Bomb Explosion Near Mohammadali Shah's Coach

Two handmade bombs were thrown at Mohammadali Shah's imperial coach. Some of the guards around the carriage were killed but the Shah escaped the assassination attempt unharmed. Shah was travelling from the Gulistan palace towards Doshantappe residence in east Tehran. A day later, the governor of Tehran was summoned to the court and beaten severely. The minister of war who was appointed just a day earlier was physically punished and sent to prison. (Updated: Mar, 3, 2008)

First Oil Well Drilled In Masjed-e-Soleyman

For the first time in Iran, drillings reached oil in the historical city of Masjed-e-Soleyman. At about 360 meters they struck oil. The oil sprouting nearly 16 meters above the equipment signaled a new era of modern time colonization of Iran. Drillings had begun in 1903 in different areas in southern Iran. An agreement signed by Mozaffaroddin Shah in May, 1901 gave exclusive drilling rights to William Knox D'Arcy for a period of 60 years. The Anglo-Persian Oil Company was founded in April 1909 that constructed a pipeline to a refinery in Abadan in 1911. In 1951, the oil industry was nationalized and for a short time Iranians took control of their national wealth until a coup in 1953 after which, Mohammadreza Shah gave concessions to the English and American oil cartels. (Updated: Feb, 29, 2008)

Russians Bombard Iran's Parliament

Russian canons bombard the national parliament of Iran. After the death of Mozaffaroddin Shah, his son Mohammadali Shah started showing teeth to supporters of conditional monarchy. But public uprisings and pressure from dissidents forced him to seek a safe heaven at the Russian embassy. The Russian soldiers headed by general Liakhoff bombarded the parliament killing many representatives, reporters and dissidents. This event was the start of a period called the minor tyranny. One year later, in July, 1909 the tables turned and the dissidents captured Tehran forcing the Shah to seek help from Russians again. He was escorted by Russian soldiers to Russia. One day after Mohammadali Shah left Iran his mother Ommolkhaleghan, a daughter of Amirkabir died on Sep, 30, 1909. Mohammadali Shah attempted a military attack to capture Tehran on July, 18, 1911 with the help of his brother but he was defeated and consequently many of his relatives and supporters were dismissed from state duty. Mohammadali Shah spent the rest of his life in Europe and died in 1924 in Paris. (Updated: Feb, 29, 2008)

Price Of Objection To Conditional Monarchy

In a meeting against conditional monarchy (Mashrootiyat) that was held in Bagheshah where Mohammadali Shah, the Qajar king was residing. Sheikh Fazlollah Nouri orchestrated a campaign to gather signatures petitioning the shah to cancel Mashrootiyat. The shah willingly signed the order that later led to civil unrest in Gilan, Isfahan, and Azarbaijan. One year later, The Sheikh was charged with treason and hung on July, 31, 1909 to be the ayatollah executed in the modern history of Iran. (Updated: Dec, 12, 2007)

• Azar: آذر
• Azarbaijan: آذربايجان(Atriatkan)
• Bagheshah: باغ شاه
• Doshantappe: دوشان تپه
• Gilan: گيلان
• Gulistan: گلستان
• Isfahan: اصفهان(Esfahan, Sepahan اسپه دانه، اسپهان)
• Liakhoff: لياخوف(Liakhov)
• Mashrootiyat: مشروطيت
• Mohammadreza Shah: محمدرضا شاه
• Ommolkhaleghan: ام الخالقان
• Persia: ايران
• Qajar: قاجار(Ghajar)
• Sheikh Fazlollah Nouri: شيخ فضل الله نوري
• Soleyman: سليمان(Suleiman, Soleiman, Suleyman)