The conflict between Iran (Persia) and the Russian Empire had been brewing since the time of Peter I, however, it was only local in nature, and full-fledged hostilities began only in 1804.
Beginning of the war
The Ganja Khanate, which existed in the North Caucasus in the second half of the 18th century, was an independent khanate. He managed to coexist around powerful neighbors, sometimes raiding the Karabakh Khanate and Georgia. After the last raid on Georgia, the Ganja Khanate doomed itself to cease to exist.
Wanting to ensure the security of Georgia under its control, Russia decided to seize and annex Ganja to its territory. Led by General Tsitsianov, Ganja was taken on January 3, 1804, its khan was killed, and the Ganja Khanate ceased to exist.
After this, the general moved his troops towards Erivan, which was controlled by Iran, with the desire to also annex it to Russian Empire. Erivan was famous for its fortress, and could serve as a reliable outpost for subsequent military operations against Persia.
Before reaching Erivan, the Russian army met with a 20,000-strong Persian army led by the son of the Shah Abbas Mirza. Having defeated the Persians three times, Tsitsianov’s army besieged Erivan, but due to a lack of food and ammunition, they had to retreat. From that moment the confrontation began. Officially, the Shah of Persia declared war on Russia on June 10, 1804.
The feat of Karyagin's detachment
Inspired by the retreat of the Russians, the Persian Shah assembled an army of 40 thousand people in 1805. On July 9, the 20,000-strong army of Abbas Mirza, moving towards Georgia, came across a detachment of Colonel Karyagin, numbering 500 people. He had only 2 cannons at his disposal, however, neither numerical superiority nor better weapons broke the spirit of the detachment; for 3 weeks they managed to repel numerous attacks by the Persians, and when the situation became critical they managed to escape. During the retreat, in order not to leave the cannon to the enemy, soldier Gavrila Sidorov proposed to build a “living bridge” across the crevice, and lay down there with his comrades, sacrificing his life. For this feat, all the soldiers received salaries and awards, and a monument was erected to Gavrila Sidorov at the General Staff. After this, Abbas Mirza abandoned the campaign against Georgia.
Calm
In 1806, Russia and Ottoman Empire Military operations began, and the main forces from the Persian direction were transferred to the war with the Turks. Before this, General Tsitsianov managed to annex the Shirvan Khanate, besieged Baku and agreed to surrender the city, but during the transfer of the keys he was treacherously killed by a relative of the khan. Baku was taken by General Bulgakov. Relative silence continued until September 1808, when an attempt was again made to take Erivan, but it was unsuccessful. Then there was a lull in the Russian-Persian war again; Russia mainly fought the war with partisan detachments, paying more attention to the confrontation with the Turks.
Resumption of active activities
In 1810, Colonel Kotlyarevsky’s detachment captured the Migri fortress, crossing the Araks and the vanguard of Abbas Mirza’s troops was defeated. In 1812, Napoleon I and the Persians, who were inclined towards peace, decided to take advantage of the moment and defeat the Russians in the Caucasus. The newly assembled army, led by Abbas Mirza, began to gradually take one fortress after another. First taking Shah-Bulakh, and then Lankaran. It was the same Kotlyarevsky who managed to reverse the situation. At the end of 1812, he defeated the Persians at the Aslanduz ford, after which he went to Lankaran. On January 1, 1813 it was taken, after which the war was stopped and peace negotiations began.
Having received news of the events in St. Petersburg in December 1825, the Shah of Iran decided to return the territories ceded to Russia under the treaty of 1813. England actively supported him in this endeavor.
The offensive of the Iranian army in 1826 was unexpected for Russia. Before the chief commander in the Caucasus, General A.P. Ermolov managed to take action; the enemy captured the southern part of Transcaucasia and moved to Eastern Georgia. However, within a month, Ermolov’s troops were able to completely liberate the occupied areas and transfer the war to Iranian territory.
Events in the Middle East were closely followed by Western European powers, primarily Great Britain, which never missed an opportunity to assist Iran in the war with Russia. Part of the mountain population of the Caucasus fought as part of the Iranian army. In this difficult situation, when the allies in the London coalition were close to withdrawing from it, and the Caucasian war was far from over, Nicholas I demanded decisive action from his command against Iran. 19
Appointed as the new commander of the Caucasian troops, I.F. Paskevich launched a successful offensive in 1827. Soon the road to the capital of Iran, Tehran, was open. Under these conditions, the Shah agreed to make peace on the terms proposed by Russia.
According to the treaty concluded in Turkmanchay in 1828, the Yerevan and Nakhichevan khanates, independent of Iran, were ceded to Russia, and Russia’s exclusive right to have a military fleet in the Caspian Sea was recognized. The Shah had to pay Russia 20 million rubles. Such results of the war dealt a strong blow to England’s positions in Transcaucasia and gave Nicholas I a free hand in relation to Turkey. 20
Russian-Turkish War 1828-1829
Immediately after the end of the war with Iran, Russia declared war on Turkey. The fighting took place not only in the Balkans, but also in the Caucasus. While the 100,000-strong army of P.H. Wittgestein occupied the Danube principalities, and the Anapa fortress, which belonged to the Turks, was blocked on the Black Sea. Meanwhile, Paskevich's 11,000-strong detachment moved towards Kars. It was assumed that the war would end under the walls of Constantinople before the onset of winter. However, in the Balkans, Russian troops encountered fierce resistance. Only in the Caucasus were they successful: significant territories were occupied, including the fortresses of Anapa, Sukhum-Kale (Sukhumi), and Poti.
On May 30, 1829, the new Russian commander-in-chief of the Balkan army, General I.I. Diebitsch fought a general battle, which ended in the defeat and flight of the remnants of the Turkish army. Soon he was already at the gates of Constantinople. At the same time, the Caucasian army, having won a number of victories, was preparing for a new offensive. Concerned by this course of events, the European powers put pressure on the Sultan to prevent the capture of Constantinople and the complete defeat of Turkey. On September 2, 1829, the Treaty of Adrianople was signed. According to it, Russia acquired the mouth of the Danube, the eastern coast of the Black Sea from the mouth of the Kuban River to the port of St. Nicholas and a number of other territories. The Bosporus and Dardanelles were declared open for the passage of merchant ships of all countries. The internal autonomy of Greece, Serbia, Moldavia and Wallachia was recognized. 21
The Treaty of Adrianople strengthened Russia's influence in the Balkans. Although the Ottoman Empire survived, it became diplomatically dependent on Russia.
The war with Iran was a direct result of Russia's successful advance to the East from the Caucasus. The Gulistan Treaty of 1813, assigning Transcaucasia to Russia, ensured the dominance of the Russian fleet in the Caspian Sea and created a preferential position for Russian merchants in Iran. Back in 1814, the British concluded a military-defensive alliance with the Shah and, with the help of their military instructors, began the reorganization of the Iranian army. Counting on the military and financial support of the new ally, the Iranian Shah Feth-Ali declared the Treaty of Gulistan invalid and began openly preparing for war with Russia.
At the beginning of 1826, vague rumors about the St. Petersburg interregnum and the uprising reached Iran. Feth-Ali decided that the moment had come to return the lost territories. Significant military forces were deployed to the Russian border. Command of the army was entrusted to Crown Prince Abbas Mirza. Anglo-Iranian agents in Eastern Transcaucasia were preparing an armed uprising among the propertied sections of the population. In July 1826, Iranian troops crossed the Russian border in two places. Abbas Mirza, at the head of a 60,000-strong army, moved from beyond the Araks towards Shusha. Azerbaijani feudal lords and clergy, provoked by Anglo-Iranian agents, began to go over to the side of the Iranians in some places. Before A.P. Ermolov had time to prepare a response to the unexpected invasion, Iranian troops captured the southern part of Transcaucasia and moved towards Georgia. Along with Abbas Mirza came the fled and exiled khans who sought to restore their power under the supreme patronage of the Iranian Shah.
At the end of August, Ermolov moved the assembled troops against the Iranian army. Soon Transcaucasia was completely cleared of the enemy, and military operations were transferred to Iranian territory.
Not trusting Ermolov, known for his connections with the Decembrists, Nicholas I transferred command of the Caucasian troops to I.F. Paskevich. In April 1827, the troops of the Caucasian Corps began an attack on the khanates of Yerevan and Nakhichevan, inhabited by Armenians. Maintaining economic and cultural ties with Russia, the Armenian people saw in the Russian troops the desired liberators from the Persian yoke and actively contributed to their military operations. Iranian fortresses, with the exception of Yerevan, did not offer stubborn resistance. On June 26 (July 8), 1827, Nakhichevan fell. On October 1(13), 1827, after a six-day siege, another Iranian fortress, Yerevan, was captured by storm. After 11 days, Russian troops were already in Tabriz and threatened the Shah’s capital, Tehran. Panicked and unable to resist, the Shah's government agreed to all the conditions presented.
In February 1828, it was signed in Turkmanchay new agreement between Russia and Iran. Russia acquired the khanates of Yerevan and Nakhichevan, that is, the entire Iranian part of Armenia. Russia's exclusive right to keep military vessels in the Caspian Sea was confirmed. Iran had to pay Russia an indemnity of 20 million rubles. This outcome of the war dealt a blow to English influence in Western Asia and gave Nicholas I a free hand in relation to Turkey.
For the Armenian people, liberation from the yoke of the Shah's Iran and the establishment of direct ties with the Russian people had great progressive significance.
However decisive influence Russia did not receive any response to Iran; a year later, with the active assistance of the English resident, a street uprising broke out in Tehran and members of the Russian mission were killed (1829). Among the dead was the Russian envoy, famous writer A. S. Griboyedov. The tsarist government, busy with a new war, did not create a reason for a break from this event; it was satisfied with the “apology” solemnly offered by the Iranian embassy and supported by rich gifts from the Shah.
Expansion of European powers in Iran. Annexation of Transcaucasia to Russia.
From the end of the XVIII - early XIX centuries Iran becomes important in connection with the struggle between England and France for dominance in Europe and the East. Given the strategic position of Iran, they tried in every possible way to involve it in the struggle that was taking place between them. At the same time, both of these powers opposed Russia, which tried to maintain dominance in Iran and Turkey over the peoples of Transcaucasia. The advancement of Russia in Transcaucasia, the annexation of Georgia to Russia in 1801, and its intervention in the defense of the Transcaucasian peoples caused two Russian-Iranian wars.
Back in 1800, an English mission was sent to Iran, led by the captain of the East India Company troops, Malcolm. This mission was successful, since in 1801 an agreement was concluded with the Shah of Iran, according to which he undertook to send his troops to Afghanistan and stop raids on the Indian possessions of England. Further, the Shah pledged to prevent the French from entering Iran and the Persian Gulf coast. England, for its part, was supposed to supply it with weapons in the event of a war between Iran and France and Afghanistan. At the same time, a trade agreement was signed with the Iranian government, confirming the privileges of the British received earlier in 1763: the right to acquire and own land in Iran; the right to build trading posts on the coast of the Persian Gulf; the right to free trade throughout the country without paying import duties. This agreement marked the beginning of the transformation of Iran into a country dependent on England. In addition, the 1801 treaty was directed against Russia.
During the reign of Napoleon, France twice tried to pave its way to the East. Both attempts were unsuccessful. The French were defeated in Egypt, and the joint Franco-Russian campaign against India never took place. However, French diplomats did not stop their activities in Iran. On the eve of the first Russian- Iranian war The French government invited the Shah to enter into an alliance against Russia. Hoping for England's help, the Shah rejected the French offer.
First Russian-Iranian war
After the annexation of Georgia to Russia, the tendencies of rapprochement with it intensified among Azerbaijanis and Armenians. In 1802, an agreement was signed in Georgievsk on the transfer of a number of feudal rulers of Dagestan and Azerbaijan to Russian citizenship and on a joint struggle against Iran. In 1804, Russian troops took Ganja and it was annexed to Russia. In the same year, the first Russian-Iranian war began. Meeting almost no resistance, Russian troops advanced into the Yerevan Khanate. But this war dragged on due to the fact that in 1805 Russia joined the anti-Napoleonic coalition and its main forces were turned to the fight against France.
In the war with Russia, the Shah of Iran placed big hopes to the aid of England, but the latter, having become an ally of Russia in the anti-Napoleonic coalition, was afraid to openly fulfill the terms of the treaty of 1801. This caused a deterioration in Anglo-Iranian relations. Taking advantage of this, Napoleon again offered the Shah his support in the war against Russia. The defeats of the Iranians and the seizure by Russia of Derbent, Baku and a number of other areas prompted the Shah to reach an agreement with Napoleon.
In 1807, the Treaty of Finckenstein Union was signed between Iran and France. France guaranteed the inviolability of Iranian territory and pledged to make every effort to force Russia to evacuate troops from Georgia and other territories, as well as to provide assistance to the Shah with weapons, equipment and military instructors.
The Iranian side, in turn, pledged to break off all political and trade relations with England and declare war on it; to induce the Afghans to open the road to India for the French and to join their military forces with the allied French army when it sets out to conquer India. However, the stay of French officers in Iran was short-lived. After the signing of the Peace of Tilsit, the Treaty of Finkenstein lost all meaning for Napoleon.
The events in Tilsit also worried the British, who again resumed their negotiations with Iran and again offered them their assistance in the war with Russia. Pursuing their aggressive goals and fearing French plan campaign against India, England is developing active diplomatic activity not only in Iran, but also in northern India, Afghanistan and Turkey. Having concluded a peace treaty with Turkey in 1809, British diplomats persuaded it and Iran to agree on an alliance for a joint fight against Russia. But neither the help of the British nor the alliance with the Turks saved the Iranian army from defeat.
In May 1812, the Russian-Turkish Bucharest Peace Treaty was concluded. Iran has lost its ally. In July of the same year, an agreement on an alliance between England and Russia was signed in Örebro. The Iranian government asked for peace. The negotiations ended with the signing of the Gulistan Peace Treaty in October 1813.
Under this agreement, the Shah of Iran recognized the Karabakh, Ganja, Sheki, Shirvan, Derbent, Kuba, Baku and Talysh khanates, as well as Dagestan, Georgia, Imereti, Guria, Mingrelia and Abkhazia, as belonging to the Russian Empire. Russia received the exclusive right to maintain a navy in the Caspian Sea; the right of free trade was granted to Russian merchants in Iran and Iranian merchants in Russia. The Treaty of Gulistan was a further step towards the establishment of a regime of capitulations in Iran, which began with the 1763 agreement with England and the Anglo-Iranian treaty of 1801.
Second Russian-Iranian War
The Shah of Iran and his entourage did not want to accept the loss of the Azerbaijani khanates. Their revanchist ideas were inspired by British diplomacy. In November 1814, an agreement was signed between the Iranian government and England, directed against Russia and preparing the ground for new British conquests in the Middle East. Thus, the agreement provided for British “mediation” in determining the Russian-Iranian border; Iran was provided with a substantial annual subsidy in case of new war with any European power. Iran pledged to start a war with Afghanistan if the latter opened military operations against British possessions in India. The conclusion of this agreement, firstly, made Iran politically dependent on England, and secondly, led it to conflict with Russia.
British diplomacy contributed in every possible way to the Iranian-Turkish rapprochement, and then to their military alliance against Russia. First, in order to persuade Russia to return the Azerbaijani khanates, an extraordinary ambassador was sent to St. Petersburg, whose diplomatic mission was not successful. In the breakdown of Russian-Iranian negotiations, no last role British diplomacy played a role. Having failed to achieve what they wanted through diplomatic means, in July 1826 Iran began military operations against Russia without declaring war. But military victory again found herself on the side of the Russian troops and the Shah asked for peace. In February 1828, a Russian-Iranian peace treaty was signed in the town of Turkmanchay.
According to the Treaty of Turkmanchay, Iran ceded the khanates of Yerevan and Nakhichevan to Russia; the Shah renounced all claims to Transcaucasia; obliged to pay indemnity to Russia; The provision on Russia's exclusive right to maintain a navy in the Caspian Sea was confirmed. Here a special act on trade between Russia and Iran was signed, which determined the procedure for resolving all controversial cases; Russian subjects were given the right to rent and buy residential premises and warehouses; a number of privileges were established for Russian merchants on the territory of Iran, which consolidated the unequal position of this country.
Huge funds spent on the war with Russia and on paying indemnities ruined the Iranian population. This discontent was used by court circles to incite hatred towards Russian subjects. One of the victims of this hatred was the Russian diplomat A. Griboedov, who was killed in 1829 in Tehran.
Herat issue
TO mid-19th century V. There is a further aggravation of contradictions between England and Russia. In the 30s England took all measures to weaken Russia's strengthened positions in Iran and to tear the Caucasus and Transcaucasia away from Russia. The aggressive plans of the British concerned not only Iran, they extended to Herat and the Central Asian khanates. Already in the 30s. England, following Iran and Afghanistan, began to turn the Central Asian khanates with Herat into its sales market. Herat was of paramount strategic importance - the Herat oasis had an abundance of food, and most importantly, it was the starting point of the trade caravan road from Iran through Kandahar to the borders of India. With Herat, the British could also extend their influence to the Central Asian khanates and Khorasan.
The British sought to keep Herat in the weak hands of its Sadozai shahs and not allow it to pass to Iran or its annexation to the Afghan principalities. As for Russia, it had in Iran, in the person of the Qajar monarchy, the same ally on the western borders of Afghanistan as on its the eastern borders were the Punjab state. In order to prevent the British from establishing themselves on the approaches to the Central Asian khanates, Russian diplomacy encouraged Iran to capture Herat, preferring to see this “key of India” in the hands of the Qajars, dependent on Russia.
In 1833, Iranian rulers marched with troops to subjugate the ruler of Herat. After Mohamed Mirza was crowned Shah of Iran in 1835, the struggle between England and Russia for influence in Iran intensified. Wanting to strengthen their position, the British sent a large military mission to Iran. However, the advantage was on the side of Russian diplomacy, which encouraged Iran’s campaign against Herat. Therefore, in connection with the new Herat campaign, Anglo-Iranian relations sharply deteriorated.
Soon after the Iranian troops began their campaign against Herat in 1836, England broke off diplomatic relations with it. At the same time, the English squadron appeared in the Persian Gulf. By threatening to seize Iranian territories, the British succeeded in lifting the siege of Herat. This was not the only success of the British. In October 1841, England imposed a new treaty on Iran, under which it received large customs benefits and the right to have its own sales agents in Tabriz, Tehran and Bandar-Bushir.
By the middle of the 19th century. Herat again acquired importance as a springboard for British conquests in Central Asia. The rich Herat region also attracted Iran. During the Crimean War, the Shah decided to take advantage of the fact that the British were tied down by the protracted siege of Sevastopol and take control of Herat. In addition, the Iranian rulers were afraid of the head of the Afghan state, Dost Mohammed, who concluded a treaty of friendship with England in 1855.
At the beginning of 1856, Iranian troops took Herat. In response, England declared war on Iran and sent its fleet into the Persian Gulf. Iran again agreed to sign an agreement with England. According to the treaty of 1857, England undertook to evacuate its troops from Iranian territory, and Iran - from Herat and the territory of Afghanistan. The Shah of Iran forever renounced all claims to Herat and other Afghan territories and, in the event of a conflict with Afghanistan, pledged to resort to English mediation. Such a rapid conclusion of the treaty and the evacuation of British troops was explained by the beginning of a popular uprising in India.
Russo-Persian Wars
The Russian-Persian Wars are a series of military conflicts between Russia and Persia in the 17th-20th centuries. The wars were fought primarily over the Caucasus, first the North, then the South.
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Background to the conflict
IN mid-16th century century, Russia conquered the Astrakhan Khanate and reached the coast of the Caspian Sea and the foothills of the Caucasus. The Nogai Horde and Kabarda were also vassals of Russia.
1651-1653
In the 17th century main support The Russian state in the North Caucasus was Terki fortress.
The royal commanders and troops were located here. In the middle of the 17th century, seventy families of Kabardian uzdeni (nobles), many merchants (Russian, Armenian, Azerbaijani and Persian) and artisans lived in the suburbs of the Terek city. On the right bank of the Terek at the confluence of the Sunzha River, northeast of modern Grozny, in 1635 Persian influence extended to the possessions of the Kumyk feudal lords in Dagestan. The largest was the Tarkov Shamkhalate, whose rulers had the title of ruler of Buinaksk, wali (governor) of Dagestan and for some time Khan of Derbent. Another important possession of the Kumyks was the Enderian Shamkhalate. At the beginning of the 17th century, it separated from the Tarkov Shamkhalate. In the 50s of the 17th century, the “Endereevsky owner” Murza Kazan-Alp ruled there. To the north-west of Derbent there was the Kaitag Utsmiystvo. In 1645, the Persian Shah expelled the ruler Rustam Khan, loyal to Russia, from here and appointed Amirkhan Sultan as the owner of Kaitag.
In the Caucasus, the interests of Persia inevitably collided with the interests of Russia. Shah Abbas II at the beginning of his reign, he maintained peaceful relations with Russia, offering the Tsar friendship and trade cooperation, achieving a positive response. However, soon the Shah led the struggle not only for the conquest of Dagestan, but also for the complete ousting of the Russians from North Caucasus, began to interfere in the internal affairs of the highlanders.
Two campaigns of the Persian army against the Sunzhensky fort followed. As a result of the second campaign, it was captured. Following this, the conflict was resolved. The result of the war was a slight strengthening of Persia's position in the North Caucasus.
1722-1723
Persian campaign (1722-1723)
After graduation Northern War Peter I decided to make a trip to the western coast of the Caspian Sea, and, having captured the Caspian Sea, restore the trade route from Central Asia and India to Europe, which would be very useful for Russian merchants and for the enrichment of the Russian Empire. The route was supposed to pass through the territory of India, Persia, from there to the Russian fort on the Kura River, then through Georgia to Astrakhan, from where it was planned to transport goods throughout the entire Russian Empire. The reason for the start of a new campaign was an uprising in the coastal provinces of Persia.
Peter I announced to the Shah of Persia that the rebels were making forays into the territory of the Russian Empire and robbing merchants, and that Russian troops would be sent into the territory of northern Azerbaijan and Dagestan to assist the Shah in pacifying the inhabitants of the rebel provinces.
On July 18, the entire flotilla of 274 ships went to sea under the command of Mr. General Admiral Count Apraksin.
On July 20, the fleet entered the Caspian Sea and followed the western coast for a week. On July 27, the infantry landed at Cape Agrakhan, 4 versts below the mouth of the Koysu (Sulak) River.
A few days later the cavalry arrived and joined the main forces. On August 5, the Russian army continued its movement towards Derbent.
On August 6, on the Sulak River, the Kabardian princes Murza Cherkassky and Aslan-Bek joined the army with their troops.
On August 8, she crossed the Sulak River. On August 15, the troops approached Tarki, the seat of Shamkhal. On August 19, an attack by a 10,000-strong detachment of the Utyamysh Sultan Magmud and a 6,000-strong detachment of the Utsmiya of Kaitag Akhmet Khan was repulsed. Peter's ally was the Kumyk shamkhal Adil-Girey, who captured Derbent and Baku before the approach of the Russian army. On August 23, Russian troops entered Derbent. Derbent was a strategically important city, as it covered the coastal route along the Caspian Sea.
Further progress to the south was stopped by a strong storm, which sank all the ships with food. Peter I decided to leave a garrison in the city and returned with the main forces to Astrakhan, where he began preparations for the 1723 campaign. 
This was the last military campaign in which he directly took part. In September Vakhtang VI He entered Karabakh with his army, where he fought against the rebel Lezgins.
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After the capture of Ganja, Armenian troops led by Catholicos Isaiah joined the Georgians. Near Ganja, waiting for Peter, the Georgian-Armenian army stood for two months, however, having learned about the departure of the Russian army from the Caucasus, Vakhtang and Isaiah returned with their troops to their possessions. In November, a landing force of five companies was landed in the Persian province of Gilan under the command of Colonel Shipov to occupy the city of Ryashch (Rasht). Later, in March of the following year, the Ryashch vizier organized an uprising and, with a force of 15 thousand people, tried to dislodge the Shipov detachment that occupied Ryashch. All Persian attacks were repelled. During the second Persian campaign, a much smaller detachment was sent to Persia under the command of Matyushkin, and Peter I only directed Matyushkin’s actions from the Russian Empire. 15 gekbots, field and siege artillery and infantry took part in the campaign. On June 20, the detachment moved south, followed by a fleet of gekbots from Kazan. On July 6, ground forces approached Baku. To Matyushkin’s offer to voluntarily surrender the city, its residents refused. On July 21, with 4 battalions and two field guns, the Russians repulsed an attack by the besieged. Meanwhile, 7 geckbots anchored next to the city wall and began to fire heavily at it, thereby destroying the fortress artillery and partially destroying the wall. On July 25, an assault was planned from the sea through the gaps formed in the wall, but rose strong wind, which drove away the Russian ships. The residents of Baku managed to take advantage of this by sealing all the gaps in the wall, but still, on July 26, the city capitulated without a fight.
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The successes of Russian troops during the campaign and the invasion of the Ottoman army in Transcaucasia forced Persia to conclude a peace treaty in St. Petersburg on September 12, 1723, according to which Derbent, Baku, Rasht, the provinces of Shirvan, Gilan, Mazandaran and Astrabad went to Russia.
Russo-Persian War (1796)
In the spring of 1795, the Persians invaded Georgia and Azerbaijan, and on September 12 (23) of the same year they captured and plundered Tbilisi. Although belatedly, fulfilling its obligations under the Treaty of Georgievsk of 1783, the Russian government sent the Caspian Corps (12,300 men with 21 guns) from Kizlyar through Dagestan to the Azerbaijani provinces of Iran. Having set out on April 18 (29), 1796, Russian troops laid siege on May 2 (13), and captured Derbent by storm on May 10 (21). On June 15 (26), 1796, Russian troops simultaneously entered Cuba and Baku without a fight.
In mid-November, the 35,000-strong Russian corps under the command of Lieutenant General Zubov reached the confluence of the Kura and Araks rivers, preparing for further advance into Iran, but after the death of Catherine II in the same year, Paul I ascended the throne, the Zubovs fell out of favor, Changes occurred in Russian policy, and in December 1796, Russian troops were withdrawn from Transcaucasia.
Russo-Persian War (1804–1813)
On September 12, 1801, Alexander I (1801-1825) signed the “Manifesto on the establishment of a new government in Georgia”; the Kartli-Kakheti kingdom was part of Russia and became the Georgian province of the empire. In 1803, Megrelia and the Imeretian kingdom joined Russia.
January 3, 1804 - storming of Ganja, as a result of which the Ganja Khanate was liquidated and became part of the Russian Empire.
June 10 Persian Shah Feth Ali (Baba Khan)) (1797-1834), who entered into an alliance with Great Britain, declared war on Russia.
On June 8, the vanguard of Tsitsianov’s detachment under the command of Tuchkov set out towards Erivan. On June 10, near the Gyumri tract, Tuchkov’s vanguard forced the Persian cavalry to retreat.
On June 19, Tsitsianov’s detachment approached Erivan and met with the army of Abbas Mirza. The vanguard of Major General Portnyagin on the same day was unable to immediately capture the Etchmiadzin Monastery and was forced to retreat.
On June 20, during the Battle of Erivan, the main Russian forces defeated the Persians and forced them to retreat.
On June 30, Tsitsianov’s detachment crossed the Zangu River, where, during a fierce battle, they captured the Persian redoubts.
On July 17, near Erivan, the Persian army under the command of Feth Ali Shah attacked Russian positions, but did not achieve success.
On August 21, at Karkalis, the Persians under the command of Sarkhang Mansur and the Georgian prince Alexander destroyed, in an ambush, a detachment of the Tiflis Musketeer Regiment numbering 124 people, including 5 officers, 1 artilleryman, 108 musketeers, 10 Armenian militia, under the command of Major Montresor.
On September 4, due to heavy losses, the Russians lifted the siege of the Erivan fortress and retreated to Georgia.
At the beginning of 1805, the detachment of Major General Nesvetaev occupied the Shuragel Sultanate and annexed it to the possessions of the Russian Empire. The Erivan ruler Mohammed Khan with 3,000 horsemen was unable to offer resistance and was forced to retreat.
On May 14, 1805, the Treaty of Kurekchay was signed between Russia and the Karabakh Khanate. Under its terms, the khan, his heirs and the entire population of the khanate came under Russian rule. Shortly before this, the Karabakh khan Ibrahim Khan completely defeated the Persian army at Dizan.
Following this, on May 21, Sheki Khan Selim Khan expressed a desire to become a Russian citizen, and a similar agreement was signed with him.
In June, Abbas Mirza occupied the Askeran fortress. In response, Karyagin’s Russian detachment knocked the Persians out of the Shah-Bulakh castle. Having learned about this, Abbas Mirza surrounded the castle and began to negotiate its surrender. But the Russian detachment did not think about surrender; their main goal was to detain the Persian detachment of Abbas Mirza. Having learned about the approach of the Shah's army under the command of Feth Ali Shah, Karyagin's detachment left the castle at night and went to Shusha. Soon, near the Askeran Gorge, Karyagin’s detachment collided with Abbas-Mirza’s detachment, but all the latter’s attempts to set up the Russian camp were unsuccessful.
On July 15, the main Russian forces released Shusha and Karyagin’s detachment. Abbas-Mirza, having learned that the main Russian forces had left Elizavetpol, set out in a roundabout way and besieged Elizavetpol. In addition, the path to Tiflis was open to him, which was left without cover. On the evening of July 27, a detachment of 600 bayonets under the command of Karyagin unexpectedly attacked Abbas Mirza’s camp near Shamkhor and completely defeated the Persians.
On November 30, 1805, Tsitsianov’s detachment crossed the Kura and invaded the Shirvan Khanate, and on December 27, the Shirvan khan Mustafa Khan signed an agreement on the transition to citizenship of the Russian Empire.
Meanwhile, on June 23, the Caspian flotilla under the command of Major General Zavalishin occupied Anzeli and landed troops. However, already on July 20 they had to leave Anzeli and head for Baku. On August 12, 1805, the Caspian flotilla dropped anchor in Baku Bay. Major General Zavalishin proposed to the Baku Khan Huseingul Khan a draft agreement on the transition to citizenship of the Russian Empire. However, the negotiations were not successful; the Baku residents decided to put up serious resistance. All property of the population was taken to the mountains in advance. Then, for 11 days, the Caspian flotilla bombarded Baku. By the end of August, the landing detachment captured the advanced fortifications in front of the city. The Khan's troops that left the fortress were defeated. However, heavy losses from the clashes, as well as a lack of ammunition, forced the siege to be lifted from Baku on September 3 and the Baku Bay was completely abandoned on September 9.
On January 30, 1806, Tsitsianov with 2000 bayonets approached Baku. Together with him, the Caspian flotilla approaches Baku and lands troops. Tsitsianov demanded the immediate surrender of the city. On February 8, the transition of the Baku Khanate to the citizenship of the Russian Empire was supposed to take place, but during a meeting with the khan, General Tsitsianov and Lieutenant Colonel Eristov were killed by the khan’s cousin Ibrahim Beg. Tsitsianov's head was sent to Feth Ali Shah. After this, Major General Zavalishin decided to leave Baku.
Appointed instead of Tsitsianov, I.V. Gudovich in the summer of 1806 defeated Abbas Mirza at Karakapet (Karabakh) and conquered the Derbent, Baku (Baku) and Kuba khanates (Cuba).
Started in November 1806 Russian-Turkish war forced the Russian command to conclude the Uzun-Kilis truce with the Persians in the winter of 1806-1807. But in May 1807, Feth-Ali entered into an anti-Russian alliance with Napoleonic France, and in 1808 hostilities resumed. The Russians took Etchmiadzin, defeated Abbas Mirza at Karabab (south of Lake Sevan) in October 1808 and occupied Nakhichevan. After the unsuccessful siege of Erivan, Gudovich was replaced by A.P. Tormasov, who in 1809 repelled the offensive of the army led by Feth-Ali in the Gumra-Artik region and thwarted Abbas-Mirza’s attempt to capture Ganja. Persia broke the treaty with France and restored the alliance with Great Britain, which initiated the conclusion of the Perso-Turkish agreement on joint operations on the Caucasian front. In May 1810, Abbas Mirza’s army invaded Karabakh, but a small detachment of P. S. Kotlyarevsky defeated it at the Migri fortress (June) and on the Araks River (July), in September the Persians were defeated near Akhalkalaki, and thus the Russian troops prevented Persians to unite with the Turks.
Kotlyarevsky changed the situation in Karabakh. Having crossed the Araks, on October 19-20 (October 31 - November 1) he defeated the many times superior forces of the Persians at the Aslanduz ford and on January 1 (13) he took Lenkoran by storm. The Shah had to enter into peace negotiations.
On October 12 (24), 1813, the Peace of Gulistan (Karabakh) was signed, according to which Persia recognized the entry into the Russian Empire of Eastern Georgia and Northern Azerbaijan, Imereti, Guria, Mengrelia and Abkhazia; Russia received the exclusive right to maintain a navy in the Caspian Sea. The war was the beginning of " Big game"between the British and Russian empires in Asia.
For more information about the Russian-Persian War of 1804-1813, see the website: For Advanced - Battles - Russo-Persian War 1804-1813.
Russo-Persian War (1826–1828)
On July 16, 1826, the Persian army, without declaring war, crossed the borders in the Mirak region and invaded the Transcaucasus into the territory of the Karabakh and Talysh khanates. The bulk of the border “zemstvo guards,” consisting of armed horsemen and foot soldiers of Azerbaijani peasants, with rare exceptions, surrendered their positions to the invading Persian troops without much resistance or even joined them.
The main task of the Iranian command was to capture Transcaucasia, capture Tiflis and push back Russian troops beyond the Terek. The main forces were therefore sent from Tabriz to the Kura region, and auxiliary forces to the Mugan steppe to block the exits from Dagestan. The Iranians also counted on a strike from the rear by the Caucasian mountaineers against the Russian troops, who were stretched out in a narrow strip along the border and did not have reserves. Help for the Iranian army was promised by the Karabakh beks and many influential persons of neighboring provinces, who maintained constant contacts with the Persian government and even offered to slaughter the Russians in Shusha and hold it until the approach of Iranian troops.
Transcaucasian region at the start of the war (borders are indicated according to the Treaty of Gulistan and the Peace of Bucharest)
In the Karabakh province, the Russian troops were commanded by Major General Prince V. G. Madatov, a Karabakh Armenian by origin. At the time of the attack, he was replaced by Colonel I. A. Reut, commander of the 42nd Jaeger Regiment, stationed in the area of the Shushi fortress. Ermolov demanded that he hold Shusha with all his might and transfer all the families of influential beks here - thereby ensuring the safety of those who supported the Russian side, and using those who were hostile as hostages.
The first blow on July 16 on Russian territory was delivered by a 16,000-strong group of Erivan Serdar Hussein Khan Qajar, reinforced by Kurdish cavalry (up to 12,000 people). Russian troops on the Georgian border, throughout Bombak (Pambak) and Shurageli (Shirak) numbered about 3,000 people and 12 guns - the Don Cossack regiment of Lieutenant Colonel Andreev (about 500 Cossacks scattered in small groups throughout the territory), two battalions of the Tiflis infantry regiment and two companies of carabinieri. The head of the border line was the commander of the Tiflis regiment, Colonel Prince L. Ya. Sevarsemidze.
Russian units were forced to fight back to Karaklis (modern Vanadzor). Gumry and Karaklis were soon surrounded. The defense of Greater Karaklis, together with Russian troops, was held by two detachments of Armenian (100 people) and Tatar (Azerbaijani) Borchali cavalry (50 people). Strong Persian troops also headed towards Balyk-chay, sweeping away scattered, small Russian posts on their way.
At the same time, Hassan Agha, the brother of the Erivan sardar, with a five-thousand-strong cavalry detachment of Kurds and Karapapakhs went over to Russian territory between Mount Alagyoz (Aragats) and the Turkish border, plundering and burning Armenian villages on the way to Gumry, seizing cattle and horses, exterminating those who resisted local residents-Armenians Having destroyed the Armenian village of Small Karaklis, the Kurds began methodical attacks on the defenders in Greater Karaklis.
On July 18, Abbas Mirza's army of forty thousand crossed the Araks at the Khudoperinsky Bridge. Having received news of this, Colonel I. A. Reut ordered the withdrawal of all troops located in the Karabakh province to the Shusha fortress. At the same time, three companies of the 42nd regiment under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Nazimka and the hundred Cossacks who joined them failed to get through to Shusha from Geryusy, where they were stationed. The Iranians and the rebel Azerbaijanis overtook them, and during a stubborn battle, half of the personnel died, after which the rest, by order of the commander, laid down their arms.
The garrison of the Shushi fortress amounted to 1,300 people (6 companies of the 42nd Jaeger Regiment and Cossacks from the 2nd Molchanov Regiment). A few days before the complete blockade of the fortress, the Cossacks drove the families of all the local Muslim nobility behind its walls as hostages. The Azerbaijanis were disarmed, and the khans and the most honorable beks were put into custody. Residents of the Armenian villages of Karabakh and Azerbaijanis who remained loyal to Russia also took refuge in the fortress. With their help, dilapidated fortifications were restored. To strengthen the defense, Colonel Reut armed 1,500 Armenians, who, together with Russian soldiers and Cossacks, were on the front line. A number of Azerbaijanis also took part in the defense and expressed their allegiance to Russia. However, the fortress did not have supplies of food and ammunition, so the soldiers had to use the grain and livestock of the Armenian peasants who had taken refuge in the fortress to provide meager food for the soldiers.
Meanwhile, the local Muslim population for the most part joined the Iranians, and the Armenians, who did not have time to take refuge in Shusha, fled to mountainous areas. Mehdi Quli Khan, the former ruler of Karabakh, again declared himself khan and promised to generously reward everyone who would join him. Abbas Mirza, for his part, said that he was fighting only against the Russians, and not against the local residents. Foreign officers who were in the service of Abbas Mirza took part in the siege. In order to destroy the walls of the fortress, according to their instructions, mines were placed under the fortress towers. The fortress was subjected to continuous fire from two artillery batteries, but at night the defenders managed to restore the destroyed areas. To create a split among the defenders of the fortress - Russians and Armenians - Abbas Mirza ordered several hundred local Armenian families to be driven under the walls of the fortress and threatened to execute them if the fortress was not surrendered - however, this plan was not successful.
The defense of Shushi lasted 47 days and had great importance for the course of military operations. Desperate to capture the fortress, Abbas Mirza eventually separated 18,000 men from the main force and sent them to Elizavetpol (modern Ganja) to strike Tiflis from the east.
Having received information that the main Persian forces were pinned down by the siege of Shushi, General Ermolov abandoned the original plan to withdraw all forces deep into the Caucasus. By this time, he managed to concentrate up to 8,000 people in Tiflis. Of these, a detachment was formed under the command of Major General Prince V. G. Madatov (4,300 people), who launched an attack on Elizavetpol to stop the advance of the Persian forces towards Tiflis and lift the siege from Shusha.
Meanwhile, in the Bombak province, Russian units, repelling Kurdish cavalry raids on Greater Karaklis, began to retreat north on August 9, beyond Bezobdal, and by August 12 concentrated in the camp at Jalal-Ogly. Meanwhile, Kurdish troops spread in a wide avalanche across the nearby area, destroying villages and slaughtering the Armenian population. On August 14, they attacked the German colony of Ekaterinfeld, just 60 km from Tiflis, after a long battle they burned it and massacred almost all the inhabitants.
After several weeks of calm, on September 2, a three-thousand-strong Kurdish detachment of Hassan Agha crossed the Dzhilgu River, 10 km above Jalal-Ogly (modern Stepanavan), and attacked Armenian villages, destroying them and stealing livestock. Despite the intervention of Russian units and significant losses, the Kurds managed to steal 1,000 head of cattle.
Subsequently, attacks were carried out only by small detachments. By early September the situation had changed in Russia's favor. On March 16 (28), 1827, General Paskevich was appointed commander-in-chief of the Russian troops and governor in the Caucasus region, replacing General Ermolov.
In June, Paskevich moved to Erivan, on July 5 (17) he defeated Abbas-Mirza at the Dzhevan-Bulak stream, and on July 7 (19) he forced the Sardar-Abad fortress to capitulate.
At the beginning of August, Abbas Mirza, trying to prevent the Russian invasion of Azerbaijan, invaded the Erivan Khanate with an army of 25 thousand and, joining forces with the troops of the Erivan Sardar Hussein Khan, besieged Etchmiadzin on August 15 (27), defended only by a battalion of the Sevastopol Infantry Regiment (until 500 people) and a hundred cavalry from the Armenian volunteer squad. On August 16 (28), A. I. Krasovsky with a detachment (up to 3,000 soldiers with 12 guns) came to the aid of besieged Echmiadzin and the next day was attacked from all sides by the troops of Abbas Mirza and Hussein Khan (totaling up to 30 thousand infantry and cavalry with 24 guns). However, the Russian detachment, having suffered huge losses (1,154 people killed, wounded and missing), managed to break through to Etchmiadzin, after which the siege was lifted. The losses of the Persian army amounted to about 3,000. This battle went down in history as the Battle of Oshakan (or Ashtarak).
Military failures forced the Persians to negotiate peace. On February 10 (22), 1828, the Turkmanchay Peace Treaty was signed (in the village of Turkmanchay near Tabriz), concluded between the Russian and Persian empires, according to which Persia confirmed all the terms of the Gulistan Peace Treaty of 1813, recognized the transfer to Russia of part of the Caspian coast up to the river. Astara, Eastern Armenia (A special administrative entity was created on the territory of Eastern Armenia - the Armenian region, with the resettlement of Armenians from Iran there). The Araks became the border between the states.
In addition, the Shah of Persia was obliged to pay an indemnity to Russia (10 kurur tumans - 20 million rubles). As for Iranian Azerbaijan, Russia has undertaken to withdraw troops from it upon payment of indemnity. The Shah of Persia also pledged to grant amnesty to all residents of Iranian Azerbaijan who collaborated with Russian troops.
For more information, see the website: For Advanced - Battles - Russian-Persian War of 1826-1828
Russian intervention in Persia 1909-1911
On April 20, 1909, to the governor in the Caucasus and commander of the troops of the Caucasian Military District, Adjutant General Rafa Illarion Vorontsov-Dashkov a secret directive No. 1124 was sent, which stated: “In view of the expected attack on the consulate and European institutions and subjects in Tabriz by the revolutionaries and the population of Tabriz, driven to despair by hunger... The Sovereign Emperor ordered to immediately move a forced march to Tabriz a detachment of sufficient strength to protection of Russians and foreign institutions and subjects, supplying them with food, as well as maintaining secure communication between Tabriz and Julfa.”
Soon two battalions of the 1st Caucasian Rifle Brigade, four mounted hundreds of Kuban Cossacks, an engineer company and three eight-gun artillery batteries were sent to Persia. This detachment was commanded by the head of the 1st Caucasian Rifle Brigade, Major General I. A. Snarsky. The instructions given to him stated:
“All communications between military commanders in cities occupied by Russian troops with local Persian authorities and with the population must be carried out through diplomatic agents of the Russian Imperial Government; joint stay with Russian troops in populated areas and movement along the roads guarded by Russian troops of any armed detachments and parties whose activities were of a predatory nature is not allowed... The decision on the use of weapons depends solely on the military authorities... Once decision must be carried out irrevocably and with full energy.”
Russian troops had to act mainly against nomads (Kurds and Yomud Turkmen), whom the weak Persian army could not cope with.
For each case of robbery and assault by the Kurds, Russian troops collected a sum of money from their tribal leaders in favor of the injured party. Murders of subjects of the Russian Empire were punishable by death sentences handed down by a Russian military court. Russian consuls reported to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs: “The merchants, together with the entire civilian population of passing villages, bless the arrival of our troops.”
After a short period of calm, in the fall of 1911 the situation escalated again - there were attacks by numerous armed groups on the Russian detachment in Tabriz, and cases of shelling of Russian consular offices and convoys in Rasht became more frequent. Nomads attacked trade caravans. In forays against Russian troops Participating were detachments of pro-Turkish governors of the western provinces, as well as representatives of revolutionary groups in the Russian Transcaucasus. On October 29 (November 11), 1911, in Tehran, the Russian ambassador presented the Persian government with an ultimatum demanding the restoration of order in Persia and the protection of Russia's economic interests. After the expiration of the ultimatum of November 11, 1911, Russian troops crossed the Russian-Persian border and occupied the city of Qazvin. On November 10 (23) in Tehran, after the occupation of northern Persia by Russian troops, the Persian government agreed to satisfy all Russian demands.
The deployment of troops was carried out in three operational directions - from Julfa, Astara and Anzali - to Tehran. Direct operational control of the Russian troops in Persia was carried out by the Quartermaster General of the headquarters of the Caucasian Military District, Major General Nikolai Yudenich. The contingent of Russian troops included: the 14th Georgian and 16th Mingrelian grenadier regiments of the Caucasian Grenadier Division, regiments from the 21st, 39th and 52nd infantry divisions (81st Absheron, 84th Shirvan, 156th Elizavetpolsky, 205th Shemakha, 206th Salyansky and 207th Novobayazetsky) with artillery and machine guns. Transportation of troops by sea, their landing in the port of Anzeli and its fire cover was carried out by Caspian military flotilla.
Communication support was provided by the 2nd Caucasian Railway Battalion and the Caucasian Automobile Team. The railway battalion began construction of the Julfa-Tehran railway line. The arrangement of temporary headquarters was carried out by the 1st Caucasian Engineer Battalion. Communications were provided by the Caucasian Spark Company.
Infantry units with attached hundreds of Kuban and Terek Cossacks were organized into detachments. At the same time, two detachments - Meshedsky and Kuchansky formed the troops of the Turkestan Military District - two battalions of the 13th and 18th Turkestan Rifle Regiments, two cavalry hunting teams from the same units, two machine gun platoons and a hundred of the Turkmen cavalry division.
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When Russian troops seized large quantities of weapons in Tabriz and Rasht, riots broke out, which led to civilian casualties. Real battles began around these cities. Turkish troops entered the western borderlands of Persia, the disputed territories, and took control of the passes in the mountain passes between Khoy and Dilman.
Russian troops began operations to oust Turkish troops from Persian territory. Russian units approached the Turkish bivouacs at dawn and, placing cannons and machine guns on the heights, demanded that they leave Persian territory. The Turks offered no resistance.
The commander of the 11th Turkish corps, Jabir Pasha, in the presence of foreign consuls, stated: “Having seen in practice what the Persian constitution is and what kind of anarchy reigns in Persia, I personally believe that the arrival of Russian troops in Persia is a manifestation of humanity and humanity, and not the result any aggressive intentions. The Russians act in Persia very skillfully and carefully, and therefore the sympathies of almost the entire population are on their side.”
After ensuring stability, most of the Russian troops left Persia, but individual Russian units remained on Persian territory until the outbreak of the First World War.
1941
Iranian operation
The Anglo-Soviet World War II operation to occupy Iran, codenamed " Operation "Consent" (eng. Operation Countenance) was carried out from August 25, 1941 to September 17, 1941.
Its goal was to protect the Anglo-Iranian oil fields from possible capture by German troops and their allies, as well as to protect the transport corridor (southern corridor), along which the Allies carried out Lend-Lease supplies to the Soviet Union.
These actions were taken due to the fact that, according to the assessments of the political leadership of both Great Britain and the USSR, there was a direct threat of Iran being drawn to the side of Germany as an ally in World War II.
The Shah of Iran, Reza Pahlavi, refused Britain and the Soviet Union's request to station troops in Iran. Motivating your participation in this military operation against Iran, the Soviet government referred to paragraphs 5 and 6 of the Treaty in force at that time between Soviet Russia and Iran from 1921, which provided that in the event of a threat to its southern borders, the Soviet Union has the right to send troops into Iranian territory.
During the operation armed forces The Allies invaded Iran, overthrew Shah Reza Pahlavi, and took control of the Trans-Iranian Railway and Iran's oil fields. At the same time, British troops occupied the south of Iran, and the USSR occupied the north.
Read more about Operation “Consent” on the website: WWII - Operation “Consent” “