Heir Presumptive Qajar dynasty
Prince Sultan Hamid Mirza Qajar
(
Persian
:
???? ????? ?????
; April 23, 1918 ? May 5, 1988) was the head and
heir presumptive
of the
Qajar dynasty
, the former ruling dynasty of
Iran
, and the son of the last Qajar Crown Prince of Iran.
Biography
[
edit
]
Early life
[
edit
]
He was born in
Tabriz
, the son of
Crown Prince Mohammad Hassan Mirza
and his second wife Mohtaram Razzaghi.
[
citation needed
]
His early years were spent at the
Golestan Palace
until he was sent by his father at the age of 4 to be educated in
England
. On his way to England he visited his grandfather
Mohammad Ali Shah Qajar
in
Constantinople
. His grandfather had abdicated in 1909 after the
Iranian Constitutional Revolution
. He did not go on England as his grandfather felt he was too young to go. Instead he lived with his grandfather: first in Constantinople, and later in
San Remo
,
Italy
, where his grandfather died on 5 April 1925. After the death of his grandfather Hamid Mirza and his older brother
Hossein Mirza
moved to
Paris
for a year. When the Qajar dynasty was overthrown in 1925, Hamid Mirza and his brother moved to England with their father.
[1]
His brother, Hossein, subsequently emigrated to Canada and worked as an architect in Toronto.
In 1934 Hamid Mirza enrolled in the
Thames Nautical Training College
aboard HMS
Worcester
in
Greenhithe
,
Kent
. He graduated in 1936 with a nautical degree and joined the
Royal Mail Steam Packet Company
as a cadet. After three years with the Royal Mail, Hamid Mirza left to join
Mobil Oil
.
World War II
[
edit
]
At the outbreak of
World War II
, Hamid Mirza tried to join the
Royal Navy
but was not accepted. He was finally accepted into the Navy in 1942. He served as a sub-lieutenant on
HMS
Duke of York
and
HMS
Wild Goose
.
Foreign Secretary
Anthony Eden
asked him to adopt a British name for his service, due to possible political or diplomatic complications. He used the name "David Drummond" during his naval service.
[2]
The name was chosen in part after David, the son of his friend Richard Thesiger, and in part after the "Bulldog Drummond" character.
[
citation needed
]
Hamid Mirza states that the name simply came out of a telephone book.
[3]
During the war there were discussions between the British government and Hamid Mirza and his father about the possible restoration of the Qajar dynasty, since
Reza Shah
had been deposed. Hamid Mirza and his father were both candidates for the throne. But Hamid Mirza was not seriously considered, as having lived in England since the age of six, he did not speak
Persian
.
[1]
Post war
[
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]
After the war Hamid Mirza returned to Mobil Oil. In 1957, he returned to Iran for the first time since he had left as a four-year-old, taking up a position in
Tehran
. During his time in Iran, he was arrested on two occasions by
SAVAK
. He left Iran in 1971 to return to
London
.
[2]
He became head and the Heir Presumptive of the Qajar dynasty on the death of his cousin
Fereydoun Mirza
on 24 September 1975. Upon his death on 5 May 1988 in London, his son
Mohammad Hassan Mirza II
became the Heir Presumptive of the Qajar dynasty while his uncle,
Mahmoud Mirza
became the new head of the dynasty.
[4]
Family
[
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]
He married twice. In 1946, he married Mahin Dokht Malek-Mansur (born in 1924), in
Paris
. They had two children:
[
citation needed
]
They were divorced in 1957. On 25 August 1960, he married Soudabeh Afshar (born in 1924) in
Tehran
. This marriage was childless.
[
citation needed
]
Notes
[
edit
]
External links
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]
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1st generation
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2nd generation
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3rd generation
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4th generation
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5th generation
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6th generation
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7th generation
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8th generation
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