Coll 28/15 ‘Persia. Internal Affairs. Political and Administrative Changes.’ [‎65r] (130/286)

THIS DOCUMENT IS THE PROPEB¥¥-Og, IHS OTITANfllC MAJESTY’S GOVERNMENT
PERSIA.
CONFIDENTIAL.
2349
| Q 7? 7
I 3 C) /
March 15, 1937.
Section 3.
[ E 1473/20/34 ] Copy No. J
J/r. Seymour ‘to Mr. Eden.—{Received March 15.)
(No. 74 E.)
Sir, Tehran, February 'll. 1937.
1 HAD the honour to report by telegram the death of Ali Akbar Davar, the
Minister of Finance. This completely unexpected event must make a dift'erence
to the working of the machinery of the Iranian Government, and may well have
far-reaching repercussions on future policy. 1 therefore submit the following
remarks on the late Minister and on the financial and commercial complications
which his disappearance is likely to cause.
2 . There is no need for me to repeat the record of M. Davar’s services,
which are already well known to your Department. He was no doubt
personally known to some members of the foreign Office staff, as he was
the principal Persian representative at the League of Nations enquiry into the
Anglo-Persian Oil Company dispute early in 1933. His outstanding
characteristic was, perhaps, his immense energy. Since 1927 he has been
continuously at work, first as Minister of Justice in remodelling and reorganising
that Ministry from top to bottom; then as Minister of Finance from September
1933. It was a very rare thing to see him at any reception or ceremony. He
seemed to revel in his work, and surprised all his colleagues by his constant
application and zeal. Latterly, it was commonly reported in Tehran that he could
work in his office till late at night and then bring home more work to finish before
the morning; during the night he could think of some detail which had been
overlooked and would get up and finish it at once. A man of no recreations, his
one diversion was playing with his small children. His achievements in financing
recent enormous expenditure on the railway, on the army, and on many other
public works are well known. He seemed almost the only member of the Govern
ment who could, and would, give a definite reply to a question, and he usually
did so at once. In late years hardly any members of my staff have had occasion
to deal with him direct; but the oriental secretary remembers two occasions on
which he went to talk to him, and on each occasion Davar talked frankly and
openly; one was in connexion with the case of the imprisonment of Mr. Parsons,
when Davar at once acknowledged that there was very little evidence against the
prisoner; the other was connected with the gold surcharge on customs duties;
in that case Davar said at once that it was no use our arguing about that as he
had made up his mind that this surcharge was going to be levied and nothing
we said would make any difference.
3. The Tehran representative of the Anglo-lranian Oil Company, the chief
managers of the Imperial Bank of Iran and of the Kampsax consortium, were
equally impressed by Davar s ability as well as by his openness and by the honesty
with which he fulfilled all his promises. It was he, in fact, who alone was capable
of keeping the elaborate financial machine working, whereby huge expenditure
for unremunerative purposes such as a railway and an army, was found without
recourse to any foreign loan.
4. Stories differ as to the details of his death, ft seems certain that he
was at work till a late hour on the 9th February, and that during that day he
had been reporting to the Shah, who had spoken to him sharply about funds which
would be necessary in the future. He reached his home late at night, and was
found in a dying condition in the morning, having taken large doses of opium.
The official version remains that he died of heart failure. The Prime Minister
broke the news to the Shah, who seemed staggered by the news. The Corps
diplomatique attended his funeral at the Sipah Salar College (formerly the
mosque) on Friday, the 11 th February.
5. In spite of Davar s recognised ability, honesty and industry, there can
be little doubt that his death was greeted with a sigh of relief by the majority of
the population. He was regarded by the people as a whole as the author of
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