The Russian occupation of Tabriz lasted from 30 April 1909 until 28 February 1918, with a brief interruption during 6–31 January 1915. V. Minorsky, C. E. Bosworth and Sheila S. Blair, "Tabriz", in C. E. Bosworth (ed.), ''Historic Cities of the Islamic World'' (Leiden: Brill, 2007), pp. 486–498, at 496. The city of

Tabriz Tabriz (; ) is a city in the Central District (Tabriz County), Central District of Tabriz County, in the East Azerbaijan province, East Azerbaijan province of northwestern Iran. It serves as capital of the province, the county, and the distric ...

was the second city of

Qajar Iran The Guarded Domains of Iran, alternatively the Sublime State of Iran and commonly called Qajar Iran, Qajar Persia or the Qajar Empire, was the Iranian state under the rule of the Qajar dynasty, which was of Turkic peoples, Turkic origin,Cyrus G ...

at the time, the capital of the region of Azarbaijan, and the traditional residence of the Qajar Crown Prince. It was occupied by

Imperial Russia Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor/empress, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imperial, Nebraska * Imperial, Pennsylvania * ...

. During the

Persian Constitutional Revolution The Persian Constitutional Revolution (, or ''Enghelāb-e Mashrūteh''), also known as the Constitutional Revolution of Iran, took place between 1905 and 1911 during the Qajar Iran, Qajar era. The revolution led to the establishment of a Majl ...

, rebellion broke out in Tabriz on 23 June 1908. In early February 1909 government forces under Prince ʿAyn-al-dawla surrounded the city. On 20 April, in response to the siege situation,

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and

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agreed that a Russian force should be sent to occupy the city in order "to facilitate the entrance into the town of the necessary provisions, to protect the consulates and foreign subjects, and to help those who so desired to leave the town." The Russian force under General Snarski occupied Tabriz on 30 April 1909. Negotiations for its withdrawal soon began but dragged on into 1911. On 29 November 1911, the Russian government presented the Persian government with an ultimatum. There were several demands, but most important was to fire the newly employed American lawyer Morgan Shuster. Shuster had been hired by the ''Majlis'' (parliament) to organise the country's financial affairs. Upon the Persian parliament's refusal to fire Shuster, the shah dissolved the parliament and agreed to the Russian ultimatum. The ultimatum nevertheless created unrest in Tabriz. On 21 December,

fedayeen Fedayeen ( ''fidāʻiyyūn'' "self-sacrificers") is an Arabic language, Arabic term used to refer to various military groups willing to sacrifice themselves for a larger campaign. Etymology "Fidayun" is the plural of "fidayi" ( ''fidāʻiyy'' ...

attacked the Russian troops, inflicting severe casualties. In response, a brigade of the

Imperial Russian Army The Imperial Russian Army () was the army of the Russian Empire, active from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was organized into a standing army and a state militia. The standing army consisted of Regular army, regular troops and ...

was dispatched to Tabriz under General Voropanov. Its aim was to occupy three major cities: Tabriz, Anzali and

Rasht Rasht (; ) is a city in the Central District (Rasht County), Central District of Rasht County, Gilan province, Gilan province, Iran, serving as the capital of the province, the county, and the district. The city is also known as the "City of ...

. The most fierce battle of the Russian invasion occurred in Tabriz, where the constitutionalists resisted. After about three days, the defense of the city's residents broke. The Russians shelled Tabriz with artillery and entered the city on 31 December. Once in control, the Russians held courts martial to try the fedayeen. The Russians executed the constitutional revolutionaries of Tabriz and their relatives ''en masse'' and many civilians of Tabriz as well. The total number of executions is estimated to have been about 1,200. The Seqat-ol-Eslam Tabrizi, a leader of the local Shaykhi sect, was among them. The Russians also destroyed part of the Arg of Tabriz by shelling it. Fire broke out in the Arg while it was held by Russian troops. During the Russian occupation, Crown Prince Mohammad Hassan Mirza resided in Tabriz. Beginning in 1906 and through a Persian concession, a Russian government company had constructed a road from the Russian railhead at Julfa to Tabriz. While the region under Russian occupation, they upgraded the road to a railroad. It opened to traffic in May 1916 as the first railroad in Persia. After the

Ottoman entry into World War I The Ottoman Empire's entry into World War I began on 29 October 1914 when two recently purchased ships of its navy, which were still crewed by German Empire, German sailors and commanded by their German admiral, carried out the Black Sea Raid, a ...

in November 1914, Ottoman troops advanced into the Caucasus against Russia. This threatened to cut off the troops in Azerbaijan and an evacuation was ordered. Between 17 December 1914 and 6 January 1915, all Russian troops left Tabriz. Many local Christians, namely differing denominations of

Assyrians Assyrians (, ) are an ethnic group indigenous to Mesopotamia, a geographical region in West Asia. Modern Assyrians share descent directly from the ancient Assyrians, one of the key civilizations of Mesopotamia. While they are distinct from ot ...

, left with them.

Ottoman Kurds Ottoman Kurds were ethnic Kurds who lived in the Ottoman Empire. At its peak, the Ottoman Empire ruled North Kurdistan, South Kurdistan, West Kurdistan, and a small part of East Kurdistan. Parts of Greater Kurdistan under Ottoman control are ...

under Aḥmad Mukhtār Bey Shamkhal occupied the city on 8 January. The Ottoman–Kurdish occupation did not last long. The Ottomans were decisively defeated in the

Battle of Sarikamish The Battle of Sarikamish was an engagement between the Russian Empire, Russian and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empires during World War I. It took place from December 22, 1914, to January 17, 1915, as part of the Caucasus campaign. The battle resul ...

and the Russians were able to reoccupy the city on 31 January 1915. They remained in control until the

Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution, social change in Russian Empire, Russia, starting in 1917. This period saw Russia Dissolution of the Russian Empire, abolish its mona ...

of November 1917 created disorder and confusion among the troops. The evacuation began in early 1918 and on 28 February the last Russian soldiers left Tabriz. On 18 June, the Ottomans began occupying the city.

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References

{{Iran–Russia relations Invasions by Russia Russian military occupations 1910s in the Russian Empire 1910s in Iran Persian Constitutional Revolution History of Tabriz Iran–Russia military relations Invasions of Iran 1911 in Iran 1911 in the Russian Empire 2nd term of the Iranian Majlis Conflicts in 1911 Mass murder in 1911 Qajar Iran

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References