The Role of British Military Experts in the Formation of the Qajar Troops in the First Quarter of the Xix Century

Abstract

This research deals with the role of British military experts in shaping Qajar troops during the Russian-Iranian wars of 1804–1813 and 1826–1828. The article is based on a wide range both of published works and archival material. A greater portion of yet-unpublished materials dealing with the activities of British officers in Iran, as well as diplomatic documents and legislative acts is kept at RSHA1 and RSAN2. Besides, the author has relied on materials of the British Library, Asia, Pacific and Africa Collections, including archival materials of India Office Records (1858-1947).3 In addition to archival materials, the research has referred to existing sources, correspondence between diplomatic representatives of Great Britain and Russia, Qajar Iran, diaries, memoirs, travel notes of participants and contemporaries of the epoch in question. The above facts make it possible to examine the eastern policy of England, its relations with Qajar Iran, and specifically, questions arising from aid (military experts, uniform and weaponry) and funding for army reorganization; also, the attempts made in this directions by the heir to the throne, fiAbbas Mirza (1789-1833). The article does not pretend to provide a comprehensive analysis of this scantily explored subject, but aims to give a brief review of striking examples of British-Qajar interaction in the military sphere.