Caucasian Seminary Students and their Role in the Political - Social Changes of Mashhad in the Late Qajar Era (1902- 1911)

During the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Mashhad was a destination for many immigrants from dierent parts of Iran and also neighboring regions of Iran such as CentralAsia, Afghanistan, the Indian subcontinent and Caucasus. "ese immigrant groupswho had entered Mashhad with dierent motivations aected the political, social, economicand cultural conditions of this city in dierent ways. Aer several generations,many of these immigrants became the main citizens of Mashhad and their descendantsare still living in this city with family names that show their origins (Bukharaei, Heravi,Badkoubei etc.). Among the immigrant communities, the Caucasians were an importantgroup. "e Caucasians, who migrated to Mashhad during the Qajar Era with motivationssuch as pilgrimage, trade and education, played in"uential roles in various elds;they were sometimes active in developing the cultural and economic infrastructures ofthe city, and were sometimes involved in its social and political movements. A group ofthese Caucasian immigrants were students who studied in the Islamic seminaries aroundthe Holy shrine of Imam Reza. In the last two decades of the Qajar Era, these Caucasianstudents were among the most active communities in Mashhad. "is article studies theimportant events in which the Caucasian students played roles and the position of thesestudents in the developments of this city. Among the most important of these events arethe bread crisis in 1903, the Constitutional Revolution, and the Minor Tyranny period