Commercial and Political Conditions of the Caspian Sea in the Qajar Period

During the Qajar Period, the status of Iran and the Caspian Sea underwent some changes under the influence of foreign powers.Upon the signing of Gulistan and Turkmenchay treaties, the control of some parts of the country and the Caspian Sea were ceded to Russia after the two Russo-Persian wars. Followingthe political-economic goals that the Russians sought there, security was established in the Persian Gulf and commercial development was launched in this region. The existence of a waterway such as the Caspian Sea, Russia’s neighborhood with Iran, Russians’ critical need for Iran’s agricultural and animal products, and Iran’s need for the Russian cheap goods led to the development of transportation industry and linking routes through the Caspian Sea and the affluence of Astarakhan and Anzali ports. As a result of Russians’ activities and operations, sea commerce was greatly developed in the Caspian Sea region so that, at the threshold of World War I, this waterway played the most significant role in the export and import relationships between Iran and Russia and was even used in transit commerce with other European countries. Given the significance of this point, the present paper examines the commercial and political status of Iran and Russia via the Caspian Sea, as well as the process of the development of commerce and commercial goods which were transported through this waterway. It also reviews the transport routes and the modes of commercial transportation during the Qajar period.