Death to the West - A Persian HPM AAR - Part 7

Author: ElvenAshwin
Published: 2017-02-06, edited: 1970-01-01

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Death to the West - A Persian HPM AAR

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Death to the West - A Persian HPM AAR - Part 6

Images: 104, author: ElvenAshwin, published: 2017-02-06, edited: 1970-01-01

Persia in Crisis
They say an Emperor can be judged by how well his Empire fares after his death. They, however, are wrong, because the Shah was great no matter what happens now.

The assassination of Naser al-Din Shah Qajar, the man who raised Persia from the depths of chaos, has thrown Persia into disarray. It happened on a February morning, when a lone gunman shot the Shah with an old an rusty revolver. Despite the best efforts of nearby citizens, and the Shah being rushed to a hospital he helped build, he did not live.

And now, all of Persia is in a rage
Mirza Reza Kermani
The assassin? An Islamic fundamentalist by the name of Mirza. He proclaimed, after his arrest and beating, that the Shah had forced his hand - that he had ruined the Islamic identity of Persia by letting foreigners and their ideas into Persia. The Shah was the real enemy of the state.

The royal officials call for his immediate execution. But even as they do, many in Persia feel that their anger is... misplaced.

Kermani was the man behind the gun... but who was behind him? The clergy and the reactionaries have been fighting against the Shah for decades - is Persia supposed to forget their hatred of the man? Is Persia supposed to assume that this was indeed, a lone gunman?
The funeral
As the Shah's body is laid to rest, chaos is engulfing the rest of Persia. His succession is entirely unclear - his eldest son is Mass'oud Mirza Zell -e, but there are two problems with his succession.

Firstly, who on earth can spell that name.

Secondly, his mother was not a Qajar. Amongst Royalists, it seems that the ascension of Mass'oud would be making the blood of the Royal family impure. Hence, some support the second eldest son, Mozaffar ad-Din.

But this isn't the only contest of succession in the power vacuum following the Shah's death.
The Clergy Strike Back
On the 6th of February, five days after the death of the Shah, several soldiers storm the Palace at Tehran. They are followed by several leading Theologians of the realm.

They order that, as the succession is unclear, that the clergy be given power over Persia temporarily. Royal officials are uncertain, however, leading to a fight in the palace between royal guards and loyalists to the Clergy.

As this goes on, around Isfahan numerous clergymen have been giving rousing speeches about the "death of Persian ideals" and have called for a return to the fundamentals of their nation, an idea that has been popular amongst many of the Persian lower class.
There will be Blood!
The coup in the palace succeeds, and Royal officials surrender to the Islamic fundamentalists. Several prominent clergymen now exit the palace, addressing a crowd that had gathered. They proclaim that the "Shah's Persia" was over, as the royalists had tried to kill them. Instead, they want a theocracy to establish stability in Persia.

But there are many liberals in Persia - liberals who do not want to give in to the reactionaries. There are protests from the crowd - and the reactionary soldiers fire upon it.

The crowd disperses, but news spreads rapidly.

"Take up arms against the conservatives! Take up arms against the clergy! The Shah will not fall!"

Over the next few days, as central control in Persia collapses, the citizens of Persia rapidly organize into militias. Royalist and Reactionary generals now race to march back to the capital. Fighting breaks out in the streets of Tehran and other major cities. If the Shahdom is to fall, it will fall with a fight.
We need a successor!
The British, closely watching the scenario unfold, send a delegation to Royalist-controlled cities in Persia on 14 February. They propose that, in order to resolve the current crisis, the military take control of the government, and Persia be ruled by a council of the country's top generals.

Unfortunately, divisions within the Persian military itself are evident. Some are angered over the Shah's decision to execute numerous generals in the aftermath of Hainan. Others are angered by what they perceive as a "Reactionary-led assassination" aimed at destroying the Persian Empire.
Military intervention
With the failure of their proposal, on the 16th of February, British contingents march from India into Persia. At the same time, Ottoman troops move to occupy eastern Persia, with a mandate given to them by the Germans, another friend of the Shah.

The Prime Minister sends an ultimatum to the clergy and reactionaries - stand down, or your country will cease to exist.
The Persian Crisis Summit of 1896
British troops manage to seize control of Tehran, with the clergy choosing not to fight, and world leaders now gather in Berlin for a summit on the future of Persia.

There is heavy debate between two blocs - the French and Russians support an "internationally set up" government replacing the Shah, whereas the British and Germans want to choose a successor. In particular, the Russians want to occupy Persian Turkmenia, which had largely devolved into colonial violence, in order to maintain stability.

The Germans, however, threaten war with Russia should their troops cross into Persian territory.

Ultimately, the summit fails to reach a definitive conclusion, but the German threat prevents any further foreign involvement in Persia.

German and British delegates meet on their own time, and decide upon choosing Mozaffar ad-Din Shah as successor. Notably, they also force a condition upon the Shah - any further successors must be vetted by both states.
A chaotic rise
Mozaffar, by 1896, had not spoken to his father in years. The two were estranged, which very different ideas on governance. Mozaffar had even tried to flee Persia when he was younger.

He is summoned to Tehran by the British, who inform him that in return for British assistance, he is to submit to several German and British demands. The Shah agrees to all requests.

One particular request is the crushing of the clergy, and the execution of numerous top officials. In order to compensate for the increased power of the Shah with the clergy no longer checking him, the British demand the creation of the position of Prime Minister, and enhanced powers for the Parliament. In particular, they force the drafting and passing of a Balance of Powers Act- effectively a rudimentary constitution that limits the Shah's powers with regards to the Parliament, preventing any threats of violence or execution that were common under Naser al-Din.

Once again, Mozaffar has no choice but to accept. However, as Persia does not technically have a constitution, he maintains to the populace that he is still an absolutist ruler of Persia. Indeed, he maintains many of the same powers, just with reduced influence of Parliament. The Prime Minister is still a Shah-appointed role.

And hence with Persia bowing to foreign demands, Mozaffar ascends to the throne of Persia. He, controversially, still appoints a well known reactionary, Omid Ghorbani, to the role of Prime Minister. He argues that, despite the crushing of the clergy, conservative Persians would be angry if they didn't have some sort of representation, which Omid gives. At the end of the day - the Shah can veto all decisions made by Parliament, unless they concern him.

All hail the Shah!
The world upon the ascension of the Shah
Despite the crisis in the country, and the recovering military, Persia remains a strong challenger to Russia and remains suzerain above the Ottoman Empire. In a world typically focused on Europe, the middle-eastern front has never been so equal, divided between four Empires.
We now resume scheduled broadcasting
The Shah is, above all else, an industrialist. He, unlike his predecessor, is not particularly enthralled by the idea of wars - though he does share a hatred of Russia, but that's genetic.

He does, however, envy the large rubber supplies in Swedish Ethiopia. He envisions Persia to be a center of the electronic world - but he needs rubber in order to build his electric gears.

Nonetheless, he is in the British Common Market, and hence can easily obtain rubber supplies produced in Sweden or GB. Whilst this isn't ideal, in order for Persia to grow there will have to be some reliance on the world economy. A hermit never made it anywhere.
Rubber plantation rebellion
As the Shah promotes the overworking of those in the rubber plantations, several thousand of them organize into a militia and begin to burn down several plantations.

The Shah does not tolerate insolence from his workers - hard work and obedience are the fundamentals of a strong society.
Death to the fundamentalists!
The crackdown on Isalmic fundamentalists following the Persian Succession Crisis has led several fundamentalists in Egypt to encourage civil disobedience.

As we also use Egypt as a penal colony, this is slightly worrying. It turns out sending lots of criminals to a place with little to no policing was a bad decision on the part of the advisory committee of Naser al-Din.
Yeah, Britain, don't mind if I do
The Shah visits the British Prime Minister, where they discuss the possibility of a trade deal ensuring a steady supply of rubber and other such resources to Persia.

At the same time, however, this clashes with Ghorbani, who wants to withdraw from the common market entirely to exert Persia's independence.
Rubber!
Ghorbani's research teams, tasked with finding ways to maintain Persia's self sustenance, find rubber in the Egyptian desert.
All aboard the Gear Train!
The Shah orders the setting of a mass numbers of electronic goods factories, as well as electrical powerplants. Persia will become the manufacturing center of the world, he insists.
Industrial failure
Ghorbani, in a rousing speech to Parliament, accuses the previous Shah of mishandling Persia's industry, leaving the country in the dust compared to numerous other world powers. He pushes for greater industrialization.

The Shah takes notice of this anti-Shah speech, but unfortunately cannot execute Ghorbani now thanks to the Balance of Powers Act.

Damned British and their "human rights". The Shah will have to learn to be calm. Anger and arrogance is what killed his father.
Escape from Egypt!
Several reactionary military officials, found guilty of playing a role in the assassination of the Shah and sentenced to exile in Egypt, escape from their prison facilities before they can be shipped away. They are now lose in the populace.

The Shah orders all aristocrats, capitalists and people known to have connections to the clergy in the vicinity to be searched. He argues that the rich have the most to gain from hiding an enemy of the state.
Coal is the actual foundation of the industrial revolution
In order to get necessary iron, coal and steel supplies for the electric gear industry, Persian researches begin looking in to how they can up the output of our mines.
I can fly!
The secret of flight is discovered in Persia in 1897! Man can now soar to the skies, and Ghorbani now smiles at the idea of bombing Russia from the heavens.

The Shah is now interested in developing an airplane manufacturing industry in Persia.
Viva la Revolution!
The atmosphere in February, during the Persian Succession Crisis, never quite wore off. Many groups, including the pro-democracy moderate-totes-not-islamists rebels were planning on seizing land and starting revolutions. The British intervention, however, stopped any such activities.

Nonetheless, disappointed with the return of the authoritarian Shah, they organize again and rise up, attempting to take major cities where they can.

As the installation of a democratic government was a Russian proposal, Ghorbani accuses all democratic rebels as being Russian agents, crushing the popularity of the movement and allowing Persian forces to clean up the more militant members of the organization.
I don't care what quality it is, make it cheap!
The Shah commissions his top experts to make iron production cheaper. He doesn't exactly give them any more information than that, so they're left wondering what to do.
Foreigners!
Ghorbani launches into a massive tirade after learning that the colonial subjects in Africa have been rebellious. Despite the Shah's attempts to seek common ground, Ghorbani insists on shooting all potential traitors to the realm.
The Ruanda Crisis
The colonization of the center of Africa, Ruanda-Urundi, has become a subject of international attention. Both Spain and France have claims to the region, and both have built military and civilian facilities. A few days ago, Spanish and French troops found themselves in a military engagement, where several on both sides were killed.

Both states accuse each other of starting the violence, and world powers have been dragged in. The Russians and the French, ever eager to damage the Germans, have sided with the Spanish. The British have also decided to strategically ally with the Russians.

Ghorbani voices his disapproval at the British decision, and sends his support, though not military, to the German Empire.
Para bellum
Ghorbani prepares for war with Sweden, in case the colonial crisis turns into a war. Troops are shipped to Africa.

This prompts an angry response from the Shah - the Balance of Powers gives him authority over foreign relations, not Ghorbani. The Persian military is paralyzed as the Shah struggles with Parliament.
Keep pumping out iron
The Bessemer process is studied by Persian chemists, still working on the Shah's task of mining more iron.
The Sino-Japanese War
Japan and its puppet state of Korea launch an invasion of the Heavenly Kingdom in order to secure parts of Manchuria. The Heavenly Kingdom is nearing modernization - its new King has begun introducing a series of reforms to strengthen China.

The world watches cautiously.
Russia Rising
With British support, the Germans are forced to capitulate - losing not only Ruanda, but also losing Prussia to the Russian Empire, as the crisis had escalated far beyond what was originally anticipated.
Things have never been this good
The Persian industry continues to grow, and the treaties with China and reparations for Hainan continue to be immensely profitable. Tariffs on ships passing through Shanghai have increased government revenue.
The Factories are up
Whilst Persia still suffers a lack of craftsmen, factories continue to open. In particular, the electric gear factories, part of the Shah's vision of Persia as a modern manufacturing hub, open up and are immensely profitable.
Choo choo!
In order to help with the extraction of iron and coal used in these factories and moving them to the industrial centers, the rail network in Persia needs to be greatly enhanced.

Ghorbani and Parliament choose to elect Persians to do the job, instead of following the path of the former Shah and reaching out to the British.

This worries the British, who fear that their forced Parliamentary system may be working against them. The Shah assures the Brits that, so as long as he has control over foreign policy, there will be no severance of ties.
Yes, clerks! The smart ones
Parliament passes the Industrial Efficiency Act, which promotes the job of clerk to the populace. A national recruitment agency is created to train people for this job, to boost industrial productivity.
The cries of liberty
There will be no freedom in Persia. The people are meant to be ruled by the educated upper class capable of making actual decisions. There will be no criticism from the lower class!

The Shah announces unilateral action against several publications who might be damaging to the Shah. He also introduces the Royal Protection Act to Parliament, which imposes strict penalties on those who criticize the Shah.

Parliament, whilst uneasy about pushing the bill, do so under Ghorbani's instruction. Ghorbani believes that acquiescing to the Shah on this will get him political capital for future decisions.

Silly Ghorbani, the Shah doesn't show gratitude, he takes what he gets.

All Hail the Shah!
Chinese people really are the bane of society
Communists rise up and seize Shanghai from us
Income collapses!
The loss of income from Shanghai combined with the expiry of several parts of the Treaty of 1893 have sent the government into a deficit. The Shah authorizes a military expedition to recover Shanghai
The Orientals are conspiring!
The Shah learns that the communists are now negotiating with the Chinese to rejoin the Heavenly Kingdom with special autonomy. The Shah accuses China of planting rebellions in Shanghai, and threatens war.

The international community buys this reasoning, mostly because unlike the previous Shah's reasoning it isn't bullshit.
Shanghai lost!
The province of Shanghai is seized by Heavenly troops.

The Shah tells the British to ready their regiments - war is coming. He announces his battle plan - Persian forces attack the coast whilst the British attack from Yunan.
Socialists in Parliament
Ghorbani approaches the Shah, instructing him to stop a recent surge in support for the socialist platform in Parliament. The Shah laughs, and fuels the fan of socialism.

The rivalry between Prime Minister and Shah only continue to grow - and it is proceeding down a dangerous path.
Education: The Great Equalizer
The Socialist Party in Parliament uses the surge in support for socialist policies to push for an improved education system. The curriculum is made more rigorous, and the concept of "banding" is introduced.

Every Persian child at age 12 takes the National Persian Exam, and based on their score is grouped into a band denoting their proficiency in academics. This allows the various secondary schools to accept students only of a particular band, which allows them to tailor their education to a specific capability range.

Overall, the education system is much better for it, but there is concern about the increased funding to schools and the increasingly competitive nature of the education system in Persia. Children spend more time studying than ever before.

The socialist party largely exhausts most of its political capital in passing the bill.
War is here!
British troops storm into China, whereas the Chinese rush to occupy existing British or Persian ports.

The British notice that the Shah seems to not be moving his navy at all.
Rubber!
Meanwhile, back in Egypt, Ghorbani's research team finds more rubber. Ghorbani implores the Shah to re-align themselves with Germany, and go to war with Sweden - there simply isn't enough rubber in the colonies to sustain Persia's growing economy.
The Third Sino-Persian War... with no deaths
The Shah snickers to himself. He successfully managed to trick the British into effectively fighting a war for him - by fabricating After Action Reports he convinces the British that there were in fact Persian military operations on the coast of China.

The Chinese agree to pay reparations to both Persia and Britain. Both nations use the opportunity to grant their companies monopolies over certain goods in China. In particular, Persia forces China to get any of their electric gear, automobiles or planes from Persian factories only.
Shanghai recovered
Shanghai is transferred back to Persian control, and the government returns to imposing tariffs on passing ships.

Money truly does make the world go round.
Culture, what does it mean?
Artists and Musicians in Persia begin to pioneer a new branch of music and art. Persian music is now famous the world round, and a bunch of pompous aristocrats loudly proclaim that they "Don't listen to any of those popular, mainstream stuff" and instead go for "exotic, natural and proper Persian music".

Who knew Persian Death Metal would be so popular?
Work harder, factories
Persian factory owners begin to devise new manners of increasing efficiency in output. They largely contact the British for assistance here - the Shah hides this fact from Ghorbani, hoping to avoid a reactionary outburst.
Death to India!
After several protests rock our Baluchistani streets, Ghorbani orders the execution of random civilians to "make a point". The Shah, who has the final say on executions, allows it to pass.
The capitalists? Those braindead fools?
A report concludes that the capitalists are helping improve the standard of life in the Central Asian Territories. This is humorous, because everyone knows the Capitalists barely know how to walk in a straight line. We ban the report for spreading misinformation.
The Sirjan Massacre
A division in Sirjan has, apparently, been revealed to have communist sympathies, promising support to the local communist party should they need military assistance.

As Persia desperately needs industrial advancement, Ghorbani has the entire division shot to make a statement.
Ah yes, the well known... confucian holy sites
Some of our soldiers destroy some artifacts of the Heavenly King. God knows why the hell the Chinese buy into that.
I smell a monopoly
Thanks to the Shah's push for a "Modern Manufacturing hub", Persia gets a massive head start on the electric gears market, becoming the worlds biggest producer. Ghorbani, however, continues to warn that the growth is not sustainable.

He also takes the time to argue that Persia should exit the British Common Market, so as to assert economic independence. This idea has strong support in Parliament, but the Shah said he would veto any attempt.
Efficiency skyrocketing
Persian manufacturers continue to increase their efficiency and output, quickly learning from the ways of the British and fuelling economic growth.
Dominance constant
It appears that the other nations haven't even tried to challenge the Persian position. Whilst the Shah is entirely content, Ghorbani continues to warn of imminent disaster.
My point, made
Ghorbani gives a presentation to Parliament, where he points out that over 90% of our rubber consumption comes from overseas. Should we be cut off from that market, the Persian economy would collapse. He proposes diversifying the Persian economy with other goods. The Shah, however, is still high from all the profitability of his electric gear factories, and unable to comprehend speech.
The Spanish resurgence
Spain has begun furthering its colonial ambitions. Its been a century since the Spanish Empire was one of the greatest empires known to man, and it appears that they desperately want to claw that title back.
Persian industry is thriving
Whilst our industry and prestige are akin to the great powers of the world, we are still lacking in military capability. The Shah moves against any militarization programmes, wanting to focus on economy whilst the "British protect us". Ghorbani insists on sulf sufficiency, and hence the two clash again, and no progress is made.
Hey, come back here China
The Chinese have stopped paying us, and hence have stopped artificially fuelling our economy. The money will instead go to helping Chinese citizens in poverty.

It's this kind of blatant disregard for the welfare of Persian citizens that makes imperialism justified. Foreigners can't be trusted to use their money right at all!
Eh, yeah, um... money?
The Shah gives a rousing speech to an international meeting about "Money" and "Persian pride" and "cmon none of you fucks care about the Chinese just lemme invade"
Oh well, none of the Shah's were good at this
Ghorbani facepalms as Russia accuses the Shah of being a warmonger.

It's Ghorbani who's a warmonger, not the Shah. Damn foreigners. Bet they think all Persians look alike.
ONWARDS
Nonetheless, the British agree to help in return for a cut of the reparations. Beating up China Day is now a national holiday in Persia, celebrated every 5 years with the surrender of Chinese forces.
You have chosen... poorly
If only to prove that the Swedes can't be trusted, they decide to annul their alliance, signed under the former Shah, for a war they wouldn't even have to participate in.

In reality, Ghorbani burned their reply and forged a new one that requested the alliance be annulled. Then, the Persian foreign minister was sent to Sweden instead of the Shah, and he convinced the Swedes that the Shah was tired of their Swedishness, and thanked them for their time.
Hahahaha, wait what?
The Shah and Ghorbani are surprised to learn that their alliance with Britain was apparently a two-way thing. They dig up the decades old document and confirm that this is indeed true.

It appears that the Brits are going to war with their mortal enemies: Continental Europe, over the liberation of some small part of France. Because that's worth millions of deaths.

The Shah is forced to accept - besides, its not like he'll have to do anything.
The Grand Army
The Chinese raise one of the largest armies the world has ever seen, and marches directly for British positions.

They all die in a horrific massacre. Its reported that there were heavy casualties on the British side as well - four of them spilt their tea.
Oh... fuck
The Shah is informed by Ghorbani that the situation in Europe has drastically escalated out of hand. The Russians have joined the war on the Persian side, and are proceeding to help lose the war by throwing all their men against walls of German artillery.
No! Come back!
The British retreat from India and China in order to assist Russian positions.

This is horrible news - we might be expected to contribute to this war!
Nevermind
Despite the advances by the Chinese army, the Heavenly King is apparently so upset by the mere notion of being at war that he surrenders.

The discussion now turns to additional demands. In reparation for British hats dropped and tea spilled, the Chinese are to surrender a port to joint British-Persian control.

As a sign of rising Persian strength, Ghorbani suggests a very particular and notable port.
Remember Hainan
On the morning of October 10 1905, over a decade since the Last Stand at Hainan, Persian troops land on the island.

In the ultimate show of force, Ghorbani authorizes a programme to begin investigating residents of the island. Anyone who may have had the tiniest involvement with Chinese forces during the Second Sino-Persian War is shot by the occupying Persian forces.

The British, expecting Persian troops in Europe in return for their assistance, turn a blind eye to such events.

Of course, the Shah would be dead before he sends troops to fight alongside the Russians. Well, Ghorbani would kill him.
Taxes for no one!
Nothing is sure in life besides death, taxes and Chinese money.
Persia Rising
The defeats suffered by the Russian armed forces combined with the restoration of the Persian military and the growth of its electric gear industry are starting to pile up.

Russian strength is questioned - as is their position as one of the great powers in the world. They have always been able to count on their military might, but as the Great War rages on, they continue to retreat deeper into Russia.
Long Live Persia! Long Live Persia!
Vast numbers of Russian troops are annihilated in the events known as Bloody December. Russian global influence is dwindling by the minute.
Genius!
The French Navy's captain chooses to engage a Persian fleet twenty times his size.

No one said frenchmen were smart.
Haha, silly Europeans
France and Germany continue to fuck over swathes of Europe. Ghorbani and the Shah find this immensely entertaining. The British are mildly annoyed at our non participation, but its a well known fact that as our troops are still using napoleonic era weapons and tactics, we'd probably be the enemy's greatest asset.

Furthermore, Ghorbani, a chief advocate for closer relations with Germany, does not wish to ruin any chance of a future alliance.
Land on this, motherfuckers
The British struggle to figure out how to invade a country that lacks unguarded coasts. Turns out that trickling in small numbers of troops through the Netherlands is not the answer.
Good good... wait a minute
As Ghorbani and the Shah enjoy their news reports of defeated Russian armies and purported mass killings of Russian POWs, they're informed by the foreign minister that Germany has requested the disarming of all enemy states if they win.

Ghorbani calls the idea excellent before promptly realizing Persia is an enemy state.
ALL HAIL THE SHAH
With the advent of the radio and the spread of information in an extremely literate Persia, politics has changed forever. Populists begin to rise to the global forefront and the newspapers help whip up support of the Shah and the other, lesser leaders of Persia.
Um... no we weren't in that war
Our attempts to pretend that we were never at war with Germany haven't worked out.

German troops arrive in Tehran and begin presenting their demands: the dismantlement of the Persian Navy, the removal of any armed forces from Persian Egypt and the removal of our Turkmenistan Army. This comes together with an annual tributary payment.

If we do not accept, the Germans say, we will enter a state of war with Germany and the British will not defend us.

The Shah begrudgingly agrees to his terms. This causes our international standing to collapse as our armies are now as weak as Russia's.

It is only a temporary setback, however, as nothing can curb the power of the Persian economy.

As a wise man once said,
"We will bury you"
The Shah has caved in to the foreigners! The Shah is a fraud!
Soldiers angry over the terms imposed by the Germans begin organizing into fascist sympathizing parties that decry the Shah as weak and unwilling to "engage the enemy".

Unknown to the Shah, Ghorbani has begun cooperating with fascist elements of Persia with the goal of overthrowing him.
Let our voices be heard!
Everyday Persians can see a massive disconnect between the constant praise for the Shah in the news and the daily, popular piss-on-his-statue events organized by the Fascist party.

This causes a wave of politicians in the parliament to support greater press freedoms. However, through intimidation by an increasingly authoritarian Ghorbani, they do not gain enough support to pass their proposed Rights of Man bill.
Look at the pretty pictures
The Shah visits the French to give his tributary payment. Here, he catches a glimpse of French cinema. Enthralled by what he saw, he comes back to Persia and insists that Persia cash into the "growing pornographic cinema industry".

This brings great prestige to Persia. All around the world, people are listening to Persian Death Metal alongside our wonderous movies that portray the way we kill minorities.

All hail the Shah!
Eh, whatever
Much to Ghorbani's dismay, the Shah bumps into the Swedish foreign minister at an event in Paris. Here they realize neither of them wanted to end the alliance, and the Shah tries to formalize their alliance through Parliament.

Ghorbani manages to get Parliament to reject it, however the Shah, with total control over foreign policy, makes it official via Royal Decree.
Someone's a whore
The Swedes appear to have allied the Ottomans in our absence. How dare they pretend that one could replace one Muslim ally with the Ottomans.

I mean, the Ottomans are Sunni, they might as well be barbarians.
Mhm yeah, totally
The Shah listens to a "rousing" speech by an aristocrat about the wonders of ancient Greece, including the vile idea of democracy. As only rich people would listen to such stuff, and rich people don't matter, the Shah allows the rich to indulge themselves in such fantasies.
Damnit
Unfortunately, as many of our people can now read, the rich begin writing about democracy and other vile, liberal ideals.

Parliament passes the "Literature Restriction Act" that limits the circulation of certain books flagged by the government to a single province.

Ghorbani explains that its always a good idea to keep the liberals in one place, need it be important to kill them later.
Hurray for the Rising Empire!
Persia begins to host colonial conferences, attracting large, international support. By encouraging foreigners to come to Tehran, the international community can see how far we've come, and we can influence the colonial activities of the world.

Moscow, on the other hand, is busy putting out fires from the German invasion.
Don't be wasteful
The factories begin to learn how to produce more goods from less materials after Persia hosts a business forum. Copying the west has never been so easy!
Thats... terrifying
The Shah attempts to click a button, before being tackled by a guard and restrained.

(No seriously, what the fuck? Why would this destroy the world economy? Whats wrong with Paradox's model)
Oh god, fine
Ghorbani begins to exert his massive influence amongst the soldiers in the capital province, covertly setting up fascist groups and encouraging soldiers to join.

At the same time, he assures the Shah that there is no need to deal with the fascists - they make good allies in Parliament.
What a wonderful cause!
Ghorbani continues to prove how wonderful the Fascists are by inviting the Shah to one of their soup kitchens.

Of course, he neglects to mention the pile of bodies of minorities who tried to use their services, but that's really just a minor detail.
To the sky, my Persia!
Persian industrial output increases. Parliament begins to encourage the automobile and aeroplane industry. Persian car companies such as ماشین مردم become popular the world round.
Some people can't be pleased
The rising influence of the Persian fascists has led disgruntled minorities to rise up, and then run to the cover of the mountains. We'll finish them off easily.
Ah, off with their head!
Fascists, the Shah can stand, but liberals?

My god, someone hide the children!
Oh come on
The Persian military continues to be a joke as it proceeds to lose a battle.

It turns out guns outdated for 70 years become problematic after a while.
The Persians are weak! Strike at the core!
Seeing the Pashtun patriots hold their ground against the Persian military, Indian nationalists begin to advocate for the end to Persian occupation of rightful indian lands.

We argue that, since Timur once ruled over Persia, and a Timur conquered north India, we're really the rightful rulers of India.
My word
The mountain resistance manages to repel our first assault. The Shah moves another force to end their resistance, but around the Persian high command there is talk of finally upgrading their weapons, lest the "big war" come first.
Leave the common market!
Ghorbani begins aggressively pushing for a Persian exit from the British sphere, and for Persia to redefine itself as a great power above Russia.
Work all day!
Our factories begin to run even longer as we introduce the night shift. Now, after working 14 hours, your son can join us for 10!
We raise you up, out of poverty
In order to convince the Europeans that we are as modern as they are, unlike Russia, Parliament approves the passage for the Unemployment Benefits Act that may prevent our people from starving to death if they get fired.
Education reform
Parliament now passes the Universal Education Act, which guarantees everyone in Persia, minorities included, go to school from ages 5-18, and also promotes universities to the brightest (or, most Persian) members of society, entirely for free.

The move is extremely well received internationally. Ghorbani, however, is hesitant about teaching the minorities.
The Third Way
Ghorbani pens, under an alternative name, the Persian Fascist Manifesto. He hopes that the spread of this book can counter the effect of education the minorities.
I'm quite sure the Chinese don't look like that
The Shah receives a report from his advisors about another Heavenly King artifact destroyed in one of the treaty ports. He is confused, the reports include a photo of the "angry mobs" but they mostly appear to be negro.
I can almost feel the sustainability - wait, no I can't
As everyone knows, the best economy is one that collapses the instant you go to war with a major rubber producer.

The Shah brushes aside demands to shut down some of the electric gear factories or too diversify.

As he puts it, the electrical industry is too big to fail. He points out how his policies have almost led him to gain a position in the G8, from which Russia was kicked out of the previous month.
Send in the troops
Ghorbani enlists the help of several fascist paramilitaries to end voting rights movements. He knows that, if they win, he would likely be voted out.
Integration
The genocide - uh, reeducation - programmes in Kandahar have been going well.
Soaarringgg
Persia's airplane industry takes flight, as does our global standing.
Hey, anyone have a book from the 1840s?
The Shah decides that its time he modernize the military, lest the Russians start coming.

Demands from Parliament to leave the British common market so that we can properly be recognized as a great power are growing - the Brits won't be there to protect us forever.

Instead of just ripping off British tactics, the Shah decides to slowly progress through the decades and gradually adopt newer technologies and methods, because that makes sense.
This is why we can't have nice things
As Persia is poised to become a world power, the minorities attempt to get the world to recognize their plight, and burn several Persian flags.

They are promptly attacked by fascist groups, as if the groups all have some master in the upper echelons of power.

How curious.

At the same time, he finally convinces the Shah to exert Persia's independence. The Shah enters negotiations to withdraw from the British Common Market, as well as to slowly erode its sphere of influence.
Welfare steps up
Ghorbani blocks Parliament's attempt to expand government welfare programmes - instead, he asks that the newly set up Persian Fascist Party, headed by an unnamed individual, be allowed to manage them separately from the government.

Ghorbani's greater control of the populace as well as the state begins to show. He interrupts the Shah and takes over negotiations with the British. He is far more aggressive and nationalistic than his superior.
We've come so far
The British, seeing the Persians rise beyond their role as a regional power, concede to their exit from the common market, and agree to Ghorbani's demand that the British monopoly companies be broken up.

Persia is finally independent, influential and strong. We are no longer the lapdogs of the British Empire. We are Persia, hear us roar!

Well, after we get an actual military that is.

Next chapter:

Game: Victoria 2

Death to the West - A Persian HPM AAR - Part 8

Images: 104, author: ElvenAshwin, published: 2017-02-06, edited: 1970-01-01

Check out another AAR:

Game: Hearts of Iron IV

18. 9. 39; A HOI4 short story.

Images: 6, author: Yoper101, published: 2017-02-06