primarily on guerilla raids, picking off small, isolated detachments,
burning crops in the fields, and carrying off people and herds of ani-
mals. (Sieges were used only in dire emergencies, as in the Russian
blockade of Yerevan in 1804.) 'Abbas Mirza often repeated a saying
of Aqa Mohammad's, "Never come within reach of the Russian guns,
and never, by the celerity of the cavalry, allow a Russian villager to
sleep in peace."^17 Both sides employed the tactic of relocating, some-
times forcibly, inhabitants of the disputed provinces, but the Iranians
did so to a far greater extent than the Russians. Many Ganjevis were
removed, apparently with their consent, to areas under Iranian con-
trol. Perhaps as many as several thousand Qarabaghis, as well as several
hundred Turcomans from the southern border districts of Georgia,
were also moved, although the latter group eventually returned to
their homes.^18
Iran also supported Caucasian opponents of Russian expansion
with messages of encouragement, promises for money, and, rarely,
plans for coordinated military action. Sheikh 'Ali had such contacts
with the Iranians but relied primarily on his own resources. Several
Bagration princes, especially Alexander (Erekle's eldest surviving son),
relied heavily on support from every possible source—Georgians,
tribes from the high mountains, Prince Solomon of Imeretia, and,
most of all, Iran. Sheikh 'Ali's years of guerrilla raiding exasperated
the Russians greatly. In 1809, Commander-in-Chief Tormasov, in es-
sence, admitted his inability to defeat Sheikh 'Ali by conventional
military means when he came up with a scheme to stop the khan by
finding someone to turn him in or assassinate him or, if that failed,
by restoring him to power in Qobbeh. (No suitable assassin was found,
and the plan was dropped.) Sheikh 'Ali's local success could not by
itself have driven the Russians from the Caucasus. Prince Alexander's
success was also local and, in addition, episodic. He blamed his fail-
ures on inadequate Iranian support but to the end of the war kept
asking for more help.
19
The reverse situation, in which Russia tried
to win over Iranian subjects, also existed. Apart from the khans of
the disputed provinces, several prominent individuals who lived in
territory controlled by Iran also had contacts with the Russians.
Sometimes the aim was to test whether Russia would offer more
than Iran, as was the case with the governor of Tabriz and the leaders
of the Shahsavan tribe. Sometimes the individual had broken with
the shah before seeking Russian favor, as was the case with Ja'far
Qoli Khan of the Domboli Kurds. He was unusual in that he and a
band of followers migrated to Russian territory. Armenians, especially
from the Tehran area, did likewise. However, most of those who
The War, 1804-1813 109