Darius III. had reached the dangerous condition of a very rich but not a warlike king; when then, he, by means of his wealth, incited other nations to make war upon Alexander, King of Macedonia, this great conqueror determined to attack Persia—a feat which he accomplished with so much success that he everywhere defeated the Persians, who for upwards of a hundred years were, in a great measure, under the yoke of Greece.
In more modern times Persia has been invaded by the Tartars, a vagrant race of hunters and shepherds who were warlike and organized enough to subjugate Persia.
With the exception of the early wars with the Greeks already referred to, the Persians, up to the year 1700, had not met in battle any of the armies of Europe. Peter the Great of Russia had, however, for a long time been desirous of extending his territory to the banks of the Caspian Sea, and had merely waited for a pretext to wage war with Persia. He did not seek an opportunity in vain, for a Russian caravan returning from China was plundered by the Persians, and this offence so irritated the Russian autocrat that he put himself at the head of his army, sailed from the Volga, and landed at Daghestan. Shortly after hostilities ceased, and Russia obtained from the Persians the towns of Baku, Derbund, and several provinces. During this period the Persians were also at war with the Afghans, who had invaded Persia and had been the cause of much misery.
The late Czar Nicholas of Russia had no sooner ascended the throne than he commenced war with Persia, and at length, in 1828, concluded a treaty by which he gained several provinces.
About the years 1836, 1837, a collision took place between the Persians and the Afghans. It was the object of the Persians to gain possession of the district of Herat. Now this district lies on the north-west of India, and may be called one of the barriers to our Eastern Empire, and as such it is essential to be preserved as an independent state. In July, 1837, the Persians marched an army against the Afghans, and, after a siege of ten days, succeeded in capturing Ghorian, and in December commenced the siege of Herat.
Various remonstrances had been made to the Persians by the British authorities in connexion with the attack upon Herat, but without avail, and they merely had the effect of making the English unpopular. At this time a confidential messenger bearing despatches for the British minister was insulted and detained by the Persians. This and one or two other similar proceedings on the part of the Persians, in addition to their attack upon our then allies the Afghans, rendered amicable communications with them out of place, so that in June, 1838, our minister quitted the Persian court and ceased any friendly communication with the Persians.
During March, 1839, Sir Frederick Maitland, commander-in-chief of the naval forces in India, landed some men from the Wellesley at Bushire. It appears that there was only one locality at which a landing or embarkation ought to have taken place, and in the present instance this custom was not paid attention to, and it was nearly leading to unfortunate results, as the Resident was threatened by a large party of armed men. Fifty marines and about thirty sepoys were provided with sixty rounds of ball cartridge each, and, under the command of Captain (now Lieutenant-General Sir S.) Ellis, approached the shore. Upon coming within range a heavy fire was opened on this small party, wounding several men, but fortunately killing none. A rapid pull, a leap on shore, and steady advance towards the position occupied by the Persians, had the effect of driving the enemy away, and the small body of Europeans effected an entrance into the Residency and commenced preparations for carrying off the Resident to the ships.
At this time, however, a heavy gale of wind sprang up, which lasted three days, and entirely prevented communication by boats between the vessels and the shore. The Persians, knowing this, rather anticipated the capture or massacre of the small party left on shore, but so decided were the proceedings of the officer in command and so judiciously were his arrangements made, that his enemy, although numbering ten to one, thought it more prudent to leave him alone.
During each evening of these three days the Persians used to assemble to the number of several hundreds and make demonstrations as though they purposed attacking our men, but no sooner did they appear than the little garrison was turned out and kept under arms, ready and willing for a fight should the Persians feel so disposed. This bold proceeding seemed to have the effect of awing them, for no attack was made, and even a field-work that was being constructed in front of the Residency was not continued, upon Captain Ellis’s intimation that he would fire upon the working party the instant a spade was put into the ground.
On the fourth day after landing, a reinforcement was sent from the ships, and the whole party, including the Resident, safely passed through the armed throngs and embarked in the boats. Each of these, provided with a gun, pulled out, showing a muzzle directed on the rabble and ready to discharge its iron hail should a shot be fired at the boats.