PERSIA. 
under the government of one man ; but this profpeft was 
foon obfcured by the commanding genius of Aga Mo¬ 
hammed Khan. 
When Mohammed Hafl'an was defeated and killed, as 
related in p. 686. his family was not extirpated, as might 
have been expedled ; but Sheik Ali, after feizingupon his 
treafures, carried his fix fons to Shiraz, where their lives 
were fpared, and they were kindly treated. What will 
appear ftill more extraordinary is, that, fixteen years after 
this event, Kerim Khan conferred on Hafl'an Khan, one 
of thefe fons, the government of Afterabad; nay more, 
that after he had rebelled, and been taken and put to death, 
his brother Murtafa Kuli Khan was appointed his l'uc- 
ceffor. But it is no uncommon thing in Periia to fee a fa¬ 
mily, feveral members of which have manifefted a rebel¬ 
lious fpirit, nay, even a rebel himfelf, obtain his confirm¬ 
ation in fome high dignity. The court keeps numerous 
and trufty agents about fuch a perl'on, and all his mo¬ 
tions are known to the government. 
Kerim’s death let the other fons of Mohammed Khan 
at liberty, and they availed themfelves of it to retire to 
Afterabad. Aga Mohammed, the moft enterprifing of 
them, expelled Murtafa from his government, and efta- 
bii/hed himfelf in his ftead. This aft of violence fowed 
difharmony among the brothers, two of whom joined 
Ali Murad, while the two others efpoufed the caufe of 
Aga Mohammed. 
This man, who was deftined to reftore the profperity of 
the Cadjars, and to feat them on the throne of Perfia, was 
however an eunuch. He had been feized, when an in¬ 
fant, by one of the competitors for the throne of Nadir, 
who had the barbarity to command that he fhould be de¬ 
prived of his virility. When his father was defeated and 
flain, he fell into the power of Kerim Khan, by whom he 
was treated with great kindnefs and indulgence. The 
whole of the time which he pafled as a prifonerat Shiraz, 
was employed in preparing himfelf, by the ftudy of men 
and books, for the great fcene in which he was deftined 
to aft. 
At the death of Kerim Khan he was thirty-fix years of 
age. Though his frame was {lender, he was, from his 
frugal diet and his habits of exercife, capable of fuffering 
any fatigue or hardftiip. He might be faid to live on 
horfeback; for every moment that he could fpare from 
other occupations, was given to the chafe, which was, in 
faft, his only amufement. His heart is faid to have been 
as hardened as his body ; but the natural feverity of his 
temper was, during the whole of his progrefs to that fove- 
reigu power which he attained, after a ltruggle of eighteen 
years, checked by his prudence, which led him not only 
to conciliate It is friends by kindnefs, but to forget his 
wrongs, and even to forgive fome of the moft inveterate 
of his perfonal enemies. 
Ali Murad, hearing of the fuccefs of Aga Mohammed, 
determined to go againft him ; but as he was previoufly 
proceeding to Ifpahan to fupprefs a rebellion, he fell fud- 
denly from his horfe and expired on the fpot. 
At this period, Jaafar Khan, the eldeft and only furvi- 
ving fon of Sadik Khan, was governor of Khuni: he 
deemed this a favourable opportunity to affert his preten- 
fions to the government, and immediately marched with 
what few troops he had to Ifpahan : foon after his arrival 
he was joined by the greater part of the malcontents who 
were then in arms. In this fituation he remained fome 
time ; but, AgaMohammed coming down upon him with 
his army, he was obliged to rifk his fate in a battle, and, 
being defeated, fled with the fmall remains of his troops, 
taking the road to Shiraz. Soon after, finding himfelf 
ftrengthened by an increafe of his army, he determined to 
venture a fecond engagement; and for this purpofe 
marched towards Ifpahan : the two armies met near Yez- 
dekhaft, when a battle enfued, and Aga Mohammed Khan’s 
iuperior fortune again prevailing, Jaafar Khan was de¬ 
feated, and retired to Shiraz, which he quitted on the 25th 
of June, 1787, and fliortly after marched his army to the 
northward, but returned in Oftober without having ef- 
fefted any thing. 
Here Mr. Francklin’s narrative ends, and we are not 
informed of what afterwards became of this chief, who 
is well fpoken of by Mr. F. as being of all the preten¬ 
ders to the throne “ the moft likely, in cafe of fuccefs, 
to reftore the country to a happy and reputable ftate.” 
But, as we hear no more of him, we may conclude that 
his army melted away, and that he probably came to an 
untimely death ; for fir John Malcolm informs us, that, 
in the year 1789, the only opponent to Aga Mohammed was 
Latif Ali Khan, who alfo was the only furviving repre- 
fentative of the houfe of Kerim Khan. He was grandfon 
to the brother of that chief; and, by his military talents, 
and popular manners, appeared calculated to re-eftabli(hthe 
fallen fortunes of the Zund family. But he imprudently 
difgufted the firft magiftrate of Shiraz, who wasjuftly 
refpefted by the inhabitants. This officer, in the abfence 
of Latif Ali, took poffeftion of the city, and immediately 
applied to Aga Mohammed for afliftance. This was in- 
ftantly accorded ; but the young chief, with a courage and 
heroifm worthy of a happier fate, attacked and defeated 
two fucceflive armies fent for the relief of Shiraz. But in 
1792, Aga Mohammed, advancing in perfon at the head 
of?a large army,compelled theyoung hero, after prodigies 
of valour, performed with a force altogether difpropor- 
tioned to the occafion, to feek his fafety in flight. From 
this period, until that of his death in 1795, Latif Ali 
continued an illuftrious fugitive, occupied in the vain en¬ 
deavour of collefting a force fufficient to refill the con- 
ftantly-increaiing ftrength of his more fortunate rival. 
At the death of Latif Ali Khan, in 1795, we may pro¬ 
nounce that Aga Mohammed Khan was the aftual as well 
as the acknowledged fovereign of the provinces of Afte¬ 
rabad, Mazanderan, of Ghilan, of the whole of Irak, of 
Fars, and of Carman. The fituation of thefe countries, 
which extend from the Cafpian Sea to the Perfian Gulf, 
could only be deemed fettled and obedient by a compari- 
fon of their condition to Chorafan, and other parts of the 
empire, which had been broken into a number of petty 
principalities at the death of Nadir Shah ; and had, fub- 
fequent to that event, thrown off theirailegiance to thofe 
rulers who affumed the title of fovereigns of Perfia. 
The principles and charafterof Aga Mohammed will be 
beft developed by his conduft towards his own brother,., 
Ali Kuli Khan. This chief had declined appearing at 
court for fome time after his brother’s elevation. The 
moft prefling entreaties, the moft folemn affurances of 
fafety, were lavifhed, to induce him to repair to Teheran ; 
and the government of Ifpahan was to be the reward of 
compliance. When he reached Teheran, he was welcomed 
with every appearance of cordiality ; and the night pafled 
in peace. Next day, Aga Mohammed, after giving him 
fome inftruftions regarding his conduft at Ifpahan, fai<J 
to him, with a cool indifferent air, “You have not, I 
believe, yet looked at my new palace; walk there with 
Baba Khan ; and, after you have feen it, return to me.” 
He went ; and, at the moment he entered the portico, 
fome affaffins, who had been ftationed there, fell upon him 
and flew him. The body was carried to Aga Mohammed, 
who mourned over it with the appearance of the moft 
frantic grief. He deflred Baba Khan (the name by which 
he always called the prefent monarch, who was then quite 
a youth) to approach. When near, he bade him obferve 
the corpfe of the braveft of men, and the beft of bro¬ 
thers. Then, loading the young prince withabufe, he ex¬ 
claimed, “ It is for you that I have done this ! the gal¬ 
lant fpirit that lately animated that body would never 
have permitted my crown to reft upon your head ! Perfia 
would have been diftrafled with internal wars. To avoid 
thefe confequences, I have afted with fhameful ingrati¬ 
tude, and have finned deeply againft God and man !” 
Thefe fentiments, general Malcolm adds, might have 
been fincere; the public expreffion of them had the ef- 
feft of mitigating the univerfal horror at this murder. 
The 
