'GAZETTEER OF PERSIA. VOL. III. PART II: L to Z' [‎309r] (622/988)

SHI—SHI
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populace ai}d henceforward.became a power in Shiraz. In 1892, on the
assumption of the Governorship by the late I£ukn-ud-Dauleh, a relation
of Nasr-ud-din Shah, the Quvvam was degraded, imprisoned, and forced
to leave the city, but, on the Rukn-ud-Dauleh himself falling into disgrace
with the central authority, he re-entered the city with the incoming
Governor in 1893 and returned to his old tactics of “cornering” the grain.
The Quvvam-ul-Mulk, in addition to his office in Shiraz, is also the nominal
Ilkhani The paramount chief of certain tribes in south west Iran. of the •’Arab and Baharlu tribes, and by quartering a number of
these in the city, and dispossessing the townspeople from their dwellings
to accommodate them, as well as by degrading the copper coinage in value,
he still further increased his unpopularity. A riot of a serious nature
in which Saiyid 'AH Akbar was a copspicuous leader was the result, and
in the suppression of it the most lamentable weakness and incapacity was
displayed both by the provincial Governor and by the Shah himself. The
disturbance was only quelled by the Quvvam being again forced to leave
the city, and by the demands of the populace being granted. Although
the riot was in no sense directed against the English, the lives of the Indo-
European Telegraph staff and of the British Agent in Shiraz, an Indian
by name Nawab An honorific title; an official acting as a provincial deputy ruler in South Asia; or a significant Muslim landowner in nineteenth century India. Haidar 'Ali Khan, were for some days in jeopardy. One
of the most recent Governors, the Shu’a-us-Saltaneh, a younger son of
the present ]Vfuzuffar-ud-Din Shah, who succeeded to the Governorship
in 1901, incurred considerable odium by his harsh government and by
again “ cornering ” grain; and a somewhat serious riot resulted, during
which the Persian telegraph offices were wrecked. During the disturbances
the Quvvam-ul-Mulk was appointed Acting Governor, but he did little
to satisfy the people, and the prince was eventually reinstated. This
Prince is reported to have greatly broken the power of the Mullas during
his tour of office.
Governors since 1904 .—This same Prince was reappointed Governor-
General of Ears in 1904; but his rapacity and bad government led to
further serious disturbances, and his removal after a second period of
some 18 months of office.
The consulate buildings at Shiraz belong to the Government of India,
though that consulate is now under the Foreign Office, London.
January 1906 Vazir-i-Makhsus arrived for the purpose of enquiring
into local grievances. His powers, however, were not definitely stated or
known, and it was clear that Shu'a-us-Saltaneh still hoped to return to
Shiraz. The leaders of the popular movement were with great difficulty
restrained from taking bast in His Majesty's Consulate and would have
done so, had not news been received that Iqbal-ud-Dauleh had been
appointed Governor-General, a result which was ascribed to representations
by His Majesty's Legation. Vazir-i-Makhsus “busied in dislodging the
Shu'a-us-Saltaneh's family and the Sardar Leader of a tribe or a polity; also refers to a military rank or title given to a commander of an army or division. Akram, and in attempting to
arrive at a settlement of the burning question at issue between Shu'a-us-
Saltaneh and the people of Pars regarding certain crown lands, including,
as was contended, the main bazar of Shiraz purchased by the Prince in
1905 from the Shah.
He was not successful, however, and in June the question had reached
white-heat. A crowd of 300 or 400 notables and merchants took bast in