Shiite Pilgrimage to Atabat in the Context of Iranian-Iraqi Relations in Second Half of the 19th - Early 20th Centuries

Abstract

The article is focused on the study of various aspects of the Shiite pilgrimage to the holy land of Iraq - atabat, which was an important part of the Shia-Sunni and interstate relations of the two neighbouring countries. Having a long history and having been actively practised during the entire period of the Qajar rule in Iran, it was interrupted in the 1920ies for political reasons connected with the adoption of new principles of state building in both countries. The article, based on archival documentary materials and travelogues both in Russian and Persian, partly introduced into scientific circulation for the first time, creates a detailed picture of the pious wandering of the Shiа which is analyzed in its religious and political aspects.