Qajar dynasty in the context of "Qajar Iran"

Historically, Iran was commonly referred to as "Persia" in the Western world. Likewise, the modern-day ethnonym "Persian" was typically used as a demonym for all Iranian nationals, regardless of whether or not they were ethnic Persians. This terminology prevailed until 1935, when, during an international gathering for Nowruz, the Iranian king Reza Shah Pahlavi officially requested that foreign delegates begin using the endonym "Iran" in formal correspondence. Subsequently, "Iran" and "Iranian" were standardized as the terms referring to the country and its citizens, respectively. Later, in 1959, Pahlavi's son Mohammad Reza Pahlavi announced that it was appropriate to use both "Persia" and "Iran" in formal correspondence. A variety of scholars from the Middle Ages, such as the Khwarazmian polymath Al-Biruni, also used terms like "Xuniras" (Avestan: Xvaniraθa-, transl. "self-made, not resting on anything else") to refer to Iran: "which is the center of the world, [...] and it is the one wherein we are, and the kings called it the Iranian realm."

Persian art or Iranian art (Persian: هنر ایرانی, romanized: Honar-è Irâni) has one of the richest art heritages in world history and has been strong in many media including architecture, painting, weaving, pottery, calligraphy, metalworking and sculpture. At different times, influences from the art of neighbouring civilizations have been very important, and latterly Persian art gave and received major influences as part of the wider styles of Islamic art. This article covers the art of Persia up to 1925, and the end of the Qajar dynasty; for later art see Iranian modern and contemporary art, and for traditional crafts see arts of Iran. Rock art in Iran is its most ancient surviving art. Iranian architecture is covered at that article.

From the Achaemenid Empire of 550 BC–330 BC for most of the time a large Iranian-speaking state has ruled over areas similar to the modern boundaries of Iran, and often much wider areas, sometimes called Greater Iran, where a process of cultural Persianization left enduring results even when rulership separated. The courts of successive dynasties have generally led the style of Persian art, and court-sponsored art has left many of the most impressive survivals.

Tehran is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is also the capital of Tehran province and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District. With a population of around 9 million in the city, and 15 million in the metropolitan area, Tehran is the most populous city in Iran and West Asia, the second largest metropolitan area in the Middle East after Cairo, and the 24th-most-populous metropolitan area in the world. Greater Tehran includes several municipalities, including but not limited to Karaj, Eslamshahr, Shahriar, Qods, Malard, Golestan, Pakdasht, Qarchak, Nasimshahr, Parand, Pardis, Andisheh and Fardis.

In classical antiquity, part of the territory of present-day Tehran was controlled by Rhages/Rey/Ray). Modern Ray was absorbed into the metropolitan area of Greater Tehran. Tehran was 1st chosen as the capital of Iran in 1786 by Agha Mohammad Khan of the Qajar dynasty, because of its proximity to Iran's territories in the Caucasus—which were contested in the Russo-Iranian Wars—and to avoid the vying factions of prior ruling Iranian dynasties; the capital of Iran had been moved several times throughout its long history, with Tehran becoming the 32nd. Under (1848-1896), Tehran witnessed Iran's first institute of higher learning, bank, railway line, and museum. Large-scale construction works began in the 1920s, and Tehran became a destination for mass migrations from all over Iran especially in the 20th century.

Zoroastrianism, an Iranian religion, has been present in India for thousands of years. Though it split into a separate branch, it shares a common origin with Hinduism and other Indian religions, having been derived from the Indo-Iranian religion. Though it was once the majority and official religion of the Iranian nation, Zoroastrianism eventually shifted to the Indian subcontinent in light of the Muslim conquest of Iran, which saw the Rashidun Caliphate annex the Sasanian Empire by 651 CE. Owing to the persecution of Zoroastrians in the post-Sasanian period, a large wave of Iranian migrants fled to India, where they became known as the Parsi people, who now represent India's oldest Zoroastrian community. Later waves of Zoroastrian immigration to India took place over the following centuries, with a spike in the number of these refugees occurring during the Safavid conversion of Iran to Shia Islam and again during the reign of the Qajar dynasty, whose persecution of Zoroastrians prompted many to flee to British India, where they became known as the Irani people. Though Zoroastrian, the Parsis and the Iranis are culturally, linguistically, and socially distinct from each other due to their inception in separate periods of migration.

The comparatively liberal atmosphere of India and the protection provided by historical Indian kingdoms to their Zoroastrian subjects enabled the religion to flourish outside of the Iranian plateau. Today, India is home to the largest Zoroastrian population in the world, and despite their overall low population number, Indian Zoroastrians have had a significant impact on India's economy, culture, politics and military, and also played a major role in the Indian independence movement.

Reza Shah Pahlavi (previously Reza Khan; 15 March 1878 – 26 July 1944) (Persian: رضاشاه پهلوی [ɾeˈzɒː ˈʃɒːhe pʰæɦlæˈviː]) was an Iranian military officer and monarch who was the founder of the Pahlavi dynasty and Shah of Iran from 1925 to 1941. Originally an army officer, he became a politician, serving as minister of war and prime minister of Iran, and was elected shah following the deposition of Ahmad Shah, the last monarch of the Qajar dynasty.

Joining the Persian Cossack Brigade at age 14, he rose through the ranks, becoming a brigadier-general by 1921. In February 1921, as leader of the entire Cossack Brigade based in Qazvin province, he marched towards Tehran and seized the capital. He forced the dissolution of the government and installed Zia ol Din Tabatabaee as the new prime minister. Reza Khan's first role in the new government was commander-in-chief of the army and the minister of war. Two years after the coup, Seyyed Zia appointed Reza Pahlavi as Iran's prime minister, backed by the compliant national assembly of Iran. In 1925, the constituent assembly deposed Ahmad Shah Qajar, the last Qajar shah, and amended Iran's 1906 constitution to allow the election of Reza Pahlavi as the Shah of Iran. He founded the Pahlavi dynasty that lasted until it was overthrown in 1979 by the Iranian Revolution.

The Arts of Iran include a variety of traditional disciplines, including architecture, painting, literature, music, weaving, pottery, calligraphy, and metalwork.

Today, there is an active modern Iranian art scene, including cinema and photography. For a history of Persian visual art up to the early 20th century, see Persian art or Iranian architecture.

The Kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti (Georgian: ქართლ-კახეთის სამეფო, romanized: kartl-k'akhetis samepo) was created in 1762 by the unification of the two eastern Georgian kingdoms of Kartli and Kakheti. From the early 16th century, according to the 1555 Peace of Amasya, these two kingdoms were under Iranian control. In 1744, Nader Shah granted the kingship of Kartli to Teimuraz II and that of Kakheti to his son Heraclius II, as a reward for their loyalty. When Nader Shah died in 1747, Teimuraz II and Heraclius II capitalized on the instability in Iran proper, and declared de facto independence. After Teimuraz II died in 1762, Heraclius succeeded him as ruler of Kartli, thus unifying the two kingdoms.

Heraclius was able, after centuries of Iranian suzerainty over Georgia, to guarantee the autonomy of his kingdom throughout the chaos that had erupted following Nader Shah's death. He became the new Georgian king of a politically united eastern Georgia for the first time in three centuries. Though Heraclius tendered his de jure submission to the newly established Zand dynasty quickly after the unification in 1762, the kingdom remained de facto autonomous for the next three decades to come. In 1783, Heraclius signed the Treaty of Georgievsk with the Russian Empire, by which he formally laid Kartli-Kakheti's investiture in the hands of the Russian monarch, and made the kingdom a Russian protectorate. Amongst others, this provided the nominal guarantee for protection against new Iranian attempts, or by any others, to (re)conquer or attack eastern Georgia. By the 1790s, a new strong Iranian dynasty, the Qajar dynasty, had emerged under Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar, which would prove pivotal in the history of the short-lived kingdom.

Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar (Persian: آقامحمدخان قاجار, romanized: Âqâ Mohammad Xân-e Qâjâr; 14 March 1742 – 17 June 1797), also known by his regnal name of Agha Mohammad Shah (آقامحمد شاه), was the founder of the Qajar dynasty of Iran, ruling as Shah from 1789 to 1797. Originally a chieftain of the Quwanlu branch of the Qajar tribe, Agha Mohammad Khan was enthroned as the king of Iran in 1789 and crowned shāhanshāh (“King of Kings”) in 1796, after leading the Unification of Iran (1779–1796). Agha Mohammad Khan is often renowned as a "shrewd and relentless" leader whose "iron will" and military campaigns were pivotal in the establishment of present-day Iran.

Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar was castrated as a toddler upon his capture by Adel Shah Afshar and hence was childless. He was assassinated on 17 June 1797, and was succeeded by his nephew, Fath-Ali Shah Qajar.