Kader Abdolah - The King

‘What do you suggest?’ asked the ayatollah.

‘Have your letter delivered to the British embassy. With your approval we can ask the British to hand the letter to the shah officially.’

‘I don’t think that’s wise. Why involve England in an internal matter?’

‘We have no choice,’ answered Jamal Khan. ‘And it’s irresponsible to wait any longer for an answer from the shah. A constitution is the natural right of any people. England can be our ally in our struggle against the shah.’

A group of seven merchants, representatives of the bazaar, took the ayatollah’s message to the British embassy. None of them spoke a word of English. As luck would have it an important English person happened to be in the embassy that day: Edward Granville Browne. Browne had lost his heart to Persia. He had visited the ruins of all the royal palaces and had made an attempt to decipher the secrets of cuneiform script. At that time it was almost impossible to find anyone as well versed in the Persian past as this Edward Granville Browne. He was a doctor by profession so he was welcome everywhere. He was in his late thirties and had already made three lengthy visits to Persia. He had picked up the Persian language on his own.

The Englishman was still in the southern part of the country when he heard about the unrest in Tehran. He was in Pasargadae investigating the ruins of the ancient palaces that had been set on fire by Alexander the Great. He abandoned his activities and proceeded to Tehran in order to witness the events there first-hand.

Once in Tehran, Browne stayed in the British residence to work on his famous travel book Two Years Among the Persians . On that particular day he was standing at the window of a small room on the second floor of the embassy with a view of the bazaar square, waiting for the telegraph operator to send a travel report to a British newspaper. He saw seven men in expensive coats and hats walking solemnly towards the embassy. Because he knew the Persians and their behaviour so well, he understood immediately by their demeanour that something important was about to take place.

The seven merchants had brought along a note written in English that briefly explained why they had come. Browne glanced at the text. He wondered whether he could ask the gentlemen to come in or whether he should warn the ambassador first. He decided on the former. To the amazement of the Persian gentlemen he welcomed them in their own language and invited them in, entirely in accordance with their social conventions: ‘ Khosh amadid, befarma’id tu’i. Chai tazeh hazer ast. Welcome, please come in. The fresh tea awaits you.’

The merchants trusted him immediately, and they poured out their hearts to him before they had even left the hallway.

In a state of agitation Browne entered the ambassador’s office, closed the door behind him and said quietly, ‘There are seven Persian gentlemen downstairs waiting to see you. They’re carrying a sealed letter, which they want the British embassy to hand officially to the shah.’

‘Why are they asking us to do this?’

‘If I understand them correctly, they are being ignored by the shah. Now they want to try going through the embassy to force the shah to respond to their letter.’

‘But that’s impossible. We are not permitted to get involved in this domestic affair.’

Edward Granville Browne was a free spirit, without political ambition. He had spent almost a third of his life in India and Persia, and he was not pleased with the way the British acted in those countries. Now that the ambassador was saying that he would not receive the letter from the seven merchants, Browne bowed towards him and whispered, ‘This is a unique opportunity for the British Empire. Accept their letter.’

The ambassador walked downstairs to where the gentlemen were waiting, all of them standing with great dignity. One of them held the sealed envelope against his chest like a precious gem. They greeted the ambassador, and the man who was holding the letter began to speak in Persian.

The ambassador called Browne to act as interpreter. The ambassador understood Persian and did not really need Edward Granville Browne, but perhaps he was vain and was thinking about the book Browne was writing. Perhaps he hoped that, with Browne’s help, he would go down in Persian and British history.

‘The ambassador says it is unusual in the diplomatic world for an ambassador to involve himself in a national conflict taking place in the host nation. But just this once he will take personal responsibility and have your letter officially sent to the shah by messenger. The ambassador stresses that England is not party to this matter and is distancing itself from the contents of your correspondence.’

The man speaking on behalf of the group thanked the ambassador and handed him the letter. The gentlemen bowed their heads and walked to the door.

When the shah received the sealed letter from the merchants, contained in a sealed British envelope, he almost fell off his chair. He summoned his vizier and his son-in-law, Eyn ed-Dowleh. ‘The merchants have gone too far. Our last response was too weak, which is why they have had the arrogance to go to the British embassy. We regard it as disloyalty to the throne. England has interfered in our affairs uninvited. We must tackle this evil at the root.’

He asked his vizier to send a letter of protest to the British embassy to show them their place, and ordered Eyn ed-Dowleh to arrest the persons who had sought contact with them. ‘Punish them mercilessly, in public!’

‘We won’t solve the problem this way,’ the vizier ventured to remark. ‘We’re ignoring the contents of their letter. We must look at their demands.’

‘What demands? What they are asking is dangerous and illegal. England cannot tell us what to do in our own country.’

‘These are not England’s demands. They are from the bazaar.’

‘And who is the king, we or the bazaar?’

‘You are the king, and these are the needs of your subjects — subjects we must listen to.’

‘We, the shah of Persia, are not going to sit at the same table with a traitor.’

‘That choice will have grave repercussions for the shah.’

‘The kings before me have always had to deal with grave repercussions.’

‘In your own best interest, I strongly advise you not to use violence in this case,’ urged Mostovi Almamalek.

The shah turned to Eyn ed-Dowleh. ‘First let us arrest the persons who carried the letter to the embassy. Then we will discuss the letter’s contents.’ With these words the shah brought to an end any possible discussion.

Eyn ed-Dowleh quickly found out who the merchants were. Accompanied by a group of armed officers he entered the house of the ayatollah where the merchants were claiming sanctuary. Gun in hand he stood in the middle of the courtyard while his officers dragged the seven men outside. The other merchants tried to stop them. ‘ La ellaha ella allah ,’ they cried, attacking the officers.

Ayatollah Tabatabai threw his black turban down at the feet of Eyn ed-Dowleh and shouted, ‘I am warning you about your behaviour! God does not allow what you are doing!’ and he tried to get to the door to help the merchants. But his path was blocked.

‘Allah! Allah!’ cried the crowds. ‘Anyone who can, come and help!’

People from every nook and cranny came to the house of the ayatollah, where the arrested merchants had been loaded onto a horse cart. Eyn ed-Dowleh and his men were holding the masses back when suddenly Jamal Khan, still dressed as an imam, descended on the horse cart with a group of faithful followers. They freed the detainees, who, along with many others, succeeded in reaching the telegraph office and bolting the iron gate of the building behind them.