Gulistan Treaty
Encyclopedia
The Treaty of Gulistan was a peace treaty
Peace treaty
A peace treaty is an agreement between two or more hostile parties, usually countries or governments, that formally ends a state of war between the parties...

 concluded between Imperial Russia
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...

 and Persia
Qajar dynasty
The Qajar dynasty was an Iranian royal family of Turkic descent who ruled Persia from 1785 to 1925....

 on 24 October 1813 in the village of Gulistan
Gülüstan, Goranboy
Gülüstan is a village in the Goranboy Rayon of Azerbaijan. The village forms part of the municipality of Buzluq....

 (in modern-day Goranboy Rayon of Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...

) as a result of the first Russo-Persian War
Russo-Persian War (1804-1813)
The 1804-1813 Russo-Persian War, one of the many wars between the Persian Empire and Imperial Russia, began like many wars as a territorial dispute. The Persian king, Fath Ali Shah Qajar, wanted to consolidate the northernmost reaches of his Qajar dynasty by securing land near the Caspian Sea's...

. The peace negotiations were precipitated by Lankaran
Lankaran
-History:The city was built on a swamp along the northern bank of the river bearing the city's name. There are remains of human settlements in the area dating back to the Neolithic period as well as ruins of fortified villages from the Bronze and Iron Ages. Lankaran's history is rather recent,...

's fall to Gen. Pyotr Kotlyarevsky
Pyotr Kotlyarevsky
Pyotr Stepanovich Kotlyarevsky was a Russian military hero of the early 19th century.-Biography:He was born in the village of Olkhovatka near Kharkov into a cleric's family. Kotlyarevsky was brought up in an infantry regiment quartered near Mozdok...

 on 1 January 1813.

The treaty confirmed inclusion of modern day Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...

, Daghestan and Eastern Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...

 into the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...

.

The text was prepared by the British diplomat Sir Gore Ouseley
Gore Ouseley
Sir Gore Ouseley, 1st Baronet GCH , was a British entrepreneur, linguist and diplomat. He was born in 1770 and died at Hall Barn Park, Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire in 1844...

 who served as the mediator and wielded great influence at the Persian court. It was signed by Nikolai Fyodorovich Rtischev from the Russian side and Mirza Abol Hasan Khan Ilchi from the Iranian side.

Background and the Russo-Persian War

Imperial Russia had just sworn in a new tsar, Alexander I
Alexander I of Russia
Alexander I of Russia , served as Emperor of Russia from 23 March 1801 to 1 December 1825 and the first Russian King of Poland from 1815 to 1825. He was also the first Russian Grand Duke of Finland and Lithuania....

, in 1801 and the empire was very eager to control neighboring territories as the tsar was determined to expand. A few years previously in Persia, Fath Ali Shah Qajar also became the new shah after the assassination of his uncle, Mohammad Khan Qajar
Mohammad Khan Qajar
Agha Muḥammad Khān Qājār ‎‎ was the chief of the Qajar tribe, succeeding his father Mohammad Hassan Khan, who was killed on the orders of Adil Shah. He became the Emperor/Shah of Persia in 1794 and established the Qajar dynasty...

 in 1797. Mohammad had, during his reign, killed off all of his enemies in the regions of present-day Georgia and Azerbaijan and claimed the areas to rightfully belong to Persia. Simultaneously, Russia had formally annexed the region of Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...

, allowing unrestricted travel and trade between the regions and Russia, furthering its public claim on the land. Persia was trying to align with France in 1801 to better position itself in case of war with Russia, yet those attempts fell through. Ironically, Fath Ali Shah instead brokered a deal with Britain that provided Persia with military support from Indian-British troops in exchange for preventing any European country from entering India. With the alliance, Persia entered into the first Russo-Persian War against a militarily pre-occupied Russia, which was heavily invested in the Napoleonic Wars.

Although Persia entered the war mainly for the goal of recapturing the majority of the Caucasus, Azerbaijan, and Georgia, Fath Ali Shah had heard about the atrocities being committed by Russian Commanders in Georgia, the commanders ruling “through massive extortion and maladministration”.

Numerically, Persian forces had a considerable advantage during the war: a ratio of 5 to 1 over their Russian adversaries. However, the Persian forces were technologically backwards and poorly trained - a problem that the Persian government did not recognize until a far later juncture. Despite these crippling disadvantages, fighting continued in northern Persia, Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...

 and in regions of Georgia. Persia was so enraged at Russia as to declare a jihad
Jihad
Jihad , an Islamic term, is a religious duty of Muslims. In Arabic, the word jihād translates as a noun meaning "struggle". Jihad appears 41 times in the Quran and frequently in the idiomatic expression "striving in the way of God ". A person engaged in jihad is called a mujahid; the plural is...

 upon them, demanding that its people unite to fight the war against them. Persia was actually losing the war and asked for military and financial aid from France’s Napoleon (with which they had a France-Persian Alliance), yet France's relations with Russia were more important to them after the two countries signed the Treaty of Tilsit in 1807, resulting in France leaving Persia unassisted. The Battle of Aslanduz
Battle of Aslanduz
The Battle of Aslanduz occurred on October 31, 1812, between Russia and Persia. The 10-times numerically superior Persians were led by Abbas Mirza. The Russians, led by the charismatic General Pyotr Kotlyarevsky, were victorious and stormed Lenkoran in the beginning of 1813, thus ending any Persian...

 on 31 October 1812 was the turning point in the war, which led to the complete destruction of the Persian army, thus leaving Fath Ali Shah with no other option but to sign the Treaty of Gulistan.

According to Cambridge History of Iran:

Terms

By this treaty:
  1. "Russia by this instrument was confirmed in possession of all the khanates -- Karabagh, Gandja, Shekeen, Shirvan, Derbend, Kouba, and Baku, together with part of Talish and the fortress of Lenkoran. Persia further abandoned all pretensions to Daghestan, Georgia, Mingrelia, Imeretia, and Abkhazia."
  2. These lands include:
    1. All the cities, towns, and villages of Georgia
      Georgia (country)
      Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...

      , including all the villages and towns on the coast of the Black Sea
      Black Sea
      The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...

      , such as:
    2. Megrelia,
    3. Abkhazia
      Abkhazia
      Abkhazia is a disputed political entity on the eastern coast of the Black Sea and the south-western flank of the Caucasus.Abkhazia considers itself an independent state, called the Republic of Abkhazia or Apsny...

      ,
    4. Imeretia,
    5. Guria
      Guria
      Guria is a region in Georgia, in the western part of the country, bordered by the eastern end of the Black Sea. The region has a population of 143,357 and Ozurgeti is a regional capital.-Geography:...

      ;
    6. Almost all the cities, towns and villages of the khanates in South Caucasus
      South Caucasus
      The South Caucasus is a geopolitical region located on the border of Eastern Europe and Southwest Asia also referred to as Transcaucasia, or The Trans-Caucasus...

      , including:
    7. Baku khanate
      Baku Khanate
      Baku Khanate was Persian ruled Khanate on the territory of modern day Azerbaijan from Safavid dynasty to 1806. Baku was one of Khanate which arose during the domination of Iran. During the period of Iranian domination, head of principality was a Khan. Although, the khan could act within certain...

       (now capital of Azerbaijan
      Azerbaijan
      Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...

       Republic),
    8. Shirvan Khanate
      Shirvan Khanate
      Shirvan Khanate was a self-governing khanate that existed in what is now Azerbaijan in 1748—1805.-History:In 1742 Shemakha was taken and destroyed by Nadir Shah of Persia, who relocated inhabitants into a new town under the same name about 16 miles to the west , at the foot of the main chain of...

      ,
    9. Derbent
      Derbent
      Derbent |Lak]]: Чурул, Churul; Persian: دربند; Judæo-Tat: דארבּאנד/Дэрбэнд/Dərbənd) is a city in the Republic of Dagestan, Russia, close to the Azerbaijani border. It is the southernmost city in Russia, and it is the second most important city of Dagestan...

      ,
    10. Karabakh khanate
      Karabakh khanate
      The Karabakh khanate was a semi-independent khanate on the territories of modern Azerbaijan and Armenia established in about 1750 under Persian suzerainty in Karabakh and adjacent areas. The Karabakh khanate existed until 1805, when the Russian Empire gained control over it from Persia...

      ,
    11. Ganja khanate
      Ganja Khanate
      The Ganja khanate was a Muslim principality mostly under the dominion of Persia that existed in the territory of Azerbaijan in 1747-1805. The principality was ruled by the dynasty of Ziyadoglu , which had ruled Ganja as governors under Nadir Shah and was of Qajar extraction...

      ,
    12. Shaki Khanate
      Shaki Khanate
      Shaki khanate was an Azerbaijani khanate on the territory of modern Azerbaijan between 1743 and 1819 with its capital in the town of Shaki.-History:...

      ,
    13. Quba Khanate
      Quba Khanate
      The Quba Khanate was an independent principality on the territory of modern day Azerbaijan from 1747-1806. The Quba Khanate was founded as a feudal hold around 1680 as a result of a land grant to the Saytaq family, who were related to both the Qajar dynasty and the Utsmi of Tarki in Dagestan and...

      ,
    14. part of the Talysh Khanate
      Talysh Khanate
      The Talysh Khanate was one of many self-ruling principalities that existed on the territory of modern Azerbaijan Republic between 1747 and 1813, which was Safavi territory at that time...

      ;
  3. Iran loses all rights to navigate the Caspian Sea
    Caspian Sea
    The Caspian Sea is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth by area, variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. The sea has a surface area of and a volume of...

    , and Russia is granted exclusive rights to station its military fleet
    Naval fleet
    A fleet, or naval fleet, is a large formation of warships, and the largest formation in any navy. A fleet at sea is the direct equivalent of an army on land....

     in the Caspian Sea
    Caspian Sea
    The Caspian Sea is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth by area, variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. The sea has a surface area of and a volume of...

    .
  4. Both countries agree on the establishment of free trade
    Free trade
    Under a free trade policy, prices emerge from supply and demand, and are the sole determinant of resource allocation. 'Free' trade differs from other forms of trade policy where the allocation of goods and services among trading countries are determined by price strategies that may differ from...

    , with Russians having free access to conduct business anywhere in Iran.
    1. Iran is also given complete and free access to Russia, yet both must pay a 5% ad valorem tax on any items imported into each respective country, thus being seen as a light import/export duty tax.
  5. Russia in return promises to support Abbas Mirza
    Abbas Mirza
    Prince, Field-Marshal Abbas Mirza born Amol city , was a Qajar crown prince of Persia. He developed a reputation as a military commander during wars with Russia and the Ottoman Empire, as an early modernizer of Persia's armed forces and institutions, and for his death before his father, Fath Ali...

     as heir to the Persian throne after the death of Fath Ali Shah.

Assessment

Even until today, Iran officially sees this and the succeeding Treaty of Turkmenchay
Treaty of Turkmenchay
The Treaty of Turkmenchay was a treaty negotiated in Turkmenchay by which the Qajar Empire recognized Russian suzerainty over the Erivan khanate, the Nakhchivan khanate, and the remainder of the Talysh khanate, establishing the Aras River as the common boundary between the empires, after its...

 as one of its most humiliating treaties ever signed. The treaty is also regarded by Iranians as the main reason why Fath Ali Shah is seen as one of Iran's most incompetent rulers in memory. The scholars in Azerbaijan point out that the Karabakh khanate, where the treaty was signed, had pursued independent foreign policy as early as 1795, when "Ibrahim Khalil Khan
Ibrahim Khalil Khan
Ibrahim Khalil khan Javanshir was the Azeri Turkic khan of Karabakh from the Javanshir family, who succeeded his father Panah-Ali khan Javanshir as the ruler of Karabakh khanate....

, the wali of Qarabagh, fearing for his independence, warned Sultan Selim III of Agha Muhammad Khan Qajar's ambitions to subdue Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...

 and later Qarabagh, Erivan and Georgia. In the same year Muhammad Khan, the hakim of Erivan, also wrote the Sultan alerting him to Agha Muhammad's "aggression" and seeking Ottoman protection
."

Russian imperial historians maintain that Russia's absorption of the Transcaucasus territories delivered their population from constant Iranian
Persian people
The Persian people are part of the Iranian peoples who speak the modern Persian language and closely akin Iranian dialects and languages. The origin of the ethnic Iranian/Persian peoples are traced to the Ancient Iranian peoples, who were part of the ancient Indo-Iranians and themselves part of...

 and Ottoman
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

 invasions, and the Christian nations of the Caucasus were liberated from Muslim repression, ushering in the years of peace and relative economic stability.

Very vital to the signing of the treaty was the agreement made by Fath Ali Shah with Britain. With their defeat in the Russo-Persian War, the Shah understood that another attack by the Russians was close to inevitable. Britain saw the war as unwinnable for the Persians and used this to strengthen their foreign affairs. Using their new-found diplomatic connections with the British, Persia established the Treaty of Defensive Alliance in 1812. This promised that Britain would “offer a defensive alliance against further Russian encroachments”. It essentially had terms stating that Persia would provide defense against any European army from entering India (which stationed a majority of British troops) and in return, Britain would provide military and financial aid in case of another Russian attack.

Aftermath

The treaty did not answer vital questions such as whether the Persian army would be disarmed or be able to regroup. It was known to both sides that Persia would strike again because they considered the regions rightfully theirs and were furious towards Russia’s treatment of the land and people. The war was becoming costly in terms of troops and finance, so the Treaty of Gulistan led to over a decade of nominal peace (1813-1826) between Russia and Persia, mainly for the clause regarding trade: both governments saw much potential with it and used it to their advantage. Permanent diplomatic missions were set up in Persia as well as Russia in order to keep trade open as long as possible. It was a period of tense stability, though, as both countries understood that the treaty was written very vaguely and that nothing was written about provisions to the military mainly to prevent Persia from trying to regain the regions of Georgia or the Caucasus, thus greatly leaving open the possibility of another future war.

According to Prof. Svante Cornell:
As another result of Persia's losses to Russia, the two treaties of Gulistan and Turkemenchai
Treaty of Turkmenchay
The Treaty of Turkmenchay was a treaty negotiated in Turkmenchay by which the Qajar Empire recognized Russian suzerainty over the Erivan khanate, the Nakhchivan khanate, and the remainder of the Talysh khanate, establishing the Aras River as the common boundary between the empires, after its...

 also divided Azerbaijani and Talysh people from their brethren in Iran and the wider Iranian cultural world.
Precursor to Second Russo-Persian War of 1826-1828=
The Treaty of Gulistan was leaving conflict open between the two countries, thus being weak from the start. Russia’s main priority before the war was to focus on the wars being fought with Napoleon, which explains the significantly small amounts of troops he dedicated for the Russo-Persian War. The treaty of Gulistan was mainly a way for both countries to “gain a breath” so that the Russo-Persian War could end and they could focus on other issues. After the Treaty of Gulistan was signed, Persia started to rapidly build up its army once more, as Fath Ali Shah was fully devoted to regaining the territories lost in the war. It was surprising to no one when Fath Ali Shah ordered his military commander, Abbas Mirza to start training troops in 1823, three years in advance of the second Russo-Persian War, which was three times as much military preparation than he spent for the first Russo-Persian War. The clergy in Persia also publicly announced that the jihad against Russia was not over. In 1826, Persia attacked once again on the territories lost to Russia (with the British supporting the Persian more). The second Russo-Persian War lasted two years and Persia lost 35,000 troops to Russia’s 8,000. Performing poorly in the war, Persia lost, leading to the signing of the Treaty of Turkmenchay
Treaty of Turkmenchay
The Treaty of Turkmenchay was a treaty negotiated in Turkmenchay by which the Qajar Empire recognized Russian suzerainty over the Erivan khanate, the Nakhchivan khanate, and the remainder of the Talysh khanate, establishing the Aras River as the common boundary between the empires, after its...

.

See also

  • List of treaties
  • Treaty of Turkmenchay
    Treaty of Turkmenchay
    The Treaty of Turkmenchay was a treaty negotiated in Turkmenchay by which the Qajar Empire recognized Russian suzerainty over the Erivan khanate, the Nakhchivan khanate, and the remainder of the Talysh khanate, establishing the Aras River as the common boundary between the empires, after its...

  • Treaty of Akhal
  • Iran-Russia relations
    Iran-Russia relations
    Relations between Russia and Persia , officially commenced in 1592, with the Safavids in power. Past and present contact between Russia and Iran has long been complicatedly multi-faceted; often wavering between collaboration and rivalry. The two nations have a long history of geographic, economic,...

  • Anglo-Russian Convention of 1907
  • Russo-Persian War (1804–1813)
  • Russo-Persian War (1826–1828)
  • Fath Ali Shah Qajar

Sources

  • H. Pir Nia, Abbas Eghbal Ashtiani, B. Agheli. History of Persia. Tehran, 2002. pp. 673-686. ISBN 964-6895-16-6
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