Charles Christie (officer)

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Charles Christie (died 1812) was a British officer, mostly remembered for his endeavours in Qajar Iran. A member of the first British military mission to Iran (1810), he was killed in action while serving on the Iranian side during the Russo-Persian War of 1804–1813.

Biography[]

Charles Christie was a son of James Christie, the founder of Christie's Auction House.[1] Originally a captain of the Bombay Regiment of the Anglo-Indian army, in 1810, Christie and Lieutenant Henry Pottinger were ordered by Sir John Malcolm to explore the route from Bombay to Baluchistan, Sistan and the Makran. These areas were thought to hold a possible overland route by which a European army could invade India.[2] Christie and Pottinger disguised themselves as horse dealers, and travelled north from the Makran coast to Nushki, where the two separated in March 1810. Christie moved north through Sistan to Herat and thereafter across the central Iranian desert to Yazd and Isfahan. A manuscript of Christie's travel journal is appended to Pottingers account of his expedition, which provided the first reliable information about these territories.[2]

At the request of Harford Jones-Brydges, the British envoy to Iran, Christie and a number of other officers entered the Iranian military service, forming the core of the military mission provided for in accordance with the Preliminary Treaty of Friendship and Alliance that Jones-Brydges had negotiated with Fath-Ali Shah Qajar (r. 1797–1834) on 17 June 1809.[3][2]

Christie was ordered with training the Iranian infantry (sarbaz) and became the commander of the Shaqaqi Regiment, one of the twelve new regiments (Nezam-e Jadid) in the province of Azerbaijan. Christie fought on the Iranian side against the Russians during the Russo-Persian War of 1804–1813. However, in 1812, Britain and Russia had reconciled, which meant that Britain was withdrawing its support from Iran. Christie, two other British officers (Henry Lindsay and William Monteith) and thirteen sergeants were allowed to remain in the Iranian service at the request of Crown Prince Abbas Mirza, commander of the Iranian army. Christie and Lindsay both participated in the Battle of Sultanabad (13 February 1812), in which the Iranian army achieved a victory.[4] During the battle, Christie and Lindsay reportedly threw themselves into the thick of it, thereby gaining the admiration of the Iranians and proving that they would not refrain from attacking fellow Christians.[4][2]

Both also participated in the ensuing Battle of Aslanduz (31 October–1 November 1812), in which the Iranians suffered a major defeat. During the battle, Christie was shot in the neck, but, as he refused to surrender, was said to have killed six Russian soldiers before being killed himself.[2] John Cormick, physician to Abbas Mirza, found Christie's remains and buried them near the spot where he had been killed.[2]

References[]

  1. ^ Michael 2019, p. 2.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f Ekbal 1991, pp. 547–548.
  3. ^ Cronin 2011.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b Atkin 1980, p. 137.

Sources[]

  • Atkin, Muriel (1980). Russia and Iran, 1780–1828. University of Minnesota Press. ISBN 978-0816609246.
  • Cronin, Stephanie (2011). "ARMY v. Qajar Period ii. Early Qajar military reform.". In Yarshater, Ehsan (ed.). Encyclopædia Iranica, Online Edition. New York: Encyclopædia Iranica Foundation.
  • Ekbal, Kamran (1991). "Christie, Charles". In Yarshater, Ehsan (ed.). Encyclopædia Iranica, Volume V/5: Chinese-Iranian relations VIII–C̆ihrdād Nask. London and New York: Routledge & Kegan Paul. pp. 547–548. ISBN 978-0-939214-72-3.
  • Michael, M. A. (2019). "Not exactly a connoisseur: A new portrait of James Christie by Benjamin Vandergucht (1752–1794) and the auctioneer's family history". The British Art Journal. 19 (1).
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