Mitteilungen des Österreichischen Staatsarchivs 41. (1990)

BEVERIDGE, Kent D.: „Worthy Representative of Europe“. Anton Graf Prokesch von Osten

Anton Graf Prokesch von Osten

ish from ,,’Abbás Effendi, des Sohn Husayns“ [i. e., Bahá’u’lláh], to the Reverend Rosenberg. Camerloher had probably translated the letter himself as his knowledge of Turkish was one of the reasons given for awarding him the post of Austrian consul.

According to this letter, the trip from Adrianople to Gallipoli required six days. When the Bahá’ís arrived in Gallipoli they were met by a Turkish major, who had brought a group af Bahá’ís arrested in Constantinople64). The major carried an order banishing Bahá’u’lláh, two of his brothers and another of his followers, as well as two of his enemies, followers of Subh-i-Azal, to ‘Akká65). The remaining Bahá’ís were to be taken to Constantinople and scattered in small groups among various fortresses throughout the Ottoman Empire. The Bahá’ís replied to this threat of dispersal that they would prefer to be „alle zusammen mit Weibe und Rind im Meere ertränken oder unsere Köpfe abschneiden“ than to be seperated from Bahá’u’lláh. The letter mentions that they sent a written petition to the English legation asking that it intervene for them at the Sublime Porte, and that they were „alle zusammen am eigen Leben verzweifelt“ as no answer had yet been received. It closes with the writer’s acknowledgement of the Rev. Rosenberg’s zeal and goodwill, and conveys Bahá’u’lláh’s greetings to the Rev. Rosenberg, Boghos Effendi and Artin Effendi (another member of the local Armenian Protestant community), as well as the greetings of the writer and the other Bahá’ís66).

The original order assigning the Bahá’ís various places of exile was eventually revoked; the authorities in Constantinople instead decided to send all of the Bahá’ís, with the exception of those specifically exiled to Cyprus in the original farman, to ‘Akká. However, the Ottoman govern64) Among these prisoners were Mírzá ‘Alí-i-Sayyáh, Mishkín-Qalam, Aqá ’Abdu’l-Ghaffár-i-Isfahání, Muhammad-Baqír-i-Qahvih-chí and Danish Sidq-‘Alí. Ta- herzadeTi Revelation vol.2, 408f.

65) According to this letter from ,,‘Abbás Effendi, son of Husayn“, contained in Nachlaß Prokesch-Osten, Consular & Diplomat. Correspondenz 1864-1871, HHStA: „unsere hochverehrten Herren und Meister (Shaykh Husayn-‘A.) und zwei (seiner?) Brüder nebst noch einem Anderem und zwei Feinden des Shaykhs.“ („our honored Lord and Master (Shaykh Husayn-’A.) and two (of his?) brothers, along with one other and two enemies of the Shaykh.“) The two brothers of Bahá’u’liáh were Mírzá Músá and Mírzá Muhammad- Quli, the other Darvish Sidq-‘Ali, and the two enemies, Siyyid Muhammad-i-Isfahání and Aqá Ján Big.

66) It cannot be ascertained whether ‘Abbás Effendi was indeed the author of this letter until the original is found. However, the contents of the translation give no reason to suspect that he did not write it. It would seem that this letter was written between 17 and 20 August 1868, which would support Taherzadeh‘s theory (Revelation vol.2, 405) that the exiles were first informed of their final destination following their arrival in Gallipoli.

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