Iran Local Histories
Toktam Yarmohamadi; Friborz Veisi
Abstract
Songhar and Keliai is one of the fertile areas in Kermanshah that was considered by some influential families of this government during the Qajar period. They bought a lot of land in the area by buying people's property for a small price. Two of the great landowners of this region are Abdul Hussein Farmanfarma ...
Read More
Songhar and Keliai is one of the fertile areas in Kermanshah that was considered by some influential families of this government during the Qajar period. They bought a lot of land in the area by buying people's property for a small price. Two of the great landowners of this region are Abdul Hussein Farmanfarma and Amanullah Khan Fath al-Sultan, the former being the Qajar prince and the latter one of the elders of the Sanghar district. Due to the financial crisis and the outbreak of the First World War, these landowners in the late Qajar period avoided timely payment of their land taxes. The government often appeased these people, but after the coup of 1299, especially after the prime ministership and reign of Reza Shah, they were severely audited. The main question of the present study is why the landowners in Sanghar had tax debts and how the Qajar and Pahlavi governments dealt with this issue. This research has been done by descriptive-analytical method and its reliance is on the documents related to two of the major landowners of Songor region. The findings of the study indicate that the owners of the Qajar period, due to the exemptions provided by the government and the influence they had in the court, refused to pay their taxes on time. But early in Reza's reign and reign, due to his need to fund his extensive reforms and renovations through taxation and his greed to seize their fertile lands, these landlords were severely audited..
