Persian Empire 1845

Chapter 23 Hiring Foreigners

People in the capital region who want to travel to the West either pay for it themselves or go through the connections of the Governor-General of Azerbaijan. This was intentional on Mohammed's part, as he wanted to provide his son with enough supporters.

To avoid disappointing his father, Naser al-Din arrived in Mazandran, where the landowners, gentry, and Ulima treated him with utmost respect.

There's no other way; if they want to save their lives, they have to listen to the governor. Otherwise, those armed troops won't be so easy to talk to.

Having control of the machinery of violence makes things much easier; no matter how unwilling the local officials are, Naserdin has to force them to agree.

These people had been tyrannical and oppressive in the local areas, and the governor, as the savior of the people, naturally had to rescue them from their misery.

"Long live the Governor! Long live the Shah!"

The streets of Mazander were filled with crowds welcoming Naser al-Din. They had initially thought this governor was just a figurehead, but it turned out he used the same methods to deal with officials as Ismail, even though Ismail was targeting infidels.

Naser al-Din gained a preliminary understanding of the local situation. As the "Jiangnan beyond the Great Wall" of Persia, this region produced a large proportion of the country's grain. Other crops included tea, raw silk, and opium. Thanks to its proximity to the Caspian Sea, it could also export these products to Russia through its ports.

However, Russia only accounts for a small portion; the majority is sold to other provinces and then re-exported abroad, or consumed domestically. Azerbaijan has the largest demand, so most of Mazandran's crops are sold to Tabriz.

“What is the income here?” Naserdin asked the official next to him.

"My lord, Mazandran can collect 50 tomans every year, which is the most among all the provinces."

This is true. Given the current sluggish state of domestic industry and commerce, Mazanderland, with its abundant agricultural resources, is a top taxpayer.

Naserdin nodded. The area was indeed rich in resources, but most of it was land owned by officials and religious institutions, with very few independent farmers.

"Seeing how good this place is, Shah must feel very reassured."

Hearing the governor say this, everyone felt relieved. It seemed that things were settled; as long as he received a sum of money every year, the status quo could be maintained.

Naser al-Din also felt it was too early to take full control, as he didn't have many officials to directly govern. For now, he could only rely on local officials to help him, subtly pressuring them to contribute funds to his army and industry. In this way, he would temporarily turn a blind eye to some of the problems.

However, this inspection established his authority, and those restless individuals temporarily subdued themselves. What a joke! With such a well-equipped army at his command, how could these few insignificant figures dare to challenge him?
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At the governor's request, Amir began searching Europe for officers to help train the new army. Ideally, they should have served in the Ottoman Empire.

"Sir, we have found some candidates, but they are all over 60 years old and no longer suitable to train soldiers."

Moreover, most of them were French, and given the previous incident, whether the French government was willing to accept it was another matter. This incident involved Persian students going to Prussia to study, but because the French refused most of them, the remaining students went to Berlin. Before leaving, they clashed with the French, which forced Abdullah to apologize to the King during his visit to France.

However, this news spread throughout the international student community, and everyone said they wouldn't go to France to study. "If you want to study the army, go to Prussia!"

Therefore, the French were immediately ruled out. Other countries' armies weren't particularly strong (the French army is widely considered the best in the world), but Prussia was worth a try, given its glorious history.

"Then what about Prussia? We should be able to find them, right?"

“We did find one who had been employed by the previous Ottoman Sultan. Here is his information from the Ottoman period.”

Amir took the documents from the other person. "This man was hired by the Ottoman Sultan during his vacation. He stayed in Constantinople for two years, learned the local language, and explored Constantinople, the Bosphorus, and the Dardanelles. He traveled through Wallachia, Bulgaria, and Rumilia, and made many other trips on both sides of the straits."

Hearing about the other person's background, Amir knew this man was no ordinary person. He looked at the man's name: Helmut Karl Bernhard von Moltke. He seemed to be a nobleman, given the character "von" in his name.

"Could we hire him to come to Tabriz to help us train the army?"

"My lord, this involves diplomatic matters and requires the approval of the Kingdom of Prussia."

Hearing this, Amir knew it was time to let the mission continue to play its role. A letter sent from here to Prussia should arrive within a month, barring any unforeseen circumstances.

“We need to write to the Prussian delegation and ask them to negotiate with Prussia on behalf of Iran. If we can get this person to come to Tabriz, it will be much easier for us to deal with the Ottomans in the future.”

Amir sent his men to negotiate with Prussia, and in addition, a second batch of foreign workers arrived, including those from the railway, textile, legal, construction, and machinery industries.

To make the foreigners comfortable, Nasser al-Din spent over 50 tuman to build them accommodations and pay their salaries. He also merged the army's lecture halls into a large military school and planned to establish another secular school to teach theology, agriculture, mining, and education. This was all negotiated with the Ulimahs; otherwise, they would have certainly obstructed the program.

Industrial and agricultural consultants went directly to the factories and fields to demonstrate Europe's achievements. They brought many valuable products that broadened their horizons, and even Ulima had to admit that these things could indeed bring about some change.

Amir also yearned for the West, but not entirely. Russia had always been an enemy of Persia, which was undeniable. Therefore, the army needed to be expanded. Recruiting offices had already been set up in the vicinity because the wages were much higher than those for farmers. Families with several sons would keep the sons to farm, while the others would be sent to the army for training.

Meanwhile, Azerbaijan's old militias are becoming more regularized; those who don't meet the standards are given a sum of money to be removed, while those who do are incorporated into the new army for training. If you really want to stay, you can try working for the Tabriz municipal government, responsible for maintaining city order and security. The salary is about 60% of that of an ordinary soldier, which is enough to support a family.

This was also Naserdin's idea, since they also wanted to support their families. The militiamen weren't getting paid, so besides severance pay, they were being converted into police officers to maintain order in Tabriz. This would also ensure local order.

(End of this chapter)