Qajar Iran at the centre of British–Russian confrontation in the 1820s

Abstract

Failure of negotiations between Qajar Iran and Russia on the delimitation of the border line, as well as the outbreak of hostilities on the borders of the two states, led to the second Russian–Iranian war in July 1826. The main object of Russian–Iranian dispute during this period was the South Caucasus. The article examines what led up to the second Russian–Iranian war (1826–1828) and the official position of the British Foreign Office on the eve of and during the war. The task of British diplomacy in Qajar Iran was to maintain the shaky barrier – the Qajar throne – between Russia and India. Unsuccessful wars with Russia had a major impact on the political situation in Qajar Iran. The ruling circles were forced to reckon with the fact of Iran’s transformation into a country that had become the object of rivalry between the colonial powers. From that moment on, Iran was involved in the ‘great game’ that soon unfolded between Russia and Britain in the Middle East. This article analyses foreign policy of Great Britain and Russian empire in this region by examining a considerable body of documents and sources.