Memories of a Bygone Age: Qajar Persia and Imperial Russia 1853-1902

Description

Set against the backdrop of the remorseless decline of Iran and its unequal struggle against the rising powers of Russia and Britain, Prince Arfa s memoirs (1853-1902), packed with picaresque adventures, narrate his rise from humble provincial beginnings to the heights of the Iranian state. He writes wittily of the deadly intrigues of the Qajar court and of the power of the eunuchs. He sadly, but resolutely, chronicles the decline of Iran from a once great empire to an almost bankrupt, lawless state, in which the latent social unrest is channelled and exploited by the clergy. He describes the interaction between Iran and Europe: the weary, profligate Naser-od-Din Shah s 1889 visits to Britain and France; the splendour and eccentricities of the doomed Tsar Nicholas II s court; the Tsar s omen-laden coronation; and his own favour with the Tsarina, from whom he used to extract Russian concessions on matters of vital importance to his country. Contents List of Illustrations Acknowledgements Editor’s Note Introduction Life of Mirza Reza Khan Danesh, Arfaʿ-Od-Dowleh, Prince Arfaʿ 1. My Childhood in Tabriz 2. My Journey to the Caucasus and Istanbul (1873–1875) 3. My Entry into Government Service (1875–1883) 4. My Journey from Tiflis to Khorasan to join the Russian-Persian Akhal-Khorasan Boundary Commission until my Appointment as Counsellor at the Embassy in St Petersburg (1883–1887) 5. Tehran in the Time of Naser-od-Din Shah, 1887 6. My Time as Counsellor in St Petersburg and my Journey to Europe as a Member of Naser-od-Din Shah’s Entourage on his Third Journey to Europe (1887–1889) 7. Life at Court in Tehran until my Departure for the Caucasus (1889–1890) 8. The Consulate-General in Tiflis (1890–1895) 9. The Embassy in St Petersburg (1895–1901) Postscript (1902–1937) Glossary of Qajar Names and Titles Table of Measures used in Qajar Iran Bibliography Index