پژوهش نامه تاریخ اجتماعی و اقتصادی
سال سوم شماره 2 (پیاپی 6، پاییز و زمستان 1393)

In the historical studiesof Qajar era، the subordinate classes of the society have usually been paid scant attention، and historiographers have not considered different aspects of their lives، their roles and their significance. One of the most prominent members of these classes were Charvadars. They earned their livelihood through hiring out their quadrupeds to passengers. The present research، through reviewing the travel literature of Qajar era، seeks to answer this question: What was the most considerable role of Charvadars as one of the members of subordinate social classes of Qajar era? The research was conducted through adopting descriptive-analytic and library methods. The findings of the study revealed that Charvadars، despite their low social position during Qajar era، had a key role in the most common mode of traveling، namely journeying with Caravan. In other words، they were one of the central pillars of transportation in Qajar era. Charvadars not only carried passengers and goods but also guided passengers during the travels and supported them through problems and dangers of the routes. Although they belonged to a subordinate class of the society، Charvadars، given their key position in choosing the routes، verifying the time of waking up، and moving or stoppingcould demonstrate a kind of superiority over the members of the super classes.

Hunting was one of the most common customs of a large number of past tribes which was performed with various motives. Turk and Mongol tribes went hunting as a means of livelihood and for the sake of supplying their food as well as practicing martial techniques. Genghis Khan and Timur, through practicing hunting during war intervals and different seasons made their troops get accustomed to techniques of shooting, deceiving, misleading, seizing, and hunting animals so that they would be able to employ such techniques while encountering enemies in the battlefields. In fact, hunting was done by Turk and Mongol tribes not only as a means of livelihood but also as a martial maneuver in which war techniques like horse riding, shooting, the styles of capturing, and trapping the enemies were practiced. Such martial practices were crucially important for princes and youngsters who were inexperienced in war. The present paper, through adopting a descriptive-analytic method, explores the motives of the Turk and Mongol commanders for hunting and the way it was performed during the Ilkhanids and Timurids eras. Furthermore, to elucidate the ways such martial techniques (inspired by social customs) were performed by the Turk and Mongol tribes, we would refer to methods employed by the commanders for encouraging their troops like organizing celebrations and awarding prizes.

Hirmand River has played a crucial role in the economic and social life of Siestan and is one of the prominent reasons for the historical continuity of this region. In fact, this border river gained its importance upon the separation of the eastern part of Iran, formation of Afghanistan and role-playing of the Englishmen in the eastern borders. In the meanwhile, the issue of Hirmand water has played a significant role in the relationships of the two countries during various eras. In this vein, the present paper, through adopting a descriptive method and a historical analysis of available sources, aims to study the status of the boarder river of Hirmand in the political and economic geography of Siestan during the Pahlavi era. The paper has mainly been organized based on elucidation in historical research, with emphasis on the effect of the geographical factor of “water” on political and economic changes of the eastern Iran, and through relying on documents and other archival sources. The findings of the study reveal that Hirmand River had a direct impact on the life or death of Siestan in a way that upon its water reduction, the economic significance of Siestan decreased—as the river provided the water for farming and fishing in the region.

Taking advantage of historical and geographical documents, the present paper attempts to investigate the economic status of Isfahan in the 4th century. In this era, Isfahan was playing a highly prominent role in trade and commerce, in a way that its commercial sector outran its agricultural one. The existing stability and security had brought about safe and secure trade roads. The economic stability had also brought about propensity and welfare to the locals. Considering the importance of the region and its role in the economic and political changes, we attempted to explore the following questions through adopting a descriptive-analytic research What factors were effective in the economic improvement and prosperity of Isfahan? And what factors contributed to changes in Isfahan’s economy? What was the status and significance of commercial relations and agreements to Buyid governors? Geographical conditions of Isfahan, its position and location in the linking roads connecting the west to the east, and more particularly the Silk Road, were some of the features of the regions which affected its development, and not only added to its trade potentials but also benefited the region by lucrative trade and business.

In this paper, the economic decline of Baghdad in the second period of the Abbasid caliphate is examined. Historical data indicate that variouspolitical, social, religious, economic and geographic factorswere at work in thisdecline. In this paper, the two variables of climate conditions and economic policies have been studied due to their direct impact on the economic decline of Baghdad. Using data extracted from historical and geographical documents, and based on an analytic-interpretive method, the present paper attempted to investigate impacts of climate conditions and economic policies on the economic decline of Baghdad. The findings of the study revealed that the climate conditions of Baghdad—which in the era of political stability of Abbasid caliphate and under supervision of the government was one of the main factors in the economic prosperity of Baghdad—was itself the cause of trade and economic downturn and turbulence during the Buwayhid and Seljuk eras. Climatic features like rivers’ overflow or their water reduction, climate changes, etc. resulted in drought, famine, shortage of crops, and inflation, andgradually led to Baghdad’s economic decline. On the other hand, ineffectiveeconomic policies of taxes and tribute, propertyconfiscation, market monitoring, and lack of due attention to linking routes—which were the main crossroads for importing and exporting goods—resulted in Baghdad’s commercial and economic downturn.

The present paper aims atclarifying the trend of evolution and recognition of the city walls, with the aim ofdiscovering the reasons for their evolutionand classification. To that end, the socio-political structures of historical periods of Iran have been studied and classified into three general phases, based on their commonalities. Using historical interpretation method, the physical changes of the city walls over the studied courses were investigated. Ultimately, drawings and archaeological documents of each erawere interpreted considering the socio-political and military factors. The results show that three groups of the most important defensive cities in Iran are: castle towns, underground towns, and dense towns. The results indicate that city walls, in their own evolutionarytrend, have covered the distance from the peak to bottom positions. These physical changes have mainlyhad military reasons. The city walls, at the end of Qajar era, due to fundamental changes in the defense method, began to lose their initial value and significance. The final conclusion is presented through diagrams that show the physical characteristics of the city walls in each era, consistent with the military transformations.