Alexander V. Makutchev

Associate Professor, PhD in History, Associate Professor of the Department of legal disciplines of the Tula State Lev Tolstoy Pedagogical University

Tula State Lev Tolstoy Pedagogical University

(Tula, Russia)

Abstract. The article analyzes the attitude of Russian diplomacy to the stay in Iran of the American fi-nancial adviser W. Morgan Shuster in 1911. Shuster was invited by the Iranian Parliament at the final stage of the Constitutional revolution to restore the financial and tax systems of the state. In order to achieve these goals, Shuster launched an independent policy that provoked a negative reaction from foreign powers, primarily Russia. Schuster initiated reforms of the entire financial system of Iran, which inevitably led to his involvement in political intrigues. This policy contradicted Russian interests in Iran, which were enshrined in the agreement of 1907 with Britain about the division of Iran into spheres of influence. The author analyzes the main initiatives of Shuster, their interpretation in histori-ography and consequences for the history of Iran, as well as the role of Russian diplomacy in Shus-ter's dismissal. In particular, based on the analysis of scientific literature, both domestic and foreign, as well as Shuster's memoirs, the author comes to the conclusion that the failure of Shuster's mission was predetermined by his desire to pursue a policy independent of Russia and England in conditions when Iran was actually a semi-colony of these powers: Shuster's actions were capable of violating the sovereignty of the powers established in 1907. In the historical perspective, Schuster's mission only served as a pretext for the introduction of foreign troops into Iran, a new round of internal tension in the country, and the actual loss of Iran's national independence. At the same time, according to the author, the perception of Schuster as a protege of any of the powers that has long dominated Russian histori-ography is tendentious and unfounded. The author pays special attention to the assessment of the role of Russian diplomacy in Schuster's resignation – it was Russia's position that caused the Briton's ear-ly departure from Iran. Schuster's actions were able to weaken Russia's position in the region, chang-ing the geopolitical balance of power.
Keywords: M. Shuster, Iran, «The Great Game», diplomacy, spheres of Influence, Anglo-Russian Convention of 1907, majlis, Constitutional Revolution of Iran.

Full text of the article (PDF)


For citation: Makutchev, AV 2020, ‘Russia and Morgan Shuster’s mission in Iran’, Tula Scientific Bulletin. History. Linguistics, issue 2 (2), pp. 44–54, URL: http://tula-vestnik.ru/pdf/2020/vipusk_2_15_12_20.pdf (in Russ.)

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