The East-Azerbaijan Provincial Palace ( fa, کاخ استانداری آذربایجان شرقی) is the main office for

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

's East-Azerbaijan provincial governor in downtown

Tabriz Tabriz ( fa, تبریز ; ) is a city in northwestern Iran, serving as the capital of East Azerbaijan Province. It is the List of largest cities of Iran, sixth-most-populous city in Iran. In the Quri Chay, Quru River valley in Iran's historic Aze ...

. The history of the palace goes back to the

Safavid Safavid Iran or Safavid Persia (), also referred to as the Safavid Empire, '. was one of the greatest Iranian empires after the 7th-century Muslim conquest of Persia, which was ruled from 1501 to 1736 by the Safavid dynasty. It is often conside ...

and Zand dynasties, when it was named ''Aali Qapou''. The original construction of the palace was supervised by Najaf Qoli Khan for the Safavid kings, when Tabriz was the capital of

. During the Qajar era, Aali Qapu served as the residence for the crown prince of Iran. It was reconstructed and repaired under

Naser al-Din Shah Naser al-Din Shah Qajar ( fa, ناصرالدین‌شاه قاجار; 16 July 1831 – 1 May 1896) was the fourth Shah of Qajar Iran from 5 September 1848 to 1 May 1896 when he was assassinated. He was the son of Mohammad Shah Qajar and Malek ...

, during which its name was changed to ''Shams ol-Emareh''. Since the Iranian Constitutional Revolution, the palace has been used as the provincial governorship office ( fa, کاخ استانداری). The main parts of the original building were destroyed in a fire in 1933, which was followed by a major flood. Remaining parts of the original palace were destroyed entirely by the East Azerbaijan governor at the time,

Ali Mansur Ali Khan Mansur ( fa, علی خان منصور, also known as ''Mansur ul-Mulk'' ()‎; 1886 – 8 December 1974) was the Prime Minister of Iran for two terms between 1940 and 1941 and in 1950. Biography Born in Tehran, he served as Govern ...

, and a newer building was constructed. The new building which has survived up to now is mostly constructed in Mansur's time in Tabriz as governor. Part of the state building is open for public visitors.

History

Aali Qapu (1500–1800)

The original building of the ''Aali Qapu'' palace was built in the late

era, when Tabriz was capital of the Iranian Empire. This building was built in competition with

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

, while two states were sworn enemies of each other. In later years during Afsharid dynasty and Zand dynasty, the palace was used as the palace for local governor of Azerbaijan.

Shams ol Emareh (1800–1933)

With the rise of the Qajar dynasty and with the increase of Tabriz's role in Iranian politics, the city was chosen as the office of the Crown Prince. A newer section called Haram-khaneh (''residence'') was constructed next to the palace as the residence of the Prince as well. In period of Naser al-Din Mirza residence, the building was renamed to ''Shams ol-Emareh'', after the eponymous building in Tehran's Golestan Palace. During the Qajar era, many royal ceremonies were held in this building, including the wedding of Prince Etezad ol-Saltaneh.

East Azerbaijan Provincial Palace (1933–present)

Following the fall of the Qajar dynasty and the rise of the

Pahlavi dynasty The Pahlavi dynasty ( fa, دودمان پهلوی) was the last Iranian royal dynasty, ruling for almost 54 years between 1925 and 1979. The dynasty was founded by Reza Shah Pahlavi, a non-aristocratic Mazanderani soldier in modern times, who ...

, Tabriz lost its traditional dominant role in Iranian politics, along with its traditional royal importance. The building was then used as the office of the East Azerbaijan governor. In 1933 during Adib-ol-Saltaneh Samei (in

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

: ''ادیب السلطنه سمیعی''), large parts of the building were ruined in a fire. Many people were blamed Samei for his ignorance in the protection of the palace. In 1934 some other parts of the building were destroyed during a major flood. In 1946, Governor

(in

: ''علی منصور''), the rest of the remaining parts of the palace were destroyed and a new marble building was constructed instead, which has served as the office of the provincial governor till now. In 1969, the Haram-khaneh building was also destroyed and the city's governor office was built in its place. Local people criticized governors for their ignorance and the destruction of the city's heritages.

Museum

In 2013 a museum titled East Azerbaijan Governorship was established in the building containing the photos of Azerbaijan governors, important documents, memorials and gifts for the governors.

War Heroes Statues

On 2013 statue of six war heroes from Iranian Azerbaijan, who were killed in action during Iran Iraq war, were erected in Shohada square, in front of the Provincial Palace. The statues include statue of

Javad Fakoori Javad Fakoori ( fa, جواد فکوری, 3 January 1936 – 29 September 1981) was a prominent military figure who served as the 4th defence minister of Iran in September 1980 to August 1981. Career Fakoori was a commander of the Islamic Republ ...

, former commander of IRIAF and

Mehdi Bakeri Mehdi Bakeri ( fa, مهدی باکری‎; 1954 – 16 March 1985) was an Iranian war hero in the Iran–Iraq War. He graduated in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Tabriz. During the Iranian revolution of 1979 he joined the proteste ...

, a commander of volunteer forces File:Ali-qapi.jpg, Aali Qapu's main building. File:Ali-qapu-1800s.jpg, Wedding ceremony of Etezad-ol-Saltaneh. File:Aaliqapu-green house.jpg, Haramkhane and green house of Aali-Qapu, in a royal ceremony. File:Tabriz 66381395.jpg, Hail ceremony to Prince Mozaffar Mirza in Haram khana part of Aali Qapu late on 1800s. File:House of Mirza by Eugène Flandin.jpg, Haramkhane, sketched by

Eugene Flandin Eugene may refer to: People and fictional characters * Eugene (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Eugene (actress) (born 1981), Kim Yoo-jin, South Korean actress and former member of the sin ...

, 1841. File:Shohada square of Tabriz.jpg, A photo of the State Palace after reconstruction.

Etymology

The original name of the building, i.e., ''Aali Qapu'' is made of two parts: 'Aali (عالی) which is from Arabic and means 'high, sublime' and Qapu (قاپو) which is from Turkic and means 'door'. This name was also used in the Safavid era for a building in Isfahan.

References

{{Portalbar, Iran Government buildings in Iran Tourist attractions in Tabriz Buildings and structures in Tabriz Politics of East Azerbaijan Province