Vosugh od-Dowleh

Vossug ed Dowleh
وثوق‌الدوله
Vosough od-Dowleh by Kamal-ol-molk, painted between 1900 and 1917
12th Prime Minister of Iran
In office
29 August 1916 – 5 June 1917
MonarchAhmad Shah Qajar
Preceded bySepahsalar-e Tonekaboni
Succeeded byMohammad-Ali Ala al-Saltaneh
In office
8 August 1918 – 3 July 1920
MonarchAhmad Shah Qajar
Preceded byNajaf-Qoli Samsam al-Saltaneh
Succeeded byHassan Pirnia
Personal details
Born1 April 1868
Tehran, Iran
Died3 February 1951 (aged 82)
Tehran, Iran
Political partyDemocrat Party[1]

Hassan Vossug ed-Dowleh[2][3][4] (Persian: حسن وثوق‌الدوله‎; April 1, 1868 – February 3, 1951) was an Iranian politician who served as the Prime Minister of Iran twice. He was the older brother of Ahmad Qavam, who also served as Prime Minister, five times.

Life

Hassan Vossug was born to one of Iran's most famous families. His father was Mirza Ebrahim Motamed os-Saltaneh, and his grandfather was Mohammad Qavam od-Dowleh.

Vossug's mother died when he was young, after which he was cared for by an uncle while his father worked as a financial manager in several provinces of Iran. He was educated at home by tutors and was fluent in French and English. As an adolescent, he accompanied his father on his travels, and took over the financial administration of Iranian Azerbaijan at a young age.

Vossug was elected as a founding member and deputy president of the inaugural National Consultative Assembly (Majles) of Iran in 1906. In the years 1911 to 1915, Vossug was the first Foreign Minister and later Minister of Finance. He served as Prime Minister from August 1916 to June 1917 and again from August 1918 to July 1920.

Vossug played a leading role in negotiations that resulted in the 1919 Anglo-Persian Agreement, which led to allegations that he had been bribed by the British. Although Vossug denied that he had enriched himself personally and also offered to repay the money,[5] his reputation was so damaged that he left Iran.

Vossug returned to the country in June 1926, not long after the accession of the new king Reza Shah. He served briefly again as Minister of Finance and then as Minister of Justice. He resigned as minister to run for a seat in the Majles, to which he was elected. After the expiry of his term in 1928, Vossug withdrew from politics, though he was still frequently consulted by Reza Shah in financial matters. In 1936 he became a member of the newly founded Academy of Persian Language and Literature.

Hassam Vossug died in 1951 in Tehran.

See also

References

  1. ^ Katouzian, Homa (2006). State and Society in Iran: The Eclipse of the Qajars and the Emergence of the Pahlavis. Library of modern Middle East studies. Vol. 28. I.B.Tauris. p. 90. ISBN 1845112725.
  2. ^ British Miscalculations: The Rise of Muslim Nationalism, 1918-1925
  3. ^ Iranian-American Diplomacy
  4. ^ The New Anglo-Persian Agreement
  5. ^ Cyrus Ghani: Iran and the rise of Reza Shah. I.B.Tauris, 2000, p. 54.

Sources

  • 'Alí Rizā Awsatí (عليرضا اوسطى), Iran in the Past Three Centuries (Irān dar Se Qarn-e Goz̲ashteh - ايران در سه قرن گذشته), Volumes 1 and 2 (Paktāb Publishing - انتشارات پاکتاب, Tehran, Iran, 2003). ISBN 964-93406-6-1 (Vol. 1), ISBN 964-93406-5-3 (Vol. 2).
Political offices
Preceded by Prime Minister of Iran
1916–1917 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Prime Minister of Iran
1918–1920 		Succeeded by