 Map of southwest Asia, showing British and Russian areas of rule or influence. | |
| Signed | 31 August [O.S. 18 August] 1907; 118 years ago (1907) |
|---|---|
| Location | Saint Petersburg,Russian Empire |
| Signatories | |
| Full text | |
 Anglo-Russian Convention atWikisource | |
TheAnglo-Russian Convention of 1907 (Russian:Англо-Русская Конвенция 1907 г.,romanized: Anglo-Russkaya Konventsiya 1907g.), orConvention between the United Kingdom and Russia relating to Persia, Afghanistan, and Tibet (Конвенция между Соединенным Королевством и Россией относительно Персии, Афганистана, и Тибета;Konventsiya mezhdu Soyedinennym Korolevstvom i Rossiyey otnositel'no Persii, Afghanistana, i Tibeta),[1] was signed on 31 August 1907, inSaint Petersburg. It ended the two powers' longstanding rivalry inCentral Asia and enabled them to outflank the Germans, who were threateningto connect Berlin to Baghdad with a new railroad that could potentially align theOttoman Empire with Imperial Germany.
The Convention ended the long dispute over Persia between the two parties. The United Kingdom promised to stay out of northern Persia, and Russia recognized southern Persia as part of the British sphere of influence. Russia also promised to stay out of Tibet and Afghanistan. In exchange, London extended loans and some political support.[2][3] The convention brought shakyBritish–Russian relations to the forefront by solidifying boundaries that identified respective control inPersia,[4][5]Afghanistan, andTibet. This agreement would eventually form a component of theTriple Entente.[6]
During the last third of the nineteenth century, theRussian Empire's advances intoCentral Asia and the consolidation of the United Kingdom's domination ofSouth Asia led to intense rivalry between the two European powers. The conflicting interests centered on Afghanistan, Iran, and Tibet, three states that constituted buffers between the two powers. The emergence of theGerman Empire as a world power and the defeat in 1905 of Russia by a nascent Asian power, theEmpire of Japan, in theRusso-Japanese War, helped to persuade some British and Russian officials of a need to resolve their respective differences in Asia.[7][failed verification] There was talk of an entente during the 1880s and 1890s, especially after Britain's occupation of Egypt in 1882. However, there was stiff resistance in Britain to a deal with Russia.[8] In the leadup to the convention, there were discussions on theStraits question.Foreign Minister SirEdward Grey thought entente with Russia a good idea. On 20 October 1905, during the election, he said:[9]
...if Russia accepts, cordially and whole-heartedly, our intention to preserve the peaceable possession of our Asiatic possessions, then I am quite sure that in this country no government will make it its business to thwart or obstruct Russia's policy in Europe. On the contrary, it is urgently desirable that Russia's position and influence be re-established in the councils of Europe.
and later, writing to his ambassador to Russia SirArthur Nicolson:[8]
It is not for us to propose changes with regard to the treaty conditions of the Dardanelles. I think some change in the direction desired by Russia would be admissible and we should be prepared to discuss the question if Russia introduces it.
In early 1907,Alexander Izvolsky, the Russian ambassador at Paris, raised the question and talks were carried on in London with Russian AmbassadorCount Alexander Benckendorff. Little is known but the "suggestion appears to have been made that Russia should have free egress from the Black Sea through the Straits, while other powers should have the right to send their vessels of war into the Straits without going into the Black Sea" together with some talk of "Russia's occupying the Bosphorus and England the Dardanelles, after which the Straits might be opened to other warships as well." In the event nothing came of the discussions at the time.[8]
| Events leading toWorld War I |
|---|
|
On 20 May 1882, Germany entered into theTriple Alliance withItaly andAustria-Hungary, complementing its industrial and socio-political ascendance in the world arena. Furthermore, Germany dramatically increased its military output from the early 1900s up to the outbreak of the First World War. Under theunified German state,Otto von Bismarck worked to increase the nation's global influence and reach what was then the zenith of German power. While Britain and Russia were hostile to German designs in the region, members of the Triple Alliance were in turn opposed to Anglo-Russian influence in Asia. Thus, military and territorial expansion was Germany's key to making itself a major player in the international arena of power. Germany's interest in the Middle East took a secondary position, one subordinate to Germany's primary policy toward Europe, throughout the late 19th and early 20th centuries. While of secondary importance, it was a tool that was used to manipulate the Middle Eastern attempt to play off the Western powers against each other. Berlin peacefully made inroads into theOttoman Empire and had few colonial aspirations in the region.[10]
In 1905, revolutionary activity spread throughoutTehran, forcingMozaffar ad-Din Shah Qajar to accept aconstitution, allow the formation of amajles (parliamentary assembly), and hold elections. Major figures in the revolution had secular goals, which then created rifts in the clergy to the advantage of the monarchy. Neither the British nor the Russian governments approved of the new political arrangement, which was both liberal and unstable, and preferred a stablepuppet state, which allowed foreign concessions and supported their designs in the region.[11]
To facilitate their goals in Persia, the British and the Russian governments discussed splitting it into three zones. The agreement stipulated that it would "allocate the north, includingIsfahan, to Russia; the south-east, especiallyKerman,Sistan, andBaluchistan to Britain; and demarcate the remaining land between the two powers as a neutral zone". The division of Persia would reinforce the control of Britain and Russia over their respective territorial and economic interests in the country as well as allowed for continued interference in Persia's political system. With foreign help, the revolutionaries became outflanked by a combination of European and monarchist activities. The Persian government quickly came to realise that an Anglo-Russian alliance posed a larger threat to Iranian sovereignty than the two powers being hostile.[12] Consequently, in 1907, Britain and Russia signed an agreement to regulate their economic and political interests.
The Anglo-Russian Convention formalized the spheres of influence of theRussian Empire and theBritish Empire in Persia, Afghanistan and Tibet.[13]
 | This article cites its sourcesbut does not providepage references. Please helpimprove it by providing page numbers for existing citations.(August 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
The agreement recognized the country's sovereignty but also divided it into three separate zones. The agreement designated all of northern Iran, which bordered Russia's possessions inTranscaucasia and Central Asia, as an exclusive sphere of influence for Russian interests. The northern zone was defined as beginning atQasr-e Shirin in the west, on the border with the Ottoman Empire, and running through Tehran,Isfahan andYazd to the eastern border, where the frontiers of Afghanistan, Iran, and Russia intersected. A smaller zone in southeastern Iran, which borderedBritish India, was recognized as an exclusive sphere for Britain. The British zone extended west as far asKerman in the south central andBandar Abbas in the south. The area separating these two spheres, including part of central Iran and the entire southwest, was designated a neutral zone in which both countries and their respective private citizens could compete for influence and commercial privileges.[14][page needed][15][page needed][16][page needed]
For Britain and Russia, the agreement was important in establishing a diplomatic alignment that endured until theFirst World War. ThePersian government, however, had not been consulted about the agreement but was informed after it had been signed. Although not in a position to prevent Britain and Russia from implementing the agreement, the Persian government refused to recognize the accord's legitimacy since it threatened the country's national integrity. Iranian nationalists, in particular, were infuriated by Britain's signing of the treaty, a country that they had considered as a beacon of democracy during the Constitutional Revolution. Subsequently, an important legacy of the agreement was the growth ofanti-British sentiments and otheranti-Western attitudes as strong components ofIranian nationalism. The agreement did not eliminate all competition between the two powers with respect to their policies in Iran, but after 1907, broad co-operation was fostered, particularly when Anglo-Russian interests were threatened. In particular, Britain and Russia intervened in Iran's domestic politics, supporting the royalists in their struggle with the constitutionalists. The agreement lapsed in 1918, after it was renounced by the new revolutionarySoviet Russia.[17][page needed][18][page needed][19][page needed]
With the Anglo-Russian Convention Russia acknowledged that Afghanistan was in the Britishsphere of influence as long as theUnited Kingdom did not attack the country, and in exchange, the United Kingdom gave Russia's right to equal commerce and direct communication with Afghan officials on non-political topics.Habibullah Khan, theEmir of Afghanistan felt humiliated and outraged when he read the terms of the convention, partly because the United Kingdom had not bothered to notify him about the negotiations or their conclusions. Like the terms relating to Persia, the agreement resulted in the growth ofanti-British sentiments in Afghanistan.[13]
The Anglo-Russian Convention acknowledged the "Chinese suzerainty" over Tibet, and theUnited Kingdom pledged not to deal with Tibet unilaterally without the approval of the Chinese government. The United Kingdom thought that this convention would put a stop to Russia's expansionist efforts, which were threatening India, and with the development of Anglo-Russian ties in the early 1900s, both the United Kingdom and Russia acknowledged Tibet's role as a buffer in the Anglo-Russian Convention that also recognized the suzerainty of China over Tibet, although China did not accept the term "suzerainty" and instead used the term "sovereignty" to describe its status in Tibet since 1905.[20] The conclusion of the Anglo-Russian Convention followed theBritish expedition to Tibet of 1903–1904, theConvention of Lhasa of 1904, and theAnglo-Chinese Convention of 1906 which essentially reestablished China's role as Tibet's controlling power.[21]
| Diplomatic posts | |
|---|---|
| Diplomacy | |
| Conflicts | |
| Incidents | |
| Individuals | |
| Related | |
