408

THE PERSIAN REVOLUTION

was Vice-President of the first Majlis, and one of the richest men in Persia. Sayyid Jamalu'd-Din while in Tihran stayed in his house. The Shamsu'l-^ Ulamd was a great friend of the reactionary ecclesiastic Shaykh Fazlu'llah-i-Niiri (who was afterwards hanged on July 31, 1909), and deemed it prudent to remain concealed in his house after He was protected, howthe Constitution was restored in July 1909. ever, by Hajji Sayyid Nasru'llah Akhawi, Vice-President of the second Majlis, who kept him from being molested by the National Volunteers. He was second to none in Persia in his knowledge of Persian and Arabic history and literature, and contributed several valuable notes to the text of the Marzuddn-ndma, edited by Mirza Muhammad in the "Gibb Memorial" series, of which it constitutes vol. viii. He is now about sixty years of age. {M. M.)

Note

8 {on p. 93).

Execution of MfRzA RizA of KirmAn.

The History of the Awakening of the Persians (pp. 153-156), after reproducing almost verbatim the account of Mirza Riza's interrogation here translated from the Sur-i-Isrdfil, gives an account of his last days and execution, of which the gist is as follows. He shewed a brave front until the last, and neither threats nor persuasion would induce him to admit that he had any accomplices. He was publicly hanged early on the morning of Thursday the 2nd of Rabi' i (= August 11,
1896) in the Mayddn-i-Mashq^ or "Drill Square," at Tihran, in the He was confined on the presence of a great concourse of people. previous night in the Cossack Barracks {Qazzdq-khdna), and was accompanied to the place of execution by the Shuja^u' s-Saltana^ son of the Sarddr-i-Kull, and sundry kinsmen of the Aminu' s- Sultdn. It was said that Mirza Riza hoped until the last that the Aminu' s- Sultdn would dehver him from death, and that when he saw the gallows and realized that he was to die, he tried to speak to the people, but his voice was drowned by the music of a military band. On the 12th of Rabi' ii, a.h. 1314 (=^Sept. 20, 1896) a few of his friends, such as Mirza
relatives

Muhammad 'Ali-i-Dizfiili and some of the and disciples of Hajji Shaykh Hadi-i-Najm-abadi (see Note 5 supra) met at the house of the last-mentioned to celebrate, as is the custom in Persia, the fortieth day after Mirza Riza's death, and to pray God's forgiveness for him. And again on the first anniversary of his death, called by the Persians Sdl-i-Mayyit, Shaykh Hadi held a similar celebration in his honour, to which he invited only the Aminu' d-Dawla and one other. On this occasion Shaykh Hadi himself prepared the and food, which was of the simplest kind rice, oil, syrup and bread, after they had eaten, they again united in craving God's Mercy for Mirza Riza. It was after and apparently in consequence of this that the Aminu' d-Dawla founded the Rushdiyya and other schools for the
Hasan-i-Kirmani, Shaykh

better education of the youth of Persia.