Fereydun Mirza () was a

Qajar The Guarded Domains of Iran, alternatively the Sublime State of Iran and commonly called Qajar Iran, Qajar Persia or the Qajar Empire, was the Iranian state under the rule of the Qajar dynasty, which was of Turkic origin,Cyrus Ghani. ''Iran an ...

prince, governor and poet in 19th-century

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

. The fifth son of

Abbas Mirza Abbas Mirza (; 26 August 1789 – 25 October 1833) was the Qajar dynasty, Qajar crown prince of Qajar Iran, Iran during the reign of his father Fath-Ali Shah Qajar (). As governor of the vulnerable Azerbaijan (Iran), Azerbaijan province, he played ...

, he held the governorships of

Tabriz Tabriz (; ) is a city in the Central District (Tabriz County), Central District of Tabriz County, in the East Azerbaijan province, East Azerbaijan province of northwestern Iran. It serves as capital of the province, the county, and the distric ...

(1833–1834), Fars (1836–1840), and

Khorasan KhorasanDabeersiaghi, Commentary on Safarnâma-e Nâsir Khusraw, 6th Ed. Tehran, Zavvâr: 1375 (Solar Hijri Calendar) 235–236 (; , ) is a historical eastern region in the Iranian Plateau in West and Central Asia that encompasses western and no ...

(1851–1854).

Biography

Fereydun Mirza was the fifth son of the

prince

. Favored by his father since he was a little boy, he was appointed vice-governor of

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

in 1831 when Abbas Mirza traveled to put down an uprising in

. Following Abbas Mirza's death in 1833, Fereydun Mirza served as the governor of

during the governorship of Azerbaijan by his elder brother, the crown prince Mohammad Mirza. After Mohammad Mirza (now known by his regnal name Mohammad Shah) became the new

shah Shāh (; ) is a royal title meaning "king" in the Persian language.Yarshater, Ehsa, ''Iranian Studies'', vol. XXII, no. 1 (1989) Though chiefly associated with the monarchs of Iran, it was also used to refer to the leaders of numerous Per ...

(king) of Iran in 1834, Fereydun Mirza commanded the imperial army against the

Turkmens Turkmens (, , , ) are a Turkic ethnic group native to Central Asia, living mainly in Turkmenistan, northern and northeastern regions of Iran and north-western Afghanistan. Sizeable groups of Turkmens are found also in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, ...

Gorgan Gorgan (; ) is a city in the Central District (Gorgan County), Central District of Gorgan County, Golestan province, Golestan province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. It lies approximately to the nor ...

, conquering Qari Qal'a. As a reward, Fereydun Mirza was given the title of ''

farmanfarma Farmanfarma (, lit. "giver of an order") was a title with three different meanings in Safavid Iran, Safavid and Qajar Iran, Qajar Iran. #The Safavid shahs (kings) and their officials used ''farmanfarma'' (sometimes used interchangeably with ''farma ...

'' and the governorship of Fars in 1836. Mirza Taqi Qavam-al-Dawla was appointed as his minister. Although Fereydun Mirza seems to have started off successfully, the inhabitants of the provincial capital

Shiraz Shiraz (; ) is the List of largest cities of Iran, fifth-most-populous city of Iran and the capital of Fars province, which has been historically known as Pars (Sasanian province), Pars () and Persis. As of the 2016 national census, the popu ...

rebelled against him three years later, due to the mistreatment by his treasurer, Mirza Ahmad Khan Tabrizi. The numerous grievances expressed by others and even Mirza Taqi Qavam-al-Dawla findings regarding Mirza Ahmad Khan were all disregarded by Fereydun Mirza. The residence of the governor was besieged by the rebels, and because a solution was unattainable, Mohammad Shah had in 1840 Fereydun Mirza dismissed from his office and sent back to the capital of

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

. After that, Fereydun Mirza was not given any official positions by Mohammad Shah, even though the

grand vizier Grand vizier (; ; ) was the title of the effective head of government of many sovereign states in the Islamic world. It was first held by officials in the later Abbasid Caliphate. It was then held in the Ottoman Empire, the Mughal Empire, the Soko ...

Haji Mirza Aqasi Haji Mirza Abbas Iravani (), better known by his title of Aqasi (; also spelled Aghasi), was an Qajar Iran, Iranian politician who served as the grand vizier of the third Qajar dynasty, Qajar shah, Mohammad Shah Qajar () from 1835 to 1848. Early ...

tried to advocate for him. In 1851, Fereydun Mirza was appointed the governor of Khorasan by Mohammad Shah's son and successor

Naser al-Din Shah Qajar Naser al-Din Shah Qajar (; ; 17 July 1831 – 1 May 1896) was the fourth Shah of Qajar Iran from 5 September 1848 to 1 May 1896 when he was assassinated. During his rule there was internal pressure from the people of Iran, as well as external ...

(). He defeated the alleged 40,000 army of the ruler of the

Khiva khanate The Khanate of Khiva (, , uz-Latn-Cyrl, Xiva xonligi, Хива хонлиги, , ) was a Central Asian polity that existed in the historical region of Khorezm from 1511 to 1920, except for a period of Afsharid occupation by Nader Shah betw ...

, Mohammad-Amin Khan, who was killed along with fourteen princes. Order was thus brought back to Khorasan, and Fereydun Mirza was rewarded with lavish presents by Naser al-Din Shah for this victory. Fereydun Mirza died in 1854 in the city of

Mashhad Mashhad ( ; ), historically also known as Mashad, Meshhed, or Meshed in English, is the List of Iranian cities by population, second-most-populous city in Iran, located in the relatively remote north-east of the country about from Tehran. ...

. Regarded as one of the more virtuous and intelligent Qajar princes, Fereydun Mirza is said to have shown "benevolence to the entire population of Fars." He wrote poetry under the pen name "Farrokh"; some of his works are included in the ''Majma al-fosaha'' by

Reza-Qoli Khan Hedayat Reza-Qoli Khan Hedayat (; 8 June 1800 – 29 June 1871) was an Iranian literary historian, administrator, and poet in 19th-century Qajar Iran. Biography Hedayat was born in Tehran on 8 June 1800 to a renowned family which was descended from the ...

and ''Hadiqat al-sho'ara'' by

Ahmad Divanbeygi Ahmad Divanbeygi (; 1826 – after 1895) was a 19th-century writer in Qajar Iran, who is the author of a '' tazkera'' (anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection ...

References

Sources

* Children of Abbas Mirza 1810s births 1854 deaths 19th-century Iranian politicians Qajar governors of Fars Qajar governors of Khorasan 19th-century Persian-language poets {{Qajar princes