"تاريخ الحرب الكبرى استنادًا إلى وثائق رسمية: العمليات في بلاد فارس ١٩١٤-١٩١٩" [و‎‎٧‎٦] (٥٦٦/١٥٦)

GERMAN ACTIVITIES
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Persian protests, reached Hamadan, with the result that most
of the German consul's armed retainers at once deserted him.
Lieutenant-Colonel H. von Kiesling, in his account* of the
German efforts to organise an Islamic federation—Turkey.
Persia and Afghanistan—against the Allies, furnishes an ex
planation of the increased German activities. He says that
the organisation of a German line of communication across
Persia was at first carried out cautiously and unostentatiously.
Post commandants were established under the guise of consuls
at the most important towns, and local Persian authorities
were won over by German gold. He further says that, when the
Hentig-Niedermayer expedition moved to Afghanistan, a second
expedition under Klein was prepared at Baghdad to follow
and support Niedermayer's party. But when Count Kanitz
arrived at Tehran as military attache in June 1915 he overrode
all Prince Reuss’ objections on the score of military necessity
and insisted on hastening matters regardless of consequences.
Henceforward the German campaign of intrigue and agitation
was intensified and carried on openly without regard to Persian
neutrality or Persian feelings. As the chief Persian supporters
of the German plans were the Democrats, who were only pro-
German because of their hatred for Russia, and as they proved
really to have little influence in Persia as compared with that
of the conservative landowners, this acceleration of activity
was, in Riesling's opinion, productive of much harm. In
September 1915 Captain Klein's party reached Kermanshah,
where it formed a strong military supporting point at a time
that Prince Reuss was negotiating with Mustaufi-ul-Mamalik for
a Persian alliance. In exchange for this alliance Germany was
to provide Persia with arms and money ; and negotiations on
this basis, and on the understanding that the command of all
forces in Persia would be given to Field-Marshal von der Goltz,
were still in progress at the end of October.
On the 1st November the Persian Government accepted the General
Russo-British offer of a subsidy, but instead of saying at the a ^ c .
same time that they agreed to the conditions on which it had November V *
been made, namely that they would take steps to stop German 1915 .
intrigues, they suggested an agreement under which Persia
would formally adopt an attitude of actively benevolent
neutrality. For this they intimated that they would require
* “ Mit Feldmarschall von der Goltz Pascha in Mesopotamien und Persien.”