The Qajar dynasty (also known as Ghajar or Kadjar) is a common term to describe Iran (then known as Persia) under the ruling Qajar royal family[1] that ruled Iran from 1794 to 1925. In 1794, the Qajar family took full control of Iran as they had eliminated all their rivals, including Lotf 'Ali Khan, the last of the Zand dynasty, and had reasserted Persian sovereignty over the former Iranian territories in Georgia and the Caucasus. In 1796 Agha Mo?ammad Khan was formally crowned as shah (emperor or king). European powers began to see Iran as a strategic ally in the region, one with whom they could work to undermine Ottoman power. Russia and Great Britain were especially interested in establishing themselves in Iran, which consequently became a venue for their so-called "great game" of imperial rivalry. (This term is attributed to Arthur Conolly, who was an intelligence officer with the British East India Company's Sixth Bengal Light Cavalry.)[2] Britain and Iran fought a war in 1856 over territory between Iran and their Indian empire. Britain also established control of the Trucial States. In the Anglo-Russian Agreement of 1907, Britain and Russia (with imperial hubris) divided their playground into spheres of influence. The Qazars became economically indebted to Russia. In 1901, short of money caused by their own extravagance, they sold a concession to prospect for oil cheaply to a British engineer. During the Qajar period, Western science, technology, and educational methods were introduced into Iran. Contact with Europe also encouraged a movement in Iran for the development of democratic institutions and a constitutional monarchy, which resulted in mass demonstrations and civil unrest in 1906, followed reluctantly by the granting of a constitution.