Kirman and the Qajar Empire: Local Dimensions of Modernity in Iran, 1794-1914 (Iranian Studies)

Despite its apparently peripheral location in the Qajar Empire, Kirman was frequently found at the centre of developments reshaping Iran in the 19th century. Over the Qajar period the region saw significant changes, as competition between Kirmani families rapidly developed commercial cotton and opium production and a world renowned carpet weaving industry, as well as giving strength to radical modernist and nationalist agitation in the years leading up to the 1906 Constitutional Revolution. Kirman and the Qajar Empire explores how these Kirmani local elites mediated political, economic, and social change in their community during the significant transitional period in Iran’s history, from the rise of the Qajar Empire through to World War I. It departs from the prevailing centre-periphery models of economic integration and Qajar provincial history, engaging with key questions over how Iranians participated in reshaping their communities in the context of imperialism and growing transnational connections. With rarely utilized local historical and geographical writings, as well as a range of narrative and archival sources, this book provides new insight into the impact of household factionalism and estate building over four generations in the Kirman region. As well as offering the first academic monograph on modern Kirman, it is also an important case study in local dimensions of modernity. This book will be of interest to students and scholars of Iranian studies and Iranian History, as well as general Middle Eastern studies. Cover 1 Title 6 Copyright 7 Contents 8 List of illustrations 11 Acknowledgments 12 Note on transliteration 13 Introduction: the politics of households in Qajar Kirman 14 Modernity and agency in Qajar Iran 19 The politics of households in Qajar Kirman 21 Analyzing Kirman’s household networks and their estates: a note on the sources 25 An outline of the present study 29 Notes 31 PART I Kirman and the politics of empire 36 1 Kirman and the Qajar Empire 38 A view from across the desert: geography and history in Kirman 39 Reconfiguring urban politics 44 The Ibrahimi family: reconstruction and renewal 46 Shaykhi–mutasharʿi sectarianism 48 Patterns of landownership and rural administration 50 The Mahallati revolt: networks of social power and the state 54 Conclusion 57 Notes 58 2 Local historiography and the politics of the Great Game 62 The quest for knowledge in the Great Game 64 Ahmad ʿAli Khan Vaziri-Kirmani and his works 67 The Qajars, the British, and their local intermediaries 71 Conclusion 76 Notes 77 PART II A regional political economy 80 3 Household networks and rural integration 82 Patterns of landownership in Qajar Kirman 85 Rural development and the commercialization of agriculture 88 The Vakil al-Mulki estate 91 The Kalantari estate in Sirjan 92 Rafsanjan: land investment and Shaykhi–mutasharʿi factionalism 94 The sale of crown lands 96 Rural integration and the fate of the Aqayan and tribal elites 97 Conclusion 99 Notes 100 4 From cotton to carpets: consolidating a regional economy 105 Structure and agency: global forces and local transformations 108 Weaving and craft production in Kirman 114 Cotton to carpets: Kirmani elites and the carpet boom 116 Conclusion 121 Notes 121 PART III Patrimonialism and social change 126 5 Contesting urban patrimonialism 128 Estate building and the normative foundations of social power 129 Kirman’s rural transformation 131 The question of “tribalism” 134 Carpet capitalism, class, and labor 137 Gender and modernism 143 Conclusion 146 Notes 146 6 The household politics of revolution 150 The Ahmadi household and intellectual radicalism in Kirman 151 The 1905 Shaykhi–mutasharʿi conflicts 154 The Constitutional Revolution in Kirman 160 Containing the revolution: conflicts over the local anjumans 164 Conclusion 167 Notes 168 Conclusion: mediating modernity in Kirman 171 Notes 176 Appendix: genealogical charts 177 Bibliography 183 Index 192 Introduction: The Politics Of Households In Qajar Kirman -- Part 1. Kirman And The Politics Of Empire -- Chapter 1: Kirman And The Qajar Empire -- Chapter 2: Local Historiography And The Politics Of The Great Game -- Part 2. A Regional Political Economy -- Chapter 3: Household Networks And Rural Integration -- Chapter 4: From Cotton To Carpets: Consolidating A Regional Economy -- Part 3. Patrimonialism And Social Change -- Chapter 5: Contesting Urban Patrimonialism -- Chapter 6: The Household Politics Of Revolution -- Conclusion: Mediating Modernity In Kirman. James M. Gustafson. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.