Revisiting History: From the Court of Naser al-Din Shah to Tokyo / The Story of Iran's First Ambassador to Japan

His Father Carved Jewelry for the Shah, His Son Translated Shakespeare. Hovhannes Khan Massahian Grew Up in Naseri-Era Tehran, Studied in Paris, and Made His Name in Literary Circles With 'Hamlet.' An Armenian Man Who Became Iran's First Ambassador to Japan

According to Ambassador Arjan, his life passed between several worlds: Qajar Iran, the Armenian community of Tehran, Europe, Iran's diplomatic system, and finally Japan. He worked in the court of Naser al-Din Shah and Muzaffar al-Din Shah. In the history of Armenian literature, his name is linked with Shakespeare's translations.

But this is not the whole story, from a general point of view, we can also mention the role of the Armenian minority in the contemporary history of Iran. This minority was in a way the gateway to the entry of modern western manifestations into Iran, and due to their lack of presence in conventional political and ethnic polarizations, they have generally played technical roles in the history of Iran.

A child in the shadow of royal jewels

Masahian was born in 1864 in Tehran. The date of his birth is mentioned in the sources as February 23, his father, Zaruni Mashian, was the chief jeweler of Naser al-Din Shah, and his name appears as the head of the group of jewelers in the production of the most famous Qajar jeweled globe. This sphere was made with tens of thousands of jewels and today it is kept in the National Jewels Treasury.

His mother was also from a family that was associated with teaching French in the court. Mashayan grew up in an environment where language, court, art and communication with the outside world were tied together. He was a product of multilingual and multicultural Qajar Iran; Where an Armenian could reach an important position, provided that his skills were of practical application to the government.

His father, Zaruni Mashian, was Naser al-Din Shah's chief jeweler, and his name appears as the head of the group of jewelers in the making of the most famous Qajar jewel sphere. This sphere was made with tens of thousands of jewels and today it is kept in the National Jewels Treasury.

He started his primary education in a school affiliated to the Armenian Church in Tehran and then continued in Haykazian School in Tehran and with his uncle in Tabriz. According to some sources, he later studied at the Collège de France in Paris. In 1881, he went to Paris and studied philosophy, law, political economy and literature and returned to Tehran in 1884.

After returning to Tehran in 1884, he taught at Haykazian School and became a court interpreter. Sources record his fluency in Armenian, Persian, French, English, German, Russian, and other languages, although the exact number of languages ​​he knew professionally varies among sources. At a time when translation and language communication were one of the biggest obstacles in Iran's foreign relations, such an ability was of practical importance for the diplomatic apparatus.

In 1887, he went to London as the chief translator of the Iranian delegation; The trip was made on the occasion of the 50th year of Queen Victoria's reign. Ten years later, he went to London again, this time as the first secretary of the Iranian delegation to celebrate the 60th year of Victoria's reign. These visits show that his role was not limited to word-for-word translation and that he was in the circle of diplomats whose duty was to convey information and understand the political environment of Europe.

He held several positions in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs between 1895 and 1901; Among other things, he worked in the press department and the affairs of eastern countries and in the field of foreign correspondence, and at the same time he remained a court translator. He worked in various positions in the ministry until 1901, until he was appointed as a counselor to the Iranian ambassador in Berlin.

The other side of his life was formed in these years. His Armenian translation of "Hamlet" was published in 1894 and published by the Armenian Publishing Association. "As You Wish" (1895) and "Romeo and Juliet" (1896) were also published in Tbilisi. Today, these first three editions are kept in the library of the Shakespeare Foundation in Britain, and it is most likely that Masahian himself donated them during one of his frequent trips to England. "King Lear" and "The Merchant of Venice" are among other translations published by Avind.

Armenian poets of his time, Hohans Hohannisian and Hohans Tomanian, praised his translation of Hamlet. On Tomanian's recommendation, Masahian added an introduction and a footnote to the translations in the second editions of Vienna about twenty years later. He failed to publish translations of Othello, Macbeth, and The Tempest, but between 1923 and 1931 he completed Coriolanus, Timon of Athens, and The Winter's Tale. Of the fourteen translations recorded for him, twelve works have been published

For the Armenian literature of that time, the translation of Shakespeare was more than the transfer of a few plays and was considered a test of the capacity of the Armenian language to express complex literary, psychological and philosophical concepts. In this context, Tomanian said that the translation of Shakespeare is a measure to measure the cultural level of a nation.

In 1902, he founded and edited the magazine "Shaugh" in Tehran; He was the editor of the Armenian magazine "Shavegh" in Tehran. Based on bibliographic sources, this publication was the first Armenian printed publication in Iran and was published from 1894 to 1897. Its content was not only literary and it also followed the social, educational and political issues of Iranian Armenians. New researches emphasize its role in connecting the intellectual atmosphere of Iranian Armenians with the cultural currents of Caucasian Armenians.

He managed Haykazian school for many years. The sources consider him to be one of the influential figures in the formation of the political science school and write that he taught international law and public history there. He tried to introduce some of the new European knowledge into Iran's educational structure.

In 1901, he was appointed as adviser to the Iranian ambassador in Berlin and worked for some time in several Iranian diplomatic and consular centers in Germany. In those years, Iran was under the pressure of the big European powers and Germany became more important for Tehran. After differences among the young Ahmad Shah's courtiers, in 1912, the Shah signed a decree appointing this Armenian diplomat as Iran's ambassador to Germany. It was not a common thing for a Christian Iranian to reach the position of ambassador at that time, and research considers the history and trust of the court as the reason for removing this obstacle. He was Iran's ambassador to Germany from 1912 to 1916.

World War I complicated his path. In 1916, he was officially invited to London to speak at Shakespeare's 300th anniversary celebrations. He was the representative of Iran in this event. It is symbolic to see the prominent translator of Shakespeare into Armenian as the official speaker of such a celebration. He had a mission in Paris from 1916 to 1919 and represented Iran's interests in diplomatic circles during the peace conference and post-war order negotiations.

During this period, his relationship with the Armenian issue became stronger. Armenian sources say that after the war, he cooperated with Armenian delegations led by Poghos Nobar and Avtis Aharonian. A distinction should be made between "cooperation with Armenian delegations" and "official membership in all Armenian political structures"; The documents show a man who, while officially serving Iran, was not indifferent to the fate of the Armenian community.

Parliament and return to Berlin and London

In 1919, he was elected to represent Armenians in the National Assembly. English-language sources write that he entered the parliament in 1927 and mention him as the ambassador in London in the same year.

In 1921, he was once again appointed as Iran's ambassador to Germany and remained in this position until 1927. During the period of Reza Shah, he became the Prime Minister of Iran in Britain in 1927 and stayed in London until 1929. In London, he was the successor of Hassan Taghizadeh. In this way, in his professional life, he worked with Naseruddin Shah, Muzaffaruddin Shah, Ahmad Shah and Reza Shah.

In 1929, relations between Iran and Japan were established and Masahian became the first ambassador of Iran to that country. According to the list of Iranian ambassadors in Japan, the beginning of his official mission was July 1, 1930. Hassan Ali Kamal Hedayat succeeded him.

The letters left from the Japanese era give a more private picture of him. For his friends, including artists such as Vava and Sarkis Khachatourian, he wrote about Japanese life, weather, food, social habits, nature, and even the difference in standards of beauty. In these letters, we meet a man who looks at the new environment with curiosity, sometimes complains about the "excessive pragmatism" of the Japanese, and writes about floods, storms, and volcanic eruptions. These letters have been examined in Ana Vardanian's research about him.

His stay in Japan was short. Due to illness, he submitted his resignation to Reza Shah and left Tokyo to return to Iran, but died on the way in Harbin, China. According to one source, he died alone in one of Harbin's hospitals.

Because of his Iranian passport, the local officials thought he was a Muslim and his burial ceremony began in the Islamic way. The Armenian community of Harbin protested, the city's Armenian national delegation took over the body after presenting the documents, took it to the Armenian church, and the funeral ceremony was held in the presence of the Armenian community.

His body was finally transferred to Tehran and buried in Vanak. In 1963, his remains were moved again and buried in the grounds of the Holy Mary Church in Tehran; where his name remained with a number of prominent Iranian Armenian figures.

How did an Armenian get to the heart of Iran's diplomacy?

Perhaps the most important question about Christians is "How many sides did it have?" not, but how an Armenian born in Tehran became one of the most important diplomats of the country. The answer should be found in historical context. He belonged to a generation for whom cultural boundaries were fluid: he learned Armenian from his family and school, Persian was the language of society and government, he learned French and other European languages ​​during his studies and work, and became involved with world literature. His identity cannot be explained by the pattern of "Iranian or Armenian"; He was both at the same time and this versatility was part of his ability in diplomatic work.

His life shows that the history of Iranian diplomacy was not only the history of Muslim nobles and court families. During the Qajar period, the Armenian community was an active part of the country's economic, cultural, educational and administrative life, and Masahian is one of the most prominent examples of a Christian Iranian reaching the highest level of diplomacy. In the contradiction of his life, the one who was known as Shakespeare in the world of literature, was the representative of Iran in the world of politics, and the one who was considered a cultural figure for Armenians, worked for the Iranian government for most of his professional life.

He should not be considered only as "Iran's first ambassador to Japan". Qajar court translator, school director, journalist, literary translator, foreign ministry expert, Iran's ambassador to Germany, Iran's representative in the post-World War I era, Armenian representative in parliament, and Iran's first ambassador to Japan are all titles of Evind. Masahian was an able agent of the Iranian government in a turbulent period. A multilingual and multicultural person who gained the trust of several governments.