An international conference dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the adoption of the first constitution in Iran in 1906 was held in Oxford from July 29 to August 2, 2006. It was organized by the Society of Iranian Scholars of Europe with the participation of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the University of Oxford and two British public organizations-the Iranian Cultural Heritage and the Persian Cultural Foundation*.

During the conference, 19 sessions were held, where about 50 experts from many European countries (Great Britain, Germany, the Netherlands, France), the USA, Canada, Iran and Russia spoke. Representatives of the Iranian diaspora in the UK, Europe and the USA took an active part in the conference.

The adoption of the first constitution in Iran was considered primarily as an event made possible by the spread of the ideas of liberalism and constitutionalism in the country. Therefore, on the first day of the conference, reports were presented that analyzed the ideas of liberal democracy put forward in 1906 by some prominent Iranian public and political figures. Thus, the plenary report presented by E. Yarsheiter (USA) was devoted to the life and activities of H. Taghizadeh, who was one of the ideologues of Li-

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liberal constitutionalism and a member of the first Mejlis (Parliament) (1906). He advocated weakening the ideological and political influence of the Shiite clergy and advocated transferring some of the values of European civilization to Iranian soil. Its activities were supported by representatives of the United Kingdom, as well as a certain part of the Iranian intellectual circles during the establishment of the constitutional system in the country. However, due to the strained relations with Reza Shah Pahlavi, Kh. Taghizadeh was forced to leave his homeland in the 1930s; he took refuge in London, where he died in 1992. E. Yarsheiter, who personally knew Taghizadeh, shared his memories of his friend, emphasizing that this person represented the era of liberalism and reformism in Iran.

Theses about the national origin of the ideas of constitutionalism and the awareness of a number of authoritative nobles of the need to introduce Iran to the ideas of Western constitutionalism and secularism were also made in the report of L. Regen (Great Britain), dedicated to the life and work of Zahir ad-Doule, the Minister of Ceremonies of the Shah's court. This man was a native of Khorasan, who was related to the Shah's family (he married the daughter of Nasr-ed-Din Shah). He made a great contribution to the creation of new administrative structures during the constitutional period (in particular, the Mejlis), and served as the governor of Hamadan. At the same time, he shared the position of the Okhovvat enjumen (local self-government body), whose representatives interpreted certain provisions of Sufism in the light of the revolutionary events of 1906-1911 that unfolded in Iran. According to the expert, Zahir al-Dawleh was an example of a" modernized Sufi " at a time when the spread of Sufism was seen as the cause of the decline and backwardness of Iran and the Islamic world.

A number of reports argued for the historical necessity of limiting the power of the Shah and introducing new power structures in the center and in the field. According to the speakers, the origins of these ideas were in Iranian socio-political circles and were supported by the British.

Several reports were devoted to the analysis of social structures that supported the constitutionalists. Thus, M. Bayet (Germany) analyzed the socio-political role of the special socio-political association (Raushanfikr), which consisted of Iranian intellectuals who supported the ideas of constitutionalism and secularism, but did not oppose religion.

Some attention was paid to the study of the position of Iranian merchants (bazaars), religious minorities, especially Armenians, during the constitutional period of 1906-1911. A lively discussion was caused by the speech of the Iranian researcher Soheyla Tarabi-Farsani, who drew attention to the heterogeneity of interests and specializations of merchants and bazaars who created various enjumens during the constitutional revolution. In this, she saw a differentiation of their political views and different assessments of the events unfolding in the country. The speaker elaborated on the analysis of the work of some engumens. It is important to note that the researcher used interesting fundamental methods of

* The Institute of Oriental Studies at Oxford University started studying Iran (Persia) in the 17th century. Currently, the research covers a wide range of issues. These include the Persian language (written and live), literature (modern and medieval, poetry and prose), and history (from the early Middle Ages to the Islamic Revolution). The Institute has a rich library on Iranian philology and history. Other Eastern languages studied there include Arabic, Turkish, Armenian, Sanskrit, Tibetan, Japanese, and Hebrew. Also taught are country studies courses from ancient times to the present day. The Iran Cultural Heritage Foundation was founded in 1995 as a charitable non-governmental organization dedicated to supporting research in the field of Iranian studies. It contacts many universities and museums around the world in order to implement a variety of cultural programs.

The Persian Cultural Foundation was registered as a non-core public organization for the implementation of cultural projects of the Iranian diaspora to promote the Persian cultural heritage. One of the most important tasks of this foundation is to promote the achievements of Iranian culture among young people and people interested in Iranian culture in the past and present, as well as its contribution to the development of world culture. The Foundation supports research in the fields of science and technology, art and literature, medicine and health, music and fine arts, and trade. It helps preserve the achievements of Iranian culture for future generations.

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sources: debates of the Mejlis, documents of two very reputable merchant houses, as well as press materials.

Another Iranian expert, Reza Mokhtari-Isfahani, President of the Documentation Center, focused on some of the peculiarities of municipal authorities. The restriction of the Shah's power, in his opinion, increased the socio-political significance of the Mejlis and civil institutions that provided a link between the people and the state. These councils, the speaker emphasized, were democratic and elective. At the same time, he noted, municipal offices existed in Iran even before the adoption of the constitution, during the rule of Nasr al-Din Shah, they were responsible for cleaning the streets and lighting large cities. However, the first Mejlis created and approved the charter of municipal authorities, which emphasized democracy and clearly outlined the form and content of municipal responsibility. Analyzing the municipal charter adopted by the first and second Mejlis, the expert noted the positive and negative aspects of these documents. He focused on the role of municipal councils and their formation on an electoral basis. There were also many details about the organization of the soviets, the analysis of the social and class status of their members, and so on, drawn from Iranian documentary sources and the press of the early twentieth century, which were difficult for foreign specialists to access.

Some reports highlighted the activities of foreigners in Iran who contributed to the development of social progress during the constitutional period. Thus, A. Poghosyan (Germany) discovered knowledge of Soviet historiography on the issue of the constitutional revolution of 1906-1911. She cited some facts from the work of the authoritative Iranist M. S. Ivanov, dedicated to the Iranian revolution of 1906-1911. At the same time, she positively assessed Germany's role in the constitutional process and its contribution to the implementation of a number of economic projects, emphasizing that Germany was supposedly the only country that sincerely cared about the welfare of the Iranian people, kept the slogan "Iran for Iranians", etc. In the same vein, T. Ricks (USA) spoke about the charitable activities of American missionaries and the Presbyterian mission in Tabriz.

T. Rix's speech raised many questions, since the opening of a school in Tabriz was an unprecedented fact for that time, the work of missionaries allowed by the government could only be reduced to charitable and medical activities. There is also evidence of this from Russian diplomats who worked in Iran in those years, for example, the Consul General of Russia in Isfahan S. V. Chirkin.

The Iranian constitutional revolution was interpreted as an event of international significance. In this vein, reports were read on the impact of constitutional ideas in Iran on the socio-political processes in Ireland, Japan, China, Afghanistan and Turkey. Thus, Michel E. Penn (Japan), guided in his report by publications of the early 20th century and modern publications on the constitutional revolution, emphasized that Japan played an important, albeit indirect, role in Iran during the period under review, in solidarity with the British in the fight against the influence of Russia. At the same time, in particular, he focused on the visit of General Suzuki to Iran, who met a warm welcome in Mashhad as a representative of the country that won the Russo-Japanese war.

A study of Chinese publications in 1909-1912 on the constitutional revolution in Iran allowed a young researcher from China, I. Wang, to conclude that the establishment of a constitutional monarchy in Iran and the subsequent events were a harbinger of the Chinese revolution of 1911-1913.

Analyzing the influence of Iranian constitutionalism on the intellectual circles of Afghanistan, A. Tarzi (USA) noted that the liberal ideas were shared by representatives of the Afghan educated strata, grouped around the Habibyah College in 1904. A few years later, they created a secret society that developed the idea of establishing a constitutional monarchy in the country. A. Tarzi also described the degree of influence of Indian public thought on the development of the ideas of constitutionalism in Afghanistan. He tried to answer the question of whether these ideas were acceptable to the Afghan society of that time or, as some scholars claim, they were sharply rejected by the Afghans.

The conference participants did not ignore the problem of the influence of the ideas of Iranian constitutionalism on the Turkish socio-political movement of that time. So, based on the study of documents from the Turkish and British archives (Basbakanlik Devlet Arsivleri and the

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British Public Records Office) by American researcher F. Veydani discussed issues of Turkish-Iranian cooperation during the constitutional revolution of 1909-1911. She noted that representatives of the Turkish Unity and Progress Committee were sent to Iran, who, in her opinion, became Mujahideen who fought together with the constitutionalists in Iranian Azerbaijan. and also on the problem of the Turks ' rescue of Tabriz and Teheran nationalists during the critical period of the 1905 - 1911 revolution. In conclusion, the speaker summed up that the Turkish-Iranian constitutional cooperation was very significant.

Also of interest is the report of T. Atabaki (Netherlands), a well-known scholar in Russian Oriental circles, author of the recently published monographs "Iran and the First World War"and " Azerbaijan". He is also the editor of the collection of articles "The State and Junior Officers", devoted to Turkish-Iranian relations in the 1920s. In his speech, he demonstrated his knowledge of Soviet historiography on the problem of the constitutional revolution. He rightly noted, in particular, that Soviet authors associated the emergence of revolutionary events in Iran mainly with the events of 1905 in Russia. In his opinion, this is not entirely true, since it was more important for Iranians to spread the ideas of Muslim thinkers in society (for example, Kashani, etc.). In addition, the development of the modernization process in Iran, according to the speaker, complicated the presence of Russian troops in its northern part. The overthrow of the despotic Shah's regime, according to T. Atabaki, allowed the establishment of new democratic institutions - the introduction of the constitution and parliament. However, Iran was on the verge of disintegration. Therefore, modernization was initially defeated, and further socio-political processes led to the coming to power of Reza Shah, who pursued a policy of centralization.

A special block of reports, a significant part of which consisted of speeches by Iranian scientists, was devoted to the development of culture, poetry and music in the country during the constitutional period. It consisted of several sections: poetry and music of the constitutional period, fine arts, and revolutionary culture. Interest was aroused by the report of Ali Miransari (Iran)" Plays during the constitutional Revolution of 1906-1911". Since constitutionalism was a Western phenomenon, it is not surprising that plays borrowed from the West were the most effective means of spreading new ideas and ideals. The plays created at that time reflect to a certain extent the understanding of the constitutional process. They represent a living drama of the struggle between light (constitutionalists) and darkness (opposition). The plays were like journalistic essays or even pamphlets. They did not reflect the confusion and contradictions of the individual at a time when social actions and symbols dominated.

In the speech of the Iranian scholar Soad Pir "Individualism and national identity in short stories", it was noted that the ideology of constitutionalism opened a new way of self-expression of writers in Iranian literature and gave impetus to the emergence of short stories that influenced the social and cultural life of Iranian society. He analyzed several short stories by Iranian authors, concluding that they were influenced by Western models, and their works represented a transition from the old forms to the new type of short stories.

Mohammad Reza Tahmasbpour (Iran) devoted his report to the socio-political function of photography during the constitutional revolution. In his opinion, documentary photography, which emerged in the middle of the XIX century, acquired a special significance during this period: on the one hand, it captured important events of that time, and on the other, it attracted the attention of the population to certain political events. Photographers captured constitutionalists in many parts of Iran and all over the country, took pictures of conflicts between them and reactionaries, national heroes, made portraits of ulema who were at the head of the constitutional movement, etc.The speaker tried to analyze the impact of this form of propaganda of revolutionary ideas on the masses. He stressed that political photography opened the way for the development of other forms of photography, as well as photojournalism. His message was accompanied by a demonstration of old photographs.

Representative of the University of Oxford H. Katozyan made a report on the development of Iranian poetry during the constitutional period. He noted that then the creativity of young poets flourished, writing mainly on social and political topics. Their poetry, in his opinion-

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to you, it was "unmistakably fresh and modern". Often they experimented, balancing between classical and neoclassical forms, creating new speech turns and literary techniques, using colloquial and folklore expressions. With their poems, the poets contributed to the consolidation of the movement opposed to Mohammad Ali Shah during his struggle with the first Majlis.

One of the most interesting cultural presentations was a report by Associate Professor of History and Women's Issues J. R. R. Tolkien. Eifori (USA), which showed the role of the popular literary character Haji Nasreddin during the constitutional revolution. She noted that writers used this image in their works to convey thoughts to the reader through his mouth, which could hardly be expressed with impunity in another form. Thus, Haja Nasreddin performed an important socio-political function and was popular not only in Iran, but also in the neighboring regions of Transcaucasia and Central Asia, as well as in other eastern countries. Speech by J. R. R. Tolkien Euphoria was supported by a demonstration of interesting illustrative material.

Several reports were devoted to the analysis of the forces opposing the ideas of constitutionalism, secularism and modernization in Iran. Among them are reports by M. Momen (Great Britain) on the Baha'is and K. Hemmat (USA) on Baha'i schools, H. Berberian (USA) on the Armenian community of Iran, I. Nabi (USA) on the Iranian Assyrians in the light of Kasrawi's ideas on the constitutional revolution.

The discussion turned around the problems of Baha'ism, as M. Momen, a representative of the London School of Oriental and African Studies, constructed his speech in a polemical form, challenging some of the provisions set out in the works of the researcher M. Bayet, who was present in the hall, regarding Babism. Referring to the unpublished materials of the Baha'is, as well as the testimonies of diplomats, travelers and missionaries, M. Momen tried to show the differences between the Baha'is and the supporters of the Bab, considering the latter as "internal enemies" who, unlike the Baha'is, hindered the spread of ideas of democracy, constitutionalism and social reform.

The last section was devoted to the problems of Iranian tribes-Bakhtiars, Kurds, as well as the political role of some cities (Hamadan, Isfahan).

A. Kazemi (USA) analyzed the situation on the Iranian periphery and, in particular, focused on the role of the Bakhtiar tribes in the constitutional revolution, their participation in the central authorities. He spoke about the political activities of their main leaders in the new Mejlis, their desire not to miss out on important sources of income, such as the oil fields in Bakhtiari. The report was accompanied by biographies of Bakhtiar politicians and interesting illustrative material.

To a certain extent, this presentation was supplemented by the material on Isfahan presented by X. Walcher, a representative of the London School of Oriental and African Studies, focused her presentation on the analysis of the paradigm of traditionalism and modernism in the social sphere. At that time, the British launched a large political and commercial activity in this city, which contributed to the penetration of Western ideas into traditional Isfahan society.

O. I. Zhigalina's report (Russia) "Kurds of the Iranian province of Kermanshah in the constitutional period" outlined the position of the Kurdish tribes (in contrast to the Bakhtiar tribes, who supported the absolutist government), who, as the constitutionalists strengthened in the province, nevertheless began to join the new social order. Some social features of the Kermanshah Kurds, the problem of forming a tribal confederation, and the attempt of Kurdish tribal leaders to take a prominent place in the country's political structures by participating in the opposition movement Salara ed-Doule were highlighted. It was concluded that the Kurds of Kermanshah gradually became involved in the constitutional movement, which contributed to the disintegration of traditional structures.

The conference was accompanied by an interesting cultural program. Thus, a concert of Iranian music from the period of the constitutional revolution, held in the premises of St. Hilda's College, allowed us to get an idea of the development of the Iranian musical culture of that time. We also managed to get acquainted with some traditions of the University of Oxford. In terms of organization, the conference was held at a very high level. Theses you-

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The steps were published in a special collection, which was decorated with photos from the period of the constitutional revolution. In the future, it is planned to publish reports as well.

It should also be noted that only one of the approaches to analyzing the events of the constitutional revolution of 1906-1911 prevailed at the conference. However, the overthrow of the absolute monarchy, which opened the way for the development of democratic power structures, and the spread of the ideas of constitutionalism in Iranian socio-political, philosophical and religious circles were positively evaluated not only by European, but also by Iranian researchers. The Constitutional Revolution of 1906-1911 was a fateful event that opened the way for Iran to modernize its social and political life. New democratic structures of power emerged, and a new social and political order was established. The period of 1906-1911 was perceived as a complex, contradictory process, determined not only by internal political contradictions, but also by the complex international situation of that time.

Thus, by the beginning of the 20th century, the prerequisites for both domestic and international order had matured in Iran, leading to the overthrow of the obsolete absolutist system and the establishment of democratic power structures. At the same time, it is hardly necessary to belittle the ideological and political role of the Shiite clergy during the constitutional revolution, which had a dominant influence on the Iranian population and opposed colonialism for the independence of the Iranian state. It is no coincidence that along with representatives of other social strata, Shiite theologians (modshtahids) initiated the creation of local enjumens, and the Shiite clergy of Najaf tried to influence the development of socio-political processes in a number of regions of the country.

The conference, held at the University of Oxford, is a very important scientific event that encourages a deeper and more comprehensive understanding of one of the key events in Iranian history at the beginning of the 20th century, and a more thorough study of archival sources and materials.

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