Ahmad Qavam

{{Short description|Five time prime minister of Iran (1873–1955)}} {{ref improve|date=April 2022}} {{Use dmy dates|date=October 2020}} {{Infobox officeholder | name = Ahmad Qavam | native_name = {{No bold|احمد قوام}} | nickname = Old Fox | native_name_lang = fa | image = AhmadQhvamPM1324.jpg | image_size = 220px | birth_date = 2 January 1873 | birth_place = Tehran, Sublime State of Persia | death_date = {{death date and age|1955|7|23|1873|1|2|df=y}} | death_place = Tehran, Imperial State of Iran | resting_place = Fatima Masumeh Shrine | order = 15th | office = Prime Minister of Iran | monarch5 = Ahmad Shah Qajar | term_start5 = 4 June 1921 | term_end5 = 21 January 1922 | predecessor5 = Zia'eddin Tabatabaee | successor5 = Hassan Pirnia | monarch4 = Ahmad Shah Qajar | term_start4 = 22 June 1922 | term_end4 = 15 February 1923 | predecessor4 = Hassan Pirnia | successor4 = Mostowfi ol-Mamalek | monarch3 = Mohammad Reza Pahlavi | term_start3 = 9 August 1942 | term_end3 = 15 February 1943 | predecessor3 = Ali Soheili | successor3 = Ali Soheili | monarch2 = Mohammad Reza Pahlavi | term_start2 = 28 January 1946 | term_end2 = 18 December 1947 | predecessor2 = Ebrahim Hakimi | successor2 = Ebrahim Hakimi | monarch1 = Mohammad Reza Pahlavi | term_start1 = 17 July 1952 | term_end1 = 22 July 1952 | predecessor1 = Mohammad Mosaddegh | successor1 = Mohammad Mosaddegh | party = Democrat Party | other_party = Reformers' Party {{small|(1920s)}}<ref>{{cite book|last=Abrahamian|first=Ervand|author-link=Ervand Abrahamian|year=1982|title=Iran Between Two Revolutions|isbn=0-691-10134-5|publisher=Princeton University Press|page=[https://archive.org/details/iranbetweentwore00abra_0/page/121 121]|url=https://archive.org/details/iranbetweentwore00abra_0/page/121}}</ref> | alma_mater = | spouse = Shazdeh Khanoom (divorced)<br>Zahra Alizadeh (divorced)<br>Zahra Delshad<ref>[http://gilmehr.com/%DA%AF%D9%81%D8%AA%DA%AF%D9%88%DB%8C-%D8%A7%D8%AE%D8%AA%D8%B5%D8%A7%D8%B5%DB%8C-%DA%AF%DB%8C%D9%84%D8%A7%D9%86-%D9%85%D8%B5%D9%88%D8%B1-%D8%A8%D8%A7-%D8%AD%D8%B3%D8%A7%D8%A8%D8%AF%D8%A7%D8%B1-%D9%82/ روزگار قوام در لاهیجان]{{Dead link|date=April 2021 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> | children = 1<ref>[https://www.hamshahrionline.ir/news/173310/%D8%B2%D9%86%D8%AF%DA%AF%DB%8C%D9%86%D8%A7%D9%85%D9%87-%D8%A7%D8%AD%D9%85%D8%AF-%D9%82%D9%88%D8%A7%D9%85-1252-1334 زندگینامه: احمد قوام (1252 - 1334)]</ref> | website = }}

'''Ahmad Qavam''' ({{langx|fa|احمد قوام}}; 2 January 1873 – 23 July 1955), also known as '''Qavam os-Saltaneh''' ({{langx|fa|قوام السلطنه}}), was an Iranian politician who served as Prime Minister of Iran five times.

== Early life == Ahmad Qavam was born in 1873 to the prominent Mostowfian Ashtiani family. His uncle, Amin al-Dowleh, was a Prime Minister of Iran. Hasan Vossug, who also served as Iran's Prime Minister twice, was his older brother.<ref>{{cite book|author=James A. Bill|url=https://doi.org/10.12987/9780300159516-006|title=The Eagle and the Lion. The Tragedy of American-Iranian Relations|date=1988|publisher=Yale University Press|isbn=978-0-300-04412-6|location=New Haven and London|page=108|doi=10.12987/9780300159516-006|s2cid=246116954}}</ref> Qavam served in the court of Naser al-Din Shah Qajar early in his career and obtained the title ''os-Saltaneh'' during the Constitutional Revolution of Iran in 1909. The letter signed by Mozaffar ad-Din Shah Qajar in acceptance of the Constitutional Revolution was written by Qavam, who had the title of ''Dabir-e Hozoor'' (Private Secretary) at the time. Qavam became Prime Minister several times during both the Qajar and Pahlavi eras. Twice he played a significant role in preventing the Soviet Union from annexing Iran's northern provinces.

== Political career== 200px|thumbnail|left Qavam was appointed governor of Khorasan province in 1918, during which time he responded to the ongoing famine and the Spanish flu pandemic.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|title=Ahmad Qavam |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ahmad-Qavam|encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia Britannica}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Spinney|first1=Laura|title=Pale Rider: The Spanish Flu of 1918 and how it Changed the World|date=2017 |publisher=Vintage|location=London|pages=112–120}}</ref> He was a hardliner administrator and banned some of the newspapers which had been published in the region.<ref>{{cite thesis|author=Hormoz Mehrdad|title=Political orientations and the style of intergroup leadership interactions: The case of Iranian political parties |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/303067167|location=The Ohio State University|page=186|degree=PhD|isbn=979-8-205-08664-6|date=1980|id={{ProQuest|303067167}}}}</ref>

In 1921, during the coup d'état of Tehran against the Qajar government, Tabatabaee ordered Colonel Pessian to arrest many of the opposition, among them Ahmad Qavam.

However, with the fall of Tabatabaee's government and the refusal by Mostowfi ol-Mamalek and others to accept the position of Prime Minister due to the unstable political situation, Qavam, just released from the Ishratabad prison of Tehran, was offered the position. He accepted and became Prime Minister in circumstances so unusual that Iraj Mirza wrote the following verses:

''"One day in prison he is thrown,''<br>''another day the King's chair he'll own"''

Qavam in fact ordered the arrest of Seyyed Zia'eddin Tabatabaee in an incident 25 years later. He also ordered the crackdown on the revolt of Colonel Pessian which he crushed with the aid of Reza Pahlavi.

Of the major events that occurred during his terms as the Prime Minister, was his invitation to Arthur Millspaugh for assisting the government in its finances. Another was the riots of 1942 for economic hardship. He appointed Sepahbod Ahmad Amir-Ahmadi to restore order and end the riots, which he did forcefully. Qavam was also instrumental in the 1942 Tripartite Treaty between Iran, Russia, and Britain.

He was again voted Prime Minister on 26 January 1946 with a slim margin in the Majlis of 52–51.<ref>"Iran Chooses Premier in 51 to 50 Vote", ''The Salt Lake Tribune'', 27 January 1946, p8; Manuucher Farmānfarmaian and Roxane Farmanfarmaian, ''Blood and Oil: A Prince's Memoir of Iran, from the Shah to the Ayatollah'' (Random House, 2005), p. 179</ref> The Majlis thought he would have the best chance of resolving the Soviet-inspired rebellion of the occupied Azerbaijan province since Qavam was the largest property owner in the region. Qavam did not disappoint. He ordered the Iranian delegation to the UN to negotiate issues pending before the Security Council directly with the Soviet delegation. He then flew to Moscow to discuss the issues personally with Joseph Stalin.<ref name=rfe>{{cite news |last=Samii|first=Bill|title=World War II -- 60 Years After: The Anglo-Soviet Invasion of Iran And Washington-Tehran Relations|url=https://www.rferl.org/a/1058759.html|access-date=11 November 2012|newspaper=Radio Free Europe|date=6 May 2005}}</ref>

When the Soviets violated the terms of the Tripartite Pact which called for all foreign military forces to be withdrawn from Iranian territory by 2 March 1946, it drew a strong rebuke from the Parliamentary Whip, Mohammed Mossadegh.

Qavam arranged a deal with the Soviets, granting an oil concession in the North contingent on the approval of the Majlis after the elections. Under the terms of the agreement with Qavam, Soviet troops began withdrawing from Iran. When the new Majlis was seated, they immediately voted against the proposed Soviet oil concession.<ref name=Rubin>{{cite book|last=Rubin|first=Barry|title=Paved With Good Intentions|year=1980|publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=0-19-502805-8|pages=[https://archive.org/details/pavedwithgoodint00rubi/page/33 33–35] |url=https://archive.org/details/pavedwithgoodint00rubi/page/33}}</ref> This earned Qavam the congenial title, "The Old Fox". It also caused significant opposition against him led by ''Atesh'' and its editor Mehdi Mir Ashrafi<ref>{{cite journal|author=Laurence Paul Elwell-Sutton|author-link=Laurence Paul Elwell-Sutton|title=The Iranian Press, 1941-1947|journal=Iran|date=1968|volume=6|page=74|doi=10.2307/4299603|jstor=4299603 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4299603|url-access=subscription}}</ref> and ''Mard-i Imruz'' and its editor Mohammad Masud who publicly argued that Qavam should be killed due to the oil deal with the Soviets.<ref name=cma01>{{cite journal |title=Selling and Saving "Mother Iran": Gender and the Iranian Press in the 1940s|author=Camron Michael Amin |date=August 2001|volume=33|issue=3|doi=10.1017/S0020743801003014|pages=337–338|pmid=18159657|s2cid=6159141 |url=https://doi.org/10.1017/S0020743801003014|journal=International Journal of Middle East Studies|url-access=subscription}}</ref>

==Death== Qavam died at the age of 82 in 1955 in Tehran. He was survived by his second wife and his only son, Hossein.

==References== {{Reflist}}

==Other sources== *T'Alí Rizā Awsatí. (2003). ''Iran in the Past Three Centuries'' (''Irān dar Se Qarn-e Goz̲ashteh''), Volumes 1 and 2 (Paktāb Publishing, Tehran, Iran, 2003). {{ISBN|964-93406-6-1}} (Vol. 1), {{ISBN|964-93406-5-3}} (Vol. 2). *Hamid Shokat. (2006). ''Dar Tir Rase Hadese'', ''The political life of Qavam osSaltaneh''. Tehran, {{ISBN|9789648897142}}. Published by akhtaranbook (www.akhtaranbook.com)

==External links== *{{Commons-inline}} {{S-start}} {{s-off}} {{succession box | before= Zia'eddin Tabatabaee | title= Prime Minister of Iran | years= 1921–1922 | after= Hassan Pirnia }} {{succession box | before= Hassan Pirnia | title= Prime Minister of Iran | years= 1922–1923 | after= Mostowfi ol-Mamalek }} {{succession box | before= Ali Soheili | title= Prime Minister of Iran | years= 1942–1943 | after= Ali Soheili }} {{succession box | before= Ebrahim Hakimi | title= Prime Minister of Iran | years= 1946–1947 | after= Mohammad-Reza Hekmat }} {{succession box | before= Mohammad Mossadegh | title= Prime Minister of Iran | years= 1952 | after= Mohammad Mossadegh }} {{s-ppo}} {{s-break}} {{s-vac|reason=Party founded}} {{s-ttl|title=Leader of the Democrat Party of Iran|years=1946–1948}} {{s-vac|reason=Party dissolved}} {{s-hon}} {{s-break}} {{s-bef|before=Mohammad Mosaddegh}} {{s-ttl|title=First deputy of Tehran|years=1947}} {{s-aft|after=Mohammad Mosaddegh}} {{S-end}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Qavam, Ahmad}} Category:1873 births Category:1955 deaths Category:People from Gilan province Category:Prime ministers of Iran Category:Politics of Qajar Iran Category:Democrat Party of Iran politicians Category:Reformers' Party politicians Category:20th-century Iranian politicians Category:Qajar governors Category:Politicians from Tehran Category:People of Pahlavi Iran Category:Iranian people of World War II Category:Burials at Fatima Masumeh Shrine Category:Mostowfian Ashtiani family