Iran and Russian Imperialism: The Ideal Anarchists, 1800-1914

ISBN-13: 9781138937017 / Angielski / Twarda / 2015 / 222 str.

Moritz Deutschmann;?Abar;?Abar

Opis

Rather than a centralized state, Iran in the nineteenth century was a delicate balance between tribal groups, urban merchant communities, religious elites, and an autocratic monarchy. While Russia gained an increasingly dominant political role in Iran over the course of this century, Russian influence was often challenged by banditry on the roads, riots in the cities, and the seeming arbitrariness of the Shah. Iran and Russian Imperialism develops a comprehensive picture of Russia's historical entanglements with one of its most important neighbours in Asia. It recounts how the Russian Empire strived to gain political influence at the Persian court, promote Russian trade, and secure the enormous southern borders of the empire. Using hitherto often neglected documents from archives in Russia and Georgia and reading them against the grain, this book reveals the complex reactions of different groups in Iranian society to Russian imperialism. As it turns out, the Iranians were, in the words of the Russian orientalist Konstantin Smirnov, "ideal anarchists," whose resistance to imperial domination, as well as to centralized state institutions more generally, impacted developments in the region in the century to come. Iran's troubled relationship with the wider world continues to be a topic of considerable interest to historians, yet little focus has been given to Russia's historical connections to Iran. This book thus represents a valuable contribution to Iranian and Russian History, as well as International Relations.

Spis treści

Introduction Part I. The Russian Empire and Qajar Society, 1800s–1870s 1. Shahs and Tsars 2. Merchants and Consuls 3. Nomads and Borders Part II. The Micropolitics of Imperialism, 1880s–1905 4. Imperial Intrusion and Autocratic Rule 5. Economic Imperialism and Urban Politics in Tabriz 6. Between International Borders and Colonial Frontiers Part III. Russia’s Iranian Revolution, 1905–1913 7. The Iranian Monarchy and the Constitutional Revolution 8. Tabriz under Siege 9. Tribal Power and its Transformation IV. Conclusion

O autorze

Moritz Deutschmann holds a PhD from the European University Institute, Florence, and was a postdoctoral fellow of the journal Past&Present at the Institute of Historical Research, London. His main research interests lie in Russian and Iranian history, and the history of empire in Eurasia.