The Russian Minister, as soon as he was informed of the Imperial decision, expressed the desire to take Bahá’u’lláh under the protection of his government, and offered to extend every facility for His removal to Russia. This invitation, so spontaneously extended, Bahá’u’lláh declined, preferring, in pursuance of an unerring instinct, to establish His abode in Turkish territory, in the city of Baghdád.
- Shoghi Effendi (‘God Passes By’)
The relative peace and tranquillity accorded Bahá’u’lláh after His tragic and cruel imprisonment was destined, by the dictates of an unerring Wisdom, to be of an extremely short duration. He had hardly rejoined His family and kindred when a decree from Náiri’d-Dín Sháh was communicated to Him, bidding Him leave the territory of Persia, fixing a time-limit of one month for His departure and allowing Him the right to choose the land of His exile.
- Shoghi Effendi (‘God Passes By’)
On the twelfth day of January 1853, Bahá’u’lláh and His family left Tihrán, together with two of His brothers - Mírzá Músá, known in later years as Áqáy-i-Kalím, and Mírzá Muhammad-Quli - and accompanied by a representative of the Imperial Government of Irán, and an official of the Russian Legation. Bahá’u’lláh’s youngest son, Mirzá Mihdi, the Purest Branch, then a young child, had to be left behind with relatives, and it was some years before he could be reunited with his parents. The Russian Government had offered Bahá’u’lláh a refuge in its own territories, but He chose to go to Iráq. The time allowed Him to prepare had been too short, and particularly so since He needed a long period of rest before embarking on this journey in the heart of winter, over the high peaks and mountain passes of western írán. He, His family and His brothers had not been able to provide themselves with all that was required for adequate protection against the intense cold of those heights.
- Hand of the Cause H.M.Balyuzi (‘Bahá’u’lláh, The King of Glory’)
Bahá’u’lláh was given one month to leave the country. At the time of His release from the Síyáh-Chál, He was too ill to set out on a long journey. He had no home of His own now. His house had been wrecked and pillaged, and His family had found temporary accommodation in an obscure quarter of the capital. He went to live in the house of His half-brother, Mirza Ridá-Qulí, whose wife Maryam was devoted to Him, made adequate arrangements for Him to rest and recuperate. 
Mirza Ridá-Qulí
(Adapted from ‘Bahá’u’lláh, The King of Glory’, by Hand of the Cause H.M.Balyuzi)