Sykes' History of Persia Vol 2 (pdf) - Heritage Institute

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4 6 HISTORY OF PERSIA
This act led to the downfall of the Durranis ;
for Dost
Mohamed, brother and avenger of the murdered man,
took up arms and after eight years of anarchy obtained
possession of the throne of Afghanistan, which his descendants
still occupy.
Herat, however, remained faithful
to Mahmud and after his death to his son Kamran Mirza. 1
^ Hostilities with Turkey, A. H. 123 6- 1238(1 821-1823).
The last campaign fought between Persia and Turkey
originated from the action of the Governor of Erzeroum,
who took under his protection two nomadic tribes that had
fled from Azerbaijan. Abbas Mirza made representations,
but his agent was imprisoned and he was then instructed to
invade the Turkish dominions. The Turks being weak,
all the districts adjacent to Azerbaijan, including Kurdistan,
were occupied. Farther south, the Pasha of Baghdad attempted
to invade Persia, but was defeated by Mohamed
2
Ali Mirza, the Shah's eldest son. The routed army was
pursued to the gates of the city, which lay at the mercy
of the Prince. But illness caused him to retreat, and upon
reaching
the hills he died.
Meanwhile hostilities continued in the north. A
Turkish detachment a thousand strong was captured by
a force operating from Erivan, but was released without
ransom by Abbas Mirza, who throughout showed no
desire to push matters too far. The campaign ended
with a battle in which the Persians, although inferior in
numbers, gained a hard-fought victory. In the southern
zone all military operations were stopped because the
Persian army suffered from cholera, which is stated to
have made its first appearance in Persia on this occasion.
Peace was concluded in the end by the treaty of Erzeroum,
signed in A.H. 1238 (1823). Its terms involved no territorial
changes.
The Dispute about Gokcha and its Seizure by Russia,
1825. The treaty of Gulistan had been so vaguely worded
that three districts lying between Erivan and the Gokcha
1
Kamran Mirza had a feud with Fatteh Khan and induced his father, whose fears he
excited, to give the order for his execution, which order he brought in person to Hn.it
and executed.
2 It is stated that Mohamed Ali Mirza, when a boy, was asked by Aga Mohamed
what he would do if he became Shah.
" I would kill you," was the reply. This frank
expression resulted in the appointment of Abbas Mirza, the second son, as heir-apparent.