Persian Empire 1845

Chapter 60 Loan
Wallace returned to Gulestan Palace; he was probably the only foreign ambassador who received such frequent audiences.

"Ah, Your Highness, what brings you here?"

Nasser al-Din's decree read in parliament demonstrated Iran's determination to reform, but such reforms would require a lot of money, and Iran's finances do not allow for large-scale achievements, so loans are necessary. That's probably what we'll be discussing today.

"Ambassador, I believe the friendship between Iran and Britain is unbreakable. Your country's assistance in resolving the territorial dispute between our country and Oman demonstrates that your country is a worthy partner."

These words pleased Wallace greatly; everyone knew that the British Empire was one of the most helpful nations in the world, consistently dedicated to facilitating free trade with other countries. Countries like India and Qing China needed British assistance to begin their journey towards civilization.

Moreover, in the wild land of Africa, Britain also sowed the seeds of civilization. Look at the Cape Colony, everywhere there was an atmosphere of peace and harmony. Ah, how could they have contributed so much to the world?
"The British Empire is willing to help every country reach the other side of civilization. Your country has always been an important friend of our country, and I believe that the future will be even better."

Having said that, Nasser al-Din no longer held back. He stated his request: "Our country is currently facing a financial crisis and hopes to obtain a loan from your country."

Sure enough, this was the Crown Prince's true purpose. Wallace knew this was a crucial condition for Britain to gain further economic influence in Iran, so he asked, "How much money does Your Highness wish to borrow?"

Naserdin handed over the documents, “These are the details of the loan. Our country is prepared to borrow £300 million, which, together with the previous loan of £50, will amount to £350 million. The interest rate will be 5%, and our customs duties and mineral taxes will be used as collateral. The loan will be repaid in fifteen years.”

This is a sure-fire way to make money; once all the loans are recovered, they'll have interest on more than half the principal. And if they can't repay, they can continue borrowing, and the debt will snowball until Iran can mortgage all its economic power. Wouldn't that make them obey London's orders?
"Your Highness, the information here is very comprehensive, and I believe the loan will be granted smoothly. However, is 350 million too little?"

Wallace wanted Nasserdin to lend more money, since they couldn't compete with the usury empire of France, and they wanted the other party to take more of this hard-won opportunity.

"I think this is a good start, and if everything goes well, future cooperation can be even deeper."

This served as a promise to the other party that they would prioritize accessing British banks for future loans. Wallace was satisfied and decided to report to British bankers as quickly as possible. Downing Street was very busy; he didn't want to trouble them with such a small amount.

After seeing the British ambassador off, Nasserdin breathed a sigh of relief. Iran would have to work hard to repay the loan, which amounted to £600 million.

However, these efforts were worthwhile, with half going towards military development and the other half towards economic development and financial reform.

Tabriz Bank has been renamed the Iranian Industrial and Commercial Bank and is preparing to open branches nationwide. Meanwhile, the expert panel has also decided that the banking and insurance sectors must be controlled by government capital, with private capital only allowed to invest and receive dividends.

This was designed with the vulnerability of Western banks to bankruptcy and the local situation in Iran in mind. Iran's capital is insufficient to support its financial industry, so government support is still necessary. Amir also encountered difficulties with the reform of land use rights. He was already feeling the pinch from distributing a significant amount of land to the landowners; now, to directly relinquish all their ownership rights would surely lead to fierce resistance.

No matter what Amir said, they disagreed and even threatened that if he did so, they would be at odds with all of Iran.

With things having come to this point, Amir had no choice but to change his approach. Everyone disagreed with the change of ownership of the farmland, so he could only change his strategy and nationalize the forests and rivers.

They could tolerate these things, and they even advised Amir not to let His Highness change policies at will, as changing policies frequently would cause him to lose the trust of the people.

Amir was also in a difficult position. As a minister, he had to obey the Crown Prince's orders, but not all policies were suitable for the current situation. And then there was the education bill—establishing 14 higher education institutions nationwide—wasn't that just a waste of money? Even setting aside whether you have the financial resources to build them, do you have enough students to attend them?
When he reached the Crown Prince, he had to persuade him gently, taking it one step at a time, and not expecting immediate results. The last emperor to be so impatient was Chongzhen, and he died because of it.

"Sir, this is an assessment report on the monopoly of salt and tobacco. We've done another estimate, and if we tax things like tea, raw silk, and sugar, we could increase revenue by 450 million."

"These things, raw silk is an important export product of our country, and it may not be appropriate to impose tariffs on it. However, tariffs on sugar and tea can be imposed first, and you need to come up with a plan."

“Yes,” the official said as he left, “it would be good if grape juice could be taxed.”

Another official quickly stopped him, "Shut up, is this something you can say?"

"That's true. China produces more grapes than any other country. Some of them are made into grape juice to prevent them from spoiling. But now we can't even drink that? I see those imams drinking a lot of it."

"What can we do? They're the ones who call the shots."

In fact, Iran has a long history of winemaking and drinking. Throughout the rise and fall of the ancient Persian Empire, kings, priests, and poets embraced Persian wine in various ways. They used it for medicine, revelry, and purification. Shiraz is known as the wine capital of Persia because it produces Shiraz, considered one of the finest wines in the Middle East.

When the Arabs conquered Iran, drinking was suppressed. Although national laws prohibited alcohol, wine was not completely eliminated from the market. In fact, the Caliph was caught in the middle: while religion forbade drinking, and the Quran considered intoxicating substances the work of the devil, drinking was an integral part of Persian culture, and Iranians were very proud of it. Even after the Prophet's condemnation of drinking, the Persians did not stop producing and consuming wine.

Amir overheard these conversations; he himself had once invited friends to his house to enjoy the pleasure of "stomping grapes in the bathtub together." However, if he could get Ulima to acknowledge the grape juice, he could legitimately levy a grape juice tax. Perhaps he should go find Ayatollah.

(End of this chapter)