Modern Persia | Page 8

paid the sum of 1,800,000,000 rubles ($9,000,000) to Russia. The death of the Crown Prince, Abbos Mirza, in 1833 seemed to give the final blow to the declining fortune of Persia, as he was the only man who seriously attempted to raise his country from the state of abasement into which it had fallen. Futteh-Ali had seven sons. One of them Johon-Suz-Mirza lives to-day. Seven years ago he was governor in the author's city; and came to visit the college of Oroomiah with a hundred princes and counts with him. He is a very ostentatious man. After the death of the Crown Prince each of the seven sons claimed to be inheritor of the throne, while the father was still living. At the same time the Crown Prince Abbas-Mirza had a son named Mohammed. Futteh-Ali when quite old and near to death, by the aid of Russia made Mohammed, his grandson, king (1834-1848). Nayib-Al-Saltana acted as regent during the boyhood of Mohammed. When he came to power for himself he conceived the idea of restoring Bloogistan, Afghanistan, and a great part of Turkoman to Persian dominion. He was especially anxious to take Herat, the key to India, but was resisted by England. The war was terminated in 1838.
[Illustration: FOUNDER OF THE PRESENT DYNASTY.]
Nasiruddin (defender of his religion), the late Shah who was assassinated May 1, 1896, a young man eighteen years old and very energetic succeeded to the throne of his father in 1848. Following his father's example the new Shah tried to restore Afghaniston and Bloogiston but was compelled by England to sign an agreement on Jan. 25, 1858 by which he was bound not to interfere further in the internal affairs of Herat.
In 1856 he violated this treaty and took the city of Herat. After a severe war with England in 1857 in which his loss was 20,000 soldiers he relinquished Herat but he added to Persia many provinces in the western part of Afghaniston and Bloogiston, and also some states in Turkoman. He was one of the best kings of Persia. He visited Europe three times, once in 1873. He had European ideas and was a well-educated man. He started a good system of postal-telegraph and had trained after the European discipline 30,000 soldiers. Above all he founded a beautiful college in Teheran which is called in Persian Daralfnoon (or the place of science). The present Shah, Mozuffur-uddin was born March 25, 1853 and succeeded to the throne of his father May 1, 1896. In 1892 the author saw him at Oroomiah College. He came with a large retinue to visit being entertained at the home of Dr. Cochran. The work of the college pleased him and he made it a gift of thirty pounds. He is a very kind and liberal man, especially toward the poorer of his subjects. We believe God will make him to be good to the oppressed Christians.
The list of kings who have reigned over Persia as regular kings make a total of 255.
CHAPTER III.
ARCHITECTURE OF PERSIA.
The architecture of Persia is of considerable interest from the fact that the Persians added to their own the architecture of Assyria and Egypt, when they conquered those mighty empires. Hence the composite nature of the designs of some of her most famous buildings. A brief study of the old city of Persepolis will enable us the better to understand the nature of the architecture of this land so rich in magnificent ruins. (The author wishes to give credit to McClintock and Strong's Encyclopedia, for a large part of the following pages. He has extracted many quotations from this work.) This city called "The Glory of the East," the ancient capital of Persia, is situated in the province of Faris, on the river Araxes. Darius, Hastaspes, Xerxes, Artaxerxes and others tried to make it one of the grandest cities in all the world. Unfortunately it was destroyed by Alexander the Great, and now contains only some ruins of the royal palaces. First is the Chehly Minor (forty pillars,) also called Tokhtie-Jamshid, or throne of Jamshid. Some suppose that Jamshid was the founder of the city. Next in order is Nakhshie-Rustum, to the northwest. Near each of these palaces are the mounds of the tombs. The east building is the Harem of Jamshid, situated on a vast terrace of Cyclopean masonry, at the foot of a lofty mountain range. By far the most important is the first group, situated at the foot of a lofty mountain range. The extent of this terrace is about 1500 feet from north to south and 800 feet from east to west, and was once surrounded by triple walls 16, 32 and 60 feet in height respectively. The internal area is further divided into three terraces, the lowest one to the south;