A Brief Narrative of Recent Events in Persia. Followed by a Translation of “The Four Pillars of the Persian Constitution”.

First appearance of Browne’s translation of the first Persian Constitution

First edition, second issue (one of 1,000 copies). Photographic frontispiece. 8vo. Original green printed wrappers; professional paper repairs to extremities of upper wrapper, a few light creases to wrappers, a little foxing to opening & closing leaves, otherwise near very good. 101pp. London, Luzac & Co.,   

An important pamphlet on the Persian Constitutional Revolution. It includes Browne’s English translation of the 1906 constitution, and the supplementary laws defining elections and the role of the Majlis (parliament) and senate.

 

Browne (1862-1926) was the most significant English commentator on the Persian Revolution, and went against the grain of British opinion by giving his wholehearted support to the constitutional cause. By siding with the 'constitutionalists’ or 'nationalists’ (though Browne preferred 'parliamentarians’) he advocated for their revolt against the authoritarian rule of the Shah and their struggle to establish a parliament. His position explicitly opposed the interests of the British and Russian governments, who profited from the Shah’s misuse of Iran’s resources. 

 

He first issued this pamphlet in a run of 500 copies in January 1909, and then another run, "without alteration” (apart from a note on the verso of the title), of 1,000 copies later that year. It appears to have been partly self-funded and was driven by Browne’s desire to arouse "sympathy with, the Persian reformers (whose aims and achievements have been much misrepresented in certain sections of the British Press)” (p.5).  

 

Diba, p.189; Wilson, p.32.

Stock Code: 247218