Mirza Abolhassan Khan Ilchi

Mirza Abolhassan Khan Ilchi
Mirza Abolhassan Khan Ilchi
Iranian Ambassador to the United kingdom
	In office; 1809–1810
Monarch	Fath-Ali Shah Qajar
Preceded by	Office re-created
Succeeded by	Muhsin Khan Mushir od-Dowleh
Iranian Ambassador to Russia
	In office; 1815–1816
Monarch	Fath-Ali Shah Qajar
Preceded by	Office created
Succeeded by	Unknown
Minister of Foreign Affairs
	In office; 1823–1834
Monarch	Fath-Ali Shah Qajar
Preceded by	Nishat Isfahani
Succeeded by	Mirza Ali Farahani
	In office; 1838–1845
Monarch	Mohammad Shah Qajar
Preceded by	Mirza Mas'ud Khan Ansari
Succeeded by	Mirza Mas'ud Khan Ansari
Personal details
Born	1776; Shiraz, Iran
Died	1845; Iran
Relations	Family: Qavam family ; Father: Mirza Mohammad-Ali

Mirza Abolhassan Khan Shirazi Ilchi Kabir (Persian: میرزا ابوالحسن خان شیرازی ایلچی کبیر‎) was an Iranian statesman who served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1824 to 1834, and then again from 1838 until his death in 1846.[1] He also served as the ambassador to Russia and the United Kingdom, and was the main Iranian delegate at the signing of the notorious Treaty of Gulistan (1813) with neighbouring Russia.

Family

Abolhassan was born in 1776 at Shiraz; he was the second son of Mirza Mohammad-Ali, a secretary of Nader Shah, and a daughter of Ebrahim Khan Kalantar, thus making him part of the influential Qavam family of Jewish origins.[2]

Exile and return

As a young man, Mirza Abolhassan was appointed as the governor of Shushtar. In April 1801, however, the family lost much of its power and influence during the downfall of Ebrahim, and thus all members of the family were persecuted by the Iranian government. While many were blinded or killed, some managed to flee. Mirza Abolhassan, however, was captured by Iranian troops, and was exiled in his native Shiraz. Abolhassan shortly afterwards fled from Shiraz, reaching Basra, where he then took a vessel to Hyderabad in India. Luckily, he was some time later pardoned, and went back to Iran, where he served Fath-Ali Shah Qajar, and quickly rose to high offices.

Later life

Abolhassan was chosen in 1809 as ambassador to lead a diplomatic mission to London at the court of the British king George III to seek support against growing ambitions of Russia in Caucasia. His escorting officer or "mehmandar" in the United Kingdom was Sir Gore Ouseley, who later encouraged Abolhassan to join the Freemasons which he did in 1810. During his trip, Abolhassan kept a diary that was later published under the title, Heyratnameth (the book of wonders). This book, in which Abolhassan formulated his perception of Europe's modern achievements, was read widely in the Qajar court and later inspired sociopolitical movements, such as Iran's constitutional revolution.[3]

Upon his return of that mission, Mirza Abolhassan obtained the title "Khan" and "Ilchi" (envoy). Abolhassan was later appointed as the main delegate for Iran in the Gulistan of 1813 and Turkmenchay treaties, under which Iran lost most of her Caucasian territories to Russia. In 1835, Abolhassan sealed himself in the Shah-Abdol-Azim shrine as a protest to Prime Minister Ghaem Magham Farahani. Abolhassan Khan later died in 1845.

References

Keddie, Nikki R. (1999). Qajar Iran and the rise of Reza Khan, 1796-1925. Mazda Publishers. p. 95. ISBN 978-1-56859-084-4.
Modern Iran Dialectics, By Michael E. Bonine Nikki R. Keddie, SUNY Press, 1981, page 293.
Vahid Vahdat. 'Occidentalist Perceptions of European Architecture in Nineteenth-Century Persian Travel Diaries: Travels in Farangi Space Routledge, 2017 ISBN 1472473949

External links

Javadi, H. "ABU'L-ḤASAN KHAN ĪLČĪ Persian diplomat, b. 1190/1776 in Šīrāz". Encyclopædia Iranica. Retrieved 30 May 2012.

Political offices
Preceded by Office re-created	Iranian Ambassador to the United kingdom 1809–1810	Succeeded by Muhsin Khan Mushir od-Dowleh
Preceded by Office created	Iranian Ambassador to Russia 1815–1816	Succeeded by Unknown
Preceded by Nishat Isfahani	Minister of Foreign Affairs 1823–1834	Succeeded by Mirza Ali Farahani
Preceded by Mirza Mas'ud Khan Ansari	Minister of Foreign Affairs 1838–1845	Succeeded by Mirza Mas'ud Khan Ansari

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[1] Keddie, Nikki R. (1999). Qajar Iran and the rise of Reza Khan, 1796-1925. Mazda Publishers. p. 95. ISBN 978-1-56859-084-4.

[2] Modern Iran Dialectics, By Michael E. Bonine Nikki R. Keddie, SUNY Press, 1981, page 293.

[3] Vahid Vahdat. 'Occidentalist Perceptions of European Architecture in Nineteenth-Century Persian Travel Diaries: Travels in Farangi Space Routledge, 2017 ISBN 1472473949