'Military report on Tehran and adjacent Provinces of North-West Persia (including the Caspian Littoral)' [‎10v] (25/610)

8
British relations
With Persia
prior to 1890.
Persian aggres*
■ion against
Her&t.
PARA. 2.—The decline oi British Influence in Northern Persia
and the Anglo-Russian Rivalry in Tehran.
At the commencement of the 1 19th century Persia became
a factor in world politics owing to her geographical position,
which was thought to afford a possible route to India. Path
Ali Shah’s alliance was courted by Napoleon and General
Gardanne with 70 French officers came to organize a military
force for the Shah. England was alarmed at this spread of
French influence and in 1809 Sir H. Jones negotiated a preli
minary 2 treaty with the Shah, securing the dismissal of this
French mission and promising him an annual subsidy of 200,000
tumans or the loan of British troops whilst England should
be at war with Russia. In 1810 Sir J. Malcolm and British
officers arrived in Tehran from India.
After the termination of the Russo-Persian war by the peace
of Gulistan in 1813 Abbas MIrza, the Heir-Apparent, lost
interest in military reform, while the defeat of Napoleon made
Great Britain indifferent to Persia. In 1815 a dispute arose
about the continuance of the subsidy, the British non-Commis-
sioned officers were withdrawn and only a few officers remained,
among them being a Major Hart who possessed considerable
influence in Persia until his death in 1830.
In 1828 after the Russo-Persian treaty of Turkomanchai
Great Britain took advantage of the Shah’s desperate need of
money for payment of his indemnity to Russia to make thp
definite abrogation of the clauses, whereby she guaranteed the
assistance of troops or a subsidy in the event of a European
power invading Persia, a condition of an immediate subsidy of
200,000 tumans.
In 1834 a large and well equipped detachment of officers
and non-Commissioned officers arrived at Tehran from India,
and 6 months later they secured the peaceful accession of
Muhammad Shah on the death of Fath Ali.
Muhammad Shah, however, secure on his thronfe and
threatened by no national danger, was prompted by Russia to
1 Before the 19th century no European power was regularly represented
at the Shah’s Court. In the 17th century Russia and Poland had been occasion
ally represented by ambassadors at the Court of the Safaris. In the early part
of the reign of Peter the Great Russia was represented by two ambassadors,
one for each of the two Russian Tsars. Louis XIV of France sent at least one
mission composed of ecclesiastics. The head of the East India Company’s
Factory An East India Company trading post. at Isfahan was dignified by the title of English agent at the Shah’s
Court. William Bell, who held this office, died at Isfahan in 1625. The head
of the Dutch East India Company’s Factory An East India Company trading post. similarly represented his nation.
» Definitive treaties amplifying the terms were concluded in 1812 and 1814.