Middle East 513
however, desperately wanted Herat, which was adjacent to Persia in western Afghani-
stan. On July 11, 1856, the British advised the Persians that they had been informed
about their “invasions” and “sieges” of Herat at the beginning of 1856. Persia was
given notice not to continue. Undaunted, the Persians took Herat on October 25, and
the British declared war on November 1. The war eventually proved to be a disaster
for the Persians. The British eventually laid waste to Persian forces who received no
help from the Russians. The Shah sued for peace after the British captured Bushire
(Bushehr), and the two sides signed the Treaty of Paris of March 4, 1857, in which
Persia dropped all claims to Herat. The treaty was ratified in Baghdad on May 2 of
that same year.
Coding changes: Start Date changed from July 1856. End Date changed from March
14, 1857.
MID#313
Dispute Number: 313
Date(s): March 15, 1910 to January 3, 1911
Participants: 200 United Kingdom/630 Iran
Outcome (and Settlement): Yield by side B (Negotiated)
Fatalities: None
Narrative: Britain was concerned that domestic turmoil in Persia adversely affect
British nationals there as well as various British interests. Further, Britain was worried
that Russia, her new ally, would upset Persia by not quickly withdrawing her troops
from Tabriz, which it had placed there during the turmoil. In March, British warships
arrived at Bushire and Bunder Abbas.
After a July attack on the British representative to Persia, the Consular Guard at
Shiraz was reinforced. After months of continued anarchy that worked to the detri-
ment of British trade in the region, Sir Edward Grey sent an ultimatum to Persia on
October 14, 1910: assert control over its southern roads within three months or Great
Britain would seize the roads and police it. The ultimatum caused a stir in Europe,
especially in Germany and Turkey. Great Britain released a communique downplay-
ing the tone it used with Persia. Persia initially sought Italian military instructors but
was rebuffed on October 22 when Italy learned that Britain and Russia had blocked
the proposal. On January 3, 1911, Sweden consented to lend military assistance for
that purpose instead. This compromise was satisfactory to the British.
Coding changes: End Date changed from October 14, 1910.
MID#523
Dispute Number: 523
Date(s): August 16, 1941 to January 29, 1942
Participants: 200 United Kingdom, 365 Russia/630 Iran
Outcome (and Settlement): Victory for side A (Imposed)
Fatalities: Missing
Narrative: This dispute describes a joint Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran that occurred
during World War II. Reza Shah Pahlavi’s maintained a friendly policy toward