Horror of April 1912
On the 10th day of Rabi-ul-Thani in the year 1330 Hejri Qamari (1912), two hours before sunset the sounds of gunshots and canons interrupted the prayers of pilgrims at Imam Reza’s shrine. On that day the Russian Cossack army laid siege to the shrine of Imam Reza, massacred those inside, looted the shrines treasury, and damaged many of it’s great edifices. The Cossack army occupied the shrine for 4 days until they were expelled.
The reasons behind the siege are complex, at the time the Russian had occupied large parts of historic Khurasan (Northern Iran & Central Asia) and had a formidable presence and influence in the northern regions of Iran as well. Meanwhile the British empire had occupied the South of Iran and held control over Afghanistan. In the early 1900’s various uprisings were occurring in Iran as part of the larger Constitutional Revolution which sought to reestablish Iranian sovereignty over the country. Revolutionaries connected to the constitutional uprising movements had made the shrine of Imam Reza their refuge and Russians fearing the possibility of uprising in Mashhad and loss of their influence there, wanted to suppress any uprising in Mashhad and solidify their control over the city.
This heavy hearted illustration depicts the horror of the 1912 Russian Tsarist siege and massacre at Imam Reza’s Shrine in Mashhad.
Drawn by a witness to the massacred, thousands of pilgrims were murdered and taken prisoner by Russian Tsarist forces. The shrines brilliant and historic architecture both on the outside and inside was severely damaged by the attack. Depicted is Russian artillery forces firing canons at the dome of Imam Reza- tragically punctured by 18 canon balls, the dome of Gowharshad suffered similar damage, and tile and ornamental work throughout the shrine was severely damaged and took decades to fully repair.
The following are a sample of the text written within the drawing:
[UPPER LEFT SQUARE]
این کشتگان دور ضریح رضا بود
که ابدان جمله خاک ره اشقیا بود
چون بی گناه بدندی در این مقام
لطف است کو رضا و تمامی رضا بود
“These are the massacred bodies around the zarih of Imam Reza
Which lie under the feet of the most cruel of people (Tsar’s soldiers)
As they were innocent, with the intercession of Imam Reza, God is satisfied with them”
[UPPER RIGHT SQUARE]
آنانکه گشتهاند گرفتار نیک ببین
ای روزگار نیست کسی غیر مفلسی
با آنکه جمله بی گنه و در دعای خیر
اندر حریم شاه شدندی اسیر کین
“Look carefully! These are the people who’ve become hostage
O’ fate, these people have all become wretched
Although they were all innocent and performing prayers
In the shrine of the Shah, they became prisoner there”
[TEXT WITHIN IWAN-E-TILLA]
یا غریب الغربا فدای غربتت
خوشا حال آنانیکه قبل از این
واقعه مرده بودند
“O’ Gharib al Ghuraba, I be sacrificed for your loneliness, Good for the people who died before this and did not witness it!”
