History 11 Nov 2020 Boris Egorov
Public Domain In a neutral Iran, opponents during World War I were engaged in a struggle that could change the entire history of West and South Asia. Battlefield: Iran
Iran had no plans to join World War I. The country, which had been weakened by domestic political strife, economic problems, endless uprisings and problems, hoped to remain on the sidelines of the conflict between the Entente and the Central Powers.
However, Iran’s strategic position was too important for the warring parties to satisfy its desire for neutrality. The strong influence that Russia and Britain had there was not something that the Ottoman and German empires, which wanted to expel their rivals from the region, were prepared to face for a long time.
Istanbul was most concerned about the presence of Russian troops in the northwestern part of Iran (the so-called “Iranian Azerbaijan”). They had been deployed there by the tsar to protect Russian subjects during a civil war in Iran in 1909 and, despite repeated appeals from the Iranian government, they were still there when WWI broke out. In October 1914, the Turks officially informed the Iranians that in these circumstances they would not be able to respect their neutrality.
Russian troops in Isfahan.
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After joining the war on November 2, the Ottoman Empire led hostilities against Russia, not only in the Caucasus but also in Persia. In early 1915, the Turks managed to capture most of the province with its capital in Tabriz. Thus, the enemy was able to secure direct access to oil fields in Azerbaijan, which was part of the Russian Empire at the time.
The Russians realized the danger and almost immediately launched a counter-offensive, forcing the Turkish troops to withdraw. The parties switched to trench warfare, while Iran was forced to adopt a wait-and-see attitude and did not engage in confrontation on either side.
‘Holy war’
After failing to achieve military success, the Turks (along with the Germans) instead focused on propaganda and espionage efforts. They began to arouse anti-Russian and anti-British sentiment among the locals, calling Iranians to a “holy war” against the two empires that oppressed their country and urging them to fight for liberation from the “guidance” of the two empires. Turkish and German intelligence officers, caravans with weapons and ammunition began to secretly enter the country and contacts began to be established with Shiite priests and leaders of local tribes.
Persian Cossack division.
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The Germans’ main influence in Iran was local gendarmerie units, created by Shah according to the European model with the help of Sweden. Except that the Swedish officers who commanded them had before the war been recruited by the Germans as their agents. Interestingly, it was a counterweight to the gendarmes in the form of Persian Cossack units, established with Russian intervention and subordinate Russian officers serving the Shah.
The Central Intelligence Agency was also active in southern Iran, where its majestic troops landed in October 1914. The British justified this violation of Iran’s neutrality by wanting to protect the Anglo-Persian oil company’s oil fields, in which the British government holds a majority stake.
British troops in Hamedan.
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As a result of the activities of German and Turkish agents, the influence of the central government in Iran increased significantly. Guerrilla and sabotage units were set up under their guidance. The gendarmerie was open to opponents of the Entente and clashed with Persian Cossacks. The Ottoman Empire, which has already violated Iran’s neutrality, still did not dare to launch a full-scale invasion. Istanbul and Berlin tried to persuade the shahs to come to their side through diplomatic pressure and through their agents in the country’s government.
A sharp rise in anti-British and anti-Russian sentiment showed that this hope could soon come true. As Alexei Yemelyanov, a Russian officer who was in Persia at the time, recalled that local mullahs often said during their sermons: “The Sunni Turks have already raised their swords against the cross … Shias, it’s your turn now! a friend – the German people … Islam has a defender before Allah – the Prophet, and on this sinful earth – the German Emperor. “
From left: German Admiral (in Ottoman uniform) Guido von Usedom, Emperor Wilhelm II., Enver Pasha, Vice Admiral Johannes Merten.
Public Domain Russian Expeditionary Force
For Berlin and Istanbul, it was only the beginning to recruit Iran to their side. By sending their agents and military units to Afghanistan and northwestern India, they tried to ignite the flame of a national liberation war there, to gather local Muslims to fight the infidels.
After realizing that a large region through Turkish and German efforts could flare up as a match, the Allies began to act. In October 1915, a Russian expeditionary force led by General Nikolai Baratov landed in the Iranian port of Anzali on the Caspian Sea – about 8,000 troops with 20 weapons.
General Nikolai Baratov.
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The Russian corps made rapid progress to the south of the country and destroyed the units of the Persian gendarmerie, pro-German and pro-Turkish forces. The Russian force lacked a numerical advantage (lone gendarmes over 7000 people) and compensated it quickly and with surprise. The Shah still maintained neutrality, but should he have decided (or been forced) to declare war on the Entente, Baratov was ordered to “occupy Tehran to consolidate Russia’s political position in Persia.”
In December 1915, the Khorasan Brigade of 1,000 troops entered Iran from the Central Asian part of the Russian Empire. After joining the British troops, they were given the task of capturing and eliminating German-Turkish units trying to break through to Afghanistan.
General Baratov, Russian and British officers.
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In the spring of 1916, the most important pro-German and pro-Turkish forces in Iran were destroyed or forced into Ottoman territory. Baratov’s corps entered Mesopotamia (Iraq), which belonged to the Ottoman Empire, to join the British forces there. At the request of the Allies, who were under strong pressure from Turkish troops near Baghdad, Baratov sent a detachment of 100 men led by Vasily Gamaliy to get behind enemy lines. After stretching a distance of over 1000 km in unbearable heat, they managed to divert the enemy’s attention, allowing the British to gain time and produce reinforcements.
In November 1916, Russian troops saved the regime of Iranian ruler Ahmad Shah Qajar when an uprising against his rule began in Tehran. Throughout, the shah hid inside the Russian embassy.
Russian and British officers in Mesopotamia, 1916.
Withdrawal of public property from Iran
In 1917, the Russian Expeditionary Force was to take part in a joint campaign with the British against Mosul, but the February Revolution that broke out in Russia thwarted these plans.
The so-called “democratization of the army” (abolition of the principle of unity of command) launched by the new government led to a rapid dissolution of the Russian army, which also affected Baratov’s soldiers in Persia. After the Bolshevik Revolution and the country’s withdrawal from the war, no Russian troops remained in the region.
1st Caucasus Cossack Division.
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After Russia lost its influence in Iran, Britain remained the only significant foreign power. Soon its garrisons also arose in the northern part of the country, which had once been in the Russian sphere of interest.
In 1920, (already Soviet) Russia returned to Iran. After landing in the port of Anzali and defeating the British troops stationed there, the Bolsheviks aided an uprising that broke out against the Shah’s regime in the hope of making Iran a socialist country. However, the game did not pay off.
A little over 20 years later, Russia and Britain once again acted as allies in Iran. During World War II, in August and September 1941, the two states jointly carried out ‘Operation Countenance’, which resulted in them temporarily occupying part of the country and overthrowing the pro-German Shah Reza Pahlavi.
Source: sn.dk