Page 96 - Russo-Persian Postal Relations

III. 1918 - 1921 A Coup d'Etat is planned! The Shah's own force.
Persia war theater From 1920 financed by
Also after armistice England. Disbanded 1922
Colonel Reza Khan leader of the Cossack Brigade
In 1920 Kazvin was the HQ. Now supported by the British. Led by Reza Khan a Coup d'Etat was planned
The Shah's Cossacks history in Persia started in 1879. Run by Russian officers. A Russian political "weapon"! In 1917 the
Russian officers dispersed. Although it was around for 30 odd years only 6 items have been recorded attributed to it.

Official' envelope
ofthe Cossack
Brigade's HQ at
Kazvln
Addressed to the
Prime Minister.
The red seal
and the head of
the envelope
suggest that the
sender belonged
to the highest
_\ authority within
the Brigade i e
probably
Reza Khan
himself.
SentlS Sept 1920
Rate l Sch for
5 i'niscals
Registration l 2ch
On the front a
Government
Censor #5 is
applied.

To the left
Official
envelope
of the
Cossacks
Below
0
The seal of
the Cossack
unit
/,,. r
f'
• t J'
j

History: When Bolshevism arose many Russian officers left for Russia with the unexpected result that Persian officers got into commanding
positions. Eventually Colonel Reza Khan (later Reza Shah) became the commander and staged a Coup d'Etat 21 Feb 1921. He was appointed
War Minister in the new cabinet. As such Reza Khan appointed a British Officer to lead the Cossack Brigade.
The Cossack Brigade had normally not been used for military purposes. But when the "Swedish Gendarmerie became stronger in 1914 the
Russians decided to increase heavily the Persian Cossack troops to eventually become many thousand of soldiers. Bolsheviks in Russia tried
to support Persian revolutionaries in Gilan province and Russian "Red" soldiers were sent there and to Enzeli to clear the area from "White"
Russian troops under Denekin. The Cossack troops fought them out.
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