"تاريخ الحرب الكبرى استنادًا إلى وثائق رسمية: العمليات في بلاد فارس ١٩١٤-١٩١٩" [و‎‎٨‎٨] (٥٦٦/١٨٠)

INTRIGUES AGAINST FARMAN FARMA 143
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noh road made fit for mechanical transport. The latest news irom
I at | Kabul was reassuring and, though the strain on Indian resouices
would be considerable if the Amir disappeared or yielded to
id^ pressure, Sir Beauchamp Duff did not foresee a situation that
t s S p[ India could not deal with.
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Baratoff, delayed by the abnormal winter conditions, had
not yet started to advance on Kermanshah, but on the 13th February
February the Russian Commander-in-Chief in the Caucasus, 1916 .
with a view to relieving the pressure on us in Mesopotamia,
sent him orders to occupy Kermanshah without further delay
and then to advance on Khaniqin.
On the 15th February Mr. Marling signed an agreement
with the Bakhtiari Khans by which they undertook, so long
as amity existed between Great Britain and Persia, to maintain
security and prevent agitation in their territory, to protect
the oil-fields and generally to preserve an attitude of benevolent
neutrality towards the Allies. This was a further indication
of the improvement in the Allied situation in Persia. Unfor
tunately, however, local intrigues were beginning to undermine
the position of Farman Farma, who had proved himself a strong
and capable Minister and had rendered the Allies good service
by his steadfast support of their interests for some months
past. The former rivalries and jealousies in Persia between
Russians and British and their respective local partisans had
died down in face of the common danger and as a result of
the personal friendship between Mr. Marling and M. de Etter,
the Russian Minister. But, no sooner had the situation at
Tehran been rendered secure by Baratoff s operations than the
pro-Russian party set to work to oust “ British ” Farman
Farma and replace him by “ Russian ” Sipahsalar. The chief
role in these intrigues was played by a Russian official who
succeeded in misleading the Russian Minister and in causing
friction between him and Farman Farma, who, moreover, by
his avaricious tendencies played into his enemies' hands. Mr.
Marling realised what was happening and tried to warn Farman
Farma, but without success ; and Mr. Marling did not like to
endanger his relations with the Russian Minister by enlightening
him in regard to his subordinate's intrigues.*
The weakness of the German position in Persia at this time
appears to have been but imperfectly realised by the British.
* Mr. de Etter learnt of these subsequently, when it was too late.