Dowlatshah

Mohammad Ali Mirza Dowlatshah
Born	1 January 1789 Larijan, Mazandaran
Died	22 November 1821(1821-11-22) (aged 32) Mada'in, Iraq
Nationality	Iranian

Mohammad Ali Mirza Dowlatshah (4 January 1789, Larijan , Amol, Mazandaran-22 November 1821, Al-Mada'in, Iraq) was a famous Persian Prince of Qajar Dynasty. He is also the progenitor of Dowlatshahi Family of Persia. He was born in Mazandaran a Caspian province in the north of Iran. He was the first son of the Fat′h Ali Shah the second Qajar king of Persia and Ziba Chehr Khanoum a noble Georgian woman. He was also the elder brother of Abbas Mirza. Dowlatshah was the governor of Fars at age 9, Qazvin and Gilan at age 11, Khuzestan and Lorestan at age 16, and Kermanshah at age 19.

In the battles with Russian and Ottoman Empires, he defeated Ottomans in Baghdad and Basra and crushed Russians in Yerevan and Tbilisi. Dowlatshah developed and improved the city of Kermanshah and established the city of Dowlat-Abad which was renamed to Malayer. Dowlatshah had 10 sons and at the moment his grandchildren live in different countries in the world and carry the last names دولتشاهی (Persian spelling), Dowlatshahi (English spelling), Dolatshahi (Latin spelling) and Doulatshahi (French spelling), or the regional variation Davlatshoev/Davlatshoeva in Tajikistan.

Biography

Early life

Fathali Shah in 1221 A.H. appointed his son Mohammad Ali Mirza Dowlatshah to rule and protect the boundaries of the two Iraqs (a name given to western states of Iran) and also adjoined Khuzestan province to his territories. In fact, during Dowlatshah's time, Kermanshah had become a citadel against the Ottomans.

Dowlatshah carried the last, and initially very successful, attack on the Ottoman Iraq in 1821. Persia was resentful of the inability of the Ottoman government to protect the Shia population of Iraq against the Saudi-Wahhabi attacks that had begun in 1801. Many of the Shias killed in the raids were Iranians, some of whom closely related to the ruling Qajar dynasty of Persia. His forces quickly occupied Shahrazur and Kirkuk, and laid siege to Baghdad.

His skills and ambitions mirrored those of his younger brother. He was a great military leader and a patron of the arts, poetry and philosophy. The origin of the family names "Dowlatshah," "Dowlatshahi," and close variations such as "Dolatshahi" are from this ancestor's title.

Dowlatshah has been greatly respected among the people of Kermanshah (Persian People, Kurds, Lors, and Laks), mainly because of his contributions such as Dowlatshah mosque (مسجد دولتشاه) His mosque is located in the Javanshir Square of Kermanshah and was built in the years 1820-1822 AD. In recent years this mosque has been repaired. It consists of separate nocturnal areas along with a courtyard.

Governor of Kermanshah

The city of Kermanshah is located in the center of the province and has a temperate climate. Kermanshah is one of the ancient cities of Iran and it is said that, Tahmores Divband, a mythical ruler of the Pishdadian had constructed it. Some attribute its constructions to Bahram Sassanid. During the reign of Qobad I and Anushirvan Sassanid, Kermanshah was at the peak of its glory. But in the Arab attack suffered great damage. Concurrent with the Afghan attack and the fall of Esfahan, Kermanshah was destroyed due to the Ottoman invasion. But from the beginning of the 11th century AH. it began to flourish. In order to prevent a probable aggression of the Zangeneh tribe and due to its proximity with Ottoman Empire, the Safavid ruler paid great attention to this city. But in the Zandieh period upheavals increased, whereas during the Qajar era, Ottoman attacks reduced. Mohammad Ali Mirza in 1221 AH. was seated in kermanshah in order to prevent Ottoman aggression, and Khuzestan also came under his realm. An epigraph of Mohammad Ali Mirza in Taq-e-Bostan has been remained as a relic.

Turkish-Persian War (1820-1823)

The regime of Crown Prince Abbas Mirza launched an attack on Ottoman Turkey under the Mohammad Ali Mirza Dowlatshah leadership due to Turkish aid to Azerbaijani rebels in Persia. The rebels had fled from Persia and were given refuge by the Ottomans. The war opened with a Persian invasion of Turkey in the Lake Van region, and a counter-invasion by the Ottoman Pasha of Baghdad (Iraq belonged to the Ottoman Empire), who invaded western Persia. This invasion force was driven back across the border, but the newly modernized Mohammad Ali Mirza Dowlatshah army of 30,000 troops defeated 50,000 Ottoman Turks in the Battle of Erzurum near Lake Van in 1821. A peace treaty in 1823 ended the war with no changes to their mutual border.

Offspring

Mohammad Ali Mirza Dowlatshah had 12 daughters and 10 sons. His sons were:

• Prince Mohammad Hossein Mirza (1808-1835), governor of Kermanshah from 1821 to 1834
• Prince Tahmasp Mirza (1809-1877), governor of Kermanshah from 1877 to 1877
• Prince Nasrollah Mirza Vali
• Prince Assadollah Mirza
• Prince Fathollah Mirza
• Prince Emam Qoli Mirza (1814-1875), governor of Kermanshah from 1834 to 1875.
• Prince Nour-ol-Dahr Mirza
• Prince Jahangir Mirza
• Prince Mohammad Rahim Mirza
• Prince Abol Hossein Mirza

Government Positions Held

• Governor of Fars 1797-1799
• Governor of Gilan and Qazvin 1799-1804
• Governor of Khuzestan and Lorestan 1804-1807
• Governor of Kermanshah 1807-1821

See also

• Qajar Dynasty

Tala Dowlatshahi (external link below) is the Senior Adviser, US Operations for Reporters Without Borders (Reporters Sans Frontieres). RSF is an international media watch dog organization with headquarters in Paris, France. Ms. Dowlatshahi has served as a spokesperson for nearly 10 years. She also serves as the United Nations Bureau Chief for Talk Radio News Service. She is the recipient of multiple awards for her documentaries and films on social issues. Her most recent web television project in partnership with LIVESTREAM focused on global social entrepreneurs. The show was entitled: Reporters Uncensored (RUTV). Dowlatshahi has been featured on CNN, CNNI, BBC, Al Jazeera, and a slew of other networks and affiliates. Her previous work includes assignments with the World Health Organization in Geneva, Switzerland and the United Nations Development Program. Dowlatshahi has traveled to countries from Afghanistan to Uganda to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to name a few. She currently resides in New York City.

References

External links

• [1] Nitasci
• [2] Qajar pages
• [3] Tala Dowlatshahi
• [4] All-Surnames.com
• [5] Dowlatshahi.net

Persondata
Name	Dowlatshahi
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1 January 1789
Place of birth	Larijan, Mazandaran
Date of death	22 November 1821
Place of death	Mada'in, Iraq