Hajji Ebrahim Shirazi

Portrait of Ebrahim Khan Kalantar.

Ebrahim Kalantar Shirazi (Persian: ابراهیم کلانتر شیرازی‎), also known as Hajji Ebrahim (حاجی ابراهیم) and E'temad al-Dawla (اعتماد الدوله), was an influential Iranian politician in the Zand and Qajar era.

Biography

He was the third son of Mohammad Hashem, who was a descendant of the Hashemian family, an originally Jewish family which could trace its lineage back to Qewam al-Din Hasan, a 14th-century Iranian who served as the minister of the Muzaffarids.[1] In 1747, Ebrahim's father, Mohammad Hashem, was punished by Nader Shah, losing his one eyeball. After Nader Shah's death, Iran fell into a civil war, which the Zand Karim Khan Zand emerged victorious in.

Ebrahim Khan became very influential in Zand era and became the Kalantar of Fars. His biggest influence came in the end of Zand dynasty when he decided to cooperate with Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar and hand over Shiraz to him. When Lotfali Khan came back to Shiraz, Ebrahim Khan did not let him inside and helped bring the Qajar dynasty to power.[2]

He was further instrumental in the crowning of Fath-Ali Shah Qajar and he kept his political power. However, the Shah later became wary of him and had him arrested. Thus, in 1801, he was arrested and sent to Taleghan. A month later he was blinded by the order of the Shah and his tongue was cut off and he was killed. His properties were seized for the benefit of the Shah and Mirza Mohammad Shafie Asefoldoleh replaced him.

Naser al-Din Shah Qajar famously addressed Adolphe Crémieux the head of Alliance Israélite Universelle in Paris with these words:

"I shall not forget that it was a Jew, Hajji Ebrahim who had helped raise the Qajars to the throne"[3]

His descendents formed the Qavam family in Shiraz which remain influential.[2] Ali Qavam who married Reza Shah's daughter and was the first husband of Ashraf Pahlavi was amongst his descendents.

See also

References

Sources

  • Amanat, Abbas (1997). "EBRĀHĪM KALĀNTAR ŠĪRĀZĪ ". Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. III, Fasc. 1. pp. 66–71. External link in |article= (help)
  • Ghani, Cyrus (2001). Iran and the Rise of the Reza Shah: From Qajar Collapse to Pahlavi Power. I.B.Tauris. pp. 1–434. ISBN 9781860646294.
  • Daryaee, Touraj (2012). The Oxford Handbook of Iranian History. Oxford University Press. pp. 1–432. ISBN 0199875758.
  • Hambly, Gavin R.G (1991). "Agha Muhammad Khan and the establishment of the Qajar dynasty". The Cambridge History of Iran, Vol. 7: From Nadir Shah to the Islamic Republic. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 104–144. ISBN 9780521200950.
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