Mir-Fatah-Agha
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Mir-Fatah-Agha, commonly known as Mushthaid (died 24 October 1892), was a high-ranking
The Qajar Persian empire, which had reasserted century-long Iranian suzerainty over the Caucasus following the ascension of Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar, had eventually indefinitely lost all their territories in the North and South Caucasus during the Russo-Persian War (1804–1813) and Russo-Persian War (1826–1828). In 1828, after the Russian victory in the Russo-Persian War (1826–1828) and the ceding of the final Persian territories in the greater Caucasus region to Russia, Ivan Paskevich, then governor-general in the newly conquered regions wrote a letter to St. Petersburg to propose that Mir-Fettakh a high Muslim cleric from Tabriz, Persia, should be made head of the Muslim ulema in the Caucasus.[1] Russia had already created an assembly in 1794 in Crimea as an intention to connect the state with its Muslim subjects and their precise responsibilities being changed in response to demands from St. Petersburg. Paskevich hoped that by the help of Mir-Fettakh's high stature in the Muslim community, he could make a very valuable contribution to the Russian consolidation of power in the Caucasus. The Russians however did not seem aware this could cause a problem as Mir-Fettakh was a Shia, while the majority of the Muslims in the Caucasus were Sunni. On a related note, the Russian administration did realize eventually that only religious figures from the Caucasus could have significant influence in the region.[1]
Nevertheless, Mir-Fettakh was appointed head of this spiritual assembly in the entire Caucasus and he would continue to dominate the administration according to his ideas for the next decade. He proved his worth many times as he kept the Shiite population quiet in the 1829
While being an adviser to
The disastrous events in the Caucasus which came some years after are believed to be due to Paskevich's and Mir-Fatah's departures from office, and the bad ruling policies of subsequent governor generals, which forced him to return to Tabriz in 1841.[1] Soon after his departure, the situation in the Caucasus worsened with the rise of figures such as Imam Shamil and others. It would take Russia around 50 years to fully annex the North Caucasus.
References
- ^ a b c d e "Caucasus and Central Asia Newsletter" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 June 2013. Retrieved 26 April 2014.