Russo-Persian War (1826–1828)
| Russo-Persian War (1826–1828) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Russo-Persian Wars | |||||||||
Contemporary illustration of the Battle of Ganja | |||||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||||
| Russian Empire | Qajar Iran | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
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Nicholas I Aleksey Yermolov Valerian Madatov Ivan Paskevich Iosif Reutt |
Fath-Ali Shah Qajar Abbas Mirza Hossein Khan Sardar Hasan Khan Sari Aslan (POW) Amir Khan Devellu-Qajar † Asef al-Dowleh Hamzeh Khan Anzali (POW) Mahmud Khan Maqsudilu (POW) | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
| 3,967 casualties | Unknown | ||||||||
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The Russo-Persian War of 1826–1828 was the last major military conflict between the Russian Empire and Qajar Iran, which was fought over territorial disputes in the South Caucasus region.
Initiated by Russian expansionist aims and intensified by Iranian resistance, the war witnessed significant military engagements, including the Battle of Ganja and Capture of Erivan. The Iranians were initially successful, catching the Russian forces of Yermolov off-guard. They were aided by local uprisings against Russian garrisons in Talish, Ganja, Shirvan, Shakki, and other areas. However Russian reinforcements under the newly appointed General Ivan Paskevich turned the war decisively in Russia's favor, capturing the important city of Tabriz in northwestern Iran.
The war concluded with the Treaty of Turkmenchay in 1828, which stripped Iran of its last remaining territories north of Aras river in the Caucasus, which comprised all of modern Armenia, the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic in the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Iğdır Province in Turkey. The treaty also allowed Russia a say in Iranian politics, as the Iranian shah (king) now required Russia's acknowledgment of the person he wanted to name as heir apparent.
Iran was potentially saved from further loss and submission, possibly even from losing all of Iranian Azerbaijan or even becoming a Russian vassal, either due to the persistence of the Iranian negotiators with the help of the British or the Russians' desire to quickly make peace since another war with the Ottomans was likely nearing. After the war, the Qajar state would never again face Russia on an equal footing or be treated as an equal by European countries.