Persian Empire 1845

Chapter 291 The Arrival of 1860
For Iran, the events of 1859 are essentially over. In the past decade, Iran has accomplished a series of tasks, including enhancing its prestige, expanding its territory, and developing its industry. While its two neighbors, Russia and Britain, still have reservations about Iran, they don't need to be with the Ottoman Empire.

Russia is preparing to restart its encroachment on the Ottoman Empire, with the breakthrough point being the already fragmented Balkans. Serbia, Bulgaria, and Greece—countries that claim Ottoman territories and are predominantly Orthodox Christians—are naturally Russia's allies.

Bulgaria, however, sees things differently. Separated from Russia by the Danube River, and despite sharing a common religion, they have little close relationship. Their independence was achieved with the support of Iran and Austria, not Russia. This makes Bulgaria's foreign policy more inclined towards maintaining independence rather than fully aligning with Russia. Although Russia has attempted to win over Bulgaria through religious and cultural ties, Bulgarian leaders are keenly aware that over-reliance on Russia could erode their independence.

Meanwhile, Iran's influence in the Balkans is gradually increasing. Through providing diplomatic and economic aid, it has successfully established close relations with countries such as Bulgaria and Romania. Iran's goal is to build an anti-Ottoman alliance in the Balkans to contain the Ottoman Empire and secure Iranian interests in the region.

In the face of this complex international situation, Bulgaria has adopted a flexible diplomatic strategy. On the one hand, it maintains close cooperation with Iran, and on the other hand, it seeks to establish closer ties with Austria and Britain to ensure that it is not sacrificed in the balance of power among major nations.

Serbia and Greece, however, are much simpler; they are clearly siding with Russia. They are both Orthodox Christian brothers, so why wouldn't they cooperate?
Iran has little interest in the Balkans; its primary focus is on domestic developments. Iran's regular revenue increased to 4506 million rials, while expenditures reached 4459 million rials. After three years, Iran's finances have returned to a surplus. Behind this achievement, besides the gradual recovery of the domestic economy and the impetus of industrial development, the Ottoman reparations played a crucial role. These reparations not only alleviated Iran's financial pressure but also provided valuable financial support for subsequent domestic reforms and military modernization.

However, Iran's domestic economic structure still needs further adjustment, and industrial development requires more investment.

At this time, a new direction emerged in Iranian agriculture. Farmers in the Tabriz and Mashhad regions began to cooperate, forming cooperatives to combat the oppression of landowners. This move was appreciated by the Shah.

Even so, the landowners remained economically powerful. Income from the land could be transferred to industry, establishing small factories to increase revenue. This, in turn, fueled the development of Iranian industry.

By this time, European countries had tacitly agreed that the region south of Mesopotamia and north of Aden on the Korean Peninsula belonged to Iran. This added more than 200 million square kilometers of land and hundreds of thousands of people to Iran's territory. Because there was no formal census in the area, the specific details still needed to be discussed by the governments.

On September 6, the Shamari tribe, supported by Iran, led 4500 men to attack the Hashim family in the Hejaz region, looting countless supplies before leaving. The Hejaz merely drove them away but dared not seek help from other countries, lest their cannons be pointed at Mecca at any moment.

On December 22, Arab sheikhs who had been granted Iranian noble titles collectively came to Tehran to pay homage to the Shah, formally submitting to him. Nasser al-Din established six provinces in the Arabian Peninsula, including Dhahran, Kuwait, and Riyadh, selecting and appointing high-ranking officials from local tribes and Iranian territory. Following this, Nasser al-Din announced that he would celebrate Nowruz with the elders. They also purchased land in Tehran and the under-construction Baghdad, building residences, preparing to transition from a nomadic to a settled lifestyle. As for local governance, that was left to the Shah to handle.

Iran's strategy in the Korean Peninsula requires a primary focus on appeasement, supplemented by assimilation. The core of this strategy lies in gradually integrating nomadic peoples into the state system through gentle means, while simultaneously weakening their independence and capacity for resistance. To achieve this goal, the Iranian government has implemented a series of measures, the most crucial step being the nationalization of tribal private armies and their relocation to regions far from their homelands, such as Transoxiana, Mesopotamia, and East Africa, to prevent a major military rebellion.

Through skillful negotiation and appropriate compensation, the government successfully mitigated most of the resistance. The government promised generous pensions and honorary titles to tribal chiefs, while allowing them to retain certain powers in local administration. These concessions enabled the smooth progress of the nationalization of the army.

Meanwhile, the incorporated tribal armies were transferred to regions far from their homelands. This move not only weakened the tribes' control over their homelands but also made these armies more reliant on the support of the central government in their new environment. In Transoxiana, these armies were used to consolidate Iranian influence in Central Asia; in Mesopotamia, they were deployed to the Ottoman border to guard against potential threats; and in East Africa, they participated in Iranian colonial expansion, helping to consolidate Iranian footholds on the African coast.

Alongside the nationalization of the military, the Iranian government also launched a large-scale census. This initiative not only helped the government better understand the country's population distribution and resource situation but also provided data support for subsequent settlement policies. Through the census, the government was able to identify the main settlements of nomadic peoples and formulate specific development plans for these areas.

To transform nomadic peoples into settled communities, the Iranian government is vigorously developing agriculture and industry. In traditional nomadic areas, the government is constructing irrigation systems and reclaiming new farmland, encouraging nomads to engage in agricultural production. Simultaneously, the government plans to establish small industrial centers in these regions, providing employment opportunities to attract nomads to settle. Through these measures, nomads are gradually abandoning their traditional nomadic lifestyle and becoming settled farmers or workers.

Beyond economic and military means, the Iranian government also emphasizes cultural and religious policies to promote the assimilation of nomadic peoples. The government encourages nomadic groups to adopt Persian culture and language and promotes Persian language education in schools. Simultaneously, the government strengthens national cohesion through religious policies. It encourages nomadic groups to convert to Shia Islam and enhances their sense of belonging through religious ceremonies and festivals.

Despite some successes in its peninsula strategy, Nasser al-Din remains steadfast in pursuing it. Only in this way can the vast land and population of the peninsula be integrated, thus contributing to Iran's development.

Amidst rapid domestic development and international peace, Iran passed through 1859 and ushered in 1860.

(End of this chapter)