Affecting Factors in the Architectural Transformation of the Early Qajar in Azerbaijan; Reinterpretation of the Process of Modernity in Iranian Architecture

Multiplicative and deep narratives in the process of modernization in Iranian architecture lead to understanding the formation of these changes in more realistic ways. Because most of the traditionalist narratives that want to return to the origins of Iranian architecture, have focused their criticism on the imported and Westernized narrative of architecture in the Naser al-Din Shah’s period, and according to this simplification, they also put a simplistic view against it. This paper is important in several aspects: first, through a critical look at existing narratives, it aims to present a new conceptual model in the formation of modernization in Iranian architecture. Second, by investigating the effective components of this process, it seeks to attain an explanation of how they affect it. According to the preliminary findings as a hypothesis of the research, the vast and fundamental changes that took place in the architecture of Azerbaijan in the early Qajar period (19th century) can be considered in line with the process of the formation of modernity in the architecture of Iran. The key question of this article about understanding whether it is possible to consider the formation of modern concepts in Iranian architecture, according to the need and during a conscious process, belonging to the early Qajar in Azerbaijan? The paper was carried out by a historical-interpretive research method and a process approach to collect historical and theoretical bases. To identify and investigate the influencing factors on the process of modernization in Azerbaijan’s architecture, Iranian and European first-hand sources such as travelogues and diaries were examined. By analyzing the data, maps, and visual information (as second-hand sources), which have a complementary aspect to the work, an attempt has been made to achieve a relatively comprehensive understanding of this process. A conceptual model of the process of modernization in Azerbaijan’s architecture is available by knowing the affective factors in the formation of architectural and urbanization characteristics in modern buildings. As a result, the evidence shows that the changes that occurred in the early Qajar architecture of Azerbaijan are an alternative narration parallel to the classical ideas in Iranian contemporary architecture. This process was formed not in Tehran (in the late 19th century), but in Azerbaijan influenced by various factors. The process started with the recognition of modern changes in European architecture. The next stage started with the formation of the necessity of these changes in Iran. Finally, these changes have been implemented in the architecture and town planning principles. The process of modernization in the architecture of Azerbaijan is influenced by contextual factors (Iran-Russian war, Azerbaijan’s geopolitical position), and affective persons (Abbas Mirza, Fath-Ali shah, European consultants, and Iranian intellectuals). Also, the consequences of this process have been introduced in two general parts: corrections of the defects of past buildings and the creation of buildings with new required uses. The modernization formed in the architecture of Azerbaijan could have been transferred to other parts of Iran, during the reigns of the subsequent Qajar kings; which require more and more detailed research.