Chapter 129
Chapter 129
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 129
Chapter Title: Continuing Crisis (1)
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"Bosnia, and now Persia..."
With just days left in 1908—a year full of turmoil from the end of the Bosnian crisis to the ascension of the Xuantong Emperor in China—I sighed and scratched my head at the news from Persia.
Was that faint cry of frustration from Minister Schöll behind me just my imagination?
"Uwaaaah!"
Nope, guess not.
Anyway, the Persian issue was a real headache in every way.
Persia, under the rule of the Qajar Dynasty, had undergone the Persian Constitutional Revolution starting in 1905. By 1906, parliamentary politics had been introduced.
Yet despite the start of true constitutional governance, the Qajar regime lived up to its reputation as Persia's worst dynasty. The incompetence and corruption of its royals and nobles, stuck in pre-modern thinking, kept the country in chaos.
And then, in 1907, the current monarch of Qajar Persia, Mohammad Ali Shah, who had ascended the throne the previous year, committed a colossal blunder.
Irritated by the lower classes stirring up trouble, Mohammad Ali Shah wanted to drag Persia back to the pre-revolutionary days of absolute monarchy.
One day, it seems the Shah had a sudden thought.
'What if I just blow up the parliament? Won't that shut them up?'
It sounds absurd, but Mohammad Ali Shah actually did it.
On June 23 this year, he hauled cannons to the Majlis, Persia's parliament, and bombarded it. Then, using the Persian Cossack Brigade dispatched by Russia to aid him, he arrested all the constitutionalist leaders stunned by his madness.
The Majlis, not even two years old, was reduced to rubble—and to add insult to injury, it was looted by the Cossacks. Most of the constitutionalist leaders gathered there were either killed in the shelling or executed by the Shah.
Mohammad Ali Shah probably watched from his palace, laughing maniacally. But as with all things in the world, events didn't unfold as he wished.
"Rise up, Persians! Defend the constitution from the tyrant!"
Outraged by the Shah's barbaric act of shelling parliament and trampling it with foreign troops, the constitutionalists rose in rebellion in Tabriz.
Mohammad Ali Shah, lacking the wits to foresee this, panicked. He hastily sent troops to Tabriz to crush the rebels, but even now, his forces hadn't captured the city.
The Tabriz rebels were showing true grit, clinging on desperately—chewing on tree leaves during the famine caused by the siege.
And that's where the trouble for me really began.
Mohammad Ali Shah, determined to take Tabriz at any cost, requested Russian support.
And the Russian Empire accepted.
For Russia, long influential in Persia, this was a golden opportunity to expand their sway.
But Russia wasn't the only power with stakes in Persia this era.
Britain, always meddling in every crisis, had interests there too.
In the original history, Britain had allied with Russia via the Anglo-Russian Entente, so they supported Mohammad Ali Shah together and crushed the constitutionalists.
But in this world, no such entente existed. Britain and Russia were still at odds.
Persia had long been the stage for their Great Game.
So Russia deploying troops to boost its influence was something Britain viewed with grave concern.
The mighty British Empire not intervening? That wouldn't be the British Empire.
Thanks to that, after the Bosnian crisis, I sighed at the return of the Great Game, which would ratchet up Europe's tensions even further.
And as the new year dawned, Edward VII—visiting Berlin on a state visit—came to see me with a beaming smile, making my sighs even heavier.
"...So, you're saying you want the German Empire to intervene in the Persian matter alongside Britain?"
"That's right."
As I'd anticipated, Britain wouldn't sit idly by while Russia used the constitutional revolution as a pretext to expand in Persia.
Even during the Anglo-German talks long ago, they'd eyed Persia covetously.
Just think about the three Anglo-Afghan Wars for obvious reasons.
Of course, I hadn't expected Edward VII to come right out and propose that Britain and Germany join hands to block Russia's meddling in Persia.
Why were our allies so desperate to drag peaceful Germany into the quagmire of war?
At this point, maybe I should question the German Empire's luck with friends.
"According to the Anglo-German Agreement, the German Empire acknowledges Britain's right to military intervention in Persia if necessary—but it doesn't say we join in."
"Ah, it's not like the Crimean War, where Germany and Britain fight Russia directly in Persia. They wouldn't want open military clashes with us either."
True. Russia's goal was probably to back the exiled Mohammad Ali Shah, topple the constitutional government, and either turn a restored Shah into a puppet for a Russian satellite state or absorb Persia like the Kazakh or Bukharan khanates in Central Asia.
'Britain isn't blind enough to let that happen.'
Persia held immense value for Britain.
So, as always, they'd stop Russia's southward push by any means. And their method here was obvious.
"Britain plans to support the current Persian constitutional government and fight a proxy war. And your request for German help means you want us to supply weapons to the constitutionalists."
"You're quick on the uptake, as always."
Less my quick understanding and more that it was the obvious play for our "Henggiri" friends.
"I agree that Russia expanding further in Persia is unwise. But intervening in a Persian matter where we have no stakes would likely bring more losses than gains."
"What do you want?"
Edward VII snorted, as if he'd expected this, and gestured for me to name my price.
"As you know, Persia has oil."
Unlike Middle Eastern oil, which wouldn't be prospected until mid-century, Persia's fields had already been discovered in 1908 by British businessman William Knox D'Arcy.
And Britain would soon found the Anglo-Persian Oil Company—precursor to BP, their largest refiner—to suck Persia's oil dry for free, putting it to good use in World War I.
"Baron, I trust you're not demanding Persian oil for mere arms support."
"Of course not."
I'm no highway robber.
"Just give us a seat at the table. You're planning to set up a refinery company for Persian oil anyway, right? We'll invest—toss us some shares."
"Hmm... That sounds fine. Not a bad deal for us either."
Sharing the good stuff with friends is an age-old tradition, isn't it?
Middle Eastern oil exploration was booming anyway—might as well stick a straw in Persia's too.
'Though this could turn Persia into one of World War I's battlegrounds.'
In original history, despite declaring neutrality, Persian soil saw clashes between Ottoman troops and British-Russian forces. The risk was high here too.
Though without the Ottomans, it'd be Russia + Mohammad Ali Shah vs. Persian constitutionalists + Britain.
"Then we'll proceed that way...... Ugh?!"
"Your Majesty?!"
As Edward VII smiled contentedly and rose from his seat, his face suddenly twisted, and he staggered badly.
If I hadn't caught him quickly, he would've fallen and been seriously hurt.
"Are you alright?"
"Fine. Just a brief dizzy spell."
"You need to be more careful at your age."
"I'm fine. Really."
Edward VII said so, but I couldn't erase the worry from my face.
He'd die next spring, after all.
"Still, please take care of your health. Ease up on work a bit."
"Haha, that's just what George says. I'll manage my health—don't worry."
Edward VII replied with his usual cheer, but he didn't seem to be taking it to heart.
His days were numbered, it seemed.
Britain moved swiftly.
Via the British consulate in Isfahan, they declared support for the Persian constitutionalist leaders, who welcomed it with cheers—they desperately needed great power backing.
Soon, in February 1909, a revolt erupted in Isfahan. Najaf-Qoli Khan Bakhtiari—the constitutionalist leader who, in original history, ousted Mohammad Ali Shah and became Persia's prime minister—successfully seized the city.
Using Isfahan as a base, the constitutionalists, bolstered by British supplies and German weapons, began conquering the south.
Persia's south was long under heavy British influence and adjacent to the Persian Gulf, making it essential for sea-based British aid.
They surely yearned to rescue their comrades trapped in Tabriz, but it was too far from Isfahan—and too close to Russia.
With Britain now involved, Mohammad Ali Shah and Russia would race to crush Tabriz before any relief could arrive. The constitutionalists' army likely wouldn't make it in time.
In the end, the constitutionalists bitterly abandoned Tabriz, and events unfolded as expected.
Britain's intervention turned Mohammad Ali Shah's face ashen; he frantically begged Russia to hurry.
Begging for more aid was a bonus.
But Pyotr Stolypin, the Russian Prime Minister, had no desire to wade deeper into Persia.
With relations soured by the Bosnian crisis, reigniting the Great Game would only pour oil on the fire—hardly helpful for Russia.
War loomed over Europe.
A massive war unlike any before.
Stolypin believed it would devastate the Russian Empire, so he sought to avoid sparking it wherever possible.
"Your Majesty, we must consider this carefully. The Balkans are tense after Bosnia. Here, peaceful resolution with Britain is..."
Despite Prime Minister Stolypin's advice, Tsar Nicholas II didn't hide his displeasure.
It wasn't the answer he wanted.
Then Rasputin, sent by Empress Alexandra, whispered in the Tsar's ear.
"If we let these revolutionary rabble run wild in Persia, it will tarnish the Russian Empire and Your Majesty's dignity. Why not make an example of Persia to warn domestic agitators?"
Only then did Nicholas II smile satisfied, deciding to bestow "mercy" on the poor infidel monarch.
Stolypin pressed his hand to his gleaming forehead as a headache throbbed, vowing to expel that damned perverted monk from St. Petersburg by any means necessary.