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Russo-Persian War (1804-1813)
Encyclopedia
The 1804-1813 Russo-Persian War, one of the many wars between the Persian Empire
and Imperial Russia, began like many wars as a territorial dispute. The Persian king, Fath Ali Shah Qajar, wanted to consolidate the northernmost reaches of his Qajar dynasty
by securing land near the Caspian Sea
's southwestern coast (modern Azerbaijan
) and the Transcaucasus (modern Georgia
and Armenia
). Like his Persian counterpart, the Russian czar Alexander I
was also new to the throne and equally determined to control the disputed territories. The war ended with the Treaty of Gulistan which ceded the vast majority of the previously disputed territories to Imperial Russia.
, was killed, and a large number of the inhabitants slaughtered. The Qajar ruler, Fath Ali Shah , saw the Russian threat to Armenia, Karabagh, and Azerbaijan not only as a source of instability on his northwestern frontier but as a direct challenge to Qajar authority.
region, because Alexander's attention was continually distracted by concomitant wars with France
, the Ottoman Empire
, and Sweden
. Therefore, the Russians were forced to rely on superior technology, training, and strategy in the face of an overwhelming disparity in numbers. Some estimates put the Persian numerical advantage at five to one. Shah Fath Ali's heir, Abbas Mirza
, tried to modernize the Persian army, seeking help from French experts through the Franco-Persian alliance
, and then from British experts, with a mind to achieving this cause, but this merely delayed the Persian defeat.
and Paul Tsitsianov catalysed the outbreak of war when they attacked the Persian settlement of Echmiadzin
, notable as the most holy town in Armenia. Gudovich, unsuccessful in the siege of Echmiadzin due to a lack of troops, withdrew to Yerevan
where he again prosecuted another failed siege. Despite these ineffective forays, the Russians held the advantage for the majority of the war, due to superior troops and strategy; however, Russia's inability to dedicate anything more than 10,000 troops allowed the Persians to mount a fairly respectable resistance effort, the Persian troops being of a low grade, mostly irregular cavalry.
but could provide little concrete direct help - invaded Russia itself. Even when the French were in occupation of the Russian former (and future) capital Moscow
, Russian forces in the south were not recalled but continued their offensive against Persia, culminating in Pyotr Kotlyarevsky
's victories at Aslanduz
and Lenkoran, after the setback in the Battle of sultanabad
in 1812 and 1813 respectively. Upon the Persian surrender, the terms of the Treaty of Gulistan ceded the vast majority of the previously disputed territories to Imperial Russia. This led to the region's once-powerful khans
being decimated and forced to pay homage to Russia.
, Baku, and Qobba-Darband; and had ambitions to annex Khoy
and even Tabriz
. After the failure of the Russian siege of Erevan and an unsuccessful attempt to invade Gilān, Tsiatsianov was assassinated in 1806 while attempting to negotiate with the governor of Baku, Husayn Quli Khan . Russia had thus gained control of all the disputed areas north of the Kura
and some of those between the Kura and the Aras
, a situation which would not change significantly for the remainder of the war, but was finding it difficult to expand any further. The situation for the Russians was further complicated by the outbreak of war with the Ottoman Empire (1806-12). Tsiatsianov was succeeded by Ivan Gudovich
, who sought without result to reach a peace settlement; he then resumed the Russian offensive in 1808, temporarily occupying Echmiadzin
and Nakhjavan and laying siege to Erevan, but he still could not capture that city . Under the capable governorship of Husayn Quli Khan Qajar, Erevan remained a bulwark of Persian defenses for the rest of the war . The Qajars, having obtained a fatwa
declaring the conflict to be a Holy War, and then receiving significant support from Britain, went on the offensive in 1810, invaded Karabakh, won the Battle of Sultanabad
on the Aras (13 February 1812), and recovered territory in Talesh in 1812.
Although this Russo-Persian War was in many respects a continuation of a struggle for supremacy in Transcaucasia dating back to the time of Peter the Great and Nader Shah
, it differed from earlier conflicts between Persia and Russia in that its course came to be affected as much by the diplomatic maneuvering of European powers during the Napoleonic era as by developments on the battlefield. Following the Russian occupation of the various khanates, Fath Ali Shah , strapped for cash and anxious to find an ally, had made a request for British support as early as December 1804 . In 1805, however, Russia and Britain allied in the Third Coalition against France, which meant that Britain was not in a position to cultivate its “Persian connection” at Russian expense and felt it necessary to evade repeated requests from the shah for assistance. As the British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, Charles Arbuthnot
, put it in August 1806, “To please the Emperor[of Russia] , we have thrown away all our influence in Persia” . This opened the door for France to use Persia to threaten both Russian and British interests. Hoping to forge a tripartite alliance of France, the Ottoman Empire, and Persia, Napoleon sent various envoys to Persia, notably Pierre Jaubert and Claude Mathieu de Gardane, whose diplomatic efforts culminated in the Treaty of Finkenstein
, signed on 4 May 1807 , under which France recognized Persian claims to Georgia and promised assistance in training and equipping the Persian army. Only two months later, however, Napoleon and Alexander I agreed to an armistice and signed the Treaty of Tilsit (7 July 1807), which effectively rendered the French commitments to Persia untenable, although the French mission did continue to provide some military assistance and tried to mediate a settlement with Russia. The French efforts failed, prompting Gudovich to resume the siege of Erevan in 1808.
The rise of French influence in Persia, viewed as the prelude to an attack on India, had greatly alarmed the British, and the Franco-Russian rapprochement at Tilsit conveniently provided an opportunity for a now isolated Britain to resume its efforts in Persia, as reflected in the subsequent missions of John Malcolm
(1807-8) and Harford Jones (1809). According to the preliminary treaty of Tehran arranged by Jones (15 March 1809), Britain agreed to train and equip 16,000 Persian infantry and pay a subsidy of £100,000 should Persia be invaded by a European power, or to mediate if that power should be at peace with Great Britain. Although Russia had been making peace overtures, and Jones had hoped the preliminary agreement would encourage a settlement, these developments strengthened Fath Ali Shah ’s determination to continue the war. Anglo-Persian relations warmed even further with the visit of Abu’l-Ḥasan Khan to London in 1809 and his return to Persia with Gore Ouseley as ambassador and minister plenipotentiary in 1810. Under Ouseley
’s auspices, the preliminary treaty was converted into the Definitive Treaty of Friendship and Alliance in 1812, which confirmed the earlier promises of military assistance and increased the amount of the subsidy for that purpose to £150,000 .
Then, in the third and final twist to this story, Napoleon invaded Russia in June 1812, making Russia and Britain allies once again. Britain, like France after Tilsit, was thus obliged to steer a course between antagonizing Russia and violating its commitments to Persia, with its best option being to broker a settlement of the conflict between the two. The Russians had been periodically interested in finding a negotiated settlement since the setbacks of 1805-6 and as recently as 1810, when Alexander Tormasov, who had replaced Gudovich as commander after his unsuccessful siege of Erevan, and Mirza Bozorg Qaem-magham had sought to arrange an armistice . Yet the Russians were unwilling to make serious concessions in order to end the war, and the Persians were also less than eager to settle since from their point of view the war was not going all that badly. Ouseley
, however, realized the awkwardness of having Britain’s resources deployed against its Russian ally and that the situation for Persia was likely to worsen once Russia was freed from the struggle with Napoleon. He was thus receptive to Russian requests to act as an intermediary and sought ways to pressure the Qajars into accepting a settlement. He proposed revisions to the Definitive Treaty, scaled back British military involvement (leaving two officers, Charles Christie and Lindesay Bethune, and some drill sergeants with the Persian army), and threatened to withhold payment of the subsidy promised to the Qajars .
In February 1812, N. R. Ritischev assumed command of the Russian forces and opened peace negotiations with the Persians. Ouseley and his representative at the talks, James Morier, acted as intermediaries and made various proposals to Rtischev, but they were not accepted . In August, Abbas Mirza resumed hostilities and captured Lankaran
. After news arrived that Napoleon had occupied Moscow, the negotiations were suspended (Ramażān 1227/September 1812). Then, on 24 Shawwal 1227/31 October 1812, while Ritischev was away in Tbilisi, the general Peter Kotliarevski
launched a surprise night attack
on the Persian encampment at Aslanduz , which resulted in the complete rout of the army of Abbas Mirza and the death of one of the British supporting officers (Christie). As it also became increasingly apparent that Napoleon’s offensive in Russia had failed disastrously, the Russians were emboldened to pursue a more aggressive campaign in the Caucasus. In early 1813, the Persian fortress at Lankarān fell and its garrison was annihilated, enabling the Russians to occupy most of Talesh again . Although Fath Ali Shah and Abbas Mirza wanted to fight on after these setbacks, they eventually had to yield to Ouseley, who assured the shah that either the Russians would make territorial concessions or the British would continue the subsidy they had promised .
Qajar dynasty
The Qajar dynasty was an Iranian royal family of Turkic descent who ruled Persia from 1785 to 1925....
and Imperial Russia, began like many wars as a territorial dispute. The Persian king, Fath Ali Shah Qajar, wanted to consolidate the northernmost reaches of his Qajar dynasty
Qajar dynasty
The Qajar dynasty was an Iranian royal family of Turkic descent who ruled Persia from 1785 to 1925....
by securing land near the Caspian Sea
Caspian Sea
The Caspian Sea is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth by area, variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. The sea has a surface area of and a volume of...
's southwestern coast (modern Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...
) and the Transcaucasus (modern Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
and Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
). Like his Persian counterpart, the Russian czar Alexander I
Alexander I of Russia
Alexander I of Russia , served as Emperor of Russia from 23 March 1801 to 1 December 1825 and the first Russian King of Poland from 1815 to 1825. He was also the first Russian Grand Duke of Finland and Lithuania....
was also new to the throne and equally determined to control the disputed territories. The war ended with the Treaty of Gulistan which ceded the vast majority of the previously disputed territories to Imperial Russia.
Origins
The origins of the first Russo-Persian War can be traced back to the decision of Tsar Paul to annex Georgia (December 1800) and, after Paul’s assassination (11 March 1801), the activist policy followed by his successor, Alexander I, aimed at establishing Russian control over the khanates of the eastern Caucasus . In 1803, the newly appointed commander of Russian forces in the Caucasus, Paul Tsitsianov, attacked Ganja and captured its citadel on 15 January 1804; the governor, Javad Khan QajarJavad Khan
Javad khan Ziyad oghlu Qajar a member of the royal Qajar family, the khan of Ganja khanate. During the first Russo-Persian War , Ganja was considered by Russians as a town of foremost importance. General Pavel Tsitsianov approached Javad khan several times asking him to submit to Russian rule,...
, was killed, and a large number of the inhabitants slaughtered. The Qajar ruler, Fath Ali Shah , saw the Russian threat to Armenia, Karabagh, and Azerbaijan not only as a source of instability on his northwestern frontier but as a direct challenge to Qajar authority.
Unequal forces
The Russians were unable to dedicate a larger portion of their troops in the CaucasusCaucasus
The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...
region, because Alexander's attention was continually distracted by concomitant wars with France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
, and Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. Therefore, the Russians were forced to rely on superior technology, training, and strategy in the face of an overwhelming disparity in numbers. Some estimates put the Persian numerical advantage at five to one. Shah Fath Ali's heir, Abbas Mirza
Abbas Mirza
Prince, Field-Marshal Abbas Mirza born Amol city , was a Qajar crown prince of Persia. He developed a reputation as a military commander during wars with Russia and the Ottoman Empire, as an early modernizer of Persia's armed forces and institutions, and for his death before his father, Fath Ali...
, tried to modernize the Persian army, seeking help from French experts through the Franco-Persian alliance
Franco-Persian alliance
A Franco-Persian alliance was formed for a short period between the French Empire of Napoleon I and the Persian Empire of Fath Ali Shah against Russia and Great Britain between 1807 to 1809. The alliance was part of a grand Napoleonic scheme to cross the Middle East in order to attack British India...
, and then from British experts, with a mind to achieving this cause, but this merely delayed the Persian defeat.
Outbreak of war
The Russian commanders Ivan GudovichIvan Gudovich
Count Ivan Vasilyevich Gudovich was a Russian noble and military leader of Ukrainian descent. His exploits included the capture of Khadjibey and the conquest of maritime Dagestan ....
and Paul Tsitsianov catalysed the outbreak of war when they attacked the Persian settlement of Echmiadzin
Echmiadzin
Mother Cathedral of Holy Etchmiadzin is a 4th century Armenian church in the town of Ejmiatsin, Armenia. It is also the central cathedral of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin of the Armenian Apostolic Church....
, notable as the most holy town in Armenia. Gudovich, unsuccessful in the siege of Echmiadzin due to a lack of troops, withdrew to Yerevan
Yerevan
Yerevan is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously-inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and industrial center of the country...
where he again prosecuted another failed siege. Despite these ineffective forays, the Russians held the advantage for the majority of the war, due to superior troops and strategy; however, Russia's inability to dedicate anything more than 10,000 troops allowed the Persians to mount a fairly respectable resistance effort, the Persian troops being of a low grade, mostly irregular cavalry.
Holy war and Persian defeat
The Persians scaled up their efforts late in the war, declaring a holy war on Imperial Russia in 1810; however, this was to little avail. Russia's superior technology and tactics ensured a series of strategic victories. Nor did it avail the Persians that Napoleon - who was the ally of Persia's Abbas MirzaAbbas Mirza
Prince, Field-Marshal Abbas Mirza born Amol city , was a Qajar crown prince of Persia. He developed a reputation as a military commander during wars with Russia and the Ottoman Empire, as an early modernizer of Persia's armed forces and institutions, and for his death before his father, Fath Ali...
but could provide little concrete direct help - invaded Russia itself. Even when the French were in occupation of the Russian former (and future) capital Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, Russian forces in the south were not recalled but continued their offensive against Persia, culminating in Pyotr Kotlyarevsky
Pyotr Kotlyarevsky
Pyotr Stepanovich Kotlyarevsky was a Russian military hero of the early 19th century.-Biography:He was born in the village of Olkhovatka near Kharkov into a cleric's family. Kotlyarevsky was brought up in an infantry regiment quartered near Mozdok...
's victories at Aslanduz
Battle of Aslanduz
The Battle of Aslanduz occurred on October 31, 1812, between Russia and Persia. The 10-times numerically superior Persians were led by Abbas Mirza. The Russians, led by the charismatic General Pyotr Kotlyarevsky, were victorious and stormed Lenkoran in the beginning of 1813, thus ending any Persian...
and Lenkoran, after the setback in the Battle of sultanabad
Battle of Sultanabad
The Battle of Sultanabad occurred on February 13, 1812, between the Russian Empire and Persian Empire where the Russians were routed at Sultanabad near the Aras River....
in 1812 and 1813 respectively. Upon the Persian surrender, the terms of the Treaty of Gulistan ceded the vast majority of the previously disputed territories to Imperial Russia. This led to the region's once-powerful khans
Khan (title)
Khan is an originally Altaic and subsequently Central Asian title for a sovereign or military ruler, widely used by medieval nomadic Turko-Mongol tribes living to the north of China. 'Khan' is also seen as a title in the Xianbei confederation for their chief between 283 and 289...
being decimated and forced to pay homage to Russia.
War
After capturing Ganja , Tsiatsianov marched on Erevan, encountering the army of Abbas Mirza near Echmiadzin . Tsiatsianov, with fewer troops but more artillery, defeated Abbas Mirza on 7 June but failed to capture Erevan. Between 1805 and 1806, the Russians persuaded the khan of Shirvan to submit; conquered the khanates of Karabakh, Shaki KhanateShaki Khanate
Shaki khanate was an Azerbaijani khanate on the territory of modern Azerbaijan between 1743 and 1819 with its capital in the town of Shaki.-History:...
, Baku, and Qobba-Darband; and had ambitions to annex Khoy
Khoy
Khoy is a city in and the capital of Khoy County, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 178,708, in 45,090 families....
and even Tabriz
Tabriz
Tabriz is the fourth largest city and one of the historical capitals of Iran and the capital of East Azerbaijan Province. Situated at an altitude of 1,350 meters at the junction of the Quri River and Aji River, it was the second largest city in Iran until the late 1960s, one of its former...
. After the failure of the Russian siege of Erevan and an unsuccessful attempt to invade Gilān, Tsiatsianov was assassinated in 1806 while attempting to negotiate with the governor of Baku, Husayn Quli Khan . Russia had thus gained control of all the disputed areas north of the Kura
Kura
Kura may refer to:* Kura River in Turkey, Georgia and Azerbaijan* Kura River, Russia in Russia* Kura Test Range in Kamchatka Krai, Russia, a major ICBM testing site during the Cold War* Kura, Nigeria, a Local Government Area of Kano State...
and some of those between the Kura and the Aras
Aras
Aras may refer to:*Aras , an autochthon in Greek mythology, father of Araethyrea and Aoris*ARAS, the Ascending Reticular Activating System*ARAS, the Archive for Research in Archetypal Symbolism...
, a situation which would not change significantly for the remainder of the war, but was finding it difficult to expand any further. The situation for the Russians was further complicated by the outbreak of war with the Ottoman Empire (1806-12). Tsiatsianov was succeeded by Ivan Gudovich
Ivan Gudovich
Count Ivan Vasilyevich Gudovich was a Russian noble and military leader of Ukrainian descent. His exploits included the capture of Khadjibey and the conquest of maritime Dagestan ....
, who sought without result to reach a peace settlement; he then resumed the Russian offensive in 1808, temporarily occupying Echmiadzin
Echmiadzin
Mother Cathedral of Holy Etchmiadzin is a 4th century Armenian church in the town of Ejmiatsin, Armenia. It is also the central cathedral of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin of the Armenian Apostolic Church....
and Nakhjavan and laying siege to Erevan, but he still could not capture that city . Under the capable governorship of Husayn Quli Khan Qajar, Erevan remained a bulwark of Persian defenses for the rest of the war . The Qajars, having obtained a fatwa
Fatwa
A fatwā in the Islamic faith is a juristic ruling concerning Islamic law issued by an Islamic scholar. In Sunni Islam any fatwā is non-binding, whereas in Shia Islam it could be considered by an individual as binding, depending on his or her relation to the scholar. The person who issues a fatwā...
declaring the conflict to be a Holy War, and then receiving significant support from Britain, went on the offensive in 1810, invaded Karabakh, won the Battle of Sultanabad
Battle of Sultanabad
The Battle of Sultanabad occurred on February 13, 1812, between the Russian Empire and Persian Empire where the Russians were routed at Sultanabad near the Aras River....
on the Aras (13 February 1812), and recovered territory in Talesh in 1812.
Although this Russo-Persian War was in many respects a continuation of a struggle for supremacy in Transcaucasia dating back to the time of Peter the Great and Nader Shah
Nader Shah
Nāder Shāh Afshār ruled as Shah of Iran and was the founder of the Afsharid dynasty. Because of his military genius, some historians have described him as the Napoleon of Persia or the Second Alexander...
, it differed from earlier conflicts between Persia and Russia in that its course came to be affected as much by the diplomatic maneuvering of European powers during the Napoleonic era as by developments on the battlefield. Following the Russian occupation of the various khanates, Fath Ali Shah , strapped for cash and anxious to find an ally, had made a request for British support as early as December 1804 . In 1805, however, Russia and Britain allied in the Third Coalition against France, which meant that Britain was not in a position to cultivate its “Persian connection” at Russian expense and felt it necessary to evade repeated requests from the shah for assistance. As the British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, Charles Arbuthnot
Charles Arbuthnot
Charles Arbuthnot was a British diplomat and Tory politician. He was Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire between 1804 and 1807 and held a number of political offices. He was a good friend of the Duke of Wellington...
, put it in August 1806, “To please the Emperor
Treaty of Finkenstein
The Treaty of Finckenstein, often spelled Finkenstein, was concluded between France and Persia in Finckenstein Palace on 4 May 1807 and formulised the Franco-Persian alliance...
, signed on 4 May 1807 , under which France recognized Persian claims to Georgia and promised assistance in training and equipping the Persian army. Only two months later, however, Napoleon and Alexander I agreed to an armistice and signed the Treaty of Tilsit (7 July 1807), which effectively rendered the French commitments to Persia untenable, although the French mission did continue to provide some military assistance and tried to mediate a settlement with Russia. The French efforts failed, prompting Gudovich to resume the siege of Erevan in 1808.
The rise of French influence in Persia, viewed as the prelude to an attack on India, had greatly alarmed the British, and the Franco-Russian rapprochement at Tilsit conveniently provided an opportunity for a now isolated Britain to resume its efforts in Persia, as reflected in the subsequent missions of John Malcolm
John Malcolm
Major-general Sir John Malcolm was a Scottish soldier, statesman, and historian-Early life:Born at Burnfoot, Dumfriesshire, Malcolm was the son of George Malcolm, a gentleman farmer of Eskdale and Burnfoot. Jock, as he was then known, was one of the four Malcolm brothers who attained knighthoods...
(1807-8) and Harford Jones (1809). According to the preliminary treaty of Tehran arranged by Jones (15 March 1809), Britain agreed to train and equip 16,000 Persian infantry and pay a subsidy of £100,000 should Persia be invaded by a European power, or to mediate if that power should be at peace with Great Britain. Although Russia had been making peace overtures, and Jones had hoped the preliminary agreement would encourage a settlement, these developments strengthened Fath Ali Shah ’s determination to continue the war. Anglo-Persian relations warmed even further with the visit of Abu’l-Ḥasan Khan to London in 1809 and his return to Persia with Gore Ouseley as ambassador and minister plenipotentiary in 1810. Under Ouseley
Ouseley
- Ouseley :*Frederick Ouseley , English musician*Gideon Ouseley , Anglo-Irish Methodist*Gideon Ouseley, a pseudonym of Oliver St...
’s auspices, the preliminary treaty was converted into the Definitive Treaty of Friendship and Alliance in 1812, which confirmed the earlier promises of military assistance and increased the amount of the subsidy for that purpose to £150,000 .
Then, in the third and final twist to this story, Napoleon invaded Russia in June 1812, making Russia and Britain allies once again. Britain, like France after Tilsit, was thus obliged to steer a course between antagonizing Russia and violating its commitments to Persia, with its best option being to broker a settlement of the conflict between the two. The Russians had been periodically interested in finding a negotiated settlement since the setbacks of 1805-6 and as recently as 1810, when Alexander Tormasov, who had replaced Gudovich as commander after his unsuccessful siege of Erevan, and Mirza Bozorg Qaem-magham had sought to arrange an armistice . Yet the Russians were unwilling to make serious concessions in order to end the war, and the Persians were also less than eager to settle since from their point of view the war was not going all that badly. Ouseley
Ouseley
- Ouseley :*Frederick Ouseley , English musician*Gideon Ouseley , Anglo-Irish Methodist*Gideon Ouseley, a pseudonym of Oliver St...
, however, realized the awkwardness of having Britain’s resources deployed against its Russian ally and that the situation for Persia was likely to worsen once Russia was freed from the struggle with Napoleon. He was thus receptive to Russian requests to act as an intermediary and sought ways to pressure the Qajars into accepting a settlement. He proposed revisions to the Definitive Treaty, scaled back British military involvement (leaving two officers, Charles Christie and Lindesay Bethune, and some drill sergeants with the Persian army), and threatened to withhold payment of the subsidy promised to the Qajars .
In February 1812, N. R. Ritischev assumed command of the Russian forces and opened peace negotiations with the Persians. Ouseley and his representative at the talks, James Morier, acted as intermediaries and made various proposals to Rtischev, but they were not accepted . In August, Abbas Mirza resumed hostilities and captured Lankaran
Lankaran
-History:The city was built on a swamp along the northern bank of the river bearing the city's name. There are remains of human settlements in the area dating back to the Neolithic period as well as ruins of fortified villages from the Bronze and Iron Ages. Lankaran's history is rather recent,...
. After news arrived that Napoleon had occupied Moscow, the negotiations were suspended (Ramażān 1227/September 1812). Then, on 24 Shawwal 1227/31 October 1812, while Ritischev was away in Tbilisi, the general Peter Kotliarevski
Pyotr Kotlyarevsky
Pyotr Stepanovich Kotlyarevsky was a Russian military hero of the early 19th century.-Biography:He was born in the village of Olkhovatka near Kharkov into a cleric's family. Kotlyarevsky was brought up in an infantry regiment quartered near Mozdok...
launched a surprise night attack
Battle of Aslanduz
The Battle of Aslanduz occurred on October 31, 1812, between Russia and Persia. The 10-times numerically superior Persians were led by Abbas Mirza. The Russians, led by the charismatic General Pyotr Kotlyarevsky, were victorious and stormed Lenkoran in the beginning of 1813, thus ending any Persian...
on the Persian encampment at Aslanduz , which resulted in the complete rout of the army of Abbas Mirza and the death of one of the British supporting officers (Christie). As it also became increasingly apparent that Napoleon’s offensive in Russia had failed disastrously, the Russians were emboldened to pursue a more aggressive campaign in the Caucasus. In early 1813, the Persian fortress at Lankarān fell and its garrison was annihilated, enabling the Russians to occupy most of Talesh again . Although Fath Ali Shah and Abbas Mirza wanted to fight on after these setbacks, they eventually had to yield to Ouseley, who assured the shah that either the Russians would make territorial concessions or the British would continue the subsidy they had promised .
Literature
- N. Dubrovin. История войны и владычества русских на Кавказе, volumes 4-6. SPb, 1886-88.