نشریه مطالعات تاریخی جنگ
سال هشتم شماره 3 (پاییز 1403)

The early Abbasid Caliphate, spanning approximately a century from 132 to 232 AH, is recognized as the most glorious period of this caliphate, often referred to by historians as the Golden Age. During this time, around nine caliphs ascended to power and played a significant role in political and social transformations. In this era, the use of hard power and social repression became a central focus of governmental policies. The Abbasids attempted to legitimize their violent and ruthless actions against opponents, such as killings and torture, by depicting them with a religious color, despite the fact that Islamic law does not endorse such behavior. This policy reached its peak during the caliphates of Al-Mansur and Harun al-Rashid, when they shifted towards Sunni ideologies and Arab nationalism, and distanced themselves from Iranians in an effort to solidify their power base. Among the victims of this political shift were prominent figures from the Alawid and Iranian ministerial families, such as the Barmakids. Almost all opposing forces to the Abbasids, including remnants of the Umayyads, Khawarij, Iranians, Alawids, and Shiite Imams and their followers, were subjected to Abbasid repression. The main question of the present study concerns how the use of hard power and social repression by the Abbasids affected the stability and legitimacy of their government. The study hypothesized that the use of hard power and social repression by the Abbasids, despite attempts to provide religious legitimacy to these actions, led to a decrease in popular support and an increase in dissatisfaction among various social groups, ultimately weakening the foundations of their rule.

The concepts of ghazâ and jihad, from the perspective of Muslims, originally referred to warfare in the desert and on land, in the path of God. However, as Islamic conquests expanded, naval jihad and ghazâ emerged, which were considered even more challenging than land-based warfare. In order to encourage naval jihad, rulers relied on hadiths and religious narratives that could raise the threshold of endurance and courage among Muslims, preparing them to confront the dangers and hardships of the sea. Alongside this, in order to expand naval conquests, shipbuilding workshops were established, either immediately after the conquest of ports or as part of the conquest process, and administrative offices (diwâns) were created to oversee naval battles and manage the activities of naval warriors in the Islamic states. This research examined the concept of ghazâ and jihad in the Mediterranean Sea, attempting to clarify the significance of ghaziness and naval warfare, and the role of Muslim states along the eastern and southern coasts of the Mediterranean in promoting and organizing naval ghazâ. The findings of this research suggest that the harshness of naval combat, the need for more advanced naval weaponry, the encouragement of martyrdom at sea, and the emphasis of Islamic texts and narrations on this matter were key factors highlighted by Muslim states neighboring the Mediterranean in their efforts to encourage naval ghazâ.

Analyizing speech acts of the ayahs of jihad based on Searle's theory can present new perspectives. This study, using the method of content analysis and based on Searle's theory, examined these ayahs in Surah Al-Baqarah and tried to answer the question of whether acts of command and threat have been used more frequently or acts of description and explanation, and if these acts have changed over time and in different circumstances or not. These ayahs contain important messages and teachings about fighting and defending in the way of God. The findings show that such ayahs include a set of speech acts, each of which pursuing a specific function and purpose. Some of these acts provide divine commands and instructions regarding jihad, while others justify and explain the necessity and legitimacy of jihad in various circumstances. Also, some of them encourage and persuade believers to participate in jihad and promise them divine rewards. Finally, the present study shows that a different meaning can be inferred from the linguistic patterns found in Qurʾānic ayahs.

The Bolshevik government of Russia intervened militarily in northern Iran after World War I, while at the same time, the British expanded their military activities in southern Iran by establishing the ‘Southern police’. This research, using a descriptive-analytical method, examines the performance of the Bolsheviks and the Southern police, and their treatments towards Iranians during this period, and compares and contrasts them. The main question of the research concerns the distinctions that exist in the operational methods of the Bolsheviks and the Southern police in Iran. The findings indicate that the Bolsheviks, apparenlty, sought to create convergence with Iranians; however, in practice, they placed greater emphasis on promoting and disseminating their ideology. Instead of paying attention to the national and religious demands of Iranians, they did not shy away from direct military interventions and economic and social violations. In contrast, the British attempted to secure their interests by recruiting loyal Iranian forces within the framework of the Southern Police and by gaining the support of local tribes and governors in southern provinces, while trying to minimize their direct military intervention.This research shows that both sides addressed internal issues in Iran with different approaches: the Bolsheviks emphasized ideological influence, while the British sought to exert greater control over the situation through cooperation with local forces and establishing security structures.

Some historical reports indicate a type of military cooperation between some kings of Himyari lineage with a number of southern tribes of the Arabian Peninsula, such as al-Harith ibn ‘Amr al-Kindi who united with each other to advance into parts of western borders of the Sassanids. Since some researchers believe that attributing such actions to this group of Himyari kings, especially at a time when a powerful empire like the Sassanids ruled over Iran, are legends created by southern Arabs, the present study aimed to answer the following question using a descriptive-analytical method by referring to historical-geographical sources and paying attention to the most recent research in this respect: did the scope of these advances also reach Sassanid Iran? If so, when and where did it take place and what were its consequences? In response, it can be stated that contrary to previous incomplete understandings, if we can disregard the hypotheses that consider the military advances of Tababi'ah as far as the borders of Tibet and China as incorrect, then in all likelihood, temporary advances in parts of western borders of Iran cannot be easily ignored. It also shows that the military advances of this group of Arab tribes took place in parts of Najaf and some villages of Kufa and al-Ḥīra to Rumiyya, which went beyond the cities of Sasanian Iran, and until the time of Anushirvan (579-531 AD), they were constantly considered a factor of threat and destruction in large parts of western borders of the Sasanians.

The written works of the Safavid period contain a large number of ayahs and narrations in the dimensions of faith and practicality. Based on the author's attitude and the discussed topics, ayahs and narrations convey certain concepts. The present descriptive-analytical research, using quantitative and qualitative data, aimed to analyze the speech acts of the Qurʾānic references in the book Futuhat-i-Firoz Shahi, which are mostly used around the axes of war and jihad, using Searle’s speech act theory and to answer the question of how and to what extent was the frequency of each speech act in the Qurʾānic references. The results of the research show that the most frequent speech acts of Qurʾānic references in the book Futuhat-i-Firoz Shahi are assertives, with 31 cases out of 59 cases (52.54%). Direcrives, with 14 items (23.72%), are in the second place of the most cited acts. 11 cases, i.e. 18.64% of the acts, were found to be commissives, and three cases (5.08%) of the acts were expressives. This finding that assertive acts have the highest frequency in the text indicates that the author has intended to convey facts and information to the reader in a clear and direct manner, and this type of speech act is very common in historical and news texts.