since the people thought it best that he not go himself. (I:190-91) Here, Kasravi is quoting from the second version. (TBI, I:478) along with some people“sayyeds and talabes.” (TBI, I:478) to free him. The people were emboldened by their arrival and [96] Adib oz-Zakerin Kermani incited themHe is quoted as saying, Oh Muslims! Our Prophet commanded us to aid the oppressed. So now I shall make myself a sacrifice to this oppressed preacher and servant of the Lord of Martyrs. He is then said to have gone and opened the barracks door himself and brought the sheikh out with the help of the talabes. (TBI, I:478) and led them in storming the armory.Again, the sheikh had his old guard relay the request to the arresting officer that he be allowed to address the crowd and keep them from doing anything rash; again, he was turned down. (TBI, I:191) They forced their way in and raised Haji Sheikh Mohammad to their shoulders and left. Ahmad Khan gave the order to open fire. The soldiers fired into the air and one bullet hit Adib oz-Zakerin in the thigh, bringing him to the ground, yet he got up and kept going.The sheikh's son said that Ahmad Khan had ordered the soldiers to shoot the sheikh, that only a few soldiers fired, and that the bullets went stray due to the sheikh having recited a verse from the Koran. The crowd then fled to the refuge of a madrase. (TBI, I:191) Nazem ol-Eslam's version has the officer giving the order to fire twice, and only the second time do a few soldiers obey. (TBI, I:479)

In the meantime, a talabe named Sayyed 'Abdol-Hamid was returning from his studies and approached the tumult and saw what was happening. He went up to Ahmad Khan and upbraided him. “Are you not a Muslim?! Why did you give the order to fire?! [Are these not Muslims? Is not this Adib a servant of the Lord of Martyrs who is bathed in his own blood?]” Ahmad Khan was flustered. He grabbed a rifle from one of the soldiers and turned on the sayyed and took aim. A bullet entered the left side of the sayyed's chest and left from behind his head [97] and he immediately fell to the ground.This information is from a line in a poem about the affair by Sayyed Rezvan Shirazi published in Ibid., I:193. The people took him as well and they all rushed to the madrase. Adib oz-Zakerin, his leg bloodied, fell to one side and they put the bloody body of the sayyed on the other.According to Nazem ol-Eslam, Adib oz-Zakerin staggered into the near-by madrase and collapsed. I:479. The sayyed was still alive and asked for a drink of water, but died before they brought it.The above-mentioned sheikh's son makes the poigniant observation that he departed this world with thirsty lips, just as Imam Hosein had. (Ibid., I:192) Shiite Muslims will give even a chicken a last drink before it is to be slaughtered.

Haji Sheikh Mohammad rubbed his blood over his face and body and set up a mournful wail.At this point, TBI makes the point that the sayyed was the constitutional revolution's first martyr. Men and women alike wept and wailed. In the meantime,Correcting ?????? to read ?????; otherwise, the passage would begin “In this tumult.” Seif od-Din Mirza Modir-e Tupkhane arrived with a detachment of Cossacks to relieve Ahmad Khan, but too late. When they saw the tumult, they took the sayyed's corpse so that it would not remain in the people's hands and left.According to the sheikh's son, when this officer saw the martyred sayyed and the wounded Adib oz-Zakerin, (I:192) His Islamic feelings turned him from destructive thoughts and he beseeched His Honor, my father, for instructions. He declared, “If you wish that there be no further loss of life or abuse of honor, you must order that every soldier and Cossack in this perimeter leave and evacuate the quarter so that we might busy ourselves with preparing the corpse of this martyred sayyed and bring him to the Friday Mosque.” He agreed and evacuated the soldiers and Cossacks. In Nazem ol-Eslam's version, from which Kasravi is quoting, the Cossack officer seized the body so as not to allow the people an object around which to rally, something which was the norm in those days. (I:479)

The people were frightened they would also take Adib oz-Zakerin and returned him to his house.Nazem ol-Eslam adds that when he got home, the women, instead of helping him, were seized with weeping. Worried that 'Ein od-Dawle's men were after him, he was relieved when the Shah personally intervened to have him transfered to a hospital, where he recovered in four months, having, however, run through all his wealth. He was once more wounded defending the Majlis. After the restoration of the Constitution, he found himself lost and isolated. (I:480) In the meantime, Sadr ol-'Olema arrived on the scene with a group of sayyeds and talabes.Sayyed Mohammad Ja'far Sadr ol-'Olema was particularly beloved of the talabes because of the way he coddled them during the migration to Shah ‘Abdol-‘Azim, according to Nazem ol-Eslam, whose use of the expression tollab-e 'olum, seekers after wisdom, can only be ironic in this context. ( Ibid., I:381) On the other hand, he was also said to have attracted them because of his wise policy of equality and kindness. (I:463) The rebels were emboldened when they saw them, and a certain youth, 'Ali Kuhi, ran off after the Cossacks along with some others and caught up with them and retrieved the sayyed's corpse by force after a struggle.The sheikh's son recalls that Sadr ol-'Olema had first secretly suggested that the sayyed's body be taken on a procession to 'Ein od-Dawle's house; upon their arrival there, they would loot and demolish the house. The sheikh suggested that this was a poor idea because it would lead to at least fifty people losing their lives. (I:192) 'Ali Kuhi appears only in Nazem ol-Eslam's version; Kasravi added the detail about a struggle with the Cossacks over the corpse. (I:479)

Sadr ol-'Olema ordered that the sayyed's corpse be taken to the Friday Mosque. The crowd picked up the corpse and went its way, wailing mournfully.Reading ???? for ????. The news gradually reached the city and activists came rushing out from every side of the city, closing the bazaar, the caravan stations, and the arcades. Thus, the insurgents flocked to the Friday Mosque. Of the clergy, Behbehani came first, then Sheikh Mohammad Reza Qomi, and then Tabataba'i, each with a large following, so that there was a great revolt in the capital of Iran and the people stood up to the government.Tabataba'i, who was summoned only later, came with over 500 people. (I:481) One group went to fetch the clergy and brought whomever it encountered to the mosque. That day, even Haji Sheikh Fazlollah joined in, coming to the mosque with a following. With the exception of the Friday Imam, who was not in the city at the time, all the major clergy went along, whether they wanted to or not. Merchants and bazaaris were all present and joined the struggle. The cloth merchants brought over a huge tent, set it up in the mosque courtyard, and brought out the samovars and furniture they needed from their houses. Even women participated in these events, accompanying the menCorrecting ????? to ????? . in bringing the mullahs to the mosque. Some of them were even in the mosque.This is apparently from another source; none of this appears in Ibid.

The clerics discussed what should be done. They decided to demand that a House of Justice be set up and not to leave the mosque until their demand was met. Some said, “Let us demand 'Ein od-Dawle's dismissal.” Tabataba'i said, “If we had a House of Justice set up, 'Ein od-Dawle would be nobody.”The people at this point made a conscious decision to stay in the mosque and rally the rest of the clergy to them. (I:481)

They washed the sayyed's corpse and put it in the mosque. Some of the people, after the manner of those days, gathered around him, recited dirges, wailed mournfully, and beat their breasts.

Dirges were chanted about him. Since BrowneThe Persian Revolution, p. 118. The verse is by Sayyed Rezvan Shirazi; two (including the one published in Browne) out of twenty five verses of it are produced in Ibid., I:193 and 480. It is almost certain that Browne, who read Ibid., had taken these verses from there. and others noted them, we will also produce a few lines as examples:

Unknowing he arrived, unaware of the tumult He put his finger to his mouth, confounded. [98] His eyes turned towards the square, stunned By the Wheel of Fortune's doings and the rioting of men and women. Suddenly and hastily, a base regiment of the Sultan Shot a fiery bullet into the Candle of the Assembly Between his chest and throat the bullet found its mark And left him through the back; his soul departed his body. Once more, Hosein has been martyred by Yazid's tyranny 'Abdol-Hamid has been killed by 'Abdol-Majid.'Abdol-Majid was 'Ein od-Dawle's name.[–AK] May he be accepted before God a thousand times A new sacrifice for thee, O Prophet!

The Events at the Friday Mosque

Towards the end of that day, a detachment of soldiers left the military base for the city and stacked their weapons in the streets and guarded the area. On Wednesday night, a herald called out in the name of the government, “Whoever does not open his shop or arcade tomorrow will have his goods plundered and will himself be punished.” The herald proclaimed this in the streets and alleys from between five in the evening to nearly daybreak.

The next day, when the people left their houses, they saw soldiers and cannoneers all over the streets and byways, particularly around Seraye Shahi (the Citadel) and Sabze Meidan and in the bazaars around the Friday Mosque, where big detachments had been posted. 'Ein od-Dawle had been worried that fighting would break outTo this, Nazem ol-Eslam noted in his diary that “as soon as the Shah, who is afraid of thunder and lightning …, heard that a lone and innocent sayyed had been killed by his army, he surely expects that Tehran would be destroyed and that his throne would be shaken, particularly since he is ill.” ( Ibid., I:482) and had farsightedly brought the entire army into the city, while this had never occurred to the Two Sayyeds and the other leaders of the activists, who did not want to advance their cause except through peaceful resistance. In fact, there were some who were carrying pistols and other weapons, and we will discuss the stupid things Sayyed Mohammad Rezaye Shirazi did, but this does not mean that the leaders were thinking about fighting.

Some have complained, “Why didn't they fight?” or, “Why didn't they prepare weaponry beforehand?!” But these are not insightful or thoughtful complaints. People who have not experienced combat cannot fight and will not take a stand, even if there is a mass of them. If those who had gathered around the Two Sayyeds started a fight, it would only have ended in their being routed after one or two shots, and some of them would have been killed. Moreover, 'Ein od-Dawle would have found an excuse to arrest the leaders and exile each of them to a different place. It is better that they did what they did.

That day, 'Ein od-Dawle, escorted by a detachment of cavalry, left Niavaran for the city, along with Amir Bahador and Nasr os-Saltane. He wanted to be well-informed about what was happening and determine on the spot what should be done. When he discussed matters with his companions, they decided to resist the rebellion by force. So he sent someone to the mosque to deliver a message to the clergy: “Go home so we can implement your demands.” They bravely answered, “Our aim is the establishment of a just Majlis, after which no one will be tyrannical or transgressive. Since 'Ein od-Dalwe is an obstacle to [99] the House of Justice, and would not implement the Shah's rescript, he is a traitor to the dynasty and the people and must be dismissed from his post as minister.”Here, Kasravi is picking up Nazem ol-Eslam's narrative. (I:482)

'Ein od-Dawle realized that he was the focus of hostility and became more insistent on resisting and using force. That day, the women were prevented from leaving and they were arrested on sight and held in the armory, for there had been a clash between a group of them and the soldiers and Cossacks the previous day.Here, Kasravi is no longer following TBI.

That day, despite all the government's heralds, no one opened his shop except bakers and the like and the crowds in and around the mosques swelled. Before noon, the funeral service for Sayyed 'Abdol-Hamid was finished. A rawzekhani was held and preachers went to their pulpits and denounced 'Ein od-Dawle and his deeds. In the late afternoon, the cloth-merchantsReading ??????? for ???????. TBI, from which this passage is taken, adds that this guild was, after the talabes, the staunchest supporter of the clergy. did something else: They fixed the sayyed's bloody shirt to the top of a pole and used it as a banner. They gathered around it and, in the manner of the breast-beating groups of those days,A typical Kasravi touch, these last three words. went about reciting dirges and beating their breasts: “Mohammad, O Mohammad, O Mohammad, answer your congregation's call, O Mohammad.” First they circled inside the mosque a few times, then went out to the bazaar and circled around the Shah Mosque and the Friday Mosque, and then returned. One of the leaders of this procession was Mirza Mehdi, son of Haji Sheikh Fazlollah. They wanted to accomplish two things: First, to get the people to move and so freshen the mosque's atmosphere; second, to influence and win over the soldiers and cannoneers.Here, Kasravi is no longer following TBI.

On Thursday night, the clergy and the leaders remained in the mosque and spent most of the night holding rawzekhanis and in prayer and supplication. They fell asleep and woke up at dawn and prayed out loud on and about the rooftops, and some of them cried out “Yallah!From TBI. Its author, who was present at the time, looks back on this event and writes, If the cries of “Yallah” of a single man were for the people's relief, blessed and exalted God would have heard and answered his prayer and Iran's future would not be as it is. But there were different aims involved. Yet the author was so moved that I almost actually believed everything was done out of honesty and purity and that I was heading towards God, when suddenly, my eyes fell on a corner of the mosque, where I saw a bunch of mullah's boys laughing at these wretched people, saying, “Hey, you tools in the hands of schemers! Our war is not with the dynasty, or else we would have prepared weapons. Rather, it is a political struggle between individuals. Cry out “Yallah” louder so that the Turks in the city will be whipped up into a frenzy and tell the Shah, and he will have 'Ein od-Dawle removed. so the Shaqaqi soldiers present would hear.That the Shaqaqi soldiers were the target is not mentioned in ibid.; however, Nazem ol-Eslam reports that the leader of the Adamiat Anjoman, Mirza 'Abbasqoli Khan Qazvini, spent several hours that night advising the Shaqaqi officers not to fire on the people, that the Shaqaqis had suffered terribly under the Qajars and had no interest in turning their guns on the people. Moreover, they would be as despised as the soldiers who fired on Sayyed 'Abdol-Hamid for killing a sayyed. He reports that he extracted a promise not to fire on the people. As a result, people were able to circulate without interference. (I:483-84) Dr. Mehdi Malekzade refers to this anjoman as a dubious organization. Its membership was secret, the condition for membership was not belief in constitutionalism but simply paying at least ten ashrafiis in gold to its charismatic founder. He continues that even Mohammad 'Ali Shah joined it after paying 1000 gold ashrafis. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 611) Sources hostile to this anjoman are cited in Heidar Khan 'Amuoghli, pp. 112-120, which produces, inter alia, a lengthy quote from the journal Mosavat on the matter.

[100] On Friday, the people again crowded in and around the mosque. There were so many people that they even climbed on top of the roofs. For its part, the government increased the number of soldiers and cannonneers and filled Chahar Su and its vicinity. That day, another funeral service was held for Sayyed 'Abdol-HamidHe was interred that day. and a rawzekhani was held.

We must say that in those days, one of the things Iranians would always do was to hold a rawzekhani. Wherever a group would gather, in whatever meeting or celebration, there had to be a rawzekhani to recall Karbala and its story and they had to weep. Some people would even hold a rawzekhani during wedding ceremonies. The activists would always hold a rawzekhani in their meetings, whether they were in ‘Abdol-‘Azim or returning to Tehran, or now that they were sitting in the Friday Mosque. Now in particular the killing of the sayyed was itself another occasion to hold a rawzekhani and mourn those killed at Karbala.

That day, too, some people formed groups of breast-beaters: they made two banners, one of the murdered sayyed's shirt, the other of his turban,TBI has only one banner made out of them both. (I:484, 485) Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, No. 3, January 1907) concurs with TBI. and formed two groups, each following one of the banners. They wanted to exit once again, circle the bazaars, beat their breasts, and return. Behbehani disagreed with this and said: “They should not go or the soldiers will shoot.” They replied: “We went yesterday and no one stopped us.” The clerics said: “They stationed yesterday's soldiers further away; these soldiers who are surrounding the mosque today are from a different regiment and have been given orders to fire.” They replied: “We have no weapons with us for anyone to fire at us.” Thus did they insist on going.

The fact is they did not think the soldiers would fire on a sayyed or a mullah; in addition, they had grown restless in the mosque and despondent over having nothing to do. They wanted action.

The first group set off: A crowd of child sayyeds in front and a group of sayyeds and talabes behind them, turbans wrapped around their necks and Korans held in their hands, with the breast-beaters taking up the rear. They thus left the mosque and headed for Chahar Su. But before they reached Chahar Su, the soldiers blocked their way. The crowd did not want to heed the troops and, moreover, people pressed forward from behind.The sayyeds tried to tell the soldiers that they could not simply turn back, as they were being pressed from behind; rather, they should be allowed to go down a side street and head for the mosque. The soldiers refused and found themselves forced to step back due to the accumulating crowd. (TBI, 485) Suddenly, the commander ordered the soldiers to open fire. They fired into the air.It appears from TBI that it was the soldiers' decision to fire “at the bazaar roof, the walls, and the ground.” (I:485) The people were unnerved and fell back, while the boys on the rooftops threw stones at the soldiers. The commander gave the order to fire again. The soldiers fired again, and this time, many people were hit and fell to the ground. The rest panicked, turned around, and pushed themselves into the mosque. There was an awesome tumult. Women and men mingled and each one looked for his relatives, and cries and screams rose from every side. [101] A crowd of women and men gathered around the clerics and screamed and wept uncontrollably. It was a long time before order and calm returned. Some wanted to go fight with what few weapons they had, but the clerics would not let them.NoteRef7 NoteRef6They asked the clerics to call for a jihad. (TBI, I:485) Dr. Mehdi Malekzade records that Nasr os-Saltane simply ordered his men to fire without the slightest cause. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, pp. 356-357)

They retrieved two of those killed: One was Sayyed Mostafa the Prayer LeaderNo Sayyed Mostafa is mentioned in this connection in Ibid. and the other, Haji Sayyed Hosein. The latter they brought to the mosque. He had been a good old man,A fifty year old, he had made the pilgrimage to Mecca several times; an ascetic, he had been fasting that day. (Ibid., I:485) struck by a bullet in the chest. Several others had been wounded.

No one really knows how many were killed. When the people fled, the soldiers picked up those who had fallen dead or wounded and took them away and dragged them to a warehouse without their wounds being treated. That night, several carts were filled with the dead and sent out of the city. Supporters of the government said that the number killed was twelve, but others said there were over one hundred.According to TBI (I:486), “Some say a hundred and fifteen [were killed], some, fifty-eight. Some say that many of the wounded were thrown into a nearby well.”

Nasr os-SaltaneThe same Mohammad Vali Khan Sepahsalar. was responsible for this deed of the government's.In fact, he was credited by Nazem ol-Eslam with stopping the shooting, not with starting it. (TBI, I:486) One 'Ali Jan, a relative of his,According to Kasravi; Nazem ol-Eslam makes no mention of this. He is the same Montesar od-Dawle. put much effort into it and is remembered for it to this day. After this event, Nasr os-Saltane and Seif od-Din Mirza [Modir-e Tupkhane] came and stationed themselves in Chahar Su to give orders on the spot and direct the work. They sent a mir panj with fifty cannoneers to barricade the roof of the bazaar as well as a team of tofangchis to the top of Shams ol-'Amare which overlooks the mosque. They then diverted the running water which passed by the mosque, depriving the people inside of water.Nazem ol-Eslam comments that he does not have the freedom to say who it was who “cut off water to sayyeds,” simply saying that it was “the person in charge.” (TBI, I:487)

In the meantime, something else happened in the mosque: A few hours after the shooting and killing, when people were finally calming down and the color had come back to their cheeks, pistol shots suddenly rang out from among the people; two bullets were fired in succession. The people thought that the soldiers had descended on the mosque and that there would be gunfire inside it as well. This utterly unnerved them and they turned to flee. Everyone looked for cover. The clerics, pale and trembling hand and foot, fled the mosque courtyard for the balcony and the mosque's night quarters. Everyone went looking for his children and relatives.On the other hand, Nazem ol-Eslam relates how a famous preacher fled, abandoning his wailing child in the panic. (TBI, I:487)

In the meantime, Blissful Soul Behbehani behaved in a way which well demonstrated his courage and greatness. Without hesitation, he climbed up to a vantage point, bared his chest, turned to the people, and called out in a loud voice, “O people, do not be afraid, do not be worry. They are after me, if anyone. Here is my chest, where is the one to shoot at it?! [My ancestors were killed for the sake of God's religion, let me be killed, too.] Martyrdom and death is our inheritance.” He stood there for some time and spoke until he got the people to return and calm down.Bracketed material from TBI, I:487, from which this passage is taken. The author adds that the shots had originated from inside the mosque from someone who wanted to show the soldiers that the people in the mosque, too, were armed. One of Behbehani's men tried to smuggle bullets into the mosque but was stopped. He was flogged and then exiled, never to be heard from again. (I:488) Dr. Mehdi Malekzade tried to conflate this with a supposed all-out attack on the mosque itself. See note .

On this same day,In The History of the Awakening [I:486.], it says, “In these two days,” but we think it more likely that this occurred on this day. [–AK- Sayyed Mohammad Rezaye Shirazi did something inappropriate. He went up to [102] a Cossack and shot him with a pistol. The latter died of this wound a few hours later.TBI adds the edifying detail that the Cossack forgave his assailant, saying that he was really defending himself. (I:486) We shall get to know this man well; his deeds were always inappropriate, and always did more harm than good.Sayyed Mohammad Rezaye Shirazi became the editor of Mosavat and a member of Taqizade's clique. See page 515.

[103]

The People's Dispersal from the Mosque

These events show how harsh 'Ein od-Dawle actually was and how unconcerned he was about shedding blood. They also demonstrate how afraid the people were of him and how they did not dare resist him. In any case, the activists saw a dreadful future ahead of them: If the soldiers were to attack the mosque, the crowd inside would not stand, but flee; if they did not charge but were content to maintain their siege for a few days, closing it to bread and water, the people would give up on their own and gradually disperse, and matters would end in humiliation and disgrace.Dr. Mehdi Malekzade sees the situation as more of a stalemate that a defeat for the liberals. The government was concerned that the rebellion would spread to the rest of Iran and wanted to end it as soon as they could. And so the two sides, each of which wanted to end the conflict, put their heads together and came up with a solution. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 359)

But there was another conceivable way to see this: Since things had reached this point and the people had been incited against the autocracy and blood had been shed between them, the autocracy could not last, and had to go sooner or later. In any case, 'Ein od-Dawle did not think in such terms and by now Mozaffar od-Din Shah was reckoned as nothing but a tool in his hands. 'Ein od-Dawle had learned his lesson from the events in Russia. The demand for freedom had arisen there just recently and its partisans fought hard and shed blood, but the government resisted and stopped them by force. He wanted to pursue the same policy, and barricading the bazaar roof and sending tofangchis atop the Shams ol-'Amare showed what he had been privately contemplating.

So what was to be done? … Here, the Two Sayyeds hit upon a wise and good solution: Since emissaries were still coming to them with messages on the government's behalf saying that the people should disperse and not create a disturbance and a letter from the Shah himself along these lines had been brought over by his son, 'Azod os-Soltan, Blissful Souls Behbehani and Tabataba'i took this as an opportunity to ask the people to disperse. The people did not accept this. The Two Sayyeds insisted. The talabes said, “Let us not be separated from you and let us not have the people go and open the bazaars.” Behbehani took up the Koran and adjured the people to disperse and reopen the bazaars. He read the messages which had arrived from the Shah and the government to the people and said, “O people, you've demanded justice from the government and the only answer you've received were bullets. Things are going to become very difficult. So you should leave, the sooner the better.”Sharif-Kashani, Vaqe'at-e Ettefaqiye dar Ruzegar (p. 67-68) reports that it was he who prevailed upon Mohammad Vali Khan Nasr os-Saltane Sepahdar, the famous military/landlord powerhouse who was the military officer in charge, to have his men (and with whose family the author's family had close ties; ibid., p. 91) stand down and allow the people to disperse and using his influence with Moshir od-Dawle to adopt this policy.

It was almost the end of the day when the people dispersed and went home. No one remained in the mosque but the clergy and their families and dependents, the talabes, and some special people.These paragraphs are a summary of Ibid., I:488-90. An interesting detail is that the government sent out criers to declare that Their Eminences had decreed that closing their shops was forbidden.

Since Sayyed 'Abdol-Hamid's corpse had been interred in the mosque courtyard, Haji Sayyed Hosein's corpse was sent to be interred in the Zeid shrine.

Friday night was a sad night for the activists. The people returned home heart-broken. As for the clergy, a small handful stayed in the mosque. That night, Mirza Mostafa Ashtiani erred. On the excuse of visiting his sick mother, he left the mosque [104] and went to Amir Bahador's house and made up with him, spending that night at his house. But when he returned at dawn to the mosque along with his companions, the rest realized what had happened and became suspicious of him.Kasravi depicts Mirza Mostafa Ashtiani as a hero, and so has him “erring” and “acting” as if he were “making up” with him. His source on this matter has him acting as Amir Bahador's bag man in trying to bribe Abol-Qasem Tabataba'i (I:488); nor did he simply sleep at the Court Minister's house; rather, Kasravi's source has him suggesting that, rather than killing or exiling all the clergy, the Two Sayyeds be exiled and that this would put an end to the agitation. Amir Bahador offered to relieve Mirza Mostafa of his debts, pay him ten thousand tumans, and grant him the title of Sheikh ol-Eslam. He was escorted back to the mosque by one of Amir Bahador's men; when the latter was recognized at the mosque, Mirza Mostafa said that he was a friend of his who could get him safe passage. (I:490) Sharif-Kashani, Vaqe'at-e Ettefaqiye dar Ruzegar published a number of anonymous leaflets from the time of the refuge in Shah ‘Abdol-‘Azim indicating that Mirza Mostafa was clearly suspected of having been corrupted by bribery even then. (See, e.g., pp. 39 and 52.)

The bazaars reopened on Saturday and the people went about their business, but the soldiers and Cossacks and cannoneers stayed put. They were everywhere. That day, upon 'Ein od-Dawle's orders, they cracked down on the people in the mosque even harder. If someone wanted to enter, he was not allowed; but if someone wanted to leave, he was not prevented. They completely prevented bread and water and other things to eat and drink from being brought in.

Habl ol-Matin, which reported on these events some months later (after the Constitution had been granted), wrote:Document.

It was decided that the soldiers would attack,Literally, “the soldier would attack.” manacle four people in the mosque, and take them out: One was Aqa Sayyed Jamal Rawzekhan (Va'ez), another was Haji Sheikh Mohammad Va'ez, a third, Haji Sheikh Mehdi Va'ez, and the fourth, Mirza Baqer Rawzekhan.I do not know who he is. [–AK] I do not know why they did not do this.

Since the author of this report was Sayyed Hasan, the newspapers proprietor's brother, and since, as we have said, the paper was in those times tied to 'Ein od-Dawle and worked for him, it can be assumed that 'Ein od-Dawle had this intention. These four preachers had denouncedCorrecting ??? for ???. him from the pulpit and, as we have said, he was furious with Sayyed Jamal and Haji Sheikh Mohammad.

A little before noon, Nasr os-Saltane came before the clergy and said, “I am delegated by the government to bring you home. But out of my personal convictions, I will escort you home with respect.” They answered valiantly: “We will not leave this assembly and mosque until the soldiers come and force us. Either let a House of Justice be set up or kill us.” When Nasr os-Saltane saw they were steadfast, he realized that if he did anything, he would provoke a rebellion. Despite his reckless hot-tempered nature, he was conciliatory and left.

It was becoming difficult to obtain water and bread. Some got things through under cover of night's darkness, terrified and taking great pains or by begging and pleading with the soldiers, but this was not enough to prevent hunger and thirst. Again that same day, Behbehani suggested that those present leave and not trouble themselves on his account. He said, “The Prime Minister is enemies with me alone and not you. Go and save yourselves.” They would not accept this, and would not leave his side. The day passed in this same way.

On Sunday, July 14 (22 Jomada I), they resumed this harsh policy towards the people in the mosque. Everyone was prevented from entering the mosque or bringing anything in.TBI, from which the previous paragraphs are summarized, adds the following interesting detail (I:492): It was confirmed among the common people that the Qajar dynasty was decended from the Ummayids; this belief had become so strong among the people that they said that the dagger with which the head of His Holiness the Lord of Martyrs (Upon whom be peace!) was severed was inherited by 'Ala od-Dawle's family … This rumor kept the soldiers from earnesty blocking water and provisions, i.e., they did not do their duty at night … Once again, on that day, mediators went back and forth, bearing secret messages to certain people from 'Ein od-Dawle. He wanted [105] to avenge himself on Behbehani by sowing division and trying to get his followers to desert him. But he could not succeed: the clerics there paid no attention to his threats and promises and did not desert Behbehani [106].

The History of the Awakening mentions one Sheikh Mohammad Rezaye Qomi, to whom 'Ein od-Dawle had sent a message making promises to induce him to leave the mosque. But he showed valiant determination and would not accept these promises. Behbehani, finding out about this, thanked him.TBI, I:492-93.

And so they resisted, but things were becoming difficult, and they had to do something. That same day, they proposed the following: “Either set up a House of Justice, or kill us and spare the rest, or let us leave the city.” After the mediators had gone back and forth,One of Nazem ol-Eslam's reported mediation efforts is particularly interesting for the words he quotes the Shah as saying. After having gained direct access to the Shah, one Aqa Sayyed 'Ali Aqa Yazdi is cut off and told (TBI, I:496-98), “Some corrupt akhunds have surrounded Sayyed Behbehani and have gotten him to do certain activities, and we, in accordance with our royal duties, have said that they be repudiated and banned and banished.” Aqa Sayyed 'Ali Aqa said, “The clergy has always prayed for the monarchy and always will.” The Shah did not let the sayyed continue, but declared, “Mirza 'Ali Asghar Khan Amin os-Soltan got the akhunds used to having whatever they wanted, he always listened to whatever they said. Now 'Ein od-Dawle is Prime Minister. Last year, Aqa Sayyed 'Abdollah [Behbehani]'s son returned from the 'Atabat. The sayyed sent someone before 'Ein od-Dawle to have him send his coach to greet the mullah's boy. 'Ein od-Dawle replied, 'The one who sent coaches for the mullah's boys and sent you money was Amin os-Soltan, and now he's had to go to the land of the Franks.' The sayyed's emmissary stammered out a few words and reported this to the sayyed [i.e., Behbehani]. And so the sayyed is beginning to make trouble for 'Ein od-Dawle and the self-interested are gathering around him. [It is curious that, while at first, Sayyed Behbehani was shown as the victim of intriguers gathering around him, he is now shown as the active force which is attracting them.] He has raised the issue of M. Naus until it lead to the emmigration to the precincts of His Holiness ‘Abdol-‘Azim. In order to protect Islam and because a group of clerics were opposing an infidel, I sent someone to retrieve them from the Sacred Precincts and treated them kindly, agreeing to implement their goals. Now they have gathered saying that they want a House of Justice. A House of Justice would be detrimental to their condition. Suppose that there were a House of Justice convened in this realm, the very first people to raise their voices saying that they do not want a House of Justice would be these same people. And so it is clear that the mullahs are after something else, and there is going to be trouble in this country very soon. Yes, there is someone named Aqa Mirza Sayyed Mohammad [Tabataba'i] who wants a republic …” Aqa Sayyed 'Ali Aqa managed to mollify the Shah and convince him to have his personal coach sent to bring the clergy into the royal presence. But on his return, he found that the clerics had left the mosque and were heading for the 'Atabat in Ottoman Iraq. the government accepted the third alternative and the Shah issued a rescript allowing Their Eminences to go freely wherever they chose. They said, “We will go to the 'Atabat.” So they asked permission of the Shah and on Sunday night, one hour after nightfall, they left the mosque and each returned to his home with his dependents and relatives to prepare to go. So ended the Friday Mosque affair.After being told by Nasr os-Saltane that he had orders to empty the mosque by any means necessary, Sayyed Behbehani told him that they would have to have the military drag them out of God's house by force. When Nasr os-Saltane made ready to do this, Sayyed Tabataba'i's son, Abol-Qasem, intervened and said that this would lead to an uncontrollably violent mass reaction and they would stand liable before both the monarchy and the people. Sayyed Tabataba'i observed that if they were to go home, their homes would be turned into yet another focus of unrest and that either the demand for a House of Justice or a rescript of safe passage to the 'Atabat were the only realistic alternatives. A rescript was telephoned them just before night fell and they left for Shah ‘Abdol-‘Azim at sunrise. An unprecedented thunderstorm erupted that day, “and Their Excellencies the Turks thought that it was because the clergy had been treated disrespectfully.” (ibid., I:499) The next day, 'Ein od-Dawle quipped, “Last night, it poured rain and the city's filth was washed away.” (ibid., I:505)

Habl ol-Matin again showed its bad character here by publishing a thoroughly shameless article.Document. Instead of writing about the events and, if they did not support the activists at least tell the truth about the event as it had occurred, it completely covered up the entire story and did not mention the name of a single activist, but gave itself over to slander and lies. It seems that the editor's brother, Sayyed Hasan, had dispatched the article from Tehran. It must be said that the writer brought all his wits to bear in this display of bad character. In the beginning of the piece, he states, “When a people is shrouded in ignorance and a nation is gripped by stupidity and ignorance, it does not know what is good for it and does savage things and says crazy words under the influence of schemers' dubious ideas. It is obvious that under such circumstances, such a people is not headed for righteousness, nor will it in this way see the countenance of good fortune.”

The whole article was like this. It shamelessly declares, “When the foreigners saw how Prince Atabak the Great set the country's affairs aright and was bringing Iran forward, they incited people to make trouble for him.” 'Ein od-Dawle had autocratically taken Iran in hand and this worried the foreigners and they were frightened! This is how far as a newspaper's writer's incomprehension and error can go!

The Clergy Takes Refuge at Qom

The next day, at dawn, Behbehani, Tabataba'i, Sadr ol-'Olema, and some others left the city and headed for Ibn Babaveih (near ‘Abdol-‘Azim), where those who had stayed behind joined up with them. All the mullahs, talabes and others who had accompanied the Two Sayyeds also participated in this journey, joining them by droshky, horse, or cart. It is written that some even went by foot. They spent the day in Ibn Babaveih and set off at night.

Haji Sheikh Fazlollah, who had delayed, also prepared to go and set off with his dependents two days later, [107] joining them at Kahrizak.Nazem ol-Eslam expresses scepticism of Sheikh Fazlollah's interest in the migration. He depicts him as being the subject of bribe attempts and claims that he had had a secret conference with Nasr os-Saltane, the famous agent of 'Ein od-Dawle who was prominent in trying to bribe and coerce and generally disuade clerics from resisting his master. (I:502, 503-04) For all that, he recognized that the sheikh's participation strengthened the migration's power. (I:506, note 1) On the other hand, Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, although he concedes that Sheikh Fazlollah felt under pressure to participate in the migration, stressed the positive impact his participation had in winning over the Najaf clergy, among whom he still had considerable credibility. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 366) 'Ein od-Dawle very much wanted not to let him leave as well, but he could not do anything about it.Nazem ol-Eslam claims that he himself was not able to go because the streets were full of soldiers on the lookout for clerics. He also provides a complete list of who went to Ibn Babaveih. (I:500-01) The next paragraphs appear to come from a different source.

They amounted to about a thousand people all told. Since they traveled slowly, they reached Qom by the twenty-first of June. Although they had said that it was the 'Atabat which was their destination, they unpacked and settled there.

However, the bazaars were open in Tehran and the people were calm.To this, Nazem ol-Eslam had added, “No one of the tradesmen have taken it into their heads to collaborate with the emmigrants,” a condition which he explains by the fear which had gripped the people, who, in the absence of the clergy, had no refuge or sanctuary. (Ibid., I:502) Similarly, he reports that 'Ein od-Dawle threated to have shot anyone who demonstrated his support for the migrants, accounting for the lack of attention their migration appeared to have drawn along the way to Qom. (I:507) The soldiers, Cossacks, and cannoneers remained in the city. For several days, there was either a soldier or a Cossack every few steps in the bazaar. It was figured that the government had won and the revolt had been uprooted. But it was not so, and the people were preparing for a bigger movement. It was then that they showed their true face and the word “Constitution” was uttered. On the surface, there was nothing but calm. But deep inside, the passion had not abated and many people were restless, suspended between fury and fear. The clerics' leaving offended many and stoked their rage. Women took this opportunity and cried out in this alley and that. Forsat-e ShiraziAn ally of Majd ol-Eslam's and the author of a number of scholarly works. (Safarnameye Kalat, pp. 24-25, footnote 1) said, “I saw with my own eyes how a woman had fixed her veil to the top of a stick and cried, 'Monsieur Naus the Belgian will have to perform marriages for your daughters from now on, we have a clergy no longer.'”Document.

With the attachment the people had for the clergy in those days and their dependence on them in the affairs of their lives, it was completely impossible for the people to keep quiet and hold their peace. 'Ein od-Dawle foolishly resorted to force alone, not considering the consequences.

From the day the clerics left, lies were spread around the city. Sometimes it was said that five hundred horsemen had been sent to arrest them all. Sometimes it was said the 'Ein od-Dawle was furious over the letter Tabataba'i had written him and was going to kill him. Moreover, since some of the merchants and others, like Haji Mohammad Taqi Bonakdar, his brother Haji Hasan, who were known allies of the Two Sayyeds from the first, feared that 'Ein od-Dawle would seize their property because they had remained in Tehran and had not fled to Qom, they were so frightened that it occurred to them to go to the British consulate and take refuge.Ibid., I:509. The two had good reason to flee, according to this source: 'Ein od-Dawle's men kidnapped Haji Hasan's wife (or sighe or mistress–Nazem ol-Eslam is uncertain) from his house in broad daylight. Incidently, Kasravi neglects to mention that in this passage, his source claims that taking refuge at the British legation was Sayyed Behbehani's idea. In a later story, Nazem ol-Eslam relates the following: At a party held at the home of an Iranian who acted as a dealer for the Russian Bank, the Bonakdar brothers entered, wishing to discuss their predicament. An emmissary was sent to Sayyed Behbehani, then in Ibn Babaveih, and he reported on his return that the sayyed performed a divination on the Koran and concluded that they should take refuge in the British legation. Having made up their minds to do this, they had to find the means. A friend of a member of Nazem ol-Eslam's clique was friends with members of the legation, and the brothers gave him money to hold a party for them there. The legation said that they would only receive the merchants if they had not been involved in criminal activity or were not fleeing a debt. After being assured that their only offense was political, i.e., their alliance with Sayyed Behbehani, they were permitted entry. And so, on 24 Jomada II, 1324 (August 14, 1906), nine merchants entered the British legation to take refuge. (I:510-11) The decision to take refuge in the British consulate was given eloquently in the rather anglophilic Sharif-Kashani, Vaqe'at-e Ettefaqiye dar Ruzegar (p. 73): We, the people of Iran, have had it with the autocratic government's tyrannical transgressions. We took refuge with our spiritual scholars, it did no good. We took refuge at our shrine, it did not good. We took refuge in the mosque, God's house, our place of worship. Not only did it absolutely and definitely do no good, but the clergy, the leaders of the Islamic faith, were forced into exile. And so we, the Islamic community, have no security of life or property. With full hope, we took refuge in the illustrious British consulate and asked for freedom and constitutionalism and security. In those days in Iran, seeking protection in a place and taking sanctuary and getting its proprietor to intercede was a recognized tactic. This had been done in shrines or mosques, in the homes of mojtaheds, and in government telegraph stations, but it had been practiced in embassies only a few times. Something which had occurred just recently which the people knew about and had learned from was the affair of Abol-Hasan Mirza Sheikh or-Ra'is and Sheikh Zein od-Din Zanjani. Abol-Hasan Mirza, who fancied himself the Akhund Prince and would follow a different policy every day, had lately taken to pursuing the idea of “Pan-Islam” and preached the unification of Iran and the Ottoman Empire.This policy won him tremendous favor in the Ottoman court, with Sultan 'Abdol-Hamid personally rewarding him. (Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 169) On the other hand, he collaborated with the Two Sayyeds and their allies.The Sheikh participated in secret societies set up in Isfahan before the Constitution was granted. He was very active in the constitutional movement and paid the price of being imprisoned after the June 1908 coup which overthrew the constitutional order. His life was spared, and he went on to take a seat in the Second Majlis after the Constitution was restored. (Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, pp. 168-170) Sheikh Zein od-Din committed this [108] crime, too.Document. The government wanted to arrest them, but when they found this out, they sought the protection of the Ottoman embassy and obtained the Shah's forgiveness through the ambassador's mediation.Nazem ol-Eslam also digresses on the history of sanctuary under the reign of Naser od-Din Shah. He states that taking sanctuary in Russian and British consulates began under his predecessor, Mohammad Shah, when Iranian merchants took sanctuary there to demand the dismissal of his prime minister, Haji Mirza Aqasi. He discusses a number of other cases, including one in which Sayyed Tabataba'i talks a clergyman out of taking sanctuary with the Russian consulate, calling it inappropriate behavior for a cleric, and ending with the case of Sheikh or-Ra'is, who receives much more sympathetic treatment from him than he does from Kasravi. (TBI, I:508-09)

This affair taught the people that they, too, take refuge in an embassy,Dr. Mehdi Malekzade reasonably argues that, having seen how the government did not stop at violating the sanctity of a mosque, the liberals were logically led to seek a stronger refuge. To make this argument, he exaggerates the nature of this violation (see note ), but his argument seems defensible even without it. He argues that the purpose of taking refuge in the British legation was purely to save their lives and not to solicit support from a foreign power. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, pp. 366, 368) [109] and since the Ottomans had sent their army to their border and were now enemies of Iran and the Russian government was far from constitutional and was in those days fighting with its own people, they had to choose the British consulate. Britain had been in the vanguard of constitutionalism and was everywhere famous for this.Here, Kasravi seems to have put down his copy of TBI and picked up the Blue Book, which is more concerned with the sanctuary being taken on the British legation's grounds. Thus, the Qom sanctuary gets short shrift. The Qom sanctuary is refered to as the Great Migration, as opposed to the sanctuary taken at Shah ‘Abdol-‘Azim, which is refered to as the Little Migration, since “this migration had a greater goal than the first, a larger number of participants, and took a greater toll in toil and suffering.” (TBI, I:503) A migration of such a large number of Tehranis, not to a suburb of Tehran, but to Ottoman Iraq (or even, as it eventually happened, to Qom) would have been extremely expensive. Nazem ol-Eslam does not fail to mention that Sayyed Behbehani had one hundred and fifty tumans on him, which was inadequate to reach his goal, and the more ascetic Sayyed Tabataba'i had a mere four krans on him. The latter sent one of his sons, Sayyed Mohammad Sadeq, to obtain funds. The Russian Bank would not lend without collateral, even though it would ordinarily lend without. Arbab Jamshid “made the excuse” that he was afraid of 'Ein od-Dawle and refused to lend money. Ultimately, Mo'in-e Hozur, who had suffered much material loss under 'Ein od-Dawle and was a bitter enemy of his (TBI, I:542) and was a member of Nazem ol-Eslam's clique, when it became clear that the entire migration was in jeapardy, lent four thousand tumans, of which two thousand was paid back. Although Kasravi's attention to the Blue Book has the effect of magnifying the role of the merchants at the expense of the clergy, Nazem ol-Eslam had an agenda of effecting the reverse emphasis, as he explains (TBI, I:505), The author … has spent these several lines of these pages providing a portrait of [the migrating clerics] so that the reader might know what sort of great individuals founded Iran's Constitution and how they did not shrink from sacrificing their lives and property to demand justice and the execution of Islam's commandments. We hope that we shall one day see the results of these selfless people's efforts with our own eyes, and if it does not come to pass that we reach our goal, may our children and descendents at least reap the fruits of this tree and curse and express their outrage at the traitors in this land who got in the way and know that the great men of the Faith, the leaders of the sacred religious of Islam, refrained from absolutely nothing. These lines, having been penned after the opening of the Second Majlis, dominated as it was by the New Men of Iran, reflects the bitterness of a follower of a Sayyed Tabataba'i, a clergyman who was either unable or unwilling to adopt to the new rules of Iranian politics, and was under a threat of death should he leave his house.

In the Blue Book, it says:Ketab-e Abi, p. 9. The English original (“Memorandum furnished by His Majesty's Legation at Tehran, January 1907: Summary of Events in Persia for the year 1906” in Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, No. 3, January 1907) reads, On the 9th of July, that is, before the killing of the Seyed and the arrest of the preacher, which took place on the 11th, Agha Seyed Abdullah, the most energetic, but not the most incorruptible, of the Mojteheds, addressed a letter to Mr. Grant Duff applying for the active assistance of His Majesty's Legation. Acting under instructions, Mr. Grant Duff replied that it was quite impossible for His Majesty's Legation in any way to support a movement directed against the Government of the Shah. On the 16th, that is, after the events above described, the Agha addressed another letter to Mr. Grant Duff on the eve of his departure, telling him that, in order to prevent the further effusion of blood, the Mujteheds were leaving the city for the holy places, and expressing the hope that they would have his sympathy in their struggle against cruelty and oppression. On the ninth of July, which was two days before the killing of Sayyed 'Abdol-Hamid, Behbehani wrote a letter to the [British] ambassador and asked for his help.Dr. Mehdi Malekzade quotes Ardeshirji, a Parsi from British India, who was determined to free his coreligionists in Iran from Qajar oppression, that he had also been in touch with the British legation to admit Iranian liberals to its protection. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 373) The ambassador answered that the British government could not help anyone who was being an enemy of his own government.More specifically Chargé d'Affaires Grant Duff responded that the British government would not help anyone who opposed the Shah's government. (loc. cit.) On the sixteenth of July, when they left Tehran, they again wrote a letter to the effect that, “We clerics and mojtaheds, since we do not want things to come to bloodshed, have left the city, but we ask of you to spare no effort in cooperating with us in the struggle against injustice.”

Clearly, Behbehani's appeal to the British ambassador for help and cooperation was simply so that this ambassador might intercede for them with the Shah and convey their messages to the Shah himself, just as they had asked the Ottoman ambassador for help while they were staying in ‘Abdol-‘Azim. The secret of the matter was that Mozaffar od-Din Shah himself wanted a code of laws and an Assembly, but 'Ein od-Dawle and other ministers stopped the Shah and silenced him on the excuse that “one of our powerful neighbors is an enemy of the constitution and is engaged in a conflict with its own people over this, and it would be impolitic of us in Iran to grant a constitution.” They also told him, “If we give them a constitution today, tomorrow they will want a republic and get rid of the Shah.” With these excuses, they frightened the helpless Shah. Moreover, they did not let him hear about events, but prevented news from reaching him as best they could.

What Behbehani wanted was for the British ambassador to mediate between them and the Shah, encourage him, and relieve his fears. It is inconceivable that Behbehani or Tabataba'i would approve of people seeking refuge in the embassy or that such a thing be discussed in their presence. For we have seen with what hardship and terror they had been faced and how, in spite of this, they did not leave the mosque until they finally had no choice and went to Qom. How would this courageous and self-sacrificing behavior of theirs square with approving of the people's taking refuge in the embassy of a foreign government?!This is a tortured defense by Kasravi of Sayyed Behbehani against a charge he would level with much indignation at his enemy, Sayyed Hasan Taqizade. Moreover, he conveniently ignores Nazem ol-Eslam's report that Sayyed Behbehani advised merchants who were being persecuted by 'Ein od-Dawle to take refuge in the British legation. (I:509)

This idea came from the naïve and at first only a few approved of it. But it gradually gained currency and everyone fell in behind it and thoughtlessly acted on it. Who knows if there were no deceptive people among them who did not want the Two Sayyeds to get credit just when the grounds had been prepared for the transformation of the government of Iran and the currency of law therein so that such reforms would happen eventually anyway because of their many wise efforts and those of their companions over the previous year and a half?!

[110] In any case, two days after the clerics went to Qom, some individuals went to Qolhak [the site of the British legation] and asked the embassy staff, “If we seek refuge at the embassy, will we be admitted or not?...” Although the staff answered, “They will not be admitted,” they were not very firm about it. And so by late Thursday, July 18 (26 Jomada I), the first group, consisting of some fifty merchants and talabes, went to the embassy's station in the city and settled down there.Ketab-e Abi, p. 9. The English original (“Memorandum furnished by His Majesty's Legation at Tehran, January 1907: Summary of Events in Persia for the year 1906” in Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, No. 3, January 1907) reads, Two days afterwards, on the 18th of July, two persons called at the Legation at Gulahek, 7 miles from town, and asked whether, in case the people took “bast” in the British legation at Tehran, the Chargé d'Affaires would invoke the aid of the military to remove them or prevent their friends from repairing to the Legation premises. Mr. Grant Duff expressed the hope that they would not have recourse to such an expedient, but he said that it was not in his power, in view of the acknowledged custom in Persia and the immemorial right of “bast,” to use, or cause to be used, force to expel them if they came. These are apparently in addition to the nine merchants invited by the British legation. Nazem ol-Eslam relates that the British asked the Iranian Foreign Ministry to keep other Iranians from taking sanctuary at their legation; however, since the Iranian Foreign Minister was Moshir od-Dawle, an enemy of the Qajar dynasty, the request was ignored. In the meantime, two members of the legation (Hoseinqoli Khan Navvab and Mirza Yahya Khan, the legation secretary) suggested to the merchants that they raise the issue of the return of the clergy and the granting of their demands, and not simply the security of their own person. It was also suggested that talabes and sayyeds be invited to join (a detail typical of Nazem ol-Eslam's Islamicizing touch.) The drapers and the money-changers bazaar closed down and talabes joined in, some for the money, others against their immediate material interests. (I:511-12)

The next day, others came, too, and when the people saw that they were not stopped, they also went. Every group of tradesmen set up its own tent in the embassy courtyard, brought great cauldrons with handles (qazans) from the bazaar with them, and set up a kitchen. Incredibly, the government did not try to stop them. A government which had laid siege to a mosque and was so harsh did not station soldiers around the embassy and prevent the people from going there. This is the meaning of witless autocratic rule.

On Monday, July 23, their number reached 858, but three days later, it reached five thousand and by four days, it passed thirteen thousand, and the bazaars were closed tight.Browne, Persian Revolution, p. 118. The London Times (“The Crisis in Persia,” August 13, 1906) put this number in context: “As these were presumably for the most part adult males, it may be estimated that the refugees who took shelter under the British flag represent nearly a quarter of the population of Teheran.” A short note published in the same edition (“The Crisis in Persia”) puts the number at 16,000 and reports that “the Legation grounds were much damaged.” In a dispatch datelined “Teheran, Sept. 8” published in The London Times (“The British Legation as a 'City of Refuge',” September 10, 1906) “a correspondent” writes, Perhaps the greatest surprise of all for foreign observers was the remarkable discipline and order maintained of their own accord by these thousands of refugees during their prolonged sojourn in the Legation grounds. It is no easy matter at any time to provide suddenly for the requirements of an extermporized camp containing thousands of people. The commissariat alone is a difficult problem. The Persian displayed, however, powers of organization with which few would have credited them. The great guilds of the capital took charge of all the arrangements. The people were arranged according to their guilds, over 80 in number, and, at the expense of the richer merchants, were at no slight cost provided regularly during the whole time with abundant supplies, which were distributed according to groups with unfailing regularity and punctuality. The process of serving meals from one huge kitchen took from two to three hours, but the great dishes were laid out in the most orderly and methodical manner, and at a given signal were seized by a multitude of attendants and borne off a t a run to each tent in turn. At night the scene was exceedingy picturesque,. The tents all lighted up and the people sitting closely packed usually listening to a favourite story-teller, frequently weeping over the woes of Hassan and Hussein, the sainted martyrs of the Shiite form of Islam, or beating their heads in response to the impassioned eloquence of some public speaker. Tents had been erected vover every open space, including all but the principal paths, and quite regardless of grass plots and flower beds. A park cannot be converted into a camp without suffering to some extent from the presence of such a seeting mass of humanity, but no wanton damage seems to have been done, and on the whole the destruction was smaller than might have been anticipated, whilst the proceedings of the people were invariably orderly and good-tempered. The staff of the British Legation, it must be remembered, was not at that time actually in residence in the capital, as during the summer month it alwys removes to its hot-weather quarters at Gulahek, at the foot of the hills a few miles outside Teheran. In a letter we have seen, it is written, “Five hundred tents if not more have been pitched. Every guild, even the cobblers and nut vendors and dish menders, the weakest of the guilds, have pitched tents there....”

One can be pleased that everyone acted calmly and in an orderly fashion, as the British themselves wrote in praise. In the Blue Book, it says,Ketab-e Abi, p. 9. The English original (“Memorandum furnished by His Majesty's Legation at Tehran, January 1907: Summary of Events inPersia for the year 1906” in Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, No. 3, January 1907) reads, Their conduct was orderly. The crowd of refugees was organized by the heads of the guilds, who took measures to prevent any unauthorized person from entering the Legation grounds. Tents were put up and regular feeding places and times of feeding were provided for… No damage of a willful character was done to the garden, although, of course, every semblance of a bed was trampled out of existence, and the trees still bear pious inscriptions cut in the bark. Colonel Douglas… kept watch over the Legation buildings, but no watch was needed. Discipline and order were maintained by the refugees themselves. “Their behavior was very praiseworthy and orderly, and the good behavior and orderliness of the way they dispatched their business was due to their leaders' alertness, i.e., they did not allow in anyone whom they had suspected of trouble-making.” Despite the crowd, dinner and lunch were served without any disorder, arguments, or anger. They used more than ten big cauldrons, sometimes cooking stew, sometimes cooking rice and khoresh, and sent them to the tents on big trays. The cost was covered by the bazaaris and craftsmen out of their own purses, and here, Haji Mohammad Taqi was in charge.See also TMI, I:533. Ultimately, Haj Mohammad Taqi and his brother, Haj Hasan, claimed that they spent 32,000 tumans. Although his fellow-merchants disputed this sum, ultimately Haj Hosein Aqa Amin oz-Zarb, Haj Mo'in Bushahri, Haj Mohammad Esma'il Aqa Maghaze, Aqa Mirza Mahmud Esfahani, and Arbab Jamshid agreed to share the expenses incurred by them. (TMI, I:590-91)

The People's Demands on the Government

As for their demands, during the first days, since they had gone to the embassy in fear for their lives and considered themselves as powerless and had little courage, they raised the following demands on the government through the mediation of British Charge d'Affairs Mr. Grant Duff:

The return of the migrating clerics to Tehran.
A guarantee that they would not arrest anyone on any pretext and torture him.
Security for the realm, for these days, no one is master of his own life or wealth.
Opening a House of Justice, in which the estate of clerics and merchants and other trades could participate for appeals over litigation.
[111]
Punishment for the murders of the two great sayyeds.Source. Nazem ol-Eslam relates only three demands as of Thursday, 4 Jomada II, 1324 [July 26, 1905]: The return of the clergy, “the opening of a House of Justice before which Shah and beggar would be equal,” and the honoring of the promisory notes paid to government employees and bought by the merchants by the government. (I:533) The demands raised on Saturday or Sunday were for a House of Justice, the return of the clergy, and security of person and property for the people of the realm. The merchants continued to demand that the government make good on its debt to them, set at over one hundred thousand tumans, and others persisted in demanding the dismissal of 'Ein od-Dawle. (TMI, I:529-30)

'Ein od-Dawle and his ministers kept behaving recklessly. They had brought things to such a state with their incomprehension and ignorance and did not consider the consequences, and gave the following high-handed answer to the demands [112]:

Several of their Eminences had gone to the 'Atabat of their own accord. Their presence is unnecessary, since there are others in the city still.
The government does not arrest anyone if he has done no wrong.
The realm is in complete security.
For years, a House of Justice has been open and has been working to accomplish matters diligently, particularly these days when His Most Noble Excellency, Prince Sho'a' os-Saltane, is established as head of the blessed tribunal so that the petitions of the petitioners might be fully respond to. It has never been recognized in Iran that the subject classes participate in the blessed tribunal.
No one has been killed for whom punishment is necessary.Source?

By the time this answer arrived, the situation had changed. For on the one hand, the number of people in the consulate had increased manifold and on the other hand, people began demanding a constitution, for in those few days, some people had explained to the people something of the meaning of liberty and a constitution and a parliament.Cite TBI. A mass of people which gathers in one place and raises demands grows bolder and bolder and raises further demands. Aside from this, something surprising had happened in the meantime: Crown Prince Mohammad 'Ali Mirza in Tabriz joined with the activists and sent the mojtaheds of that city to the telegraph post to telegram the Shah and Qom and other cities and express support to the migrating clerics. He himself sent a telegram to his father. Aside from the Crown Prince's deed being a fitting act of support for the activists, it also informed the clergy in other cities of what was happening and they, too, started sending telegrams, so that now, telegrams were arriving from them from Isfahan and Shiraz. A telegram also arrived from the Najaf clergy. In order to suppress the activists, 'Ein od-Dawle had not allow their words to reach other places, and only very little news was reaching the provinces about the events in Tehran. But the Crown Prince's action and the telegrams from the Tabriz clergy broke through this obstacle and more news reached the provinces.

All this encouraged the people who had taken sanctuary. It seems that soldiers and cannoneers and others had now gone over to the people and were secretly supporting them, to the point that a band of soldiers who had been stationed in front of the embassy was mingling with them and was not standing apart from them.

As a result of all this, the activists raised their ultimate demand. They now openly called for a constitution and a parliament. The government, which had not accepted the former demands, was now faced with other demands:

The return of the distinguished clergy.
[113]
The dismissal of Prince Atabak ['Ein od-Dawle].'Ein od-Dawle.
The opening of a House of Consultation.
The punishing of the killers of the homeland's martyrs.
The return of the exiled (Roshdiye and others).

The British Charge d'Affairs relayed all this to the Shah. The Shah said that a meeting should be held in the presence of the Minister of Foreign Affairs and that the demands should be discussed. This meeting was set for Monday, the thirtieth of July, but we shall see that such a meeting never took place and 'Ein od-Dawle resigned from his post first.

Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's Support for the Activists CrownPrinceActivists9

As we have said, Mohammad 'Ali Mirza voiced his agreement with the activists, and we must write about this here. This man, with his narrow-mindedness and self-centeredness, was not the sort of person to be concerned with the state of country and people. Moreover, it should not be suspected that he did not understand the meaning of the mass movement and the damage it would do to his own autocratic power, particularly having such a mentor as Shapshal. So what was this cooperation about?

The fact is that since 'Ein od-Dawle wanted to get him dismissed as Crown Prince, he had developed a keen hatred for him and had merely been looking for a means to overthrow him.'Ein od-Dawle wanted to give the succession to the crown to Sho'a' os-Saltane. See P, I:31. This was his only point of agreement with the activists.

There was no sound information in Tabriz during this time about the events in Tehran. Aside from some things which had been written in people's letters, no news had reached there since the government, as we said, was blocking telegrams. But the Crown Prince, who was well aware of what was going on, summoned before him the great clergy of the city, Mojtahed Haji Mirza Hasan, The Friday Imam, Mirza Sadeq, Haji Mirza Mohsen, and Seqat ol-EslamExecuted during the mass executions carried out by the Russians in Tabriz on Ashura 1330. After being interrogated by the Russians, he was beaten and then marched without his turban a half mile to the execution grounds. Before being executed, he was permitted to perform his ablutions and pray. He then asked the son of 'Amuoghlu for a cigarette and was then executed. (Avraq-e Tazeyab-e Mashrutiat va Naqsh-e Taqizade, p. 379). It is not known just what was said to get them to go to the telegraph post. First, they sent a telegram to the Shah stating their agreement with the migrating clergy. When an answer was received which they suspected was not from the Shah, they sent another, long telegram and then another to the clergy in Qom, and then, finally, to the clergy in other cities, and got them to state their agreement. After two or three days, the Crown Prince himself sent a telegram to his father. The Shah answered the Tabriz clerics and the Crown Prince on July 29 (seventh of Jomada II), and it was on that same day that he dismissed 'Ein od-Dawle from his post. Since this was all Mohammad 'Ali Mirza wanted, he kept quiet from then on and shut the clerics up, too. We?? is repeated. produce here some of these telegrams:

Telegram of the Tabriz Clergy to the Shah

Submitted before the Blessed Presence of the King, Shelter of Islam (May God immortalize his rule!)

The blessed rescript of [114] the Most Sublime Royal One in reply to the telegraphed petition of these who pray for him has arrived. These servants of the pure shariat, who have never neglected the strengthening of the government of Islam, have considered and consider the Blessed Presence of the King, [115] Shadow of God, to be a model of justice and piety and service to the shariat. We know and see clearly that self-interested courtiers do not allow our petitions and those of other servants of the pure shariat, whether in Tehran or in other places in the Protected Realms, properly to reach the presence of His Excellency the King and that they present our just and legitimate aims in a guise which would not conflict with their selfish interests. We servants of the pure shariat and the other people of Azerbaijan, who have known the royal commands in the last forty years, see that none of our petitions have ever reached your blessed sight, and none of the expressions in the rescripts in reply bear the pearl-studded words or were born of the royal justice-nurturing character. It is more apparent than the sun that their text was composed by some traitor. So we convey to you a summary of the state of the realm from the first and daily-increasing discussion which the clergy of the luminous House of the Caliphate held with the premiers of the government until this day, and the rest we leave to the pious command of the Master of Slaves, His Royal Majesty.

Formerly, the clergy of the House of the Caliphate, Tehran, with the agreement of all the clergy of the Protected Realms, asked of the government's leaders that a decision be rendered to improve the situation of the exalted government's judiciary and financial bureaus so that all the subjects would be relieved of the unjust acts of a number of people and be safe and secure in the cradle in the shade of the King of Islam. Since both of these aims negated the way of oppression and tyranny followed by ministers in the Court, these ministers lured the clerics of the House of the Caliphate back from their first migration to the pure place of His Holiness ‘Abdol-‘Azim with baseless promises and kept them wandering around for a time with false promises. On the other hand, they assured the Solemn Royal Mind that the clerics' needs were satisfied. However long the clergy of the House of the Caliphate waited for him to realize the government leaders' promises, they saw no results, and there gradually came from the leaders of the government and the Court ministers measures to exile a group of people, common and noble, whose only sin was to be desirous of the well-being of the people and the government of Islam. The clerics of the House of the Caliphate who had seen these oath-breaking and tyrannical moves on the part of the Court ministers, diligently repeated their entreaties and this time we are certain that these very same treacherous ministers went and grabbed the cord of severity and harshness without bringing it to your sun-like royal attention and answered the clerics of the House of the Caliphate with threats. Finally, when the ministers saw that the clerics were determined to uproot the basis of this oppression and were intent upon the banner of justice, they realized that if this new plan went into effect, the hands of their tyranny and oppression would be severed and their treason would be made known. Merely to protect themselves and their interests, they had the religious students and the Prophet's offspring shot at by soldiers. They surrounded the mosque and Islam's place of worship and God's house as if it were a castle full of trouble-makers and rebels. They posted soldiers and sentinels on the mosques' roofs. They kept bread and water from Islam's clerics, treating them as if they were rebels and murders.

From the dawn of Islam until this time of ours, no infidel people has insulted Islam's clerics in such a way. This disrespect was not only shown to individual Islamic clerics. In fact, the way of Mohammad (God's prayers upon him and his family!) and the honor of the shariat have been insulted.

[116] Now, the entire body of clerics of the Faith, in fact, all Twelver Shiite Muslims, ask the Sacred Royal Presence for complete recompense for this insult, so that it can be commanded and established that the aim of Their Eminences, the migrating clerics, has been realized and that they have been conciliated and returned with [complete] respect to their residences, particularly those of Tabriz, who pray for you with that particular loyalty to the government which is known to the mind of the Sea of Incense. We dare say that it is necessary that this plea be accepted and the migrants speedily returned and that it is impossible to make reforms or quiet the commoners with a promise. If things escape the control of those who pray for you, a civil riot may be expected and necessarily there will come to pass acts which will blacken the faces of we who pray for you.This telegram appears in ibid., I:535-36.

The Shah's Answer to the Telegram

Please convey our regards to Their Esteemed Honors, Their Eminences Mojtahed Haji Mirza Hasan, the Friday Imam, Haj Mirza Mohsen Aqa, Aqa Mojtahed Aqa Mirza Sadeq, and Seqat ol-Eslam and tell them on our behalf that the royal favor always has embraced and always will embrace the various estates of people, particularly the distinguished clergy and especially the clergy of Azerbaijan. All are prayerful for the government and the people and objects of our royal favor, and we have regard for them all. It is for this reason that, through your intercession and mediation, we have seen fit to accept the pleas of the Azerbaijani clerics regarding the return of the Tehran clerics. We have dispatched Foreign Minster Moshir od-Dawle to retrieve them. The Tehran clergy will speedily receive an audience and we will accept their just petitions, which are based on the interests of the government and the people.This telegram appears in ibid., I:537.

The Crown Prince's Telegram to the Shah Via His Excellency, His Majesty Prince Atabak the Great,Kasravi publishes this telegram in P with the comment, “An important point about this telegram is that it was sent via 'Ein od-Dawle. It goes without saying what the point of this was.” (I:32, note 1) before the dust of the feet of the Most Sacred, Most Exalted One (May our souls be his sacrifice!)

May I be sacrificed before the most sacred august dust of your feet!

It has so far been proven and confirmed before the dust of the feet of the August Ruler of the Realm that This Born Slave has from the beginning of his life neither abandoned nor neglected his task of self-sacrifice for and the comforting of the sun-like mind. If he imagined that the petitions of the eminent clerics might, God forbid, contain something opposed to the well-being of the government or injurious to it, he would not even mention it before the dust of the feet of the Author of Justice. So as much as possible, it was not permitted that the clerics of Azerbaijan reap despair in this matter from the noble royal Pinnacle of Nobility. Today, too, when we were present at the royal telegraph post today, it was simply to personally intercede for the migrant clerics from the Seat of the Caliphate. With complete meekness and humility, I make so bold as to submit that all the subjects of Iran are a divine trust and are as the children of Your Most Sacred Excellency, the Shadow of God. Safeguarding the station of the people of Islam [and the clergy of Islam] is also among the protective duties of the monarchy. Thus, whenever what has passed be overlooked by the August Pinnacle of Nobility and he decides to console and satisfy [117] and return them with respect, it would increase the splendor of the monarchy and the strength of Islam and the pride of This Born Slave among the nations. The subjects are as the Sultan's children; their being found to deserve wrath and punishment because of a mishap or an error [118] is not compatible with mercy and complete justice.

I hope this sincere intercession by Your Self-sacrificing Servant meets with the splendor of success.

7 Jomada oth-Thani, 1324 [July 29, 1906]This telegram appears in ibid., I:538.

The Shah's Answer to the Telegram Crown Prince.

Your telegraphed petition reached me though His Honor, the Most Noble Atabak the Great ['Ein od-Dawle]. We do not think it necessary for this station to declare the sympathy we had and have for all the distinguished clerics and the perfect attention which is mostly spent on promulgating the Holy Law of Mohammad (God's blessing be upon him and his family!) and the comfort of the clerics who pray for him. It is obvious that the great clergy all pray for the government, that their presence is desirable for the government and people, and that in fact they are an army of prayer. We have ever considered it necessary to recall their high-mindedness and revere them and protect their ordinances. A few days ago, when the great clerics of Azerbaijan in the course of a telegraphed petition made some explanation referring to the clergy, we recalled our sacred intentions to them. They should know well the extent of our good intentions toward the clergy and how attentive we are to them.

Now in regard to your intercession and the Tabriz clergy's pleas, I have commanded that Foreign Minister Moshir od-Dawle is to go to Qom and respectfully return the great clerics. You will surely convey to them this royal favor and make them hopeful of thorough royal compassion. Everyone must return in complete hopefulness and know the royal favor for them and the clergy of Azerbaijan, for our sacred intention has always been inclined to and devoted to the promulgation of the obligatory shariat and the comfort of the great clerics, and we will never deny them any of our favor.

7 Jomada II 1324 [July 29, 1906]This telegram appears in ibid., I:538-39. In addition, a telegram from the Crown Prince to the Tabriz clergy appears on Ibid., I:560. A letter from a Tabriz merchant is also quoted in ibid., I:559-60: … A few days ago, the Tehran clergy, who had gathered in Qom, sent a very lengthy telegram to the Tabriz clergy and complained at length and requested help from the [Tabriz] clergy. The Tabriz clergy, for its part, was completely united and held a meeting every night in one of their homes and locked the doors of their mosques and utterly ceased from performing their religious duties. They have abandoned all their congregational prayers and religious convocations and marriage ceremonies, etc. Even His Esteemed Honor Haj Mirza Hasan Aqa the Mojtahed, who is a bitter enemy of His Esteemed Honor Haji Mirza Karim Aqa [the Friday Imam], is participating in this matter. Everyone is united and numerous telegrams have been sent to Tehran and Isfahan and Qom and Shiraz, including a lengthy telegram which was sent before the blessed dust of the feet of the Kibla of the World [the Shah] via the [Indo-European Telegraph] Company. They ended up spending two hundred tumans on the telegram. A single reply came from Tehran, and it was a formality and no one believed it was genuine, and so they were not quieted by it. They sent another telegram via the Prime Minister to the Kibla of the World. A reply to it from the Kibla of the World arrived yesterday afternoon when everyone was gathered in the home of one of the mojtaheds, Haji Mirza Mohsen Aqa, in which he deigned to express his acceptance of the clergy's pleas and petitions and he invited the Tehran clergy to speedily return to Tehran with full respect and deigned to accept their petitions, which were to the benefit of government and people. After this telegram was received, they still said that His Sacred Majesty himself ought to guarantee this matter, and there was another exchange and His Most Sacred Majesty bestowed a rescript upon them and promised that the text of His Most Sacred Majesty's rescript was in reply to the petition …

Decree for the Constitution

As we have said, these answers by the Shah were issued on July 29 (seventh of Jomada II) and it is clear from his answer to the Crown Prince that when he sent this telegram, he wanted to send Foreign Minister Mirza Ja'far Khan Moshir od-Dawle to Qom to gradually win over the clerics and return them with himself to Tehran and let it go at that, and not take up the people's other demands. It seems that this was due to the stubbornness of 'Ein od-Dawle and his allies, who would still not consider desisting and would not let the Shah alone and still hoped to win.In addition to this, that day's issue of Iran, a government newspaper, published a code of laws in order, according to Nazem ol-Eslam, to fool the people into thinking that a legal code was about to be granted. The reaction to this among those taking sanctuary was completely dismissive, and they tore the copies of that issue of the newspaper to shreds. The document was translated from the Ottoman judiciary law by Momtaz od-Dawle. ( Ibid., I:514-24)

But the matter was greater than any of them thought. Silencing a people who had come so far in their quest for liberty was not an easy task. But the courtiers did not realize this and kept trying out new schemes. That very day, 'Ein od-Dawle resigned from his post as Prime Minister and the Shah replaced him with Moshir od-Dawle, and he chose Qajar tribalCorrecting ?? to ???. chief 'Azod ol-Molk and Haji Nezam od-Dawle to go to Qom. Again, they had intended to settle the matter with this resignation and not to recognize the other demands. Although 'Ein od-Dawle had gone, the Court [119] was determined to preserve the autocracy. Clearly 'Ein od-Dawle's resignation was for appearances only.The facts are from Ibid., I:541. From the conflicting stories about 'Ein od-Dawle's resignation, one fact emerges, and that is that the Court was terrified of the chaos which would result were he to stay in power.

But the people did not relent and were not satisfied with these two acts.The bazaars did not open and the people were clearly not going to settle for a change in prime ministers. In the British legation, where Nazem ol-Eslam was present, when news was brought in that 'Ein od-Dawle resigned, the crowd almost dispersed until the more aware elements present reminded the people that this resignation was not the issue. (TBI, I:541) Since they were afraid that the clergy would accept the emissaries' suggestion and return to Tehran, they informed them of what was happening by telegram and received an answer from Blissful Soul Behbehani.See TBI, I:541-42: Via His Honor the Chargé d'Affaires to Those Seeking Sanctuary in the Legation. To all the clerics and merchants and tradesmen taking sanctuary in the legation. In reply to your telegram, I inform you that you should rest assured that we have not been deceived, that what you have heard and are hearing is a lying forgery. I will not budge until the end is achieved and they give me assurances of security from the British legation. Rest assured. I have nothing further to say. I request that you immediately convey this matter to the merchants and tradesmen. [Signed] Sayyed 'Abdollah [Behbehani]

Since the agitation was mounting daily and the number of people seeking sanctuary had now passed fourteen thousand, the British government intercededCorrecting ????? to ?????. through official channels and asked the Iranian government to respond to their demands and put a stop to the disturbance, the sooner the better. There were debates about this in Parliament.Document.

It can be said that until this time, the Shah had not received accurate information about the events. Since he sat in Saheb-e Qeraniye outside the city and the courtiers had him surrounded and would not allow anyone else access to him, he was totally unaware of what was happening in the country. But now that he was well aware of what was happening, he became cooperative and issued a decree on Sunday, August 5 (14 Jomada II),In an article “Dar Piramun-e Tarikh-e Azarbayjan,” Peiman vol. 2, no. 8 (Mordad 1314), p. 529, Kasravi notices that he had erroneously given the date at 13 Jomada II. He continues by objecting to the decree to observe Constitution Day on Mordad 14, saying that to his recollection, it was Mordad 13, and it had to be changed as soon as possible “so that Iran not be ridiculed by foreigners.” (id., p. 529) He gives his calculations, which are based on the idea that solar Hijri years have a fixed pattern governing how many days they have. The Vernal Equinox of 1906 occurred a little before midnight, March 21, making this the date of the beginning of the Iranian new year, in which case Sunday, August 13, 1906 would have fallen on Mordad 12, 1285. However, the Iranian new year 1285 is generally calculated as having begun on March 22, in which case that day would have fallen on Mordad 13. According to these calculations, the new year would have to begin on March 23 for Constitution Day to fall on Mordad 14. which is today the preface to the laws, and we publish it here:

His Most Noble Honor, the Prime Minister.

Whereas the Exalted Creator (Glorious be His state!) has entrusted into our capable hands the reins of the progress and prosperity of the Protected Realms of Iran and has established our August Person as the protector of the rights of the entire population of Iran and our loyal subjects,

Therefore, now that Our August Will has become intent on gradually implementing such reforms as are required in government and imperial departments for the sake of the comfort and security of the entire population of Iran and to strengthen and buttress the foundations of the government, we have determined that a National Consultative Assembly shall be formed and convened in the House of the Caliphate, Tehran, composed of delegates from among the princes and clergy and Qajar tribesmen and noblemen and magnates and landlords and merchants and tradesmen, by election among the aforementioned estates, to carry out the requisite deliberations and investigations regarding important governmental and imperial affairs and the welfare of all, and shall render the requisite help and assistance to our loyal council of ministers in reforms for the prosperity and good fortune of Iran and shall submit its views regarding the interests of the government and people and the welfare of all and the needs of the entire population of the realm in complete confidence and security through the Prime Minister of the Government, for it to be adorned with royal approval and implefmented. It is evident that, in accordance with this blessed rescript, this Assembly's rules and regulations and the prerequisites for its formation shall be arranged and prepared in accordance with the ratification and signature of the delegates from this date so that, having royal approval and with the aid of exalted God, the aforementioned Consultative Assembly, which is the guardian of our justice, will open and, with the requisite reforms, begin to [run] the realm's affairs and execute the sacred shariat. We have further stipulated that you shall proclaim and distribute the text of this blessed rescript so that all the inhabitants might be fittingly aware of our good intentions, which are all for the progress of the government and people of Iran, and be busy praying for the continuation of this dynasty and this [120] never-fading gift.

In the Sahib-e Qeraniye Palace on the date of the fourteenth of the month of Jomada II, 1324 Hejri in the eleventh year of Our Reign [August 5, 1906]

[Mozaffar od-Din Shah]Two versions appear in TBI (I:551-52 and I:553-54), but their differences are so insignificant that they do not survive translation. Another translation appears in The London Times in the article titled “The Persian National Council” (September 1, 1906).

14 Jomada II [August 5], when this decree was issued, was the Shah's birthday. To express their loyalty to and respect for the Shah, those taking sanctuary in the embassy joined the celebration. The embassy gate was decked out with decorations and Lion and Sun banners were draped all over it and a splendid illumination was held. Even women participated in this celebration.Source

But when the decree for the Constitution was issued, printed, and posted on the walls, the activists did not accept it and did not see it as meeting their demands. They sent people to rip it off the walls, for it did not carry the word “the nation” [mellat] and, moreover, some of its terms were unclear.The unclarities to which Kasravi refers are explained by Nazem ol-Eslam: The expression “be moqe'-e ejra gozarde shavad,” an elaborate way of saying “be implemented,” could also be read without the ezafe (which does not appear in the written Persian) as “implemented when appropriate,” and it was understood by the common people to mean that the decisions would be implemented only when and where it suited the Court. On the other hand, the educated classes worried that it would be used by the absolutists as an excuse to follow the ignorant common people's traditional prejudices. Of more substance was the objection to the mediation of Prime Minister, who could once more block access to the Shah if he wished. Finally, there was concern that this document would remain a dead letter just as the rescript given at Shah ‘Abdol-‘Azim had, and guarantees of its implementation from the British were demanded. (TBI, I:554, footnote 1) This latter is confirmed in Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, No. 3, January 1907). An article datelined “Teheran, Sept. 8” published in The London Times (“The Persian Troubles,” September 10, 1906) reports, “The clergy have rejected the ordinance drafted by the Grand Vizier, and have submitted on of their own, which, however, has not received the Shah's assent.” It continues, A crowded meeting of the clergy, merchants, and tradesmen was held on Thursday [September 6], at which the action of the Government was severely criticized. The clergy urged a few days' patience, but a well-known merchant advocated the closing of the bazaars without delay. After the meeting, he and 25 pupular leaders went to the British Legation, where, they declare, they will remain until the Shah signs the ordinance of the clergy and exiles the late Grand Vizier and some other persons suspected of being opposed to the reforms. So nothing came of the decree and it was decided that on the night of August 7 (16 Jomada II), a meeting of the leaders of the activists would be held in Moshir od-Dawle's house in Qolhak and that there would be negotiations.A delegation of the clergy (Sayyed Mohammad Sadeq, son of Sayyed Tabataba'i and two others) taking sanctuary in Qom visited Tehran. They immediately headed for the British legation, and then to meet with the Shah and the Prime Minister and the Court ministers. Nazem ol-Eslam waxes effusive in his praise of the young sayyed, but reports that those taking refuge in the British legation had the lowest opinion of his companions, who were seen as corrupt opportunists and easy marks for a bribe from the Court; these companions were not welcomed back at the British legation after their audience with the Shah. Sayyed Mohammad Sadeq reported that the Shah would grant an “Assembly in a true fashion,” general amnesty to those who took sanctuary in the British legation and to the rest of the people of Tehran, an absolute ban on 'Ein od-Dawle coming to Tehran, a return of the exiles to Tehran except for Majd ol-Eslam, who could go anywhere but Tehran, punishment of the sayyed's killers either by payment of blood money or by retribution as provided for in Islamic law, and the payment of the government's debts to the merchants. The decree mentioned below was also a result of this meeting. (TBI, I:556-57) It was as a result of this meeting that the Shah issued the following decree:

His Most Noble Honor the Prime Minister.

In completing the previous rescript issued by us on 14 Jomada II 1324 [August 5, 1906], in which we issued a clear order and decree regarding the foundation of an Assembly of those elected by the people [mellat], once again, that all the residents and people [mellat] be apprized of our full august concern, we order and have it established that the aforementioned Assembly be established as described clearly in the previous rescript. After the election of the members of the Assembly, let those elected codify the articles and stipulations of the regulations of the Islamic Consultative Assembly in accordance with what is ratified and signed by them in a way fitting for the people [mellat] and the realm and the rules of the divine shariat, so that it might receive the honor of being submitted for and adorned by our royal signature and this sacred goal be realized and accomplished in accordance with the aforementioned regulation.

The people accepted this and celebrated. That same day, they went and dispersed from the consulate and re-opened the bazaars and held an illumination.This was done after those who had migrated to Qom had given instructions to this effect. Nazem ol-Eslam further points out that the bazaars were ordered to be opened on Friday, ordinarily a Muslim day of rest. (TBI, I:563) He also publishes yet a third version of the Shah's rescript for an assembly. This one differs from the first two, aside from apparently insignificant ommissions and additions, by declaring the assembly a National Consultative Assembly (Majles-e Shoraye Melli) and a reference to the execution of the “laws of the sacred shariat.” (TBI, I:564) Nazem ol-Eslam explains the significance of this change. In his entry of Tuesday, 16 Jomada II 1325 = August 7, 1907, he writes that the leaders of the merchants were holding deliberations. The British legation was a virtual university and, during the weeks that were spent there, the people learned what they would otherwise have taken ten years to learn. “Those who had been educated abroad and had spent years hoping to see such a day worked day and night to awaken the people.” He continued, The members of [Nazem ol-Eslam's] secret society spent all their energy on keeping the illiterate mullah's boys from interfering in this sacred and delicate matter so that, God forbid, the foreigners not laugh at the people of Iran and say that they are ignorant. … The success of this sacred matter depends on the cooperation of the government and the participation of wise and learned ministers. This is a considerable contrast to his earlier advice to involve the talabes in the sanctuary at the British legation! When word came that the Shah had granted their demands, the Iranians taking refuge in the British legation refused to leave until the British guaranteed that the Shah's rescript would be implemented this time and that steps were taken towards the organization of a Majlis. Leading merchants and the British legation's Chargé d'Affaires left to negotiate with the Court and the Prime Minister. Nazem ol-Eslam relates that the Prime Minister insisted on the convocation of a majles-e shoraye Eslami, or Islamic Consultative Assembly. The merchants' spokesman, Aqa Sayyed Hosein Borujerdi, insisted on a majles-e shoraye melli, or National or Popular Consultative Assembly. When the Prime Minister became obdurate, the merchant's spokesman declared, “We will take a National Consultative Assembly with the people's might.” After two lengthy deliberations, it was decided that there would be a National Consultative Assembly. The merchants had sent a telegram two days previous to London, explaining, as Nazem ol-Eslam summarizes it, For twenty days we have been taking sanctuary in the [British] legation. The merchants sent several leaders to Qolhak, the legation's summer quarters, and from there, went with the [British] Chargé d'Affaires to the home of the Prime Minister and held deliberations. It was decided that the two previous rescripts should be changed and that the contents of both be written in one, and that in the rescript in which an Islamic Consultative Assembly is written, this ought to be ammended to a National Consultative Assembly, for perhaps someone might, out of a personal grudge, have one of the representatives declared an infidel and then ask what an infidel is doing in an Islamic Assembly, or perhaps some day a mullah like Sheikh Fazlollah might be found who might, out of a personal grudge, declare the entire Assembly infidel or, at least, lax, and then incite the people over what an infidel or a lax Muslim had to do with an Islamic Assembly. In addition, the Jews, Armenians, and Zoroastrians, too, should send elected representatives to this Assembly, and the word Islamic would not be fitting for them, but the word National would. Although Sheikh Fazlollah was not mentioned by the histories of the period as having raised doubts about any of the reformists' religious integrity, a clandestine leaflet denouncing him for having done this is presented in his Tarikh-e Bidariye Iranian, and this is, then, not necessarily an anachronistic prefiguring of the sheikh's future policies. (Ibid., I:612-13) The result was that the Shah's rescript called for a National Consultative Assembly (although a rider about the execution of Islamic law was added.) ( Ibid., I:560-63) Regarding the last passage, it is interesting that Nazem ol-Eslam personally prevailed on the religious minorities not to insist on representation in the Majlis on the grounds that it would offend the clergy in Najaf and Esfahan and lead to violence. (Ibid., I:583) There was a great celebration and illumination in the city for three nights. Moreover, every one of the clerics in Qom who had not accepted what 'Azod ol-Molk said and so stayed behind prepared to set off upon learning about the latest events. They all gathered in Kahrizak and entered ‘Abdol-‘Azim on Tuesday, the fifteenth of August, in order to return to the city the next day. The people organized a very grand reception and the Shah sent government coaches for them to ride and there were two more nights of celebration and illumination.Nazem ol-Eslam provides some interesting details here (Ibid., I:571-73): The talabes and sayyeds, who were ill from the heat of Qom, were given the cavalry's horses to ride. The horsemen pleaded with them that, now that they were riding their horses, could they not take their rifles off their hands as well? The upshot was that they took turns with the horses, and the soldiers had the satisfaction of seeing that the Prophet's offspring reached their destination in peace. On Tuesday, the government sent carriages and droshkies to bring the emigrants into town. At every stage of their journey, tents were set up for the emigrants. The road from Kahrizak to Shah ‘Abdol-‘Azim was covered with tents, their supporting ropes getting tangled together. Tents for a hundred Armenian merchants at Kahrizak itself and tents for fifty Jews were set up. Innumerable sheep were slaughtered beneath their feet. Five or six thousand gathered around the Two Sayyeds' coaches. The Shah's men bade them to ride in his coach; they declined, but agreed to ride a short distance in it when told that he would be insulted if they insisted in turning down the offer. The rest of the journey they traveled by donkey. The clergy declared that they would refrain from meeting with the people and the merchants in the British legation refused to leave until the Majlis was set up. The Two Sayyeds met with the latter, however, and convinced them to leave.

On Saturday, August 18 (27 Jomada II), a truly glorious and worthy meeting was held at the Military Academy's lodge (which was one of the Court lodges).The lodge was chosen instead of the Sepahsalar Madrase because the former was in the center of the city and accessable by all. (Ibid., 574-75) All the clerics and leaders of the activists and others, including ministers and courtiers, gathered around.Three or four thousand, including five hundred notables. (Ibid., I:574) 'Azod ol-Molk greeted the guests on behalf of the government.The crowd responded with cries of “Long live the nation, the Shah, the Iranians!” and “May the nation of Iran be strong!” (Ibid., I:574)

This meeting was held to open the Provisional Assembly which had the responsibility of drafting the electoral rules and doing other things necessary to advance the Constitution and found the House of Consultation [121]. Nearly two thousand gathered there that day, and when the time for speeches arrived, Moshir od-Dawle spoke first and explained what was being asked of this Assembly. After him, Sheikh Mehdi Soltan ol-MotakalleminAccording to Kasravi's source, Ibid., I:575; Kasravi has Haji Mirza Nasrollah Malek ol-Motakallemin. This is probably is a diplography resulting from the similarity of the first speaker's name (Mirza Nasrollah Moshir od-Dawle) as well as the second speaker's title with the name and title of the person Kasravi had in mind. Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, never one to pass up a reference to his father, claims that it was indeed Malek ol-Motakallemin who made a speech and presents it. (TEMA, pp. 385-386) read a sermon [khotbe] in the name of the people [122] and rendered thanks. Finally, three pictures were taken of those present and the meeting adjourned.

We produce here Moshir od-Dawle's speech:

Great sirs:

Of course, each of us who has the honor of being here knows the general purpose of holding this Honorable Assembly and gathering of Their Eminences the clergy, ministers, trustees, nobility, merchants, and tradesmen in this place, but in order properly to demonstrate the pure and sacred intention of the Master of Slaves, His Most Sacred Imperial Majesty (May God immortalize his realm and rule!), it is necessary that I bring to the attention of the great gentlemen that of which all their noble minds are indubitably already aware. The Master of Slaves, His Most Sacred August Majesty (May God immortalize his reign!) has determined that the portals of good fortune and prosperity should open over the entire population of the Protected Realms of Iran and the necessary reforms which will strengthen the firmness of the government's foundations and the people's good fortune shall be gradually implemented. Since this royal intention cannot be accomplished as intended by the just august Master of Slaves without the cooperation of and consultation with the entire population of Iran, the great blessed king's august view has been fixed on having the National Consultative Assembly composed of electees from specific estates as detailed in the blessed rescript of the fourteenth of Jomada II [August 5] convened in the House of the Caliphate, Tehran.

Since the electoral laws and other articles of the regulations of the National Consultative Assembly must be codified in strict accordance with the aforementioned blessed rescript and of course, as you know, completing this work requires a certain amount of time, in order for His Most Sacred Royal August Majesty to give clear reasons and sufficient proof to the entire population of Iran of the determination of his blessed view for the organization of a National Consultative Assembly, he has declared it established that a provisional place for this Honorable National Assembly be determined speedily and that there, in the presence of Their Eminences of the clergy, the ministers, the nobility, the merchants and the guilds, sweets and sherbet shall be consumed. Surely the leaders of the government will strive mightily to compose a bill of electoral laws and a book of regulations for the National Consultative Assembly in accordance with the royal rescript of the fourteenth of Jomada II [August 5] and the members of the National Assembly will gather in Tehran and this Honorable Assembly shall open.

We beseech exalted God thatDeleting the word “under.” the lengthy shadow of His Most Sacred Imperial Majesty (May God immortalize his realm and rule!) remain over the entire population of Iran and that He grant good fortune to the children of the sacred homeland along with the leaders of the government, that they might strive to open the portals of good fortune over the Iranians and bring this five thousand year old government and people of Iran to the pinnacle of its happiness.TBI, I:574-75.

The Courtiers' Obstructiveness

This is how the Constitution appeared in Tehran. But the people were very remote from all this, did not know its meaning and value, and were perplexed as to what to do. One of the silly things about Iranians, particularly Tehranis, is that as soon as one or two people go and do something, hundreds of others [123] imitate them. In this case, too, a hundred people would write clandestine leaflets and everyone poured out his own beliefs. Instead of pursuing learning, finding out what a constitution is, what to do now that it had been granted, and how to make progress, they saw a chance to show off.We have no information about this except a clandestine leaflet produced in Nazem ol-Eslam's history, TBI, I:592-93.

The Provisional Assembly was in session two days each week. Several drafts of the electoral regulations were drafted and they made a better one from them.The situation was still quite stormy, according to TBI. There were criticisms of the electoral regulations coming from the merchants and the clergy. The delay in the Shah's signing the regulations caused merchants to resume their refuge in the British legation. The bazaars remained closed, and it was only with the personal intervention of the Two Sayyeds that they were opened. (TBI, I:594-600) They decided that it would receive the Shah's signature on Thursday, September 5 (16 Rajab) and that they would elect candidates in Tehran.The document was ratified by the Shah and presented to the people on Saturday, September 7 (18 Rajab). (TBI, I:600)

But in the meantime, it became known that the absolutists had not given up hope and would not abandon their arrogance so easily. They got the Shah to change his mind and refrain from affixing his signature to the Regulations and they reinterpreted the decree he had issued. Moreover, it was heard that 'Ein od-Dawle, who had gone to Ushan, had come to Mobarakabad and it was said that he was coming to the city and would be put back in power. The people became agitated over this story and some tried to obtain a fatwa from the clergy that Amir Bahador, Nasr os-Saltane, and Hajeb od-Dawle should be exiled from Iran.TBI says that the exile of these three, plus Nayyer od-Dawle, was demanded by the people. (I:600) In general, Kasravi is clearly quoting from a different source in this section.

As a result of this tumult, the government had no choice but to be conciliatory again. On September 8 (19 Rajab), the Shah affixed his signature to the regulations.NoteRef8The regulations are produced in TBI, I:602-08. A summary of them is provided in The London Times, “The new Persian Parliament,” September 21, 1906: All Persians of the male sex able to read and write and between the ages of 30 and 70 who are not in the service of the State, and who have never been convicted, are entitled to vote. Persia is divided into twelve electoral districts, each returning from six to 19 Deptuies. Tehrean forms a separate and 13th division, returning 60 Deputies. The total number of Deputies will be 156. In the provinces the Deputies will be returned by a college of electors previously voted for by the people, while in Teheran the voting will be direct. Electors will everywhere record their votes in sealed envelopes. The Deputies will gbe elected for two years and will enjoy personal inviolability, while their writes and speeches are free from censure. Tghey are, however, responsible if they offend against religion, morals, or the public order, and will be tried by Parliament. The renumeration of Deputies will be fixed by Parliament. The President, the two Vice-Presidents, and four secretaries will be elected annually. According to Taqizade, the electoral regulations were published 20 Rajab 1324 = September 9, 1906. They were written by the brothers Mirza Hasan Khan Moshir ol-Molk and Mo'taman ol-Molk, the European-educated sons of the present foreign minister, Mirza Nasrollah Khan Moshir od-Dawle, along with the brothers Mortezaqoli Khan Sani' od-Dawle, Mehdiqoli Khan Mokhber os-Saltane, and Mohammadqoli Khan Mokhber ol-Molk. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:337, 339) See also The London Times, “The Persian Troubles,” September 11, 1906, which reports, “The Shah, acting under the influence of the camarilla at the Palace, has refused to sign the decree giving effect to the proposals” for the Majlis elections, leading to the bazaars being closed and people once again seeking refuge in the British Legation. In addition, he ordered 'Ein od-Dawle to go to Khorasan.

Thus, the agitation finally subsided. When the regulations were signed, the election of the sixty candidates proceeded. The government of Iran joined the ranks of the constitutional governments, and the newspapers of Egypt, India, and Europe featured articles about this.Document.

But the Court still had not despaired of resisting and did not consider desisting. It did not let the other cities know about what had happened.NoteRef13Taqizade recalls the following in this regard: There were still no elections held in the provinces after the Majlis had been opened in Tehran. There were suspicions that secret instructions had been sent to the provincial governors to delay electing representatives with the aim of gradually converting the Majlis in Tehran into a municipal body. The National Consultative Assembly was concerned over this and kept sending telegrams to the provinces insisting that they send their representatives, sometimes even sending a group of representatives, to the telegraph post and holding brief direct consultations on this matter with the provinces. It was this concern … which was apparently the principle reason why it was written into the electoral law that there would be a very large and disproportionate number of representatives from Tehran, so that out of 162 representatives, only twelve representatives would be considered from each of Azerbaijan and Khorasan, for example, while Tehran alone would be given sixty: In Article Six of Fundamental Laws, it is confirmed that the Majlis is given the right to convene and operate and vote if those same Tehran representatives are present … lest the government keep the provincial representatives from arriving quickly enough… Two months after the Majlis' opening, the provincial representatives had still not arrived. Aside from one person who it is known had been appointed representative from Fars by a telegram from Qavam ol-Molk and whom the Majlis accepted for whatever reason. Only in Hamadan was a representative elected due to the perseverance of the governor there, Zahir od-Dawle, … this being Vakil or-Ro'aya, and he was considered the first of the provincial representatives. I [Taqizade] was the second… and entered the Majlis in Shawwal 1324 [= November/December 1906]. “Tarikh-e Avayel-e Enqelab va Mashrutiat-e Iran” in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:273. Elsewhere he says that this rule was crucial for the Constitution's success. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:337) See footnote . The same point is made by Dr. Mehdi Malekzade (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, I:382) This is in apparent contraction with what a correspondent for The London Times (“The Persian Parliament,” September 14, 1907) writes. He says that there were three Nezamnames or Rules of Order. The first is dated December 1906 and deals with the Majlis' powers. The second deals with voting and the number of representatives from each part of Iran. The third pertains to the Majlis' internal functioning. He adds that it appears that the second Nezamname has not yet penetrated to all the provinces. The first Nezamname states that the Majlis “is to consist of 162 members, whose ranks may be swelled to as many as 200 in case of necessity.” He then presents the following table to show the discrepancies between the rules and how they are applied: – Assignment of Members as in the Nizam-Nameh. Actual number sitting. Teheran 32 52 Azerbaijan 12 10 Khorasan, Sistan, Kuchan, Ghilan 21 8 Mazanderan, Astarabad, Firuzkhuh 6 4 Khamseh, Kazvin, Samnan 6 4 Kerman, Baluchistan 6 2* Fars and Persian Gulf 12 6 Arabistan, Luristan 6 6 Kermanshah 6 5 Kurdistan, Hamadan 6 2 Isfahan, Yezd, Kashah, Kum, and Saveh 12 – Iraq, Nihavand, &c. 6 9 Zinjan 2† 137 1‡ *Both from Kazvin.
†Khwansar and Malamir.
‡Attempts have been made to expel this member of the count of irregtularity. The author comments that the table does not include three members who resigned for various reasons. The people in Tabriz, Rasht, Mashhad, Isfahan, Shiraz, and Kerman did not know that all this had happened in Tehran. The prevention of telegraph transmissions remained in effect. Moshir od-Dawle became 'Ein od-Dawle's successor and behaved just like him.But see Nazem ol-Eslam's opinion that “Prime Minister Mirza Nasrollah Khan is cooperating with the people with a full will.” (TBI, I:619) So it became known that 'Ein od-Dawle was not alone, and that others—or, better, others' agents—were also at work and holding the people back.

The Shah's rescripts, which were supposed to have been posted on walls everywhere, were not. The election of representatives, which was supposed to begin everywhere, did not. The cities remained completely uninformed. In Tehran, a Constitution had been granted and the Provisional Assembly opened, but in the provinces, the same absolutist institutions were still in place. The newspapers of Europe talked about Iran's revolution and Constitution, but in Tabriz and other the cities where there were newspapers, no news [124] could be reported about all this.This does not jibe with the telegrams from Rasht, Tabriz, and Bushahr published in TBI which refer to the granting of the National Consultative Assembly. (TBI, I:615-18) Nazem ol-Eslam reports a telegram from Tabriz which says (TBI, I:620-21): The principles of constitutionalism have been implemented in Tehran, the House of the Caliphate, and the National Consultative Assembly has been founded, and this news has been published in every city, here and abroad, and officially announced. Celebrations have been held and illuminations made. How is it that in Tabriz, the center of Azerbaijan and the seeing eye of the Protected realms of Iran, there is no sign (hich khabari) of this news …? Of course, hich khabari means literally no news, but in this context its more usual, idiomatic meaning is to be understood. Thus, although Kasravi's claim that no one had heard of these developments in Tehran cannot be sustained, it does seem that the provinces were deprived of any participation in them.

It was clear that the government had not given up and was determined to uproot this institution from [125] Tehran, too, if it could. But the activists in Tehran did not realize this and went about electing candidates, content in their victory.Note the apparent contradiction with the previous paragraph. Nazem ol-Eslam reports what it was like to cast a vote in TBI, I:619-20. The Shah still showed commitment to the law and the Assembly and denounced those of the Princes and others who did not want to cooperate in this. He kept repeating that he was for progress from the bottom of his heart, but nothing came of his words and deeds, and control over these matters was clearly not in his hands alone.

To summarize: As a result of one and a half years of valiant and wise efforts by the Two Sayyeds and their allies, a constitution appeared in Iran. But it needed another movement to implement it and carry it forward. This movement was undertaken by Tabriz, by which sudden movement the courtiers' final hopes were completely dashed and news of the Tehran activists was sent throughout Iran. We must write the story of Tabriz and the movement there separately, and so we now close this chapter. But before setting down pen, we must say a few more words about Habl ol-Matin. This paper's proprietors are illustrative specimens of those who mix earning their bread with struggling for the people, or, better, who make struggling for the people a means of earning their bread. Since there are many such people in Iran, we will pursue this example in order to show the ugliness of their deeds. Aside from this, we want to show both the good and the bad sides of the constitutional movement, to the degree we can.

When Reuters carried reports about 'Ein od-Dawle's downfall, this paper, which had said such vile, hostile things about the activists for the sake of 'Ein od-Dawle's money, could not restrain itself and wrote:

What the Reuters reporter and the foreign press wrote about the dismissal of Prince 'Ein od-Dawle, the Atabak and Prime Minister, is not correct. The Prince has not been dismissed from his post. We have reliable information that the Prince had for some time repeatedly tendered his resignation from his post as minister on his own but it was not accepted. But this time, since the clerics and the reformers were both opposed to him, the government accepted his resignation. It was not that he had been dismissed from his office.Document.

Moreover, when it was seen that it was too late for such things, they made a show of sympathy for the Constitution. Indeed, they did not stop at that, but gave advice and wrote one article after the other saying, “Do this,” or “Do that,” wanting all the while to cover up their vile deeds and pretend that their “reporters” had lied to them. More shameless still was that these people who had previously shown such support for the government and had denounced the movement of the Two Sayyeds and the rest in such a fashion suddenly turned things on their heads and wrote articles saying that every crime was the government's fault and that the government's men would not allow Iran to make progress. This reached the point that they wrote: “If it be said that there is a fault on the part of the people, I swear by His Holiness 'Abbas that it is a lie. Everything has been and is a result of the dignitaries' ignorance, inexperience, and selfishness....”Document.

[126]

Chapter 3: How Did Tabriz Rise Up?

In this chapter, the situation in Azerbaijan before the Constitution is related and an account is given of the constitutional movement from the Tabriz rising to Mozaffar od-Din Shah's death.

Tehran, as we have seen, started the constitutional movement, but it was Tabriz which undertook to drive it forward. We have brought the story up to the granting of the decree for the Constitution, the writing and signing of electoral regulations, and the beginning of the election of representatives from Tehran. Up to this time, Tehran had acted alone, but from here on, Tabriz became involved and took on more of the burden of the struggle. So we should now discuss the movement in Tabriz and its struggles.

But we must interrupt the train of the story with a digression describing the state of Azerbaijan in the years before the constitutional movement and clarify what impelled the people there to act. In the course of this, we will take the opportunity to examine a few of Iran's problems and some of its features.

As we have said, the Iranians passed their days ignorant of world events and the movements in Europe until Iran began to awaken during the prime ministry of Sepahsalar of Qazvin, when the people began to stir during the time of the tobacco concession. This process accelerated until it culminated in the demand for a constitution.

To be sure, all the cities were affected by this movement to a greater or lesser degree, not excepting those of Azerbaijan. Tabriz ranked as Iran's biggest city after Tehran and the Crown Prince had always resided there. It was always linked with Tehran and was therefore always influenced by events there and, despite its distance from the capital, it was never unaffected by whatever was happening in the capital and the people's ferment. In addition, its proximity to the Caucasus and Ottoman territory increased the Azerbaijanis' receptivity and awareness.This view is seconded by most observers. For example, Dr. Mehdi Malekzade of Isfahan repeatedly stresses Tabriz's relatively open cultural atmosphere. (e.g., in Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, pp. 158, 205)

The Caucasus and Azerbaijan were separated by the Araxes, which is [128] known there as the Utai (Anur). A mass of people—merchants, fortune-seekers, and workers—went to the Caucasus every year and would return after a few years with anecdotes about what they had heard or seen in Russia or the ways of the Russians or other Europeans. This was also the case for those who went to Istanbul.A reference to the vast literature on the subject, some figures, etc.

The Azerbaijanis were ahead of all the other people of Iran in trade and exporting merchandise abroad. Most of the trade with the cities in the Causasus, such as Tiflis, Baku, Batum, Ashkabad, etc., was in their hands. They also had a large share of the trade with Istanbul and other Ottoman cities and even some European cities.

Since the merchants took toil and travel in stride, on the one hand, they accumulated wealth and faced life with an unfurrowed brow and on the other hand were particularly informed about what was going on in the world of their times and were more committed to their country and its progress. This merchant class of Azerbaijan was capable and experienced and worthy and, as we will see, also took the lead in financing and participating in the constitutionalist movement.In P, Kasravi wrote that ideas about a better life than “the Iranian people's hellish existence” was possible were current “particularly among the merchants, among whom were many zealous and aware people.” (I:34-35). Later, (I:51), he wrote, The merchants of Azerbaijan were intelligent and dignified people and always gave the Iranians a good reputation in the Caucasus, in Istanbul, and in Europe... Being a merchant in those days did not mean being greedy and hoarding wealth. A merchant never indulged his lusts or went in for dancing or wine... He was generous and there was no good institution in which he refrained from participating. Here, too, the merchants joined hands and did great things. For example, several merchants in each borough [of Tabriz] united to found general schools, paying for them out of their own pockets. In a note, Kasravi added that most of the general schools in Tabriz at the time of this writing (the 1930's) were the ones founded by these merchants.

We have considered the general school and the newspaper as indications of the people's stirring and awakening and have noted that the primary schools started first in Azerbaijan or, rather, the city of Tabriz, and it was from there that they reached Tehran and other cities.

As for newspapers, as we have said, they were at first government organs. In Tabriz, too, a newspaper called Naseri was written by one Nadimbashi when Mozaffar od-Din Mirza was Crown Prince. Then, when private newspapers came out, it was again Tabriz which took the lead, for, as far as we know, the first newspaper of this kind was Akhtar, written by some Tabrizis living in Istanbul.Document.

If we were to discuss the press of the provinces and compare the newspapers of Tehran with those of Tabriz, it is true that Tarbiat of Tehran had come out earlier than al-Hadid of Tabriz. Tarbiat was head and shoulders above al-Hadid, anyway.Document.

On the whole, Azerbaijan, particularly the city of Tabriz, was more prepared to awaken than anywhere else.Taqizade discusses the role of Azerbaijan in his (Tahiyeye Moqaddamat-e Mashrutiat dar Azarbayjan, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:372 ff.) Part of this has been translated by Nikki Keddie; see . Taqizade's admirer and fellow-Tabrizi Mehdi Mojtahedi, writes at length along similar lines in his Taqizade: Rawshangariha dar Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 23 ff. We have considered the rebellion over the tobacco concession to be the first stirring of the Iranian people. As we have seen, the Tabrizis formed the vanguard in that rebellion, and this is an illustration of how receptive they were.

But it so happened that no leaders like the Two Sayyeds arose in Tabriz or elsewhere in Azerbaijan. These worthy men were Tehran's assets.In P, Kasravi boasted about Tabriz's “many proud clergy” ('olemaye gerdanfaraz-e besyar). Tabriz towards the end of Naser od-Din Shah's reign had the Mojtahed of Azerbaijan, Haji Mirza Javad. Few of his colleagues had such a broad following or such a hold on the people. Everywhere his word was law. The government treated him with respect [129] and the people took their lives in their hands for his sake.“Unique and obeyed and generous and kind… This cleric's wealth was great. The vastness of his estates was close to sixteen thousand tumans… There is no one more widely obeyed than he in all of Tabriz.” (Nader Mirza, Tarikh-e Joghrafiye Dar os-Saltane Tabriz, p.119) But this man was not one to understand what country and nation meant and did not show much concern for such things.

I did not see him during his lifetimeThis mojtahed died in Sha'ban 1313 =January/February 1896. (Mohammad 'Ali Tarbiat, Daneshmandan-e Azarbayjan (Majles, Tehran, 1935) and have no information about him myself, but I know from stories told about him [130] that he had no knowledge of such matters, and only wanted prestige and power. Indeed, in those days, there was the government and the shariat. That is, Naser od-Din Shah ruled in the name of the government and the mullahs ruled in the name of the shariat. Since they were always in conflict, overtly or covertly, the mullahs would call whatever increased their authority “the advancement of the shariat” and the people neither desired nor knew anything else. It never occurred to Haji Mirza Javad and his sort that the country had enemies who had to be considered, too, or that it needed laws to reduce oppression, or other such ideas.

During his tenure, something happened which increased the people's devotion to him while greatly reinforcing his naïveté and ignorance. A youth had traveled from Tabriz to the Caucasus, where he found work. It happened that he murdered someone or had committed some such crime and was arrested and sent off to Siberia. The youth's mother took refuge with Haji Mirza Javad and asked him to free her son. Haji Mirza Javad sent a telegram to the Tsar asking him to free this youth. (No one knows who suggested this.) After a few days, the answer arrived that the Tsar had acceded to his request and ordered the youth to be recalled from Siberia, returned to Iran, and sent to his mother.

It is obvious what the Tsar was up to: He wanted to win over the Mojtahed of Azerbaijan. But the people did not realize this in those days and attributed it to the “power of the shariat” and became still more firmly devoted to Haji Mirza Javad. For years it was said, “The power of the shariat in His Eminence Haji Mirza Javad's time was such that it ruled from here to Petersburg.” He himself doubtless accepted this interpretation and was unaware that what was behind it was the Tsar's attempt to win him over.

We are not criticizing him, for we have heard nothing oppressive or bad about him. We are writing about his ignorance—and all the mojtaheds of Azerbaijan were just as ignorant as he.In P, begun at a time when he was courting the clergy against the culture characteristic of the Reza Shah years, Kasravi reported that, since Haji Mirza Javad was so powerful and resisted the couriers, Naser od-Din Shah summoned him to Tehran and his son after him, and that when the latter returned to Tabriz, he died, allegedly poisoned by the Shah. It was this which intimidated the Tabriz clergy into silence. (I:28-29)

Sectarian Clashes in Azerbaijan

Meanwhile, sectarian troubles, that greatest cause of the Iranians' negligence of their vital affairs, were spreading and intensifying in Azerbaijan. The matter of Sunnis and Shiites, which had taken on a political complexion since the time of Shah Esma'il and Sultan Salim and had become a source of rivalry and hatred between the peoples of Iran and the Ottoman Empire which would always preoccupy them, was more severe in Azerbaijan than anywhere else. Because of the incessant bloodshed, killing, and looting which had been going on there since the days of the Safavids, this rivalry exceeded all bounds and caused the proliferation of a whole series of stupidities.A translation of Kasravi's pamphlet on Shiism, Shi'igari, has been published in (tr. M. R. Ghanoonparvar), On Islam and Shi'ism (Mazda, Costa Mesa, 1990), and the reader is referred to it for a more detailed exposition of the author's position on the subject.

[131] If we were to keep a record, we would doubtless find that the Iranians, who were Shiites, would devote a quarter of each year to things associated with their sect. They would beat their breasts, moan, cry, recite the story of 'Ashura,Reading ?????? for ?????. 'Ashura is the tenth day of Moharram, the anniversary of the martyrdom of Imam Hosein on the plains of Karbala in 680 AD. pray and mourn,Over the martyrdom of the Shiite Imams. ???? ???? sit around the pulpit and hear about the virtues of the members of Imam 'Ali's family,Shiites consider the Imams to have been protected from sin and error, and so they consider them paragons of virtue. and gather money, etc., for pilgrimages.Pilgrimages to Mashhad, the site of the martyrdom of Imam Reza, the Eighth Imam, and Karbala, as well as shrines associated with the other Imams. Aside from this, there was a whole series of activities called tabarra': Every year, the people would observe a festival on the ninth of Rabi' I, close the bazaars, and, big and small, perform all sorts of foolishness.The ninth of Rabi' I marked the anniversary of the death of the Second Caliph 'Omar. 'Omar was particularly hated by the Shiites, and his death is celebrated with by, among other things, burning him in effigy amid rejoicing. According to MajlesiMohammad Baqer Majlesi (d. 1699), the influential late-Safavid mojtahed “who reoriented Twelver Shiism in the direction it was to develop from his day on.” (Moojan Momen, An Introduction to Shi'i Islam (Yale University Press, Yale, 1985), p. 114.) and others, for three days, no crime was to be recorded against anyone.Document.

According to these mullahs' writings, after the Prophet of Islam died, the succession fell to his son-in-law, 'Ali, but three caliphs took it from him by force, and all the evils in the world arose from this one deed of theirs, and all sins are on the heads of these three, particularly that of the second of them. So whenever something bad happens, the Shiites recall them and curse their names. The state of a people who believe such things is obvious, as is how far they are from devoting themselves to their work and their country.

These activities, feelings of vengeance, and beliefs were more current in Azerbaijan than anywhere else.Azerbaijanis are famous for their Shiite zeal. Tabriz Moharram observances, which I saw with my own eyes (forming processions, cutting one's head, flagellation with chains, breast-beating,To achieve a state of hamdardi, or suffering alongside Imam Hosein. setting up wedding canopies,In the midst of the massacre at Karbala, Imam Hosein decided to hold a wedding of Qasem, the son of Imam Hosein's already-martyred brother, Imam Hasan, in consolation for the fact that he was too young to die a martyr's death on the battlefield and that it was his martyred father's will. The wedding takes place among the most horrific suffering and grief. (Sadeq Humayuni, “An Analysis of the Ta'ziyeh of Qasem” in Peter Chelkowski (ed.), Taziyeh: Ritual and Drama in Iran (NY, New York University Press, 1979)) dressing up like Arabs, Shabih, or dressing like members of the Prophet's Household. acting like Zeinab,Imam Hosein's sister, who was allowed to survive the massacre and, when brought into the presence of the Caliph Yazid, courageously denounced him. etc.) this is itself a long story, and to relate it would require a lengthy digression. Over a third of each year would be spent on this kind of thing there.

In addition to these evils, something strange would be done there on the ninth of Rabi' I: the people would soak each other. In those days, everyone would try to pour water over someone else and soak him from head to foot. A man would be walking down an alley and someone would pour a bucket of water over him from the rooftop or douse him with water from in front with a bowl. People would form into groups and stand by a stream or pool to seize passers-by and throw them into the water. Talabes would spread a carpet in the madrases, celebrate and make merry, and send people to drag the wealthy out of their houses and to the madrase, where they would threaten to dump them in the pool unless they gave them money. It is unknown where this activity originated.This probably grew out of the general hijinks associated with the celebration of Caliph 'Omar's death. The observation of the pre-Islamic holiday of Tiregan included the celebrants' dowsing each other with water.

Tabarra'i dervishes, who first appeared in the time of the Safavis, would jump in front of a minister's or an officer's horse or stand among the people and curse historical figures of the dawn of Islam. Some of them are to be seen to this day in the bazaars. They are known as la'natchis [Cursers].Explain.

This inflamed the Sunni Kurds' wrath, a great problem for Azerbaijan, which neighbors Kurdestan and has a Kurdish region of its own.Kasravi relates that his father, himself a mullah, felt that Shiite baiting of Sunnism inflamed the Sunni Kurds to a murderous rage, which found an outlet in their intermittent massacres of Shiite villagers. (Ahmad Kasravi, Zendeganiye Man (Tehran, n.p., 1944), pp. 11-12)

In addition to the Sunni-Shiite issue, there was another problem, that of Sheikhi, [132] Motasharre', and Karim Khani.On Shiite sectarianism, see Momen, op. cit., Chapter 12, and the sources referred to therein. There was an Iraqi mojtahed in Fath 'Ali Shah's reign named Sheikh Ahmad Ahsa'i who had many students in Tehran and elsewhere. He taught a series of innovations which aroused the hostility of the other mojtaheds, who labeled him an atheist. So [133] the Iranians split into two parties: One followed the Sheikh and was called Sheikhi, the other was called, by contrast, Motasharre' [Orthodox]. There was fighting and bloodshed in Tabriz between the two factions and the people had no peace for a long time. There is still a mosque in Tabriz called Qanlu Mosque (Bloody Mosque) and it is said that blood had been shed there between Sheikhi and Motasharre'.Document.

Sheikh Ahmad's successor was Sayyed Kazem Rashti. But conflicts erupted yet again after him, and Haji Mohammad Karim Khan rose up to claim the succession and added to the Sheikh's teachingsDocument. which Haji Mirza Shafi' in Tabriz would not accept, and stood by the Sheikh's original teachings. The result was that the people in Tabriz and other cities of Azerbaijan were now divided into three factions: the Sheikhis, or followers of Haji Mirza Shafi'; the Karim Khanis, or followers of Haji Mohammad Karim Khan; and the Motasharre', or enemies of both of factions who followed other mullahs.

There was no longer any fighting and bloodshed among the three factions in the years of which we are speaking, those preceding the Constitution, but each of the three factions kept apart from the others. They would not visit each other's homes or take each others' daughters in marriage, they had separate mosques, and they would have sectarian squabbles from the pulpit every year during Ramadan and trade insults.

As for their leaders: As we have said, the Sheikhis were followers of Haji Mirza Shafi', whose successor was his son, Haji Mirza Musa. He, in turn, was succeeded by Mirza 'Ali Aqa Seqat ol-Eslam. They had a few large mosques where they would gather during Ramadan and on other occasions. Besides Seqat ol-Eslam's family, there were other [Sheikhi] mullahs in Tabriz and Najaf.

The Karim Khanis were followers of Karim Khan and his family who, since they lived in Kerman, chose representatives to guide their followers in Tabriz. At the beginning of the constitutional period, the representative was Haji Sayyed Mohammad Qarabaghi. After he died several years later, he was succeeded by Sheikh 'Ali Javan.

The Motasharre's, who were the majority, followed their own mullahs. Of them, the greatest leaders were considered the clerics of Najaf and Karbala, whom they obeyed and according to whose treatises they worked. But there were many mojtaheds and mullahs to guide the people in every city. Some of them had accumulated vast wealth, had many servants and a large following among the talabes and sayyeds, and had set up an institution of authority against the government's. Such mojtaheds were counted among the ranks of the magnates.

Mirza Ahmad's family held such religious and secular power in Tabriz for a hundred years. It had accumulated great wealth, possessed many villages, [134] and had been firmly entrenched in every way for a century. As we have said, in Naser od-Din Shah's time, Haji Mirza Javad ruled over religious and secular matters for nearly thirty years. When he passed away in 1313 [1896], the succession fell to his son, Mirza Reza. When he, too, passed away three years later, Haji Mirza Javad's fraternal nephew, Mojtahed Haji Mirza Hasan, who had come back from Najaf, took affairs in hand as mojtahed and, moreover, his nephew, Haji Mirza Karim, went to work as Friday Imam.

These two men lived during the years preceding the constitutional period. Each of them possessed a great deal of wealth and power, and uncle and nephew were jealous of each other and even clashed.In P (I:29), Kasravi declares that “the other [clergy] had to be content with studying and preaching and were marginalized” by Haji Mirza Hasan (and Seqat ol-Eslam).

There were other mojtaheds as well, including Mirza Sadeq Aqa, his brother Haji Mirza Mohsen, and Haji Mirza Abol-Hasan Angeji.

To discuss their lives and activities would require a very lengthy digression for which we have no room here. What must be said is that they brought nothing but harm to the people, whether they themselves were good or bad. From their youth they had gone to the madrase, sometimes in Iran, sometimes in Iraq, and studied a variety of subjects relating to the Shiite sect: osul, fiqh, hadith, and the Koran, and returned, so they thought, as the “Imam's successors.”Imam Ja'far, the Sixth Imam, declared the clergy the heirs of the prophets. (Koleyni, Al-Kafi, I:24, 32; cited in Momen, op. cit., pp. 198-99) After the Great Occlusion, when the last Imam disappeared and all contact with him was lost, the clergy was then recognized as his deputy. (Momen, op. cit., pp. 189-91.) Now the evil and greedy among them would use their education as a means to accumulate money and domination, bringing the people under their power. The good among them would teach the people what they had learned and would get them to do all sorts of useless things, like crying,Over the martyrdom of the Shiite Imams, Imam Hosein in particular. breast-beating, going on pilgrimages to shrines, reciting dirges,Over the suffering of the Imams. etc., or they would inflame them with feelings of sectarian rivalry. The bad in their way and the good in theirs distracted the people and kept them from thinking about the country and the nation.

Actually, the good among them did a lot of good things, too, like teaching the people to tell the truth, behave properly, do good, etc. In this sense, they were helpful. However, their benefit on the whole was outweighed by the harm they did.

Good or bad, they never remembered that thisDuplicated ??. country in which we live has enemies who are trying to rob it and that we must be on guard to protect it and be ever-vigilant and armed. They never thought this way themselves, nor would they listen if someone were to tell them this. Many of them would consider such talk atheistic and foolishly keep the people from these considerations. So they would not permit Talebof's books and Ebrahim Beg's Travelog.See p. 49 ff. It was seen repeatedly that when such talk arose in a meeting in a mullah's presence, he would grimace and put a stop to it or say in reply, “This Shiite kingdom has a master. He will take care of it himself,” or, “The king's heart is in God's hands; [135] let us pray that God will make him be kind to the kingdom.” The only one in Tabriz who was not like this was Blissful Soul Seqat ol-Eslam, whom we will discuss later.See p. 155

[136]

The Killing of Mirza Aqa Khan Kermani and His Companions

Although the people of Azerbaijan were prepared to be awakened and had received a special impetus, they were not able to budge under the heavy weight of their sectarian preoccupations. They lived like this until the time of Mozaffar od-Din Shah, whose son, Crown Prince Mohammad 'Ali Mirza, was given power over Azerbaijan. His evil character, along with certain other events, brought the people, willy-nilly, to speak out and act.

One heart-rending event, occurring when Mohammad 'Ali Mirza first became Crown Prince, was the killing of Mirza Aqa Khan Kermani, Haji Sheikh Ahmad Ruhi, and Haji Mirza Hasan Khan Khabir ol-Molk, all in one place in Tabriz. Mirza Aqa Khan and Haji Sheikh Ahmad had a long history. In their youth, they had gone from Kerman to Isfahan and from there, to Tehran and then to Istanbul. There they learned several languages, such as English, French, and Ottoman Turkish. They saw Europe's progress and the power of its governments and, on the other hand, the chaotic state of the Orient and the helplessness of its people. They became heart-stricken over this and thrashed about trying one solution after the other. At first, like others in Iran, they were Shiites, then they became AzaliA faction of the Babi movement which followed Mirza Yahya Nuri Sobh-e Azal instead of joining the new Bahai movement. and took daughters of Sobh-e Azal as wives, then they became complete atheists and open naturalists,Generally translated as “materialist,” it seems more specifically to refer to religious modernists in general. The term was popularized by the Islamic modernist Jamal od-Din “al-Afghani,” who used his attack on it as a shield to hide his own modernizing agenda. (Nikki R. Keddie, An Islamic Response to Imperialism (University of California Press, Berkeley, 1983) Among the Islamic modernists using this name to name for their philosophy was Mirza Fath 'Ali Akhundov. See, e.g., the third letter to Kamal od-Dawle. (M. F. Akhundov, Asarlari, II:175) and finally joined with Sayyed Jamal od-Din Asadabadi and became Muslims once more, joining him in the struggle for pan-Islamism. Each of them wrote books which became well known.

As for Khabir ol-Molk, he was Iran's Consul General in Istanbul and also collaborated with Sayyed Jamal and the two just mentioned. These three dispatched letters about pan-Islam here and there to Iran. It was as if these poor fellows had caught fire and were trying everything to liberate the people.The introduction of this material here is done under the influence of History of the Awakening of the Iranians, which presents brief biographies of Mirza Aqa Khan Kermani and Haji Sheikh Ahmad Ruhi in I:11-16. However, Kasravi has included his own observations, including their relationship with the Azalis, an issue which Nazem ol-Eslam shuns. In P, Kasravi claimed to have heard about the three pan-Islamists through Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's scribe, Mirza 'Ali Khan Ashtiani Adib-e Khalvat, who had also visited them. He there describes Mirza Aqa Khan's career as follows (I:28): ... after all the childishness and confusion of his early youth, he now found the way to struggle. He abandoned wayward ideas and became a zealous Muslim and recited the Koran by heart. The flames of Islamism and Iranism flared within him... Alas, zealous youth, alas! Alas heavenly angel, alas! Alas that you fell into the clutches of black-hearted demons! Alas that you departed so soon, never to see Iran's days of happiness!

In 1313 [1895-96], which was the last year of Naser od-Din Shah's reign, the Iranian ambassador 'Ala Ala22ol-Molk asked the Ottoman court to have them arrested. As The History of the Awakening, saysI:12. he made it out to the Sultan that they had had a hand in the Armenian rebellion, which had occurred the previous year.

The three were arrested on the Sultan's command, sent to Trebezan, and thrown in prison. Since it was in that year that Naser od-Din Shah had been assassinated by Mirza Reza Kermani and Sayyed Jamal od-Din was suspected of being involved, these men were not overlooked. Upon the government's request, they were brought to the border and turned over to the Iranians. They were then brought to Tabriz and all three were executed. Vazir-e Akram was the Vicegerent of Azerbaijan in those days and was well informed on how they were killed and sent a note about it to Nazem ol-Eslam, [137] the author of The History of the Awakening, which we produce here. He writes:I:235-40. The bracketed material is restored from there.

[It is related by Mirza Saleh Khan Vazir-e Akram that in those times, people of the Province of Azerbaijan said that Their ExcellenciesVazir-e Akram's expression for the three arrestees. were in prison, ever busy praying and reciting the Koran, in complete piety and abstemiousness, particularly Sheikh Ahmad, who spent most of his time reciting the Koran in a pleasant voice. His voice was very attractive, so much so that all the [Crowned Prince's] confidants in the prison chamber listened to it and most of them wept. Since history must be true, Your Servant Mirza Saleh Khan writes the truth of the matter:]

One day, Mohammad 'Ali Mirza, who had just become Crown Prince, summoned Your Servant [saying that] the Late Graced Mirza 'Ali Asghar Khan Amin os-Soltan telegraphed with the news that three criminals were being brought over from Istanbul and that thirty cavalry should be sent to Avajaq-e Chalderan, which is at the border between Iran and the Ottoman Empire, and that they should be brought to Tabriz after they are transferred. Your Servant sent Rostam Khan Qarajedaghi with thirty horsemen. Rostam Khan lingered at the border for nearly a month, but no word of Their Excellencies arrived. He returned to Tabriz without permission. Mohammad 'Ali Mirza telegraphed Tehran saying that Rostam Khan had lingered for a month at the border and when he did not receive word of Their Excellencies, he returned to Tabriz.Correction ?? to ???. Tehran replied that the criminals were on their way to the border those very days, and that I should return Rostam Khan to the border immediately. Once more, we sent Rostam Khan to the border.

Your Servant did not know who these criminals were and what their crime was. I asked Mohammad 'Ali Mirza about this two or three times. He said, “I do not know either,” but in fact, he knew. He did not want to say because he suspected Your Servant. Since he suspected Your Servant, he did not want to say and let it be known. His suspicion was correct. Their Excellencies had entered Marand, two stages from Tabriz, as a precaution. Eskandar Khan Fath os-Soltan sent his own guard with a group of cavalry to Marand to accompany Rostam Khan as a precaution, lest any means of escape be provided.

Similarly, Your Servant was the Government's Deputy and was in charge of the prisoners in the government prisons, he did not turn them over to me. Mohammad 'Ali Mirza himself had a house near Sheshkalan. Because the government palace had not been complete, he stayed in that palace, his own house. By night, without telling Your Servant, he brought Their Excellencies in and imprisoned them in his private house so that Your Servant could not meet them and know in what state those wretches were.

In the meantime, Your Servant made the necessary inquiries in various places and prepared to have Their Excellencies released. I even gave one of the guards ten tumans and sent them pen and paper so that they could write from prison to His Eminence the Late Graced Mirza Mojtahed, son of the Late Graced Haji Mirza Javad Aqa, and the other clerics and ask for refuge and request their release. They wrote letters to the clergy and they reached the clergy through that same guard.

Your Servant very much wanted to meet Their Excellencies. One day, at nightfall, we went from the government palace to Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's house on we know not what business. We saw him alone in a room reading a book. He granted Your Servant permission to sit. He said,

“This book is by one of the three imprisoned, named Mirza Hasan Khan. He has written a law for Iran.”

He gave the book over to Your Servant. I read a few lines of it.

He said, “You have not seen these prisoners. My dear man, go to the prison tonight and interrogate them.”

I said, “I will go on this condition, that someone accompany me. You yourself stand behind the door and listen to whatever I say.”This is an awkward request. It will strike the reader as more natural to assume that the Crown Prince had in fact ordered his agent to engage his prisoners in conversation so that he could listen in on it. He agreed.

Mohammad 'Ali Mirza, Your Servant, Eskandar Khan [138] Fath os-Soltan, and Mirza Qahreman Khan Nayyer os-Soltan went to the prison. [Mohammad 'Ali Mirza—trans.] himself stood behind the door. The three of us entered the prison. We saw these wretches fresh from completing their prayers and [139] they had not yet put their shackles back on their feet. The three were conversing. Fath os-Soltan and Mirza Qahreman Khan sat across from them. Your Servant sat in a corner of the prison since I did not want Mohammad 'Ali Mirza to see how upset I was becoming. Mohammad 'Ali Mirza himself watched through a crack in the door. Fath os-Soltan and Mirza Qahreman Khan started to converse with Their Excellencies.

After a quarter of an hour, I said, “I also want to talk with you a little.”

They said, “You are Mirza Mahmud Khan, the governor's doctor.”

I said, “You see that my accent is Turkish and I am one of the Crown Prince's servants.” I took out my cigarette box and offered each of them a cigarette. I, too, took one and we busied ourselves with talking. Through the necessary hints and signs,Masonic gestures? the imprisoned Excellencies recognized me. I steered the conversation to the topic of the Late Graced Aqa Sayyed Jamal od-Din, asking, “Where did you get to know him?”

They said, “A meeting was organized in Istanbul for pan-Islamism. He presided over it. We became acquainted with participants in the meeting there.”

Your Servant talked on about the benefits of pan-Islam and the results it would yieldCorrecting ???? to ????. for Islam.

We talked a lot about this sort of thing. They recognized Your Servant clearly. I saw these wretches were about to say some things which were hazardous to their situation.It is peculiar that they would speak freely in front of the other two. Your Servant particularly tried to change the subject; I did not want them to continue with the topic. Finally, I said, “Why was Naser od-Din Shah killed?”This is a peculiar idea of a safe topic!

Sheikh Ahmad said, “They killed him because of all the things they wrote to him and gave him and which he would not accept.”

Your Servant got up. Sheikh Ahmad said, “I wish you would honor us with your presence for another half hour so we could talk.” The wretches did not know that Mohammad 'Ali Mirza was standing behind the door and that I was trying to be evasive.

I said, “Since I have rheumatism and the atmosphere in the cellar is humid, I cannot sit here much longer.”

They said, “We will ask the Crown Prince to grant us a dry room tomorrow night or the night after, so that you could honor us with your presence and we could talk for a while.”

I said, “It would not hurt if the Crown Prince would grant permission. I am ready.”

When I got up, Sheikh Ahmad said, “Do you know what kind of chains these are which they have put around our necks? I.e., “Do you know why they have arrested us?” If you knew, you would make them chains of gold and make a pilgrimage to them every day.”

I was so agitated that I was beside myself. I said, “I know. Would that certain others did.”

Such talk made Mohammad 'Ali Mirza lose confidence in me for as long as I was in Tabriz, and it did me some harm. After we left the prison, Mohammad 'Ali Mirza said, “Your interrogation was all about the unity of the Muslims of the world and scholarly.” I said, “Yes, in the beginning of an interrogation, one must speak cleverly to know the other side so that in the second and third interrogation, they would say all that they really believe.”

Your Servant left for home utterly dejected, thinking all the while about preparing a way to release them and save them. In one or two meetings with the late graced Friday Imam Mirza Aqa and the late graced Haji Mirza Musa Seqat ol-Eslam concerning Their Excellencies, we decided to get the people to free them on Arba'inThe fortieth day after the anniversary of Imam Hosein's martyrdom. and bring them to Tehran. A few days passed with this idea in mind.

Early one morning, they told me [140] that they had Their Excellencies killed that night. I could not help but immediately go to Mohammad 'Ali Mirza. Before Your Servant could address myself to him, he said, “Last night, Hoseinqoli Khan, Amir Bahador's cousin, arrived from Tehran ordered by a rescript from the Shah to kill Their Excellencies and send their heads to Tehran. I was obliged to obey.”

I said, “I, Your Servant, am the Deputy of the Government. You should have at least been so kind as to inform Your Servant.”

He said, “I did not have permission to speak before I acted.”

In any case, two hours into the night, in his own house, under the sweetbrier tree, he had the wretches brought forward, one by one, and their heads cut off, while he sat on the roof and looked on. After all three were decapitated, they peeled the skin off their heads and filled them with straw. That night, they were sent to Tehran by Hoseinqoli Khan. The skulls themselves were sent to be buried under the sand in the river which runs through the city.

The next day, when children were playing in the river, they dug up the skinless skulls from under the sand and told Your Servant about it. Immediately, I sent the heads to a burial site and made to go look for these martyrs' bodies. It became known that their bodies had been brought to Dagh Yolu and placed at the base of a wall and and the wall pulled down over them. On the second night, I secretly sent my own man, Nayeb 'Abdollah, with several others. They exhumed the corpses, brought the skulls over, performed the ablutions, wrapped them in shrouds, and buried them in the local graveyard.

[And now see what Mohammad 'Ali Mirza dreamed up for me and how he took an axe to my family! The morning of that very night he brought Your Servant to the prison he sent a coded telegram to the Late Graced Mozaffar od-Din Shah saying, 'However much I wanted to understand something of these three, it was impossible. It occurred to me to find someone who is of their ilk, but couldn't, except so-and-so. I sent him to interrogate them. I myself went there secretly and listened from behind the door. Whatever so-and-so said was against the Qajar dynasty and His August Majesty.'

[Your Servant, for my part, not knowing that he had put me in jeopardy, would sometimes write an appeal to the Shah via Sedq od-Dawle. Both Sedq od-Dawle and my other acquaintances wrote, 'We don't know what you have done that the Shah says such bad things about you behind your back.' I even wrote an appeal which he tore up unread and still in the envelope. No matter how much I thought about what sin I'd committed or what infraction, nothing occurred to me. Whatever I did to understand the Shah's unkindness, I could find out nothing until I was dismissed as beglerbegi. After a while, when the homes of the late graced Nezam ol-'Olema, the late graced Vakil ol-Molk, and His Honor 'Ala ol-Molk in Tabriz were looted, Mohammad 'Ali Mirza sent a coded telegram to Tehran saying that all these events were instigated by so-and-so, while, as God is my witness, Your Servant was completely unaware and it was he who instigated it all.See the next section. They summoned Your Servant to Tehran. After two or three days, the Late Graced Mozaffar od-Din Shah, declared to Your Servant, in the presence of Hakim ol-Molk and Moqtader os-Saltane in the Saheb-e Qeraniye, “While interrogating those three, according to a coded telegram the Crown Prince sent me, you said some things against me in the prison.” Your Servant, for his part, submitted the story from the beginning to the end to the Late Graced Mozaffar od-Din Shah. I then realized the source of the Shah's unkindness. One should not forget about divine retribution. I will write about what damage Your Servant has suffered these two last years and after the destruction of the sacred National Consultative Assembly and the bombardment of Your Servant's house in the appropriate epistle.

[Saleh]

This much is Vazir-e Akram recollection.

They said of these who were executed, “These were three Babis.” They said this about others whom they had executed, and so these three, two of whom had been known to have been Babis at some time, were, of course, called this. Even so, many people knew what happened to them and became very angry. Several years later, when liberals arose and struggled, they would always mention their names and this deed was considered one of the Qajars' crimes.

The Bread Issue

One of the problems in the time of the autocracy was hoarding. The village owners would never sell their wheat or barley until bread had become rare and dear, when they would sell it at an inflated price. This was a very widespread practice in Azerbaijan during the years before the Constitution. Most of the village owners, including mullahs, magnates, and merchants, would do this. The government, which should have put a stop to this practice, would not, for Mohammad 'Ali Mirza himself owned villages and also profited from the high cost of grain.

As a result of this, bread was always scarce; crowds of women and men would gather in front of the bakeries and their screaming and yelling could be heard from a long way off.NoteRef9The version of the History published in al-'Irfan was more graphic: “Whatever the Azerbaijan people forget, they will never forget how poor, desititute widows gathered before the bakeries, pressed against each other,... spending their whole day standing for a loaf or two, all they owned being in their hands.” ('Irfan, IX:2 (October 1923), p. 150) In P, the story of the looting of this Mirza Mohammad Rafi' Nezam ol-'Olema was placed in 1316 (1898-1899) during the governorship of Amir-e Nezam Garusi. Here he states that the famous poet Adib ol-Mamalek, who was an administrator in the latter's government in Tabriz, wrote a very long, stirring poem about this affair, which is published in his divan. (I:24) Also mentioned in this edition is the famous legend of Zeinab Pasha, who gathered an army of women from the bakery shop and rioted and looted the bazaar. In general, Kasravi notes there, this problem became the subject of poems in Turkish and Persian. (I:24) See also QAEMI, pp. 84-85.

This was a hardship for the poor people, and riots broke out several times. One of them was the bloody riot of 1316 [1898], with the looting of the houses of [Haj Mirza Rafi'] Nezam ol-'Olema, 'Ala ol-Molk, and others [Vakil ol-Molk]The third name is supplied by History of the Awakening of the Iranians, I:17. We have been unable to locate the source of what follows. Nezam ol-'Olema and Vakil ol-Molk were brothers. The former was a sayyed whose pronouncements were accepted by the people, the latter spent some years representing Iran in St. Petersburg. (Nader Mirza, Tarikh-e Joghrafiye Dar os-Saltane Tabriz, p. 241) That year, bread was scarcer and the people were more hard-pressed. Sayyed Mohammad YazdiMohammadYazdi7, who had just then arrived in Tabriz, would go to the pulpits in the mosques and hold a rawzekhani and denounce the hoarders, [141] fanning the flames of the people's wrath. As a result of this and certain elements which were involved,The Crown Prince was alleged to have been involved in this for political reason. See the end of the letter by Vakil-e Akram in the previous section and below in this section. certain people came forward, the bazaars were closed, and the people gathered together at Sayyed HamzeDescribe. to weep and wail. Amir Garrusi, the acting governor of Azerbaijan, wanted to talk down the riot by delivering a message, [142] but did not succeed. In the meantime, NezamCorrecting ???? to ????. ol-'Olema's name came up. It was said that bakers went to him to buy wheat, but he did not want to sell, and so they furiously insulted his family. And so on the second day, the people set off for his house and surrounded it. Nezam ol-'Olema and his men knew beforehand that this would happen and had posted tofangchis. They opened fire and it is said that many were shot down, but the people would still not disperse. They found their own tofangchis who went into combat and shot several of their foes in turn. In addition (to the fury of the mullahs) several talabes who were on their way back from their studies knowing nothing of what was happening were arrested and cruelly decapitated.

Nezam ol-'Olema and his brothers found a way out by night with the aid of Blissful Soul Haji Mirza Musa Seqat ol-EslamThe martyred Seqat ol-Eslam. (Nosratollah Fathi, Zendeginameye Shahid-e Niknam Seqatoleslam Tabrizi (Bonyad-e Nikukariye Niriani, Tehran, 1974), p. 17) and left with their families. The next day, the people descended on their houses and looted everything, carrying off great quantities of furniture and appliances. It was after this that Mohammad 'Ali Mirza tried to settle the matter and sent instructions to Amir-e Nezam to disperse the people. This happened in August-September 1898 (Rabi' II 1316).This story is related by Karim Taherzade Behzad in his QAEMI (p. 85) to the legend of Zeinab Pashah. See note .

It seems that Mohammad 'Ali Mirza had vengeful feelings in his heart for 'Ala ol-Molk, Nezam ol-'Olema's brother, and others and that he had a hand in this matter, seeking thereby to wreak vengence.

The people dispersed after looting the houses, and the disturbance subsided. But nothing was done about the shortage of bread in the bazaar and the impoverished people's difficult existence. These problems existed until the constitutional movement arose and must doubtless be counted among its causes.

I myself remember what it was like three or four years before the Constitution. In those days, I was grown up and would sometimes go the bazaar and see with my own eyes the crowds of women and men in front of the shops.

In years when the heavens rained and the earth was fertile and much grain was harvested, the people had to get their bread through toil and misery. Widows would leave their children in the house and stand on line in front of a shop for four or five hours for bread. Working men would work until night and make money only to return from work empty-handed, unable to get bread.

In those days in Azerbaijan, the respectable and prosperous would not buy bread from the bazaar. Baking one's bread at home was considered an indispensable sign of prosperity. The bazaar's bakers primarily supplied the poor, and it was they who had to put up with this suffering and hardship.

The bakers, protected by Mohammad 'Ali Mirza, were mean and arrogant towards the people. Seeing that the people needed them, they showed how unfair they were in several ways. First, they would inflate the price of bread and sell it dear. Then they would sell under-baked and adulterated bread. On top of all this, instead of giving one man, they would give [143] three charaks or even less. The bakers would openly say, “Let the people know that our man is three charaks.” I remember how a baker who wanted to go to Karbala so that his money would be halal would say this to the people. Yet even this was a lie and, as the people would say, “He gives even less than three charaks.”

Short-weighting was another problem of those days. Since no one put a stop to this practice and there was no standard weight, not only the bakers, but every shopkeeper would engage in this practice. But what offended the people was the bakers' short-weighting, for because of it, the people would get three charaks or less instead of one man of the bread for which they had worked so hard and paid such a high price.

All this contributed to the people's awakening in several ways. It made them despair in and shun Mohammad 'Ali Mirza, who would become the country's king. In addition, they became disenchanted with the mullahs, who participated in the hoarding along with the rest. First the Friday Imam and then the Mojtahed were known as hoarders. The Mojtahed himself affected disgust and blamed this crime on his son, Haji Mirza Mas'ud. But the Friday Imam saw no need to cover up.

On the whole, the people came closer to thinking more about their living conditions and gradually realized that they themselves had to struggle for their welfare.

The Assassination of Ja'far Aqa Shakkak

In 1323 [1905], when Mozaffar od-Din Shah was in Europe and Mohammad 'Ali Mirza was regent in Tehran, a strange event took place in Tabriz. We write about it here, although it was not closely connected with the constitutional movement, because it is related to the history and the sequence of events which would occur some years later and because it was itself an event which greatly discredited the government in the people's eyes.

The Shakkak tribe were Kurds who settled near Ottoman territory. Their chiefs seized every opportunity which arose to rebel against government authority and rampage and loot. Some years before those times, Mohammad Aqa, the head of this tribe, and his son, Ja'far Aqa, rebelled and would not desist from rampaging and looting. Nezam os-Saltane, who had become acting governor of Azerbaijan after Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's departure for Tehran, granted Ja'far Aqa an amnesty and summoned him to Tabriz. Ja'far Aqa came with seven picked men, one of whom was a certain Mirza, his maternal uncle. Nezam os-Saltane treated him with kindness.

The war in the Caucasus between Armenians and Muslims was in full swing at the time. The arrival of this news was inflaming the people in Tabriz and there was always the fear that disorders would break out there, too. So Ja'far Aqa was put in charge of watching over the Armenian Quarter for several days, where he patrolled with his men to restrain the people in the event of trouble [144]. They stayed in the city for a while and patrolled armed with their guns and ammunition. The people would stop and watch them as they passed through the bazaars and alleys.

But one day, word suddenly came that Ja'far Aqa had been murdered and his men had fled, shooting as they went, that several people had been hit by bullets, and that the city was in turmoil. What had happened was that Mohammad 'Ali Mirza had instructed Nezam os-Saltane from Tehran via telegraph to assassinate Ja'far Aqa. What Nezam os-Saltane did was to summon Qaredagh cavalry commander Mohammad Hosein Khan Zargham to his palace and issue rifles and pistols to him along with some farrashes and others and station them in the basement. He then invited Ja'far Aqa over.

Ja'far Aqa, unsuspecting, entered with his men. He left them in the courtyard below and went upstairs to see Nezam os-Saltane. The farrashes conducted him to a small room. But as soon as he sat down, Zargham, rifle in hand, shot at him through a window. Ja'far Aqa jumped up, collapsed, and lost his life.

When his men below heard the rifle shot, they realized what had happened and made their way up the stairs, shooting as they went. The farrashes fled and Ja'far's men reached the corpse. When they saw that their leader was dead, they looked to save themselves. They opened a window and, one by one, crept up, reached the roof, and fled to an alley. They took to the road firing their guns and shot everyone they ran across and so escaped from the city. All Nezam os-Saltane's men could do was to hit two of them (one in the courtyard and the other while he was climbing onto the roof.) The others [145] escaped alive.

These events were amazing in every respect and very much discredited the government's men, who had been seen, on the one hand, breaking an amnesty and assassinating someone deceitfully, and, on the other hand, acting incompetently in the face of a few Kurds. At the end of this affair, the people thought that such weakness on the part of the government would cause the blood of thousands of innocent people to be shed and that the Kurds would rampage and pillage, wanting blood vengeance.

Ja'far Aqa's corpse was taken out with those of the other two and hung at 'Ali Qapu. In those days, I was going to the maktab and went to see them with two or three classmates. All three corpses had been hung upside down.

As for those Kurds who had left, Nezam os-Saltane sent a band of cavalry after them and it caught up with them at Arvanaq. They fought courageously and defended themselves and craftily managed to take some horses from the cavalry in the midst of the fighting, mount them, and leave. This was another example of the government's feebleness.

Mohammad Aqa, Ja'far Aqa's father, used this as an excuse to rebel and wreak havoc. Since border negotiations were being held with the Ottomans and there was tension between the two governments, he considered this an opportunity and went to Istanbul.As the London Times put it (“Turkey and Persia,” April 17, 1906), in the course of a discussion of the border tensions between the Ottoman Empire and Iran: This unsatisfactory state of things has given rise to many disputes. The latest and most serious has arisen through the action of one of the Kurdish tribes under Persian rule. The chiefr of this tribe, Djaffer Aga, was summoned a few months ago to Tabriz, to answer before the Governor for the numerous murders and other crimes he had committed. He refused to go without a safe conduct, which was granted him in ude form. But when the governor had him within his clutches the temptation to put an end to his career of brigandage proved too strong to be resisted, and he and his companions were summarily shot in the courtyard of the palace at Tabriz. He tribesmen immediately threw off their Persian allegiance, and appealseed to the Sultan for protection. They represented that they were being persecuted for their Sunnite faith, and that Djaffer Aga was a martyr in the cause of Mussulman orthodoxy foully done to death by Shiite heretics. The appeal was one which Sunnite Khalif found it impossible to resist. Troops were marched into the district [around the Iranian-Ottoman border] and the convention of 1869 was broken. He was greeted by the government, received the title of Pasha, and went into action. But the Ottomans became suspicious of him over some event and took back what they had given him, and he could do nothing.We should document some of this. But we will later see what his other son, Esma'il Aqa, or Simko, did.This is related in the current history's sequel, Tarikh-e Hejde Saleye Azarbayjan.

The Armenian-Muslim War in the Caucasus

We have discussed the wars between the Boers and the British and between the Russians and the Japanese, which broke out in the years before the Constitution. The reports on these conflicts in the Persian newspapers contributed to the Iranians' awakening, wherever they were. In addition, the Russian revolution and the freedom movement there and its incredible struggles shook the people. But in Azerbaijan, on top of this, the fighting between Muslims and Armenians in the Caucasus induced a stirring and an awakening.

This war—or, rather, this bloodshed—was brought on by the vengefulness of some Armenians, although it is also said that the Russian government fanned the flames. For as a result of the defeat that that government had suffered and the tumultuous rebellions which were erupting throughout Russia, there was concern about an uprising of the peoples of the Caucasus, and the government considered such fighting between Muslims and Armenians a good thing in that it would forestall such an occurrence and preoccupy the people.Document.

The war started first in February 1905 in Baku. On Sunday, the nineteenth of that month (14 Zul-Hijja), Armenians killed a certain Aqa Razi, who was from a wealthy family and [146] himself a good youth.Discuss this version of the events briefly. The bloodshed began then and there and raged for four days and nights. Great numbers were killed on both sides, innocent and guilty, and several high and great stores of food were burned down. Finally, through the efforts of Haji Zein ol-'Abedin Taqiev, the Sheikh ol-Eslam, and some others, calm and concord were restored.Document.

But the desire for vengeance had not been purged from people's hearts. It was not long before violent bloodshed broke out once more, whether in Baku or in other cities of the Caucasus. God knows how many men and women were killed.Give the usual casualty figures.

The Persian newspapers wrote about all this. Tarbiat took the side of the ArmeniansDocument. and Habl ol-Matin and the rest expressed support for the Muslims.Document. These events offended people everywhere. But in Azerbaijan, and particularly in Tabriz, the effect was qualitatively different. In addition to the proximity of the Caucasus and Azerbaijan and the concern which the Azerbaijanis had for the Caucasus, a great many of their own people were in the Caucasus and it was reported that the Armenians made no distinction between Iranians and others in killing Muslims, and all this greatly upset the people.

It was feared that there would be bloodshed in Azerbaijan, too, but the government's alertness, some of the clergy's holding their congregations back, and the Armenian leaders' far-sightedness prevented this. The Armenians declared themselves Iranians and expressed disgust at the behavior of their own in the provinces of the Caucasus. They went to the [Muslim] clerics and turned their hearts towards them, to the extent that when Sheikh Hasan Mamaqani died in Najaf in the middle of all this and funeral services were held for him in the cities of Iran, the Armenians in Tabriz expressed sympathy, too, and held services for him in the Qal'e Begi Mosque, which is in Armenestan.Document. There is research going on about this by Armenian scholars.

And so fighting did not break out. One day in 1905, a month, more or less, before the Constitution, rumors circulated and the people closed the bazaar and things almost got out of control. But again, the clergy and the government prevented this.

One of the leading exponents of this restraint was the Friday Imam, who strove to protect the Armenians. He went so far as to offend the [Muslims] of the Caucasus, and the newspapers there gave themselves over to complaining about this and denouncing him.Document.

In any case, these events very much increased the people's awareness and activity. The most instructive thing and what everyone remarked on was the fact that in all this bloodshed in Baku and other places, several thousand innocent Iranians, merchants, workers, and others, were killed and the Iranian government showed no concern and did not even hold talks about them. This greatly offended the people and did much to expose the Qajar government's negligence and ineffectiveness.Correction ????? to ??????.

[147] In those same years in Azerbaijan, a British missionary was killed between Tabriz and Urmia by unknown assailants. The British government insisted on satisfaction and lengthy negotiations were held about it in which many people exerted themselves until finally, fifty thousand tumans was paid as blood money.Document. The people compared this event with the events in the Caucasus, where the blood of thousands of innocent Iranians had been spilled and the government simply kept quiet and showed no concern; this left the people bitterly infuriated and in despair.

Crown Prince Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's Evils

In the meantime, Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's behavior was another cause for the people's awakening and disgust. This man, who was to become the country's king, was very russophillic. A very clever Russian youth named Shapshal lived with him, supposedly to instruct him in Russian although, in fact, he instructed him in all he did.In P, he is credited with helping the Crown Prince set up an elaborate spy-system. (I:28)

His russophillism was so strong that he had a picture taken of himself dressed as a Cossack and brazenly gave it to the people. The people thought, “What would be the future of our country with such a ruler?...” There had never been anyone like this among all the Qajar kings.

The Iranians had lived under autocracy for centuries and had become accustomed to their rulers' cruelty and tyranny, but for all that, they were very vexed by this prince's bad behavior.“… all simple and beautiful youths whom he saw he would drag to his court and so many of the couriers kept their sons home… The story of that young sayyed from Devechi was famous throughout Tabriz.” P, I:23. [148] The greedy youth, for all his great wealth and high station, would take money from the people. He would take loans from people and not repay them. The unjust, recognizing his nature, sought his favor by giving him money or in various other ways, and tried to get close to him. Relying on his help, they set no bounds in oppressing the people. I present these two stories by way of example:

Haji Mohammad Taqi Sarraf, who had houses and shops in Tehran and Tabriz and had accumulated much capital, had penetrated Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's inner circle by giving him money. He bought the Crown Lands of Lakeye DizajA borough of Tabriz. [-AK] from the government, and, through this, managed to get his hands on other peoples' lands. Haji 'Abbas Lakedizaji, who was a brave old man with a young son, stood up to him and tried to keep his lands. His son beat some of Haji Mohammad Taqi's men. Haji Mohammad Taqi reported this to Mohammad 'Ali Mirza, who ordered Haji 'Abbas' son to be arrested and sent to the depot. He seized the land by force and gave it over to Haji Mohammad Taqi. Haji 'Abbas did not relent and abandon his struggle. He took the documents and agreements he had and went to the homes of the clergy and appealed to them. When he saw this was accomplishing nothing, he took some locks one day and went to the mosques of the Mojtahed, Mirza Sadeq, and others, and locked each of them, saying, “In a city where there is such blatant oppression, you must first strive to put an end to such oppression.” The mullahs answered, “We haven't the power to restrain oppressors, but if someone would ask us, we would write the truth.” Haji 'Abbas prepared a request and the mullahs each answered. It was said that His Eminence Mirza Sadeq wrote, “If seizing Haji 'Abbas' property was correct, then seizing FadakImmediately after the Prophet Mohammad died, his daughter laid claim to the estate of Fadak, which had been seized by the Muslim armies as booty and passed into the Prophet's personal propterty. Fatima, the Prophet's daughter, demanded this as an inheritance, but the first Caliph, Abu Bakr, rejected her claim on the grounds that the Prophet's personal property was to go to charity upon his death. %% was correct.” Haji 'Abbas took these letters and went to 'Ali Qapu, and, just when Mohammad 'Ali Mirza was leaving the inner chamber, he cried out loud for justice. Mohammad 'Ali Mirza called him before him and asked what was happening. Haji 'Abbas appealed to him and gave him the letters. Mohammad 'Ali Mirza, flustered, threw them away and hurled abuse at Haji 'Abbas. Haji 'Abbas said, “You are as my grandchild, how dare you insult me?...” Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's range mounted and he said, “Arrest and imprison him.” Moreover, he ordered that his son be removed from the depot and tortured in front of his father by having his feet rubbed with oil and placed over a fire and burned, and the poor youth bade farewell to life as a result. Haji 'Abbas remained in the depot until the day when, along with the other prisoners, he was brought out to work in the government's gardens. He took the opportunity to escape and reached Mojtahed Haji Mirza Javad's house, where he took refuge. There he stayed until the constitutional movement began, and he participated in it.

The second story: Sayyed Mohammad Yazdi, whom we have mentioned,See page 147. had access to Mohammad 'Ali Mirza and was one of his confidants, accumulating a fortune in a short time. This was because his uncle, Sayyed 'Ali, was a famous cleric [149] and had gone to Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's inner quarters to pray and so on during his years in Tabriz. In those years, one Mirza Hasan Khan Sadr ol-Vozara, a wealthy man of Tabriz, passed away and left behind children, big and small. Sayyed Mohammad bought one of his homes. He knew how that family operated, that is, that the affairs of the minors were in their mother's hands and that they had much money and property. So one night, he climbed up a ladder over the roof and into their house, got to the woman's bed, and somehow talked her into marrying him. Thus, he gained control over her wealth and that of her children and got his hands on the rest of the family's wealth by force, taking over their shops, bath houses, money and so forth. Since he was one of Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's confiants, no one could stop him. So it went, until after the Constitution, Sadr ol-Vozara's eldest daughter wrote about this for the newspapers and appealed to the Provincial Anjoman, which sent people to get Sayyed Mohammad's hands off of their possessions.

We will later relateThis story does not appear in TMI. the story of the hostility between Haji Mir Manaf Sarraf and the other sayyeds of Devechi, and Mohammad 'Ali Mirza. The reason for this hostility was that Mohammad 'Ali Mirza took a bribe from Haji Mir Manaf and made his sixteen year old son brigadier general [sar tip]. But when Haji Mir Manaf had an argument with someone over a village, Mohammad 'Ali Mirza would keep taking bribes from one side or another and support each one in turn.

These are examples of the tyranny of Mohammad 'Ali Mirza and his friends. For all these evil and oppressive deeds, he did not want anyone to complain of or speak ill of him. So he spread spies among the people to report to him on anyone who spoke out or complained. The people were so intimidated by him that they would not even talk about him in their own houses.

To his wicked deeds must be added his displays of piety. Every year, during the first ten days of Moharram, he would organize the tekiye.The stage on which the 'Ashura passion-play would be enacted. On 'Ashura eve, he would go barefoot among the alleys bringing candles to forty mosques. He would go to Haji Sheikh Mohammad Hosein's mosque during Ramadan, in one of the three days of ehya,A night vigil (ehya) is held on the nights of the nineteenth, twenty-first, and twent-third of Ramadan in anticipation of Leilat al-Qadar, which may occur on any one of these nights. Prayers on Leilat al-Qadar are extremely efficatious. and pray behind him.

He also printed prayer books. In the 'Ashura of the Moharram of the very year the Constitution arose, Haji Sheikh Mohammad Hosein discovered a new tradition regarding the 'Ashura pilgrimage. Mohammad 'Ali Mirza rushed it to print in his own private printing house and distributed it among the people.Kasravi's adversion to “rending the veil of decency” which is characteristic of TMI can be seen in his handling of allegations of sexual immorality on the part of the Crown Prince which is not seen in other histories of Tabriz during this period, including earlier versions of Kasravi's history of the period. Thus, in P (I:27), we read The courtiers and their hangers-on were polluted with all manner of corruption and impropriety, the least of which was drinking wine. But if the son of a merchant or another wealthy man erred and stained his lips with wine and word of this reached the village chief or chief of the farrashes, he would be immediately arrested and would not be freed until an exorbitant sum was extracted from him. Again, “he got any simple and pretty youth he saw to come to his court, by fair means or by foul. Therefore, many courtiers hid their sons at home… The story of that young sayyed from Devechi was famous throughout Tabriz.” (I:23) QAEMI, by way of contrast, mentions (pp. 10-11) the kidnapping of one Soqra Khanum, the daughter of a prominent citizen, a kidnapping which passed into popular lore, and the murder of a fajous and wealthy money-changer named Haji Hashem from the borough of Leiliabad. The author does not blame the Crown Prince for these deeds, but says they illustrate the general insecurity of life and property of the time, although he accuses the government of being complicitous in murder, allowing the murderers to go free in exchange for a share of the loot. He also quotes the son of 'Aliqoli Khan Safarof (see page 156) to the effect that the spy network sought out pretty girls and boys. Indeed, “One is ashamed to write how in every home in which there was a pretty girl or boy what a disaster it was for the head of the household. Most of the youths would rarely venture ito public gatherings until they grew long mustaches.” See also ibid., p. 83.

The Tabriz Activists

And so the stage was set for the people's movement in Tabriz. In years gone by, there were people to be found there, too, who knew the meaning of country and national existence [??????? ???????] and were aware of what the European countries were like and hoped to struggle to eliminate autocracy. [150] They gradually grew acquainted with each other and formed into a group and struggled. I knew some of them and heard the names of others. I mention here those I know of:

Mirza Khodadad Hakkakbashi, Mirza Mahmud (his brother), Sayyed Hasan Taqizade, Mirza Sayyed Hosein Khan “'Adalat”, Sayyed Mohammad Shabastari “Abuz-Zia”, Sayyed Hasan Sharifzade, Mirza Mohammad 'Ali Khan Tarbiat, Haji 'Ali Davaforush, Mirza Mahmud Ghanizade,Sometime editor of Anjoman. A moderate constitutionalist, friend of Taqizade. (Karim Taherzade Behzad, Qiam-e Azarbayjan dar Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, pp. 460-461) Haji Mirza Aqa Farshforush, Karbala'i 'Ali Mesyu,An enlightened merchant of Nawbar. Named “Mesyu” (=monsieur) because of his knowledge of French. He was deeply impressed with the French Revolution and would often cite episodes from it. He was also conversant with Ottoman politics. He had set up a porcelain factory in Tabriz with a considerable investment. He was one of the organizers of the Social Democratic party in Tabriz after the Constitution was declared and led it until the end of his days. He was so powerful that at the slightest gesture from him, his mojaheds could menace anyone in Tabriz, but he never abused his power. He died before the Russian occupation of Tabriz, but many members of his family were martyred by the Russian occupiers. (Karim Taherzade Behzad, Qiam-e Azarbayjan dar Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 452, ff.) Haji Rasul Sedqiani,The owner of a powerful and respected merchant firm in the Valede Khani bazaar in Istanbul. (Karim Taherzade Behzad, Qiam-e Azarbayjan dar Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 359) Mirza 'Aliqolu Khan Safarof, [151] Aqa Mohammad Salmasi,Taqizade recalls that he was executed during the Ashura 1330 mass executions carried out by under Russian auspices in Tabriz. Samad Khan, the Russian-backed governor, had his eyes gouged out and his tongue cut out before being executed at the age of 40. (Avraq-e Tazeyab-e Mashrutiat va Naqsh-e Taqizade, p. 383) Ja'far Aqa Ganje'i, Mirza 'Ali Asghar Khoi'i, Mirza Mahmud Osku'i, and Mashhadi Habib.Mr. Sabri, who is now in Tehran, related many of these names. [-AK]

These, along with their comrades whom we do not know, became awakened, each in a different way. Some of them, i.e. Taqizade, Sharifzade, Abuz-Zia, Tarbiat, 'Adalat, and Safarof, had acquired some education, too, and knew some European languages. They would write articles for Habl ol-Matin and other journals. 'Adalat, as we have said, had founded the newspaper Al-Hadid and then wrote 'Adalat. Abuz-Zia was one of his collaborators. Taqizade and Tarbiat wrote a magazine called Ganjineye Fonun.Taqizade recalls that 'Adalat and Mirza Yusof Khan Ashtiani E'tesam-e Daftar also worked on it and that it continued from 1320 to 1321. (Tahiyeye Moqaddamat-e Mashrutiat dar Azarbayjan, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:385) Taqizade's admirer, Karim Taherzade Behzad, recalls that its first issue came out in January 30, 1903. He adds that Mirza Yusof Khan E'tesam ol-Molk was a third writer for it. (Qiam-e Azarbayjan dar Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 409)

A group of them had gathered around 'Adalat, who organized meetings in his house where they would talk about the country and its problems.Of 'Adalat, Taqizade recalls that he had gone to Russia in his youth and stayed with his cousin, Mirza Ja'far Khan, who was the Iranian consul in Astrakhan and then went to St. Petersburgh and studied Russian. He stayed there for two years and became friends with Sayyed Jamal od-Din Afghani, who was then living there, and fell under his spell. Upon returning to Tabriz he became a Customs administrator in Iranian Julfa, where he became friends with Bakhsh 'Ali Shahtakhtinski, brother of the famous Caucasian Muslim intellectual and publicist. He returned to Tabriz around 1314 or 1315, inspired by modern ideas. There he became friends with Aqa Sayyed Mohammad Shabastari, who shared his beliefs. These two then met and worked with Taqizade and Mirza Mohammad 'Ali Khan Tarbiat. After publishing a few issues of al-Hadid, he was invited by the Russian consul to continue his work with Customs. (Tahiyeye Moqaddamat-e Mashrutiat dar Azarbayjan, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:385) One group, consisting of Haji Rasul, Ja'far Aqa, 'Ali Mesyu, Mirza 'Ali Asghar Khoi'i, and Aqa Mohammad Salmasi, held meetings in which clandestine leaflets were jellygraphed and distributed among the people. Some would struggle on their own or with one or two collaborators. One Bakhsh 'Ali Aqa, a customs employee in Russian Jolfa, joined them and sent them manifestos which Russians who were struggling for freedom were circulating in the Caucasus. He helped those of them who went to the Caucasus.

Of the great clergy, Blissful Soul Seqat ol-Eslam Seqat6collaborated with them. This man, despite his station and position as leader of the Sheikhis, had become awakened after reading monthlies and books from Egypt and other places. He was concerned for the people with a pure-hearted zeal and spared nothing in collaborating with these activists.In P, Kasravi writes that “the factionalism between Sheikhi and Motasharre' closed any possibility for him to act.” (I:29)

Most amazing of all was what Safarof Safarof8did. Although he was Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's chief spy and all the reports written by his underlings which the Crown Prince read went through him,Karim Taherzadeh Behzad, Qiam-e Azarbayjan dar Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran (p. 11), gives as the political function of this service nothing but “obtaining intelligence about the thoughts and deeds of the court mullahs using snitches.” he was a liberal and collaborated and sympathized with the liberals. He helped them by getting them out of trouble.

This Safarof set up a newspaper called Ehtiaj, which only came out a few times: when he wrote articles which displeased Mohammad 'Ali Mirza, he was bastinadoed upon his orders and his newspaper closed down.Taqizade says that it was closed by Hasan 'Ali Khan Amir-e Nezam Garrusi, the governor or Tabriz at the time (and the Crown Prince's agent), who was offended by an article decrying the lack of industry in Iran. This beating led him to enter into the Crown Prince's service as the chief spy. One can imagine that this was done to evade more trouble and thus can we understand his double life. (Tahiyeye Moqaddamat-e Mashrutiat dar Azarbayjan, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:386) QAEMI (p. 48, note 1) produces a letter by a former sympathizer of the Social Democrats who says that Safarof was “turned” in 1323 after being kidnapped and taken to Sheikh Esma'il Hashtrudi and subject to “a few hours of interrogation and threats,” an account which points to a very different dynamic.

The above-mentioned constituted a party which was awakened through awareness of the state of the nations of Europe and their progress. On the other hand, some of the prayer leaders, who ranked among the mullahs as second after the mojtaheds, were vexed by Mohammad 'Ali Mirza and his associates' inattentiveness to the Faith and the shariat, by the great mojtaheds' greed and amassing of wealth, and by the ascendancy of Christians and Europeans over the country, [152] and so they had woken up a little. They, too, began to go into action by following the clerics of Tehran and elsewhere, and some of them became acquainted with each other and banded together. It was in 1906 (1324) or shortly before that they organized a society called the Islamic Society which would meet and hold discussions under the cover of holding rawzekhanis, promoting Iranian goods, and preventing the spread of foreign goods. Among those whose names we know were Haji Mirza Abol-Hasan Chaikenari, Sheikh Esma'il Hashtrudi, Sheikh Salim, Mirza Javad Nasehzade, and Mirza Hosein Va'ez.In P, this secret society, which met at night, was described as “mostly people from Devechi, the biggest borough of Tabriz, whose people, especially its sayyeds, were famous for their pride and zeal.” It was these who were somehow able to get information from Tehran about the granting of the Constitution. (I:38-39)

Preventing the spread of foreign goods was one of the struggles of the times. Because of the customs tariff which, as we said, Naus had signed with the Russians, Russian goods were soon rife in Iran, and this worried everyone. The activists everywhere tried to prevent this. In Tehran, the Two Sayyeds and their collaborators would not offer tea at their meetings and got the people to buy and use only Iranian goods. The mullahs of Isfahan and other places were active along these lines, too. Letters of support were also received from the Najaf clergy.

The same issue was raised in Tabriz, but there, they wanted to struggle for something greater and wanted cooperation and solidarity with the activists in Tehran. While the events around the Friday Mosque and their consequences were unfolding in Tehran,See p. , ff. the two groups in Tabriz stood ready and hoped to raise solidarity with the activists in Tehran. In any case, the pressure and repression was much greater in Tabriz than in Tehran. Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's behavior there was nothing like Mozaffar od-Din Shah's or 'Ein od-Dawle's in Tehran.

In fact, Tabriz was the center for the autocracy. It was there that the great enemy of the Constitution and liberty was based. Mohammad 'Ali Mirza, aside from considering himself to be the country's future Shah and being unhappy with the movement of the masses, did not want to displease the Northern Neighbor, which he favored. It was for this reason that, although he was in Tabriz, he was not satisfied with merely repressing the Tabrizis and not allowing them the slightest room to move, but worked to strangle the movement in Tehran, too, plotting and scheming. It was later revealed that it was in those same days that he apparently sent Haji Sayyed Ahmad KhosrowshahiKhosrowshahi12, a Tabriz prayer leader, to Najaf to talk with the clergy there and incite them against the Constitution. He also sent another prayer leader to Tehran to talk with the clerics there.An entire issue of Jarideye Melli/Anjoman (I:15, 20 Shawwal 1324 = December 7, 1907) is taken up with telegrams from the leading constitutionalist mojtaheds in the 'Atabat clearing Haji Sayyed Ahmad of these charges. This is discussed in P, too. (I:34)

Mohammad 'Ali Mirza did not put much stock in the efforts by the Shah and others and wanted to do something himself to abort the movement which had developed. We have seenSee p. 123 ff. that he went to the aid of the activists by sending the Tabriz clergy to the telegraph posts to telegram the Shah and Qom and other cities. But his real aim, as we have said, was limited to deposing 'Ein od-Dawle which, as we have seen, [153]The original has a paragraph break starting the page. he accomplished masterfully: Pretending to be an ally of the activists and a supporter of the migrating clerics, he took a stand and sent the mullahs of Tabriz to the telegraph posts, and the prayer leaders there did not go to the mosques and read the congregational prayers for several days. But as soon as 'Ein od-Dawle was deposed and he was satisfied, Mohammad 'Ali Mirza shut down the whole affair on the excuse that the Shah had accepted his mediation for the migrating clerics. The mullahs, meanwhile, went about their own business. No one asked: “But what has been accomplished?! Have the migrating clerics returned or not?! Have their demands been listened to or not?!...”

On the one hand, this shows Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's craftiness and his concern to conceal the events in Tehran. On the other hand, it showed the worthlessness of the Tabriz clergy and what puppets they were.

The movement in Tabriz faced many difficulties with this harshness and repression, particularly given the activists' weakness. The events in Tehran remained hidden and the newspapers said nothing about them. The only nominally free newspaper was Habl ol-Matin, and even this had made itself a tool of 'Ein od-Dawle. The only information which reached the activists was in letters written from Tehran, and even these were read in secret.

The Movement in Tabriz

A decree for a Constitution had been issued, a Provisional provisional11Assembly set up, and electoral regulations drafted in Tehran, but there was no sign of this in Tabriz and other cities. The activists were running this way and that and organizing meetings. In the meantime, another group arose to join the struggle in the borough of Devechi. We wroteThis does not appear in TMI. about how Haji Mir Manaf suffered at the hands of Mohammad 'Ali Mirza. He was from a great family, Sadat-e ARZLARZL was a village in the vicinity of Tabriz. [–AK] [Sayyeds of ARZL], and they were all enemies of Mohammad 'Ali Mirza.In P, Kasravi recalled this movement as taking the form of a secret society composed of members of the lower religious orders (sayyeds, prayer leaders, etc.) who, unlike the upper clergy, had not been beaten into submission by the Crown Prince. They gathered under the pretense of holding rawzekhanis. (I:38) Mir Hashem, who was one of those sayyeds and a prayer leader himself, had gathered a following and gotten them to pledge not to be afraid but to cooperate and struggle.Taqizade says that he was a young man of about 35 years. He was sponsored by the clique around Haji Mir Manaf Sarraf and Haji Sayyed Morteza Sarraf. He had been an outstanding student and then abandoned his studies and worked as a mullah and went to Najaf, returning from there a year or two before the revolution. He credits him with being sincerely interested in liberalism, but also considers him “endlessly ambitious.” His prestige eclipsed clerics much greater than he, until the point that he obtained absolute prominence. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:341-342)

And so preparations were made until letters were received from Tehran towards the middle of September saying that the Court was persisting in its hostility and resistance, that the Shah was refraining from affixing his signature to the electoral regulation, that the bazaars had closed again, and that a zealous outcry had been raised. Learning this, the activists in Tabriz also went into action and decided to start a movement there, too. Mir Hashem and his comrades took the initiative in this. Following Tehran, they too decided to go to the British Consulate.

Mir Hashem sent his brother, Mir Sattar, who was an employee of the British bank, to the Consulate, supposedly to bring a message from the bank. The Consul did not give a clear answer and said, “In Tehran, our embassy accepted the people. We will see what will happen here.”In P, Kasravi writes that the consul “spared no kindness” to the petitioners. (I:39)

[154] They took this as a favorable response. They held a meeting in the house of Mir Jalil (a sayyed from Devechi) on the night of Tuesday, September 17 (28 Rajab) [sic.; 28 Rajab, 1324 fell on a Monday]. Attending were Mir Hashem, Mirza 'Ali Akbar Mojahed, Mirza Javad Nasehzade, Mir Jalil Khodavandkhane, Mir Khalil, Sayyed Razi, Mir Haji Aqa, Mir Sattar, Mir Rabi', Mir Ya'qub, Sayyed 'Ali, Mullah Mohammad 'Ali Torkanpuri, Mirza Najafqolu Khan Hashtrudi, Mohammad Baqer, and some others. Aqa [155] Mir Baqer, the son of Haji Mir Ja'far Islambulchi, covered the struggle's expenses out of his own pocket. They spent the night in consultation. Mirza 'Ali Akbar Mojahed disapproved of going to the Consulate, but after much discussion, they agreed to it unanimously.

The next day, they left before dawn for the consulate, two by two. Mir Jalil parted along the way and went to the Sadeqiye Madrase to bring the talabes there with him. When they arrived, the consul was asleep, and when he woke up, Mirza 'Ali Akbar and Mir Hashem went before him and made their request.In P, Kasravi writes that the first to arrive after sunrise was Haj Mehdi Kuzekanani and Haji Mirza Farshforush. (I:39) The consul answered, “We cannot intervene in Iran's internal affairs and we cannot accept so few of you. But if the bazaar were to close and the clergy and others come, we could accept you, since it would be in the name of the people.”

What he said pained them: They were no more than fourteen or fifteen, nor did they have any hope of closing the bazaar. Moreover, if they left, they would all be arrested. This pain deepened when Mir Jalil returned alone and empty-handed and it was realized that the talabes would not go along with him. Despite this, they would not allow themselves to despair.

At noon, Sheikh Salim and Haji Mirza Abol-Hasan Chaikenari came with several others. Those present were all gladdened on seeing them and rushed out to the middle of the courtyard to greet them and kissed their faces and heads. Then some of the liberals who knew what was happening began arriving by ones and twos. But the mass of people were not informed and most of those who were did not show courage. Mohammad 'Ali Mirza found out about what was happening and had sent informers to stay nearby and find out who was coming and going.

Aqa Mir Baqer covered the expenses and prepared tea, lunch, etc. He spread out a carpet over one of the halls in the consulate and they sat down. In the meantime, Mofakher od-Dawle, an agent of Mohammad 'Ali Mirza, came, and when he sat down, said, “His Most Sacred Excellency the Prince is complaining about you gentlemen, for he has always been attentive to your concerns. Now, again, if you have anything to declare, it would be good if you would tell him,” and so on. Haji Mirza Abol-Hasan, an old man of simple character, complained about the interruption of his pension. Mofakher od-Dawle was pleased and said, “I will issue it right away. His Excellency the Prince also commanded that bread will become cheap...” Nasehzade interrupted his speech from the end of the hall. In a loud voice he said, “Sir, if you please, what are you talking about?! What pension?! What bread?? We did not come here for these things. We want liberty. We want justice. A code of laws must be promulgated in the realm from now on...” Mofakher od-Dawle, who had never heard of such a thing until that day, was stupefied and could not answer. He said, “I must submit this,” and got up [156] and left.

In the meantime, there was talk in the bazaar, and some activists that day told whoever came, “The bazaar will close today and the people will go to the British Consulate.” But nothing came of this effort and the people did not dare move out of fear of Mohammad 'Ali Mirza.

In the evening, a few youths who were in the consulate took it upon themselves to go and shut down the bazaar. Four people, Mir Ya'qub, Sayyed 'Ali, Mir Samad, and Mohammad Baqer went.Mr. Karubi, or the same Aqa Mir Baqer whose name we have just mentioned, wrote a note from which much of this information is taken, in which he says that there were six, not four, people, saying that the two others were Mir Rabi' and Mir Sattar, Mir Hashem's brother. [–AK] When they reached the glazier's bazaar, they fired a few shots in succession and Mir Ya'qub, dagger in hand, went to the Amir Bazar. This shooting and uproar panicked the people, and since they had been primed, they immediately closed the bazaar and many of them headed for the consulate.Karim Taherzadeh Behzad, Qiam-e Azarbayjan dar Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran (p. 13), gives the names of some of the people who took refuge in the British consulate during the first days as Sheikh Salim, Mir Hashem, Mirza 'Ali Akbar Mojahed, Mirza Javad Nateq, Haj Mir Manaf, Mir Jalil, Haj Mehdi Kuzekanani, and Haj Mirza Aqa Farshi.

Since some of those who had come there were but little aware of what was happening, it was decided that someone should lecture them and explain the events to them. Nasehzade took on this responsibility and stood at the top of the stairs and lectured the people.In the version of the History published in al-'Irfan, Kasravi made no mention of the role of the consul, but says that “just then, preachers arose and lectured and explained what a constitution meant and its benefits,” describing the country's miserable condition and the dangers threatening it, inciting the people to anger. “This had a good effect,” Kasravi added, “like a torrent of rain on parched soil.” The people surged into the streets and alleys in support of the movement. (loc. cit., p. 151) In P, he mentioned Mirza Hosein Va'ez and Mirza Javad Va'ez in particular. (I:39)

Thus the day passed. In those days, the word “constitution” was not current and they talked in terms of “seeking justice” and “wanting liberty.” As we have said, they wanted solidarity with the activists in Tehran, and since accurate news from there had not yet arrived, they had not heard the word “constitution” and did not know it had been granted. But that night, the consul, who was well informed about the events in Tehran, related to them what had happened, and this is how the word “constitution” came into circulation.

The next day, Thursday, the action became livelier. The mass of people were turning to the consulate. Those who the day before had shut down the bazaar and rushed home and had not gone to the consulate were going there now. People who had not heard the story the day before heard it that day and hurried over. The consulate and its environs were packed with people. Carpets were spread over the Samsam Khan Mosque, which was nearby, and thus appeared another rallying point for the people. The great clergy, too, like Mojtahed Haji Mirza Hasan, Friday Imam Haji Mirza Karim, Mirza Sadeq, Haji Mirza Mohsen, Seqat ol-Eslam, Haji Sayyed Mohammad Qarebaghi, and others, all joined with the people and went to the Samsam Khan Mosque.

That day, the merchants offered to cover expenses and contribute money. Haji Mehdi Aqa Kuzekanani took the lead: He turned to the mullahs and said, [157] “I will spare neither life nor wealth in the cause of the Iranians' prosperity and dignity. I will pay all expenses myself out of my own purse.”Taqizade recalls that the large and reputable merchants were the backbone of the movement in Tabriz. Haji Mehdi home and returned with a large Koran which had belonged to his mother, in which he wrote and signed an oath of steadfastness, which was then sealed by many others. (Taqizade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:338) But the others would not accept this and decided they would all contribute money. So they formed a fund called the Fund for the Expenses of the Society for Justice and the Constitutionalists of Islam, which had its own seal and printed its own receipts. Aqa Mir Baqer became the financial secretary and Haji Mohammad Sadeq Qazanchai and Karbala'i 'Ali Mesyu took charge of the inspectorate.

That day, on Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's orders, the lights were lit in the bakeries and the price [158] of bread was brought down.NoteRef10According to the version of the History published in al-'Irfan, from ten 'abbasis to eight 'abbasis. (loc. cit., p. 152) Since bread had been dear and rare for years and this had vexed the people of Azerbaijan, Mohammad 'Ali Mirza wanted to conciliate the people by bringing its price down and keep them from sympathizing with the activists. The activists bread10understood what he was after and sent some peopleIn P, they are called sayyeds. (I:41) to put out the lights. They replied to Mohammad 'Ali Mirza: “We are not demanding cheap bread. We are demanding a constitution.” Mohammad 'Ali Mirza sent the answer: “I must get instructions from Tehran on this matter. I will telegraph your demand to the Blessed Imperial Presence.”

They themselves telegraphed Tehran and raised their demands. The British Consulate sent a report to its own embassy by telegram. But the answer came late and so the bazaars remained closed for ten days and the people gathered every day at the Samsam Khan Mosque and at the Consulate.

The Impact This Movement Had on the People of Tabriz

These ten days were very valuable days for Tabriz and must go down in history. A people who had for centuries borne the yoke of oppression and autocracy, knowing nothing except sectarian conflict, pointless Moharram and SafarDocument. ceremonies and such, being so unfamiliar with the meaning of nation and country and so on, and having had no freedom to discuss their sufferings or to complain about the courtiers' oppression, were now hearing all sorts of useful new things about the country's prosperity and the nation's dignity and finding themselves free to discuss anything. On the whole, they saw a very good and shining future before them and were pleased no end.Taqizade recalls that “during that week, the people of Tabriz advanced ten years.” (Taqizade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:338)

In a word, these ten days transformed Tabriz. Everyone recognized the harm of Sunni-Shiite hatred. Rivalry between Sheikhi, Motasharre' and Karim Khani vanished. Hearts were filled with hopes for mutual cooperation and devotion to nation and country. In the mosques, the leaders of the three groups sat side by side and repented of the rivalry which they had nurtured until that day. Haji Sayyed Mohammad Qarebaghi, leader of the Karim Khanis, got up and said: “O people, this sectarianism was 'to attract the dead and the sound of the mullah's slippers.'To revive dead issues and to make noise as meaningless as the slapping of a mullah's slippers. NowCorrecting ???? for ????. we must put everything aside and proceed shoulder to shoulder, in step, towards making the Iranians prosperous and of good repute.”In P, Kasravi says that the clergy apologized to the people for their misdeeds. (I:40)

The Armenians had until then neither associated with nor gotten along with the Muslims.It is worth noting that Dr. Mehdi Malekzade paraphrases this passage from Kasravi in his Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran (p. 394) as saying, “The Armenians, who had until this time feelings of vengefulness towards the Muslims and most of whom were persecuted, dissolved their ancient vengefulness in the waters of patriotism and joined the constitutionalists.” The two groups had lived in fear of each other only a few months before. But they now treated each other kindly and secretly cooperated with the liberals.

A few regiments of soldiers stationed in the plain of Shateranlu (near Tabriz)—and it seems that Mohammad 'Ali Mirza had prepared them for such days, expecting self-sacrifice from naked [159] and starving soldiers—sent representatives to the mosque requesting that they, too, come to the mosque and cooperate with the others. But the answer came, “Stay where you are and cooperate with us in your hearts.”In P, Kasravi recalled that the Tabrizis felt so sorry for them that they secured a fatwa from the clergy to contribute their zakat, or Islamic tithes, to them. (I:36) This is confirmed in Karim Taherzadeh Behzad's Qiam-e Azarbayjan dar Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran (p. 11), where the author recalls observing the seven regiments of ragged and exhausted soldiers training. He writes that these troops would survive by petty theft or peddling and that even this meager income had to be shared with their officers.

The rich, the merchants and others, vied with each other in contributing money to the Assistance Fund. Aqa Mir Baqer, who was, as we have said, the treasurer, writes, “I did not have an idle hour from morning to nightfall.” Such enthusiasm and activity had rarely been seen among a people before. In Tabriz, women did not participate as they did in Tehran. But the men showed boundless enthusiasm. Several things might be considered the cause of such enthusiasm:

First, the people's worthiness and their God-given cleverness. The events which would occur in a year or two, of which we will write later, best exemplify the worthiness of the people of Tabriz.

Second, the existence of good and pure-intentioned leaders, lay and clerical. Aside from the activists whom we have mentioned, most of whom were by now on the scene struggling pure-heartedly and valiantly, a group of honorable and competent merchants like Haji Rahim Aqa Bakuchi, Haji Mir Mohammad 'Ali Esfahani, Haji Mirza 'Ali Naqi Ganje'i, and Haji Mohammad 'Ali BadamchiBadamchi was most famous for asking Najaf whether Taqizade could truly be considered a Muslim, leading to the latter's being denounced by the leading constitutionalist mojtaheds there. (Avraq-e Tazeyab-e Mashrutiat va Naqsh-e Taqizade, p. 208) came to the leadership of the people and struggled. Apart from Mir Hashem, whose selfishness and greed became known during those very days, the rest all behaved pure-heartedly.

Third, the value and attractiveness of the issue itself. A people who had for long years been in the grip of autocracy and had always suffered oppression now saw before them the Constitution or, better, a democratic way of life, and found the way of valor and dignity open before them. They heard many promises of the country's progress and the people's well-being. It can be imagined how their hearts were becoming enlightened and how they were moved and shaken into action.

Most of this work was done by orators (nateqs). We must consider Mirza Javad Nasehzade to have been the premier among them. This man was the first to stand before the people and speak in a new way which others then learned from him. He was known from then on as Nateq.Haji Esma'il Amirkhizi, one of those who took refuge in the British consulate commented in this regard, “Not one percent of those present knew what a constitution was, but they screamed that they wanted a constitution.” (Karim Taherzade Behzad, Qiam-e Azarbayjan dar Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 470)

Let me say a little about what I myself saw: I was sixteen at the time and studying.

On Wednesday, I heard about the closing down of the bazaar but did not know its cause. The next day, Thursday, I left home before noon and saw that the people in Vijuye were in feverish activity. Crowds of people were coming. In one place, I saw two men talking:

“They've made bread cheap but they sent men to put out the illuminations.”See page 160.

“They aren't demanding cheap bread. But what do they want?... “

“They want a constitution.”

[160] “Constitution?!... What's a constitution?!... “

“Go yourself and find out what a constitution is.”

The men went. Since I, too, had heard the word “constitution” then for the first time and, like that man, wanted to know what it meant, I followed him. First, I saw a throng crowded around the Samsam Khan Mosque. The mosque was packed and people were even standing in the alleys. Someone stood up on the pulpit and spoke. I heard his voice but did not understand what he was saying. I saw others passing by without pausing. I left, too. A few paces away, I saw [161] an open house and a crowd in it and I entered.

I saw it was a beautiful and verdant garden.In P, Kasravi identified this as the British consulate in the Armenian Quarter. (I:37) People were standing from one end of the garden to the other. A young, yellow-haired akhundIn P, Kasravi identified him as the above-mentioned Mirza Javad Va'ez, later known as Javad Nateq. (I:37, footnote 1) wearing a small white turban and leaning on the banisters of the stairs with both hands wanted to speak. Everyone quieted down, wanting to hear what he would say. They wanted to know what a “constitution” meant. The akhund, with his attractive face and eloquent voice, began to speak:

Nightingales, when the roses bloom, cry with passion.

O sober one, cry, for you are not less than an inebriated nightingale.

You know that the birds of the field are speaking.

Come on, O sleeper, lift your head from the pillow of negligence.

O, 'till when will you hide your negligent head like a violet?

Alas, you are asleep and the narcissus is awake.

After reading these verses, he discussed the meaning of constitution in Turkish. In the meantime, he discussed the people's problems, the courtiers' tyranny, the country's abasement, and so on, and many people wept. I have not forgotten the effect this talk had on me after a little over thirty years.

Mirza HoseinA member of the secret society mentioned above. He agitated for “homespun” and the development of trade and industry. “God created this man with an expressive tongue and a powerful and heart-gripping voice and a radiant face and a pure heart, and prepared him for just such a day.” (P, I:43) was another orator. He also recited verses in a gripping and expressive voice:

It is we who got tribute from the kings

After we'd seized sash and crown from them.

We have gotten a crown and throne of jewels and ivory,

We have plundered their wealth and hoards,

We have taken silken brocade from their figures,

It is we who have taken waves from the sea

Not thinking about storm or flood.These verses are from a poem by Adib ol-Mamalek, from which preachers would read excerpts from the pulpit. [-AK] They had only recently been written. (A full version of the poem is given in P, I:43, footnote 1.)

Another of these orators was Sheikh Salim. This man, then and later, would speak in a simple, rustic manner and showed concern above all for the poor. He would talk about the scarcity of bread and how expensive meat was and promise that under a constitution, there would be plenty of inexpensive bread, meat would be available to all, and the poor would eat their fill of bread and kebab. He would spread his fingers over the pulpit, show their span, and say, in that rustic Turkish of his, “Kebab will cost this much.”In Turkish. These speeches of his had special merit and they encouraged the poor.Karim Taherzade Behzad lists Mirza Hosein as far and away the most powerful orator, followed by Sheikh Salim, whom he considered somewhat demagogic, and then by Mirza 'Ali Asghar Leiliabadi. He said that (Qiam-e Azarbayjan dar Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 424-425).

Mirza 'Ali Akbar Mojahed would sometimes mount the pulpit and denounce the courtiers' tyranny in that fiery way of his. Mir Hashem would also speak sometimes. Some who had been to the Caucasus or Istanbul and were aware of the progress that Europe had made would stand up and speak when they so desired.

Mir Rabi', Mir Hashem's brother, once got up, denounced Mohammad 'Ali Mirza, and rent his clothing like a madman. The people were offended at his behavior and would not let him speak anymore. [162] Bad behavior was seen of Mir Hashem, himself. Saying that he had come forth first and brought the people there, he would flaunt his prestige. Sometimes when he would leave the Consulate he had Sayyed Hadi Devechi and some youths from the area, pistols in their belts, escort him. It was then that people became exasperated with him.

And so the days passed. Here, too, as in Tehran, dinner and lunch were served to all. In any case, no tents were set up and most people would gather in and around the mosque. At night, only the lay and religious leaders remained, the rest going home.

The Shah's Acceptance of the Tabrizis' Demands

It is worth pondering why the Shah would not give a speedy reply to the Tabrizis, having decreed a constitution a month and a half before and now that a sixty-man House of Consultation was being elected.This problem does not arise in the version of the History published in 'Irfan, there being no mention there of the Tabrizis' making demands on the Shah or the Shah giving in to them. There, it is simply stated that the Shah had given “the people” all that they wanted. On the other hand, Kasravi incorrectly stated there that the Shah had ordered the opening of local anjomans. This “error” has a polemical point to it: It enables Kasravi to refer to the National Assembly as just another anjoman, “the Persians' Anjoman, or the Majlis.” (loc. cit., p. 152, note 2) What caused him to resist after all that?! Clearly there were some restraints and something was happening behind the scenes which we still do not know about. Control over Azerbaijan's affairs was mostly in Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's hands and it could be said that this was the source of the resistance. Court affairs in those days were jumbled and confused beyond imagining.

In any case, the government had to give in. It was on Thursday the twenty-seventh of September (eighth of Sha'ban) that an answer reached the Crown Prince from Tehran. He brought it, with a rescript of his own, to Mr. Rateslav, the British Consul, and wrote a letter, too. Mr. Rateslav sent a copy of the rescript and the letter along with the Shah's telegram itself to the Tabriz Society for Justice to Haji Mehdi Aqa and other leaders of the movement.I have a letter of Rateslav and the Shah's telegram to the Crown Prince. [–AK] On that same day, a telegram from the British embassyIn the meantime, Sir Sperling [reading ??????? for ??????], the head of the British mission, had gone to London and, as we have seen, Mr. Grant Duff worked as the Chargé d'Affaires, so this telegram is by him. [–AK] reached the consul, a copy of which was sent,Presumably to the Tabriz Society for Justice. too.

The people were cheered by this good news. That same day, they left the mosque and the consulate, opened the bazaars, and held a celebration and an illumination. Also on that same day, a group of leaders of the movement and merchants came before Mohammad 'Ali Mirza at Bagh-e Shomal.A garden south of Tabriz which dates back to the dawn of the Safavid era, having been founded by Sultan Ya'qub in the late fifteenth century. It was rebuilt by 'Abbas Mirza in the mid-nineteenth century to feature lanes lined with apple trees. A detailed description is presented in Nader Mirza, Tarikh-e Joghrafiye Dar os-Saltane Tabriz, pp. 167-168. Mohammad 'Ali Mirza greeted them and spoke to them, saying, “I want this country to be run by laws more than you do. If there was a law in the country, I would be relieved…” Then he discussed the story of the murder of the British priest and the pressures brought to bear on Iran, saying: “In that instance, I paid an indemnity of twenty five thousand tumans and Emamqoli Mirza paid twenty five thousand tumans. If the country had a law, we would have answered that this priest was not obeying the law and that he was asking to be murdered.” He said such things, although it is not known if he was being sincere or not. [163] Those present expressed satisfaction with his speech, thanked him, and got up and returned.

We produce here the telegram which Mozaffar od-Din Shah had sent to the Crown Prince, since we have a copy of it (Plate 45).

We also produce the rescript, letter, and the telegram from the embassy: Letter of the Crown Prince to the Consul Mr. General Consul Rateslav:Kasravi produced the following three documents from the Habl ol-Matin of Calcutta.

Mozaffar od-Din Shah's telegraph to the Crown Prince

I have signed and sealed four points for which the inhabitants have pleaded, in accordance with [164] the lofty royal decisions. I have sent the telegraphed rescript concerning the establishment of an Assembly and the execution of a set of regulations, too, which has now been received from the Royal Pinnacle of Nobility, that it be given to the inhabitants that they all know and be grateful. Surely they will go as they have promised and open the bazaar and busy themselves with their trades.The day this telegram was received, the people left the consulate and opened a council of supervisors for the elections, which would evolve into the first Tabriz Anjoman. (Taqizade, “Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran,” republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:338)

8 Sha'ban the Glorious 1324 [September 27, 1906]

The Crown Prince's Rescript

First, on behalf of the Pinnacle of Nobility, the Master of Slaves, His Most Sacred Majesty (May our souls be his sacrifice!) and on my own behalf, I assure the people taking refuge in the consulate and the mosque that there will be a general amnesty for them. They will suffer absolutely no reprisals from the government for their actions, etcetera.

Second, I, also, affirm and will put into effect the National Consultative Assembly, just as the Master of Slaves, His Most Exalted Royal Highness, bestowed it in his mercy upon the people, and it will be announced to the constituent province [of Azerbaijan].

Third, let all subjects, whether in the city of Tabriz or in the province, the realm of Azerbaijan, hold illuminations to mark the granting of the National Consultative Assembly, which is the basis of the prosperity, wealth, and progress of the government and the people.

Fourth, let them decide quickly in determining and electing delegates so that the representatives determined from Tabriz and the other provinces, having been elected, might go to Tehran.

Telegram from the EmbassyBy Grant Duff, according to P. (I:44)

The Prime Minister has informed me that printed copies of His Royal Majesty's rescript which grants a constitution and the establishment of an assembly have been sent to the trustees of Azerbaijan and the provincial governors and that the election of delegates is about to be held. You must inform those taking sanctuary and explain to them that implementing His Royal Majesty's promises concerns the government of Iran alone. International guarantees in this regard are not permissible. Say that it is certain and obvious that setting up a National Assembly will only happen over the course of time.

What the People Did

And this is how Tabriz got its liberty. After this, the Constitution was proclaimed everywhere and news of it reached every city.The version of the History published in al-'Irfan reported that the people rushed out of the consulate, reopened the bazaars, decorated the streets and shops, lit lamps, and celebrated for seven days. (loc. cit., p. 152) P is more lyrical: (I:47) The bazaars were opened, the people lit lamps and celebrated, but Tabriz was not the same as it had been ten days before. People's faces were open and laughing, eyes sparkled with joy, the people's enthusiasm increased, ancient rivalries were forgotten and replaced with kindness. Everyone strove to be good and to do good. The vile names “Sheikhi,” “Motesharre'i,” “Karimkhani,” “Sunni,” and “Shiite” were mentioned no more, and the words “constitution,” “nation,” “country,” “House of Consultation,” “newspapers,” “representative,” “brotherhood,” and “equality,” became popular. Poor and rich, great and small, all talked about the virtues of constitutionalism and the evils of absolutism. Clergyman, merchant, farmer, bazaari, all talked about Iran's future. The courtiers were miserable, seeing such a day which they never believed they would see, and stared dumbfounded and at a loss. The rules and regulations for electing representatives were sent everywhere from Tehran. In some cities, the governors were stubborn and did not let the people have their way. But in Tabriz and Rasht, the people, freed, went into action. News was sent to other cities of Azerbaijan, and movement began there, too.

The rules and regulations had to arrive from Tehran so that they could elect representatives. But [165] the Tabrizis had not been agitated in this way just to sit quietly and wait for their arrival. The people would not disperse from around the group which had come to the fore and started the movement. They had to take a house and made it into a center. Some of the wealthy were afraid of donating them a house. Mirza Mehdi Khan donated them his houses, which neighbored Armenestan and were near the bazaar and were well-located. He took responsibility for its maintainance, and it was from that day that he was known as Mirza Mehdi Khan Anjoman.Given its centrality to his History, it is surprising that Kasravi did not discuss the origin of this institution. In P, he mentions that there had originally been two anjomans in Tabriz, one to supervise the elections, the other, composed of several clergymen and twenty merchants, to look into the people's complaints. They were both, according to Kasravi, the people's refuge. (I:60; see also Ruznameye Melli/Anjoman, I:1 (1 Ramadan, 1324 = October 20, 1906)) Note: The first of Ramadan that year fell on Saturday, October 20; conventional sources put it on the day before. This is apparently the result of a local difference in the sighting of the crescent moon.

Twenty leaders of the movement were elected to sit in the Anjoman along with the clergy and lead it. People of every trade—chintz merchants, saddle weavers, fruit venders, tobacconists, sugar vendors, etc.—elected a representative for themselves, and they got to work in cooperation with the Anjoman members.Karim Taherzade Behzad, in his Qiam-e Azarbayjan dar Mashrutiat-e Iran (p. 148), recalls that each borough would have its own chamber in the Anjoman to hold its own meetings and then relay its decisions to the Anjoman itself. It was later determined that it was preferable for the boroughs to meet in their own boroughs. Thus, the Anjoman-e Mosavat met in Maqsudiye, the Anjoman-e Ettehad met in Charandab, the Anjoman-e Haqiqat met in Amirkhiz, the Anjoman-e Khiaban met in Khiaban, and the Anjoman-e Bahman met in Leiliabad. It must be said that there is no indication outside this passage that the anjoman system had any such structure, and the local anjomans seem to have been spontaneous formations.

Anti-liberalism had not yet appeared and Mohammad 'Ali Mirza and his circle had not openly gone into action. But the people farsightedly did not sit back; they did not want to give him and his circle a free hand. A strong inclination appeared in people's hearts to be good and do good, and it would not abandon them. All of them wanted to struggle for good things and take action.

Since many of the leaders were mullahsIn P, Kasravi writes, “Since it was the clergy which had unfurled the banner of constitutionalism and most of the devotion to this cause came from that quarter,....” (I:50-51) and it had been said in speeches that there would be a struggle to promulgate the shariat and no differentiation had appeared in the demands raised, the struggle had strong religious tendencies. At noon, when the call to prayer went up in the bazaar on all sides, the crowds swelled in the mosques behind the prayer leaders. Everyone showed himself to be more righteous and proper than ever and tried to help the poor more.“... and helping the poor and supporting the hungry and protecting widows and orphans took on an unprecedented popularity.” (P, I:51)

In Tabriz, there is a lane called Qarechilar Kuchesi [Gypsy Lane] where a band of gypsies (qarechilar) camped. They were minstrels by profession, the men playing the tambourine and singing, their sons dancing. This was considered sinful. Moreover, their houses were always the scene of bad deeds where obashes like the court farrashes and others would gather and get drunk and rowdy. The gypsies were therefore prevented from working: Some were expelled from the city and some repented and shaved their heads.

Beard-shaving was considered a sin, and no one except for courtiers and some of the obashes did this. During those first days, the barbers convened a meeting and promised each other that from then on, they would shave no beards. They composed a jingle about this: “Beard shaving has stopped.” Molla Nasr od-Din would often make fun of this and published a cartoon about the meeting of the barbers of Tabriz.The cartoon appeared in Molla Nasr od-Din II:9, Safar 8, 1325 [March 23, 1907], p. 8. Titled, “The barber's miting in Tabriz,” it features a beardless, mustachioed Tabrizi haranguing a bearded crowd, declaring, “Comrades! You see that, thank God, we have been given freedom. So from now on, whoever shaves a Muslim's face is a traitor to his nation, his country, and the shariat.” An accompanying picture shows a Muslim with a shaved head and a full beard examining himself admiringly in the mirror.

[166] As we have said, purchasing bread was one of the problems of the time of the autocracy. Women and men would always crowd in front of the bakeries and scream. But now there was plenty of bread throughout the city. These days, only two or three customers would be seen in front of any store. Before [167] the Constitution, bread sold at one man (a thousand mesghal) for two qeran and, as we have said, instead of one man, three charaks or even less would be given. Now the price fell to eight 'abbasis and no one was short-weighted.See note . Some bakers, after a few months, said they needed a subsidy, but one of them, Mir Ja'far Khiabani and his son, Mir Hashem (who later became a mojahed squad leader and died in battle), came forth and said that they were making a profit and needed no aid; the other bakers, then, became too embarrassed to press their claim. (P, I:48)

Short-weighting, which was considered another problem, had now completely disappeared. Every shopkeeper behaved properly and even if someone wanted to do otherwise, he would not dare out of fear of the people.

The rivalry between Sheikhi, Motasharre', and Karim Khani was abandoned, as well as that between Sunni and Shiite, and there was no one who dared mention such things. The tabbara'is or la'natchis utterly vanished.

There already were general schools in Tabriz. But now, people showed more of an interest in them. The wealthy set up a meeting in every borough and discussed setting up general schools. Some even hoped to form a “company” and found a factory.

In the meantime, some of the leaders of the activists—Blissful Souls Karbala'i 'Ali Mesyu, Haji Rasul Sedqiani, Haji 'Ali Davaforush, Sayyed Hasan Sharifzade, Mirza Mohammad 'Ali Khan Tarbiat, Ja'far Aqa Ganje'i, Aqa Mir Baqer, Mirza 'Ali Asghar Khoi'i, Aqa Taqi Shoja'i, Aqa Mohammad Sadeq Khamene, and Sayyed RezaThere were twelve in all, but we do not know the name of one of them. [–AK]—set up a secret organization called the Secret Center and did something more valuable: they organized a group called Mojahed.This “Secret Center” is the object of much speculation in the literature on the constitutionalist revolution. It first makes its appearance in this edition of Kasravi's History. It is worth noting that when the subject of military training is next raised (page xxx), it is the Anjoman which is credited with giving the orders for this. See later in this note. Karim Taherzadeh Behzad, in his Qiam-e Azarbayjan dar Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran (p. 45 ff.), reproduces a letter by a sympathizer of this party, Hosein Aqa Feshangchi, who was a money-changer in the bazaar during the constitutional period and, like some money-changers of those days, also dealt in side-arms, and who later became the editor of Tabriz. He identifies the Secret Center with the Social Democrats led by 'Ali Mesyu. He writes that it is said that the Center included Haj Rasul Sedqiani, Haj 'Ali Davaforush, Yusof Khazduz, Haj 'Ali Taqi Ganje'i, Mir 'Ali Akbar Sarraj, Hakkakbashi, and others. He writes that these Social Democrats were organized in a cell structure ultimately run from the party center in the Caucasus and would meet in a dark room lest they recognize each other. He gives graphic descriptions of the tortures endured by party members captured by the farrashes. He gives the number of these martyrs as not less than a hundred. He gives as examples 'Ali Mesyu, Yusof Khazduz, Sheikh Salim, Hosein Khan Baghban, Mohammad Sadeq Khan Charandabi, Musa Khan (the author's nephew), Haj Mohammad Mirab, Mirza Aqa Bala “Maktabdar”, Mullah Hamze Khiabani, Mohamad Sadeq Khan Charandabi, Mirza Ghafar Va'ez Charandabi, Mir 'Ali Akbar Leiliabadi, Sheikh ol-Eslam Sheshkalani, Mir 'Ali Akbar Veijuye'i, Hasan Aqa Charandabi, and a number of others who had fled to the Caucasus and returned to Tabriz and were known as the Mojaheds of the Caucasus. He adds that most of the families of these martyrs were also annihilated. Other members are said to have been Mashhadi Mohammad 'Ali Nateq Darughe, Taqiev, 'Ali Akbar Khan (the brother of the editor of Molla Nasr od-Din), Mashhadi Esma'il (the killer of Shoja'-e Nezam), Asad Khan, Sadeq 'Amuoghli, Bala Hasan Vadad Beik (killed in the night raid on 'Ein od-Dawle's base in Basmenj). He gives the particulars of the founding of this party and dates its foundation at 1322. He claims that the party effectively dissolved itself into Sattar Khan's military organization after the bombardment of the Majlis. He later (p. 63 ff.) discusses his own induction into the Social Democrats, which he again conflates with the Secret Center. What is notable about the induction is that there was no discussion of the political program of the organization, only the need for utter secrecy and obedience upon pain of death. Of the eleven people in his cell, whom he names, eight were martyred in the fighting, and all the rest (including the author) were wounded. On the other hand, Taherzade Behzad does not give the impression that his fedais were much of a fighting force. He writes that in their inexperience, they one night mistook some trees for Rahim Khan's army and ignited a massive volley on the constitutionalist side, and in another “engagement” mistook the approach of a milkman for that of Rahim Khan's cavalry. (ibid., pp. 71-73) The first reference to military drill in Anjoman is in I:67 (6 Rabi' I, 1325 = April 19, 1907), under the headline, “A Zealous and Polite Outcry”: In several boroughs of Tabriz, zealous youths and men from among the people have been gathering on Fridays in the afternoon and on other days two hours before dusk outside of town, with specialized and sound training, busy with military drill for a jihad, which is one of Islam's obligations. There are two or three military instructors who have shown their zeal by drilling them according to the laws of military practice. They have ordered that there be no shooting without permission of the military instructors, which might otherwise lead to property damage and cause talk. Your Servant went to witness this and saw that they were drilling in a very orderly fashion and on a sound basis. Indeed, one could say that the zealous people of Iran are very much prepared for progress. The author closes by saying that, at this rate, the Iranians will have several well-trained and well-armed armies in the space of two years. The next reference appears in I:75 (23 Rabi' I, 1325 = May 6, 1907), where a band of mojaheds from Devechi held a military parade at the home of one Mohammad Baqer, who seems to be a sponsor of this military activity (see below). They had one drill master, described as learned in the military arts. Their uniforms were white blouses and pants made of Iranian fabric, with white sheepskin hats. This parade inspired excitement among the spectators and caused the author of the article to ask the Shah to be kind to his people, who have repaid his guidance so handsomely, and said that the treacherous ministers will feel miserable when they see that Iran will no longer tolerate their absolutism and oppression. The author made a speech that day in honor of the birth of the Prophet. One of the mojaheds, Kerbala'i Mohammad Ja'far, made a speech in Turkish which the author related. After saying that Iran has arisen from the dead, much to the dismay of its enemies, he continued: These zealous youths and mojaheds, who are prepared to lose their all, even their lives, have undertaken this arduous task for the sake of the country and to spread the shariat of the Prophet (upon whom be blessings and peace!), and have therefore busied themselves with learning the science of jihad, which is an obligation of Islam, lest it occur to the traitors and absolutists that this movement is a joke or a whim or that they have dressed in military uniforms and learned the science of jihad so that (God forbid!) they rebel against the dynasty and the people (We take refuge with God [from that]!). Rather, we are all guildsmen and craftsmen of the bazaar and of our noble people who are striving for the sake of the country and to raise the banner of His Imperial Majesty, the King of Islam, and for the progress of the realm and the advancement of the Constitution. O God, protect the Crowned Father of we the Iranians, His Imperial Majesty Mohammad 'Ali Shah (May God immortalize his reign!) from calamity, and may he be kind and generous to his subjects, who are as his children, and make him succeed in strengthening and advancing the sacred great National Consultative Assembly and disseminating the just commandments [of Islam]. May He grant well-being and support to the honorable representatives of the sacred Assembly, who have gathered in the capital, Tehran, from all regions and realms of Iran and are busy improving the affairs of the dynasty and the people. May He make the members of the blessed Anjoman ever victorious and strong and be kind to the poor and the weak and eliminate the absolutists and the traitors and the oppressors. This speech obtained a hearty “Amen” from those present. Mo'in ot-Tojjar, an Anjoman representative from Savojbolagh, offered 20 tumans to the mojaheds. The mojaheds at first turned this money down, never having, as they said, taken money from anyone and, besides, being all honorable guildsmen and craftsmen; however, seeing that this merchant prince was offended, they agreed to accept the offer to keep the peace. In that issue, it is also recommended to the Anjoman by an anonymous figure that they go and view the military drill being held in Lailabad. A statement in I:79 (29 Rabi' I = May 12, 1907) by the above-mentioned Mohammad Baqer that military drill in Lailabad, Cheharandab, and Ahrab had been started a month before, i.e., in mid-April, would seem to contradict Kasravi's assertion that it had begun the previous winter. Drill was to be held twice a week, on Tuesday and on Friday. Moreover, people who practiced target shooting at unauthorized places were to be severely punished.

These were deeds which were done immediately after leaving the sanctuary. We will write about what came of them.

The House of Consultation's Opening

In the meantime, the House of Consultation was founded in Tehran. We saidSee page 157. that the Provisional Assembly wrote up electoral regulations, sent them for the Shah's signature, and started the election of representatives in Tehran in accordance with them.

These electoral regulations divided the people into six estates: Princes and Qajars, clerics and talabes, magnates, merchants, landlords and farmers, and guildsmen. Each estate was to choose its own representatives, sixty in all, for Tehran:

The princes and Qajars were to choose four; the clerics and talabes, four; the merchants, ten; the landlords and farmers, ten; and the guildsmen, thirty-two. So most of the representatives had to be from among the bazaaris and guildsmen, and we will see that there were many of them in the first Assembly [Majlis].

While the movement was beginning in Tabriz and these events were occurring, they were trying to elect representatives in Tehran, [168] and the movement in Tabriz accelerated this process. Many of those who were equivocating and had stood on the sidelines became resolved and went into action.

The Majlis was to open on Sunday, October 7 (18 Sha'ban), and the election of representatives was ended by then. The following were elected:

From the princes and Qajars: Asadollah Mirza, Yahya Mirza, Haji Amjad os-Soltan, Mo'azzam ol-Molk.

From the clerics and talabes: Aqa Mirza Mohsen (brother of Sadr ol-'Olema), Haji Sheikh 'Ali Nuri, Mirza Taher Tonakaboni, Haji Sayyed Nasrollah Akhavi.

From the merchants: Haji Hosein Aqa Amin oz-Zarb, Haji Sayyed Morteza Mortezavi,Taqizade refers to him as “Haji Mirza Ahmad.” (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:347) Haji Mohammad Esma'il Maghaze, Haji Mo'in ot-Tojjar Bushehri, Mirza Mahmud Esfahani, Haji Mohammad 'Ali Shalforush, Haji Mohammad Taqi Shahrudi, Vosuq od-Dawle, Mohaqqeq od-Dawle, Mokhber ol-Molk.

From among the magnates:Elsewhere called “the landlords and cultivators.” This class “must own land to the value of at least one thousand tomans (about £ 200). (The London Times, “The Persian Parliament,” September 14, 1907) Sani' od-Dawle, Nasr os-Soltan, Sadiq Hazrat, Ehtesham os-Saltane, Sa'd od-Dawle, Hasan 'Ali Khan (son of Mokhber od-Dawle), Moshar ol-Molk, 'Awn od-Dawle, Dabir os-Soltan, Haji Sayyed Baqer Akhavi, Sayyed ol-Hokema.We have taken this from Habl ol-Matin and, as can be seen, there is one extra. There should have been ten, but eleven are mentioned. [-AK] Document

From the guildsmen: Mirza Mahmud Ketabforush, Haji Mirza Ebrahim Khayyatbashi, Haji Sayyed Ebrahim Harirforush, Sheikh Hosein Saqatforush, Haji Mohammad Ebrahim Vares, Mullah Hasan Vares, Haji Mohammad Taqi Bonakdar, Dr. Sayyed Valiollah Khan, Amin ot-Tojjar Kordestani, Haji Sayyed Aqa Tirforush, Haji Mirza Ahmad Zargarbashi, Haji Sheikh Esma'il Bolurforush, Mashhadi Baqer Baqqal, Sheikh Hasan 'Alaqeband, Ostad Hasan Me'mar, Sayyed Hosein Borujerdi, Sheikh Hosein 'Ali, Aqa Hoseinqoli, Haji 'Abbas 'Ali, Haji 'Abdol-Vahhab, Haji 'Ali Akbar Polawpaz, Ostad Gholam Reza Yakhdansaz, Haji Sayyed Mohammad Sa'atsaz, Haji Sayyed Mohammad Baqer, Sayyed Mohammad Taqi Harati, Sayyed Mostafa Samsar, Sayyed Mehdi Dallal.We have taken this from Habl ol-Matin and the book History of the National Assembly of Iran. As can be seen, it a few names short. [-AK]

From the Zoroastrians: Arbab Jamshid.

In this list, what must be well noted are names like Vosuq od-Dawle, Mokhber ol-Molk, and other bearers of title. They were men of renown and some of them were aware of world events and were considered competent. We ask: Did they care about the country and the nation and support the Constitution?... If so, then why had they not cooperated in the struggles of the Two Sayyeds and their allies for the Constitution or show not the slightest support in those difficult days [169] ?! If they were not supporters of the Constitution, then why were they now willing to agree to be representatives for the Majlis? Obviously there were other hopes in their hearts, or they were after nothing but their own benefit.

On the other hand, the names of Mashhadi Baqer Baqqal Baqqal73 Baqqal43[Grocer] and Haji 'Ali Akbar Polawpaz [Rice-cooker] are also worth noting. What was to come of such ignorant people?!NoteRef15Taqizade recalls, in a series of talks given on 29 Dey and 6 and 13 Bahman 1337 (= January 19 and 26 and February 2, 1959) Mashhadi Baqer Baqqal as having single-handedly stood up to the clergy who, instigated by the Shah, wanted to impose the shariat on the Constitution's law. Just when it seems that the Court was going to get its way, from a corner of the Majlis came the cry from Mashhadi Baqer Baqqal, who said, “Your Holinesses! May I be your sacrifice! We grime-collared common folk don't understand all these Arabic expressions, they just don't penetrate. We have exhausted ourselves to the point of death and gotten the Constitution. Now you want to sacrifice it and give it up. We won't submit to this!” (Tarikh-e Avayel-e Enqelab va Mashrutiat-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:289 and “Lafz-e Mashrute,” republished in ibid., p. 394, in which it is explained that the clergy backed off at this point because they did not want to alienate the craftsmen.) Just when the control of affairs had been taken out of the courtiers' clutches and has fallen into the people's hands, there should have been competent and experienced men to take office. We do not, like Naser ol-Molk, say that it was too early for Iran to have a constitution. If Iran had remained under absolutist repression, it would always have been too soon for a constitution. We do say that the movement was immature.See Kasravi's comments in al-'Irfan reported in note . At that time, there should have been a leadership which could have conveyed in words and in writing a truer meaning of constitution, the way to govern a country, and the nature of Iran's problems, and bring forth suitable and competent people from among the Iranians [170]. Such a leadership did not exist. This was not the task of the Two Sayyeds, who had brought the movement forward. Others, who could have done this, more or less, lacked the loftiness of thought to rise to this task pure-heartedly. Every one of them, each in a different way, pursued his own interests. This was one of the Iranian movement's shortcomings, and we will see that the arrival of representatives from the provinces did not eliminate it. No such leadership emerged from among them, either.

This is an example of the Iranians' immaturity: They had struggled for a long time to take the control over the country's affairs from the members of the Court who were only interested in their personal pleasure or profit. Now that they had won, these same courtiers were coming forth in different guises and the people admitted them among themselves and returned control over the country's affairs to them and did not even realize what harm this would do.

As for the Majlis' opening: Late Sunday afternoon, all the ministers, ambassadors, consuls, and many grandees gathered in the Golestan Palace in official garb. The Two Sayyeds and other mojtaheds of Tehran and all the elected representatives were present, too. They wheeled the Shah in on a wheel-chair since he had a sore foot. Nezam ol-Molk read the speech which had been prepared for the opening in the Shah's place. When he finished, music was played while cannons shot one hundred and ten shells from Battery Square.

The Shah's speech was printed in the newspapers. We do not produce it here because of its length.Find it.

After the reception was adjourned, the ambassadors, consuls, etc., dispersed. The representatives returned to the Military Academy (the very site of the Provisional Assembly) and, since night was approaching, dispersed after a little discussion. An illumination was held that night in Tehran and other cities on the occasion of the opening of the Iranian parliament and news of this opening was spread everywhere.

The next day, Monday, the representatives reconvened. They elected Sani' od-Dawle as president, Vosuq od-Dawle as First Vice-President, and Amin oz-Zarb as Second Vice-President. Since Internal Regulations had to be written, they nominated some of the representatives to draft them. At the same time, they also drafted a Fundamental Law. (It is said that Moshir ol-Molk and Mo'tamen ol-Molk, sons of the Prime Minister, were drafting, or, better, translating it.)

Two or three more meetings were convened in that same Military Academy, and since they had written a letter requesting the Shah to find a place for the Assembly, upon his decree, they took the Beharestan Palace, which Blissful Soul Haji Mirza Hosein Khan Sepahsalar had constructed in the courtyard of his own mosque and academy, as the site of the Majlis, and sessions were held there.

The representatives were inexperienced and few. There were no chairs and tables in that palace and everyone sat on the ground. Having nothing else to discuss, they talked about meat and bread in Tehran until, after a while, the Majlis ran out of steam. But we will see it [171] would liven up bit by bit.Taqizade writes that the Majlis was a feeble body for its first two months. It was the arrival of Sa'd od-Dawle from his exile which enlivened it. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:344) The same point is made by Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, who emphasizes how the Majlis members were waiting for him to come and write the law for them, he being the master and they being his apprentice. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, pp. 391-392) We produce here the impression the Majlis' functioning made after it was more established by an “occasional correspondent” of The London Times (“The Persian Parliament,” September 14, 1907) . He writes, Entering by a gate, above which is the inscription, Dar ush Shuara-i-Milli-Iran [sic; Shuara = poets (!) should read Shora] … one passes the Persian Cossack sentries to find himself in a well-kept garden, where in front of the Assembly House is usually gathered a miscellaneous collectgion of persons from various parts, mainly the northern provinces. These are interested countrymen who have failed to provide themselves with the necessary ticket of admission to a sitting, and who wait patiently to see the members and officials pass in and out. The possessor of a pass … makes his way to the main entrance of the building, and ascending the first flight of the broad, well-carpeted staircase is confronted by an official who tears off and retains half the ticket. At the summit of the second flight a Cossack takes the other half, and the visitor is free to enter the hall, the door of which stands open before him. After describing the imposing physical layout, he continues with the Majlis itself. One is struck at once by the large proortion of the priestly class, as opposed to the commercial classes represented; and one is still more surpised to learn that it is this section of the Assembly that was at first most enthusiastic in advocating religious equality and extension of the franchise to people of all sects and religions. When the President has taken his place before his diminutive table the business of the day commences. Proceedings begin with the reading of the minutes of the preceding meeting by one of the official munshis [secretaries], whose task it is to record and recite all such matters. After correspondence has been read the meeting is ready for the discussion of whatever matter has been announced by the President as the day's business. Any member who wishes to speak makes a sign, whereupon the President rings a handbell calling his colleagues to attention. The meetings are not marked by any of those violent scenes which occur from time to time in European Assemblies. As a rule the afternoon passes with the utmost order and decorum, the discussions proceeding quiety while the listening members smoke their water pipes. The Assembly has not yet divided itself into parties, nor, in the opinion of the more observant Persians, is it very likely to do so, for so far all possible aspects of every question have been fully discussed by individual members. Moreover, they appear to have exhausted their cooperative faculties in uniting themselves in a Parliamentary body, and their inherent egoism urges them to insist upon their individuality in every discussion… The President has his duties set forth in a very definite code of rules detailed in the second Nizam-Nameh, which are to the number of 15, of which the following are the principal. He determines the times of meeting and breaks up the sitting at his option, orders all motions which require that procedure to be put to the vote, and proclaims the results, appoints and discharges all minor officials, suspends unruly members, revises the reports of the official munchiss whch are prepared for the newspapers, controls receipts and expenditure, and is the only channel through which the Assembly can communicate with the Shah or the Government. He may not himself enter into any discussion, unless e resigns his place temporarily to one of his assisntants. He is, in fact, the official representative of the Shah; and his influence and power to restrain the measures of the Mejliss are considerable. The powers of the Mejliss as determined in the first Nizam-Nameh are detailed ina a number of clauses, which, among the usual functions of a representative body, grant the power to sanction or prohibit concessions and public companies, to accept or refuse loans, interior or foreign, to sanction roads and railways, to admonish incompetent or dishonest Ministers and demand their dismissal from the shah, who undertakes to grant their request immediately on production of proof of culpability by the Assembly. Up to the present they have exercised two of these powers—when the Governor of Khurasan was dismissed at their urgent request, and in the matter of a paper manufacturing company in Resht which they have sanctioned.

Driving Mir Hashem and the Friday Imam out of Tabriz

We return to Tabriz. As we said, the people did not sit back and the leaders of the movement kept struggling. In the meantime, Mir Hashem displayed some amazing behavior. This man, who had been an unassuming prayer leader, now developed ambitions for leadership, saying he had taken the lead and created the movement, and would behave arrogantly towards all. As we have said, such misbehavior could be seen on his part since the days of the sanctuary in the British consulate, for whenever he would leave, he had a group of sayyeds and youths from Devechi with pistols in their belts escort him and he traveled in such a way that you would say that he was a beglarbegi. He considered the relief fund which had been set up to meet the expenses of the people taking sanctuary to be his personal treasury and would write checks from it. He met with the consul by himself and placed no merit in anyone else. After the sanctuary ended, he became worse, and would go see the Crown Prince by himself and have meetings with him.Regarding what follows, we note that in P, Kasravi prefaces this conflict by blaming Iran's conflicts generally on his then current bête noir, the Europeanizers. (I:55-56)

This behavior of his made people suspicious. It was said that Mir Hashem took money from the Crown Prince100 ashrafis. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:342) and had promised him to work to uproot the movement's institutions. It was said, “The Crown Prince was told that whoever got a camel on the roof could get it down.” He shortsightedly considered as his own creation the movement which was the result of the efforts of hundreds, and he hoped to shut it down.According to the constitutionalist activist Haji Esma'il Amirkhizi, Mir Hashem turned because he was honestly overawed by the government's power. (Karim Taherzade Behzad, Qiam-e Azarbayjan dar Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, pp. 477-479)

The liberals were very offended, but out of respect for the people of Devechi and out of fear of Mir Hashem's followers' pistols, they said nothing. Then on October 16 (27 Sha'ban), when a meeting of the Anjoman was organized, Mirza Hosein Va'ez turned to the tradesmen's representatives and, without naming Mir Hashem, recounted his misbehavior and denounced him. But while he was talking, Mir Hashem MirHashem66arrived with his gang, entered the meeting, and sat down. He realized that Mirza Hosein was denouncing his deeds in his talk and screamed at him. Just then, Mir Hashem's brothers and other members of his household poured in and thoroughly beat Mirza Hosein. The rest either fled or were frightened into silence.Taqizade writes that Mir Hashem was offended that the preacher had not submitted to him before speaking. He adds that his followers fired pistols in the crowd. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:342)

This further incensed the people. The next day,28 Sha'ban 1324 = October 17, 1906. (Qiam-e Azarbayjan va Sattar Khan) a group of liberals gathered at the mosque, closed down the bazaar, brought mullahs and others there, and insistently called for driving Mir Hashem out of the city. Mir Hashem MirHashem119dared not resist and left the city for Tehran.

This was the first breech in the Tabriz movement. For as a result of it, the people of Devechi, who were numerous and had been brave and persistent in their struggles and who had taken the first step in the movement, withdrew for the most part and gradually became its enemies. We will see what kind of damage resulted from this division.NoteRef11In the version of the History published in al-'Irfan, Kasravi took the opportunity to editorialize that it is a law of history that revolution is followed by disturbances, and “disturbances among a people increase when it embarks on revolution before it has prepared itself and educated its public and readied it for the new life. The Iranian revolution was twisted around and the Constitution was granted before its time, and so many disturbances and troubles followed it. How truly it is said that the people of Iran had built the ceiling before they strengthened the pillars.” The Mir Hashem affair was the first of these crises. (loc. cit., p. 153)

[172] In the meantime, the electoral regulations and their instructions arrived from Tehran. As stipulated in the regulations, six people were chosen to supervise, to take their place in the Anjoman courtyard, and get the electoral process underway. Mohammad 'Ali Mirza appointed Ejlal ol-Molk on his own behalf. Ruznameye Melli/Anjoman, I:1 (1 Ramadan, 1324 = October 20, 1906.) It included: for the clergy, Sheikh Salim, for the princes, Hedayatollah Mirza, for the magnates, 'Adl ol Molk, for the merchants, Haji Mohammad Ja'far, for the landlords, Ahsan od-Dawle, for the tradesman, Haji Mirza Ebrahim. Since Ramadan had arrived and the days would be too difficult for work, they decided to convene the Anjoman at night. During those days, a newspaper called Anjoman was established, its first issue coming out that Saturday, October 20 (1 Ramadan).

[173] Just then, something else happened: the expulsion of Friday Imam Haji Mirza ['Abdol-]Karim from the city. This man, as we have said, had a sovereign institution before the Constitution. Whenever he would go out, some hundred sayyeds, talabes, and servants would accompany his mule on his way. His word was law everywhere. His house was a sanctuary and anyone who took refuge in it was safe. It could be said that he was the most powerful ruler in Tabriz after Mohammad 'Ali Mirza. We have written about his ownership of villages and warehouses.

How could such a person agree to submit to law or be equal with others?! How could he acquiesce to the awakening of the people and their devoting themselves to their own lives and ignoring him and his power?! When he came to the Samsam Khan Mosque during those first days, it was because he had no choice. Those days, he did not know the true significance of the events and their consequences. But after he found out, he saw that his own job was becoming difficult. Instead of going and doing good deeds and making a place for himself among the people, he thought to bribe preachers and win them over.“so that they not speak ill of him from the pulpit.” (P, I:58) He gave three hundred tumans to Mirza Javad Nateq (Nasehzade), some of which he was to keep, the rest to give to others.In P, Kasravi, who was then trying to ally himself with the clergy against the Europeanizers, says that perhaps he meant no harm by this. (I:58)

Nateq deposited the money in the Anjoman's coffers and the veil over the Friday Imam's activities was lifted. On the night of Saturday, October 20 (1 Ramadan), the liberals gathered in the Anjoman's courtyard, the event was reported, and there was an uproar. Ruznamaye Melli/Anjoman I:1 (1 Ramadan, 1324 = October 20, 1906.) reported the crowd's number as 2000. The Anjoman tried unsuccessfuly to calm them down so that it could get back to its work, but the crowd swelled and the people threatened to riot if he were not driven out. The Friday Imam's evil deeds were recalled and his expulsion from the city was demanded. They said, “If he does not leave, we will drive him out of the city ourselves tomorrow.” The Anjoman's leaders, through Ejlal ol-Molk, told the Crown Prince what was happening and the Crown Prince ordered that the Friday Imam not remain in the city the next day, but leave.

The next day,8 Ramadan = October 27, 1906. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:343) the Friday Imam went to the pulpit. He wanted to calm the people down and talk them into allowing him to remain in the city. But nothing came of this, and he had no choice but to leave.

But since he stopped in the Bagh-e Vazir near the city and it was said that people were coming before him and conspiring against liberty and that, moreover, his son Haji Boyuk Aqa had become his successor in the city and had gone to the mosque in great pomp with a crowd of followers, the liberals rose up again on Saturday, the twenty-seventh of October, closed the bazaar, and raised a commotion.In P, Kasravi, reports that after this order was given, the Friday Imam indeed did go to the pulpit to try to calm the people and so avoid being exiled, but did not succeed. The people were still not mollified and closed the bazaar and the Anjoman was forced to ask the Crown Prince that his son, too, be exiled, and so he was. (I:58-59) Once again the Anjoman told the Crown Prince what was happening and the Crown Prince sent his chief farrash, Nayyer os-Soltan, to go and drive the Friday Imam away from the city's vicinity. He also forbade the Friday Imam's son from going to the mosque.

The Friday Imam went to Qezelje Maidan, which is within four parasangs of Tabriz in the direction of Tehran, and settled there in that village, which he owned. On the other hand, some people went and brought Mirza Ghaffar Aqa, the former proprietor of the mosque from whom the Friday Imam had taken it by force, [174] to perform the prayers there.Ruznameye Melli/Anjoman, I:2 (6 Ramadan, 1324 = October 25, 1906); see footnote xxx on page xxx. It is worth mentioning here that in P, Kasravi expressed astonishment at the Constitutionalists' lack of wisdom in driving out the Friday Imam, speculating that this drove the Crown Prince out of the constitutionalist camp, or yet further out of it. Moreover, he argued, the Friday Imam might have repented his past wrongs and made up for them. In any case, there was no basis for his expulsion from Tabriz. Leaving aside the question of the Friday Imam's character, Kasravi calculated that his presence was essentially harmless and that if he had stayed, he would eventually have discredited himself. He blamed his expulsion efon the constitutionalists' Europeanizing, a phenomenon with which he was then at war. (I:55-6, 59)

The First Fight with Mohammad 'Ali Mirza

The election of representatives was under way. Each estate in turn was choosing its representatives. Moreover, since it was Ramadan and the mosques were full, the constitutionalist preachers took the opportunity to speak at their pulpits of the Constitution and the country. On the night of November 4 (16 Ramadan), there was another zealous outcry.

From the day that the telegram from the Shah had arrived and it became known that there was a Constitution, Mohammad 'Ali Mirza made a show of cooperation and, as we have written, would agree to every demand raised by the Anjoman. But this was not a sign of his pureheartedness, and he was always looking for an opportunity to be obstructive. So when the election of representatives ended, he sent a message saying that the Anjoman should be dissolved because the Anjoman's task of supervising the elections was completed and this institution which the liberals had formed had no legal basis.In P, Kasravi is more charitable, only commenting that the Crown Prince was unhappy with the tumultuousness of the constitutionalist agitation. (I:60) Taqizade says this occurred the day after the elections, on 16 Ramadan. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:340)

The members of the Anjoman, most of whom were mullahs and merchants, were intimidated by this message and obeyed it and abandoned the Anjoman. But the liberals, or, better, the mojaheds, would not accept this. When the members of the Anjoman and others held an iftar party in Mojtahed Haji Mirza Hasan's house that night, they arrived while Nayyer os-Soltan, the Crown Prince's Chief Farrash, was present. They talked with the Mojtahed and others about the Anjoman's being abandoned and asked about the matter of the message. The Mojtahed replied, “Such a message arrived and it was indeed right. Until the Fundamental Law arrives, there must be no Anjoman.”

They answered, “We will not let the Anjoman close. We will not let go of what we have achieved,” and so on. At the request of the Mojtahed, Nayyer os-Soltan spoke by telephone with Mohammad 'Ali Mirza, who repeated just what he had said. As soon as the mojaheds heard this, they immediately raised a zealous outcry. Since there was a crowd in the courtyard, one of them stood up from a high point and said, “People! They want to close the Anjoman so that after it is closed, the preachers will have to quiet down and our blood will gradually cool. Then, once they have succeeded, they will do what they want to us. But 'that vessel will be broken and that glass spilled.' As long as one of us is alive, we will not abandon liberty. Even if the people of Tehran quit, we will struggle to defend this institution by ourselves.”

At these words, those present replied, “Long live the Constitutionalists!” and “Long live the liberals!” and answered with cries of zeal. An uproar was raised the likes of which had never been seen in Tabriz and people said things which had never been said in Iran. They openly said that they would not stop resisting even if it came to fighting and bloodshed.

[175] This continued for some time. Nayyer os-Soltan once more telephoned Mohammad 'Ali Mirza and told him what was happening as he had seen it. He was told in reply: “We wanted there to be no Anjoman until the Fundamental Law is passed. Now that they do not agree, let them do as they please.”

This reply quieted the people's zealous outcry and, moreover, on the recommendation of Nayyer os-Soltan, Mohammad 'Ali Mirza wrote a rescript saying that the Anjoman should remain standing and that there would even be someone to implement the Anjoman's instructions on his behalf. Nayyer os-Soltan himself took it and brought it over. The people said: “We must bring Their Eminences to the Anjoman this very night,” and they immediately lit storm lanterns, put the Mojtahed and others in front of them, and proceeded to the Anjoman in an outpouring of joyous zeal. Sweets were brought from the bazaar by the tray to celebrate the victory and these sweetened the mouths of everyone in the great throng of over a thousand. Here is what the rescript said:

The People's Anjoman of Tabriz remains standing as previously. One person will be appointed with the agreement of the Anjoman's members, on behalf of His Most Sacred Excellency [the Crown Prince] and will be present in the Anjoman so that whatever the members of the Anjoman decide regarding the particular and general affairs of the people will be immediately implemented and will strengthen His Excellency the Prince's agents in executing all decisions of the People's Anjoman.

Seventeenth of Ramadan the Blessed, 1324 [November 4, 1906]

This was the first fight between Mohammad 'Ali Mirza and the Tabriz liberals. As we have said, Karbala'i 'Ali Mesyu, Haji Rasul Sedqiani, and Haji 'Ali Davaforush, along with nine others, had formed a secret society called the Secret Center. They took control into their own hands. Publicly, Mojtahed Haji Mirza Hasan and other mullahs and some merchants would meet in the Anjoman and were considered the rulers. But they were unworthy and the movement was secretly controlled by [176] the Secret Center. The expulsion of Mir Hashem and the Friday Imam and keeping the Anjoman from being closed was all their doing. They knew well that autocracy had not disappeared, that nothing would come of the name Constitution alone, and that forces must be assembled and prepared for combat. They knew well that if the people were left to themselves, they would gradually weaken and lose enthusiasm. So they would keep finding occasions to get them to go into action and not abandon the struggle against autocracy.In its report on these events, Ruznameye Melli/Anjoman makes no mention of a message from the Crown Prince calling for the dissolution of the Anjoman, much less of the Anjoman members' and the Mojtahed's acquiescence to such a demand. A crowd was reported to have invaded the iftar party of that night, but instead of a telegram, there were “rumors spread by hoodlums” to this effect. The Mojtahed immediately took up the crowd's demand to send a telegram to the Crown Prince calling for the Anjoman's strengthening, and he telephoned Nayyer os-Saltane, who only then arrived to request a “second rescript” confirming the Anjoman's maintainance. (Ruznameye Melli/Anjoman, I:2 (18 Ramadan, 1324 = November 6, 1906)) Taqizade's recollection generally fits Kasravi's; indeed, he says that the agitation that day was more significant for the constitutional movement than the refuge in the Consulate, indeed, the most important up to the establishment of the constitutional order. There is no mention here of a “Secret Center,” and the movement is portrayed as completely spontaneous. At one point, the people descended on the Crown Prince's agent and threatened that if their demand was not accepted, they would attack the Crown Prince's residence in the Bagh-e Shomal. It was at this point, as the agitation mounted, that the Crown Prince submitted to the popular will. The popular preacher Mirza Javad Nateq stood at the Mojtahed's balconey and flashed a pistol, declaring, “We have attacked with this weapon and have taken our rights.” (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:340-341)

There are some worthwhile episodes in the history of the Constitutionalist Revolution and some people acquitted themselves very worthily and with great competence. One of them is that story of the alliance of the Two Sayyeds and the formation of the Tehran movement, of which we have written, and which is commendable in every way. Another is the alliance of those three named above and their comrades, who advanced the Tabriz movement with great intelligence and competence and who formed the Organization of Mojaheds. Their deeds were also entirely valuable and praiseworthy.Taqizade recalls that it was this event which caused the anjomans to be written into law. The article for anjomans was recommended by Sani' od-Dawle and written by a commission of six which included Taqizade, Mokhber ol-Molk, and Mostashar od-Dawle, based on French law, particularly the law providing for such anjomans in Algeria, giving them right to supervise trials and various complaints, as well as financial proceedings. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:341)

This resistance of theirs to Mohammad 'Ali Mirza and their protection of the Anjoman resulted in all of Azerbaijan coming under the liberals' control and made Mohammad 'Ali Mirza abandon open resistance, forcing him to resort to behind the scenes disruption.

The newspapers of the Caucasus also kept up with the events in Azerbaijan. They discussed whatever happened and many of them, among them the newspaper Ershad, considered the movement in Iran as superficial and not very worthy. They would occasionally write something unenthusiastic unenthusiastic13about it.In P, Kasravi went further: “For example, the newspapers of the Caucasus, which had, until this point, not ceased to ridicule [the constitutionalists], learned their lesson from this and, from that point on, praised [them].” (I:61) But this event changed their thinking, and the very same newspaper Ershad addressed this event and applauded it.Document.

The National Bank

Also in Tehran, the House of Consultation did something great in the meantime, increasing its esteem and prestige domestically and abroad. The government was pursuing a third loan. It entered into negotiations with the Russian and British governments towards this end and decisions were made.According to The London Times, the loan had been prepared the first week of November, “but the opposition of the priesthood and the popular party causes delay.” (“Anglo-Russian Loan to Persia,” November 12, 1906) Another article adds, “Native bankers are in favour of it, but there is a strong popular movement against all foreign loans… The assemblies advocate an internal loan, but the necessary cash is not forthcoming.” (“The Anglo-Russian Loan to Persia,” November 20, 1906) On Saturday, November 9,Check from Majles. Haji Mokhber os-Saltane came before the Majlis on behalf of Prime Minster Moshir od-Dawle and reported this. Most of the representatives had not yet arrived in Tehran and no law had been determined for the country, yet the government wanted the Majlis to agree with such a thing. It was as if all these struggles had occurred and a House of Consultation had been set up so that the courtiers' ruinous activities might be given a legal cover. The money from two previous loans had been taken and consumed and now they were looking for another loan to be concluded with the approval of the House of Consultation so they could consume it, too.

Mokhber os-Saltane produced a letter from the Prime Minister which had been written to him: “Go to the Consultative Assembly and bring them a message on behalf of the government saying that the government has a ten million tuman foreign and domestic debt which it must pay. In order to pay it, we have entered into discussions with two governments [177] and they are prepared to present us with a loan of that size and instructions have reached the [Russian] Loan Bank and the [British] Imperial Bank. But the representatives must vote and accept them.”

He then produced the text of the treaty ratified by the two governments and read it to the representatives:

The two governments have loaned the ten million tumans to the government of Iran at the rate of seven percent per year upon the following conditions:The loan conditions and the full text of the speech against them appear in History of the Awakening of the Iranians, II:3-6. On the other hand, the rest of the exchange over the issue in the Majlis does not appear there.

First, the government of Iran show the two governments where the money will be used.

Second, the Russian government not deduct its previous claims from this loan.

Third, the conditions be the same conditions as with the previous two loans.

Fourth, two million tumans of this money be paid back by the [Iranian] New Year.

Fifth, collateral for this loan for the Russians be the northern ports and for the British, the telegraph stations and post offices.

Sixth, the remaining loan be granted effective from the time the Iranian government informed the two governments of its request for it a few months ago.

Mokhber os-Saltane said, “The monthly stipends of the Iranian ambassadors and consuls in foreign cities and the soldiers and officers and employees in the offices of the country itself have not been paid for several months, nor has money been given the courtiers for their expenses. We must get two million tumans to pay this. If this is not obtained speedily, everything will shut down.”

A murmur arose in the Majlis over this proposal and the representatives were divided into two factions. One accepted and the other, which did not, held its peace. Being told that the government was bankrupt and that all the departments would shut down if money was not raised silenced everyone. Just then, Haji Mo'in ot-Tojjar showed truly keen competence. He suggested the government's proposal not be accepted and that the text of the treaty be taken and each of its clauses read and their liabilities examined. He then courageously said, “It is my belief that the government's claim of a debt of ten million tuman is false, for Prince Atabak ('Ein od-Dawle) has always congratulated himself on balancing the government's expenses and income, with a six hundred thousand tuman surplus which Tumanians has. We never considered him such a liar and a prattler. Let the government send the Majlis a record of its income and expenditures for the past three years for us to review. If the government is truly in debt, it will be up to the people to take care of it, but not by obtaining loans from the Russians and the British, and under such onerous conditions as that, making the country over to them for the sake of two million tumans. Perhaps when we review the record of income and expenditures we will find where to get access to these two million tumans and have no need for a loan, [178] domestically or from abroad. We will not be able now to blindly vote on taking a loan or not.”

He then recalled the previous loans and asked the government to send the Majlis the contracts for them so that the people might be aware of them. He then said a series of things all of which demonstrated his awareness of the government's workings.

These intelligent and courageous words changed the atmosphere in the Majlis and the representatives who did not agree with the proposal found their courage. They unanimously expressed their dissatisfaction over accepting the loan and, once more, there was murmuring in the Majlis. Those who had at first agreed to the loan were ashamed and fell silent. When Mokhber os-Saltane saw what was happening, he left to tell the government about it.

But the next day, he returned to the Majlis and began his talk saying, “The government does not want to resist showing you its income and expenditures policy for the past three years as you have requested, but no speedy relief for the government's needs will come from this. We now ask for one million tumans. If it does not arrive, all the offices will close. Either agree to this much of a loan or find the sum from some other place. You must do this in three days.”

The representatives were very confused by this speech of his. When they recovered their courage, they raised an uproar and, “The people cannot give their homes as collateral to the foreigners because Amir Bahador-e Jang and such and such a minister or such and such a secretary want money...” They said many hot-headed things [179] like this.

Haji Mo'in spoke up again, and this time, he said: “The government is of the people and the people must be of the government. There is no separation between them. Now that the government has settled for one million tumans, it seems that it is very bankrupt and we must come to its aid. But nothing will come from this haste of theirs. We will not even be able to get money from the Russians and the British in three days if we ask them for it.”

Mokhber os-Saltane said: “These one million tumans are ready in the banks and only need your agreement to be paid.”

Haji Mo'in said, “If they will give this much without collateral, take it. But the Majlis must know how it is spent.”

Mokhber os-Saltane said: “They do not give it without collateral, and this same treaty must be changed and this amount must be obtained the same way.”

Haji Mo'in said: “Raising a loan in this way, even if it were one hundred thousand tumans, is no good. The government either gets that amount without collateral and lets the Prime Minister guarantee it himself, or let it permit us merchants to get it in our own name and pay the government.”

Mokhber os-Saltane said: “Since such a loan is not in the interests of their policies, they will not grant it and you will have no choice but to accept it on those same conditions.”

And so the discussion continued. As much as Mokhber os-Saltane persisted in trying to get them to accept the proposal, the representatives, particularly the merchants, would not accept it. Finally, it was decided that if the government permitted, they would set up a bank themselves and lend the government one million tumans of its capital.Document from the Majlis debates.

On Thursday, November 15 (27 Ramadan), when it became known that the government had given permission, the representatives discussed a National Bank. The merchants, whose leaders were Haji Mo'in ot-Tojjar, Haji Amin oz-Zarb, Haji Mohammad Esma'il, and Arbab Jamshid, took up the responsibility of founding it. The National Bank, which had been desired by the Iranians for years, started then.

An Example of the Iranians' Feelings

This event, which occurred at the beginning of the Majlis' career, had two good consequences: One was that the Majlis became more respected, for the courtiers and foreigners had thought that since the Iranians, having just begun to stir and not yet being very alert, would be satisfied with a law for the country and the end of absolutism and that they would see the Majlis as that same House of Justice. They therefore believed that they would blindly accept whatever the government recommended. In general, [180] they did not suspect the Iranians of having political ideas. This resistance by the representatives and those intelligent speeches by Haji Mo'in ot-Tojjar exposed the error of their beliefs and increased the Majlis' prestige. Word of this resistance reached the European newspapers. But the government did not give up after these speeches and still hoped to obtain a loan from the Russians and the British. A few days later, Finance Minister Naser ol-Molk came to the Majlis and said the same thing, speaking about the government's penury and poverty.This would have been on November 23, since a dispatch dated “St. Petersburg, Nov. 24” published in the November 26 issue of The London Times (“The Financial Condition of Persia”) describes the previous day's session of the Majlis along these line. It reports: A group of 60 Deputies protested vigorously against the loan, declaring it to be unnecessary to obtain a loan from two Powers simultaneously, and that the guarantee demanded by one Power might endager Persia's independence. These Deputies advocated an internal loan; but the financial condition of the country is such that the Persian National Bank cannot possibly offer assistance without an external loan. A few days later, The London Times reported (“Persia and the Foreign Loan Question,” November 29, 1906) that The Deputies unanimously decided to authorize the foundation, without foreign support, of a national banking company with a share capital of eight to 15 million tomans (£ 3,000,000 to £ 5,625,000) on condition that the State revenue should be paid into the bank. In return, the bank is to bind itself to pay the State expenditure, to discharge the State debts, and to advance money to the Government at 7 perc. Interest. So far as can be judged at present, the new Parliament is adopting a strong nationalist tone. Again, The London Times reported (“Persia: Parliament and the Loan Question,” December 5, 1906) that “there appears to be no inclination to take shares in the national bank.” A week later, The London Times carried the notice (“Persia: The Shah's Illness,” December 14, 1906) that Subscriptions towards the National Bank are insignificant; the public shows a want of confidence. Level-headed members of Parliament, seeing that Parliament is unable to effect an internal loan, which it promised to do, advise the acceptance of a foreign loan. But the Majlis held firm and Haji Mo'in said, “We want a bank to be established. Guide us in drafting its charter.” Naser ol-Molk said, “Your work will not be completed in five years. Our disease requires ginger right now to get rid of the fever. We should go fortify its health after the fever breaks.” Mr. Minister, who had been to Europe, was in a great hurry to put the country in debt and get a million tumans to fill the purses of the easy-living and ill-intentioned courtiers and soothe the fever of their lust and greed with the ginger of money. Instead of saluting and encouraging the valor shown by a handful of merchants, he tried to drive them to despair with ridicule.

Haji Mo'in said: “Can the government be satisfied with the four or five hundred thousand tumans which we can pay ourselves and let us think about the rest?!” Naser ol-Molk replied: “See for yourselves, is five hundred thousand tumans enough to clean up this mess?!”

In fact, the government's men were being manipulated by someone else, and their desire was above all to secure that loan. This is why they would not agree to the representatives' cooperative suggestions. Again, Haji Mo'in reminded the government to show its previous loan agreements to the Majlis as well as the details of how the loan which was requested was to be spent. Naser ol-Molk left in despair. Since the merchants had gotten to work on the bank and were proceeding successfully and there was no excuse left for the Court, there was no more talk of obtaining that loan.

Another result was that the people found a means to express to everyone the depth of their feelings. For from the day the discussion began, the mass of people, rich and poor, showed their satisfaction and cooperation. The merchants prepared the way by raising a capital of fifteen million tumans for the bank in which everyone could get a share, from five to fifty thousand tumans, its charter was written and sent to the Shah for his signature, and they identified several merchant's stalls for collecting money. After that, the people headed for these stalls and began to deposit money. When the wealthy deposited money in their way, the poor did not refrain from imitating them. Talabes set up a meeting and gathered money amongst themselves and sent it. It was said that some sold their books to gather money. General school students did the same. Women raised the subject of selling their earrings and necklaces. One day, [181] a woman stood up at the foot of Sayyed Jamal Va'ez's pulpit at Mirza Musa Mosque and said, “Why does the government [182] of Iran get loans from abroad? Are we dead?! I am a washerwoman and I give as my share one tuman. Other women are also ready.” Many such displays were seen.

The mullahs, who used to have less to do with such activity, also participated. Haji Sheikh Fazlollah pledged two hundred tumans. Friday Imam Haji Mirza Abol-Qasem who, as we have said, was known for his hostility to the Constitution and had gotten a bad reputation among the people,It would be alleged some years later that he had embezzled 18,000 tumans from the Shah Mosque waqf. (Ruh ol-Qodos, no. 4, Monday 22 Rajab 1325) took the opportunity to send the Majlis a letter and announce his cooperation with the people, pledging five thousand tumans.

In fact, the people had been shaken. Their hearts were filled with feeling. The mass of people went into action brimming with hope. They wanted to be good and strive for the progress and power of the country. As a result of this movement, all the selfishness and ambition in people weakened and they tended towards cooperation, willy-nilly. Everyone but the old-fashioned and dark-souled courtiers, who kept resisting, had been shaken.

This was in Tehran. The founding merchants went to the telegraph posts and summoned the merchants from the provinces to get each of them to cooperate. They spoke to each group separately and obtained pledges of cooperation. The Tabrizis cooperated on the bank, but gave a different, considered, answer on the question of giving the government a loan, which we will discuss later. Aside from the cities of Iran itself, Iranians from the Caucasus to Hindustan to Istanbul cooperated. Discussions were held and efforts made everywhere and for some time. We will see what came of all this.On the National Bank, the blunt observation found in Sir C. Spring-Rice to Sir Edward Grey, Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, No. 28, June 18, 1907 is sufficiently telling: The government “appeals to the Majlis for help, in the form of subscriptions to the proposed National Bank. The answer it receives is that the people will subscribe as soon as the rich nobles, who are known to have large sums of money, show the way. This the rich refuse to do.” Mr. Marling to Sir Edward Grey, Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, No. 93, January 2, 1908 continues, “Large sums have been collected, mostly by indirect menace from those suspected of reactionary leanings, for the foundation of the National Bank, and lodged with one of the Vice-Presidents of the Assembly. Of this money, which may have amounted to as much as 50,000 l, no account has been given. It may have been expended in payments of wages and salaries; it is, however, currently said to have been quietly absorbed by the Members of the Assembly and Enjumens.” Finally, see the analysis of the project published in The London Times in “Foreign and Internal Difficulties in Persia,” September 3, 1907.

In the meantime, there were deliberations in the Majlis on “Fundamental Regulations” (Fundamental Law), too. It requested that the text it had prepared and sent for the Shah's signature be returned. Since the courtiers, using the Shah's illness as an excuse, were keeping it and [183] would not send it back, the Majlis had no choice but to keep sending reminders. Representatives were arriving one by one from the provinces.

After the Constitution had been granted, there were no newspapers in Tehran (aside from those which already existed) until a concession to found a newspaper called Majles was given to Aqa Mirza Mohsen (the brother of Sadr ol-'Olema). It was edited by Mirza Mohammad Sadeq Tabataba'i (Blissful Soul Tabataba'i's son) and written by Adib ol-Mamalek Farahani. It began in mid-November, publishing its first issue on Sunday November 25 (8 Shawwal). This newspaper, as its name implies, was mostly devoted to the Majlis' deliberations. As far as we know, it was the second newspaper of the time of liberty after the newspaper Anjoman of Tabriz.

Tabriz's Considered Answer Concerning the National Bank

In Tabriz, the liberals were struggling successfully. Publicly, the Anjoman (or, as it called itself, the Popular Assembly [majles-e melli]) and secretly, the Secret Center, led the way. Since the hand of Mohammad 'Ali Mirza and his circle had been turned back, the Anjoman acted both as court of justiceAnjomanCourt21, receiving appeals from Tabriz itself or from other cities, and as governor, working for the city's security and order. The Secret Center, which was most often convened in the home of Blissful Soul 'Ali Mesyu, followed what Mohammad 'Ali Mirza and his circle were doing, both eyes wide open, and led the mojaheds, who had just been formed.

When the month of Ramadan ended and the mosques closed, they realized that they had to make sure that the talk of the Constitution and its merits went uninterrupted.What follows comes from Jarideye Melli/Anjoman, I:11 (9 Shawwal 1324/November 26, 1906), from which the bracketed material is restored. They decided that all the bazaars should be closed on Fridays and that three preachers—Blissful Soul Sheikh Salim, Mirza Javad Nateq, and Mirza Hosein—should go to the pulpit in three different mosques [in accordance with the verse, “O ye who believe! When the call is proclaimed to prayer on Friday, hasten earnestly to the Remembrance of Allah, and leave off business. That is best for you if ye but knew!”Koran, lii.9. Friday has been chosen for Muslims to gather in their places of worship and learn how their fellow Muslims are doing and to strengthen the pillars of the Clear Faith and to perform consultation and seek improvement. This satisfactory tradition has long lain abandoned and lost its importance. But now the zealous nation of Iran has awakened from its several-thousand year sleep of negligence and has gradually restored the deficit... The shops and the bazaars shall be closed on Friday and the people shall gather in the mosques... [The three preachers will] preach the benefits of constitutionalism and the merits of unity and the advantage of the unity of goverment and people, to make the people aware.] This turned out to be very useful, and it was as a result of this that people in Tabriz picked up rifles and drilled, as we will see.

Mohammad 'Ali Mirza despaired of openly resisting and fighting, and so resorted to creating disruptions behind the scenes. Some of his circle—Sayyed Mohammad Yazdi, Mofakher ol-Molk, Mofakhar od-Dawle, and others—did not hold their peace and it was under the influence of their evil intentions that the city perimeter became insecure and no one did anything about it. Haji Moshir-e Daftar, who was supposed to execute the Anjoman's orders, was negligent. The Secret Center once more took the opportunity to go into action. Jarideye Melli/Anjoman, I:12 (12 Shawwal 1324 = November 29, 1906), from which the rest of this paragraph is taken. Instead of “mojaheds,” this source has “jam'i az ahali,” a group of residents. Nor, of course, is there any indication that these people were acting under the guidance of “the Secret Center.” On Sunday, November 25 (8 Shawwal), a group of mojaheds went to the Anjoman and complained and expressed their dissatisfaction over the disarray of the state of affairs, the insecurity of the city perimeter, and the negligence shown by the governors. The next day, they closed all the bazaars and rallied in and around the Anjoman. Some people went and brought the clergy and others to the Anjoman and expressed their complaints and demanded a solution. They said, “If you do not do anything,More precisely, “bring our petitions before the dust of the feet of His Most Sacred Excellency the Prince so that a sufficient reply might be obtained.” (loc. cit.) we will not open the bazaars and we will not leave here.” Everywhere was the sound of a zealous [184] outcry. The Mojtahed asked the Crown Prince by telephone to have an emissary come and hear the people's demands and go and report them to him. The Crown Prince sent Nayyer os-Soltan. After he came and heard what the people were saying, he left and returned again but did not give the proper answer. The Crown Prince showed no concern and said: “Let the people put their minds at ease and disperse.”A misreading by the author of what Jarideye Melli/Anjoman wrote: “He did not give a healing answer so that the people might put their minds at ease and disperse.” (loc. cit.)

The people were shocked by this response and raised a commotion all over again and said heated words. Sheikh Salim, Mirza Javad, and Mirza Hosein each separately addressed the people and quieted them down.“Why should there be such cries of 'Yallah!'? What's happened? Don't raise a tumult. God willing, His Most Sacred Excellency the Prince (May our lives be his sacrifice!) will accept all your petitions.” (loc. cit.) After a discussion, they decided that the clerics themselves should go to the GardenProbably the Saheb-e Divan. They were to go along with Nayyer os-Soltan. and come before Mohammad 'Ali Mirza and report to him what was happening. When the clerics leftBut not before the people blocked their exit from the Anjoman; they had to be talked down by Mirza Javad and Mirza Hosein. (loc. cit.) and reported the people's grievances, Mohammad 'Ali Mirza again gave in to the people's demands and made promises to get the clerics to return. The people were then mollified and opened the bazaars the next day.

It was after these events that Haji Mehdi Aqa [Kuzekanani] and other merchants were summoned to the telegraph post from Tehran and the issue of the National Bank was raised.The material from here to the end of this section comes from Jarideye Melli/Anjoman, I:14 (16 Shawwal 1324 = December 3, 1906). They answered that they would organize a meeting and consult and report on the results. So a meeting was held on Friday, November 30 (13 Shawwal), in Haji Mehdi Aqa's house, in the presence of the Mojtahed, Seqat ol-Eslam, Mirza Sadeq Aqa, Haji Mirza [185] Mohsen, Haji Sayyed ol-Mohaqqeqin, a group of merchants, and others, and a discussion began.

After some talk, they decided to cooperate in founding the National Bank and to gather money for it there, too, but they did not agree to granting the government a loan, most of which would end up in the purses of the enemies of the people. They sent two telegrams to Tehran, one signed by the clergy, the other signed by the merchants. We present the telegram sent by the merchants:

To the honorable presence of the gentlemen of the sacred National Consultative Assembly and all the Messrs. Honorable merchants (May their splendor continue!)

It was decided that a public discussion be held regarding the loans and the founding of the National Bank and that an answer would be given. Therefore, it is submitted:

This issue was posed and discussed on Friday, the thirteenth of the month [November 30] in the presence of the distinguished clergy and Hojjat ol-Eslams and a group of government dignitaries and merchants. All the honorable estates are for founding this National Bank, which would be the instrument of freeing the government and the people, with certainty of mind. But what they want in this regard are guarantees. They declare that the government is utterly bankrupt. First, the government budget must be reformed so that there will be no more need for new loans in the future, and as long as the Fundamental Law is not established in the presence of the representatives and the budget is not reformed, there will be no possibility of founding a bank.

You will declare that the Fundamental Law will be implemented on the first of the Iranian new year [the first day of spring] and that the government needs two and a half million tumans right now and that by the first of the new year, it will thus be in the most dire need. They declare that the trustees of the government are, thank God, the wealthiest people of Iran, and a group of them are particularly capable of raising an extraordinary sum which they have reaped under the government's protection from private channels, and could present not only the two and a half million tumans but twice that as a gift, let alone a loan. But they will not ratify a loan from abroad under any circumstances, and disagreed with this.

Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's Trip to Tehran

In the meantime, Mozaffar od-Din Shah's illness was worsening and another problem arose. Sho'a' os-Saltane was once more pursuing his ambition of becoming Crown Prince and had gone into action. Mohammad 'Ali Mirza was afraid that the liberals' leaders would side with him: although he had a bitter hatred for the Constitution and was secretly working to overthrow it and, as we see, was always fighting with the Tabrizis, he tried in public to conciliate the liberals' leaders in Tehran and so disguise his hostility to the Constitution. This is why the Crown Prince sent a letter to Blissful Soul Behbehani, who sent it to be printed in the newspaper Majles. We present it here:Document.

According Shah_Behbehani14to what I heard, they have written a letter to Your Eminence from Tabriz saying that the Crown Prince is opposed to the people's beliefs and that he does not accept the Majlis, which the servants of the Most Sacred Royal One (May our souls be his sacrifice!) granted [186]. First, it is sworn before the sacred Being of the Creator that this is totally false and baseless. I pray to God that, God willing, this country and people will make progress and eliminate this degradation. Second, I swear by the head of your ancestor [the Prophet Mohammad] that if I send anyone to the 'Atabat, it would not remain hidden but would have been public.See page 157. Why should I be opposed to these ideas and deny the kingdom prosperity? Third, I am surprised at you for attributing this idea to me. Why did you believe this paper? Did you not know these biased people? Not only have they written this, but they do a thousand things like this against me. Why must you believe them? I request that you yourself tell the others so that they might know that this is a slander.The reference in the third is to Habl ol-Matin, which had published an article on this. (See P, I:67.) I await a reply to this paper. Let me trouble you no further.

It is apparent from this letter how frightened he was and how humbled he had been. He asked Behbehani for a reply so that he could find reassurance through his cooperation.

In those days, Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's hostility towards the Constitution was spoken of in Tehran and other cities, and so this was raised in the Majlis as well. It could be thought that Sho'a' os-Saltane and his agents propagated this talk, even though Sho'a' os-Saltane was himself more notorious for anti-constitutionalistism than he was and the people hated him more for his tyranny in Fars.On Sho'a' os-Saltane's intrigues against Mohammad 'Ali Mirza and Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's policy towards the constitutionalists, see Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, No. 8, January 3, 1907), which does not mention Sho'a' os-Saltane as a factor in his moderation, but the “the wise and termperate advice of the Russian Minister.” In any case, this letter of Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's, which was a lie from beginning to end, worked. Many people, among them the editor of Habl ol-Matin, took this as an opportunity to praise him extravagantly, out of flattery or ignorance, calling him the Constitution's Sole Supporter.Document. Most incredible of all was the Two Sayyeds' naive optimism.

This was an example of Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's craftiness. He fooled such people as Behbehani and Tabataba'i and garnered their support, despite being such an enemy of the Constitution.

The battle over who was to become the Crown Prince continued in secret and more than anything else took on an aspect of international politics, a matter of which we have no proper information. In any case, victory went to Mohammad 'Ali Mirza again [187]. Since the Shah's illness was worsening daily and his hopes of recovery were slim, he summoned Mohammad 'Ali Mirza from Tabriz, saying that he was going to Europe and wanted him to take over.

A telegram to this effect arrived on November 30 (13 Shawwal). Mohammad 'Ali Mirza rushed to prepare to go and had Prince Emamqoli Mirza take his place. He left Tabriz on Tuesday, December 4 (17 Shawwal) with his entourage. The people behaved respectfully, closing the bazaar that day and gathering along the streets and outside the city for his departure. His leaving brought both good and bad. The good was that Tabriz was freed and the activists could freely put into action their ideas about organizing the Mojaheds and so on. The bad was that Tehran, the country's capital, would be plagued by his interference.Or, as Kasravi put it in P, “It was like a pain in the foot being relieved, only to settle in the heart.” (I:62)

Granting the Fundamental Law

As we have said, the Regulations or Fundamental Law had been written and sent to the Court for the Shah's signature. The courtiers, as ever, tried to interfere with the work of the Constitution and intercepted it and did not return it. But after they saw the Majlis' insistence, they offered their own comments about some of its articles. For example, they talked about a Senate. They wanted a Senate to be organized in such a way that it might be given more weight so that the House of Consultation might be controlled by it. The representatives understood what they were after and replied.

So the discussion went until Monday, December 17 (1 Zul-Qa'da), when the Crown Prince arrived in Tehran. The liberals and others held a splendid reception for him and representatives from the Majlis came before him to welcome him. Since the Shah had chosen him to be his successor from the very first days, he stood aside. Moreover, since Mohammad 'Ali Mirza saw that he still needed the support of Behbehani and Tabataba'i, talk about the Fundamental Law continued. Mohammad 'Ali Mirza sent Haji Mohtasham os-Saltane and Moshir ol-Molk (son of Prime Minister Moshir od-Dawle) to the Majlis on his behalf to come and discuss some of its articles. They, too, mostly discussed a Senate, and, whatever there was to say about it, talked about it to the end.

On Sunday, December 30 (14 Zul-Qa'da), Mozaffar od-Din Shah, who was living the final days of his life, affixed his signature to the Fundamental Law and the Crown Prince followed suit, and so it was granted the people of Iran. The people celebrated this, and Tuesday was chosen as the day to bring it to the Majlis.

On that day,Taqizade reports that this occurred on 16 Zil-Qa'da. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:345) all the great clerics and others gathered at the Majlis and spectators packed the surrounding area. Prime Minister Moshir od-Dawle, Finance Minister Naser ol-Molk, Mohtasham os-Saltane, and Moshir ol-Molk took the law and headed for the Majlis. The members of the Majlis lined up all the way to the gates to greet them and escorted them in with much respect and joy. Sayyed Mohammad Taqi [188] Herati, a representative, read a speech. The people celebrated and cried out, “Long life!” and “May it be strong!” The representatives embraced each other and kissed each others' heads and faces. Some of them wept with joy.

That night, a celebration was held in the Marvi Seminary and Blissful Soul Behbehani reported the event to the Tabriz Anjoman and other places. The next night, too, a celebration and an illumination were held in the Sepahsalar Academy.

In those days, the significance of such things was exaggeratedexaggerated32. The people, out of their simplicity, were attached to them all the more. It was very significant that a country which had existed for centuries under an autocracy and in the clutches of libertine oppressors now had a law and that these self-indulgent oppressors would no longer have a free hand. Each article of the Fundamental Law we might consider was a cause of progress and prosperity for the people of Iran. We do not object that they valued such a law and rejoiced over it. We object to the fact that they simple-heartedly figured that having this law by itself would solve every problem. For example, if someone complained about the country's insecurity or decried the courtiers' enmity, he would be immediately told, “Wait for the Fundamental Law's arrival. All of this will be set right and all these enemies will go where they belong.” Out of simplicity, they did not realize that the tremendous problems and encumbrances with which they were faced were the result of diverse ideas, polluted character, and foreign aggression, and they would satisfy themselves with such things. As we said: first they showed such optimistic naïvité over the general schools, thinking that as soon as these youths would graduate from these schools, Iran would become a rose garden. Now, with the advent of the Constitution, their hearts were seized by something new all the time. This time, it was the Fundamental Law, and in having it, they celebrated it beyond bounds.

The House of Consultation's prestige and power increased daily. The arrival of the Internal Regulations and the Fundamental Law made the way forward clearer. And so, as the Tabrizis had suggested, they decided to balance government income and expenditures, and held deliberations on this.

The Representatives' Departure from Azerbaijan

As we have said, the representatives' election in Tabriz was finished. But since many of those elected were staying aloof and were ignoring the Mojtahed and Seqat ol-Eslam and it wasn't known if they accepted their position or not and, moreover, it was not known how the trip to Tehran would be financed,On the travel costs, which would amount to 6000 tumans, see Jarideye Melli/Anjoman, I:22 (7 Zi-Qa'da 1324 = December 23, 1906). After first deciding that each estate should finance its own representatives' elections, when the guildsmen objected that they could not afford this arrangement, it was agreed that the difference between the actual grain prices and the value they were assessed at for tax purposes (see page xxx) would be used to finance the trip, despite objections that this money belonged to the poor. (Jarideye Melli/Anjoman, I:25 (17 Zi-Qa'da, 1324 = January 2, 1907)) the matter remained inconclusive. In the meantime, several reminders came from Tehran, and the mojaheds exerted pressure. Jarideye Melli/Anjoman, I:19 (29 Shawwal 1324 = December 16, 1906) reported that people were upset that these two religious leaders were hesitating; the latter agreed to send in their place other people from their estate who had received lower votes if the delay continued. There is, in any case, no doubt expressed, pace Kasravi, about whether or not they had been elected. Nor is there any direct indication that the crowd had any connection with the mojaheds; the same issue of the above-mentioned journal reported that “about a thousand guildsmen and some of the population gathered in the Anjoman” complaining about the delay in dispatching the elected representatives to the Assembly, recalling that letters were arriving daily from Tehran asking that they be sent immediately. So the Anjoman got to work on this and, after much discussion, the following people were introduced as representatives: Jarideye Melli/Anjoman, I:19 (7 Zi-Qa'da, 1324 = December 23, 1906) reported that Talebov and Fazl 'Ali were elected from the clergy, Hedayatollah Mirza from the princes, Mostashar od-Dawle and Sharaf od-Dawle from the magnates, Haji Mullah 'Abdor-Rahim, Haji Mohammad Aqa Hariri, and Haji Mirza Aqa from the merchants, Sheikh Salim, Mirza Ebrahim Aqa, and Aqa Sayyed Taqizade from the guildsmen, and Ahsan od-Dawle from the landlords. [189-90] Haji Mirza Ebrahim Aqa,Son of an enlightened clergyman, a staunch ally of Taqizade in the Majlis. (Karim Taherzade Behzad, Qiam-e Azarbayjan dar Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 391) Aqa Mirza Fazl 'Ali, Sayyed Hasan Taqizade, [Mirza Sadeq Khan] Mostashar od-Dawle, [Haji Mirza Yahya] Haji Friday Imam of Khoi, Ahsan od-Dawle, Hedayatollah Mirza, Mirza 'Abdor-Rahim Talebof, Mir Hashem Devechi'i,Mir Hashem had fled Tabriz for Tehran after a month or two. He would enter the Majlis towards the end of Zil-Qa'da, but leave after about a month. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:342) Haji Mohammad Aqa Hariri, Haji Mirza Aqa Farshforush, and Sharaf od-Dawle.Taqizade writes that the elections ran from mid-Sha'ban to 15 Ramadan. Although two or thee thousand voted, the results were so scattered that 1400 candidates were voted for! Ultimately, a majority was achieved in the merchants, with 75 votes against 36 for the merchants, 318 to about 150 for the guildsmen, and ony six votes for the princes. From the merchants, Haji Mohammad Baqer Rezayof (then living in Tiflis) won 75 votes for the merchants and Mirza 'Abdor-Rahim Talebof won with rather fewer, but did not accept. Haji Mohammad Aqa Hariri won 55 and Taqizade won 51 votes and accepted. Of the guildsmen, Haji Mirza Ebrahim Aqa and Haji Mirza Aqa Farshforush were elected. Of the clergy, Aqa Mirza Fazl 'Ali Aqa (from the Sheikhis) and Haji Mirza Yahya, the Friday Imam of Khoi, were elected. Of the magnates, Mirza Ebrahim Khan Sharaf od-Dawle Kalantar and Mirza Sadeq Khan Mostashar od-Dawle were elected. Of the landlords and farmers, Mirza Hasan Khan Ahsan od-Dawle was elected. Of the princes, Hedayatollah Mirza was elected. (Taqizade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:338-339) See also Ruznameye Melli/Anjoman, I:2 (6 Ramadan 1324 = October 25, 1906).

Taqizade had left for Egypt several days before the Tabriz movement. When he found out that he had been elected, he headed straight for Tehran and was in the Assembly by then.Of Taqizade, who would become the focus of much of his rage against the opportunists whom Kasravi saw as having destroyed the constitutional movement, Kasravi wrote the following in P (I:63). After saying how generous the Tabrizis were to have elected Talebof although he was not a Tabrizi but because he had written such valuable books, he continued Similarly, Aqa Sayyed Hasan son of Aqa Sayyed Taqi the Prayerleader, who was a young scholar and had collaborated with the liberals before the Constitution and had, in 1320 [more precisely, January 1903], along with Mohammd 'Ali Khan Tarbiat, and Mirza Yusof Khan E'tesamol-Molk, printed the monthly [or twice-monthly] Ganjineye Fonun which was shut down after a year. Although he was not now in Tabriz and had journeyed to Egypt, … the people elected him representative out of gratitude for his efforts. Taqizade himself recalls, Before the revolution, I left Tabriz for Tehran depairing of the situation of the former, but because of the lengthiness of the journey in the Caucasus and Daghestan, I entered Rasht on 3 Ramadan and on 10 Ramadan arrived in Tehran… and at some point in the middle of Shawwal upon receiving a telegram from Tabriz saying that I had been elected, I entered the Majlis. Tarikh-e Avayel-e Enqelab va Mashrutiat-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:273. See also Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran in ibid., I:339 and I:343, where he relates his adventures in the Caucasus, which included the devestation wrought by the communal warfare and a visit to Talebof. Mir Hashem was also in Tehran and his credentials were telegraphed to him. It must be said that the Anjoman had chosen him in order to be conciliatory. MirHashem220Talebof lived in Vladeqafqaz and was elected simply in gratitude for his previous efforts and his writings. But now he turned them down and was not pleased with this movement and the struggle of the Iranians. It is in the nature of many people to become vexed and turn around once they get to a certain point in their struggle for something. Talebof was just such a person, and he expressed his vexation. There is a letter from him in the second issue of Anjoman in which he obsequiously writes of Mohammad 'Ali Mirza “His Most Sacred Excellency, His Highness the Crown Prince (May our souls be his sacrifice!).”Jarideye Melli/Anjoman, I:2 (6 Ramadan 1324 = October 25, 1906). There is another letter in the thirty-third issue of this newspaper in which he says,Jarideye Melli/Anjoman, I:29 (27 Zi-Qa'da 1324 = January 12, 1907).

An Iran which has so far been the prisoner of the two-horned bull of absolutism will face the thousand-horned bull of the rabble if its administration be not capable. Then the absolutists will laugh at our immaturity and the enemy around us, delighted, will say, “ La hawl!”From the phrase, “There is no might and no power but in God.” Usually a form of self-consolation in the face of exasperation. I do declare that I see this as indisputable. Otherwise, kindly tell me what Qarajedaghi of a Tabrizi is it who, deceived by the enemy, riots over Molla Nasr od-Din's being banned from the country and copies of it being burned and asks that it be allowed to be imported.

Whoever so ridicules his Crowned Benefactor or reads it or corresponds with its writer, what right does someone with such a lack of zeal have to consider himself an Iranian!?...

He was irritated that the Iranians had gotten a constitution, clutching at the argument that if they could not rule themselves, there would be chaos. No one asked him, What do you want?!... If you are saying that there should be no constitution, then what were your writings for?!... If you did think it had to be granted, then what were these discouraging words about?!Mehdi Mojtahedi speculates that Talebof's refusal to serve in the Majlis was due to his age. (Taqizade: Rawshangariha dar Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 51)

The story of Molla Nasr od-Din was that this newspaper had been founded that year in the Caucasus and, [191] as we shall show, was a worthy newspaper. It seems that it was upon Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's orders that it was held up at the post offices and not allowed to reach the people. The Mojaheds complained about this to the Anjoman Jarideye Melli/Anjoman, I:19 (29 Shawwal 1324 = December 16, 1906) reports that the tradesmen had gathered one day to protest, among other things, the seizing of Molla Nasr od-Din. “They resolutely demanded that this be forbidden.” The Anjoman replied that the order for this had come from Tehran and therefore they had to discuss the matter with the Majlis and request that it lift the ban. Jarideye Melli/Anjoman, I:23 (11 Zi-Qa'da 1324 = December 27, 1906) published a telegram from the Anjoman to the Majlis requesting that the ban on Molla Nasr od-Din, “which depicts the obscene deeds of the absolutists and is a cause of progress,” be lifted. and the Anjoman telegraphed the House of Consultation, asking that it circulate freely. This offended Mr. Talebof, and he took this as an indication that the Iranians were not worthy of having a constitution and, considering Mohammad 'Ali Mirza the Iranians' “benefactor,” he denounced whoever read criticisms of him in the newspaper Molla Nasr od-Din or wrote a letter to that journal.He also condemned Molla Nasr od-Din for mocking the Friday Imam, although he did not object to the Tabrizis' exiling him for his “shortcomings.”

The people were so grateful for Talebof's efforts, yet he raised such brainless criticisms of them. Even worse, he did not come to Tehran, making these same excuses. He stood aside just when such a knowledgeable and competent man could have done the most good. In response to the telegram which they had sent to him from Tabriz, he agreed to be a representative. But he stipulated that he would set off for Tehran in the month of Safar [April] (three or four months later). Then, in the month of Safar, he stayed put and did not leave.Jarideye Melli/Anjoman, I:24 (14 Zi-Qa'da 1324 = December 30, 1906) reports that Talebov outright declined to be a representative and that Mirza Yahya, the Friday Imam of Khoi, was chosen in his place. There were many of this sort, who should be called shirkers. We will recall each of them in his place.

Of the twelve men whom we have mentioned, nine were in Azerbaijan and had to leave. Of these, two—Haji Friday Imam of Khoi and Haji Mohammad Aqa—were not ready. The former had not come back from Khoi and the latter had not finished his work. Only seven were prepared to leave, and it was determined that they would set out on Tuesday, January 8, a day which must be considered as one the likes of which had never been seen in Tabriz.The following comes from Jarideye Melli/Anjoman, I:29 (27 Zi-Qa'da 1324 = January 12, 1907). G. P. Churchill, Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, Enclosure to No. 18, January 31, 1907 incorrectly states that all twelve departed that day. In order to know the devotion of the Tabrizis to the movement and how important they considered this matter and how they struggled for its success from the bottom of their hearts, we must write about it at greater length:

On that day, the people did not open the bazaars, but everyone crowded around the representatives' point of departure, and the streets were filled from the Anjoman's gate to Pol-e Aji, which is doubtless a distance of over a quarter of a parasang.Jarideye Melli/Anjoman estimated the crowd at 50,000. (loc. cit.) The clergy and the liberals' leaders had gathered in the Anjoman and all the rooms and courtyards were filled.Jarideye Melli/Anjoman includes the touching detail that “Their Eminences the great clergy sat with the tradesmen and the peasants haunch to haunch, the merchants and the magnates spoke with the bazaaris and the guildsmen and they treated each other like brothers,” just as in the dawn of Islam. (loc. cit.) The representatives came first. The people all gave out loud cries of glee as soon as they saw them. This is where the credentials were to be presented. First, Mirza Hosein made a speech. Mirza Fazl 'Ali Aqa and Sharaf od-Dawle had written something about their commitment to the cause of the people, that they wished to put their lives on the line,Jarideye Melli/Anjoman, I:30 (29 Zi-Qa'da 1324 = January 14, 1907): “besought their prayers.” The account of the representatives' sendoff in this journal begins at this point. What follows is an abbreviated version of what is printed in loc. cit. and that they were going to struggle for the people's sake. They gave it to Mirza Hosein to read. The people cried out as one, “Go in God's protection! We will struggle with our lives and wealth to support you.”

The credentials were presented. After some ceremonies and photographing, the time to set off arrived. The representatives, clergy, leaders, and the people at large all walked up to the front of Amirkhiz Mosque, where droshkis were waiting. The people raised a zealous [192] outcry along the side of the road and celebrated.

A pulpit was set up in front of Amirkhiz Mosque and the representatives sat on its stairs. Sheikh Salim, Koran in hand, stood at the pulpit and called for an oath between the representatives and the people. First, he obtained an oath from the representatives on behalf of the people saying that in the mission which they were undertaking, they would always strive for the success of the people's causes and think of Iran's progress and power and consider it their duty to [193] protect the Constitution. Then he turned to the people and said, “Tell these worthy men whom you have elected to be representatives and are sending off and who are taking their lives in their hands are going, having consigned themselves to God, how far you will be prepared to go to protect them, so that this Koran might be the witness between you and them...” Again, all the people said with one voice, “We are ready to help and protect them with our wealth and our lives, to the last drop of our blood and we take this Koran as witness to this declaration.” They cried out so loud that you could say it reverberated throughout the city.In P (I:65-66), Kasravi exclaimed, Amazing! It was as if they knew what would happen. They knew that Mozaffar od-Din Shah had bidden farewell to life and that his son, the bloodthirsty Mohammad 'Ali Mirza, was replacing him... and would work to uproot the Constitution and that these representatives would need allies to support them who would spare neither life nor wealth for this cause, so that they took an oath from the start and took that Koran for a witness. Now God's Koran is a witness that the Tabrizis have stood by their oath and spared neither life nor wealth, and thank God that they fulfilled their agreement in this undertaking. Tabriz profited nothing from the Constitution but to be drenched with the blood of thousands of youths and have the corpses of over sixty men who went to the gallows sleep beneath its soil. But was Tabriz the loser? No, never! Tabriz will be the loser that day when it does not stand by its oath and make God's Koran its enemy! But now Tabriz is triumphant. Now may God be pleased with Tabriz...

After sealing this oath, the representatives bade farewell, sat in the droshkies, and left. They headed for Jolfa, to reach Tehran via the Caucasus and Gilan. They were greeted with great enthusiasm and delight in all the cities of the Caucasus. They were greeted with great enthusiasm and delight in all the cities of the Caucasus. In Baku, aside from Iranians, of whom there very many there and who greeted them splendidly, Haji Zein ol-'Abedin Taqiev hosted them, giving them a fitting reception. Talebof went to Baku to see them and the eight of them were photographed together. But he returned to Vladeqafqaz, promising them that he would go to Tehran after them—a promise not kept.In P, Kasravi gave the explanation that, after he returned to Vladeqafqaz, “the struggle between the Shah and the House of Consultation errupted in Tehran and matters went into disarray, and so he refrained from leaving.” (I:63, footnote 2) In one striking letter published in Jarideye Melli/Anjoman, I:37 (16 Zu-Hijja 1324 = January 31, 1907), Taqiev requested that Talebof be accepted in the Iranian National Assembly as the representative of the Muslims of Baku. Although Talebof responded with lavish praise for Taqiev (Anjoman, I:39 (20 Zu-Hijja, 1324 = February 4, 1907)), we have no record of his promising to serve in the Iranian National Assembly in this capacity or in any other.

The Commitment to the Constitution of the Iranian of the Caucasus

Since we have mentioned the Caucasus, we must say something about the impact that the constitutional movement had on Iranians there. As we have said, there were many Iranians in the Caucasus. Aside from merchants and tradesmen, there was a huge group of workers in the Baku oil fields who passed their days in great toil and misery.Document. Because there was so little work and so much oppression in their own country, they could not stay, but took refuge in foreign cities and had to submit there to harsh labor. As we have said, in the war between Armenians and Muslims, several thousand of these people were killed for nothing, their blood spilled.

They knew best the harm done by the Iranian government's weakness and so were happier than anyone when news of the constitutional movement and the founding of a House of Consultation reached them. They fell to thinking about their homes and families and became hopeful about returning. As we have said, the representatives were given a splendid reception in every city.

There were some ten thousand oil workers in Sabunchi and Balakhani.Discuss. They asked the representatives to see them and the representatives agreed and went there. After visiting and commiserating, they returned.

Some alert ones among them sent messages to the House of Consultation, asking if it was in order for them to elect representatives from amongst themselves to send to the House of Consultation.

Before the constitutional movement, since the Russians, Armenians, Georgians, and others each had a party, some of them, too, formed one to look after their compatriots. They had secret links with the Tabriz activists and were aware of each others' situation [194]. Among its founders were Narimanof, Suchi Mirza, Mirza Ja'far Zanjani, Mashhadi Mohammad 'Amuoghlu,A famous mojahed leader from Sorkhab, Tabriz. Mohammad Taqi Shirinzade Salmasi, Haji Khan, Nurollah Khan Yekani, Mashhadi Mohammad 'Ali Khan, Mirza Abol-Hasan Tehrani, Akbar Osku'i, Hosein Sarabi, Mashhadi Baqer Khan Orumiye'i, and Mashhadi Esma'il Miani. They were experienced and aware men. They knew well that although the Iranian Constitution had been won peacefully and easily, it would not advance peacefully and easily, but would require struggle. So after the Constitution, they decided to cooperate with their compatriots and send emissaries to the cities.

First, Mashhadi Esma'il and then Mashhadi Mohammad 'Ali Khan, Haji Khan, and others, came to Tabriz. These are the ones who became known as the mojaheds of the Caucasus, for they had come from the Caucasus and dressed as such, but for all that, were actually Iranian.Karim Taherzade Behzad, in his Qiam-e Azarbayjan dar Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran (p. 48), lists Mashhadi Mohammad Sadeq Khan, Mashhadi Hasan “Khayat”, and Sadeq 'Amuoghli in their ranks. He says that two of the leaders were 'Ali Bala and Haji Aqa. (ibid., p. 341) Elsewhere he says that two of the first people to enter Tabriz as mojaheds from the Caucasus were Hasan Aqa and Esma'il (Shoja'-e Nezam's assassin) and adds Mashhadi Mohammad 'Ali Darughe, then Asad Khan and his comrades (ibid., p. 455). Their arrival encouraged the liberals, and since they were experienced and clear-sighted men, they took the lead in everything and showed the way for the rest. Some of them delivered speeches and worked towards enlightening the people. One faction was offended by their boldness. The mullahs called them atheist and shunned them, but the mass of liberals were grateful and were glad they had come.In P (e.g., II:352-353), In P (e.g., II:352-353), a clericalizing Kasravi labeled the mojaheds who had not come back from the Caucasus “the true mojaheds,” but he allows that the mojaheds from the Caucasus wore better uniforms and were far bolder and more agile. Moreover, since they had come from abroad and had a claim on hospitality, the people of Tabriz spared them no kindness and held them as dear as they could.

It was in following them that 'Ali Mesyu and his comrades set up a group of mojaheds in Tabriz, and it was their program that they translated into Persian and gave the mojaheds.Document.

The Iranians of the Caucasus helped advance the Constitution in every way. We will note what they did later many times.

Aside from the Iranians, the peoples of the Caucasus themselves did not stint in their concern and support. As we have said, the newspapers there—like Ershad, written by Ahmad Beg Aqayof; Taze Hayat, written by Hashem Beg; Molla Nasr od-Din, written by Mirza Jalil and several others, Caucasian and Iranian—valued the Iranian movement and would write about whatever happened in Iran in their newspapers and discuss it.And yet, see on Ershad Kasravi's observation, p. 178. Therefore their newspapers had many readers in Iran, particularly in Azerbaijan. This was especially true of Molla Nasr od-Din which, since it was written in a joking language and in very simple Turkish and had cartoons, was the most widely-read. In the first months of the movement, Mohammad 'Ali Mirza prevented it from being distributed among the people and it would be seized at the post offices. But the liberals complained and asked the Anjoman to get the restriction lifted, and the Anjoman telegraphed the House of Consultation asking that it be circulated freely. This is justf what Talebof was referring to and complaining about in his letter.

Molla Nasr od-Din was among the newspapers the memory of which must go down in history. This paper had a good poet, a good artist,It had many poets and two artists, Rotter and Schmerling. and several good writersTo be documented. and denounced the evils of the time [195] in its own joking language, and its articles were effective. There is a whole series of evil practices which can be eliminated fastest through humor and satire.

Molla Nasr od-Din's poet was Mirza 'Ali Akbar Saber Shirvani, whose poems were printed in a separate book called the Hophop Name, and which is available everywhere.NoteRef24Kasravi, when he went to Tiflis in the summer of 1916, met a close relative of 'Omar Fa'eq No'manzade, a leading contributer to Molla Nasr od-Din, with whom he found himself in complete agreement on the issues in the course of a long and wide-ranging conversation on Islamic topics. On his return to Tabriz, Kasravi brought with him ten copies of Saber's Hophopname. (Zendeganiye Man, pp. 72-74)

Here is one of Molla Nasr od-Din's jokes about the Iranian Majlis which was printed in one of its issues: “Most of the Iranian Majlis representatives are mullahs because education is not considered a condition to be a representative according to their law.”Refering to the caption of a cartoon which appeared in Molla Nasr od-Din, II:28 (22 Jomada II 1325 = August 8, 1907), p. 5; the caption, in turn, attributes this quote to “British newspapers.”

In Tabriz, the mullahs considered it “pages which lead astray,” and wrote a letter about it which they sent with the seal of the clerics in Najaf and had it printed and distributed. But it did no good, and did not stop Molla Nasr od-Din's popularity.

Heidari-Ne'mati Fighting in Ardebil Haidari22

As we have said, because of the Tabrizis' movement, news of the Constitution being granted reached all the cities and everywhere more or less of a movement appeared among the people. A movement began in the cities of Azerbaijan—Khoi, Urmia, Maraghe, Ardebil, and other places. When the Tabriz Anjoman [196] (the Provincial Anjoman) sent orders to all of them to set up anjomans (regional anjomans) and get busy with the city's affairs and called for one representative to come to Tabriz from each city, an anjoman was set up in each city. But in most of the cities, the meaning of a constitution was not understood, nor was it known what anjomans were supposed to do, and so they were confused. Everywhere, the mullahs came to the fore and acted in accordance with their own ideas and desires, considering this an opportunity to advance their own ambitions. Even if there had been one or two people who understood what a constitution meant, no one would have listened to them.

In Maraghe, Haji Mirza Hasan Shokuhi Shokuhi23had struggled for this cause and had connections with the newspapers. He wrote this about the Maraghe anjoman:Document. “It neither knew nor understood what a constitution is. When the booklet on the Fundamental Law arrived in Maraghe, its members absolutely did not understand its articles and were amazed that such a fuss was being made over these useless articles.” He writes, “It is as if the people thought that the members of the anjoman were going to hold congregational prayers with them or teach them about questions of shariat, because they were very punctilious about matters of sanctity and piety.”

In the meantime, a strange event occurred in Ardebil. Fighting broke out between Heidaris and Ne'matis over setting up an anjoman.

One of the tragedies of Iranian history has been the sectarian rivalry between Heidari and Ne'mati.Refer to the literature. We do not know when or how this began, or who Heidar was and who Ne'mat was. We do know that the cities of Iran were subjected to their sectarianism for a long time, so that the people were divided into two parties in each city: One was Heidari, the other was Ne'mati, and each sect would always contend with and be hostile toward the other over everything and they would fight on the slightest pretext. This had been going on since Safavid times until it gradually lost its virulence and disappeared from most cities. By the Constitutionalist period, it survived only in small towns, from which word of it would come every few years, particularly during Moharram, when they would organize processions and put on those spectacles and obashes would take the opportunity to wreak vengeance and show off.

One such city was Qazvin, where in that very first year of the Constitution, on the tenth of Moharram'Ashura, the anniversary of the martyrdom of Imam Hosein. [February 24], the two factions clashed outside the city gates and two people among them were killed and over thirty or forty were hurt altogether.

Another was Shushtar, where it remained until recent times. When I went to Khuzestan in 1923,This observation does not appear in his biography. it was there that I saw this for the first time. The city was divided into two communities, one of which was called the camp of the Ne'matis, the other the camp of the Heidaris, and the members of each community kept themselves separate from [197] the other.

Another was Ardebil, where it survived until the beginning of the constitutional period, and it was as a result of this that the task of setting up an anjoman ended in a fight. At the beginning of the constitutional period, the governor of Ardebil was Sa'ed ol-Molk, who was close to Mohammad 'Ali Mirza and himself a tyrant.A cousin of Nezam ol-'Olema. Like his relative Vakil ol-Molk, he spent some years in Russia as Iran's representative until he resigned “in despair” and worked in Tabriz specializing in relations with Russia and Britain and became immensely wealthy. (Nader Mirza, Tarikh-e Joghrafiye Dar os-Saltane Tabriz, p. 240) The people complained of him and sent telegrams to the House of Consultation and the Tabriz Provincial Anjoman. The Anjoman persisted until he was removed. Jarideye Melli/Anjoman, I:17 (26 Shawwal 1324 = December 13, 1906) reported his removal. We have no indication that he had been removed under pressure from the Anjoman. A telegram from Ardebil published in Jarideye Melli/Anjoman, I:29 (29 Shawwal 1324 = December 16, 1906) appealed for help in ending the sectarian strife which threatened to break out into violence. It was then that a telegram was sent to Mirza 'Ali Akbar Aqa, the great mojtahed there, asking that a local anjoman be set up. Mirza 'Ali Akbar Aqa gathered the people in a mosque, read the telegram to them, and set up an anjoman with their help. But since Mirza 'Ali Akbar Aqa was a Ne'mati, the Heidaris were jealous and set up another anjoman under the leadership of Haji Mirza Ebrahim Aqa.We mention parenthetically that Haji Mirza Ebrahim Aqa became an ardent royalist after the June 1908 coup overthrowing the Constitution. See the telegrams he sent to the Shah in response to Sheikh Fazlollah Nuri's campaign against the Majlis being restored and the Shah's positive response to this campaign. (Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, pp. 902-903, 908) Ignorance created enemies on both sides. They would gather in the mosques every day and eat lunch there and spectacles would be made over this rivalry. It finally reached the point where the Heidaris called the Fuladlu cavalry and the Ne'matis called the Quje Beglu cavalry, two groups of marauding Shahsevans, into the city. They set up barricades and fired at each other until several were killed or wounded.

When news of these events reached Tabriz, the Anjoman discussed them and decided that both Mirza 'Ali Akbar Aqa and Haji Mirza Ebrahim should be summoned to Tabriz. They then decided to send two people from Tabriz to Ardebil.The process of finding people willing to go on this peace mission to Ardebil (and Qarajedagh) was arduous, with prominent military officers bowing out. Mirza 'Abdor-Rahim agreed to go if a cleric would accompany him, and so one Haji Molla Hosein 'Ali Va'ez reluctantly went along. (Anjoman I:101-102, 7 and 8 Jomada II 1325 = June 19 and 20, 1907)

Chapter 4: What Conflicts Arose with Mohammad 'Ali Mirza?

In this chapter are discussed the events of the first year of the Constitution, from the time of Mozaffar od-Din Shah's death to Atabak's arrival in Iran.

Mozaffar od-Din Shah's Death

Those same days Tabriz sent off its representatives with zeal and joy, Mozaffar od-Din Shah was spending the last days of his life in Tehran. It was as if the Tabrizis realized this and knew that soon, Mohammad 'Ali Mirza would be enthroned and would work to uproot liberty, and that by the time the representatives reached Tehran, things would change and there would be the need for struggle and sacrifice to safeguard the Constitution. It was for this reason that they exchanged an oath to struggle to the death.

On the evening of Tuesday, January 8 (23 Zul-Qa'daReading ??? for ???.) six hours into the night,“between 10 and 11” Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, No. 5, January 8, 1907) The London Times (“Death of the Shah,” January 10, 1907) carries a fascinating obituary and reports of the reaction in the courts of Europe to the Shah's decline and demise. Mozaffar od-Din Shah bade farewell to life. That night, his body was washed and wound in a shroud, and taken away the next day. Services were held for him for three days starting Thursday at the Tekiyeye Dawle and then, for a few more days, at the Friday Mosque, and at the Sepahsalar Mosque for several more days. The representatives did not meet for three sessions out of respect for him, and black bunting was hung around the Majlis.A foreign observer noted that Apart from the entourage and persons having close relations with the Court, but few people seem affected by the state of the Shah, and the general indifference, if not apathy extends even to the Parliament… [which] has not expressed regtret for the Sovereign's illness… (The London Times, “Persia: The Shah's Health,” December 13, 1906) After the Shah's death, except for the flags which are flying at half-mast over the foreign Legations, there is no sign of mourning to be seen anywhere in the city. No shops have been closed and all the Government offices remain open as usual. Even the military college at which a brother, the sons, grandsons, and nephews of the late Shah are students is still open as though nothing had happened.

(The London Times, “The Death of the Shah,” January 11, 1907)

The only good thing about this king had been his cooperation with the Constitution.In P, Kasravi adds that this cooperation stemmed from his commitment to Islam, since “at this time the leading constitutionalists were the great clergymen of Islam.” Otherwise, his earlier estimation remains unchanged in the current edition, (I:69) although he eventually convinces himself that his “resistance to the courtiers and his support to the Constitution was a sign of his good character, and so his name must go down in history for the good.” (I:70) He reined in the courtiers as much as he could or dared. His death deprived the constitutionalists of this cooperation and their task became more difficult.

Mohammad 'Ali Mirza sat on the throne in his place, but he was to be crowned on January 19 (4 Zul-Hijja). Those who were in the know were aware of his hostility to the Constitution and were terrified. But many fell for his two-faced deceptions and remained hopeful.

During those same days, there were speeches in the Majlis in which it became clear that the Two Sayyeds had fallen for these deceptions more than any one else and were the most naïvely optimistic.In P (I:71), Kasravi, strangely, has a starker evaluation of the Two Sayyeds' position, saying that the new Shah had drawn them over to his side and made them his supporters. He continues, “Although the excuse for their bad words was the matter of the sale of the wheat of Haj Mirza Hasan Aqa [the Mojtahed], it is clear from their words that their intention was nothing other than supporting the Shah.” Kasravi is possibly expressing raw disappointment in their attacks on the Tabriz Anjoman. Thus, here is how Blissful Soul Tabataba'i spoke about the Tabriz Anjoman:NoteRef12Anjoman, I:40, 23 Zil-Hijja, 1324 = February 7, 1907, citing Majles, I:28 ([date?]). The bracketed material is supplied from the article from Anjoman. In P, Kasravi considered these comments a conscious expression of support to Mohammad 'Ali Mirza. (I:72)

“There are many complaints about the Tabriz Majlis. If what they say is true, there will be chaos in the realm [199]. There is one Consultative Assembly and no more. I do not know what they are saying. This situation in Tabriz has caused confusion. [Not only is there an assembly in Tabriz, but every place has one set up.]”

Sa'd od-Dawle: “[No one understands yet what an assembly means, and so one must explain so that everyone might understand, and o]ne must be patient until their representatives arrive and they themselves write that the course they have chosen is improper.”

[Tabataba'i]: “While you are waiting for them to come, chaos will break out.”

Taqizade and Haji Mohammad Esma'il spoke and each answered separately, saying: “It is not a Majlis there, but a Provincial Anjoman to respond to the people's appeals for justice.”

Tabataba'i replied: “What they are doing has gone beyond that. They forced Haji Mirza Hasan Aqa [200] to turn over his wealth to them.”

Again, some of the representatives answered.loc. cit. One representative argued that the Crown Prince himself had installed the Anjoman's leader; another argued that it was run honestly; another argued that it was a defense against unscrupulous officials. Behbehani said, “The Shah has complained greatly about the Tabriz Majlis, saying that it has caused trouble.” After some discussion, Tabataba'i spoke again, saying: “I am reliably informed that Nezam ol-Molk“Nizam-ul-Mulk took over the Governorship of Tabreez early in January… [He] found the local “Enjumen” … so hostile that he complained to the Shah. The matter was brought up by Seyed Abdullah at the Tehran Assembly, but the Deputies upheld the “Enjumen.” G. P. Churchill, Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, Enclosure to No. 18, January 31, 1907) was given a message saying that every month we will give 300 tumans, if you want it, take it and don't interfere.” Behbehani said, “Yes, they are going rather too far. There must be some discussion about this. These days, thank God, the Shah is kind and compassionate.”

This exchange shows that Mohammad 'Ali Mirza had met with the Two Sayyeds and complained about the Tabriz Anjoman. Doubtless, he wanted to use them to eliminate this Anjoman and thus find relief. Since he was plotting to overthrow the Constitution in those days, he wanted first to get rid of the Tabriz Anjoman, and it is good that Taqizade and others gave their replies and mollified Tabataba'i.

The Two Sayyeds were not aware of his plot. Moreover, since they had obtained the Constitution from Mozaffar od-Din Shah peacefully and bloodlessly and had gotten results from using their particular method of “speaking and standing by their word,” they wanted to continue pursuing this policy. They therefore saw no need to accumulate supporters and force and did not appreciate the Tabrizis' far-sighted efforts. We will see how they would never abandon this harmful strategy to the very end and got themselves into trouble time after time as a result of this very strategy and how Tabriz answered their cries for help each time and saved them. One of these problems developed three weeks after this exchange, and we will see that they would not have been saved were it not for Tabriz's steadfastness.In P (I:129-130), Kasravi says about this, How is it that Tehran did not notice the Shah's plot although it was close to him and Tabriz, for all its distance from him, did?... This is not surprising. In Tehran, when Their Eminences Tabataba'i and Behbehani were demanding the Constitution, since there was no other motivation and everyone worked pure-heartedly… success followed success. But when the Constitution was granted, scheming people entered among the constitutionalists and each sung a different tune and so control escaped the pure of heart. But there were few such people in Tabriz and the mass of liberals struggled pure-heartedly and were prepared to sacrifice their lives and so the righteous emerged triumphant. There is an issue here which must not be passed over in silence: At this time there were many people among the constitutionalists who knew European history. As we have seen, the newspapers kept recalling the French Revolution and threw the deeds of the revolutionaries there in the Iranians' faces. One of the very appropriate things the revolutionaries did in the French Revolution was to form an army of the liberals through which, on the one hand, they were able to uproot the enemies of liberty within the country and on the other hand to fight off the armies which the governments of neighboring countries sent against France and emerge victorious. If it were not for these armies, the French Revolution would have been aborted and [France's] independence would have been compromised. Such a thing should have been done in Iran, too. The newspapers which had shown such devotion to the French Revolution ought to have gotten the people to buy guns and drill and practice. If Tehran had done such a thing, the other cities would have followed suit and perhaps a people's army might have been formed so that Mohammad 'Ali Mirza would not have dared to bombard the Majlis and the Russian soldats would not have dared to attack Iran. Alas, Tehran did no such thing and at a time when the Constitution's failure was so dark, the people of Tehran tied their hands and opened their mouths, issuing newspaper after newspaper and setting up anjomans. According to the Blue Book, thirty newspapers were published in Tehran and at the time Mohammad 'Ali Mirza bombarded the Majlis there were almost 150 anjomans in Tehran. See what a hue and cry had been made? But the people of Tabriz drilled and practiced from the first day without setting the French Revolution as their guide but simply on the grounds that every Muslim must be able to fight and know how to ride a horse. We shall see that this was the Constitution's greatest help. This alone is an indication that at this time, the people of Tabriz were wiser than the people of Tehran and, in other words, at this time the hand of God was over the people of Tabriz. In general, this version of the History is more clearly polemical than the final version. Here we can see the relationship between Kasravi's anti-Westernism and Azerbaijanism.

The allegations about seizing Haji Mirza Hasan's wealth and sending the message to Nezam ol-Molk were both lies. The story about the Mojtahed was that he called the representatives of the Majlis over to his house one day in mid-December.Jarideye Melli/Anjoman, I:22, 7 Zi-Qa'de, 1324 = December 23, 1906, from which the emendations to Kasravi's text are taken. When they arrived, he turned to them and said, “[Some hoodlums have spread the rumor] that the Mojtahed is an enemy of the Constitution,[...] that if at first he was for it, this is not now the case[, and some people believe these hoodlums and some refute them]. They [have] also [for two years] accuse[d] me of hoarding... The people readily believe this accusation now that grain is dear and the people are hard put to get their bread. I, in order to make bread cheap and the people's lot easier, place all my villages and holdings in the hands of [the sacred Anjoman' representatives] of my own volition, to take my wheat and sell it at whatever price they wished. I do this so that the people know that I [am a patriot and] a constitutionalist.” The representatives did not accept his offer,They merely wished he would have his men bring the grain to town and have it sold at a fair price. (loc. cit.) but he insisted and issued to them the following statement to which he had affixed his seal:

This prayerful one, for the sake of the people's well-being and to lower the price of grain, have turned all the grain from my villages and holdings over to [201] the honorable members of the sacred Anjoman and have made them the absolute and unimpeachable agents for obtaining and dispensing all the grain in my villages, to sell at any time and at whatever price they desire. As for the wages of the laborers, the cost of transport, and other expenses, I accept them at whatever level they decide to fix them. Everything is at their disposal, including receipts; whatever they say, I accept with complete trust.

On the fourth day of Zu[l-]Qa'da the Sacred, 1324 [December 20, 1906]

We might have said of such behavior that the Mojtahed had joined the people from the bottom of his heart and was now sincerely with them. But this man's other deeds and behavior, which we shall see, prevent us from believing this. It must be said that his motivation was fear above all else.In P (I:105-107), Kasravi is more charitable, calling it an example of the Mojtahed's behavior towards the liberals and it can be said that in those times, he had nothing but kindness for the constitution and wished for success in his heart and pure-heartedly struggled for it… This point must not be forgotten, that it was the clergy which brought about the Constitution. In those days, when the monster of absolutism had unfurled its banner, no one dared mutter, it was only the clergy whose heart ached for the people's situation and could some time speak up… Read in the issues of Habl ol-Matin how in those days when the people were sleeping in the bed of ignorance and never had anything to do with what was good or bad for the country, in Isfahan, the clergy united and worked to spread the consumption of native cloth and declared that wearing and using it obligatory upon all Muslims. In many of the cities, the clergy took the lead and set up general schools. One of the great mojtaheds of Najaf, apparently Sheikh Mamaqani, issued a fatwa declaring reading Habl ol-Matin obligatory upon all Muslims. I do not deny that a faction of akhunds were severely corrupt and some of them made the Faith an excuse for living like nobility and allied with the government men. Some of them were also plunged into darkness and were considered a disgrace to Islam. For all that, we see that great ones like Tabataba'i and Behbehani and Akhund Khorasani and their like were among them so that each of them was worth leading the world. If the Constitution had been led in the same way that it had been created by the clergy, it would have had this very valuable result, that Iran would have been spared the shame of Europeanization. For those who do not understand how harmful Europeanization is and what damage it has done Iran, I will illustrate this point. In Iran, one of the famous constitutionalists was Sayyed Hosein Khan Tabrizi, the editor of 'Adalat. While His Eminence Tabataba'i and others were in Tehran fighting with the Court, he was secretly struggling in Tabriz. But it must be seen what His Eminence Tabataba'i wanted and what Sayyed Hosein Khan wanted: His Eminence Tabataba'i wanted oppression wiped off Iran and that everyone, from Shah to beggar, have a limit, that all Iranians should learn war and rise up and defend their country, that lying and fraud be eliminated and that no misbehaving woman be found throughout the country, that the wealthy would always give a share of their property for the poor, and such things as doubtless fills the heart of every Muslim. As for Sayyed Hosein Khan, since he had visited Russia and learned the pleasure of having his way with women, he had no other wish than that women be liberated in Iran so that he and his ilk could mingle with some other group all the time and seek pleasure and let come what may. And so, as soon as the constitution was granted and freedom fell into his hands, he suddenly picked up pen and wrote about women's liberation. And so the constitutionalists themselves shut down his journal and exiled him from the city. We now see that because of this very article, Iran is suffering the vilest faults. Regarding this fatwa, Kasravi points (Peiman II:7 (Tir 1314 = June-July 1935), p. 468) to an article in Habl ol-Matin Vol. 14, No. 2 published before the Constitution had been promulgated concering an article by the famous Caucasian Muslim intellectual Ahmad Bey Aqayof which appeared in Irshad (Baku) which reported that Mamaqani had issued it during the tobacco boycott. For since grain rarely reached the cities due to Nezam ol-Molk's negligence and disruptions by the village owners and others and bread was scarce in those days, life had once more become difficult for the people. They were furious with the village owners and cursed them bitterly and there was talk among the liberals of taking over the village owners' warehouses and getting them to sell their wheat.This is undocumented in Jarideye Melli/Anjoman. Thus, the Mojtahed acted this way to save face.

In any case, it was a good deed,P (I:104-105) has this to say about the Mojtahed of Tabriz's relationship with the constitutionalists and the issue of hoarding:

What astonished the people of Tabriz that spring was the matter of Haj Mirza Hasan Aqa's misbehavior. Since it had long-standing consequences and it was on of the particular causes of the fighting of 1287 [=1908], we devote a separate discussion to it.

[W]hen the Two Sayyeds in Tehran demanded a constitution, the Mojtahed of Tabriz did not go to their aid. But when the Tabriz movement began, he joined the constitutionalists and always stayed with them... We... mentioned that one of his sons' hoarding left a blot on his reputation. The Mojtahed now tried to remove it: Just after mid-December, less than three months into the constitutionalist movement, there was a grain shortage due to the winter's snow and bread became expensive. One day, he invited the Anjoman representatives to his home and said, “People call me a hoarder and want me to be held in contempt by the people. Since grain is scarce and bread is expensive, I entreat the Anjoman representatives to take control of all my villages and bring the grain from where ever it is into town and sell it for whatever price they want.” The people were reluctant to accept this offer; but the Mojtahed insisted... When he was asked if this offer extended to his eldest son's [Haj Mirza Mas'ud's] grain, he said it did...

The villain of the piece here is Nezam ol-Molk, the governor of Azerbaijan, who misrepresented these events to the Crown Prince and provided him with an excuse to object to the Anjoman's behavior. and Haji Mirza Mahmud Tajerbashi, an Anjoman representative, was chosen to bring his wheat to the city and sell it. He brought up to eighty donkey loads, sold them, and then let it go at that.Jarideye Melli/Anjoman, I:35, Zil-Hijja 11, 1324 = January 26, 1907.

As for Nezam ol-Molk, after Mohammad 'Ali Mirza left, he left Tehran to govern Azerbaijan. The liberals greeted him and treated him with respect. But he did nothing and showed only hostility to liberty. The story of sending him a message was a lie from beginning to end. He concocted these lies and wrote them to Mohammad 'Ali Mirza, who used them as a means to get people vexed with the Anjoman and told them to the Two Sayyeds.This is Kasravi's inference; actually, Nezam ol-Molk could be said to have gone along with the Anjoman; there is no evidence that he sought to undermine it. It is hard to imagine why he would circulate a rumor that he was on the take from the Anjoman, and in any case he allowed the Anjoman to deny the rumor. (See Anjoman, I:40 (23 Zil-Hijja, 1324 = February 7, 1907).)

When issue 28 of Majles reached TabrizSee footnote . and they found out what Tabataba'i and others said, the Tabriz representatives realized what had happened, but instead of getting worked up and upset, they went after a solution. Two lengthy articles were written about this in Anjoman to clarify what had happened.Anjoman, I:40 and 41 (23 and 25 Zil-Hijja, 1324 = February 7 and 9, 1907). The Mojtahed himself sent a telegram to the House of Consultation and related the story as it had happened.Anjoman, I:42, (27 Zil-Hijja, 1324 = February 11, 1907). Moreover, Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's anti-constitutionalistism and his plot had by now become apparent in Tehran, and the Two Sayyeds had also lost some of their naïve optimism.

Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's Coronation and His Snubbing of the Majlis

Mohammad 'Ali Mirza was coronated on Saturday, January 19 (4 Zul-Hijja).Sir C. Spring-Rice to Sir Edward Grey in Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, No. 16, January 30, 1907, which has a thorough account of the coronation, has the coronation occurring on Sunday, January 20. See also The London Times, “Coronation of the Shah,” January 21, 1907, which is innocent of the augueries and omens mentioned in other reports. Ministers, magnates, clerics, ambassadors, and consuls were all invited. According to ancient custom, Prime Minister Moshir od-Dawle placed the crown on his head and immediately music was struck up and cannons fired. Tehran and all the other cities were illuminated for three days. Tabriz [202] was lit up for five days.

Some things were written in the Blue Book which should be related here. It says,Ketab-e Abi, p. 20. The English original (Sir C. Spring-Rice to Sir Edward Grey in Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, No. 16, January 30, 1907) reads,

It was observed [the crown's] great weight and size were of considerable inconvenience to His Majesty, who was obliged to support it with his hands. It was then removed, and its place was taken by an ordinary Persian hat, adorned, however, with the famous aigrette which is now so familiar in Europe, and which Nadir Shah obtained from the Emperor of Delhi. “Since the crown was so big and heavy, his head could not bear it. So he had to hold it up with two hands and take the crown off after a few minutes and replaced it with the official Iranian hat with the Naderi plumage on it.”

Majlis members were not present at this meeting. Sani' od-Dawle and Sa'd od-Dawle were invited as magnates, [203] but no one was invited as a Majlis representative. It became clear from this just what Mohammad 'Ali Mirza thought of the Constitution and the Majlis.

The man who had sworn such oaths and made himself out to be in favor of the Constitution in his letter to Blissful Soul BehbehaniSee page 186. had now completely reneged and showed such aloofness. There was a discussion in the Majlis that day, and some of the representatives complained and some said intelligent things, too.To be documented.

Mirza Taher said: “The king is the people's king. He must be crowned by the people and the Majlis is the people's representative.”

Mirza Mahmud Ketabforush said: “Now that the Majlis has just opened, it should demand its rights if it can. If it does not, it will not be able to do a thing.”

But nothing could come of these complaints and discussions. Mohammad 'Ali Mirza advanced his agenda and abandoned the timidity he had shown while he was on his way to receiving crown and throne. From that time forth, he would plot to overthrow the Majlis and the Constitution.

This man had been brought up with absolutism and did not see anything to being a king besides ruling arrogantly. Now that he was crowned and enthroned as a young man, it offended him that some of the people stood up to him and talked about the affairs of nation and country. The meaning of a constitution and the benefit of cooperating with the people were things which never entered his head.

Moreover, his tendency towards the Northern Neighbor and the presence of a tutor like Shapshal and advisors like Mofakher ol-Molk, Mofakher od-Dawle, Amir Bahador, Sa'ed ol-Molk, Sayyed Mohammad Yazdi, and Haji Mirza AsadollahOne of the deceitful mullahs of Tabriz who had insinuated himself with Mohammad 'Ali Mirza and his inner circle by printing a prayer book and so on. Since he was an enemy of the Constitution, they drove him out of Tabriz and he was now in Tehran. Similarly, they expelled Sayyed Mohammad Yazdi from Tabriz and he came to Tehran. [–AK] The latter two clerics are attacked by Kasravi in P (I:71) as “godless turban wearers.” Sayyed Mohammad he holds responsible for the Russian bombardment of the dome of Imam Reza's tomb. and the like around him made matters worse, and he allowed no room for conciliation with the Constitution and the Majlis.

It was said that his father-in-law, Kamran Mirza, was also anti-constitutionalist and that he encouraged him to overthrow the Majlis. The recent behavior of the Majlis and its non-acceptance of the loan treaty had offended all the courtiers and mightily stoked their rage and hostility.

Mohammad 'Ali Mirza had become single-mindedly bent on overthrowing the Majlis. He wanted to ignore it entirely, grant none of its requests, and implement none of the laws it would pass or orders it would give, rendering it an ineffective institution. Moreover, he wanted to make each and every provincial governor an enemy of the Constitution, not allowing the people room to move and keeping them from electing representatives for the Majlis (just as, at that very time, Asaf od-Dawle [204] was behaving in Khorasan and just as Amir Asad, son of SepahdarsonOfSepahdar18 Sepahdar15,I.e., Nasr os-Saltane. [–AK] had arrested a cleric of Tonakabon, a certain Sheikh Mohammad, for the crime of wanting to set up an anjoman to elect representatives and bastinadoed him and had the beards of other mullahs cut off.) Moreover, saying, “We are Muslims and the Constitution is not compatible with being a Muslim,” he raised the slogan of shariatism to stir up some of the mullahs, foment clashes, and, ultimately, bring things to the point that the Majlis would be merely legislative and have nothing to do with asking why the government is taking loans. He wanted to take back the ineffective Fundamental Law which had been granted and raise the slogan of shariatism to smash it.In this passage, the text switches to the royal plural three times when referring to the Shah. This discussion occurred on 7 and 9 Zi-Hijja. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:346)

Regarding Asef od-Dawle and his preventing an anjoman from being established, the Minister of the Interior replied:Document. “The people say a lot. Documentation is necessary. Information must be produced to be certain. Perhaps it was because he wanted to form a popular anjoman and make trouble and behave indecently that the governor stopped them.”

This answer was worse than Asef od-Dawle's behavior. It clearly exposed to the Majlis how aloofly the government was behaving towards it. Tabataba'i wrote to the Prime Minister regarding Sepahdar's son and he answered him:To be documented. “Sheikh Mohammad was being indecent, Amir-e As'ad chastised him.”

On the twentieth of January, the day after the coronation, there was a discussion in the Majlis about all this and the representatives strongly complained again. There were more complaints two days later in another session and this time some said hot-headed things.

Haji Sayyed Nasrollah said:To be documented. “There are some around the Shah who are not comfortable with the Majlis' progress and do not want there to be law.”

Ostad Hasan Me'mar said: “For years, they have looted and plundered the people with in every way. They will absolutely not allow themselves to be restrained.”

Tabataba'i said: “If they don't want this Majlis, it is up to us to say that the monarchy and the Majlis are twins and that this king is the Majlis' king.”

These were the kinds of things that were said. In any case, they refrained from rending the veil of propriety, always blaming things on the ministers and courtiers. They pretended that the Shah himself was with the people and the Majlis and that it was the ministers and the courtiers who were the enemies. The result of their deliberations was that they would write to the Shah to alert him to the ministers' hostility and ask him to do something. Since the Shah was pursuing a double policy towards them, they, for their part, kept the veil intact and, out of fear or out of far-sightedness, preserved the ambiguity.

[205]

The Majlis' Efforts to Overthrown Naus and PriemSee also Sir C. Spring-Rice to Sir Edward Grey, Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, Nos. 19 and 20, February 24 and 27, 1907.

But in the meantime, the Majlis had done something as a result of which this veil had to be torn away and the ambiguous made plain. As we have said, when the issues of the founding of the National Bank and giving a loan to the government were being raised, the Tabrizis answered that they must first investigate the government's budget and balance its income and expenditures. This was very appropriate, for it was discovered later through an investigation that the government's income was 7.75 million tumans per year and its expenses were 10.75 million. The annual deficit was then 3 million tumans, which had to be paid for by loans.“Kholaseye Tarikhiye Advar-e Mashrutiat dar Iran” (1336), republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, p. 10. Now, if a national bank had been founded and lent one million tumans to the government, it would have been bankrupt again after a few months and come back for another loan. This is just what the courtiers privately had this in mind all along. Since they were offended by the refusal to accept the loan treaty, they wanted to take revenge by making the merchants and others more insistent on founding a national bank and render all their efforts futile by wiping out their capital. The Tabrizis had foreseen this and pointed it out. The Majlis members agreed and put the issue of the budget at the top of their agenda and discussed it.

But there were two problems here: One was that they had to ask the ministers about the government's income and expenditures, while the ministers would not come to the Majlis and did not consider themselves answerable to it. Nothing had been written about this in the Fundamental Law. For some time, Sa'd od-Dawle had been summoning the Minister of Finances and the Foreign Minister to the Majlis to ask them questions, each time informing Majlis President Sani' od-Dawle, who would write to the Court. But nothing would come of this. The other was that control over income rested with Monsieur Naus and the other Belgians, who did not take the Majlis seriously and ignored it.

[206] As we have said, Monsieur Naus controlled several important posts. The customs department, post offices, telegraphs, and the treasure were all in his clutches. The fact is that these Belgians were working for others, and it was for this reason that they got so far and for this purpose that all control over income was in their hands. They openly worked to wreck Iran's affairs and tried to dry up the sources of government revenue to increase the country's need to obtain loans from foreigners.

This demonstrates how wretched and impotent the Qajar Court was. It brought in a few foreigners and put them in charge of important matters, and although they witnessed their hostility and enmity with their own eyes, they ignored this and would pass the day enjoying a hundred comforts.

As we have said, one of the causes of the movement in Tehran was anger over the Belgians' cruelty and hostility. The heart of every activist brimmed with hatred for them. Similarly, Sa'd od-Dawle, since his time as Minister of Trade, had powerful feelings of vengefulness in his heart for them.Taqizade writes about Sa'd od-Dawle that he had utterly turned the Majlis into his toy and with extraordinary selfishness wanted to be its sole speaker, from the Majlis' commencement until it's adjournment and have everyone follow what he said. And so he was perpetually in conflict with the Majlis president. The whole time he was present in the Majlis, the bitter strife and conflict and factionalism between him and Majlis President Sani' od-Dawle and his family was beyond all bounds… Sa'd od-Dawle, through his demagogic acts, had made the spectators and the constitutionalists into his followers, but because of his arrogance and tyrannical behavior and selfishness and thousands of rude acts…, he gradually drew the ire of a majority of representatives and a majority were attracted to Sani' od-Dawle by his good character and nobility and that of his brothers and nephews. He would meddle in all affairs without permission or following the Majlis' regulations. At one point, he related that he had dreamed of Naser od-Din Shah who gave him a rescript promising a constitution and freedom, and had a spectator read it. Another issue was that Sa'd od-Dawle's grandfather had worked in the telegraph post in Tabriz under Mokhber od-Dawle, Sani' od-Dawle's father and married Mokhber od-Dawle's daughter. But due to Sa'd od-Dawle's grandfather's bad character, he lost both position and wife and was flogged into the bargain, and so there was bad blood between the families. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:351-352)

For all these reasons, the Majlis was ready to denounce Naus and his colleagues and try to shorten their grasp, and this discussion about the budget prepared the basis for that. In any case, the Belgians, for their part, were neither unaware of this nor were they standing idly by. Mohammad 'Ali Mirza, with his inclination towards the Northern Neighbor, did not cease protecting them and allowed no room for discussion about them.

Finance Minister Naser ol-Molk, after several summonses from Sa'd od-Dawle, came to the Majlis on the seventeenth of January (two days before the coronation).To be documented. Fars representative Mirza Abol-Hasan KhanNamed “Banki” because he had been a member of the Imperial Bank's board. See note . asked him: “What are the Custom Bureau's revenues?”

Naser ol-Molk replied, “Customs has its own minister. He must be asked this. In any case, we can talk about the matters which concern us.”

Mirza Abol-Hasan Khan asked: “Why must there be a special Minister of Customs, why can't this be under the Finance Minister's administration?! The people do not believe in this at all.”

Naser ol-Molk did not respond to this and said: “I am prepared to answer anything within my jurisdiction.” He would shrug off whatever questions Sa'd od-Dawle and the others asked him in this matter and not respond. The fact was that Naus would act autocratically and ignore the Finance Minister and give no account, and Naser ol-Molk was Finance Minister in name only.

These Majlis deliberations exposed the Belgians' arrogance more clearly. They also brought before their eyes the Belgians' appalling record of behavior in the time of 'Ein od-Dawle. So the Majlis would ask over and over why they had to make some foreigner the administrator and Naser ol-Molk would reply: “Write about this and ask the Prime Minister.” How they would struggle and overthrow the hostile foreigners is a story in itself.

[207] After deliberations, they wrote a letter to the Prime Minister on behalf of the Majlis saying that the ministers should be introduced to the Majlis and that each of their jurisdictions and degrees of accountability should be clarified.The letter was sent 14 Zul-Hijja (January 29) and threated to close the Majlis if the ministers did not come before it and accept their constitutional responsibilities in relation to it. This resulted in a tumultuous popular agitation. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:346) They wanted to accomplish two things in this way: One was to get Naus, who could not be introduced to the Majlis, dismissed from his post as Minister. The other was to get the Ministers to consider themselves accountable before the Majlis and come before it whenever summoned.

As a result of this letter, on Thursday, January 31 (16 Zul-Hijja), eight ministers (whose names we will report later) came before the Majlis and the Prime Minister promised to attend the next session, too.

Discussions were held with the ministers. But the sought-for results were not achieved. The ministers would not hold themselves accountable to the Majlis on the excuse that there was no such law. When asked if there were other ministers besides these eight, the Minister of the Interior answered: “One should ask the Prime Minister about this.” Naser ol-Molk was asked concerning Customs whether he accepted the responsibility for that bureau or if, as on the other day, he would shrug it off. He answered: “The same arrangement as yesterday holds today. Nothing has changed.” And so, the meeting ended without anything having been accomplished.

Introducing the Ministers to the Majlis

On February 3 (19 Zul-Hijja), when the Majlis reconvened, Haji Mohtasham os-Saltane came on behalf of the Prime Minister. He brought with him the Regulations for the Senate Majlis and National Bank LicenseThe bank's principle conditions are layed out in The London Times article titled “The National Bank of Persia,” February 7, 1907. and conveyed a letter from the Prime Minister in which the ministers were introduced and each of their duties were indicated:To be documented.

Moshir os-Saltane, Minister of Justice; Naser ol-Molk, Minister of Finance; 'Ala os-Saltane, Minister of Foreign Affairs; Vazir-e Afkham, Minister of the Interior; 'Ala ol-Molk, Minister of Education; Fakhr ol-Molk, Minister of Trade; Dabir od-Dawle, Minister of the Army; and Mohandes ol-Mamalek, Minister of Mines and Roads.

It said: “They are responsible to his most sacred Royal Eminence, and whenever necessary, they themselves or their aides will be present in the Majlis.”

The representatives deliberated over this letter and discussed some of its aspects: First, they objected to the Minister of the Army. The Minister of War had long been Kamran Mirza. Now the government wanted him to be Minister of War but did not introduce him to the Majlis and introduced someone else in his place as Minister of the Army.

Second, they objected to the ministers' being held accountable to the Shah. This meant that they would not be held accountable to the Majlis. Mohtasham os-Saltane made an excuse, answering: “You have not written a law for ministers so that they would be accountable to the Majlis?”

Third, they asked, “Are there other ministers or not?” He answered: “These are the ministers who [208] are to be questioned and who are to answer.” Mir Hashem Devechi'i asked: “Then who are these other ministers?” He answered: “There are two kinds of ministers: titular ministers and working ministers.”

There was a lot of discussion. However much the ministers asked, Haji Mohtasham os-Saltane would give a general response. The fact is that Mohammad 'Ali Mirza despised the Majlis and wanted to keep his maternal uncle, Kamran Mirza, as Minister of War without anyone being able to question him. Similarly, he wanted to keep Monsieur Naus and his compatriots at their posts without the Majlis or the Minister of Finances being able to call him to account or to question him. Finally, he wanted to weaken the Majlis and not allow the ministers to pass under its control, but keep them under his own.

This would have meant the Majlis' liquidation and the Constitution's overthrow. There would have been a Majlis, but a powerless one which would merely legislate. Thus would the son take back what his father had granted. The Majlis wanted to bring the ministers under their control and get Naus dismissed. Mohammad 'Ali Mirza was preparing a plot to render it powerless.

[209] Most incredibly, the members of the Majlis did not understand the significance of the events and the damage that was being done, and so were content to stubbornly continue their deliberations.

Sa'd od-Dawle made a hot-headed speechTo be documented. in the course of these deliberations. What happened was that since Mohtasham os-Saltane read the Prime Minister's letter and there was only one question about the Minister of the Army and he answered it, he began to read another letter from the Prime Minister concerning the National Bank license, and he wanted to make it out as if this first document by the Prime Minster was a simple, uncontroversial affair and that what required discussion was the National Bank. Sa'd od-Dawle lost his temper over this and said, “You present this license and this document to distract and confuse us and so that tomorrow you might come and say, 'We are in debt one million tumans, you must give it to us.'”

Some of the representatives (Sani' od-Dawle and his relatives, Mokhber ol-Molk and Hosein 'Ali Khan), supported the government and tried to have the document accepted as written. HoseinFor Hasan. 'Ali Khan said:To be documented. “Since they have not introduced Naus to you, this is enough. What is it to you whether he is a minister or not?” Mokhber ol-Molk said the same thing. Taqizade, Sa'd od-Dawle, and others insisted. But it did no good, and Mohtasham os-Saltane answered them all: “Regarding Naus, they let it suffice that they did not call him a minister.” Taqizade suggested that where it said in the Prime Minister's letter, “These are the ministers,” the words “the only” be added. Mohtasham os-Saltane would not accept this either, using the excuse, “What you propose would be to clarify the clear.”

The session ended with this debate. In the next session, Isfahan representative Adib ot-Tojjar requested that the deliberations on this matter be resumed. Sani' od-Dawle would not agree to this and requested that the Senate Assembly regulations be put on the floor. But the representatives would not keep quiet and, willy-nilly, the discussion resumed and it reached the point where people lost their temper. Sani' od-Dawle left the Majlis for another room and the representatives left, too. When they returned after a while, Sani' od-Dawle said: “If you want the Majlis to be of use to the nation, it must work. Nothing will come of quarrelling and bickering. So first, let the discussion on the Senate Assembly regulations and their ratification begin. We must operate this way in the future as well.” So saying, he put the Senate Assembly regulations up for discussion and the previous discussion closed completely. The representatives, for their part, gave in.The Majlis members saw no need for a Senate and purposely dragged their feet in discussing it. (Taqizade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:356)

Thus, Mohammad 'Ali Mirza masterfully executed his plan and the courtiers considered themselves victorious. In any case, the eruption of the Tabriz movement turned all this on its head and changed the calculations.

We do not really know how the Tabrizis learned of these events and how they knew of Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's inner intentions. These were not known right there in Tehran, but they were understood [210] from afar in Tabriz. Only two of the Azerbaijan representatives—Taqizade and Mir Hashem—were in Tehran at the time. One could only have expected evil from Mir Hashem. It can be said that Taqizade was bringing this news to Tabriz. If so, why did he say nothing in the Majlis?! Why did he not reveal the meaning of this behavior of Mohammad 'Ali Mirza—to eliminate the Constitution—so that the people might know and rebel?! We really do not know.

The February Revolt

There was peace in Tabriz after the representatives' send-off. The people were saddened when news came of Mozaffar od-Din Shah's death and sent a telegram to the House of Consultation. Then, when news of his son's coronation arrived, the city was illuminated for five days.Anjoman, I:30 and 32 (29 Zil-Qe'de and 4 Zil-Hijja, 1324 = January 14 and 19, 1907. They were not aware of what was happening. But when the Fundamental Law arrived, they saw it was faulty and criticized it.Document. In addition, there were outbreaks of lawlessness in Azerbaijan, particularly the area around Urmia, and Nezam ol-Molk paid no attention to this, and this angered them.See G. P. Churchill, Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, Enclosure to No. 18, January 31, 1907. Also, news arrived from Tehran that Sayyed Mohammad Yazdi and other enemies of the movement for freedom who had been driven out of Tabriz had entered the Shah's circle in Tehran. Similarly, Sa'ed ol-Molk,Of Sa'ed ol-Molk, Kasravi writes in P that he was one of Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's confidants who had accumulated great wealth. He was “nothing more than a wine-drinker and corrupt.” (I:78) whom the Anjoman had insisted on being deposed from the governorship as a result of the Ardebilis' complaints, became Minister of the Treasury. All this angered them, but they held their peace.NoteRef14During the Anjoman deliberations of Wednesday, 22 Zil-Hijja, 1324 = February 6, 1907, one Mashhadi Mir Ya'qub Mojahed burst in “along with a group of residents and sayyeds,” declaring that crimes of the governors and their agents were the fault of the Anjoman's policy of hiding from the people the political developments above-mentioned. Sayyed Mohammad Yazdi's name was not directly mentioned by Mojahed, who only referred in general to people who had been driven out of Tabriz regrouping around the Shah. Similarly, although Mojahed alluded to disturbances in the borderlands, he did not mention Urmia specifically. Sa'ed ol-Molk, however, is clearly mentioned in the way Kasravi said; he is said to have been given this post with the Majlis' support. Although Mojahed himself never mentioned Urmia, letters from Tehran which the Anjoman had been sitting on and which he forced them to divulge revealed the anarchy into which the border regions had been plunged. When these letters were finally read in public, a riot broke out, pace Kasravi. Anjoman, I:43 (29 Zil-Hijja, 1324 = February 13, 1907). See also Anjoman, I:42 (27 Zil-Hijja, 1324 = February 11, 1907).

On Tuesday, February 5 (21 Zul-Hijja), lettersTaqizade claims that it was a letter from him to his brother-in-law, Mohammad 'Ali Khan Tarbiat, which produced the uproar., indeed, that it occurred the day after the letter arrived. (Tarikhe Ava'el-e Enqelab va Mashrutiat-e Iran, published in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:274) Elsewhere, he writes that this letter was part of series of weekly letters written to his brother-in-law. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in ibid., I:347) arrived from Tehran bringing news about recent heart-rending events, such as Sepahdar's son's cruelty towards Sheikh Mohammad and others,See p. 203. the Shah's snubbing the Majlis members and not inviting them to the coronation, his insistence on retaining the Belgians, the ministers' refusal to agree to be accountable before the Majlis, and so on.In P, Kasravi adds that another point of rebellion was the Tabrizis' awareness that the Shah intended to replace the idea of constitutionalism with that of rule in accordance with the shariat. (I:76) This is remarkable because Kasravi was trying to ally himself with the clergy at the time against the Europeanizers.

This agitated the movement's leaders. They knew well what Mohammad 'Ali Mirza intended with such behavior and understood what was going on behind the scenes. So they broke their silence and went into action.In P, Kasravi commented (I:74) Although the constitutionalist movement arose in Tehran and this honor befell the capital city, Tabriz was its saviour, and so European writers called this city “Iran's Marseille.” Tabriz had been in Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's hands and had thrown off the yoke of despotism later than Tehran. But as soon as it had thrown off this yoke, it made up for this shortfall by being the Constitution's greatest supporter. During these years, Tabriz was not only Iran's center of struggle and movement and, by its successive stirrings, did not permit the liberals to weaken, but it also took the reins of politics in hand and liquidated the Shah's schemes. In those times, the alertness of the Iranians, especially the Tabrizis, was an astounding phenomenon... On Wednesday, February 6 (22 Zul-Hijja), a band of mojahedsSee note . entered the Anjoman and talked with the representatives there. They raged over how the Anjoman could have been ignorant of such events and so negligent. The news gradually reached the guildsmen's representatives and they all rallied in the Anjoman. Similarly, the people heard what was going on, closed the bazaars, and headed there, too. Mirza Javad Nateq reread the letters and delivered a speech himself. The people raised an agitated outcry. Some wept and some shouted abuse and insults. Everywhere there was a commotion.According to P, the ill-treatment of the mojtahed in Tonakaban was the most important issue “which filled the people's eyes with tears and their hearts with fire.” (I:77) It was as if the people had lost

something very dear to them and so lost their senses. In the meantime, they also brought in the clerics and mullahs one by one, and when all of them had gathered, the preachers tried to quiet the people. After deliberations, they decided that they would gather at the telegraph office the next day, summon people [211] in Tehran to the telegraph post, and discuss with them. A telegram was sent from the Anjoman to some of the Majlis representatives. Similarly, the clergy sent a telegram to the Two Sayyeds. We reproduce their telegram below:Anjoman, I:43 (29 Zil-Hijja, 1324 = February 13, 1907).

To the presence of Their Eminences the Hojjatoleslams (May their blessing continue!).

Today, some messages from Tehran have reached a group of residents of Tabriz all to the effect that the honorable members of the National House of Consultation in Tehran are dismayed by the lack of progress in the matter of the Constitution and do not think that His Royal Highness is in accord. The people of Tabriz have all been thrown into a tumult over this. The bazaars have been closed and there is chaos. The people considered the government to be constitutional and submitted to it absolutely. This frightening news has led to a general uproar. The members of the Tabriz Anjoman have communicated to the members of the House of Consultation that they should be present at the telegraph post tomorrow, Thursday, at four o'clock, so that there might be a direct telegraph communication. We would be grateful if Their Eminences the Hojjatoleslams also grace it with their presence at that hour so that the prayerful might be there too, so that we might hold a direct discussion and consultation.

All the Hojjatoleslams in Tabriz.

The next day, on Thursday,The following is as reported in Anjoman, I:44 (1 Moharram, 1324 = February 14, 1907). the clerics and the Anjoman representatives and the movement's leaders gathered at the telegraph post. The people did not open the bazaar; they crowded in and around the telegraph post courtyard to find out what was happening, not desisting from their zealous outcry all the while. Some activists organized a group of children and taught them some revolutionary slogans which they chanted in Turkish: “Let us sacrifice the last spoonful of our blood for the people's representatives.”In Turkish in the text. All this was done to agitate the people and strengthen their resolve. Orators—including Blissful Soul Sheikh Salim, Mirza Hosein, and Mirza Javad—addressed the people one after the other, urging them to be serene and resolved.Anjoman's actual wording was that the trio preached patience. (Ibid.) This is in keeping with their usual role in times of crisis, which was not that of being agitators, but of trying desperately to keep a volatile situation under control. In P report, in addition to Mirza Javad (who is given pride of place), Kasravi mentions Sheikh Salim, Mirza 'Ali Akbar Mojahed, and Mirza 'Ali Veijuye'i. (I:54) Such a movement had never occurred in Tabriz since the events surrounding the sanctuary.

The discussion with Tehran began, and it was amazing Tehran was so cool and casual and considered Tabriz's anxiety and agitation baseless and pointless.Taqizade, for his part, insists that a fraction of the Majlis representatives—himself, Sa'd od-Dawle, and Amin oz-Zarb—boldly spoke up in defense of the Tabrizis. Haji Sayyed Mohammad Sarraf arose and declared, “I submit in loyalty to the government that if the Tabrizis' aims are not met, Tehran will become just like Tabriz tomorrow and the bazaars and shops will close.” (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:348) See also the exchange on page 215. We present some copies of the telegrams, since we have them, below:Anjoman, I:46 (6 Moharram 1325 = February 19, 1907), from which the bracketed material is taken.

From Tehran

To the presence of Their [Esteemed] Eminences (May their splendor continue!).

The sacred Anjoman's telegram arrived. I immediately went to the telegraph post and sent for His Esteemed Excellency, the Most Glorious Sa'd od-Dawle and Aqa Mortezavi and His Honor Haj Amin oz-Zarb to honor the post with their presence. His Honor Aqa Sayyed Hasan [Taqizade—transl.] has brought the honor of his presence. Their Eminences have not yet arrived. What is your intention? Who is the cause of the disturbance? It seems to Your Servant that such measures will be an obstacle to the progress of the principle aim and a set-back for the public interest which we are considering.

Mohammad Esma'il, Taqizade

[212]

From Tabriz

First,Reading ???? (in the original) for ????? (=children!). we are most grateful and obliged for Your Honors' zeal. We quickly ask that with the utmost speed, you kindly summon a group of Their Eminences of the Great House of Consultation. Their Honors, Their Eminences the Hojjatoleslams of Tehran, have declared that they will kindly honor the telegraph post with their presence. Be so kind as to inform Their Eminences the Hojjatoleslams as well that they be so kind, for Their EminencesKasravi drops a “hazrat” here. the clergy [in Tabriz—transl.] are awaiting their honoring us with their presence. Most of [213] the chaos is due to the Great Consultative Assembly's feebleness and lack of progress towards the representatives' aims and some matters which should be submitted in everyone's presence.

Popular Anjoman.

From Tehran

Esteemed Eminences, Hojjatoleslam val-Moslamanins:

His Eminence Mojtahed Aqa Sayyed Mohammad (May his blessings continue!) has graced us with his presence and His Honor Haj Sayyed Morteza Aqa is present. The honorable representatives of Azerbaijan will arrive tomorrow, Friday, four hours before sunset. I have also told some of the honorable members of the Consultative Assembly to honor us with their presence now. Kindly let us know about the necessary matters.

Mohammad Esma'il

From Tabriz

Let us beseech the gentlemen present at the telegraph post to kindly tell us the names of the gentlemen who honor it with their presence, that we might be apprized.

The clerics, merchants, members of the People's Anjoman.

From Tehran

The gentlemen who have kindly condescended to honor us with their presence are Their Esteemed Eminences, His Eminence Hojjatoleslam Aqa Sayyed 'Abdollah, Possessor of SlavesSic! A title usually reserved for royalty. His Eminence Mojtahed Aqa Sayyed Mohammad (May their blessings continue!), His Esteemed Honor the Most Glorious Sa'd od-Dawle, His Honor Haji Sayyed Morteza, Haji Amin oz-Zarb, His Honor Haji Mo'in ot-Tojjar, His Honor Taqizade, His Honor Moshar ol-Molk, His Lofty Excellency Prince Asadollah Mirza.

The merest Mohammad Esma'il

From Tabriz

What is being submitted is the word of all the people who closed the bazaar yesterday and rallied at the sacred Anjoman and who speak clearly and demand a clear reply. First, concerning the lack of progress of the work of the Great National Consultative Assembly's affairs, what“ki in the original for “ koja” in Kasravi. is the obstacle and what is causing this? Second, since [the members of] the Great National Consultative Assembly have the right to know about and intervene in all matters, why is it that it is uninformed about most affairs, for example, the coronation, the appointment of the Crown Prince, the removal and appointment of governors, and the assignment of certain important duties to unqualified people, not considering their own ministers responsible to it, the nonimplementation of some of the principles of the Fundamental Regulations and feebleness and so on, which have all led the people into despair and panic.

The Mojtahed and His Honor, His Eminence Haji Mirza Mohsen Aqa[,] Seqat ol-Eslam, Sheikh ol-Eslam, the clergy, the merchants, and the entire population.

From Tehran

To the presence of the distinguished clergy and the other Eminences and merchants in the blessed telegraph post.

Submitted in accordance with your summons.

This merest of the clergy is present in the telegraph post along with Their Honors Haj Sayyed Morteza Aqa, Haji Mohammad Esma'il Aqa, and Taqizade (May their glory increase!), and we are disturbing [214] you that you might be apprized that what has been written to you from Tehran is an absolute untruth and a downright lie. His Royal August Highness (May God immortalize his reign and rule!) cooperates completely with the National Consultative Assembly. His Royal Highness has seen fit to sign whatever the late blessed King of kings (May God clothe him in raiments of light!) has written and saw fit to issue as a rescript regarding the Majlis and whatever was necessary for the public weal. He is thoroughly“nehayat” in the original for “ghayat” in Kasravi. zealous and compassionate in preparing the ordering of the realm's affairs with complete justice. Your imaginings are completely unfounded. It would be better for every one of you to return to work and trade and not allow that the realm be in chaos, but be calm because soon the results of royal favor and compassionReading ????? for ?????. will become manifest and the entire population will be at ease. The Tehran [National] Consultative Assembly convenes every day in complete order and all those elected are busy with setting public affairs to right.

Mohammad b. Sadeq el-Hoseini et-Tabataba'i.

From Tehran

Submitted before the distinguished clerics and Their Honors, Mssrs. the merchants, [and others] present in the blessed telegraph post.

As you had telegraphed, this merest of the clergy is present in the telegraph post along with Their Honors Haji Amin oz-Zarb, Haji Mo'in ot-Tojjar, [Haji Ra'is ot-Tojjar,] and others. Just as His Esteemed Eminence Hojjat ol-Eslam Aqa Mojtahed Sayyed Mohammad Tabataba'i (May exalted God's peace be upon him!) saw fit to write, what you have heard is [all] an absolute untruth and a downright lie. His Royal Majesty, Master of Servants is completely cooperative and compassionate in ordering the affairs of all the people of the realm with total attention and justice. In particular, he has seen fit to bestow full attention in being utterly cooperative in advancing the affairs of the National Assembly. Thus, he deemed it fit to adorn with his blessed signature the license for the National Bank two days ago so that this crucial matter was realized in accordance with the wishes of all the merchants and the people. So there is absolutely no place for such imaginings in this regard, rather, all the people must be grateful and cooperate in regard to the National Bank's affairs.A week later, “The Government … asked the National Bank to fulfil its promise to lend it a sum of a million tomans (about £ 176,000) this week, but the necessary capital has not yet been subscribed.” (The London Times, “The Sale of Children from Khorasan,” February 27, 1907) So it is best that you go back to work with complete peace of mind and look forward to the appearance of thorough royal attention and the order of all affairs.

The prayerful 'Abdollah el-Mosavi Behbehani.

The Tabrizis' Seven Demands

From these telegrams, too, it seems, as we have said, that Tehran did not understand Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's intentions, nor did they realize there the significance of his behavior towards the Majlis. Most amazingly, the Two Sayyeds were still naïvely optimistic. The Tabrizis suggested seven things which should be demanded of the Shah through the Majlis. We reproduce the text of these demands:TBI, vol. II, p. 82. P related that these demands were reported in the Calcutta Habl ol-Matin. The existence of these seven demands was also reported in a speech by Mostashar od-Dawle to the Majlis reported in Anjoman, I:53 (28 Moharram, 1325 = March 13, 1907).

The Royal Person must release a rescript to calm the people, saying that the government of Iran is completely constitutional.
The number of ministers responsible is currently no more than eight, and in the future, whenever it becomes necessary to organize a ministry, [215] it will be done over the Majlis signature.
From now on, no foreigner may be appointed as a minister.
A local anjoman will be set up in every province and district with the knowledge of the National Consultative Assembly.
There must be absolutely no honorary ministers. That is, the name 'ministry' must not be used except for the eight responsible ministers in the government.
Mssrs. Naus and Priem must be dismissed and Tabriz customs post president Lavers must be arrested immediately.It is unclear what his crime was; it is not mentioned in the literature. Annette Destrée, in her Les Fonctionnaires Belges au Service de laerse simply mentions that it was decided that he remain for an inquest, the issues behind which are never discussed. (p. 139)
Sa'ed ol-Molk must be dismissed.

The first five are items the Tabrizis wanted the government to accept and include in the Fundamental Law. They considered them necessary to fortify the Constitution and make it sound. Moreover, each of them was raised in order to advance a cause. The first was to put an end to the idea that Mohammad 'Ali Mirza had about the Majlis, i.e., his wish to make it a mere legislative body and that a constitution in the true sense of the word as it existed in the European countries not be granted the Iranians. The second one was also to strengthen the work of the Constitution and the Majlis. They raised the third to shorten the grasp of the foreigners. The fourth was to restrain the governors' autocracy. They wanted the affairs of each city to be in the hands of the people themselves so that the governors could not disrupt things upon Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's instructions. The Tabrizis had put this into effect themselves by setting up an anjoman, [216] and they wanted this done throughout Iran.

As for the sixth and seventh demands: Naus' dismissal and that of his aide, Priem, had become one of the liberals' aims, and their remaining at their post after showing such enmity was considered a disgrace. Lavers' arrest was demanded because of his thievery and his intention of fleeing Iran.Document. And we have seen how Sa'ed ol-Molk had been run out by the Anjoman, and it offended the Tabrizis that he remained at his post.

Thursday ended with these telegrams. That day, the telegram of the seven representatives arrived from Qazvin, saying that they were on their way to Tehran. They had met with snow on the Gilan road and were delayed, finally arriving at Qazvin a month later.The telegram from Qazvin is produced in Anjoman, I:44 (1 Moharram, 1324 = February 14, 1907). There is mention neither of snow nor of a delay. The final answer from Tehran was, “Since the Azerbaijani representatives are to arrive the next day, let us answer your demands after we discuss them in their presence.” And so the people dispersed and went home.This occured on Friday. (loc. cit.)

The next day, Friday, the movement's leaders again assembled in the telegraph post and the people packed into the post courtyard, the artillery depot, and the armory. Crowds of people went this way and that. The preachers, not letting the people be idle for one moment, preached to them, and since some people made trouble by becoming hot-headed in these circumstances, they restrained them through admonition and persuaded the people to calm down and look to their leaders. That day, the general schools formed groups out of their students who went there chanting [in Turkish]:These verses were composed by Nameq Kamal, an Ottoman poet who wrote for the Ottomans. They were chanted very often in Tabriz, having been adapted for Iranians. They are chanted to this day by general school students. [–AK]These verses were reported to have been chanted on Thursday. (loc. cit.)

Our hopes, our thoughts are for the homeland's prosperity.

We are a stronghold for the borders of our country's land.

On the day of battle you will all see the blood-drenched shroud.

Iranians, life-sacrificing, winning fame are we.

In battle, all seekers of the martyr's fate are we.

This continued until evening. Since the people were losing patience and it seemed that they would not sit still any longer if they did not get the desired answer, Blissful Soul Seqat ol-Eslam sent a telegram to the Shah himself explaining what was happening. Then the Mojtahed sent another telegram of the same sort.

As for Tehran, there was another outpouring of zeal that day.24 Zil-Hijja, 1324 = February 8, 1907. This material is from a letter from a Tehrani published in Anjoman, I:47 (13 Moharram 1325 = February 26, 1907) and a letter from one of the Majlis representatives from Tabriz published in the following issue (15 Moharram 1325 = February 28, 1907). See also Sir C. Spring-Rice to Sir Edward Grey, Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, No. 20, February 27, 1907. As we have said,Kasravi had not yet said this. the seven representatives from Azerbaijan reached Tehran that day. Crowds of people rushed out to greet them with great joy and enthusiasm. Tehran witnessed an extraordinary day. In addition to the fact that they were representatives, the name of Azerbaijan was respected in those times.Mostashar od-Dawle wrote in a letter to Seqat ol-Eslam, Thank God, now the people of Azerbaijan and this few representatives which they sent are the light of the eyes of Tehran, nay, all of Iran. People who had a few days ago made the word “Turk” a laughingstock are now rushing to get to know the Azarbaijan representatives with complete respect. (Nosratollah Fathi, Zendeginameye Shahid-e Niknam Seqatoleslam Tabrizi, p. 126) Moreover, the Shah's ignoring the Majlis and the courtiers'Reading ???????? for ???????. arrogance had offended everyone and the people considered the seven representatives' arrival at that point a victory for the Majlis. The guildsmen with their leaders had lined up to outside the city gate and when the representatives arrived, they decapitated a cow before their feet in the name of the people of Tehran.It was the custom to sacrifice a sheep or a cow to welcome an especially important guest. [217] A certain Haji Sadeq did something insane to celebrate. He brought two new-born babies, saying, “I want to sacrifice them before the feet of the representatives from Azerbaijan.” Aqa Mirza Fazl 'Ali said, “May we be a sacrifice for these two new-born babies. Our time is passed; our every effort is for their sake.”

The people wanted all the representatives to settle in one spot to make visiting them easier. Haji Mohammad Esma'il invited them all to his house, but there was very little opportunity for visiting: That day, the representatives were called to the telegraph post from Tabriz. After the arrival of Sani' od-Dawle, Sa'd od-Dawle, and some of the Majlis' other leaders, with whom they held discussions, they all left for the telegraph post and stayed there until after sunset.Of this revolt, it is observed in Sir C. Spring-Rice Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, Inclusure to No. 23, March 28, 1907, “Next to the admirable way in which order was preserved throughout, the most striking point in the movement was the distrust of the Shah universally manifested.”

The Unveiling of Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's Ideas

Moreover, there was to be a meeting held that night at the home of Prime Minister Moshir od-Dawle in the presence of Sani' od-Dawle, Sa'd od-Dawle, Haji Mo'in, Mortezavi, Amin oz-ZarbZarb16, and Haji Mohammad Esma'il, about Tabriz's seven demands.The material on this meeting is from the letter which appeared in Anjoman, I:48 (15 Moharram 1325 = February 28, 1907). There is no information that it had anything to do with Tabriz's alleged demands. Moshir od-Dawle sent someone and summoned the newly-arrived representatives as well, and they came there from the telegraph post.

The discussion began. Sa'd od-Dawle spoke on behalf of the Tabrizis and raised their demands.Again, there is no indication that Sa'd od-Dawle was acting on behalf of Tabriz's alleged demands.

Moshir od-Dawle“Moshir od-Dawle, who was absolutely opposed to new ideas …” (Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 425) said, “Suppose the government wants there to be a thousand ministers. You are faced with the ministers the government introduced to you. What is it to you that the government has a certain number of ministers?!”

Sa'd od-Dawle said: “In a constitutional government, the ministers must be responsible. There must not be any ministers, official or honorary, except for the ones stipulated. Don't we have a constitutional government?! Hasn't the government given us a constitution?!”

Moshir od-Dawle said: “No, we aren't a constitutional government and the government has not given you a constitution. The Majlis which you have is there only to legislate.”

Sa'd od-Dawle turned to the others and said: “Have the gentlemen heard what he has declared? In that case, our only duty is to determine the people's duties. From now on, our presence at this meeting is superfluous. Let's go.”

Haji Amin oz-Zarb rose to his feet and said, “The government cannot say, 'I have not given you a constitution.' If we are not under a constitution, why have representatives been sent from the provinces?! We officially recognize ourselves as being under a constitution and no one can take our rights away from us unless the people's blood is shed.”

Then Mostashar od-Dawle rose to his feet and made a speech,Kasravi deleted the first part of his statement: “We are representatives of Azerbaijan sought by the Azerbaijanis. Our people consider themselves to be better than constitutionalism [sic]. The British ambassador himself via his consul in Tabriz distinctly told the people that the government has accepted the constitution and officially considers us constitutional.” concluding by saying, “Now that the government has gone back on its word and wants to fool the people, our only task is to inform our people who are gathered around and waiting by the telegraph post. Kindly excuse us to go and spare them from [218] waiting any longer.”

He said this and they all got up to leave. Moshir od-Dawle said, “Don't lose your temper. Sit down and write down what you want so that I can present it to the Shah tomorrow.”

Sa'd od-Dawle said: “We cannot ask from the government what we already have. Our demand is to rectify the law, [219] to eliminate defects.”

Moshir od-Dawle said: “What defects?!”

He replied: “The accountability of ministers, a limit on their number, and the dismissal of the extra ones, one of whom is Naus, another being Priem.” Having said this, he listed Naus' crimes.

Moshir od-Dawle said: “This is all true, but the government has no choice but to keep Naus at his post.”

Sa'd od-Dawle answered: “But the people is not obliged to accept enemies.”

And so the argument went. Sa'd od-Dawle said some hot-headed things and the others expressed their agreement with him. Moshir od-Dawle tried to mollify them. Finally, it was decided that they would inform the other representatives the next day and hold an extraordinary session of the Majlis, collaborate on drafting a letter, send it to the Prime Minster to show the Shah, and obtainReading ????? for ????. a reply. And so the meeting ended.

You should ponder some of what Moshir od-Dawle said. These were Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's ideas being spoken by the Prime Minister. “The government has not granted you a constitution. The Majlis which you have is there only to legislate.” He meant the same thing in his letter to the Majlis concerning the ministers' accountability and other matters. But the Majlis members did not understand this and, as we have seen, discussed it calmly. Some even supported the government. Concerning Naus, Moshir od-Dawle openly said, “The government has no choice but to keep him at his post.” But why had the government no choice?! Because Naus and his colleagues were working for the Russians, who kept them at their post claiming that Customs had been pawned to them and had to be in the hands of those whom they knew and in whom they trusted. Mohammad 'Ali Mirza dared not do anything which they did not want done. This is how helpless an absolutist government is. Yet it is so arrogant and brutal toward the people. It is so bad to the people, who had sincerely gone into action and hoped to help it, support it, and strengthen it against foreigners.

On Saturday, February 10 (26 Zul-Hijja), the Majlis was convened in the morning in a hidden chamber. The representatives from Tabriz came, too. Taqizade and Haji Amin oz-Zarb had each prepared a different memorandum about the Fundamental Law's shortcomings. They read them and then, after deliberation and consultation, decided it would be best to let the list of demands from Tabriz suffice since they saw that much discussion was needed and there was no time for it.Again, there is no indication in Anjoman of these alleged demands. The demands they hit upon, according to Anjoman, concerned the Majlis' share of control over the government's ministers, limits on the Shah's powers, freedom of the press, residence, and belief, and the founding of anjomans in the provinces. Having written them up, they sent them before the Prime Minister via Haji Mokhber os-Saltane to get an answer from the Shah within four hours and have him return it. Then, when no answer arrived, they chose seven from among the representatives and sent them before the Prime Minister. Nothing came of this either. Mohammad 'Ali Mirza resisted and recklessly [did not] answer.The text says he answered recklessly. This does not conform with the sequence of events it reports. The Majlis stayed in session until [220] evening and waited for an answer.

That day, the Tehranis joined in the agitation. In addition to the Tabriz movement, the previous night's discussions with the Prime Minister awoke everyone. Massive bands of these Tehranis gathered in and around the Majlis courtyard demonstrating their agreement with the people of Tabriz's demandsThere is no indication in our sources that these were from Tabriz. and called for the bazaar to be shut down there, too. But the Majlis would not consent and restrained them.

Moreover, in Tabriz, a similar zealous outcry began that day.Sunday. (Anjoman, I:44 (1 Moharram, 1324 = February 14, 1907)) The people gathered in some of the mosques, in addition to the area in and around the telegraph post, and joined with the activists. In addition to this, phone calls of support came from Basmenj and Shabastar. Since they were informed by telegraph hour by hour about the events in Tehran, they were infuriated by Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's stubbornness, and a group of them decided to try something else in order to pressure him: They would seize the post office, the telegraph, the passport office, the treasury, and the arsenal and would not let the government employees go to work. But the foresighted did not approve, and so they contented themselves with occupying the telegraph posts and not allowing any more telegrams to be sent.“except demands for constitutionalism and the people,” an obvious detail Kasravi omited. (loc. cit.)

The general school students again formed ranks and marched back and forth, chanting. It should be known that in all this enthusiasm, the people did not forget to do what is right and formed a fund for general schools and made contributions.

These events confirmed the longstanding rumor that Mohammad 'Ali Mirza had sent an emissary to the 'Atabat, so the clerics wrote a telegram to be sent to the Najaf clergy. Since they were suspicious of the telegraph system in Iran, someone was sent to the other side of the Aras River for it to be transmitted over the wires from the Caucasus. The telegram and the reply to it by the Najaf clergy which arrived a little later were printed in the newspapers,These telegrams appeared in P. (I:85) but we do not produce them here.

Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's Submits to the Demands

On Sunday morning, the Majlis convened.This material comes from Anjoman, I:48 (15 Moharram 1325 = February 28, 1907), although certain details seem to come from other sources. Again, it was a closed session. But since the people of Tehran had crowded into and around the courtyard and were very impatient, they ignored the fact that it was a closed session and entered and collaboration with the representatives with zeal and enthusiasm. The Majlis members and the rest all awaited the Court's reply and kept sending messengers before Moshir od-Dawle to ask about it. At noon, when the Two Sayyeds and others wanted to go home, the Majlis members would not allow them to and asked that they stay in the Majlis. From this, it appears that they were worried.

In the afternoon, Haji Mokhber os-Saltane came and brought with him a message from Moshir od-Dawle, saying that he had been delegated [221] to talk to the members of the Majlis. They began to talk. The government representative would not accept the Constitution, saying: “This is an incorrect term.”It had been proposed to substitute mashrute to moqannane = “legislated.” (Taqizade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:349) In the course of his talk, he let it be understood that they could demand anything else but this. The members of the Majlis gave sharp replies. He left to come back with another answer. It was evening when he returned. His message was: “The Shah decrees that in spite of all misgivings about dismissing Messrs. Naus and Priem, we have dismissed them. We change the expression 'constitutional' to 'shariatist.'I.e., mashru'e for mashrute. The text of Mokhber os-Saltane's statement on this appears in Sharif-Kashani, p. 107 ff. We are a government of Islam. Let the monarchy be in accordance with the shariat.” The members of the Majlis became agitated again and raised a violent tumult. They openly stated that they would accept no word but 'constitutional.'Taqizade recalls that the Two Sayyeds and Sheikh Fazlollah Nuri both supported this demand. The liberal representatives' arguments were not making headway. It was then that Baqer Baqqal made his speech and the issue was settled. See note .

[222] The bazaars stayed closed that day in Tabriz and the people remained in and around the telegraph post. Another zealous outcry broke out; they sealed the financial department, closed down the passport offices, and took over stores of provisions. Also on that day, governor Nezam ol-Molk came to the telegraph post, apparently out of fear. The general school students paraded around that day again.This material is from Anjoman, I:44 (1 Moharram, 1324 = February 14, 1907). According to this source, “a few people went and gathered the Finance Ministry together and locked and sealed it and commanded Customs to shut down completely. They summoned the military treasurer and sternly ordered him not to remove anything from his depots without the people's permission, and they locked and sealed the depots.”

That evening, since only disappointing telegrams were arriving from Tehran, some people became still more impatient. Blissful Soul Sheikh Salim stood by the window and tried to calm them down by talking with them. He said, “God willing, an answer will arrive by tomorrow. If, God forbid, we don't succeed, we know what to say.”

It was five hours into Sunday night when a telegram about the dismissal of Naus and Priem arrived, and the people calmed down a bit and dispersed.The telegram, by the Azerbaijani Majlis representatives, is produced in P I:88. See also The London Times, “Persia: Belgian Officials Dismissed,” February 12, 1907.

On Monday, February 12 (28Following Anjoman instead of the text, which reads “27.” Zul-Hijja), the Majlis reconvened at dawn. Again, Haji Mokhber os-Saltane came and this time proposed: “Yesterday, I was instructed to speak. Today, I am instructed to listen. But I submit to you as a well-wisher that being constitutional is not good for the government of Iran. For under a constitutional government, all things are legal. Then there would no doubt have to be freedom of religion, too. There are not a few among us, we don't know whom, who would then use this to say that we must be free and that there must be no restrictions, which is dangerous for Islam.”

He had been told to say this so that he could come and divide the members of the Majlis. But no one was convinced by this, neither the Two Sayyeds and the other clerics, nor the rest. They stood by their demands. Haji Mokhber os-Saltane left again to bring another response.

That day, too, the people of Tehran crowded into the Beharestan and raised a zealous outcry.In P, the people of Tehran are given a paragraph. It is here edited down to a single sentence. (I:90) Moreover,The following is from Anjoman, I:44 (1 Moharram, 1324 = February 14, 1907). that day [Monday] in Tabriz, the people's rage was mounting. There was talk of seizing the arsenal and taking the rifles and distributing them to the mojaheds.In P, Kasravi declared that they also threatened to release all prisoners, and people were sent to take the names of the prisoners. (I:88; see Anjoman, I:44 (1 Moharram, 1324 = February 14, 1907)) He also reported that, for the first time, the American War of Independence and the French revolutionary terror were mentioned. (On this, see Anjoman, I:45 (4 Moharram, 1325 = February 17, 1907)) On the other hand, he also cited the Blue Book as saying that, for all the tumult, there was no disorder. (I:89) Indeed, (“Extract from Monthly Summary of Events” in Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, Inclosure in No. 23, March 28, 1907) notes “the admirable way in which order was preserved throughout.” The preachers again tried to calm the people. The general school students came, and since there was no room for them in the courtyard, they stood in rows on the roof tops and chanted:Another curious Turkish chant is recorded in P (I:88): Oh God, Oh God, the youth have learned the benefit of the matter.
Red flags have been unfurled into the air.
They have all been dyed with the color of blood.
Esrafil's trumpet has sounded.
Cries have risen to the heavens.
All order has come apart.
The people's martyrs have formed ranks.
Oh God, Who has forgiven Japan['s dead]!
Oh God, Who has awoken the Mikado of Japan!
The telegraph lines are out of service.
The people's blood is boiling.

O! Hey free men, freed from tyranny!
They have squandered our six thousand year old homeland.
When a person is born from his mother, he is born free.
Why should he deliver himself over to the tyrant's clutches?
Every moment, everywhere, let this cry be remembered:
O! Hey free men, freed from tyranny!
They have squandered our six thousand year old homeland.

That evening, a telegram arrived from the representatives tohe encourage them. It said: All the people of Iran are with you. We have been in the Majlis since dawn. “God willing, [223] the result of this act will be known by two hours into the night. In any case, quiet the people's tumult.”

And so they passed the day. They awaited a reply from the Court, some in the House of Consultation, some in the telegraph post. In the meantime, some well-wishers tried to mediate. One of these was Qajar tribal chief 'Azod ol-Molk,'Azod ol-Molk, the head of the Qajar tribe, was said by one historian to have been privately happy about the granting of the Constitution. (Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 381) who would accompany Haji Mokhber os-Saltane to the Court and try to restrain Mohammad 'Ali Mirza.

Mohammad 'Ali Mirza saw that he was hard-pressed. On the other hand, he could not submit to the Constitution. So he was confused as to what answer to give. But since the Tabrizis' pressure was mounting by the hour, he had no choice but to reply and submit to the people's demands.Dr. Mehdi Malekzade claims that it was a fiery speech given by his father, Malek ol-Motakallemin, which brought the Shah to his knees and forced him to sign the rescript, and that this fact was admitted in the newspapers of the time. He quotes the journal Gheibnama as saying that several people were so overcome by his speech that they wounded their chests with their daggers intent on killing themselves. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, pp. 429-30) It must be admitted that Kasravi is focusing exclusively on Tabriz as the source of pressure, and Dr. Malekzade's insistence on Tehran as another such source—he follows Kasravi too closely to overlook Tabriz's importance here—is reasonable. Like it or not, he issued a rescript.

Haji Mokhber os-Saltane brought the rescript to the Majlis an hour and a half into Monday evening.This account is from Anjoman, I:48 (15 Moharram 1325 = February 28, 1907). The event occurred 27 Zil-Hijja 1324. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:349) The people, several thousand of whom had gathered in the Beharestan courtyard and chambers, were very happy. When Haji Mokhber os-Saltane stood before the Two Sayyeds and the other clerics and read it, the cry of “Long live the Constitution!” went up on all sides, both from inside and outside the Beharestan. The people were endlessly delighted. The House of Consultation sent the news by telegraph to Tabriz and other cities that same night.

The next day in Tabriz, the people again gathered at the telegraph post and, again, some raised demands and would not agree to reopen the bazaars.In P, this is attributed to the people's distrust of the new Shah. (I:91) But the leaders answered and sent everyone to the bazaars.

We produce here the House of Consultation's telegram including the Shah's rescript:From Anjoman, I:45 (4 Moharram 1325 = February 17, 1907).

To the presence of Their Esteemed Eminences, the Hojjatoleslams of Azerbaijan (May God maintain their prosperity!) and the honorable People's Anjoman.

Thank to God and His benevolence,Reading ???? for ?????; even if the latter be ammended to ??????, it would be bad Arabic. divine fortune and the zeal of the sons of the homeland, particularly that of the zealous residents of Azerbaijan, perfected what was defective in the Fundamental Law, strengthened constitutionalism in word and in deed, and have brought the universally-obeyed royal rescript to the point of being granted. It is appropriate for the Majlis to tell all the sons of the homeland that “Today, I have completedReading ????? for ????. for you your religion.”Koran v:3.

That royal rescript was dispatched as follows:

To His Honor, the Most Noble Prime Minister:

Even as we have previously declared in a rescript, our sacred intention to implement the articles of the Fundamental Laws, the signature of which we ourselves obtained from the Late Graced King of kings (May God illuminate his proof!) is more than the people can imagine. It is obvious that from the very day that the decree of the Late Graced King of kings (May God illuminate his proof!) was issued, it was commanded that a National Consultative Assembly be established. The government of Iran was counted among the constitutional governments, having a constitution. The government's greatest concern was that the laws necessary to organize the ministries, government bureaus, and provincial assemblies be written in accordance with the shariat of Mohammad (God's blessing upon him and his family!) and then [224] implemented. Let this very rescript of ours be sent to Their Honors,Reading ?????? for ??????. the esteemed Hojjatoleslams (Exalted God's peace be upon them!) and the National Consultative Assembly.

27 of Zu Hijja the Auspicious, 1324 [February 11, 1907]

National Council

The First Group to Part with the People

And so the tumult subsided after six days. As for its result: First, the Constitution was strengthened and an avenue to breeching it was closed. Second, the Fundamental Law's shortcomings were discovered and a supplement began to be written. Third, Monsieur Naus, who had become like a thorn in the Iranian's eyes, was dismissed. Fourth, Mohammad 'Ali Mirza realized that his real rival was not Tehran, but Tabriz, and that if he wanted to overthrow the Constitution, he first had to do something about that city. We will see what he was thinking up for it.

Sa'd od-Dawle, Taqizade, Moshar ol-Molk, Haji Amin oz-Zarb, Haji Sayyed Nasrollah, and Mostashar od-DawleTaqizade adds Mohaqqeq od-Dawle and says that there were seven people in all. (Tarikh-e Avayel-e Enqelab va Mashrutiat-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:274) He later includes Sadiq Hazrat and Mokhber ol-Molk. (“Lafz-e Mashrute,” republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:392) were chosen from the Majlis to write the Supplement to the Fundamental Law.27 Zil-Hijja 1324. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:349) We will see what came of this.The bulk of the work was done by Mostashar od-Dawle, Taqizade, and Haj Sayyed Nasrollah Akhavi. “The sources and books needed to write the law were not available. We only had a volume of the Belgian Fundamental Law which Sa'd od-Dawle had borrowed from Mirza Esma'il Khan, the Belgian embassy's secretary, and this was made into the basis to which were added things from the French Fundamental Law and the Balkan countries. The process would take eight months and end in 29 Sha'ban 1325 with a document of 107 articles. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:350-351)

As for Naus and Priem, they did not want to disappear so easily. They did not believe that Iran had changed and that a new force, called the liberals, had appeared which would not tolerate enemies. When they were removed, another Belgian named KYNH replaced Naus as Manager of Customs. He was under Naus' control and behaved just like him. Naus also resisted turning over his accounts. It was said that he had removed and burned some of the records which he thought were to his detriment. On the other hand, LAVRS, whom the Tabrizis wanted imprisoned, a demand which the Shah himself had accepted, was not imprisoned, but left Iran.

This led to another round of deliberations in the Majlis concerning Naus and the Belgians, and the Minister of Finances was summoned. The Tabriz Anjoman, too, sent telegrams again, sharply reproaching the House of Consultation.

This strengthened the Majlis' hand against the Court and, moreover, increased its prestige among the people. The people saw with their own eyes an institution which they had never even imagined. For all that, since Moharram (1325) [February-March (1907)] had arrived in the meantime and rawzekhanis would be held then, as in every year, some of the Tehran rawzekhans denounced the Constitution and the Majlis. One of them was Sayyed Akbar Shah, who had long made himself an enemy of the Two Sayyeds. He now gave himself free rein in denouncing the Majlis and the Constitution.

As we have written,See page 80. he was one of the Two Sayyeds' circle at the beginning of their struggles and had accompanied them on their migration to ‘Abdol-‘Azim. In the month he sojourned there, he, with Haji [225] Sheikh Mohammad, would mount the pulpit and keep the people occupied. But after he returned from ‘Abdol-‘Azim, he became exercised by the fact that he had been given little of the money which had been sent by the Two Sayyeds, only twenty-five tumans, and he gradually parted with them and began complaining about and denouncing them. This time, he allied himself with Friday Imam Haji Mirza Abol-Qasem and did not refrain from impertinently denouncing the Two Sayyeds in Moharram (1324) [March (1906)] when he mounted the pulpit in his house. Since the Two Sayyeds and their comrades would not provide tea to the people during their rawzekhanis, tea and lump sugar being foreign goods the use of which ought to be minimized, he would denounce them for this from his pulpit, saying, “I am amazed at those who prepare gold-threaded clothes for their daughters' marriages and are too destitute to give tea during the consolation rites for the Prophet's household.” Then, when the Constitution was granted and the Two Sayyeds' prestige had increased so much and the Friday Imam and others suddenly acted humble, he too quieted down and shut up. But when Mohammad 'Ali Mirza became king and opposed the Constitution, this encouraged Akbar Shah and his ilk.

Although Mohammad 'Ali Mirza had given in and was showing nothing but support to the Majlis at the time, everyone knew what he wanted at heart. Since, moreover, Moharram had arrived and the anti-constitutionalist clergy's market had become brisk, they could not refrain from their denunciations, particularly in places where the owner of the house in which the ceremonies were held was anti-constitutionalist, in which case they became more unbridled.

On Tuesday, February 19 (6 Moharram), Sayyed Akbar Shah resumed his denunciations of the Majlis in the house of Sayyed Mohammad, Sayyed 'Ali Akbar Tafreshi's son. From the foot of the pulpit, a sayyed answered back and tried to stop him and others went to his aid. On the other hand, Sheikh Zein od-Din ZanjaniThe custodian of the Sadr Madrase. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:350) went to support Akbar Shah, and the talabes with him beat up the constitutionalist sayyed. When [226] a group of students from Haji Abol-Hasan's madrase came to the latter's aid, fighting broke out.

The constitutionalist talabes regrouped and went to the homes of Behbehani and Tabataba'i and appealed. The Two Sayyeds wrote about this to the Shah and were insistent. As a result, the Shah ordered that Sheikh Zein od-Din be sent out of Tehran and that Sayyed Akbar Shah and the other denouncers of the Constitution not to go to their pulpits.

When Sheikh Zein od-Din and his allies—Sayyed Mohammad Tafreshi, Sayyed Akbar Shah, Sadr ol-Mohaqqeqin, and a group of talabes—saw this, they took sanctuary in ‘Abdol-‘Azim, and it was said that their number reached seventy or eighty.P says that the number of these “atheist preachers and rawzekhans” reached three hundred. (I:83) They were the first group who parted with the people. When news of what they were doing reached the provinces, it angered the liberals.

But the evils of absolutism had not yet been forgotten and the impetus generated by the movement had not yet been spent. Moreover, those taking sanctuary themselves were not people held in high regard, nor had they any excuse for parting with the people. So the people paid no attention to them. Even Mohammad 'Ali Mirza, who was trying to incite hostility against the Majlis, did not take them seriously. The result was that after about three weeks, they regretted what they had done and a letter was written to the Majlis signed by Akbar Shah and Sadr ol-Mohaqqeqin in which they swore “by all legitimate oaths” that they never had been nor were now opponents “of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, from its inception to this time” and repudiated what they had done.They sent the letter to the Majlis on 22 Moharram. A discussion took place in the Majlis and the Two Sayyeds and others spoke and accepted their repudiation. They hoped that someone would come and escort them back to Tehran, but their hope was in vain, and they were forced to disperse and return on their own.

The House of Consultation's Worthy Deeds

In the meantime, the House of Consultation did several worthy things. For on the one hand, its impact reached all of Iran and there began in every city the struggle between old and new, autocracy and Constitution, oppression and justice. In many places, old divisions did their work and chaos erupted. The Majlis kept watch over all this from afar and sent aid in the support of liberty. In some places, the Tabriz Anjoman took up this struggle.

In Khorasan,The material in this and the next paragraphs does not appear in Anjoman, and probably comes from Majles. where Asef od-Dawle opposed the organization of an anjoman, he was forced out of the governorship and went to Tehran, humiliated and dejected. The Majlis did not stop there, but followed up on the episode of the sale of the Quchan Quchan29girls, discussing this repeatedly. The Iranians of 'Eshqabad had sent a telegram to the Majlis saying: “We have seen with our own eyes that in 'Eshqabad, they were selling the Quchani children like sheep or other animals to the Turkomans and there was no one to appeal to.” When this telegram was read in the Majlis, many representatives could not refrain from weeping. In the session of February 26 (13 Moharram), Mirza Mahmud Ketabforush gave more detailed information on this matter, saying there were two version of this affair: One was that because [227] there had been a plague of locusts the previous year and the harvest yielded nothing, the people had written a letter to the Shah and appealed to him. The Shah said that someone would be sent to investigate. But 'Ein od-Dawle did not listen and Asef od-Dawle and his agents persisted in demanding taxes. The people had no choice but to sell their daughters for the Turkomans to buy. The other version is that Salar-e Mofakhkham Bojnurdi was sent by the government to restrain the Turkomans' marauding and would get an annual stipend for this. But Asef od-Dawle cut off this money and incited the Turkomans to descend on Quchan territory. After murdering and looting, they seized some sixty women and girls, carried them off, and sold them in 'Eshqabad. At the end of these deliberations, the Majlis insisted that Asef od-Dawle be brought in to be interrogated and tried.

Sepahdar's son, who had shown such cruelty in Tonakabon,See page 203. was removed from there.

In Qazvin, two representatives had been chosen for the Majlis. But since there was division, one faction gathered in Shahzade Hosein, created a disturbance, and ran off to keep the other from going. The Majlis sent a telegram and quieted the disturbance, and two representatives—Sheikh Hosein Shahidi and Mirza Hosein Tabib—came to Tehran and went about their business.

In Rasht, an anjoman was set up, but a hostile faction rose against it, starting a disturbance and setting up another anjoman in support of Sepahdar, the governor there. The Tabriz Anjoman and the House of Consultation lent support to the liberals' anjoman. After many clashes, the liberals won there, too.Anjoman published many documents on this conflict. See I:51 (22 Moharram, 1325 = March 7, 1907) and I:63-65 (22-29 Safar, 1325 = April 6-13, 1907).

At the instigation of Aqa Najafi and others, the people of Isfahan rebelled against Zell os-Soltan, who had been the governor of Isfahan and the vicinity since the time of Naser od-Din Shah and had built palaces there, bought villages, and become firmly entrenched. They called for his removal, and when Tehran did not accept their demand [228], they closed the bazaars and vehemently insisted. The Majlis, for its part, seeing the overthrow of such an entrenched governor as being in the interests of the Constitution, cooperated with them, and so Zell os-Soltan was removed.Telegrams published in Anjoman indicate a close connection between the Anjoman and Aqa Najafi. See Anjoman, I:67 and 68 (6 and 8 Rabi' I, 1325 = April 19 and 21, 1907).

In Kermanshahan, old rivalries erupted over founding an anjoman and a great disturbance broke out. Fights broke out several times in which there were fatalities. The Majlis tried to calm down these disturbances, but could do nothing about them, and the clashes and insecurity persisted.Sir Cecil Spring-Rice, Great Britain: Further Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, Inclosure in No. 25, April 23, 1907. See also The London Times, “Disorders in Persia,” June 10, 1907, where it says that election disputes have led to “considerable loss of life. The people are divided into two factions, one of them being favoured by the Governor. About 2,000 of the other party have taken refuge at the British Consulate. The position is aggravated by the [Sanjabi] Kurds, who are committing raids in the vicinity while soldiers are looting inside the town.” These refugees were later fired upon. (The London Times, “The Situation in Persia,” June 17, 1907)

These disturbances began with the movement around the Constitution, and, as we have said, they were clashes between the old and the new. In any case, ignorance and old rivalries were also involved. These clashes led Sani' od-Dawle to complain, saying: “Aside from the peoples of Azerbaijan, who organized the election of their representatives soundly and dispatched them with respect, the other provinces did not understand and their old prejudices came to the surface, as in Qazvin and Kermanshah and so on.”

This happened in the last month of winter. In the remaining days of winter, the Majlis accomplished another worthy thing. As we have said, the government's annual budget had a three million tuman deficit, which had to be filled. The Majlis selected a commission to look into this, one of its members being Vosuq od-Dawle.The budget committee had twelve members. (“Kholaseye Tarikhiye Advar-e Mashrutiat dar Iran” (1336), republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, p. 10.) It considered two solutions: One was to increase revenues, the other, to cut expenses. As for increasing revenues, it considered several ideas:

Adding the tafavot-e 'amal to income. The idea was that the government had fixed taxes on villages and other things and had written them down in a register. But the governors increased these taxes from time to time and made their own register. Since the governors collected these taxes and paid them to the government, they would collect them from the people according to their own register and pay the government according to its register and divided the surplus—called the tafavot-e 'amal—into two parts. One part they presented as a gift to the Prime Minister and others, the other they kept themselves. This amounted to a very big surplus in some places. For example in Kerman, the taxes fixed by the government were 44,000 tumans and the taxes collected by the governors, 170,000 tumans.Tazizade says that the tafavot-e 'amal amounted to 170,000 tumans. He adds that in Baluchestan, the taxes were 18,000 tumans while the tafavot-e 'amal was about 40,000 tumans. (“Kholaseye Tarikhiye Advar-e Mashrutiat dar Iran” (1336), republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, pp. 10-11) The commission decided that all of this surplus should be entered into the government's account.
For “3” in the text. Eliminating toyul. Many villages were given as toyul. That is, some courtiers, army commanders, and the like, would get annual or monthly stipends. The government, instead of paying directly, would give over the taxes of a village for them to collect from the villagers themselves. Since these people had been doing this for years, they considered these villages [229] to be their property. Here, too, there was a surplus, for many villages would become more populous as time passed and their taxes would increase, but the toyul holders would collect the increase, too. The commission decided that the toyul be completely abolished, that all the taxes be entered into the government's account, and that these people be paid monthly or annually out of the treasury.
Eliminating tas'ir. That is, a portion of taxes on villages was paid in grain, which had to be sent annually to the government granaries. But for many years, its value would be paid to the government instead. Here again there was a surplus, for this had been settled by agreement with the government very long ago and a low price for the grain had been negotiated. That low price would keep being paid, while the price of grain had increased five- or six-fold.

These three options were discussed during several sessions of the Majlis. At first, some complained and were discontent. But after discussion, these options were clarified and everything was accepted. But this matter would have another consequence: it would drive away from the people a group of parasites, for all the village owners, toyul holders, and governors would be angered by this, and we will see what enmity would appear over this, and what rivalries.The other option, of course, was to cut expenses. Taqizade writes that the Majlis found that the national and provincial governments were paying out 200,000 tumans in subsidies. (He continues that Mornard, Iran's Belgian treasurer, drew up a list in 1333 = 1915 of 46,000 who were obtaining some form of subsidy.) The Majlis cut nearly a million tumans from this budget previously paid to two thousand people, half of which went to thirteen important figures, including some princes. Thus, Sho'a' os-Saltane had received 115,000 tumans, Zell os-Soltan about 75,000, Kamran Mirza 29,000, and Salar od-Dawle and 'Azod os-Soltan each received 24,000. Only 12,000 tumans was now budgeted each of them. (“Kholaseye Tarikhiye Advar-e Mashrutiat dar Iran” (1336), republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, pp. 10-11 and “Tarikh-e Avayel-e Enqelab va Mashrutiat-e Iran” in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:278, where he adds that Mozaffar od-Din's daughters only received 1200 tumans and the Shah himself was budgeted six hundred thousand tumans in cash and five thousand donkey loads of grain and ten thousand donkey loads of hay, which greatly upset him.)

Dr. Mehdi Malekzade adds that half of the taxes gathered by the governors went to line their own pockets. The Majlis determined that this practice was to end. The Crown Prince's budget was zeroed-out since he was a child. The Shah's discretionary expenses were also eliminated. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, I:530-531)

The First Cabinet under Law

Another event of those same days was Prime Minister Moshir od-Dawle's resignation. It was [not]Correcting the verb to the negative. known why he resigned: Either he wanted to resign or Mohammad 'Ali Mirza did not want him to stay. After his resignation, a cabinet as demanded by the Majlis and insisted upon repeatedly by the Tabriz Anjoman was formed. It was organized so that all the government tasks and departments would be divided into eight parts and eight ministries would be formed for them. The telegraph, immigration, and financial bureaus, which had been taken out of Naus' hands, were each assigned to a separate ministry. Eight ministers were chosen. Since they had to be introduced to the Majlis and each had to be responsible to it, they came to the Majlis on Thursday, March 21 (6 Safar, 1325). Since there was no Prime Minister, the Minister of the Interior introduced them:

Minister of War, Nayeb os-Saltane; Minister of Justice, Farmanfarma; Minister of Foreign Affairs, 'Ala os-Saltane; Minister of the Interior, Vazir-e Afkham; Minister of Finances, Naser ol-Molk; Minister of Education, Mokhber os-Saltane; Minister of Public Welfare, Mohandes ol-Mamalek; and Minister of Commerce, Vazir-e Homayun.

It was said that since the Minister of War was unwell and could not come to the Majlis, Dabir od-Dawle came as his aide. The fact was that Nayeb os-Saltane did not want to give up being Minister of War and, moreover, considered going to the Majlis to be degrading and used his health as an excuse.

[230] The Minister of the Interior said: “The point was to introduce them to the Majlis since the Council of Ministers and the cabinet had been changed, so that the whole people might know that today, the government and the people are one and must join hands and get to work so that this kingdom might be restored and prosper.”

Blissful Soul Behbehani thanked them on behalf of the Majlis. It was said that just as the representatives swore, so must the ministers. The Minister of the Interior who was himself standing in for the Prime Minister, replied:

“Since tomorrow is a Friday and the first day of the [Persian] year, God willing, we will assemble in the presence of His Royal Majesty and the Hojjatoleslams the day after tomorrow and take the oath.”

The Minister of Justice said: “No day is more blessed than this one, when all are ready, with their lives and property, for the progress of the kingdom. Of course we are ready to take the oath, and we have no hesitation.”

The representatives and spectators were very glad. But these speeches by the ministers and the promises which they made under oath were nothing but a pack of lies. Mohammad 'Ali Mirza was still an enemy of the Constitution. In any case, since he was up to something secretly, he dissembled. In those very days, he was holding talks with Mirza 'Ali Asghar Khan Atabak, who was in Europe, to recall him to Iran and put him in power. This cabinet would not last but a short while.

It was asked what bureaus would be under the control of each minister. The Minister of the Interior produced the following list:Anjoman, I:59 (11 Safar, 1325 = March 25, 1907).

Ministry of Justice: Bureau of Domestic Prosecution.
Foreign Ministry: Bureau of Ceremonies, Bureau of Passports, Bureau of Foreign Legal Prosecution, Diplomatic Bureau, Bureau of Consulates.
Ministry of the Interior: Bureau of Provinces, Bureau of Telegraphs, Postal Bureau, Bureau of Police, Bureau of Prisons, Bureau of Cavalry Escorts,“… in the absence of an organized force (gendarmerie) which could secure the safty of the roads on which caravans would travel, the roads would be turned over to a local cavalry called the qare sovars. They would take a sum from the caravans and the travelers.” (Reza Safinia, Esteqlal-e Gomrokiye Iran, pp. 215-216) Bureau of Municipalities, Bureau of the Police and Gendarmerie, and Bureau of Health.
Ministry of Finances: Bureau of Taxation, Customs Bureau, Bureau of Crown Domains, Bureau of the Mint, Bureau of Pensions, and Bureau of Auditing.
Ministry of War: Bureau of Munitions, Bureau of Provisions, Bureau of Arsenals and Military Industries, the Automajor, Bureau of Military Accounts, Bureau of Artillery, Bureau of Cavalry, Bureau of Infantry, [231] Bureau of Military Courts, and Bureau of the Navy.
Ministry of Education: Bureau of Schools, Bureau of Religious Endowments, Bureau of the Press, Bureau of Excavations and Museums, Bureau of Government Publications, and Bureau of Ancient Monuments.
Ministry of Public Welfare: Bureau of Roads, Bureau of Mines, Bureau of Railways and Forests.
Ministry of Commerce: Bureau of Trade, Bureau of Domestic Trade Litigation, Bureau of Agriculture, Bureau of Industries.

This was the first legal cabinet introduced to the Majlis. One of the events which occurred in Tehran in this time was that Haji Sheikh Fazlollah declared Talebof an infidel on the excuse of some of the things written in his book Maslak ol-Mohsenin.Explain. This was reported in the newspapers and an article was written about it in Habl ol-Matin,Document. and it seems that this was one of the excuses Talebof used for not going to Tehran.

Some Events in Tabriz

In the meantime, at the end of winter, some things happened in Tabriz. The shortage of bread, which we mentioned, was still causing problems. Since the Anjoman reduced the price of bread to eight 'abbasis,See footnote xxx, page xxx. the bakers became offended and tried to undermine this decision.The only discussion about bread in the months of February and March editions of Anjoman appears in I:47 (13 Moharram 1325 = February 26, 1907). The guildsmen held a meeting in the Anjoman in which they called on this institution to implement the shariat as interpreted by the clergy and have them sell their grain and not hoard it. If the Anjoman did not act, they threatened to take matters in their own hands. The Anjoman met and, to avoid anarchy, finally decided to have 1500 donkey loads sold to the bakers at 15 tumans and 5000 dinars per donkey load to the bakers through the Iranian New Year, and invite the landlords to participate. If they refused, the Anjoman would not be responsible for the consequences. Kasravi is presenting a different story here, and does not appear to have been relying on Anjoman. On the other hand, the village owners, most of whom in their hearts did not like the Constitution, refused to sell grain. The Anjoman asked Nezam ol-Molk to pressure them and get them to sell grain. Nezam ol-Molk feigned cooperation but secretly did nothing but try to undermine this effort.In Anjoman, Nezam ol-Molk was simply asked by the Anjoman to cooperate. (Anjoman, loc. cit.) A group of liberalsIdentified in Anjoman as the guildsmen's Anjoman representatives. (loc. cit.) crowded into the Anjoman and demanded permission to do something themselves. But the Anjoman thought this would only cause trouble and restrained them.For all these promises, we have a record of only 100 donkey loads of wheat being brought and sold, however, at 19 tumans per donkey load, for which the Anjoman expressed great gratitude.

On the twenty-first of February (seventh of Moharram), Mir Hashem Devechi'i returned from Tehran. As we have said,See pages 174 and 189. he had been expelled from Tabriz and then the Provincial Anjoman, in order to appease the people of Devechi, and out of respect for their having taken the initiative in the struggle, chose him to be a member of the twelve-member delegation from Azerbaijan. They telegraphed his credentials and he went to the Majlis for a few days and participated in the deliberations. But then he resigned for reasons unknown and, as we have said, returned to Tabriz. We have no sound information on this. It seems that he wantedReading ???? for ????. to return to Tabriz. The Anjoman agreed to this, again, in order to appease the people of Devechi. The Anjoman expressed its satisfaction with his returning, hoping that Mir Hashem would forget the past and sincerely cooperate. It was with this hope that some of the Anjoman members went to his house a few days later [232-233], brought him to the Anjoman in pomp and with respect, and made him a representative.Mir Hashem's visit to the Anjoman on 18 Moharram (March 3) is reported in one sentence in Anjoman (I:51 (22 Moharram, 1325 = March 7, 1907)). See also Anjoman, I:53 and 54 (28 and 30 Moharram, 1325 = March 13 and 15, 1907), the latter reporting how he was escorted to the Anjoman by “guildsmen and mojaheds.”

On Wednesday, February 15 (2 Moharram), the bazaars were closed and the two Majlis representatives who had not yet gone (Haji Imam Jom'e Khoi and Haji Mohammad Aqaye Hariri) were sent off in great pomp. These two also went via the Caucasus.Anjoman related that this event occurred on Wednesday, 14 Moharram. It was accompanied by a tremendous public tumult: the bazaars were closed and crowds of people escorted the two out of the city. (I:50 (19 Moharram 1325 = March 2, 1907))

On the night of Sunday, March 3 (18 Moharram), a shocking thing occurred. Haji Mirza Hasan Milani, one of the Anjoman representatives, was struck by a bullet in an alley while leaving the Anjoman in the company of one of his servants. The bullet hit him in the shoulder and left from his mouth. The assassin escaped alive and his identity was never discovered. Haji Mirza Hasan was brought home and stayed a while in his bed until he recovered. But they could not find the assassin no matter where they looked. Since Haji Mirza Hasan was a merchant and inoffensive and had no enemies himself, suspicion fell chiefly on the Constitution's enemies, who would do such a thing out of vengeance or to intimidate people.Anjoman also reported that this event led to a tremendous public outcry in which the people took the opportunity to complain to the government about the general collapse of public safety. (I:52)

We have said that Monsieur Naus was refractory and would give no accounting. Moreover, the Customs and Postal Bureaus were still in the Belgians' hands and discriminated against their Muslim subordinates and resumed their cruel ways, not even refraining from insults and rudeness. So the Anjoman sent another long telegram to the House of Consultation complaining about the feebleness of the representatives' response to the Ministers and the Belgians (and, as we have said, this firmness worked: the cabinet was formed as the Majlis had demanded it and pressured Naus regarding the accounts). On the other hand, the Customs and Postal employees in Tabriz struck against their European bosses. They all ceased working and said, “We will not return to work until the bureau is taken out of the hands of the Europeans.” The Anjoman supported them and sent a telegram to the House of Consultation. The Belgians' foul language had offended everyone and there were repeated complaints about their behavior. The Anjoman wanted the other Belgians to leave just as Naus had left, and so attributed more importance to the Customs and Postal employees' strike. Aside from the telegrams about this sent to the House of Consultation and the representatives from Azerbaijan who were present there, Mojtahed Haji Mirza Hasan, Seqat ol-Eslam, and Haji Mirza Mohsen each sent a telegram to the Shah calling for the Belgians' dismissal.A telegram issued by the Mojtahed says that they struck due to “the Frankish bosses' extreme affronts and insults to the Faith.” These employees took refuge in his house and refused to emerge until an Iranian boss was appointed. A telegram by Seqat ol-Eslam and Mirza Mohsen said that employees had taken refuge in his house as well with similar conditions. They declared that the Emperor of Islam would surely not tolerate infidels being bosses over Muslims. A telegram by the Anjoman provided some details, as did an anonymous telegram which reported that the Belgian bosses interfered with the Muslims' prayers, and that the city was in an uproar approaching chaos over this. (Anjoman, I:57 (6 Safar, 1325 = March 21, 1907))

But these efforts came to nothing, and it was not possible to get the Belgians completely dismissed under the circumstances of those days. The only thing that came of the Anjoman's efforts was that in Tabriz, the heads of Customs and the Post appeased the employees who had struck and promised them that they would behave properly, and so got them to go back to work.Anjoman, I:67 (6 Rabi' I, 1325 = April 19, 1907) reported the terms on which these employees returned to work: The provincial government asked Bashir ol-Mamalek, the former postal chief of Azerbaijan, to be the provisional chief of the postal service to serve as an intermediary between the Belgian chief and the postal employees.

Another thing the Anjoman did in these days was to set up a court of appeals. As we have said,See page 184. at the beginning of the struggle, the Anjoman itself would hear appeals. But it later set up a court [234] and now, a court of appeals, or a second court, was formed, too. The Majlis had still not yet passed a law for a Judiciary and no instructions arrived from Tehran on this matter. But since the people needed this, the Anjoman took the initiative in this matter as well.Anjoman, I:58 (8 Safar, 1325 = March 23, 1907). This journal carried many discussions about a local judiciary in general and a court of appeals in particular. See, e.g., I:34, 40, 76, 77/78 (9 and 23 Zil-Hijja, 1324, 25 and 27 Rabi' I, 1325 = January 24 and February 7 and May 8 and 10, 1907).

The First Spring of Liberty

In the meantime, the Iranian New Year arrived and the spring of 1907 began. This was the first spring of liberty for the Iranians and one of the happiest of times. The mass of people, hearts full of hope, had risen up to struggle for their country's progress. Old or young, rich or poor, mullah or layman, all struggled. Ambitions and rivalries vanished and hopes for the country's and nation's progress overcame all.

In Tabriz, a very valuable thing began that spring: military drill and shooting practice. This had begun during the winter, but progress was actually made during the spring.

As we have said,See page xxx. for several months, upon of the Anjoman's instructions, the bazaars would be shut down on Fridays and the people would gather in three mosques.In fact, the Anjoman took a dim view of this practice, viewing it as opening the gates to anarchy. Thus, Three speakers—Sheikh Salim, Mirza Javad, and Mirza Hosein—would each [235] mount a mosque's pulpit and preach to the people. This was very successful, particularly with Mirza Hosein, who became an institution himself. This man, with his expressive and gripping voice, would recite inspiring poems in Persian and Turkish, make powerful speeches, and stir the people's hearts. The people turned to him and the Mirza Mehdi Mosque, for all its vastness, would be completely filled, and people would have to stand in the hallway up to the door.

For a while, it was only these three men. But then Blissful Soul Mirza 'Ali Veijuye'i and Haji Sheikh 'Ali Asghar Leilava'iThis sheikh was originally from Qarebagh. When the Russian occupied Tabriz, they used this as an excuse to “extradite” him; he was never seen again. (Karim Taherzade Behzad, Qiam-e Azarbayjan dar Enqelab-e Mashrutia-e Iran, pp. 450-451) entered the fray and joined the ranks of the “constitutionalist preachers,” too. I also recall one Mullah Moharram who would go to the pulpit and preach the Constitution and liberty. But he was not on the level of these others and never got to be very well known.

They would preach law, equality, cooperation, and so on, and would promise the people a happy future. They would chiefly use passages from the Koran and the hadiths as proof for what they said. They knew little of what a constitution meant and implied in the sense that it was understood by Europeans, and had little awareness of diplomacy and how to relate to the neighboring countries.

But they would be very stirring in speaking of the country's weakness and recounting Fath 'Ali Shah's defeat and the loss of the Caucasus and similar events and inspired the people to get guns and learn how to use them and to drill.In P, Kasravi interjected an autobiographic note: (I:99-100) I had turned seventeen that year and was studying in a madrase and, with two or three of my classmates, would always be busy with my lessons and books and was not idle for a moment. For all that, I was not immune to the constitutionalist enthusiasm. Whenever I passed through the alleys and bazaars, I observed the people's enthusiastic activity and it shook every fiber of my being. I thanked God and kept praying for the liberals' victory. I will never forget that one day, I saw the young son of a merchant stop Aqa Mir Javad and ask him, “Your Eminence, did you deliver a fatwa that we should buy rifles and drill?” The prayer leader replied, “Yes! Today it is obligatory upon all Muslims to buy rifles and drill. We must deliver the Caucasus from the hands of the infidel!” It was as if the youth had discovered a treasure trove, the way he walked on happily and with a prayer on his lips. He probably bought a rifle that very day and drilled and excersized. As for me, it was as if my every wish had been granted; I was so happy I thought I'd burst, and went on, thanking [God]. The issue of reconquering the Caucasus was a live issue. Seqat ol-Eslam composed a ghazal in Turkish on the seventeen provinces there which Iran had lost. (Mehdi Mojtahedi, Taqizade: Rawshangari dar Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 145) This was what all the leaders wanted, and since the people had been shaken and hoped to struggle and sacrifice for the country, they went into action as soon as the preachers talked about these things, and many merchants and others bought rifles and bullets and would gather on Fridays outside the city, practice shooting, or charge their horses.

This activity had been begun in winter. But it increased when spring began, and there was much more of it and much less picnicking and good-timing than in previous springs.

Hokmavar, where our family lived, was a place where the people of Tabriz would go for walks. During the first days of spring, the grass sprouted from the ground and the luxuriant almond trees put on a white cloak of blossoms, the ground would be all green and fresh, parasang after parasang, and the air full of flowers and blossoms. In previous springs, groups of people would head there on Fridays and wander among the gardens and enjoy themselves. There would be shouting and talking everywhere and the Court's farrashes would get drunk and become rowdy, yell, and make trouble. But this spring, I remember well that I saw only a few groups in these gardens and even these, if I got close to them and looked and listened, were mostly talking about the country and its progress. Neither were there farrashes to be found anymore, nor did anyone dare get rowdy.

[236] Instead, groups of people would gather every Friday, riding or on foot, on the other side of Pol-e Aji, a desert plain. The riders would charge their horses and those on foot would practice shooting. In addition to the adults, wooden rifles had been made for the children so that they, too, could gather in some spot and practice shooting.

This was the first step. After this, they went further. In every borough, a squad would be trained by a military commander and they would drill. Old and young, rich or poor, they would form ranks and stamp their feet to the cadence. Mullahs and sayyeds, with their turbans and long cloaks, shouldered their rifles and drilled with the rest of them.According to P, “Not only would merchants and bazaaris, farmers and craftsmen shoulder their rifles..., but most sayyeds and clergymen did, too...” The rifles in each borough of Tabriz numbered in the hundreds, if not thousands. (I:98)

In this way, a barracks sprung up in every borough and they assembled musical instruments and other things. Squads also sewed and wore their own uniforms. They were so inspired that Fridays were not enough, and they decided to do this every day.Reading ??? for ??. The bazaars would close every evening and chintz dealers, rock sugar sellers, coppersmiths, used goods vendors and merchants, whoever there was, would rush off to their houses, change their clothes, pick up a rifle, head for the local barracks, and drill there with the rest. Every evening the sound of drum and bugle and the chanting of the cadence rose from every borough. The grandeur and splendor of that effort increased day by day.In P, Kasravi recorded the following interesting bit of Tabriz messianism with an interesting sociological comment appended to it: (I:101-102) “When God wills a thing, He creates instruments to bring it to pass.” God wanted the Iranian constitutionalist movement and so He prepared the means to bring it to pass. Otherwise, who could believe that young people would neglect pleasure and comfort and take upon themselves the travails of drilling and exercising?! Or that married men would, after their daily toil, not go home and relax, but rush directly to the barracks and drill to the cadence, carrying a heavy rifle?! Or that clergymen and sayyeds, for all their dignified bearing and aloofness, would shoulder a rifle and stamp the ground and call out the cadence?! Those who have not been to Tabriz might imagine that respectable people would not do such things. But we know that the mass of liberals were respectable people. For example, Aqa Mir Karim,... although he was nothing more than a draper in the bazzar, was an ascetic man who was respected by the people. Ebrahim Aqa... was a wealthy merchant who had a home in Nawbar... which is the best proof of what a good and easy life he had. Haj Mehdi Aqa Kuzekanani, who risked his life so much for the Constitution and spared neither life nor wealth for its sake... was an ascetic who had great prestige among the people. Why reckon them one by one? All the famous constitutionalist leaders in Azerbaijan were zealous clergymen, sayyeds, merchants, men of wealth, craftsmen. If there were groups of men of little means among the [constitutionalist] riflemen, these were not nobodies, either. We also note that in de-Islamizing the Tabrizi constitutionalists' motivations, Kasravi lost the connection between the preachers and the military drill. In P, Kasravi said that it was the agitation by the preachers around a point of fiqh which says that it is incumbant upon every Muslim to learn how to ride a horse and wield a sword which led the people to arm themselves and drill. One of the slogans of these fighters was, as we have seen already, the reconquest of the Caucasus for Iran (I:51-54) We note here that Karim Taherzade Behzad writes that the mojaheds were “ninety percent craftsmen and workers and peasants with a few educated youths or merchants.” (QAEMI, p. 243)

The city completely changed character. Everyone talked about buying a rifle, drilling, military preparations, and self-sacrifice. Whenever one passed by an alley, children could always be heardIn Turkish. chanting rhymes:This was a rhyme which they would chant while drilling, and the children picked it up. [–AK] “This chant echoed throughout the city,” according to P. There, Kasravi recalls how this poem was written on the newly-constructed gate to the borough of Veijuye. Under it, someone wrote (in Turkish), “Reading this poem makes me glad. Bravo, son!” (I:103, footnote 1)

Long live our constitutional government, may it live forever!

Long live the training Iranian nation, may it live forever!

[237] This enthusiasm, along with talk of the country and protecting it, spread throughout Iran, and there was interest in these things in most cities. But aside from Tabriz (and a little in Rasht), nothing was done anywhere else and nothing was accomplished. In Tehran, a certain Abus-Sadat Karbala'i and one Mo'tazed ol-'Olema tried to organize drills, donning black and slinging a rifle on their shoulders, and a group of people joined in. However, because the leaders did not support this, they lost enthusiasm and stopped. It is interesting that the Majlis was not happy with such activity and the Two Sayyeds considered it a “cause of chaos.” But in Tabriz, aside from the fact that the mass of people sincerely turned towards this activity with great hope and enthusiasm, the leadership supported it very much. On top of all this, the Secret Center defended it and advanced it wisely. Distributing weapons among the people could have meant any variety of dreadful things. Wise leaders who knew what they were doing were needed to prevent chaos and bloodshed and make progress. This Secret Center showed that it was up to the task.

This Center struggled to form a group of fighters called the Mojaheds. Indeed, they were arming a militia drawn from among the people. It was to advance this aim of theirs that, with the help of orators and others, this business of buying rifles and target practice started and the Center did not cease from supporting it.There is no indication in Anjoman of an alleged Secret Center behind any of this activity; it seems to have occurred under the influence of the constitutionalist preachers, elements of the Anjoman, and neighborhood associations.

The Advance of the Constitution in the Cities of Azerbaijan

And so arrived a very fine and historic spring. Some of Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's evil designs were becoming apparent. Many places had become unsafe and the government refrained from doing anything about it. Moreover, there was talk in those very days of Mirza 'Ali Asghar Khan Atabak's return at Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's request. Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's resentment of the Constitution was understood from all this, and, of course, this inspired fear and anxiety. But despite all this, it was a happy and bright time. There was action throughout the country. The mass of people struggled for good things with hope and enthusiasm and no conflicts or rivalry had yet appeared among them. In addition to the big cities, there was action and struggle in the small ones.

In Azerbaijan, there was activity in all the cities, such as Khoi, Urmia, Ardebil, Savojbolagh, Salmas, Maraghe, Maku, Bonab, and other places. Clashes broke out in some of these cities, either as a result of ignorance of what a constitution means or because of old rivalries. Therefore the Provincial Anjoman thought it best to send emissaries and have them put affairs in order.

In Ardebil, as we said,See the section Heidari-Ne'mati Fighting in Ardebil, p. 194 ff. the Heidaris and Ne'matis had each set up separate anjomans and there were clashes between them and looting.Jarideye Melli/Anjoman I:19 (Shawwal 29, 1324 = December 16, 1906) published a telegram reporting that a dispute between the clergy had led to general chaos; Jarideye Melli/Anjoman replied by appealing for unity among Believers. Another issue (I:24 (14 Zi-Qa'da, 1324 = December 30, 1906)) carried an appeal from Ardebil for two Anjoman members to come and resolve the problems being created by “self-interested trouble-makers dressed as talabes.” After at first agreeing to this, the Anjoman thought better of the idea and asked Ardebil to send two representatives to Tabriz. (I:28, 29 (25, 27 Zi-qa'da, 1324 = January 10, 12, 1907)) Kasravi here is reaching well into the future. As late as July 1907, the Anjoman was only tardily responding to Ardebil's petitions with advice to the people to learn to resolve their differences and to expel from the city the marauding cavalry the factions had invited, since Rashid ol-Molk's mission was still bogged down in Qarajedagh. (Anjoman 107 and 108, 24 and 26 Jomada I, 1325 = July 6 and 8, 1907) It was only in Anjoman 111 (11 Jomada II 1325 = July 22, 1907) that the arrival of the mission to Ardebil—without Rashid ol-Molk—is reported. The report of Rashid ol-Molk returning as governor there only first appeared in Anjoman 117, 3 Rajab 1325 = July 23, 1907) Indeed, in reading these passages, it becomes clear that Rashid ol-Molk's chief mission was in Qarajedagh, where he was to restore the property looted by the rampaging tribesmen. The Anjoman sent Haj Esma'il Aqa Amirkhizi and two others thereThey had been requested to come by the leaders of the two quarrelling factions; the Anjoman quickly decided to send them (Anjoman 28 (25 Zi-Qa'da 1324 = January 10, 1907)) only to back out and invite the clerical leadership of the factions to Tabriz. (Anjoman 29 (27 Zi-Qa'da 1324 = January 12, 1907)) The others who were sent were Sheikh Esma'il Hashtrudi, Sharif ol-'Olema, Haji Satvat os-Saltane, and Mo'tamed-e Homayun. [238], and when they reached Ardebil, they dissolved the two anjomans ArdebilAnjomans44with the help of Naqi Khan Rashid ol-Molk, who had been sent there as governor,Anjoman gives no report of this; its first mention of his being governor of Ardebil appears in I:49 (17 Moharram 1325 = March 2, 1907). He is identified as such again in I:93 (24 Rabi' II, 1325 = June 5, 1907). and set up another one. Six representatives were chosen—Haji Mirza Fakhr od-Din Sheikholeslam, Haji Mirza Ebrahim, Haji Mirza Ya'qub, Haji Mohammad Hosein, Mirza Ebrahim Arbab, and Mr. 'Abdol-Khaleq.NoteRef16Anjoman I:143 (22 Sha'ban 1325 = October 1, 1907) quotes an Anjoman representative as explicitly listing seven representatives as follows: anjoman director Nasr or-Ro'aya, Sheikh ol-Eslam, Haji Mirza Ebrahim, Haji Mohammad 'Ali Hariri, Aqa Mirza Ebrahim, Haji Mirza Ya'qub, and Haji Mohammad Hosein. He singles out for praise Satvat os-Saltane's generousity in sponsoring the mission and Rashid ol-Molk's determination. Sheikh Esma'il, a member of the mission, commented that, while some of the loss in property could be compensated, the destruction to the craftsmen's bazaar was beyond restoration. One of the emissaries Tabriz had sent, Haji Esma'il Amirkhizi, recalls that the head of the old anjoman was Mir Mahmud, “a simple fellow but extremely arrogant, a follower of the late graced Mirza 'Ali Akbar. No word of common sense could penetrate his ear. We tried to dispel differences without making trouble and have the members of the anjoman elected in accordance with the agreement.” (Karim Taherzade Behzad, Qiam-e Azarbayjan dar Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 472) Rashid ol-Molk beat with a stick some of the leaders who had been responsible for the clashes and had them driven out of the city.We have no record in Anjoman of corporal punishment being inflicted on anyone by the governor, but it is reported in II:4 (11 Ramadan 1325 = October 19, 1907) that he gave Mirza 'Ali Akbar the choice of being exiled to the shrines in Iraq or to Tabriz and he chose the latter. According to Haji Esma'il Amirkhizi, Rashid ol-Molk received a telegram from the Russian consulate telling him that if complete order was not restored, the Russian government would be forced to resort to the measures necessary to protect foreign dependants. Upon receiving this telegram, Rashid ol-Molk flew into a rage and demanded total power over the city of Ardebil, which could not, of course, be given him. Mir Mahmud (see note ), upon hearing that Rashid ol-Molk now had the power to defeat him, left the city along with his comrades, but was captured by Rashid ol-Molk's men, who arrested them and threw them in prison. This only increased Rashid ol-Molk's troubles, since Mir Mahmud was related by marriage to the Russian consulate's agent. Ever the raconteur, Amirkhizi recalls that he was among those elected to the new anjoman. (Karim Taherzade Behzad, Qiam-e Azarbayjan dar Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 473) And so, the movement in Ardebil was set on the right track.

In Maraghe, too, an anjoman had been set up and there were rivalries. The Provincial Anjoman sent Sheikh Esma'il HashtrudiAlong with Haji Esma'il Amirkhizi. (Karim Taherzade Behzad, Qiam-e Azarbayjan dar Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 471) there. He dissolved the former local anjoman, too, and set up a proper anjoman.This, too, seems to derive from another source. Anjoman, I:35 (11 Zihijja, 1324 = January 26, 1907) published a telegram pleading with the people of Maraghe to reopen the bazaar, which had been on strike over the first anjoman elections, promising that members of the Tabriz Anjoman were on their way to supervise legitimate elections. Anjoman I:42 (27 Zi-Hijja, 1325 = February 11, 1907) reported that the chief cause of mischief there was Navid os-Soltan Esma'il Khan, the vice-governor there, who had been chased out of town but was conspiring to stage a comeback. The report that the affair was settled appeared in Anjoman, I:61 (16 Safar 1325 = March 31, 1907), when elections for a new anjoman were held “under the supervision of the angelic attention of His Esteemed Eminence, Master of the Shariat, His eminence Aqa Sheikh Esma'il Aqa the Mojtahed (May his shadow lengthen!).” Among those selected, one was Mirza Mohammad Hasan Moqaddas and another, Mir Aqa Sadr os-Sadat. Blissful Soul Moqaddas, a pure and zealous mullah, strove earnestly for the Constitution's progress. As we have said, one of the enlightened liberals there was Haji Mirza Hasan Shokuhi.He is briefly mentioned on page 195.

In Bonab, hostility developed between the anjoman and Seif ol-'Olema, and Hashtrudi tried to get him deposed, too. One constitutionalist there was Haji Seifollah (a merchant).The political situation in Bonab was rarely discussed in Anjoman, and it appears that Kasravi was using a different source here, too. 'Omdat ot-Tojjar Haji Seifollah was, according to Anjoman, I:26 (20 Zi-Qa'da, 1324 = January 5, 1907) “a respectable and wealthy zealous merchant,” whose chief philanthropic undertaking was the construction of schools and roads. An essay by him and his friends on liberty and equality appeared in Anjoman, I:27 (22 Zi-Qa'da, 1324 = January 7, 1907).

The biggest conflict took place in Maku. There, too, the people had gone into action and wanted to struggle. But Eqbal os-SaltaneThe governorship of Maku had been in the hands of Eqbal os-Saltane's family for generations. The Qajar shahs had given this family extraordinary autonomy in this strategic province, and it had accumulated a wealth which became legendary not only from the Iranian government, but from the Ottomans and the Russians. Eqbal os-Saltane married into the family of the neighboring Yerevan khans and moved much of his vast wealth into Russian banks, a move which accelerated with the rise of the Constitution. He had under his command tribal levees from among the Jalali and Milan Kurds, with twenty or thirty thousand warriors. Eqbal os-Saltane's father put them into the field against the Ottoman-backed Kurdish uprising of Sheikh 'Obeidollah and played a crucial role in smashing it, increasing its prestige. The Maku khans also played a crucial role in protecting Iranian interests during the Russian-Ottoman war of 1878. (Taqizade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:358-359) and his father before him, who had governed there and become well-entrenched, did not approve of this and prevented the anjoman from opening. His sister's son, 'Ezzatollah Khan, supporting the constitutionalists, became an enemy of his fraternal uncle. They dared not set up an anjoman because of all this and had to call on the [Tabriz] Provincial Anjoman.According to a telegram from Maku published in Anjoman, I:65 (29 Safar, 1325 = April 13, 1907), an anjoman was set up there, supported by “all the people [mellat] and the tribes and the subjects [ra'yat] who support the Constitution,” but Eqbal os-Saltane and the corrupt khans... have demolished it to its foundations and mobilized corrupt elements. The Anjoman's foundations will not be strong, nor will the people be at ease, as long as he is present.” Salar-e Mokarram appealed to the Khoi anjoman for guns. Anjoman, I:70 (13 Rabi' I, 1325 = April 26, 1907) reported how the Maku anjoman soon prevailed over Eqbal os-Saltane, driving him out of Iran and into Russia.

The Anjoman sent Mirza Javad Nateq there. He arrived first in Khoi and spent several days in the house of Haji Mirza 'Ali Asghar Aqa, a constitutionalist merchant there, and spoke at the Anjoman and other places. He then went off to Maku and, since Eqbal os-Saltane was living in one of the villages a few parasangs from the city, he went to visit him. Eqbal os-Saltane presented an excuse, saying, “This is the border of three countries. I am accountable for the peace and security here. If an anjoman is set up here, the people will become rebellious and things will get out of control.” Nateq answered him and weaned him away from the idea of fighting against the people. From there, he left for Maku and set up an anjoman with the liberals' help.Very little mention is made of Mirza Javad's career in Anjoman. See I:72 (18 Rabi' I, 1325 = May 1, 1907) for a summary of a longer article from the Urmia Faryad, the original of which has been lost. But we will see what a heart-breaking event happened there.See page xxx, ff.

The Mojtahed's Opposition to the Constitution

And so the Provincial Anjoman advanced the Constitution throughout Azerbaijan. But towards the end of the first month of spring, a profound disturbance broke out in Tabriz itself: The opposition of Mojtahed Haji Mirza Hasan and some of the representatives in the Provincial Anjoman, which [239] ended in the Mojtahed's expulsion from the city. Although this disturbance ended in the liberals' victory, it had dire consequences: The first breach in the foundation of the people's cooperation appeared.

It has to be said that the constitutional movement in Iran arose suddenly and all the people, clerics and laymen, rich and poor, participated. But these groups did not have the same interests and they to part at some point. Even if they could have been monolithic in their interests and the protection of those interests, they could not have been unanimous in their strategy and tactics.

Many, but not all, of the mullahs, who had united with the Constitution, did not know what a constitution meant and figured that when power would be removed from the courtiers' hands, it would immediately be given over to them. But they gradually saw it would not be so. In Tabriz, the formation of the mojaheds and their becoming an independent force, struggling as they saw fit, offended them. Moreover, aside from the rich and the village owners being unhappy about the movement of their underlings standing up to them, they were furious at the Majlis' latest moves—eliminating toyul, tas'ir, etc. And so, these two classes became disillusioned and inevitably withdrew their cooperation from the people.

The Mojtahed, who was both a mullah and a village owner, became more disillusioned than the rest and parted earlier. As one event demonstrates, there was an agreement between him and Nezam ol-Molk to liquidate the Anjoman. The Mojtahed in his recklessness considered such a task to be easy.The version of the History published in al-'Irfan ignored the story which follows. It said that after pretending to support the Constitution, the Mojtahed began writing fatwas denouncing it as an innovation in the Faith “and had won over many of the common people and others,” (al-'Irfan, IX:2 (October 1923), p. 154.)

Here is what happened: Qara Chaman (or, as it has been recently named, Siah ChamanThe Persianized form of the original Turkish name, Black Meadow.) was a big village some seventeen parasangs from Tabriz in the direction of Tehran. The people there had a dispute with one Haji Mohammad 'Ali, its owner or renter. The Mojtahed, supporting the latter, commended him to Nezam ol-Molk. Nezam ol-Molk, who wanted such an opportunity himself, sent Nasr os-Soltan, the governor of Mianaj, with a hundred cavalry and a hundred infantry, to Qara Chaman, and they pillaged the village, their cruelty knowing no bounds. It was said that three children died of fright and several women were on the point of dying. They then set fire to some houses. When a group of the villagers fled to AZWMDL,@ they pursued them and killed some there, too.According to the first report of this event (Anjoman, I:67, 6 Rabi' I, 1325 = April 19, 1907), the governor of Mianaj, Nasr os-Soltan, sent a punitive expedition to Qara Chaman. These troops did not distinguish the innocent from the guilty and plundered all the subjects and ruined the village. News of this led to an uproar in Tabriz. The Anjoman spent two days quieting it down. It decided to send prayer leaders Sayyed Hosein and Mir Mahmud along with guildsman representative Haji Mohammad Hosein and a government representative on a fact-finding mission to determine who the guilty parties were and who was to be punished. Reflecting the moderating tone of this article, the headline is “The catastrophe came, but all ended well.” Only later did the full horror of this massacre emerge, as the popular tumult permitted the editor of Anjoman to tell the terrible truth about what had occurred. I:69 (11 Rabi' I, 1325 = April 24, 1907) reported the details which Kasravi related. An appeal by the people of Qara Chaman concluded, “Do something for us poor wronged people, or else close the doors of the sacred Anjoman.” For more on this incident and Anjoman, see page xxx.

When news of this reached Tabriz, everyone was infuriated. On the evening of Friday, April 12 (28 Safar), a group of talabes, people from Qara Chaman, and others gathered in the Anjoman courtyard, weeping and appealing for help and raising a great uproar. But since the Anjoman was empty, with no one present but a few guildsmen's leaders, they dispersed for the day and left.Anjoman did not say that the Anjoman was empty. On the contrary, I:69 reported that the Anjoman reprentatives, in particular the guildsmen's representatives, tried to quiet the crowd. In light of what is to come, it is interesting that the protesters brought the Mojtahed to the Anjoman. The remaining material is a paraphrase of I:69.

[240] The next day, Saturday, they gathered again in the Anjoman courtyard. Since a letter had arrived from the people of Qara Chaman appealing for help, it was read, and some of them wept. Most of the Anjoman representatives had not come. The fact is that they did not take this event very seriously and hoped that if they ignored it, it would disappear.In P, Kasravi attributed this response to the Anjoman member's support to the Mojtahed. Some of the guildsmen's leaders said, “Let's send three emissaries to the village to investigate the event and gather accurate information.” Blissful Soul Sheikh Salim objected, saying: “Why does something so obvious need investigating?! What has to be done is to arrest Haji Mohammad 'Ali, who committed this crime, and imprison him, and to ask Nezam ol-Molk why he ever gave the order for such pillage and murder!”

As a result of this speech, three men were chosen and sent before Nezam ol-Molk. They returned that evening when the people had reassembled at the Anjoman and reported as follows: Nezam ol-Molk first said that what was being said was a lie. The cavalry had not pillaged nor had anyone been killed. Then, when we insisted, he answered: “Your own shariat judge Haji Mirza Hasan Aqa, whose judgments have legal force, judged, and I also sent an agent.” They also reported that Nezam ol-Molk had ordered Haji Mohammad 'Ali's arrest and imprisonment and that when he found this out, he fled, taking sanctuary in the home of Haji Mirza Hasan. With this news, the event took on a different character, and the people caught on to the truth: They realized that the Mojtahed had become an enemy of the Constitution. They therefore decided to close the bazaars the next day, rally at the Anjoman, and do something about the matter.Anjoman, I:69, reported an interesting event right after this. After commenting on the above-mentioned occurrence, the magazine exclaimed, “If a Muslim is what we have here today, Woe if after this day there be a morrow!” That afternoon, the people gradually gathered, and some talabes were also present. One of the orators spoke, saying, “We know whence comes this dust which has been heaped on our heads and who is against the Constitution and has blocked the progress of this sacred matter and does not wish that the miserable people of the villages be freed from the clutches of these atheistic oppressors and be able to breathe freely. Thus, a few days ago, His Eminence Mullah Qasem came to the Anjoman and said to His Eminence Haji Mirza Hasan Aqa [the Mojtahed], 'You believe that the people of Qara Chaman are criminals who deserve to die, but what have the women and infant children done so that fifty cavalry whom you had ordered dispatched were not enough and Your Eminence changed the order so that one hundred infantry be added and totally demolish the village?' As soon as poor Mullah Qasem said this, [the Mojtahed] became offended and grew angry with Mullah Qasem and in the sacred Anjoman, that safe and secure home, got up and drew his walking stick on him and wanted to beat him, uttering abuse and insults which would not be fit on the lips of the vulgar. He told Mullah Qasem, 'I ordered that Qara Chaman be plundered so that it be a lesson to the other villagers.'” After he said this, the people raised an uproar and said, “We must close the bazaars and shops tomorrow and stand up to this deed. How is it that in the time of the Constitution this oppression can be visited on the peasants in villages who are our brothers in faith and toilers [sic] of we city folk.” Some of the clergy quieted this commotion and it was agreed that the next morning, the bazaar and the shops would not open and that they would go to the Anjoman.

The next day, Sunday, they closed the bazaars, rallied at the Anjoman, and wept and wailed. They said, “The Mojtahed must come and tell us in the presence of the prayer leaders why he did this!”

As we have said,Kasravi had said this in an earlier edition of the History. many of the representatives privately sympathized with the Mojtahed and so tried to quiet the people down. But the people would not be [241] calmed. In the meantime, Sheikh Salim was asked to try to quiet them. Since Sheikh Salim sympathized with the people's demands, he did not agree to do this. The representatives denounced him and treated him disrespectfully.Karim Taherzadeh Behzad, in his Qiam-e Azarbayjan dar Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran (p. 42), writes that the Mojtahed slapped Sheikh Salim in a meeting of the Anjoman, disrupting the meeting then in session there. Sheikh Salim was offended and resigned from the Anjoman.In P, Kasravi stated that Sheikh Salim and the preachers allied with him had bad relations with the Mojtahed and the clergymen allied with him, and so they took the opportunity to plot his political demise. (I:109)

Hostility towards constitutionalists appeared on the part of the Tabriz Anjoman for the first time. The representatives drove the people out of the Anjoman by force and sent them to open the bazaar. But the people, especially the oppressed, resisted, and since they saw the Anjoman behaving badly this time, they now gathered at the Friday Mosque and wept and wailed. One of their complaints was about the mistreatment of Sheikh Salim in the Anjoman.

On the other hand, when the hostile Anjoman representatives found out about this, they sent some menAccording to Anjoman, loc. cit., “guildsmen Anjoman members.” over to disperse the people from the mosque, too. In order to conciliate them, they decided to choose four prayer leaders and send them to Qara Chaman to ask questions and investigate. On the other hand, to cover up for these events, Anjoman did not write anything about them except a brief articleSee page 263. and did not expose what the Mojtahed and his allies had been up to.

A Split between the Anjoman and the Mojaheds

It was thought that the matter had been settled. But the enemies did not give up, and there was talk that day in the Anjoman of driving Sheikh Salim out of town. His support for the people and the resistance which he had shown during the Qara Chaman affair offended them and so they said: “Aqa Sheikh is causing chaos in the city every day. He must be exiled.” Some did not stop with him, but wanted to exile Aqa Mirza 'Ali Veijuye'i and others, too. Clearly, the Mojtahed and Nezam ol-Molk had a hand in this.

Sheikh Salim himself sent a message saying that since he had been elected as a representative to the House of Consultation and the people had not let him go, they should give him his credentials and send him to Tehran.According to Anjoman, loc. cit., Nazm ol-Mamalek brought a message to the Anjoman reporting that Sheikh Salim had made this proposal to Nezam od-Dawle. The hostile representatives were pleased with this message, seeing it as the best way to get rid of him, and decided to give him his credentials and send him on his way, and thus they concluded their session.

But the mojaheds and the mass of liberals were very offended at this and did not see this as anything other than the result of some representatives' enmity. At first, they had a high regard for every leader and powerful person and brought him to the fore. Now they had advanced so far in those six months that they would not hold just anyone in esteem or be fooled by the name Anjoman, and realized what was in their interests and what was good and what was bad for them.

So they would not give in to the Anjoman. The next day, Wednesday, April 16 (3 Rabi' I), they flocked to the houses of Sheikh Salim, Mir Hashem, and others and brought them [242] in pomp to the Friday Mosque. They demonstrated their attachment to them, saying that it was they who had laid the foundations of the Constitution and together they renewed their struggle and devotion. In this way, they openly expressed their disgust with the Anjoman's policies and broke with it (or better: with the enemy representatives). This was very important from the point of view of the people's progress, for it showed that just as the mass of people had come out from under the courtiers' control, they could come out from under the mullahs' control, too.

On Thursday and Friday, the bazaars were opened and things were calm on the surface. But beneath this could be seen the preparations for a tumult. The Mojtahed and his allies were at work. The Mojtahed, with his vengeful character, could not tolerate being unable to drive two or three preachers from the city. Moreover, in those same days, Majles and some letters arrived from Tehran reporting the revocation of toyuls and tas'ir,Document. and this made a few village-owning Anjoman representatives—Haji Nezam od-Dawle, Basir os-Saltane, and Malek ot-Tojjar—upset with the Constitution. Similarly, other village owners became angry.This point is made by Aqa Sayyed 'Ali Mojahed in a speech given outside the Anjoman. (Anjoman, I:70 (13 Rabi' I, 1325 = April 26, 1907))

On Saturday, it was known that Haji Mirza Hasan had gathered tofangchisAnjoman, I:70 (13 Rabi' I, 1325 = April 26, 1907) reported that “the clergy held numerous meetings and plotted,” unbeknownst to the people. The Saturday meeting was the culmination of this scheming. in his house and that many people“all the city's magnates and the landlords of every description.” Anjoman, (loc. cit.) were going there. Moreover, the Anjoman representatives and the guild leaders, too, had been called to Haji Malek ot-Tojjar's house, a few of them being conscious of what was happening, the rest, completely unaware. When they gathered there, Haji Malek stood up and said, “We must go to the Mojtahed's house, there is a meeting there.”

Some of the guild leaders became suspicious and left on the way, but the rest went to the Mojtahed's house with Haji Nezam od-Dawle and Haji Malek.The question of the relationship of the general Anjoman representatives to this conspiracy against the Constitution is less clear in Anjoman than in Kasravi; they are made out as being (with Kasravi) “unaware of the matter at hand.” However, they are also reported as having, “after consulting with their comrades, decided that they had to get Aqa Mir Hashem, who was one of the [Anjoman's] founders, to go along with them, or they would get nowhere. And so they forcibly brought Aqa Mir Hashem to Haji Malek's house. His Eminence was unaware of what was happening.” Omitting this passage both keeps the rank and file Anjoman representative clean of any taint of conscious collaboration in this plot and eliminates a passage which improves Mir Hashem's image. Ultimately, “Only Anjoman members and a few guildsmen's representatives” participated in the meeting in the Mojtahed's house, and three or four Anjoman members (presumably not including the guildsmen's representatives) were not there, either. There, the hall was full of people and a group of tofangchis, whom the Mojtahed had formed from among his own men and some peasant underlings,“whom the Mojtahed... underlings” is Kasravi's addition to the Anjoman version. stood in the courtyard in front of the window.

The Mojtahed started to speak and turned to Haji Nezam od-Dawle and Haji Mehdi Aqa, saying: “You are the leaders and elders of the Anjoman. I have a number of items I wish to submit to you.” They answered: “If you please.”“They... please.” is Kasravi's addition to the Anjoman version. The Mojtahed spoke and at the end, demanded that Sheikh Salim, Mirza 'Ali Va'ez [Veijuye'i], and several others (whose names he did not mention) be exiled.

During his speech, a certain Esma'il Khan, one of the Mojtahed's men and one of his tofangchis, stood on the window sill and called out in a loud voice, “Your Honor, Your Eminence! His Holiness Salman alone fastened his sword over his clothes and was prepared to aid the shariat. But today we are one hundred people who have all of us fastened our swords over our clothes.”According to a legend about Imam 'Ali Ibn Abi-Taleb, when he rose up wanting to seize the caliphate, only Salman of all his friends fastened his sword over his clothes. The rest were afraid and fastened their swords under their clothes. [–AK] [Document.] Saying this, he raised his gun [243] and pointed to the rest of tofangchis. Then, in a louder voice, he said, “We are ready right now to cut off the heads of whomever you want and bring them to you. Let Their Eminences give the order so that we might find them wherever they are and kill them...” He kept talking in this fashion, hoping to whip the tofangchis and the rest into a frenzy.He then, according to Anjoman, “pointed to Aqa Mir Hashem and said, “Your Honor, Your Eminence, lead us so that we can drive all these atheists out of town.” His Honor Aqa Mir Hashem pleaded, “May God's grace be upon your father, don't drag at my heels. I have no opinion.”

In this meeting, aside from the guild leaders, there were some mojaheds, too, who had heard about the meeting and came to gather information. They all knew that Esma'il Khan was referring to them. But since they were few and empty-handed, they dared not answer. But Aqa Karim, who was considered a leader of the mojaheds, could not hold his peace. He rose to his feet, turned to Esma'il Khan, and said: “What are you yelling about? The people were not afraid of the government's cannons and guns,“and confirmed that they had been wrongly afflicted” is excised from Kasravi's source. It reflects a Shiite value that the suffering of the innocent reacts on its perpetrator and sets in motion his downfall. Kasravi, in his hostility towards Shiite values, cannot abide its inclusion. and it won its rights. Now you want to intimidate the people with a few tofangchis and make trouble? No yelling is necessary. Be patient and whatever Their Eminences command will be done.”

His courage had its effect and dampened the enemies' fervor. Since the guild leaders and the mojahedsNote again the connection between the two groups. discovered the secret and saw no way to respond and resist, they left the meeting one by one. The Mojtahed insisted on his demand, and they finally wrote an order in the name of the Anjoman for the expulsion of the four and sealed it with the Anjoman's seal.Anjoman, loc. cit., adds, “willy-nilly,” a sign of reluctance. They summoned Rafi' od-Dawle, the [new] beglarbegi, and gave him the statement, which said that theySheikh Salim, Aqa Mirza 'Ali, Veijuye'i, and others. (ibid.) were to be expelled by sunset.Four hours before sunset. (ibid.)

And so the meeting ended. Since this went in accordance with the Mojtahed's demands in his own house and in the name of the Anjoman and, moreover, since he had Nezam ol-Molk's support, heThe text has two “they's”, when “he” is clearly meant. thought that this was nothing but a success and a victory.

But outside, as soon as the news spread,Within a half an hour. (ibid.) the liberals rallied and raised a zealous tumult. They soon closed the bazaars and headed for the Anjoman. When they found it empty, they immediately sent someone to bring over the prayer leaders (who had not yet turned back from the Constitution), and they searched for the representatives whom they considered sympathetic.And who had been in hiding. (ibid.) They gathered the guild leaders one by one.Ibid. gave a different sequence of events: When “the poor guildsmen and craftsmen who had just opened their bazaars on Saturday... heard about the gathering of tofangchis” in the Mojtahed's house and the order to exile Sheikh Salim, Mirza 'Ali, etc., “they were terrified, and gradually some went to the Anjoman. When they saw it empty, their fears mounted; the public understood the situation as meaning that the Constitution was gone... An indescribable outcry erupted and they... closed the bazaars and shops and gathered in the Anjoman.” Since it was said that the beglarbegi [Rafi' od-Dawle] had sent farrashes to Mirza 'Ali's house to drive him out forthwith, a group went there and drove the farrashes out of the house.Ibid. here stressed the size of the crowd, filling the Anjoman courtyard and alleys, and even filling the bazaar. On the other hand, when the representatives were assembled, they asked them why they signed the order to expel people while not convened in the Anjoman and at just anyone's request. They said: “The Anjoman is the people's refuge. If it is requested that someone be expelled from the city,The subject is in the plural and Kasravi seems to be reproducing the use of the plural of respect as applied to the Mojtahed; this is confirmed in the next passage. Otherwise, the reference is to “the Mojtahed and his accomplices” as listed. he must have his crime investigated here and then be expelled. What crime have these few people whom you have ordered exiled [244-245] committed?!”

The representatives were at a loss for an answer. They said: “They left us no choice.”

They were then told: “Then send someone now and take back the statement which you wrote under duress.”Ibid. reported the dialog as follows: The Anjoman representatives protested that they had been unwilling allies of the Mojtahed. The crowd demanded that they see the document of expulsion; if the subjects of this declaration were indeed guilty, they would agree to the sentence being executed. “Otherwise,” and here's the crucial point, “those who sentenced the constitutionlists to exile must be punished.”

They said this and insisted on it. Several representatives and prayer leaders went before the beglerbegi and asked for the statement back. But he would not give it back and kept it and delivered it to Haji Mirza Hasan. The people insisted that they give back the statement and sent some people to Haji Mirza Hasan several times, but he was stubborn and would not surrender it.The following is from Anjoman, I:71 (15 Rabi' I, 1325 = April 28, 1907). In the meantime, there was a great zealous outcry in and around the Anjoman. The people denounced the Mojtahed and his accomplices—Haji Nezam od-Dawle, Basir os-Saltane, and Haji Malek ot-Tojjar.Anjoman, I:70 (13 Rabi' I, 1325 = April 26, 1907), added that when a notable tried to quiet the crowd with promises that the document would be turned over to them, a mojahed who had accompanied the prayer leaders sent to retrieve it declared that, far from giving up this document, the Mojtahed had gathered still more tofangchis around himself and, when they approached, these latter loaded their guns. “This news led to an amazing outcry.” Since they did not get the statement by sundown and the Mojtahed would not budge, they said: “He is an enemy of the people and must be driven out of the city. If the Mojtahed does not leave town by nightfall, we will drive him out ourselves the next day.”Anjoman, I:70 (13 Rabi' I, 1325 = April 26, 1907), has the above-mentioned Aqa Sayyed 'Ali Mojahed deliver the sentence of exile on the Mojahed for “creating chaos every day.” “We've had it with him, we can no longer bear these deeds of his. What does a Mojtahed have to do with gathering tofangchis and terrorizing the people?” TheyThe mojaheds. (Anjoman, I:71 (15 Rabi' I, 1325 = April 28, 1907)) resolved to return the next day with rifles and other weapons. And so the day ended and they dispersed.

The Mojtahed Is Driven out of Town

That night, they brought the news that the Mojtahed had torn up that statement and thrown it out. But the peopleIn P, Kasravi estimated the crowd at “hundreds, if not thousand” of people. (I:111) did not let it go at that and, as decided, rallied to the Anjoman from every boroughIbid.: “They brought prayer leaders and clergymen from every borough.” at dawn.The date of this event is given at April 13, 1907 in Cecil Spring-Rice, Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, Inclosure in No. 25, April 25, 1907. Many of themMost of the people and the mojaheds, according to Anjoman, loc. cit. brought rifles and pistols with them, and this was reckoned the first armed revolt.It is interesting that one of Kasravi's sources, BT, used this expression to describe the way the enemies of the Constitution forced the constitutionalists to write a statement calling for the expulsion of the city's leading liberals the previous month (p. 16). Similarly, the prayer leaders gathered, one by one. Again, there was a zealous outcry and insults were hurled, and again theyAccording to Karim Taherzadeh Behzad, (Qiam-e Azarbayjan dar Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 42), it was the Anjoman which pleaded with the Mojtahed to leave town so that tempers might cool. Similarly, according to Anjoman (loc. cit.), a number of prayer leaders approached the Mojtahed and pleaded with him to not cause chaos, but leave for the people's sake. sent people to the Mojtahed and gave him a message which said that lest there be bloodshed, he and his elder son, Haji Mirza Mas'ud, should leave the city.

The Mojtahed still would not believe that the people would completely abandon him, and he did not hurry to leave. However, the people firmly insisted.In P, the following is added, “There were no great clergymen or mojtaheds there, but there were many prayer leaders and they did their utmost to prevent a disturbance. But when they saw that a riot was about to break out, they sent someone to the Mojtahed to plead with him to leave. (I:111) That day, three mullahs from Khiaban came, shouldering rifles, and said that if he did not leave, they would fight him. He had not imagined that Iranians, who had lived for many long years in the mullahs' grip and who had always considered them the Imam's deputies and God's representatives, would dare do something like this. Two things made this task easier. One was the great commitment many of the people had to the Constitution and the progress which they had made in recognizing what was in their interest and what was against it. The second was Haji Mirza Hasan's bad reputation due to his hoarding; the mass of people considered him to be a vainglorious and selfish man. class='footnote'>Kasravi was more charitable in P (I:29): Although he was discredited during the constitutionalist revolution, and one of his sons' hoarding had left a blot on his reputation, those who knew him personally praised his goodness. In any case, there is no disputing that this great religious scholar of Azerbaijan, like the clergy of Tehran, had no awareness of what was going on in the world and so never joined the movement. For all that, many, particularly simple laymen, were afraid, and we will see that it was then that the shying away from the Constitution began.

If the Mojtahed had stood and fought and not left, many might have turned to him. But until that day, no fighting had been seen in Tabriz, and everyone was afraid of the very words war and bloodshed, and he, too, was afraid [246] and went to leave. He left his house with his sons and his entourage, most of whom were mullahs and sayyeds. But when he reached Sheshkalan, he got up on the pulpit and wanted to denounce the Constitution on the spot, or to draw the people to him by preaching.Anjoman, loc. cit., leaves the subject of his oration vague. When the mojaheds in the Anjoman heard about this, they decided to go and drive him out by force, and two or three thousand went all at once, fired up with zeal. Haji Sheikh 'Ali Asghar Leilava'i and Sheikh Esma'il Hashtrudi and others restrained them and turned them back with a hundred arguments.Ibid. reported that they had rushed out so fast they left their slippers behind. To prevent a battle, they again sent several prayer leaders“clergymen,” according to ibid. who went and pushed him out of Sheshkalan.In P, after remarking the Mojtahed's generosity (see footnote Error! Bookmark not defined.), Kasravi claimed (I:106), It can be said that in those times, he felt nothing but kindness towards the Constitution and sincerely wished for its success and struggled pure-heartedly for its sake. Similarly, the other clergy, like Mirza Sadeq Aqa, Haj Mir Abol-Hasan Aqa, Aqa Mirza `Abdol-Karim Kalibari [the Friday Imam], and the rest, all struggled intensionally and hopefully for its sake. Presented for the information of your exalted honors. The whole population of Tabriz, clerics, members of the Popular Anjoman. For several months, Haj Mirza Hasan Aqa marched alongside the constitutionalists and refrained from no effort in this cause until, during the first month of spring, 1907, his behavior changed and a rivalry between him and the liberals appeared. Ultimately, the people closed the bazaars and ran him out of town.

And so they drove him out of the city, sending the following telegram for the information of the representatives in the House of Consultation in Tehran:

Tehran

After launching a trade against the Westernizers, he concluded (I:108),

To the presence of the honorable Mssrs. representatives from Azerbaijan (May God preserve them!)

You yourselves know well that some, to safeguard their own private interests, have been scheming to ruin the cause and eliminate the constitution's just laws, and that they have always been an obstacle to the advancement of the goal. Among them is His Eminence the Honorable Mojtahed Haji Mirza Hasan, who has in this time done what he could to destroy this sacred goal, until all the clerics and people gathered to silence this sedition and removed the grace of his presence from the city for the good of the entire people.

They were not happy about this in Tehran. In particular, the Two Sayyeds were exasperated, and a telegram from them reached Tabriz that evening saying that the Mojtahed had to be appeased at any cost and returned to the city. It is apparent that this would be impossible, given the mohaheds' fury and zeal.Anjoman reported that the Mojtahed lingered in Khiaban and that his son had returned to Tabriz. Prayer leaders were sent to drive them out.

The next day, Monday, April 21 (8 Rabi' I), the liberal leaders and some of the prayer leaders gathered in the Anjoman and deliberated over the hostile representatives. They decided to consider them outside the Anjoman and to elect other representatives to replace Haji Mirza Hasan and his few.

That day, it became known that Haji Mirza Mohsen, Aqa Mirza Sadeq, and Haji Sayyed Ahmad Khosrawshahi had left the city also, as well as Seqat ol-Eslam. In addition, that same day, Haji Nezam od-Dawle,According to Anjoman, he left the next day.

According to Karim Taherzadeh Behzad, in his Qiam-e Azarbayjan dar Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran (p. 43), “his life was in severe jeopardy.” Basir os-Saltane, Haji Malek ot-Tojjar, and Aqa Musa Mortazavi left the city.

In the Anjoman, they decided, after deliberations, that they would retrieve the clerics and sent some peopleAccording to Anjoman, thirty guildsmen's representatives and a few prayer leaders. to escort themAccording to P (I:112), Mirza Sadeq and Haji Mirza Mohsen. back.Details of this, which itself is a long story, are provided in Anjoman. But they did not concern themselves with the rest.Actually, Anjoman, I:77/78 (21 Rabi' I, 1325 = May 4, 1907), reported that Mortezavi was returned to Tabriz with pomp.

As we have said, this disturbance was unavoidable, and itself the result of the Constitution's success. Because [247] of this success, the interests of the mass of people diverged from that of the mullahs and village owners, particularly in Tabriz, where liberal ferment was more effective than anywhere else.

Now the mullahs had to either support liberty and align themselves with the people, or turn from constitutionalism and stick with their own interests. The Mojtahed and others chose this second course. As we have seen, in these events, Mirza Sadeq and others also turned from the people and left the city. They did not care about Haji Mirza Hasan. Aqa Mirza Sadeq had been an enemy and a rival of Haji Mirza Hasan for many years and they declared each other “infidels,” and this hostility between them was an abiding one. This turning away from the city and leaving it was over nothing but turning from the Constitution and returning to the old fashioned ways of the mullahs. Although the Anjoman sent people after them to return them to the city in pomp and with respect,On 11 Rabi' I = April 24, 1907, several guildsmen's Anjoman representatives went to see Mirza Sadeq and Mirza Mohsen, inviting them to return. The latter gave as conditions for their return that “1) you return the clergy who have left town, 2) nothing but issues related to the shariat must be discussed from the pulpit, 3) the press must not publish anything against the illustrious shariat, 4) issues pertaining to the shariat must not be pursued in the Anjoman, and 5) we not be brought to the Anjoman by force.” The representatives informed the two that they were in no position to answer, but said that the demands would be taken up at a special meeting of the Anjoman. By the time the issue was raised there, however, the people were in absolutely no mood to make concessions, and so the matter stood. (Anjoman, I:72 (18 Rabi' I, 1325 = May 1, 1907)). deep down, they could never reconcile themselves with the Constitution. From then on, their behavior changed. They acted as enemies, secretly and openly.In the version of the History published in al-'Irfan, Kasravi gave those who went into exile with the Mojtahed more sincere motivations: they were genuinely offended by the Mojtahed's being exiled, considering it an affront to the Faith and the shariat. From then on, he concluded, they would stop at nothing in inciting the people against freedom and the Constitution. (al-'Irfan, IX:2 (October 1923), p. 154)

Yes, in those days, many of the prayer leaders (or neighborhood mullahs) were still with the liberals, and as we have seen, they were more involved in these events than anyone else. Also, Haji Mirza Abol-Hasan Angeji, who was counted among the mojtaheds (a great mojtahed) had stayed with the liberals, and after the Mojtahed left and the others turned away, he had the field to himself. In any case, all this was temporary. Even these prayer leaders turned away bit by bit and one by one. None of them remained among the constitutionalists except those who totally forgot about the profession of being a mullah, with its income and pomp, and threw their lot in with the liberals. Even Haji Mirza Abol-Hasan, despite the fact that he had the power to bind and loose and had gained renown for his support for the liberals, could not give up his profession, and after a while, he too turned away and we will [248] see what a great enemy of the Constitution and in fact, the country, he would become in a few years.A weakening of Haji Mirza's position can be seen in his objection to the constitutionalists' attacks on the by-then anti-constitutionalist borough of Devechi. With the rise of the anti-constitutionalist center in Tabriz, the Islamic Anjoman, he became neutral and was confining himself to his house. When the Shah was driven out of Iran, he was by then so bitterly anti-constitutionalist that he signed a telegram with the rest of the anti-constitutionalist clergy pleading for his restoration (see Tarikh-e Hejde Saleye Azarbayjan, p. 404). He would later lead a riot against the Anjoman after Tabriz was occupied by the Russians and their stooges (ibid., p. 417).

The only one of the great mullahs of Tabriz who went with the constitution was Seqat ol-Eslam. Although this man did not show tremendous enthusiasm and zeal, he stood firm in his commitment to the country's and people's progress. As for his leaving the city during these events, he had a special reason. Since there had always been a rivalry and hostility between his family and that of the Mojtahed, he showed sympathy with him to bind the slanderers' tongue.Seqat ol-Eslam returned soon after he left and was received with great ceremony, on 14 Rabi' I = April 27, 1907. (Anjoman, I:72 and 73 (18 and 20 Rabi' I, 1325 = May 1 and 3, 1907)) He was later to recall that he was forced by the people to come back after journeying three stages. (telegram from Seqat ol-Eslam to Mohammad 'Ali Shah, undated, published in Dr. Mehdi Malekzade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran

So much for the mullahs, who thus turned their backs on the constitution. This business began in Tabriz, and then appeared in Tehran and other places. For their part, the liberals freed themselves from the mullahs' yoke and so from then on, the movement would necessarily take on a different character. For, as we have said, when mullahs were leading the movement, there would long be talk of the shariat and its promulgation, and the mass of people thought that what was being called for was exactly this. Then, gradually, talk turned to the country, the people, patriotism, and so on, and people became accustomed to hearing this. And so another demand appeared, which was dividing the liberals. It was the incompatibility of these two demands which separated the liberals and the mullahs. Now that this happened, one of its results would be that the liberals would no longer refer to the shariat and its promulgation and they would have no more need to ask the mullahs' permission about everything.

This was inevitable, nor would it be any loss. In any case, the liberals did not have a clear trail blazed for them regarding their goals, that is, the struggle for the progress of the country and the people, and they followed Europe at every step. “There is such and such a thing in Europe, we too must have it.” This was the slogan under which they fought.

This also, if it were done with open eyes, has little wrong with it. Alas, that was not the case. Things were taken from European newspapers“Newspaper” is used twice. and books and copied whether understood or not, and things which people who had visited Europe recalled about the European way of life would be brought back like souvenirs, and this led to great confusion. Things finally reached the point of Europeanization, which is itself another story.In P, Kasravi credited the clergy with being “the anchor” which kept constitutionalism from drifting into Europeanization. He blamed the Mojtahed, asking, “Why would someone who has risen up to guide the Muslims taint himself by owning villages and land?! It was because he owned villages that he did Haj Mohammad 'Ali's bidding with Nezam ol-Molk and allowed that vile being to exact vengeance on the constitutionalists from a few villagers.” He continued by demanding how a Mojtahed who had been so supportive of the constitutionalists could become such an enemy of this cause. He blamed the clergy as a whole for first supporting the Constitution and then abandoning it, which resulted “in short order in both your [the clergy's] leaving the field and the Constitution being disgraced by Europeanism.” He was unclear on where the blame lies, with the clergy's ignorance or the Anjoman's corruption. He concluded by asking what would have happened if the Mojtahed had “continued” to support the Constitution despite his being exiled; the Tabrizis would have invited him back and his prestige would have increased tenfold. (I:111-3) Even this mild criticism of the Mojtahed was too much for some of Peiman's readers. One of them asked (II:7 (Tir 1314 = June-July 1935), p. 466) what was wrong with owning villages. Kasravi introduced this response with the comment that some of the clergy's coming under the government's sway ended with the clergy being discredited and this did grievous harm to Islam and gave another excuse to the supporters of Europeanization. In other words, this conflict and hostility destroyed a series of truths and got the people to think that the clergy were enemies of the Constitution, indeed, of all progress in Iran. We want to publish the truth about this matter insofar as we have access to it and diminish the clergy's discredit so that in the future, those who write the history of the constitutional period would not be deceived by some extremist journals… (A few paragraphs later, he gave as an example of these journals Molla Nasr od-Din.) n class='inFootnote'>Kasravi then answered his critic by first citing Islamic traditions which stated that a religious guide should lead a simple life, not one of luxury. He next drew a distinction between owning an orchard or a field and owning a village. He concluded by saying that most of the people who rose up against the Mojtahed and the Friday Imam had done so because of their exorbitant wealth. This reader also objected that the clergy who had risen against the Constitution had done so because it was tending towards Europeanization. To this Kasravi replied that, although the reader had a point, “the way to prevent Europeanization is not to become an enemy of the Constitution.” He gives the following illustration of how counterproductive this strategy was: We have the newspapers of those times available and we see clearly that there were people who were thirsting for Europeanization... But they did not dare to say or do anything about this openly until Aqa Sheikh Fazlollah and the rest rose up against the Constitution. It was from that time that the Europeanists found an excuse and, on the pretext of supporting the Constitution, insulted the clergy a different way every day and spread a new evil teaching from among the Europeans. Gradually, things got out of control and the way was suddenly opened before the Europeanizers. His anonymous critic then continues, “The clergy which had brought about the Constitution, when it saw that it was being drawn towards Europeanism, opposed it for this reason.” Kasravi agrees with this writer to some extent. But he objects that the way to struggle against Europeanism was not to oppose the Constitution. Indeed, it backfired, since the people clung to the Constitution and, in the absence of their clerical rivals, followed the Europeanizers.

The Beginning of the Maku Affair

In the meantime, a disturbance broke out in Maku, too. This is what happened: Since an anjoman had been set up there by Mirza Javad Nateq and 'Ezzatollah Khan Salar-e Mokram supported the Constitution, the level of zealous activity increased daily and there was a stirring in every village. The villagers heard the word constitution and figured that it meant riot and insubordination and so they ran wild. In many villages they raised flags over the mosques, rallied there, and went and rioted, saying, “We have [249] become constitutional.” It finally reached the point that they joined together, became discontent with Eqbal os-Saltane's presence in Maku, and drove him out by force, along with three others. Eqbal os-Saltane did not resist, but left his women and family in Dez and crossed over to the Caucasus.NoteRef28As Taqizade recalls it, During these days, a great revolution was created in the lands of Khoi and Maku, particularly in Maku. Mirza Javad Nateq was an orator and agitator. Everywhere he agitated the peasasnts against the landlords saying, “You are not the landlords' slaves and must not give them anything. The land belongs to the peasants themselves.” And so a new banner was raised and he got all the peasants to go along with him… Mirza Javad agitated all these peasants against their khans, particularly the great khan Eqbal os-Saltane… and he got thousands, indeed, tens of thousands of people to come along with him. Things reached the point that the khans, including Eqbal os-Saltane himself, fled for Russia. After several month's residence in Yerevan in the home of his father-in-inlaw, Panah Khan Irvani, he wrote to some of the minor khans of Maku and gathered a forced near the border and returned to Baku and conquered all of Maku. Such a violent massacre and oppression ensued that nothing beyond it is imaginable… Similarly, Samsam ol-Molk, the governor of Avajaq, the border guard of the border with the Ottomans opposite Bayazid, who had a vast realm and was indeed the second in command in Maku… returned with [Eqbal os-Saltane] to Avajaq and expelled most of the major peasants who had been agitated against him, seizing all their property … Around 22 Zil-Hijja, when I was passing through there, I was his guest and saw this situation with my own eyes and pleaded with him to allow the poor constitutionalist peasants who had fled to Ottoman lands and were in Bayazid … to return to their land. Although he had perpetrated endless oppression, he did not kill, but Eqbal os-Saltane passed all bounds in killing. At this time, when I was passing through Maku and observed Qara 'Eini and the other villages along the way, I saw extraordinary tragic sights. The people whose property and land had been seized had fallen into hardship and were sleeping in the winter in the wilderness in the dry grass. In one village I was a guest of an old man who related that in the course of that massacre, Eqbal os-Saltane killed 96 residents of that small village… … Before [the seizures], Eqbal os-Saltane … owned over 150 villages. After these troubles, he had over four hundred, i.e., all of Maku. The son of a preacher from Sorkhab, he was sincerely progressive and early on worked printing and distributing jellygraphed clandestine pamphlets. He was, Taqizade says, too bold in his pronouncements, but very popular. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Iran, republished in Maqalat-e Taqizade, I:356-358) So Salar-e Mokram and several of the movement's leaders took control over matters—or, better, control over chaos—and gave themselves over to boasting.

The Kurds, most of whom were looters and murderers, set up meetings in their villages. They boasted about being constitutionalist and cooperation and unity without understanding what a constitution meant or changing their ways, and sent telegrams to Tabriz and other places. It happened in many places that as soon as a meeting was held and fifty or a hundred people sat together and made speeches about this or that, they would call this cooperation and unity and send telegrams all over the place to report it. If somewhere there was talk of taking up rifles and drilling, they would use this as an excuse to write to the newspapers: “In such and such a place, a people's army of fifty thousand is ready.” In Azerbaijan, this sort of thing was done in Maku. As a sample of their boasting and exaggeration, we have a letter which they wrote to Anjoman, which printed it.I:86 (12 Rabi' II, 1325 = May 25, 1907). We produce it below:

Thank God that now Khoi, Salmas, and the region of Maku are very orderly and all the inhabitants of Maku are constitutionalist and have utterly uprooted the sturdy tree of absolutism, i.e., Eqbal os-Saltane and the other influential men of Maku and the gentlemen [250] of Avajiq. Now, several thousand tofangchis from Maku, Avajiq, and the vicinity are armed to the teeth and have decided that if anyone says a word against the Constitution, he will be uprooted.

His Honor 'Ezzatollah Khan Salar has unfurled the Constitution's banner. The entire population of Maku, with its one thousand five hundred villages and hamlets, Kurds, Jalali tribes, and so on, are all united and in concord. Mr. 'Ezzatollah Khan Salar has gotten the highest and the lowest, the leader and the led, all to swear three times by the glorious Word of God first, to not betray the Salar himself, second, never to neglect to struggle and strive with life and wealth for the Constitution and its advancement and to spread justice, third, they swore that the people not betray each other and stop at nothing in protecting each others' lives and wealth. The people of Maku, Persian, Kurd, or tribesman, have never seen such security, ease, and comfort.

Convey greetings to His Eminence the Honorable Sheikh Salim. Tell him that whenever the absolutists want, God forbid, to destroy the todestroythe40Constitution and sow division among the people, they will first have to slaughter the entire population and all the constitutionalists of Maku in order to accomplish this. Otherwise, the people of Maku are ready to advance this sacred cause until their final breath and will not allow the tyrants to re-impose their accursed agents on the people's necks.

It is all by the holy spirits of His Eminence the Honorable Mirza Javad and the lofty zeal of His Honor Salar-e Mokram that progress has been made so swiftly in a place like Maku, thank God, and they have become aware of their rights.

In Tabriz, a representative from Maku chanted the praises of 'Ezzatollah Khan's zeal and valor and prayed for him at every opportunity. Since there was no governor there after Eqbal os-Saltane left, Salar-e Mokram wanted the post for himself, and so this representative in Tabriz and the representatives of the Maku anjoman in the Khoi telegraph post kept insisting that the governorship be given to 'Ezzatollah Khan. He himself sent a telegram for the Provincial Anjoman expressing his commitment to the Constitution and asking for instructions.

The Provincial Anjoman asked Nezam ol-Molk several times to send a governor to Maku.See, e.g., Anjoman, I:77/78 (21 Rabi' I, 1325 = May 4, 1907), in which frustration with the governor over this matter is expressed. Nezam ol-Molk did not listen to these requests any more than the others, and something happened because of this: One day, someone had been sent again before Nezam ol-Molk with the same request. When he returned, he brought the reply that Nezam ol-Molk said: “We must ask Tehran for instructions.” When the group of people who had gathered as usual in the Anjoman courtyard heard this, they became agitated and said, “What is a governor for?! What good is a governor who always gets his instructions for everything from Tehran?” This is how they spoke, and the Anjoman representatives restrained them and calmed them down. But when Nezam ol-Molk heard this, he became upset and, claiming that he was leaving Azerbaijan, [251] went to Basmenj. He spent two days there until emissaries from the Anjoman went and retrieved him.Anjoman, I:79 (29 Rabi' I, 1325 = May 12, 1907). See also Sir Spring-Rice, Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, Inclosure in No. 26, May 23, 1907, where it is reported that he left May 6 and was “induced to return” May 10.

This occurred in early May. Things continued in this fashion in Maku with that hue and cry until it was heard that the constitutionalists—or, better, trouble-makers—there had thrown out 'Ezzatollah Khan, too, sending him to his maternal uncle's. We will see what consequences this would have.

Atabak's Return to Iran

While all this was happening in Azerbaijan, in Tehran, the House of Consultation was busy legislating and writing the Supplement to the Fundamental Law and resisting Mohammad 'Ali Mirza's disruptions. It finished setting up a National Bank and since, according to the Regulations, this bank had to lend a fifth of its capital to the government, the House of Consultation was notified that sixty five thousand tumans was being disbursed to be paid to the soldiers, etc.

In the meantime, there was talk about Mirza 'Ali Asghar Khan Atabak's arrival. Mohammad 'Ali Mirza had summoned him and no one yet knew what he would do upon his arrival. But Atabak had shown no concern for the country when he was Prime Minister, whether under Naser od-Din Shah or under Mozaffar od-Din Shah, but had repeatedly acted as an enemy. All Iranians considered him to be a tool of the Northern Neighbor. Moreover, Mohammad 'Ali Mirza, who had summoned him, had left no doubt that he had become an enemy of the Constitution and liberty. Therefore, the people saw his arrival as having no other purpose but to smash the House of Consultation. In fact, Mohammad 'Ali Mirza was not accomplishing anything on his own and wanted the aid of Atabak's cleverness and experience to use him to eliminate the institution of the Constitution.In P, Kasravi puts the Shah's recalling Atabak down to his incompetence, calling it, in effect, a bad judgment. (I:114)

There were two discussions in the Majlis: One during the session of April 6 (22 Safar), when one of the representatives (it seems it was Taqizade) expressed his displeasure at his arrival and suggested that the Majlis pass a law saying that anyone who had done something wrong to the country must not hold office, and he became hot-headed about this.Document. The other was during the session of April 13 (29 Safar), when Atabak's name came up in the course of deliberations regarding the ministers' hostility. One of the representatives from Azerbaijan (again, it seems, this same Taqizade) said that he had sold out Iran and became angry over his coming to Iran, and a faction of representatives agreed with him. Blissful Soul Tabataba'i also spoke, saying: “After Mirza 'Ali Asghar Khan enters this kingdom, one must say, 'Rest in peace, Iran.'”Document.

Some European newspapers also had a negative opinion of him.Document. Of the Persian newspapers, Habl ol-Matin of Calcutta first translated an article from the British newspaper, The Herald, and itself expressed a negative opinion of him.Document. From Ordibehesht.

[252] But Mohammad 'Ali Mirza and Atabak paid no heed to these expressions of discontent. Atabak, as ever, did not take the people's activities very seriously and considered the liberals to be as little before his cleverness, craftiness, and thirty year's experience. It was later discovered that he had many supporters in Iran and in the Majlis itself, and received encouragement from them.

In the meantime, he set the stage by visiting Mirza Malkom Khan, who was esteemed by the constitutionalists. He had become quite old by this time and was living far from Iran in Europe. Atabak deceived him and obtained a letter from him about himself for Sa'd od-Dawle.Document. By this time, Sa'd od-Dawle had resigned from office, evidently over differences with his liberal allies. (Anjoman, I:84 (7 Rabi' II, 1325 = May 20, 1907) and Sharif-Kashani, p. 109, who says that Sa'd od-Dawle was only interested in getting rid of Neus. He also saw Talebof, who was still admired by the liberals but had soured on them, and obtained a letter of recommendation from him as well as for Sa'd od-Dawle.This information is from an article which someone had written in Majalleye Estebdad about Sa'd od-Dawle. [–AK] [Document.]

He pretended that he was sorry for what he had done when he was Prime Minister and that he had no choice but to do what he did in those days, but now that the people had gone into action and times and circumstances had changed, he wanted to make up for his evil deeds with good and struggle for progress. Mirza Malkom Khan wrote in his letter,Document. “Amin os-Soltan is not the same Amin os-Soltan. Iran should be congratulated for its good fortune in the experience which he has gained.” Since Sa'd od-Dawle was [253] much esteemed by the constitutionalists at the time and was the First Speaker in the Majlis, he used these letters to attract his support.

It was with these preparations that he left Europe for Iran in the first month of spring. He was received warmly on Russian soil. But then something happened in Baku which must have made him regret his having come. What happened was that the mojaheds of the Caucasus, who were watching and waiting for him, took one Mirza 'Abbas Khan, who was returning from Europe with two companions, for Atabak, and fired a few bullets at him, and these bullets killed him on the spot.

As for Atabak, he passed over the Caspian sea in a Russian battleship on the nineteenth of April (sixth of Rabi' II) and reached Bandar-e Anzali in comfort.There was a docker's strike going on at the time, and so he could not take a civilian ship. (P, I:115) There, the Shah's ship awaited him while Cossacks and cavalry guarded the bridgehead. On the other hand, the mojaheds of Anzali had gathered, intending to stop him.

When the battleship appeared, the Shah's ship raced forward and removed Atabak from the Russian ship and brought him ashore. The mojaheds occupied the roadside and set up a tumult. The Cossacks and cavalry drew their swords, wanting to disperse them, but they could not, and the mojaheds prevailed and did not give way. Atabak returned to the ship and remained there.

The Majlis' Feebleness

An order had to come from Tehran. On the one hand, Gilan governor Sepahdar telegraphed the Court about the event.Document. On the other hand, the Rasht Anjoman reported the news to the Majlis and Mostashar od-Dawle, Taqizade, Mirza Fazl 'Ali, and Vakil ot-Tojjar (a representative from Gilan) were summoned to the telegraph post.Document. In P, it says that the “mojaheds” had requested instructions from the Majlis.

That day at the Court, an audience was arranged before Mohammad 'Ali Mirza. The Two Sayyeds and Haji Sheikh Fazlollah were there, too. It was said that the ministers were to have taken an the oath, but during the discussion, the telegram from Gilan arrived, and this was left undone. The Shah himself sent a telegram and, at his request, the clerics sent one, too. But neither of them accomplished anything and the mojaheds paid no attention.

As for the Majlis, a discussion arose once again during that day's session. Those four representatives did not go to the telegraph post, but spoke in that session. But the Majlis had now changed, and it became apparent that Atabak's supporters there had been hard at work for several days. That same representative from Azerbaijan—Taqizade—again expressed a negative opinion of and dissatisfaction with him, but not as heatedly, and the rest did not go along with him. Some even expressed open support for Atabak.This would include Sayyed 'Abdollah, Amin os-Soltan's old protégé. (Sharif-Kashani, p. 128) One said:Document. “If we want to expel these people from the kingdom for their former crimes, there would not remain ten people for us.” He also said: “The people will not be frightened by this one man's arrival.” Another related a long story about how, eight months ago, when the Majlis had not yet been set up, he had visited Amin os-Soltan in Europe and held a discussion with him. Amin os-Soltan [254] had expressed regret over his past deeds and said: “History will show whether I had been able to act differently than I did.” He had also said, “Now the government of Iran must be constitutional and possess a legislature.” Someone else said: “Up to two days ago, I was one of those who would say that Amin os-Soltan must not return to this kingdom. But last night, I reflected and realized that if this were to be the case, everyone must leave the kingdom, and this cannot be.” Another delivered a speech and concluded, “Let the people not block his return. Punishment before the crime is not right.”

Apparently that same zeal and vigor which the representatives demonstrated at the opening of the Majlis and which kept them from pursuing their private interests had now spent itself. The Majlis which had shown such steadfastness in its deliberations over obtaining the loan from the two governments and in the matter of the ministers' accountability was now demonstrating such feebleness. A faction of representatives, merely out of friendship for Amin os-Soltan or as a result of a request made of each of them, became complicit in the return to Iran of such an enemy of Iran and presented such lame excuses for such a dreadful act. In previous days, there had been deliberations in the Majlis about summoning 'Ein od-Dawle to Tehran and punishing him. Now they were overlooking Atabak and his deeds.

After a debate, the Majlis decided to answer the telegram from Rasht through these four representatives, saying:

From the honorable National Consultative Assembly.

There is no obstacle or impediment to 'Ein os-Soltan's entry. Surely the people there, particularly the Anjoman, will kindly exert themselves strongly to prevent a disturbance.

After this telegram arrived, the Gilan mojaheds ceased blocking him and Atabak entered Rasht with his Cossacks and his cavalry. From there, he went to Tehran.

In the meantime, his agents were not idle. They spread the rumor that Atabak had laid down the condition to Mohammad 'Ali Mirza that he stop being an enemy of the Majlis and the Constitution and cooperate, and that it was on this condition that he returned to Iran.Kasravi neglected to mention that the Anjoman, as reflected in the journal, Anjoman, shared in this lauding of Atabak. The double-issue I:77-78 (21 Rabi' I, 1325 = May 4, 1907) carried a telegram from the Majlis congratulating the people on the unity with which they were greeting Atabak, and the Anjoman sent a message responding in kind. I:80 (1 Rabi' II, 1325 = May 14, 1907) carried a letter from Tehran which began After His Excellency Amin os-Soltan entered Iran, he altered the Shah's ideas, convincing him to incline towards all around cooperation with the House of Consultation. Two days ago, in the Court, he held a meeting with the ministers in which a pact of unity was written and sealed in the presence of His Imperial Majesty, and they swore that they would not violate it. The letter quoted Mokhber os-Saltane as lauding Atabak literally as a godsend. The contents of some of the rest of the letter is discussed in page 253of the present work, without the author mentioning his source. Further issues of Anjoman showed that this sympathy for Atabak persisted. For example, I:92 (22 Rabi' II, 1325 = June 4, 1907) carried a letter from Tehran in which Atabak presents his assurances to Tabriz and the Anjoman there that the tribal unrest in Azerbaijan greatly disturbs the government and that the politicians are spending their time securing the Azerbaijanis' comfort and well-being. There is absolutely no sign of suspicion towards him. The solitary exception to this is the mention that some Anjoman members were blaming Atabak's return for the dangerous direction the country's politics was taking. (I:76 (25 Rabi' I, 1325 = May 8, 1907))

When he reached Tehran and went before Mohammad 'Ali Mirza, they spread the rumor that Atabak told Mohammad 'Ali Mirza that the wise men of Europe have toiled for years and thought up the constitution so that the boundary between government and people would be recognized. Even if the Constitution is not in the interests of anyone else, it is in any case every bit in the interest of the Shah himself. This law and constitution which the Shah has lately granted the people of Iran is now known in every capital of Europe, and Iran is famous for it. Now, one must eliminate its shortcomings and strive for its success. “If it is suggested that one can smash constitutionalism, an act of treason has been committed against the government and the Blessed Royal Person.”NoteRef19This is a paraphrase of the lead article of Anjoman, I:80 (1 Rabi' II, 1325 = May 14, 1907). Kasravi did not reveal that Anjoman was so assiduously spreading these rumors!

This was all deceit to soothe the liberals' wrath.Dr. Mehdi Malekzade agrees with this, saying that it was typical of his smooth talking. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 462) Moreover, [255] Vazir-e Afkham had to be removed and Atabak made the country's ruler in his stead. Amazingly, this is just what the Majlis did, providing a constitutional cover to what Mohammad 'Ali Mirza had to do.

As we have said, the Vazir-e Afkham cabinet was considered the first legal cabinet. Despite the promises that it had made to the Majlis, it performed very poorly. The ministers ignored the Majlis and did not implement its instructions and would not answer its letters, so the Majlis kept complaining and objecting. It expressed particularly great dissatisfaction over the Foreign Minister, who did not answer a letter from the Majlis concerning a certain event in Azerbaijan for fifteen days, and then sent an inappropriate response.

During the session of May 29 (16 Rabi' II), when there were still complaints over the ministers, Majlis President Sani' od-Dawle said: “In accordance with the Fundamental Law which is now available to us, we can only protest to the ministers. Now, for anyone whose guilt is proven, let a vote be taken to call for his dismissal.”

As a result of this proposal, the discussion advanced and the representatives wanted to vote on Foreign Minister 'Ala os-Saltane. Sani' od-Dawle stopped them, saying: “Since there has already been talk about the Minister of the Interior, let us first vote specifically on his dismissal.” And so they discussed this, and the representatives voted to remove Minister of the Interior Vazir-e Afkham, who was also the Prime Minister, and so the session ended. There was no more talk about the Foreign Minister. Clearly the Majlis had lost its judgment and, above all, was doing just what Atabak wanted it to.

Atabak in Power

And so Mohammad 'Ali Mirza dissolved the Vazir-e Afkham cabinet and formed a new cabinetThe word “cabinet” is inserted superfluously. in which Atabak was the Minister of the Interior and Prime Minister. It was to be called before the Majlis on May 5 (20 Rabi' II).

But to further win over the representatives and so that there not be any debate or conflict on that day, a special session (without observers present) was convened on Thursday.This is reported in the letter published in Anjoman, I:80 discussed in footnote . Haji Mokhber os-Saltane went there on behalf of the government. This is what he said:

“You must remember how happy you were the day on which I produced the rescript for the Constitution.”

They said: “Yes, so we were.”

He said: “On that day, I was the bearer of the word 'constitution,' but today, I bring you tidings of its meaning. You know that the eight ministers were responsible only in words. I do not know why. Perhaps you yourselves think that they were responsible, but they did not live up to their oath of responsibility.... [256] But in these few days, they have ordered that I, the Minister of Education, can submit that from Saturday, the twentieth of the month [May 5], the eight ministers present here will take responsibility both in word and in deed and that in all our work, we shall behave as ministers in a constitutional government do. I shall now read here the agreement which had been written in the presence of His Royal Majesty and which eleven of us, eight of whom being the ministers in office, sealed, that you might be apprized....”

He then produced the text in which the ministers had sworn “by their honor and pride” and evoked God as a witness, that from then on, they would always cooperate with the Majlis, “uproot disorder” from the country, and spare neither wealth nor life in this. The Shah, too, wrote in a margin:

As you have written in the document and sealed, go and prepare the sources of the prosperity of government and people in unity and concord.

This speech and this document were not things which would not move or enthuse the listeners. Even so, some of the representatives were suspicious and said: “The Court has fooled us several times in the past and we are afraid that this time will be like the other times.” Haji Mokhber os-Saltane again made a long speech and gave assurances, saying: “In those days, His Royal Majesty was not content [with the Constitution] and tried every day to ruin this sacred work. But God has sent this man [Atabak]. His Royal Majesty wanted him, thinking he would come and do something [about the constitutionalists]. But he came and relieved the Solemn Royal Mind and brought it out of doubt and notions of uncooperativeness. Since that day, he prepared the Shah to work in cooperation with the Majlis. God willing, you will see the fruits of this...” This speech quieted everyone. Atabak's craftiness and slick talk even duped Haji Mokhber os-Saltane.Dr. Mehdi Malekzade lists Atabak's important supporters as Behbehani, Sani' od-Dawle, Mokhber os-Saltane, Haji Mo'in Bushahri, Haji Amin oz-Zarb, and Haji Esma'il. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 463) Of Behbehani, he says that he tried to win Atabak to the constitutionalist cause. (ibid., p. 467)

On Saturday, Atabak entered the Majlis with the seven ministers. First, Atabak spoke in that soothing and [257] seductive voice of his, saying things like: “The Shah, contrary to what is imagined, is with the Constitution. We ministers, too, have together sworn to support the Majlis, the people, and progress. As soon as I arrived in Tehran, the Shah asked me about the constitutions of the European countries. I said that government and people must go hand in hand and make progress.”

He then said: “All today's governments are waiting to see what we will do. All the European newspapers write not just one article about Iran each month, but every day there is a column about our daily activities. Now that His Royal Majesty is striving to advance this cause of his own blessed will, there is no more room for hesitation, and it would be unworthy for us to not strive vigorously in our efforts.”

The members of the Majlis, out of feebleness of character, thanked him. Then Atabak introduced the ministers. They were the same seven ministers as before except for Vazir-e Afkham.

And so the Majlis adjourned and Atabak came to be in charge of Iran's affairs. A telegram was sent everywhere announcing that he was in charge and that he supported the Constitution and the Majlis and heralding the good he was going to do. But in Tabriz and in other cities, few believed his fakery. I myself remember how at that time, I went to the Anjoman courtyard one day. As always, I saw a group standing around there, and one of the mojaheds from the Caucasus (whom I later found out was Mashhadi Esma'il MianiFor Miabi.) was standing on the window ledge at the hallway addressing them. When I listened, he was recalling Atabak and his return, saying: “This is an old-fashioned minister, we should be worried about him.” Then he related a story about a moneychanger who had a monkey whom he had look after his shop while he was out on business. One day when the moneychanger was out on business, a pickpocket came to the shop. When he saw the monkey and the money, he hit upon a plan to steal the money. Since he knew that the monkey is a mimic and would do whatever someone in front of him did, he started to play with him. Sometimes, he would twist his mouth, sometimes he would raise his hands, and so he kept playing with him. Whatever he did, the monkey would do. Finally, the pickpocket covered his eyes with his hands and when the monkey imitated him, he did not lose the chance, but grabbed a fistful of money and fled. When the monkey uncovered his eyes, he saw that both he and the money had vanished. In the meantime, the moneychanger returned. When he figured out what had happened, he gave the monkey a few blows with a stick. The monkey learned his lesson, and from then on, whenever he saw the pickpocket, he would push his eyes still wider open with his hands. The moral of this story is, he said: “We too must now keep our eyes still wider open.”

As for what Atabak's deeds, we will write about this in a separate chapter. His rule [258] forms a separate period in the history of the Constitutional Period. For aside from Atabak and his masterful intrigues, which created new problems for the Majlis and the liberals and almost brought everything under his control and eliminated the institution, the liberals' movement itself was changing its character with the passage of time.

A people in motion keeps is constantly changing. By then, nine more months had gone by since the beginning of the Constitutional Period, and the people had undergone, and continued to undergo, successive changes in the course of the struggle. For as we have seen, on the one hand, the zeal which had existed when the movement began had spent itself and from then on, breeches appeared in the liberals' ranks. On the other hand, there was no more room for conciliation with the mullahs and the wealthy, and they were beginning to part ways with them.

In any case, these were bringing about a new period in the history of the Constitutionalist Period, about which we will speak in another chapter.

Chapter Five: An Examination of the State of the People

In this chapter are discussed the magnitude of the constitutional movement's impact in the cities of Iran, as well as the primary schools and newspapers which were founded during the first months of the movement.

One of the Constitutional Movement's Shortcomings

Up to this point, we have written about events of the first nine months of the constitutional movement in succession. But here (at the end of the volume), we must break the thread of the narrative, step back from the course of events, talk about some things which we have not mentioned, and examine the state of the people.

As we have seen, a small group of people brought about the constitutional movement in Iran. The mass of people did not know what a constitution was and were obviously not demanding it. Furthermore, the leaders themselves were divided in five ways: First, there were the modernists who had been to Europe or had heard about what it was like there and who wanted a European constitution, too. Of course their awareness of Europe and the meaning of constitution and law were uneven and for many it was only superficial. Another, bigger, group were the mullahs, who assumed the leadership. They themselves were divided into two factions: One was composed of Blissful Souls Behbehani and Tabataba'i and their allies and Akhund Khorasani, Haji Tehrani, and Haji Sheikh Mazandarani and their allies. They were committed to the country and saw it being annihilated under the autocratic Qajar court and thought that a constitution and a consultative assembly were needed to prevent this. At the same time, they did not understand the Constitution as they were later to see it and understand it and did not want it in the European sense. They were far removed from ideas about how to run the country, the people's progress, or such ideas. The other faction had no understanding of the Constitution at all. They had no commitment to the country or the people and entered into constitutionalism only in the hope of promulgating the shariat and advancing their own power. We will see that they would later raise the slogan of shariatism and turn from the constitutionalists.

This was the state of the leadership. The mass of people were completely unaware of what a constitution was or what it meant [261] and only became excited and went into action to follow its leaders.According to Mehdi Mojahedi wrote: As for the people, they had different ideas of what constitutionalism meant. Many of them thought that it meant founding houses of justice and executing justice. Others thought it was a step down the road of modernism and progress. One grough believed that it was a step backwards to the purity and justice of the dawn of Islam. To the magnates and the aristorcrats of Tehran it meant limiting the reach of Mozaffar od-Din Shah and his Turkish-speaking hangers-on. Some zealous constitutionalists of Tabriz and Rasht believed it meant Azerbaijan's and Gilan's secession from the central government. In the pure and simple vision of the common people, it only meant cheap bread. (Taqizade: Rawshangariha dar Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 31)

This being the case, there should have been people at the outset of the movement to guide and educate the people and teach everyone what national existence or country or progress in the European sense are about and get them to do useful things.NoteRef21While Kasravi was serializing P in his journal Peiman, he was beginning to adumbrate his philosophy. One of its cornerstones was the belief that Iran had to unite under one religion in order to survive. (“Yeki az Gereftarihaye Iran,” Peiman II:6 (Khordad 1314 = May-June 1935), p. 377 ff., “Yek Darafsh, Yek Din,” Peiman II:6-7 (Khordad-Tir 1314 = May-July 1935), p. 347 ff. and p. 412 ff., “Dar Rah-e Rastgari,” Peiman II:7 (Tir 1314 = June-July 1935), p. 424 ff.

It could not have been expected of the leaders of the constitutional movement that they would free the people of all their problems (such as sectarian or ideological differences or corrupted characters).In Kasravi's later years, he became convinced that the problems faced by Iranians were essentially that of their corrupted characters, and that dealing with this, and not political issues, was what was on the agenda. (Dar Rah-e Siasat (Peidar, Tehran, 1941), pp. 87-106). This depoliticization, on the one hand, reflected his bitterness at not having been accepted by the Iranian people and, on the other, was useful for keeping him out of direct conflict with the rulers of Iran, whether it was Reza Shah or the British and Soviet occupying forces. This could not have been done by them, and if they did not try to do it, it was no cause for regret. What is regrettable is that for all the impetus which they gave the people in the name of liberalism, they did not once instruct them, they did not teach them what a constitution and an assembly and law really meant or prepare a way to struggle for them or show them something to struggle for.

The atmosphere was suitable for such work during those nine months of the beginning of the movement. If in these several months such a guide had appeared in Tehran, the country's capital and the site of the House of Consultation, and spoken or written to teach the people what had to be done, the movement would have turned out differently than it did (as we will write).

Had that zeal and enthusiasm which appeared among the people been accompanied by worthy instruction concerning national existence, the governance of the country, etc., it would not have been dimmed so quickly or turned into hatred for the Constitution and liberty through a little deceit by the mullahs and others.

The absence of such guides not only deprived the country of progress, but brought about other evils; it caused the movement to assume the character of a noisy tumult in many places.

What the Two Sayyeds and their allies did was very valuable, and they must go down in history forever as great. But they should have followed up what they did by thinking about how to guide the people. It is amazing that they did not, but rather considered the mere granting of the decree for a constitution, the opening the House of Consultation, and the writing of a Fundamental Law to be sufficient and did not see the need for anything else.For more on Kasravi's thoughts on what should have been done, see Mashrute Behtarin..., p. 8. This was an oversight on their part. They aroused the people and got them to rise up, but they did not show them the way forward or how to struggle. This resulted in the mullahs and rawzekhanis being everywhere in control and, as they would have it, not distinguishing between the Constitution and the promulgation of the shariat. They cited arguments from the Koran and the hadiths and held rawzekhanis in their meetings so that the mass of people did not think that there was more to the movement than this. We will relate later the episode of Haji Sheikh Fazlollah Nuri and his recommendations to the Majlis.

The people were baffled by all this for a long time. They had been whipped up and prepared for action and then left to themselves. Then, bit by bit, other ideas spread. The group of leaders who wanted a European-style constitution would sometimes speak of patriotism and [261] self-sacrifice. Sometimes they would mention factories and machines and sometimes they would talk about the country's prosperity, building railroads, and so on.

So the people were of two minds. Bit by bit, a division appeared between the two ways of thinking, and when the mullahs did not see it in their interests to cooperate with the Constitution and had to part, a big faction went with them. But the faction which stood fast did not find the way forward to struggle and remained confused. This faction of modernists could not show the people the way forward, either.

The modernists would tell the people: “We must love our country, we must sacrifice for it, we must cooperate with one another, we must become educated...” They would say this and shake up the people without teaching them what love of country, self-sacrifice, and cooperation really meant, without preparing the way for them. They left it up to the people themselves to figure out what these meant and find their own way, and everyone gave it the meaning he wanted or understood, and so the people struggled in accordance with their own fancies.

The mass of liberals did not recognize any duty but denouncing Mohammad 'Ali Mirza and whining and complaining about the autocracy. Whoever denounced the most, not even refraining from rending the veil of propriety, was thought to be showing himself the best liberal. Many of them did not think that “cooperation” meant anything but organizing meetings and setting up an anjoman. All these people would use the word “country,” but not one in a thousand understood its true meaning.For Kasravi's views on patriotism, see, e.g., his “Dara'i Chist?” (Parcham 53-55, Sunday Farvardin 9–Tuesday Farvardin 11, 1321 (=April 1942)) republished in Mashrute Behtarin..., especially p. 39. The mass of them thought that country meant the land, mountains, and deserts and would recite so-called patriotic odes praising the country's climate and show a poet's exaggerated attachment to them.

Differences between Cities

One of the amazing results of this lack of guidance was the differentiation which inevitably appeared among cities. For since there was no path for them all to follow and, as we have said, the people had been whipped up and their discontent aroused only to be left to struggle on their own, the level of understanding and consciousness, the feebleness or firmness, the presence or absence of leaders all effectively determined each city's situation, and the movement and the struggle took on a different character in each place.

For example, in Tabriz, ideas were loftier, there was greater awareness of the meaning of constitution and law, and the Tabrizis' character was firmer and, moreover, there was a more concerned and vigorous leadership. Therefore, the movement and the struggle was on a firmer basis and the people got to work doing a series of worthy and useful things, such as forming a band of mojaheds, founding general schools, and so on. As we have seen, Tabriz fought absolutism several times in those nine months and was victorious each time. [263] In Tabriz, everything was understood correctly and every task was performed with care. Its complaints about the Fundamental Law, its protests against the Law's shortcomings, and its persistence in advancing its demands, which we have related, are the best examples of the Tabrizis' clear understanding and resolve in the struggle.

As we have said,See page 259. one of this city's weak points was the absence of clerics on the level of the Two Sayyeds. And, as we have seen, the great mullahs there turned from the Constitution more than anywhere else and, except for Seqat ol-Eslam, all of them fought against it. For all that Tabriz could be proud of, this it could not pride itself on. In any case, most of the lesser mullahs there (prayer leaders and preachers) went with the liberals and stood firm until the end, some demonstrating great self-sacrifice and winning renown.

Aside from those whom we have mentioned, we must mention here the names of Haji Sayyed ol-Mohaqqeqin, Sheikh Soleiman, Mirza Esma'il Nawbari, Sheikh Mohammad Khiabani, Zia ol-'Olema, Mullah Hamze, and Mullah Ghaffar. They all stood fast with constitutionalism.

Haji Sayyed ol-Mohaqqeqin, the son of Nezam ol-'Olema, had studied in Najaf and was a mojtahed. Sheikh Soleiman was a prayer leader of the borough of Chust Duzan and a zealous old man. Nawbari and Khiabani had just become mullahs. Zia ol-'Olema was from a wealthy family and was an educated man. Aside from having studied mullah-studies, he had also devoted himself to European languages.Zia ol-'Olema was executed by the Russian occupiers of Tabriz during their mass executions of Ashura 1330. Taqizade writes that before being executed, he addressed the people in Turkish and the Russian soldats in Russian. (Avraq-e Tazeyab-e Mashrutiat va Naqsh-e Taqizade, p. 379) Mullah Hamze was a rawzekhan and was considered a leader the borough of Khiaban and had many supporters there. Mullah Ghaffar was also a rawzekhan.

The Azerbaijani cities of Khoi, Salmas, and Urmia, each to a different degree, followed Tabriz, and the movement sank roots there. In Khoi, in addition to the liberals from the city itself, who struggled out of commitment to country and people, Mirza Ja'far Zanjani came from the Caucasus along with a few mojaheds and struggled to form a band of mojaheds. In Salmas, an anjoman was set up. Haji Pishnamaz presided over it. He took charge and struggled well. One of the liberals there was Blissful Soul Mirza Sa'id, who had lived sometimes in Istambul, sometimes in Tabriz, and sometimes in Salmas, and was a thoroughly zealous and valiant youth. In Urmia, in addition to others, Blissful Soul Mirza Mahmud Salmasi, a famous cleric there, was active, and Mashhadi Baqer Khan, who had come from the Caucasus, worked hand in hand with him in organizing mojaheds. Despite all the border troubles, which we will recount, the movement there kept advancing.

As for Maraghe, Ardebil, and other places, they were stuck half-way and could not continue. Maku, which was raising such a hue and cry and was being so boastful, could accomplish nothing. We will seeSee page xxx. what its swaggering amounted to in the end.

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Among the other cities, Rasht, Anzali, and Qazvin were like Tabriz. In Rasht, there were disorders at first, but they soon cleared up and there, too, the movement and the struggle found their way. As we will see in the events to come, Gilan always went with Azerbaijan. Not much of a zealous outcry had been heard from Qazvin, but we will see in the future that the movement there would find its way.

Now in Tehran and other cities, the movement took on a different character. Because of feeble character, ignorance, and the absence of a concerned leadership, instead of struggle, the people engaged in every kind of ostentation and tumultuousness. Although Tehran had taken the lead and created the movement, it could not maintain it. The people of Tehran, out of their feeble character, all gave themselves over to mere displays and the movement there, more than anywhere else, took on a quality of showing off and superficialities.

During the beginning of the movement, when the decree for the Constitution had just been issued, writing clandestine leaflets was endlessly popular, and hundreds devoted themselves to this. Whatever half-baked ideas someone had, he would set them on paper and publish them. Many of these writers were jealous of the leading role played by the Two Sayyeds and others and would insult them or offer them advice. The Constitution was a new thing which had arrived from Europe and everyone should have tried to learn about it to understand its meaning. Instead, everyone taught, and each would give a different meaning to constitution and law and make speeches about it. It was amazing.

Then, little by little, writing clandestine leaflets became passé and it now became fashionable to set up anjomans. At first, someone or other would found an anjoman in the name of “commanding the proper.”Koran iii:104, 110, 114; vii:157; ix:71,112; xxii:41, and xxxi:17. Haji Sayyed Mohammad 'Ali Hemmatabadi founded one anjoman. Mirza 'Abdor-Rahim Elahi formed another. Others also founded anjomans. Hemmatabadi's anjoman existed so that if there was any wine-drinking or beard-shaving to be seen, it would “command the proper.” Things reached the point where there would be talk of these anjomans in the House of Consultation and it ordered Hemmatabadi's anjoman to be closed.Document.

Then other sorts of anjomans were formed. The Shirazis' Anjoman, the Qajariye Anjoman, the 'Eraq-e 'Ajam Anjoman, the Fatemiye Anjoman, and so on, were formed, so that every group would set up its own anjoman.Anjoman II:26 (29 Zi-Qa'da 1325 = January 4, 1908) carries a list of the Tehran anjomans. The Constitution, which existed to eliminate such divisions and factions,This is a uniquely Kasravite view. See note . was seized upon to become an excuse for faction. More amazing was that such anjomans which were being formed were considered to be great things. A lengthy document would be written and sent to the Majlis saying, “We have united and are struggling for...” Sometimes such a document would be read in the Majlis. It was thought that setting up a meeting and having ten or twenty gather and meet and have pointless discussions was unity and cooperation.

Since buying guns and military drill were hard work, it never got very far in Tehran. Neither did the people take it seriously, nor did the leaders get them to do it. Instead of being educated about such things, ten or twenty people in one of the anjomans would find some old muskets from here or there, stick them on their shoulders, stand in file, and get their pictures taken.Dr. Mehdi Malekzade claimed that a People's Revolutionary Committee composed of revolutionary intellectuals was formed, led by Malek ol-Motakallemin, Sayyed Jamal od-Din, Mirza Jehangir Khan, Sayyed Mohammad Reza Mosavat, Taqizade, Hakim ol-Molk, Sayyed 'Abdor-Rahim Khalkhali, Sayyed Jalil Ardebili, Mo'azed os-Saltane, Mirza Soleiman Khan Meikade, Hoseinqoli Khan Navab, Mirza 'Ali Akbar Khan Dehkhoda, Haji Mirza Ebrahim Aqa, Mirza Davud Khan, and Adib os-Saltane, which met at midnight in the home of Hakim ol-Molk and dispersed just before nightfall. It was supposed to have prepared an armed national guard of thousands of men, from youths to the elderly. They were supposed to have formed ranks in front of the Majlis and drilled. (Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, pp. 415-419) Later, the author has to explain away the fact that no sign of this militia appeared on the field of battle when it was needed by saying that the Majlis did not lend this project the necessary support, and this mighty National Guard is reduced to “the resistance of several people.” (ibid., p. 553, 582) Confirmation of the existenced of this committee is its mention in Heidar Khan 'Amulghli's memoirs. There, he refers to a “secret Tehran Social Democratic cell in which Malek ol-Motakallemin and Sayyed Jamal Va'ez were members,” although it seems possible that Heidar Khan is trying to legitimize his political enterprise by dropping the names of some prominent politicians. (selection published in Heidar Khan 'Amuoghli, p. 72) Another confirmation of the existence of this committee comes from the anonymous author of an article based on the oral recollections of Hakim ol-Molk, who recalls hosting meetings which met from the call for morning prayers to dawn, although he gives this society a Masonic twist. (See Heidar Khan 'Amuoghli, pp. 42-43) Later articles on this theme appears, but they cannot, of course, be considered independence sources. They did not spare themselves such ostentation.

This was the situation in Tehran. As for other cities, there was more noisy tumultuousness than anything else. Something which had just become popular, of which one might say that the people considered it a constitutionalist's duty, was to rally at the telegraph post and keep firing telegrams to Tehran, the House of Consultation, and other places. Things reached the point that the House of Consultation expressed its exasperation with such behavior among the people and there was repeated talk about this in the Majlis.Document.

In those days, in one of the Tehran newspapers,Baladiye. Document. [–AK] a piece was written about Isfahan. Since it provides a good example of the pointless exhibitions which were put on in some cities and exposes the mullahs' pretensions, we produce it here. It says:

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A few days ago, His Honorable Eminence Seqat ol-EslamProbably Aqa Sheikh Mohammad Taqi “Aqa Najafi,” called by his fellow-Isfahani “more absolutist than the absolutists.” (Malekzade, Tarikh-e Enqelab-e Mashrutiat-e Iran, p. 138.) and His Honorable Eminence Haji Aqa Nurollah,Aqa Najafi's brother. “An enlightened spiritual leader who played a fitting role in the rise of constitutionalism.” (ibid., pp. 138, 453) honored Se De with their presence, to visit the anjoman there. One of Their Esteemed Eminences there had seen the Twelfth Imam (May exalted God hasten his advent!) in a dream. Briefly, the Twelfth Imam told His Eminence, “Son, tell the people to assist the Constitution's Majlis.” In any case, Their Eminences related his dream to the people of Se De. Because of this, seven hundred brave youths of Se De signed up to put on uniforms with the Majlis' seal and be the Majlis' fedais, soldiers. They are now preparing insignias. According to the above report, they have written on them, “Fedai Soldier of the Sacred Majlis” and every fifty people chose one person to lead them.The British Blue Book took a dimmer view of these fedais' motivations: “The town of Ispahan itself appears to be in complete disorder. Twice a week the followers of the Aghas parade on the great 'maidan,' most of them carrying fire-arms. Their numbers increase constantly, as men from villages owned by other landlords enlist as 'fidais' in order to obtain the protection of the Aghas and to esape paying rent or other debts. These men are drilled by former members of [Zell os-Soltan's] army who are sought out for the purpose. (Sir Cecil Spring-Rice, Great Britain: Correspondence respecting the Affairs of Persia, Cd. 4581, Inclosure in No. 44, September 13, 1907) On their leaders' seals is written the verse:

May I be a sacrifice to the National Assembly and the commandments of Nurollah

I declare, “I bear witness that there is no deity but God.”The last line is half the watchword of the Islamic faith.

The Spread of General Schools

We must say a few words here about both general schools and newspapers. We have said that of the European phenomena, these both had reached Iran before the Constitution and had become widespread. Obviously they became still more widespread after the Constitution.

People were more interested in the general schools. It was at this time that there was talk of girls studying and opening general schools for them, too. Since no divisions had yet appeared and zeal for the Constitution still ran strong, few dared oppose this.

In addition to the big cities, general schools were set up in the small cities like Maraghe, Marand, and so on. In Qa'en, a small and remote town, the governor, Shawkat ol-Molk, founded an honorable school and invited instructors from Tehran.

There was tremendous enthusiasm over this in Tabriz, too, and the liberal leaders considered founding general schools to be one of their responsibilities. There were only two or three general schools left from before the Constitution, and they were not doing well. Despite the fact that it was a Tabrizi who had spread these schools, Tabriz benefited little from them. After the Constitution, they worked to increase their number. In most boroughs, ten or twelve well-known and wealthy men would get together, pool some of their wealth and that of others, and found a general school, paying the instructors' salaries and other expenses and protecting and guiding it in every way. Many such general schools were founded and many students gathered in each one.

As we have said, the people, in their simplicity, held an exaggerated idea of the schools' worth and had unreasonable expectations in their children's studies. At the end of the year, in every general school, they would hold a splendid celebration to which the mass of the liberals' leaders, department heads, and others would be invited. After recitals of music and song, speeches, and so forth, money would be collected from [267] those present as aid.

The people would gladly and enthusiastically contribute their money. How often it was that a whole year's school expenses would be gathered in one celebration! I myself went to one such gathering one day. In one hour, one thousand two hundred tumans were contributed.

One must take these financial contributions as a token of the people's commitment to the nation's improvement and the country's progress [268]. In Tabriz, it was as if many of the wealthy, particularly the merchants, considered themselves obliged to participate in founding general schools and would vie with each other in contributing to them.

One of those who was always took the lead in making such contributions and whom we must recall here was Blissful Soul Haji Sheikh 'Ali Akbar Ahrabi. There was rarely a financial contribution in which this good man, who was himself a man of considerable understanding, wisdom, and knowledge, did not participate.

We have repeatedly discussed the merchants of Azerbaijan. They did more to advance the Constitution than anyone else, for they participated with their money, efforts, and self-sacrifice. In those trying days, some of them displayed very great strength. They participated in meetings and discussions and cooperated intelligently. When the need arose, they did not shrink from contributing money. If a problem came up, they hurried to be the first to close the bazaar and rush off to the Anjoman. They encouraged the mojaheds by their own cooperation and strengthened their determination. In addition to those we have mentioned, we must here name Blissful Soul Haji Mohammad Bala. This man was Aqa Sheikh Soleiman's brother and himself a renowned merchant who was always, along with his sons and family, included among the liberals. We shall showHe is only mentioned as a fighting mojahed. Otherwise, no misfortune is mentioned in his connection, either in the present history or Tarikh-e Hejde Saleye Azarbayjan. how much he suffered for this cause.

The Newspapers of Tabriz AnjomanNewspaper24

As for journalism, this, too, began to flourish after the Constitution, and some worthy newspapers appeared. We will consider here the newspapers which appeared during the Constitution's first nine months, discussing Tabriz and Tehran separately.

As we have said,See page 183. the first newspaper in Tabriz appeared after the Constitution was granted. The activists of Tabriz who set up the Anjoman published a newspaper to report on its activities. It was first called Ruznameye Melli and then Ruznameye Anjoman.It was called Ruznameye Melli for its first nine issues and then Jarideye Melli up to its thirty-seventh, after which it was simply called Anjoman. Mirza 'Ali Akbar Khan (from the Vakili family)A family of great wealth and power in Tabriz. Mirza 'Ali Akbar Khan was forced to step down in July 1907 after publishing a scathing attack on Sheikh Fazlollah Nuri, declaring him a kafer-e harbi, an infidel against whom Muslims must wage war. (vol. 1, no. 110 (3 Jomada' I 1325 = July 14, 1907). (See article in vol. 1, no. 111 (11 Jomada' I 1325 = July 22, 1907).) wrote for this journal. Although it only reported the Anjoman's activities and other events in Azerbaijan and was written in a simple style and lithographed,Browne, in his entry in Press and Poetry, tells us that it was also printed. it was one of the most valuable newspapers of the time. We obtained a great deal of our information for this history from it.

Regarding this newspaper's simplicity and the purity of its writer's character, suffice it to refer to the time that the Mojtahed and some of the Provincial Anjoman representatives abandoned the Constitution and the Qara Chaman affair had arisen in the meantime. As we have written,See p. 236 ff. these representatives supported the Mojtahed and wanted to belittle this affair and cover it up, using the excuse that they had sent four people to Qara Chaman itself to investigate the events [269]. They also ordered Mirza 'Ali Akbar Khan to try to cover it up, and he had no choice but to comply. However, he did not conceal his distress: He began an article in one issue writing, “O Pen! How long will you be chained and manacled, how long will your blessed tongue be bound by the seal of oppression?”Anjoman, I:66 (4 Rabi' I, 1325 = April 17, 1907). It is clear from the context of this editorial that Kasravi is reading it correctly. After the liberals had stood up to and overcome the Mojtahed and that group of representatives, they interrogated him. He wrote about this in the following simple fashion:Anjoman, I:70 (13 Rabi' I, 1325 = April 26, 1907).

They then brought Your Servant, the editor of Anjoman, to be interrogated and tried. They said, “We assigned you on behalf of the public to this office and to Anjoman that you might report the news... in the magazine without sycophancy, circumspection, or concealment so that we might be apprized of events every day, identify the seditious and the scheming, and know about the oppressor and the traitor. We did not do it so that you might fill page after page with 'Esteemed Excellency' or 'Esteemed Sir' or pointless phony titles and conceal the oppressive deeds of oppressors, absolutists, and hoarders.”

So Your Servant had to present some rejected documents and said, “It was because of this same circumspection and restriction that I submitted my resignation from this service every day. I observed that the absolutists would drive out and exiled His Eminence, the Honorable Sheikh Salim and others, with all the troubles and toil which they suffered in this sacred matter, with a wink of an eye, and that there was neither recourse nor justice. Moreover, repeated statements about restrictions on magazines and complaints issued from my pen and were published in the magazine. Yet no one asked after me. I dreaded the trial I would face today but was in chains of threats entwined, by absolutism confined....”

They saw fit to say, “You were right. 'God pardons what has passed.'Koran, v:95. The verse continues: “For repetition, God will exact from him the penalty.” See the next footnote. But from now on, if you deviate by a hair's breadth or are circumspect or flatter or cover up anyone's activities, you will not be forgiven again, but taken to task.”The matter did not end with this reproof. Despite the editor's clear sympathy with the mojaheds and his ample and sympathetic coverage of them, he did not quickly escape their suspicion. They gathered around him and demanded to know why Anjoman was not publishing the results of the committee of inquiry into the catastrophe in Qara Chaman and why, in general, communications from the rest of Iran were not being published on the spot, referring to a certain letter the Mojtahed had written to Maraghe and a letter by Tabriz Majlis representative Mirza Fazl 'Ali had on toyuls. After presenting excuses, he agreed to publish a damning letter by the Mojtahed to his enforcer in Maraghe. Similar complaints over Anjoman's lack of courage are reported in I:92 (22 Rabi' II 1325 = June 4, 1907). This time, the author answers his critics by declaring at some length his willingness to die for the cause.

Another worthy newspaper in Tabriz in those days was Azarbayjan,February-December (?) 1907. For a very thorough treatment of this weekly, see Raoul Motika, Die Zeitung Azarbaygan (Täbris, 1907): Inhalt, Umfeld, Hintergrund (München, 1990)

In P, he calls Azarbayjan the first political newspaper published in Tabriz and the first Tabriz newspaper published on lead type. (I:96) which was, like Molla Nasr od-Din of the Caucasus, written in a humorous style and had cartoons. It can be said that after Molla Nasr od-Din, it was the best of its kind.Kasravi's views on Molla Nasr od-Din went through an evolution as Kasravi's convictions did. In notes concerning his 1934 edition, when Kasravi was courting the clergy in conducting his campaign against Reza Shah's forced march to Westernization, Kasravi refered to Molla Nasr od-Din as “extremist” and urged those who were taking exception to his then comparatively mild and more circumspect criticisms of the clergy to target such magazines and leave him alone. (p. 466, Peiman II: 7) It is refered to in his earlier “Al-Lughat ul-Turkiya fi Iran” (al-'Irfan, VIII: 364 (February 1923)) in purely neutral terms. In his memoirs, he recalls with evident delight a meeting with people associated with Molla Nasr od-Din. See note .

Haji Mirza Aqaye Boluri, a liberal merchant of Tabriz, founded this journal, and Mirza 'Aliqolu Safarof, whom we have mentioned, wrote for it. Mohammad 'Ali Mirza had a printing press in Tabriz when he was Crown Prince and sold it when he was preparing to go to Tehran. Haji Mirza Aqa bought it and printed this newspaper, which lasted a year. A glance at its cartoons shows that it clearly had a masterful cartoonist, too.

There were other newspapers as well: Omid,Hope. March–(?) 1907. (TJMI) Azad,Free. Weekly. Published by Reza Khan Tarbiat, brother of Mirza Mohammad 'Ali Khan Tarbiat (TJMI). Ettehad-e Melli,National Unity. and [270] so on, but each disappeared after a few issues. Mirza Sayyed Hosein Khan was the proprietor of 'Adalat,Justice. Founded in September 1907. Weekly. A continuation of one of the oldest surviving newspapers of Iran, al-Hadid. (PPMP) In P, written at a time when Kasravi was trying to court the clergy, he writes (I:95-96), 'Adalat was distributed before the constitutional period. Since its editor, Mirza Sayyed Hosein Khan had long lived in Russia and brought back a bunch of poisonous European ideas as souvenirs, as soon as freedom arose, he said impertinent and inappropriate things and so the Anjoman shut down his journal. In those days, despite all the passions which had been aroused, they knew how to treat journals and not to give them room to rant. which came out until a few months after the Constitution was granted. He also published a small newspaper in Turkish called Ana Dili,Mother Tongue. A satirical supplement to 'Adalat. (“'Adalat,” Soltani; Rafi'i, p. 69) which soon vanished.

These were the newspapers of Tabriz. Another worthy newspaper of the time was FaryadFebruary—October 1907, weekly. Edited by Mira Habib Orumiye'i. published in Urmia. It was owned by Mirza Habibollah Aqazade, and Mirza Mahmud GhanizadeSometime editor of Anjoman and other journals. Was elected to the Anjoman, a friend of Talebof, a comrade of Sayyed Jamal od-Din “Afghani,” and nominated by Sattar Khan to be a representative of the Provincial Anjoman. He fled to Turkey after the Russian capture of Tabriz, and thence to Germany, where he translated and wrote and collaborated with Taqizade. He was also renowned as a powerful poet. He died in Tabriz in early 1935. (Aryanpur, Az Saba ta Nima (n.p, Tehran, 1962), II: 325-332) wrote for it.

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Molla Nasr od-Din and Azarbayjan

As we have said, Azarbayjan was of the same style as Molla Nasr od-Din, and so the former launched into a mock competition with the latter, and the latter would answer the former through its poems.In fact, Molla Nasr od-Din never acknowledged Azarbayjan's existence. Thus, when Mirza 'Ali Asghar Khan Atabak arrived in Iran and the Assembly responded to him in such a feeble fashion, Molla Nasr od-Din used the occasion to print verses (by the poet SaberMirza 'Ali Akbar Saber Taherzade (1862-1911), who wrote for Molla Nasr od-Din under the pen-name Hophop (the hopoe bird, King Solomon's messenger bird in Islamic tradition, a figure in Hafez's poetry), was born in May 1862 to a prominent bazar merchant of Shamakhi. His father abandoned Sunnism and embraced Shiism with the zeal of a convert. He had intended young 'Ali Akbar to enter a religious vocation, but the latter became devoted to poetry while studying under the modernizing educator Sayyed 'Ali Akbar Shirvani, who grounded him in classical Persian literature. His next mentor was the Westernizing litterateur 'Abbas Sahhat. Under his influence, Saber embarked on an eight year career which would launch, as his friend 'Abbas Sahhat would say, a revolution in Azeri literature. Sahhat eulogized him after his untimely death in the idiom of the Francophillic fin de siècle intelligentsia: Recalling Napoleon Bonaparte's famous declaration to Chateaubriand, that a certain writing of his had done more than an army, he added, “I say that Saber Effendi's works, too, have done more than an army during these five years of Iran's constitutionalism.” (“Sabir,” Yeni Irshad, September 5, 1911, cited in H. Arasli (ed.), “ Sabir Moasirlari Haqqinda” (Baku, 1962), p. 45. Another illustrious contemporary, A. Sha'eq, declared, “No poet was so loved in his time by the people as the great Saber.” (“Adabiyatimiz Haqqinda,” Maarif Ishchisi, April 1927, cited in A. Zamanov, Sabir Golor (Baku, 1981), p. 59, n. 1)) criticizing the Iranians and calling the movement in Iran superficial. Some of its verses are as follows:I refrain from annotation the rest, and refer the reader to my article, “An Azerbaijani Poet's over Iranian Constitutionalism,” in Christoph Herzog, Raoul Motika and Michael Ursinus (ed.) Querelles privées et contestations publique auroche Orient (Les Éditions ISIS, Istanbul, 1995)

Say, my lad, let's see what has come of your presumption?!

Your cries have shaken the whole world to its foundation!

Perhaps now you'll see your faults and do what should be done.

And so, my friend, here's what I say: Was it as I said or not?

[Said you not, “I'm not ill, my body's fit and whole?”

Said I not, “Ambition and greed afflict your soul.”

Said you not to me, “Over me spite has no hold?”

'Till was put to the test one day! Was it as I said or not?]

Said you not, brave fellow, that none in the Anjoman

Would e'er consent that Atabak would come to our homeland?!

What is it that made hollow the fighting Anjoman?

Same old hinges, same gateway: Was it as I said or not?

[Did you not the Duma as the font of our hopes claim?

Did I not this Duma as the source of illusion blame?

Did the Baku deputy to the call for justice lend his name?

You're still a kid, be on your way! Was it as I said or not?

[Did you not say that in the Duma, our needs would be attended to?

Did I not say don't swallow that one whole, it will be the end of you

The black clouds are gathering, what are we then to do?

They have enveloped your Duma. What it as I said or not?

[Was it not you who said that we are united?

I for one recall I said, “Do not rely on it.”

Our zealous toil has by fractious spite been requited.

The veil has been snatched away. Was it as I said or not?]

Then, when Atabak was killed, Azarbayjan seized the occasion to write a reply in Turkish to these verses. Here are some of them:

Hey, see, how everything we said has taken place!

See how God answered our prayers in every case!

He answered all our pleas with complete and perfect grace.

Now how was it, Uncle Mullah, as I said or not?

The Anjoman's members lacked in zeal is what you said.

Set aside your reckoning, Heaven's reckoned in your stead!

Said I not, “A scheme is hatching in Atabak's head?”

Now how was it, Uncle Mullah, as I said or not?

[Said I not, “Do not allow just anyone into our country

Do not introduce all comers to the Sacred Assembly?”

Said I not what'd happen if you'd only wait and see?

Now how was it, Uncle Mullah, as I said or not?]

Just when the cry, “Woe, Homeland!” had set my soul to shaking,

A dandelion tuft lit 'pon my ear, the glad tidings breaking:

“They've shot the Atabak, an end to his mischief making.”

Now how was it, Uncle Mullah, as I said or not?

[Now among us, Uncle Mullah, 's not a particle of spite.

We're united and are not afflicted worth a mite.

Recall you not I said that this illness can be made right?

Now how was it, Uncle Mullah, as I said or not?

[With Atabak rid of and gone it is now seen where

Once more the people's opinions all as one cohere

We are all united, our enmity does disappear.

Now how was it, Uncle Mullah, as I said or not?

[That there's not a shred of zeal in the Anjoman was your claim.

Yet with such vigor it acted all the same!

Such a mojahed it was who beat the drum of fame!

Now how was it, Uncle Mullah, as I said or not?

[We have seen done what needs be done.

Yet we have seen you would dress the country in mourning.

Thank God for being granted such fitting recompense!

Now how was it, Uncle Mullah, as I said or not?]

Molla Nasr od-Din wrote a rejoinder to these verses, some of which we produce, too:

You're boasting. Ah, he didn't see! Stop jumping up and down so!

Don't giggle pointlessly like a childish clown so!

You haven't pricked up your ears. Don't show yourself around so!

Hush, don't talk but sleep, my boy!