CHAPTER VIII.
THE SITUATION IN PERSIA (1896).
II.
-- The Shah Mozuffer-ed-Din -- His previous position at Tabriz -- Character and disposition -- His sons -- Accession to the throne -- Previous accessions in the Kajar Dynasty -- Regalia and crown jewels -- Position of the late Shah's two sons, Zil-es-Sultan and Naib-es-Sultaneh -- The Sadr Azem (Grand Vazir) -- Prompt action on the death of the late Shah.
Among the great families of Tartary from whom the chiefs of the royal Kajar tribe claim descent, much importance has always been given to the birth of the mother of a candidate for high position.

Therefore, in the choice of an heir to the throne, Persia, as now represented by the Kajar dynasty, looks to the claims of the mother as well as the father, and requires royal birth on both sides.

For this reason Mozuffer-ed-Din Mirza, the second son of the late Shah, his mother being a Kajar Princess, was preferred to the first-born, Sultan Masud Mirza, known as the Zil-es-Sultan.

It has been customary with the Kajars to have the Vali Ahd, or Heir-apparent, at a distance from the capital, and for him to be nominal Governor-General of Azerbaijan, the richest and most important province of Persia.

Its capital is Tabriz, a town of considerable commercial prosperity, through its Russian and other foreign trade connections.