'Persia and the Persian Question by the Hon. George Nathaniel Curzon, M.P.' [‎590] (657/714)

690
PERSIA
contemptible body of men, armed with obsolete weapons and per
forming with much reluctance the duties of local guards.
The numbers of these various elements are as follows. I am
obliged to adopt a probably unprecedented classification, and to
Numerical airange them undei tour headings, representing respec-
strength tively:—(1) the hypothetical Army List of the Persian
Government, which is an official record based upon imagination;
(2) the nominal strength liable to be called out for active service;
(o) the number alleged to be habitually under arms; and (4) the
actual number at present serving with the colours. There is
probably no other army in the world that can be depicted bv its
apologists or its critics as figuring in so many categories.
The theoretical Army List of the Shah, published in the ' Sal
Nameh,' or 'Annual Official Gazette,' gives the total of the Persian
1. The fti'my as 200,000—150,000 in the regular army and
Army List 5(^000 in the militia or reserves. These figures may be
dismissed without either comment or examination.
The nominal strength liable to mobilisation is as
follows :—
2. Nominal
strength
Irregular or Nomad Cavalry . 16,350
Semi-regular Cavalry . . 2,493
Eegular Infantry . . . 08,700
Artillery 1 . . . . 4,000
Camel Artillery {Zomhurakchu)-
Austrian Corps ....
Militia
80
169-
3,600
90,392
3. Effective
strength
I next come to the third heading, containing the
alleged effective strength under arms :—
Irregular Cavalry .
Semi-regular Cavalry .
Regular Infantry .
Artillery 3 ....
Finally deducting foi
12,427
2,498
25,000
1,800
false
Austrian Corps
Militia
169
2,000
48,889
4. Num
ber
embodied
returns, deficient complement,
and men on leave, the number actuallv servinsr with the
' »/ o
colours at the present moment is believed to be about
30,000 men. 4
2 10 officers and 70 men.
1 540 officers and 3,460 men.
3 With 164 guns.
4 Ihe information which I have since received renders a fifth column neces
sary, depicting the still smaller total under arms in the spring of 1891. This
total relates, except where otherwise specified, to infantry. Teheran, six battalions,
nominally of 800 men each ; Khorasan, Meshed, one battalion ; Kelat-i-Nadiri and
Sarakhs, one battalion : Kerman and Persian Beluchistan, one battalion ; Pars,
one battalion ; Luristan and Burujird, one battalion and four guns; Isfahan and
,:oft
■>ra
3 men
pof"
^(t
•yh
■ sit
:h
4
ijP