FRANCE.
i.Introduction.
ii.Relations
with
Persia
to
1789.
iii.Relations
with
Persia
1789-1918.
iv.Relations
with
Persia
Since
1918.
v.Administrative
and
Military
Contacts.
vi.Persia
and
the
French
Revolution.
vii.French Travelers in Persia 1600-1730.
viii.Travelogues
of
the
18th
and
19th
Centuries.
ix.Image
of
Persia
and
Persian
Literature
Among
French
Authors.
x.French
Literature
in
Persia.
xi.Persian
Art
and
Art
Collections
in
France.
xii.Iranian
Studies
in
France.
a.
Overview.
b.
Pre-Islamic
Period
c.
Social
Sciences
and
Modern
Persia.
xiii.Institute
Français
de
Recherche
en
Iran.
xiv.French
Archaeological
Mission.
See
DeLeGATIONS
ARCHeOLOGIQUES
xv.
French
Schools
in
Persia.
xvi.Loan
Words
in
Persian.
xvii.
The
Persian
Community
in
France.
i.
INTRODUCTION
Compared
to
the
long-standing
history
of
Persian
civilization,
France
emerged
as
a
powerful
entity
endowed
with
its
own
distinctive
culture
only
in
the
13th
century
C.E.,
i.e.
the
great
century
of
Christianity.
Strongly
marked
by
French
influence,
this
century
also
coincided
with
the
Mongol
invasions
that
brought
havoc
to
the
vast
Persian
cultural
area,
then
encompassing
large
tracts
of
Arab,
Caucasian,
Turkish,
and
Indian
lands.
Such
a
considerable
time-lag
and
difference
between
respective
cultural
influences
was
naturally
reflected
in
contacts
and
reciprocal
curiosity.
As
elsewhere
in
Europe,
Persia
was
early
perceived
by
the
French
mainly
through
legends
and
biblical
anecdotes,
such
as
King
Cyrus
giving
asylum
in
Persia
to
persecuted
Jews,
stories
from
the
Book
of
Esther,
the
legend
of
the
Persian
Magi
coming
to
Bethlehem,
etc.
As
a
result
of
Mongol-Christian
contacts,
Persia
was
visited
by
many
European
missionaries,
merchants,
adventurers,
etc.
Their
travelogues,
along
with
their
stories
about
imaginary
voyages,
provided
eagerly
sought
information
about
the
Orient
(res
orientales)
and
its
wonders
(mirabilia)
comparable
to
those
found
in
the
Arabic
and
Persian
¿aja@¿eb
al-makòlu@qa@t
(q.v.)
genre
of
writing.
Another
result
of
these
contacts
was
the
description
of
Europe
provided
by
Raæ^d-al-D^n
Fazµl-Alla@h
(d.
718/1318)
in
the
Ta@r^kò-e
Afranj
(History
of
the
Franks),
part
of
his
universal
history
(Ja@me¿
al-tawa@r^kò,).
While
using
the
generic
term
of
Afranja
(Land
of
the
Franks)
for
Europe,
Raæ^d-al-D^n
clearly
mentions
France
as
Afransa.
His
chronicle
of
the
Franks,
often
cited
or
imitated,
remained
unique
(see
EUROPE).
Detailed
observations
in
Persian
about
Europe,
and
France
in
particular,
appeared
first
in
India,
and
there
only
from
late
18th
and
early
19th
centuries.
The
Il-khans
contemplated
permanent
relations
with
Christianity
and
especially
a
projected
alliance
with
the
Franks
against
the
Mamluks.
Christians
remained,
however,
essentially
attached
to
the
missionary
aspects
of
that
alliance.
The
events
of
the
Timurid
era
left
an
impression
reflected
in
later
French
culture
(Fourniau).
Throughout
the
15th
and
16th
centuries
Franco-Persian
relations
were
hampered
by
the
long
lasting
policy,
devised
by
Francis
I,
of
a
Franco-Ottoman
alliance
to
counteract
Charles
V's
European
hegemony.
Whereas
Italian
cities
and
Spain
entertained
diplomatic
relations
with
Persia,
these
were
established
by
France
only
from
1626
and
were
soon
to
be
placed
under
the
aegis
of
French
Catholic
missionaries
who
kept
interfering
with
the
activities
of
variously
commissioned
merchants
and
diplomats.
Religious
and
political
problems
between
Europe
and
Persia
remained
a
major
impediment
to
the
establishment
of
Franco-Persian
relations.
There
was
a
French
presence
in
Persia,
however,
which
fostered
mutual
cultural
knowledge.
French
travelogues
and
writings
on
Persia,
notwithstanding
the
religious
affiliations
of
their
authors,
remain
the
most
valuable
French
contribution
to
European
knowledge
of
contemporary
Persian
culture.
Persian
language
and
literature
were
studied
and
made
known.
Precious
Persian
manuscripts
enriched
the
French
royal
collections.
By
bringing
back
the
text
of
the
Avesta,
Anquetil-Duperron
(q.v.)
paved
the
way
for
the
development
of
philological
and
archaeological
research
on
Persia.
Although
permanent
relations
were
established
only
in
1855,
Franco-Persian
contacts
benefited
from
the
sending
of
Persian
students
to
France
(see
EDUCATION
xxi);
from
French
military
cooperation
initiated
by
the
Gardane
mission
(q.v.);
and
from
French
interest
in
Persian
art
and
culture,
one
of
its
most
outstanding
results
being
the
granting
to
France
of
a
monopoly
for
archaeological
exploration
in
Persia
in
1895
(see
DÉLÉGATIONS
ARCHÉOLOGIQUES
FRANÇAISES
i).
French
presence
in
Persia
was
also
manifested
by
schools
and
institutions
which,
in
spite
of
the
officially
secular
nature
of
the
French
government
after
the
French
Revolution,
maintained
their
links
with
missionary
activities.
In
contrast
to
the
general
admiration
19th-century
France
enjoyed
in
Qajar
Persia,
a
rather
negative
vision
of
the
shah
and
his
realm
was
expressed
by
French
journalists
and
leading
intellectuals
from
the
time
of
Na@sÂer-al-D^n
Shah's
visits
to
France
(1873,
1878,
1889).
On
the
other
hand,
the
ideas
of
the
French
Enlightenment
and
Revolution,
as
well
as
Napoleonic
prestige
and
rule,
influenced
modernist
trends
and
constitutionalism
in
Persia.
From
Qajar
times
onward
a
growing
number
of
Persian
subjects
settled
in
France
or
in
French-speaking
countries,
with
a
considerable
increase
after
the
Revolution
of
1357
./1978-79.
While
France
keeps
endeavoring
to
further
her
political
and
economical
interests
in
Persia,
cultural
contacts
and
intellectual
curiosity
remain
a
powerful
stimulation
to
mutual
knowledge
and
understanding.
Bibliography:
V.
Fourniau,
"Quelques
aspects
du
theàme
timouride
dans
la
culture
française
du
XVIe
au
XIXe
sieàcle,"
in
M.
Bernardini,
ed.,
La
civiltaà
timuride
come
fenomeno
internazionale,
Oriente
Moderno,
N.S.
15
(76)
2,
Rome,
1996,
I,
pp.
283-304.
U.
Monneret
de
Villard,
Le
leggende
orientali
sui
magi
evanglici,
Vatican,
1952.
Raæ^d-al-D^n
Fazµl-Alla@h,
Ta@r^kò-e
Afranj,
ed.
and
tr.
K.
Jahn
as
Histoire
des
Francs,
Leiden,
l951.
N.
Takmil-Homayun
and
A.
Rouhbakhshan,
"Farang
et
Farangi
en
Iran,"
Luqma@n
3/2,
1987,
pp.
55-78.
(JEAN
CALMARD)
ii.
RELATIONS
WITH
PERSIA
TO
1789
The
Pre-Safavid
period.
In
the
early
Middle
Ages,
Persia
was
perceived
by
the
French
mostly
through
biblical,
Greek,
and
Latin
sources.
During
the
Crusades
(q.v.),
which
were
sanctioned
by
the
papacy
and
launched
by
the
Franks,
all
Muslim
countries,
including
Persia,
were
considered
enemies
of
Christianity.
The
Mongol
invasions,
despite
their
calamitous
effects,
permitted
the
renewal
of
contacts
between
East
and
West,
with
France
playing
a
leading
part.
Europe's
foremost
motivation
was
to
Christianize
the
Mongols,
as
it
had
earlier
barbarian
invaders.
Dominican
and
Franciscan
missionaries
were
sent
to
Il-khanid
Persia.
Missions
and
ecclesiastical
sees
were
established
at
SoltÂa@n^ya,
Mara@g@a,
Tabr^z,
and
Tiflis.
The
decline
of
SoltÂa@n^ya
was
followed
by
the
rise
of
Nakòjava@n,
which
remained
an
archbishopric
until
1745.
France
also
hoped
to
create
an
alliance
with
the
Mongols
to
the
rear
and
flank
of
the
Turkish
and
Mamluk
Muslim
powers.
The
majority
of
the
letters
exchanged
between
the
Mongols
and
the
Papacy,
and
with
Western
Christian
sovereigns,
contained
demands
for
submission.
Eljigidei
(q.v.),
a
Mongol
chief
in
Armenia
and
Persia,
initiated
diplomatic
overtures
in
1248
which
were
wrongly
interpreted
as
an
offer
of
alliance
by
Louis
IX
(Saint
Louis).
As
a
result,
the
Dominican
Andre
de
Longjumeau,
who
had
already
brought
a
letter
by
Pope
Innocent
IV
to
Tabr^z
in
1246,
was
sent
by
the
French
king
to
the
Great
Khan
Güyük
(q.v.),
but
he
died
before
Andre
and
his
companions
reached
the
Mongol
court.
The
regent,
Güyük's
widow,
dismissed
Andre
with
gifts
and
a
presumptuous
letter
to
Saint
Louis,
who
nonetheless
dispatched
the
Franciscan
William
of
Rubruck
on
a
proselytizing
mission
to
Sarta@q
b.
Batu@
Khan
in
Crimea.
William
and
his
companions
were
sent
to
Batu@
Khan
and
to
the
Great
Khan
Möngke
in
Mongolia.
Möngke's
letter,
remitted
to
William
(1254),
again
insisted
upon
submission
(J.
Richard,
1970,
p.
202).
The
contacts
between
the
Mongols
and
the
Christian
world
continued,
notably
through
the
Franks
and
the
king
of
Armenia,
Het¿um
I.
Although
the
Franks
of
Acre
favored
a
rapprochement
with
the
Mamluks,
they
sent
the
Dominican
David
d'Ashby
to
the
Il-khan
Hu@la@gu@
in
1260.
Hu@la@gu@'s
letter
to
Saint
Louis
(Mara@g@a,
10
April
1262)
combined
the
usual
ultimatum
with
a
proposed
alliance
(Meyvaert,
pp.
249-50).
It
recalled
the
Il-khan's
intention
to
restore
Jerusalem
to
the
Pope,
and
asked
Saint
Louis
to
cooperate
with
his
fleet
against
Egypt.
The
letter
was
conveyed
by
John
the
Hungarian
with
credentials
to
Saint
Louis
and
not
to
Pope
Urban
IV.
Saint
Louis
cautiously
disregarded
Hu@la@gu@'s
proposals
and
sent
John
the
Hungarian
to
the
Pope,
who
encouraged
Hu@la@gu@
to
become
a
Christian
(J.
Richard,
1979,
p.
299).
Hu@la@gu@
proposed
a
perpetua
confederacio
to
the
Pope
and
the
European
kings.
His
successor,
Abaqa
(q.v.),
sent
a
letter
in
Mongolian
to
Rome
that
could
not
be
translated
(1266-67).
In
another
letter
of
1268
(Tisserand,
pp.
547-56),
he
proposed
cooperation
with
the
Crusaders
but
this
was
not
put
into
effect
for
several
distinct
reasons
as
well
the
fact
that
he
was
then
attacked
in
Khorasan
(J.
Richard,
1997,
p.
63;
Jackson,
p.
62).
Abaqa's
son,
Arg@u@n
Khan
(q.v.)
sent
an
embassy
to
Pope
Honorius
IV
in
1285
and
a
second
one
in
1287.
The
latter
embassy
was
headed
by
the
Nestorian
prelate
Rabba@n
Sáawma,
who
returned
the
next
year
with
letters
from
Pope
Nicholas
IV,
Edward
I
of
England,
and
Philip
IV
the
Fair
(Philippe
le
Bel)
of
France
(Boyle,
in
Camb.
Hist.
Iran
V,
pp.
370-71;
Budge,
pp.
165-97).
This
resulted
in
Arg@u@n's
plan
for
a
concerted
campaign
which
was
brought
to
Philip
the
Fair
in
1289
(Mostaert
and
Cleaves,
p.
18)
and
to
Edward
I
a
year
later
by
the
Genoese
merchant
Buscarello
de
Ghizolfi
(q.v.),
the
most
active
diplomatic
agent
of
the
Il-khans.
The
proposed
date
of
the
campaign,
1291,
coincided
with
the
fall
of
Acre
and
Arg@u@n's
death.
While
Edward
I
and
the
Pope
were
planning
another
Crusade,
the
Il-khanid
throne
was
occupied
by
petty
rulers,
Gaykòa@tu@,
followed
by
Ba@ydu@
(qq.v.).
Converted
to
Islam,
the
next
Il-khan,
GÚa@za@n
(q.v.)
maintained
contacts
with
the
Pope
(1301)
and
with
Edward
I
(1303)
through
diplomatic
missions
by
Buscarello.
GÚa@za@n
kept
Hu@la@gu@'s
promise
to
return
Jerusalem
to
the
Franks
in
exchange
for
their
help
against
the
Mamluks.
But
the
Mamluks'
victories
over
the
Franks
and
GÚa@za@n
in
1303
put
an
end
to
this
tentative
cooperation.
Öljeitü
(UÚlja@ytu@)
pursued
GÚa@za@n's
projects.
In
April
1305,
he
wrote
letters
to
Philip
the
Fair
(Mostaert
and
Cleaves,
pp.
56-57),
the
Pope,
and
Edward
I.
His
proposals
for
a
joint
campaign
against
the
Mamluks
were
taken
seriously
by
European
powers.
While
the
preparations
for
a
Crusade
dragged
on,
he
launched
the
last
unsuccessful
Il-khanid
campaign
against
the
Mamluks
(1312-13).
This
policy
was
at
last
reversed
when
his
son
and
successor,
Abu@
Sa¿^d
(q.v.)
signed
the
Treaty
of
Aleppo
(1322)
with
the
Mamluks.
While
cooperation
against
the
Turks
was
thus
temporarily
set
aside,
Christian
missionary
activity,
diplomacy,
commerce
and
travel
continued.
After
his
victory
over
the
Ottomans
at
Ankara
(1402),
Tamerlane
(T^mu@r)
sent
Johannes,
Archbishop
of
SoltÂa@n^ya
to
Venice,
Genoa,
Paris,
and
London.
In
his
letters
to
Henry
IV
of
England
and
Charles
VI
of
France,
he
proposed
treaties
granting
reciprocal
privileges
for
merchants,
although
the
authenticity
of
the
letter
from
Tamerlane,
now
at
the
Bibliotheàque
nationale,
has
recently
been
questioned
(Soudavar,
pp.
256-60).
However,
a
genuine
document
may
have
existed
and
there
were
favorable
answers
from
Henry
IV
and
Charles
VI,
but
these
were
not
followed
by
any
concrete
action.
However,
Henri
III
of
Castile
and
Leon
sent
Ruy
Gonzalez
de
Clavijo
(q.v.)
to
Tamerlane,
the
only
positive
result
of
his
embassy
being
his
famous
travelogue.
The
growing
power
of
the
Ottomans
alarmed
the
European
powers,
particularly
the
Venetians,
who
tried
vainly
to
join
forces
with
Uzun
H®asan
of
the
Aq
Qoyunlu
(q.v.)
against
them.
Other
European
powers,
including
France,
were
at
the
time
not
involved
with
Persia.
The
Safavid
period.
The
advent
of
Shah
Esma@¿^l
(q.v.)
in
1501
coincided
with
crucial
world
events
that
induced
the
Portuguese
expansion
in
the
Indian
Ocean
and
the
Persian
Gulf.
To
further
his
aims,
the
shah
sought,
vainly
as
it
turned
out,
to
establish
a
precarious
alliance
against
the
Ottomans
with
the
Portuguese,
the
Emperor
Charles
V,
and
King
Ludvig
II
of
Hungary.
Whereas
other
European
governments
repeatedly
insisted
on
their
avowed
desire
to
cooperate
with
Persia
against
the
Ottomans,
France
remained
aloof
and
Franco-Persian
relations
were
hampered
by
the
policy
of
capitulations,
based
on
the
treaty
of
1536
between
Francis
I
and
Solayma@n
the
Magnificent.
French
alliance
with
Turkey
was
also
designed
to
curtail
Charles
V's
power.
When
Solayma@n
I
invaded
north-west
Persia
and
took
Tabr^z
in
1547,
he
was
accompanied
by
the
French
ambassador
to
the
Porte,
Gabriel
de
Luetz,
Seigneur
d'Aramon,
whose
advice
enabled
the
Ottomans
to
force
the
Persians
to
surrender
the
citadel
of
Van
(Chesneau,
pp.
84-88).
When
the
capitulations
were
renewed
in
May
1604,
the
French
ambassador
to
the
Porte,
Savary
de
Breàves,
wrote
a
memoir
on
how
an
alliance
with
Persia
would
be
detrimental
to
Franco-Ottoman
relations.
Thus
the
Turkish
alliance
prevented
Henri
IV
to
respond
to
the
overtures
made
towards
him
by
Shah
¿Abba@s
I
through
envoys
and
correspondence
(La
Perse
et
la
France,
document
no.
8,
"Lettre
adressee
aà
Henri
IV
par
Chah
Abbas
I").
The
first
attempt
to
establish
direct
Franco-Persian
relations
was
made
under
Louis
XIII.
A
mission
was
solicited
by
the
merchants
of
Marseille,
although
potential
hostility
from
the
Ottomans
made
them
also
somewhat
nervous
of
direct
transactions
with
Persia.
Louis
Deshayes
de
Courmenin,
who
had
already
served
in
missions
to
the
Orient,
was
issued
with
instructions
on
18
February
1626
to
proceed
to
Constantinople,
where
the
French
ambassador
de
Cesy
was
to
inform
the
Porte
that
Louis
XIII
was
sending
a
minister
to
Persia
only
in
order
to
disrupt
the
friendly
relations
between
Persia
and
a
powerful
Spain
(suzerain
of
Portugal,
1580-1640).
With
the
approval
of
de
Cesy
and
the
Ottomans,
Deshayes
was
to
proceed
to
the
Safavid
court
and
convince
Shah
¿Abba@s
of
Louis
XIII's
willingness
to
mediate
between
the
Ottomans
and
Persia.
The
shah
was
to
grant
France
exclusive
rights
of
protecting
the
Catholic
residents
in
Persia,
facilities
for
establishing
catholic
missions,
and
privileges
for
French
merchants,
notably
the
monopoly
of
commerce
through
the
Levant
route.
This
difficult
mission
was
rendered
impossible
by
the
Ottoman
grand
vizier
and
de
Cesy's
opposition
(La
Perse
et
la
France,
document
no.
10,
summary
of
"Relation
du
sieur
Deshayes
en
Levant,"
and
no.
11,
Letter
from
Deshayes
reporting
on
the
difficulties
he
had
encountered
in
his
mission).
Whereas
Catholic
missionaries
settled
in
Persia
were
mostly
Portuguese
Augustinians,
or
Spanish
or
Italian
Carmelites
(q.v.),
Richelieu
and
Father
Joseph
de
Paris
(F.
Richard
1995,
I,
pp.
16-17)
sent
two
French
Capuchins
(q.v.),
fathers
Gabriel
de
Paris
and
Pacifique
de
Provins
to
Persia
where
they
arrived
towards
the
end
of
1628.
Although
the
Capuchins
had
no
official
political
status,
Shah
¿Abba@s
sent
Father
Pacifique
back
to
France
to
negotiate
various
projects,
including
the
purchase
of
a
printing
press,
but
these
were
abandoned
after
the
shah's
death.
Pacifique's
negotiations
and
Gabriel's
activities
at
Isfahan
resulted,
however,
in
the
establishment
of
the
Capuchins
in
Persia.
Through
their
intimate
knowledge
of
Persian
culture,
French
missionaries
played
an
important
part
as
informants
for
travelers,
merchants,
and
diplomats.
The
most
significant
of
the
missionaries
in
this
period
was
the
Capuchin
Raphaël
du
Mans,
who
resided
in
Isfahan
from
1647
until
his
death
in
1696.
The
prominent
role
he
played
as
an
informant
to
Colbert,
Louis
XIV's
famous
minister,
and
as
a
translator
and
negotiator
for
the
establishment
of
the
Compagnie
Française
des
Indes
(see
EAST
INDIA
COMPANY
[THE
FRENCH])
in
Persia
could
not,
however,
save
this
mismanaged
venture
from
failure.
The
creation
in
Paris
of
the
Societe
des
Missions
Étrangeàres,
increased
missionary
and
related
activities.
A
former
French
consul
at
Aleppo,
François
Picquet,
who
became
a
priest
and
the
bishop
of
Babylon
(Baghdad),
was
appointed
to
organize
the
bishopric
of
Isfahan.
He
submitted
his
credentials
and
Louis
XIV's
presents
to
Shah
Solayma@n
(1682).
He
was
joined
by
two
young
priests
of
the
Missions
Étrangeàres,
Jean-Baptiste
Roch
and
François
Sanson.
At
a
time
when
Turco-Persian
relations
were
tense,
Picquet
and
his
companions
settled
in
Hamada@n
and
were
joined
by
a
Theatine
monk
(later
Mgr.)
Louis-Marie
Pidou
de
Saint
Olon.
After
Picquet's
death
(1685),
Sanson,
helped
by
another
priest
(and
later
Abbe)
Martin
Gaudereau,
continued
negotiations
which
resulted
in
the
issue
of
a
royal
letter
allowing
the
establishing
of
missions
at
New
Julfa
and
Hamada@n
in
1692.
Sanson
brought
the
letter
to
Louis
XIV
at
Versailles
(1693).
Msgr.
Pidou,
Picquet's
successor
as
Louis
XIV's
representative
and
as
Bishop
of
Babylon,
was
officially
consecrated
at
Isfahan
in
May
1694.
He
disagreed
with
the
daring
proposals
of
Gaudereau
who,
after
an
attack
on
Bandar
Kong
by
Arabs
from
Muscat
(1695),
continued
to
press
for
French
intervention
in
the
Persian
Gulf.
Other
French
missionaries
later
also
believed
that
the
seizure
of
Muscat
by
Louis
XIV
would
ensure
their
security.
The
War
of
the
Spanish
Succession
(1701-14)
and
the
projects
to
overthrow
Muscat's
naval
power
overshadowed
Franco-Persian
relations
which
were
renewed
through
the
semi-official
mission
of
Jean
Billon
de
Canserilles,
an
enterprising
merchant
of
Marseille,
to
the
Safavid
court
in
1700.
Billon
recommended
trade
to
Marseille
via
the
Levant
route.
He
was
soon
followed
by
Jean-Baptiste
Fabre,
a
native
of
Marseille,
whose
mission
of
1705
ended
abruptly
with
his
death
at
Erevan
on
17th
August
1706.
The
mission
was
taken
over
for
a
time
by
his
adventurous
mistress
Marie
Petit
(Lockhart,
in
Camb.
Hist.
Iran
VI,
pp.
405-6;
La
Perse
et
la
France,
documents
nos.
75-77).
Another
native
of
Marseille,
Pierre-Victor
Michel,
was
then
sent
by
the
Marquis
de
Ferriol,
the
French
ambassador
to
the
Porte,
as
a
replacement
(La
Perse
et
la
France,
document.
no.
72
"Memoire
du
sieur
Michel
sur
son
voyage
en
Perse").
After
dealing
with
Marie
Petit's
withdrawal
and
in
spite
of
opposition
from
the
English
and
Dutch
East
India
Companies,
Michel
managed
to
obtain
from
Shah
Soltáa@n
H®osayn
a
treaty
of
capitulation
in
1708
(ibid,
document
no.
73,
"Lettre
de
Michel,"
and
no.
74,
"Memoire
de
Chah
Kouli
Khan,"
on
the
details
of
the
negotiations).
This
first
official
treaty
between
France
and
Persia,
worked
out
by
Michel
and
the
mostáawf^-e
kòa@sásáa,
granted
protection
rights
to
the
Christian
missions
and
facilities
for
trade.
Monetary
clauses
and
an
additional
letter
promising
the
dispatch
of
French
warships
to
fight
the
Omanis
were
most
advantageous
for
Persia.
War
in
France
and
travel
difficulties
twice
delayed
the
presentation
of
the
ratified
treaty
at
Isfahan
by
Mgr.
Galliczon
(1712)
and
Mgr.
Pidou.
Irritated
by
the
proselytizing
activities
of
the
missionaries,
the
Armenian
clergy
had
obtained
the
cancellation
of
their
privileges
which
had
to
be
therefore
re-negotiated.
Despite
renewed
privileges
granted
to
Saint-Malo
merchants,
no
French
ship
appeared
in
the
Persian
Gulf
and
the
Persian
government
began
to
doubt
the
authenticity
of
the
letters
remitted
by
missionaries
in
Louis
XIV's
name.
Moháammad-Rezµa@
Beg,
the
kala@ntar
(mayor)
of
Erevan,
was
sent
on
embassy
to
France.
The
French
ambassador
to
the
Porte,
des
Alleurs,
assisted
by
his
dragoman
Etienne
Padery,
managed
to
send
this
unruly
and
temperamental
envoy
to
Marseille
(October
1714).
He
reached
Paris
in
February
1715
after
giving
much
trouble
to
his
escort,
François
Pidou
de
Saint-Olon,
Mgr.
Pidou's
brother;
and
his
interpreters,
Padery
and
Gaudereau
(La
Perse
et
la
France,
documents
nos.
89-100
describing
the
multifarious
aspects
of
the
envoy's
journey
and
reception).
The
Persian
envoy
was
received
with
great
pomp
and
ceremony
at
Versailles
by
Louis
XIV
on
19
February
1715
and
negotiations
began.
Although
Michel's
treaty
of
1708
was
still
upheld
in
theory,
the
new
treaty
of
13
August
1715
modified
it
considerably
by
including
more
favorable
provisions
for
French
trade
(Hurewitz,
I,
pp.
56-58).
However,
with
the
fall
of
the
Safavid
dynasty
shortly
afterwards
in
1722,
the
advantages
were
not
enforced
and
there
was
no
increase
in
French
trade
with
Persia
(Savory,
pp.
123-24).
Muscat
was
not
officially
mentioned,
although
the
envoy
was
much
encouraged
by
Padery,
Richard
and
Gaudereau's
talk
of
a
possible
French
intervention.
Moháammad-Rezµa@'s
mission
was
marked
throughout
by
lavish
extravagance
at
the
expense
of
the
French
government.
He
was
soon
dispatched
through
Russia
to
Erevan
,where
he
committed
suicide
(Herbette,
pp.
61-113).
The
fall
of
the
Safavids
and
its
aftermath.
Louis
XIV's
death
(1715),
shortly
after
the
Persian
embassy's
reception,
coincided
with
the
decline
of
the
Safavids.
Once
again,
France
tried
to
further
its
political
and
commercial
links
with
Persia
through
the
enforcement
of
the
renewed
treaty.
While
Billon
kept
trying
to
obtain
an
official
mission,
Richard's
mission
to
the
Persian
court
(1717),
commissioned
by
the
Pope,
was
a
failure.
The
creation
of
the
second
Compagnie
des
Indes
(1719-69)
again
privileged
the
Ocean
route.
Two
consuls
were
sent
as
its
representatives:
the
Chevalier
Ange
de
Gardane,
Seigneur
de
Sainte-Croix,
accompanied
by
his
brother
François
to
Isfahan,
and
the
Chevalier
Padery
to
Shiraz.
Both
of
them
obtained
vast
company
premises
which
were
to
prove
useless.
Gardane
was
the
mainstay
of
French
diplomacy
in
Persia,
where
he
remained
with
his
brother
till
1730.
Padery,
theoretically
Gardane's
subordinate,
had
been
instructed
to
negotiate
directly
with
the
shah
on
Muscat
(La
Perse
et
la
France,
document
no.
106).
He
squabbled
constantly
with
Gardane
who
finally
managed
to
obtain
his
dismissal
(August
1721).
Regardless
of
this
Padery
continued
the
negotiations
and,
shortly
before
the
Afghan
invasion,
obtained
from
the
shah
the
ratification
of
the
Treaty
of
1715
and
the
promise
to
send
a
Persian
ambassador
to
France.
He
also
tried
in
vain
to
foster
the
French
Company's
interests
at
Bandar-e
¿Abba@s
and
Surat,
returning
to
France
in
1724
(La
Perse
et
la
France,
documents
nos.
105-9).
French
endeavors
to
establish
relations
with
Persia
remained
cautious
and
limited.
However,
France
played
an
important
part
in
post-Safavid
external
policies
through
Marquis
de
Bonnac,
its
ambassador
to
the
Porte
(Lockhart,
1938,
pp.
11-12,
76-77)
who
was
an
active
mediator
between
Russia,
Turkey
and
Persia.
The
scientist
Tourtechot
Granger
and
the
orientalist
Jean
Otter
were
among
his
informants
on
Na@der
Shah's
reign.
The
Capuchins,
however,
as
Christian
missionaries,
were
opposed
to
Otter's
lay
mission,
which
turned
out
to
be
a
failure
(Gharavi,
p.
37).
In
1751,
the
physician
and
naturalist
Simon
de
Vierville
was
sent
to
Persia,
with
the
pretext
of
a
scientific
mission,
to
report
on
the
political
and
economical
conditions
there.
On
his
way
to
Persia,
he
openly
converted
to
Islam
(as
Moháammad-Rezµa@
H®ak^m),
although
the
genuineness
of
his
conversion
remains
debatable.
He
served
as
a
physician
to
the
Ottoman
governor
at
D^a@rbakr,
before
going
to
Isfahan,
where
he
became
(at
the
end
of
1754)
personal
physician
to
AÚza@d
Khan
Afg@a@n
(q.v.).
He
followed
the
latter
who
was
defeated
by
Moháammad
H®asan
Khan
Qa@ja@r
in
Azerbaijan
(1757).
The
last
trace
of
him
is
a
letter
of
his
written
near
Mara@g@a
on
1
May
1757,
and
his
end
remains
mysterious
(Gharavi,
p.
72).
He
collected
Oriental
manuscripts,
and
gathered
scientific
and
political
information
which
he
sent
to
Constantinople
and
to
France
from
Aleppo,
D^a@rbakr,
Baghdad,
Isfahan
(Gharavi,
pp.
38-73).
France
had
not
completely
relinquished
her
commercial
involvement
in
the
Persian
Gulf.
Through
Claude
Pyrault
and
his
successor
Jean-François-Xavier
Rousseau,
French
consuls
in
Baghdad,
contacts
were
established
at
Shiraz
with
Kar^m
Khan
Zand
who,
in
1770,
ceded
to
the
French
K¨a@rg
Island,
which
had
been
abandoned
by
the
Dutch
in
1766
(Perry,
pp.
268-70).
This
cession
did
not,
however,
interest
the
French
government.
A
journey
to
Persia
by
de
Ferrieàres-Sauvebuf
in
1784
had
no
political
result.
Two
eminent
naturalists,
Guillaume-Antoine
Olivier
and
Jean-Guillaume
Bruguieàres,
who
had
been
commissioned
by
the
French
republic
to
arrange
a
Turco-Persian
alliance
against
Russia,
reported
and
described
the
dire
and
volatile
conditions
of
Persia
during
their
stay
in
1796
(Amini,
p.
31).
French
observers
traveling
through
the
Middle
East
and
the
Persian
Gulf
at
this
period
were
carefully
watched
by
the
British
(Lorimer,
Gazetteer
I/1,
pp.
154-55).
Cultural
links
between
France
and
Persia,
although
gradually
developing
throughout
this
period,
suffered
at
times
because
of
ruptures
in
diplomatic
and
commercial
relations.
In
the
Safavid
period
and
its
aftermath,
Franco-Persian
relations
remained
mostly
under
the
control
of
the
French
minister
to
the
Porte.
The
internal
economic
and
religious
situation
in
both
realms
and
rivalry
between
merchants,
diplomats
and
missionaries
(variously
commissioned),
hampered
many
projects.
The
persistent
intricate
connections
between
diplomatic
and
missionary
activities
remained
a
major
drawback.
After
the
reign
of
Louis
XIV,
France's
dwindling
interest
in
Persian
affairs
in
general
(despite
her
presence
in
the
Persian
Gulf)
was
reflected
in
her
modest
role
in
Persia's
foreign
relations.
Bibliography:
Official
documents
and
correspondence
are
kept
at
various
archives
including
the
Ministeàre
des
affaires
etrangeàres
(Paris
and
Nantes);
Archives
nationales
(Paris);
Archives
du
Seminaire
des
missions
etrangeàres
(Paris);
Propaganda
Fide
(Rome).
See
also
manuscripts
(particularly
in
the
Bibliotheàque
nationale
de
France)
and
bibliographies
given
in
works
listed
below
(mainly
those
by
Lockhart,
Kroell,
F.
Richard,
J.
Richard,
and
Touzard).
I.
Amini,
Napoleon
et
la
Perse,
Paris,
l995.
J.-P.
Babelon,
"La
Correspondance
des
souverains
mongols
et
des
rois
de
France,"
in
P.
Labal,
ed.,
Le
sieàcle
de
Saint
Louis,
Paris,
1970,
pp.
240
ff.
Marquis
de
Bonnac,
Memoire
historique
sur
l'Ambassade
de
France
aà
Constantinople,
Paris,
l894.
J.
A.
Boyle,
"Dynastic
and
Political
History
of
the
Èl-Khans,"
in
Camb.
Hist.
Iran
V,
pp.
303-421.
Idem,
"The
Il-Khans
of
Persia
and
the
Christian
West,"
History
Today
23,
1973,
pp.
554-63.
E.
A.
W.
Budge,
The
Monks
of
Kûblâi
Khan
Emperor
of
China,
London,
1928.
J.-B.
Chabot,
Histoire
de
Mar
Jabalaha
III
et
du
moine
Rabban
Çauma,
ambassadeur
du
roi
Argoun
en
Occident
(1287),
Paris,
1895.
E.
Charrieàre,
Negociations
de
la
France
dans
le
Levant
II,
Paris,
1850.
J.
Chesneau,
Le
voyage
de
Monsieur
d'
Armon
en
Levant
escript
par
Nobel
Homme
Jean
Chesneau,
l'un
des
secretaires
dudit
Seigneur
Ambassadeur,
ed.
C.
Schefer,
Paris,
1887.
L.
A.
de
La
Mamye-Clairac,
Histoire
de
Perse
depuis
le
commencement
de
ce
sieàcle,
Paris,
1750.
A.
Deherain,
"Les
rapports
entre
la
France
et
la
Perse
du
XVIIIe
sieàcle
au
XXe
sieàcle,"
in
Histoire
des
colonies
françaises
III,
Paris,
1931.
Comte
de
Ferrieàres-Sauvebuf,
Voyages
faits
en
Turquie,
en
Perse
et
en
Arabie,
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