Lachenburg
17-03-2006, 19:25
The Qajar Kingdom of Iran
(الأخطاء الإملائية معلّمة باللون)
http://www.geocities.com/hammihanirani/flag.jpg
A Short History (1799-1910):
A detested ruler (assassinated 1797), Aga Muhammad Khan defeated the last ruler of the Zand dynasty and established the Qajar dynasty (1794–1925). This long period saw Iran steadily lose territory to neighboring countries and fall under the increasing pressure of European nations, particularly czarist Russia. Under Fath Ali Shah (1797–1834), Persian claims in the entire Caucasian area were challenged by the Russians in a long struggle that ended with the Treaty of Gulistan (1813) and the Treaty of Turkmanchay (1828), by which Iran was forced to give up the Caucasian lands. Herat, the rich city on the Hari Rud, which had been part of the ancient Persian Empire, was taken by the Afghans. A series of campaigns to reclaim it ended with the intervention of the British on behalf of Afghanistan and resulted in the recognition of Afghan independence by Iran in 1857.
The discovery of oil in the early 1900s intensified the rivalry of Great Britain and Russia for power over the nation. Internally, the early 20th cent. saw the rise of the constitutional movement and a constitution establishing a parliament was accepted by the shah in 1906. Meanwhile, the British-Russian rivalry continued and in 1907 resulted in an Anglo-Russian agreement (annulled after World War I) that divided Iran into spheres of influence. Currently, the nation suffers under the grip of Civil War as Shah-backed Traditionalists seek to destroy the Constitutional Government.
People:
Iran's central position has made it a crossroads of migration; the population is not homogeneous, although it has a Persian core that includes over half of the people. Azerbaijanis constitute almost a quarter of the population. The migrant ethnic groups of the mountains and highlands, including the Kurds, Lurs, Qashqai, and Bakhtiari, are of the least mixed descent of the original Iranians. In the northern provinces, Turkic and Tatar influences are evident; Arab strains predominate in the southeast. Iran has a large rural population, found mainly in agrarian villages, although there are nomadic and seminomadic pastoralists throughout the country.
Islam entered the country in the 7th cent. A.D. and is now the official religion; about 90% of Iranians are Muslims of the Shiite sect. The remainder, mostly Kurds and Arabs, are Sunnis. Small colonies of Zoroastrians and Jews also linger among the country although their numbers are insignificant.
The principal language of the country is Persian (Farsi), which is written in Arabic characters. Other languages are Turkic dialects, Turkish, Kurdish, Armenian, and Arabic. Among the educated classes, English and French are spoken.
Government:
The Current Government of Iran is a Constitutional Monarchy lead by Shah Mohammad Ali Shah Qajar (محمدعلی شاه قاجار). However, full suffrage has yet to be extended to males along with freedom of speech, press, religion and other various liberties.
Seat of Power: Tehran
Flag of the Monarchy:
http://www.farhangsara.com/geography/realflagfinal2.jpg
Map of the Monarchy:
http://www.rockstone.biz/images/iran-map.gif
Economy:
About 10% of the land in Iran is arable yet provides nearly 60% of jobs in the nation. The main food-producing areas are in the Caspian region and in the valleys of the northwest. Wheat, the most important crop, is grown mainly in the west and northwest; rice is the major crop in the Caspian region. Barley, corn, cotton, sugar beets, tea, hemp, tobacco, fruits (including citrus), nuts, and dates are also grown, and livestock is raised. Illicit cultivation of the opium poppy is fairly common.
The principal obstacles to agricultural production are primitive farming methods, overworked and underfertilized soil, poor seed, and scarcity of water. About one third of the cultivated land is irrigated.
The northern slopes of the Elburz Mts. are heavily wooded, and forestry products are economically important and logging industries have thrived in the area, unrestricted, for many years. In the rivers entering the Caspian Sea are salmon, carp, trout, and pike; sturgeon are abundant in the Caspian Sea.
Textiles are the second most important industrial product; Tehran and Esfahan are the chief textile-producing centers. Traditional handicrafts such as carpet weaving and the manufacture of ceramics, silk, and jewelry are also important to the economy.
Also, since 1908, the extraction and refinement of oil and natural gas has become an increasingly important part of the economy although most of the fields currently in use are under British control.
[More to be added]
(الأخطاء الإملائية معلّمة باللون)
http://www.geocities.com/hammihanirani/flag.jpg
A Short History (1799-1910):
A detested ruler (assassinated 1797), Aga Muhammad Khan defeated the last ruler of the Zand dynasty and established the Qajar dynasty (1794–1925). This long period saw Iran steadily lose territory to neighboring countries and fall under the increasing pressure of European nations, particularly czarist Russia. Under Fath Ali Shah (1797–1834), Persian claims in the entire Caucasian area were challenged by the Russians in a long struggle that ended with the Treaty of Gulistan (1813) and the Treaty of Turkmanchay (1828), by which Iran was forced to give up the Caucasian lands. Herat, the rich city on the Hari Rud, which had been part of the ancient Persian Empire, was taken by the Afghans. A series of campaigns to reclaim it ended with the intervention of the British on behalf of Afghanistan and resulted in the recognition of Afghan independence by Iran in 1857.
The discovery of oil in the early 1900s intensified the rivalry of Great Britain and Russia for power over the nation. Internally, the early 20th cent. saw the rise of the constitutional movement and a constitution establishing a parliament was accepted by the shah in 1906. Meanwhile, the British-Russian rivalry continued and in 1907 resulted in an Anglo-Russian agreement (annulled after World War I) that divided Iran into spheres of influence. Currently, the nation suffers under the grip of Civil War as Shah-backed Traditionalists seek to destroy the Constitutional Government.
People:
Iran's central position has made it a crossroads of migration; the population is not homogeneous, although it has a Persian core that includes over half of the people. Azerbaijanis constitute almost a quarter of the population. The migrant ethnic groups of the mountains and highlands, including the Kurds, Lurs, Qashqai, and Bakhtiari, are of the least mixed descent of the original Iranians. In the northern provinces, Turkic and Tatar influences are evident; Arab strains predominate in the southeast. Iran has a large rural population, found mainly in agrarian villages, although there are nomadic and seminomadic pastoralists throughout the country.
Islam entered the country in the 7th cent. A.D. and is now the official religion; about 90% of Iranians are Muslims of the Shiite sect. The remainder, mostly Kurds and Arabs, are Sunnis. Small colonies of Zoroastrians and Jews also linger among the country although their numbers are insignificant.
The principal language of the country is Persian (Farsi), which is written in Arabic characters. Other languages are Turkic dialects, Turkish, Kurdish, Armenian, and Arabic. Among the educated classes, English and French are spoken.
Government:
The Current Government of Iran is a Constitutional Monarchy lead by Shah Mohammad Ali Shah Qajar (محمدعلی شاه قاجار). However, full suffrage has yet to be extended to males along with freedom of speech, press, religion and other various liberties.
Seat of Power: Tehran
Flag of the Monarchy:
http://www.farhangsara.com/geography/realflagfinal2.jpg
Map of the Monarchy:
http://www.rockstone.biz/images/iran-map.gif
Economy:
About 10% of the land in Iran is arable yet provides nearly 60% of jobs in the nation. The main food-producing areas are in the Caspian region and in the valleys of the northwest. Wheat, the most important crop, is grown mainly in the west and northwest; rice is the major crop in the Caspian region. Barley, corn, cotton, sugar beets, tea, hemp, tobacco, fruits (including citrus), nuts, and dates are also grown, and livestock is raised. Illicit cultivation of the opium poppy is fairly common.
The principal obstacles to agricultural production are primitive farming methods, overworked and underfertilized soil, poor seed, and scarcity of water. About one third of the cultivated land is irrigated.
The northern slopes of the Elburz Mts. are heavily wooded, and forestry products are economically important and logging industries have thrived in the area, unrestricted, for many years. In the rivers entering the Caspian Sea are salmon, carp, trout, and pike; sturgeon are abundant in the Caspian Sea.
Textiles are the second most important industrial product; Tehran and Esfahan are the chief textile-producing centers. Traditional handicrafts such as carpet weaving and the manufacture of ceramics, silk, and jewelry are also important to the economy.
Also, since 1908, the extraction and refinement of oil and natural gas has become an increasingly important part of the economy although most of the fields currently in use are under British control.
[More to be added]