Safavid Iran: Difference between revisions

{{Short description|TwelverIranian Shiʻiempire ruling dynasty of Iran(1501–1736)}}

|common_name status = Safavid Iran = [[Empire]]

|era status_text = <!-- A free text to describe =status <!--the Use:top "Napoleonicof Wars",the "Coldinfobox. War",Use etcsparingly. -->

|government_type year_end = [[Monarchy]]1736|

|year_start event_end = 1501<!-- Default: "Disestablished" -->

|year_end date_end = 17368 March|

|year_exile_end event2 = <!-- Year of end of exile (leave blank if= stillReconquest inunder exile)[[Nader -->Shah]]

|event_start event3 = <!-- Default: "Established" --> =

|event_end event4 = <!-- Default: "Disestablished" -->=

|date_end date_event4 = 8 March|

|event1 date_pre = [[Hotaki dynasty|Hotaki]] Invasion1301

|date_event1 event_post = 1722[[Nader Shah]] crowned

|date_event2 p1 = 1726–1729Aq Qoyunlu

|event3 p2 = Afrasiyab dynasty

|date_event3 p3 = Timurid Empire

|event4 p4 = Mihrabanids

|date_event4 p5 = Shirvanshah

|event_pre p7 = Establishment of the [[Safavid order]] by [[Safi-ad-din Ardabili]]= Mar'ashis

|date_pre p8 = 1301Baduspanids

|event_post s1 = [[Nader Shah]] crowned = Afsharid Iran

|date_post flag_s1 = 1Afsharid Imperial Standard October(3 1736Stripes).svg

|p1 s2 = TimuridHotak Empiredynasty

|flag_p1 s3 = Timurid.svgRussian Empire

|border_p1 flag_s3 = noFlag_of_Russia.svg

|image_p1 s4 = Ottoman Empire

|p2 flag_s4 = Aq QoyunluFlag_of_the_Ottoman_Empire_(1844–1922).svg

|p3 image_flag = Safavid = ShirvanshahFlag.svg

|p4 image_coat = Marashiyan

|flag_p5 image_map = PaduspanidsMapHistoryofIranSafavid Iran.png

|p6 image_map_size = Mihrabanids

|p7 image_map2 = <!-- If second map is needed =- does not appear by Afrasiabdefault dynasty-->

|p9 capital = Kingdom of Ormus{{plainlist|

|deputy1 leader1 = [[Mohammad ZakariyaIsmail KujujiI]] <small>(first)</small>

|stat_pop3 stat_area2 =

|stat_pop4 stat_area3 =

|stat_pop5 stat_area4 =

{{note label|b-Persian|b}} Official language,<ref name="Roemer 189" /> coinage,<ref name="MatheeIranica">Rudi Matthee, "[http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/safavids Safavids] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220901053617/https://iranicaonline.org/articles/safavids |date=2022-09-01 }}" in ''Encyclopædia Iranica'', accessed on April 4, 2010. "The Persian focus is also reflected in the fact that theological works also began to be composed in the Persian language and in that Persian verses replaced Arabic on the coins." "The political system that emerged under them had overlapping political and religious boundaries and a core language, Persian, which served as the literary tongue, and even began to replace Arabic as the vehicle for theological discourse".</ref><ref>Ronald W Ferrier, ''The Arts of Persia''. Yale University Press. 1989, p. 9.</ref> civil administration,<ref name="Perry">John R Perry, "Turkic-Iranian contacts", ''Encyclopædia Iranica'', January 24, 2006: "...&nbsp;written Persian, the language of high literature and civil administration, remained virtually unaffected in status and content"</ref> court (since Isfahan became capital),<ref name="Cyril Glassé 2003, pg 392"/> literary,<ref name="MatheeIranica" /><ref name="Perry"/><ref>Arnold J. Toynbee, ''A Study of History'', V, pp. 514–515. Excerpt: "in the heyday of the Mughal, Safawi, and Ottoman regimes New Persian was being patronized as the language of ''literae humaniores'' by the ruling element over the whole of this huge realm, while it was also being employed as the official language of administration in those two-thirds of its realm that lay within the Safawi and the Mughal frontiers"</ref> theological discourse,<ref name="MatheeIranica"/> diplomatic correspondence, historiography,<ref name="mazzaoui" /> court-based religious posts,<ref>Ruda Jurdi Abisaab. "Iran and Pre-Independence Lebanon" in Houchang Esfandiar Chehabi, ''Distant Relations: Iran and Lebanon in the Last 500 Years'', IB Tauris 2006, p. 76: "Although the Arabic language was still the medium for religious scholastic expression, it was precisely under the Safavids that hadith complications and doctrinal works of all sorts were being translated to Persian. The ʻAmili (Lebanese scholars of Shiʻi faith) operating through the Court-based religious posts, were forced to master the Persian language; their students translated their instructions into Persian. Persianization went hand in hand with the popularization of 'mainstream' Shiʻi belief."</ref> poetry<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |title=ESMĀʿĪL I ṢAFAWĪ: His poetry |encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia Iranica |first1=Roger M. |last1=Savory |first2=Ahmet T. |last2=Karamustafa |year=2012 |url=https://iranicaonline.org/articles/esmail-i-safawi#ii }}</ref>

{{note label|c-Azerbaijani|c}} Court,<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Floor|first1=Willem|last2=Javadi|first2=Hasan|title=The Role of Azerbaijani Turkish in Safavid Iran|journal=Iranian Studies|date=2013|volume=46|issue=4|pages=569–581|doi=10.1080/00210862.2013.784516|s2cid=161700244}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Hovannisian|first1=Richard G.|last2=Sabagh|first2=Georges|authorlink1author-link1=Richard G. Hovannisian|title=The Persian Presence in the Islamic World|date=1998|publisher=Cambridge University Press|location=Cambridge|isbn=978-0521591850|page=240}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Axworthy|first1=Michael|title=The Sword of Persia: Nader Shah, from Tribal Warrior to Conquering Tyrant|date=2010|publisher=I.B. Tauris|isbn=978-0857721938|page=33}}</ref> religious dignitaries, military,<ref name="mazzaoui" /><ref name="savory07">{{cite book |last=Savory|first=Roger|authorlinkauthor=[[Roger Savory]] |title=Iran Under the Safavids|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=v4Yr4foWFFgC&pg=PA213|year=2007|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-04251-2|page=213|quote=qizilbash normally spoke Azari brand of Turkish at court, as did the Safavid shahs themselves; lack of familiarity with the Persian language may have contributed to the decline from the pure classical standards of former times}}</ref><ref name="cambridgesafa" /><ref>{{Cite book|last=Price|first=Massoume|year=2005|title=Iran's Diverse Peoples: A Reference Sourcebook|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-1-57607-993-5|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gzpdq679oJwC&pg=PA66|page=66|quote=The Shah was a native Turkic speaker and wrote poetry in the Azerbaijani language.}}</ref> mother tongue,<ref name="mazzaoui" /> poetry.<ref name="mazzaoui" />

{{note label|d-Georgian|d}} Court.<ref>{{cite bookharvnb|last1=Blow|first1=David|title=Shah Abbas: The Ruthless King Who Became an Iranian Legend|date=2009|publisher=I.B.Tauris|isbn=978-0857716767|pagespp=165–166|quote=}} "Georgian, Circassian and Armenian were also spoken [at the court], since these were the mother-tongues of many of the ghulams, as well as of a high proportion of the women of the harem. Figueroa heard Abbas speak Georgian, which he had no doubt acquired from his Georgian ghulams and concubines.}}"</ref>

* Matthee, Rudi. (2005). ''The Pursuit of Pleasure: Drugs and Stimulants in Iranian History, 1500-19001500–1900''. Princeton University Press. p. 18; "''The Safavids, as Iranians of Kurdish ancestry and of nontribal background (...)"''.

* Savory, Roger. (2008). ''"EBN BAZZĀZ''". ''Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. VIII, Fasc. 1''. p. 8.</ref> but"''This official version contains textual changes designed to obscure the Kurdish origins of the Safavid family and to duringvindicate their ruleclaim theyto intermarrieddescent withfrom [[Turkmens|Turkoman]],<ref>the Imams."''

The Safavids ruled from 1501 to 1722 (experiencing a brief restoration from 1729 to 1736 and 1750 to 1773) and, at their height, they controlled all of what is now [[Iran]], [[Azerbaijan |Republic of Azerbaijan]], [[Bahrain]], [[Armenia]], eastern [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]], parts of the [[North Caucasus]] including [[Russia]], [[Iraq]], [[Kuwait]], and [[Afghanistan]], as well as parts of [[Turkey]], [[Syria]], [[Pakistan]], [[Turkmenistan]], and [[Uzbekistan]].

Despite their demise in 1736, the legacy that they left behind was the revival of Iran as an economic stronghold between [[Eastern world|East]] and [[Western world|West]], the establishment of an efficient state and [[bureaucracy]] based upon "[[Separation of powers#Checks and balances|checks and balances]]", their [[Safavid art|architectural innovations]], and their [[Mecenate|patronage for [[Safavid art|fine arts]].<ref name="Iranica"/> The Safavids have also left their mark down to the present era by [[Safavid conversion of Iran to Shia Islam|spreadingestablishing Twelver Islam]]Shīʿīsm inas the state religion of Iran]], as well as spreading Shīʿa Islam in major parts of the [[Middle East]], [[Central Asia]], [[Caucasus]], [[Anatolia]], the [[Persian Gulf]], and [[Mesopotamia]].<ref name="Iranica"/><ref name="savoryeiref"/>

Religious poetry from Safi al-Din, written in the [[Old Azari language]]<ref name="Yar">{{iranica|azerbaijan-vii}}</ref><ref name="Yar"/>—a now-extinct [[Iranian languages|Northwestern Iranian language]]—and accompanied by a paraphrase in Persian that helps its understanding, has survived to this day and has linguistic importance.<ref name=Yar/>

After Safī al-Dīn, the leadership of the Safaviyya passed to [[Sadr al-Dīn Mūsā]] († 794/1391–92). The order at this time was transformed into a religious movement that conducted religious propaganda throughout Iran, Syria and Asia Minor, and most likely had maintained its Sunni Shafi’iteShafi'ite origin at that time. The leadership of the order passed from Sadr ud-Dīn Mūsā to his son Khwādja Ali († 1429) and in turn to his son Ibrāhīm († 1429–47).

When [[Shaykh Junayd]], the son of Ibrāhim, assumed the leadership of the Safaviyya in 1447, the history of the Safavid movement was radically changed. According to R.M.historian [[Roger Savory]], "'Sheikh Junayd was not content with spiritual authority and he sought material power'"."{{citation needed|date=August 2021}} At that time, the most powerful dynasty in Iran was that of the [[KaraQara KoyunluQoyunlu]], the "Black Sheep", whose ruler [[Jahan Shah]] ordered Junāyd to leave [[Ardabil]] or else he would bring destruction and ruin upon the city.<ref name="savoryeiref" /> Junayd sought refuge with the rival of Kara Koyunlu Jahan Shah, the [[Aq Qoyunlu|Aq Qoyunlu (White Sheep Turkomans)]] [[Khan (title)|Khan]] [[Uzun Hassan]], and cemented his relationship by marrying Uzun Hassan's sister, Khadija Begum. Junayd was killed during an incursion into the territories of the [[Shirvanshah]] and was succeeded by his son [[Haydar Safavi]].

===Founding of the dynasty by Shāh Ismāʻil I (''r.'' 1501–241501–1524)===

After the decline of the [[Timurid Empire]] (1370–1506), Iran was politically splintered, giving rise to a number of religious movements. The demise of Tamerlane's political authority created a space in which several religious communities, particularly Shiʻi ones, could come to the fore and gain prominence. Among these were a number of Sufi brotherhoods, the [[Hurufism|Hurufis]], [[Nuqtavi]]s and [[Musha'sha'iyyah]]. Of these various movements, the Safavid Qizilbash was the most politically resilient, and due to its success Shah Isma’ilIsma'il I gained political prominence in 1501.<ref>Virani, Shafique N. ''The Ismailis in the Middle Ages: A History of Survival, A Search for Salvation'' (New York: Oxford University Press), 2007, p. 113.</ref> There were many local states prior to the Iranian state established by Ismāʻil.<ref>The writer Ṛūmlu documented the most important of them in his history.</ref> The most important local rulers about 1500 were:

* [[Farrukh YassarYasar|Farro<u>kh</u> Yaṣar]], the [[Shirvanshah|Shah of Širvan]]

* Huṣayn Kīā Chalavī, the local ruler of [[Semnan, (city)Iran|Semnān]]

* Several local rulers of [[Mazandaran]] and [[Gilan Provinceprovince|Gilan]] such as: Bisotun II, Ashraf ibn Taj al-Dawla, Mirza Ali, and [[Kiya Husayn II]].

The Safavid dynasty was founded about 1501 by [[ShahList Ismailof Imonarchs of Persia|Shāh]] Ismāʻil[[Ismail I|Ismā'īl I.]].<ref name="ismailsafaviiranica">"Ismail Safavi" ''Encyclopædia Iranica''</ref> His background is disputed: the language he used is not identical with that of his "race" or "nationality" and he was bilingual from birth.<ref name="Mino">V. Minorsky, "The Poetry of Shāh Ismā‘īl I", ''Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies'', University of London 10/4 (1942): 1006–531006–1053.</ref> Ismāʻil was of mixed [[Turkmens|Turkoman]], [[Kurdish peopleKurds|Kurdish]], [[Pontic Greeks|Pontic Greek]], and [[Georgians|Georgian]] descent, and was a direct descendant of the Kurdish [[Sufism|Ṣūfī Muslim]] mystic [[Safi-ad-din Ardabili|Sheikh Safi al-Din]].<ref>

* Blow, David (2009). ''Shah Abbas: The Ruthless King Who Became an Iranian Legend''. I.B. Tauris. p. 3

* Savory, Roger M.; Karamustafa, Ahmet T. (1998) ''ESMĀʿĪL I ṢAFAWĪ''. ''Encyclopaedia Iranica Vol. VIII, Fasc. 6'', pp. 628-636628–636

* Ghereghlou, Kioumars (2016). ''ḤAYDAR ṢAFAVI''. ''Encyclopaedia Iranica''</ref> As such, he was the last in the line of hereditary Grand Masters of the Safaviyeh order, prior to its ascent to a ruling dynasty. Ismāʻil was known as a brave and charismatic youth, zealous with regards to his faith in [[Shi’aShia Islam|Shīʿa Islam]] faith, and believed himself to be of divine descent—practicallydescent{{snd}}practically worshipped by his [[Qizilbash]] followers.

Although IsmailIsmāʻil I initially gained mastery over Azerbaijan alone, the Safavids ultimately won the struggle for power over all of Iran, which had been going on for nearly a century between various dynasties and political forces. A year after his victory in Tabriz, Ismāʻil I claimed [[Greater Iran|most of Iran as part of his territory]],<ref name="savoryeiref"/> and within 10 years established a complete control over all of it. IsmailIsmāʻil followed the line of Iranian and Turkmen rulers prior to his assumption of the title "Padishah-i-Iran", previously held by Uzun Hasan and many other Iranian kings.<ref>H.R. Roemer, The Safavid Period, in Cambridge History of Iran, Vol. VI, Cambridge University Press 1986, p. 339: "Further evidence of a desire to follow in the line of Turkmen rulers is Ismail's assumption of the title "Padishah-i-Iran"</ref> The Ottoman sultans addressed him as ''the king of Iranian lands and the heir to [[Jamshid]] and [[Kai Khosrow]]''.<ref>"Iranian identity iii. Medieval Islamic period" in [http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/iranian-identity-iii-medieval-islamic-period Encyclopædia Iranica] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191025192310/http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/iranian-identity-iii-medieval-islamic-period |date=2019-10-25 }}: "The Safavid kings called themselves, among other appellations, the "heart of the shrine of ʿAli" (''kalb-e āstān-e ʿAli''), while assuming the title of ''Šāhanšāh'' (the king of kings) of [[Persia]]/[[Iran]]". Quote 2: "Even Ottoman sultans, when addressing the Āq Quyunlu and Safavid kings, used such titles as the "king of Iranian lands" or the "sultan of the lands of Iran" or "the king of kings of Iran, the lord of the Persians" or the "holders of the glory of Jamšid and the vision of Faridun and the wisdom of Dārā." They addressed Shah Esmaʿil as: "the king of Persian lands and the heir to Jamšid and Kay-ḵosrow" (Navāʾi, pp. 578, 700–2700–702, 707). During Shah ʿAbbās's reign the transformation is complete and Shiʿite Iran comes to face the two adjacent Sunni powers: the Ottoman Empire to the west and the Kingdom of Uzbeks to the east."</ref>

Having started with just the possession of Azerbaijan, [[Shirvan]], southern [[Safavid Daghestan|Dagestan]] (with its important city of [[Derbent]]), and [[Armenia]] in 1501,<ref>{{cite book|last=Ward|first=Steven R.|authorlinkauthor-link=Steven R. Ward|title=Immortal, Updated Edition: A Military History of Iran and Its Armed Forces|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MOuVAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA43|year=2014|publisher=Georgetown University Press|isbn=978-1-62616-032-3|page=43}}</ref> [[Erzincan]] and [[Erzurum]] fell into his power in 1502,<ref>{{cite book|last=Sinclair|first=T.A.|authorlinkauthor-link=Thomas Alan Sinclair|title=Eastern Turkey: An Architectural & Archaeological Survey, Volume II|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LKpEBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA289|year=1989|publisher=Pindar Press|isbn=978-1-904597-75-9|page=289}}</ref> [[Hamadan]] in 1503, [[Shiraz, Iran|Shiraz]] and [[Kerman]] in 1504, [[DiyarbakirDiyarbakır]], [[Najaf]], and [[Karbala]] in 1507, [[Van Province|Van]] in 1508, [[Baghdad]] in 1509, and [[Herat]], as well as other parts of [[Greater Khorasan|Khorasan]], in 1510. In 1503, the kingdoms of [[Kingdom of Kartli|Kartli]] and [[Kingdom of Kakheti|Kakheti]] were made his vassals as well.<ref>{{cite book|last=Rayfield|first=Donald|authorlinkauthor-link=Donald Rayfield|title=Edge of Empires: A History of Georgia|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PxQpmg_JIpwC&pg=PA165|year=2013|publisher=Reaktion Books|isbn=978-1-78023-070-2|page=165}}</ref> By 1511, the [[Uzbeks]] in the north-east, led by their Khan [[Muhammad Shaybani|Muhammad Shaybāni]], were driven far to the north, across the [[Oxus River]], where they continued to attack the Safavids. IsmailIsmāʻil's decisive victory over the Uzbeks, who had occupied most of Khorasan, ensured Iran's eastern borders, and the Uzbeks never since expanded beyond the [[HindukushHindu Kush]]. Although the Uzbeks continued to make occasional raids into Khorasan, the Safavid empire was able to keep them at bay throughout its reign.

[[File:The Battle between Shah Ismail and ShaybaniAbul-Khayr Khan.jpg|thumb|upright|Ismail's battle with Uzbek warlord Muhammad Shaybani Khan in 1510, on a folio from the ''Kebir Musaver Silsilname.'' After the battle Ismail purportedly gilded the skull of Shaybani Khan for use as a wine goblet.]]

More problematic for the Safavids was the powerful neighboring [[Ottoman Empire]]. The Ottomans, a [[Sunni Islam|Sunni]] dynasty, considered the active recruitment of Turkmen tribes of [[Anatolia]] for the Safavid cause as a major threat. To counter the rising Safavid power, in 1502, [[Bayezid II|Sultan Bayezid II]] forcefully deported many Shiʻite Muslims from Anatolia to other parts of the Ottoman realm. In 1511, the [[Şahkulu rebellion]] was a widespread pro-Shia and pro-Safavid uprising directed against the Ottoman Empire from within the empire.<ref>{{cite book|author1=Christine Woodhead|title=The Ottoman World|date=15 Dec 2011|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-136-49894-7|page=94}}</ref> Furthermore, by the early 1510s Ismail's expansionistic policies had pushed the Safavid borders in [[Asia Minor]] even more westwards. The Ottomans soon reacted with a large-scale incursion into Eastern Anatolia by Safavid [[ghazis]] under Nūr-ʿAlī Ḵalīfa. This action coincided with the accession to the Ottoman throne in 1512 of Sultan [[Selim I]], [[Bayezid II]]'s son, and it was the [[casus belli]] leading to Selim's decision to invade neighbouring Safavid Iran two years later.<ref>[http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/esmail-i-safawi Shah Ismail I] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190725111610/http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/esmail-i-safawi |date=2019-07-25 }} Retrieved July 2015</ref>

In 1514, Sultan Selim I marched through Anatolia and reached the plain of Chaldiran near the city of [[Khoy]], where a [[Battle of Chaldiran|decisive battle]] was fought. Most sources agree that the Ottoman army was at least double the size of that of [[Shah Ismail I|Ismāʻil]];<ref name="ismailsafaviiranica" /> howeverfurthermore, the Ottomans had the advantage of artillery, which the Safavid army lacked. According to R.historian M.[[Roger Savory]], "Salim's plan was to winter at Tabriz and complete the conquest of Persia the following spring. However, a mutiny among his officers who refused to spend the winter at Tabriz forced him to withdraw across territory laid waste by the Safavid forces, eight days later".<ref name="ismailsafaviiranica" /> Although Ismāʻil was defeated and his capital was captured, the Safavid empire survived. The war between the two powers continued under Ismāʻil's son, Emperor [[Tahmasp I]], and the Ottoman Sultan [[Suleiman the Magnificent]], until Shah Abbās retook the area lost to the Ottomans by 1602.

The consequences of the defeat at Chaldiran were also psychological for Ismāʻil: the defeat destroyed Ismāʻil's belief in his invincibility, based on his claimed divine status.<ref name="savoryeiref" /> His relationships with his Qizilbash followers were also fundamentally altered. The tribal rivalries among the Qizilbash, which temporarily ceased before the defeat at [[Çaldıran, Van|Chaldiran]], resurfaced in intense form immediately after the death of Ismāʻil, and led to ten years of civil war (930–040/1524–1533) until Shāh Tahmāsp regained control of the affairs of the state. For most of the last decade of Ismail's reign, the domestic affairs of the empire were overseen by the [[Tajiks|Tajik]] vizier [[Mirza Shah Hossein]] until his assassination in 1523.<ref name="Streu 146" /> The Chaldiran battle also holds historical significance as the start of over 300 years of [[Ottoman-PersianOttoman–Persian Wars|frequent and harsh warfare]] fueled by geo-politics and ideological differences between the Ottomans and the Iranian Safavids (as well as successive Iranian states) mainly regarding territories in Eastern Anatolia, the [[Caucasus]], and [[Mesopotamia]].

=== Shāh Tahmāsp (''r.'' 1524–761524–1576) ===

{{Main|Shah Tahmasp I}}

Shāh Tahmāsp, the young titular governor of [[Greater Khorasan|Khorasan]],<ref>Colin P. Mitchell, [http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/tahmasp-i "Ṭahmāsp I"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150517061306/http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/tahmasp-i |date=2015-05-17 }} ''Encyclopædia Iranica'' (July 15, 2009).</ref> succeeded his father Ismāʻil in 1524, when he was ten years and three months old. The succession was evidently undisputed.<ref name="Streu 146">Streusand, p. 146.</ref> Tahmāsp was the [[Ward (law)|ward]] of the powerful Qizilbash ''amir'' Ali Beg Rūmlū (titled ''"[[Div Sultan Rumlu|Div Soltān Rumlu]]"'') who saw himself as the ''de facto'' ruler of the state. Rūmlū and Kopek Sultān Ustajlu (who had been Ismail's last ''wakīl'') established themselves as co-regents of the young shah.<ref name="Streu 146"/> The Qizilbash, which still suffered under the legacy of the battle of Chaldiran, was engulfed in internal rivalries. The first two years of Tahmāsp's reign was consumed with Div Sultān’sSultān's efforts to eliminate Ustajlu from power.<ref name="Streu 146"/> This court intrigue lead directly to tribal conflict. Beginning in 1526 periodic battles broke out, beginning in northwest Iran but soon involving all of Khorasan.<ref>H.R. Roemer, "The Safavid Period" in ''The Timurid and Safavid Periods'' ed. by Peter Jackson and Laurence Lockhart, volume 6 of ''The Cambridge History of Iran'' (Cambridge, U.K.: Cambridge University Press, 1968–1991) ("Roemer"), ppp. 233-34233–234.</ref> In the absence of a charismatic, messianic rallying figure like the young Ismail, the tribal leaders reclaimed their traditional prerogative and threatened to return to the time of local warlords. For nearly 10 years rival Qizilbash factions fought each other. Af first, Kopek Sultān's Ustajlu tribe suffered the heaviest, and he himself was killed in a battle.

At the downfall of Husain Khan, Tahmāsp asserted his rule. Rather than rely on another Turkmen tribe, he appointed a Persian ''wakīl''. From 1553 for forty years the shah was able to avoid being ensnared in tribal treacheries. But the decade of civil war had exposed the empire to foreign danger and Tahmāsp had to turn his attention to the repeated raids by the Uzbeks.<ref>Romer, pp. 234–37234–237.</ref>

The Uzbeks, during the reign of Tahmāsp, attacked the [[Greater Khorasan|eastern provinces of the kingdom]] five times, and the Ottomans under [[Suleiman the Magnificent|Soleymān I]] invaded Iran four times.<ref>[[Roger Savory, R]], ''Iran under the Safavids'', pp. 60–64.</ref> Decentralized control over Uzbek forces was largely responsible for the inability of the Uzbeks to make territorial inroads into Khorasan.<ref>Streusand, pp. 146–47146–147.</ref> Putting aside internal dissension, the Safavid nobles responded to a threat to Herat in 1528 by riding eastward with Tahmāsp (then 17) and soundly defeating the numerically superior forces of the Uzbeks at Jām.<ref>Colin P. Mitchell, ''The Practice of Politics in Safavid Iran: Power, Religion and Rhetoric'' (London: I.B. Tauris, 2000), p. 59.</ref> The victory resulted at least in part from Safavid use of firearms, which they had been acquiring and drilling with since Chaldiran.<ref name="Streusand, p. 147">Streusand, p. 147.</ref>

Notwithstanding the success with firearms at Jām, Tahmāsp still lacked the confidence to engage their archrivals the Ottomans, choosing instead to cede territory, often using [[scorched earth]] tactics in the process.<ref>Mikheil Svanidze, "The Amasya Peace Treaty between the Ottoman Empire and Iran (June 1, 1555) and Georgia," ''Bulletin of the Georgian National Academy of Sciences'', Vol. 3, pp. 191–97 (2009) ("Svanidze"), p. 191.</ref> The goal of the Ottomans in the 1534 and 1548–1549 campaigns, during the [[Ottoman–Safavid War (1532–1555)|1532–1555 Ottoman–Safavid War]], was to install Tahmāsp's brothers (Sam Mirza and [[Alqas Mirza]], respectively) as shah in order to make Iran a vassal state. Although in those campaigns (and in 1554) the Ottomans captured [[Tabriz]], they lacked a communications line sufficient to occupy it for long.<ref> name="Streusand, p. 147.<"/ref> Nevertheless, given the insecurity in Iraq and its northwest territory, Tahmāsp moved his court from Tabriz to [[Qazvin (city)|Qazvin]].

When the young Shah Tahmāsp took the throne, Iran was in a dire state. But in spite of a weak economy, a civil war and foreign wars on two fronts, Tahmāsp managed to retain his crown and maintain the territorial integrity of the empire (although much reduced from Ismail's time). During the first 30 years of his long reign, he was able to suppress the internal divisions by exerting control over a strengthened central military force. In the war against the Uzbeks he showed that the Safavids had become a [[Gunpowder Empiresempires|gunpowder empire]]. His tactics in dealing with the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] threat eventually allowed for a treaty which preserved peace for twenty years.

In cultural matters, Tahmāsp presided the revival of the fine arts, which flourished under his patronage. Safavid culture is often admired for the large-scale city planning and architecture, achievements made during the reign of later shahs, but the arts of [[persian miniature]], [[book-binding]] and [[calligraphy]], in fact, never received as much attention as they did during his time.<ref>Savory, pp. 129–31129–131.</ref>

Tahmāsp also planted the seeds that would, unintentionally, produce change much later. During his reign he had realized while both looking to his own empire and that of the neighboring Ottomans, that there were dangerous rivalling factions and internal family rivalries that were a threat to the heads of state. Not taken care of accordingly, these were a serious threat to the ruler, or worse, could bring the fall of the former or could lead to unnecessary court intrigues. According to ''Encyclopædia Iranica'', for Tahmāsp, the problem circled around the military tribal elite of the empire, the [[Qizilbash|Qezelbāš]], who believed that physical proximity to and control of a member of the immediate Safavid family guaranteed spiritual advantages, political fortune, and material advancement.<ref name="Tahmāsp I">{{cite web|url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/tahmasp-i|title=Tahmāsp I|accessdateaccess-date=12 May 2015}}</ref> Despite that Tahmāsp could nullify and neglect some of his consternations regarding potential issues related to his family by having his close direct male relatives such as his brothers and sons routinely transferred around to various governorships in the empire, he understood and realized that any long-term solutions would mainly involve minimizing the political and military presence of the Qezelbāš as a whole. According to ''Encyclopædia Iranica'', his father and founder of the Empire, Ismail I, had begun this process on a bureaucratic level as he appointed a number of prominent Persians in powerful bureaucratic positions, and one can see this continued in Tahmāsp’sTahmāsp's lengthy and close relationship with the [[List of Safavid Viziersgrand viziers|chief vizier]], Qāżi Jahān of Qazvin, after 1535.<ref name="Tahmāsp I"/> While Persians continued to fill their historical role as administrators and clerical elites under Tahmāsp, little had been done so far to minimize the military role of the Qezelbāš.<ref name="Tahmāsp I"/> Therefore, in 1540, Shah Tahmāsp started the first of a series of invasions of the [[Caucasus]] region, both meant as a training and drilling for his soldiers, as well as mainly bringing back massive numbers of [[Christianity|Christian]] [[Circassians|Circassian]] and [[Georgians|Georgian]] slaves, who would form the basis of a military slave system,<ref name="Streusand, p. 148">Streusand, p. 148.</ref> alike to the [[janissaries]] of the neighbouring Ottoman Empire,<ref name="iranicaonline.org">{{cite web|url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/barda-v|title=BARDA and BARDA-DĀRI v. Military slavery in Islamic Iran|accessdateaccess-date=15 April 2014}}</ref> as well as at the same time forming a new layer in Iranian society composed of ethnic [[PeoplesEthnic ofgroups in the Caucasus|Caucasians]].

At the fourth invasion in 1553, it was now clear that Tahmāsp followed a policy of annexation and resettlement as he gained control over [[Tbilisi]] (Tiflis) and the region of [[Kartli]] while physically transplanting more than 30,000 people to the central Iranian heartlands.<ref name="Tahmāsp I"/> According to ''Encyclopædia Iranica'', this would be the starting point for the corps of the ''ḡolāmān-e ḵāṣṣa-ye-e šarifa'', or ''royal slaves'', who would dominate the Safavid military for most of the empire's length. As non-Turcoman converts to Islam, these Circassian and Georgian [[ghilman|ḡolāmāns]] (also written as ''ghulams'') were completely unrestrained by clan loyalties and kinship obligations, which was an attractive feature for a ruler like Tahmāsp whose childhood and upbringing had been deeply affected by Qezelbāš tribal politics.<ref name="Tahmāsp I"/> In turn, many of these transplanted [[Women in Safavid Iran|women]] became wives and concubines of Tahmāsp, and the Safavid harem emerged as a competitive, and sometimes lethal, arena of ethnic politics as cliques of Turkmen, Circassian, and Georgian women and courtiers vied with each other for the shah’sshah's attention.<ref name="Tahmāsp I"/>

Although the first slave soldiers would not be organized until the reign of Abbas I, during Tahmāsp's time Caucasians would already become important members of the royal household, [[Harem]] and in the civil and military administration,<ref name="Manz">{{cite webencyclopedia|url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/carkas-cherkes-term-used-in-persian-arabic-and-turkic-for-the-circassian-people-of-the-northwest-caucasus-who-call-thems|title=Čarkas|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Iranica|last=Manz|first=Beatrice|access-date=1 April 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141102192506/http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/carkas-cherkes-term-used-in-persian-arabic-and-turkic-for-the-circassian-people-of-the-northwest-caucasus-who-call-thems|archive-date=2 November 2014|df=}}</ref><ref name="books.google.nl">{{cite book|last=Lapidus|first=Ira M.|authorlinkauthor-link=Ira M. Lapidus|title=Islamic Societies to the Nineteenth Century: A Global History|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qcPZ1k65pqkC&pg=PA494|year=2012|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-51441-5|page=494}}</ref> and by that becoming their way of eventually becoming an integral part of the society. One of Tahmāsp's sisters married a Circassian, who would use his court office to team up with Tahmāsp's daughter, [[Pari Khān Khānum]] to assert themselves in succession matters after Tahmāsp's death.

After the [[Peace of Amasya]], Tasmāsp underwent what he called a "sincere repentance." Tasmāsp at the same time removed his son Ismail from his Qizilbash followers and imprisoned him at Qahqaha. Moreover, he began to strengthen Shiʻi practice by such things as forbidding in the new capital of Qazvin poetry and music which did not esteem Ali and the Twelve Imams. He also reduced the taxes of districts that were traditionally Shiʻi, regulated services in mosques and engaged Shiʻi propagandists and spies. Extortion, intimidation and harassment were practiced against Sunnis.<ref>Rosemary Stanfield Johnson, "Sunni Survival in Safavid Iran: Anti-Sunni Activities during the Reign of Tahmasp I," ''Iranian Studies,'' vol. 27, pp. 123–33123–133 (1994), pp. 125–26125–126, 128–31128–131</ref>

===Chaos under Tahmasp’sTahmasp's sons===

On Tahmāsp’sTahmāsp's death support for a successor coalesced around two of his nine sons; the support divided on ethnic lines—[[Ismail II|Ismail]] was supported by most of the Turkmen tribes as well as his sister [[Pari Khān Khānum]], her Circassian uncle [[Shamkhal Sultan]] as well as the rest of the Circassians, while Haydar was mostly supported by the Georgians at court although he also had support from the Turkmen Ustajlu.<ref>Roemer. pp. 250–51.</ref> Ismail had been imprisoned at Qahqaha since 1556 by his father on charges of plotting a coup, but his selection was ensured when 30,000 Qizilbash supporters demonstrated outside the prison.<ref>{{cite book|last=Farrokh|first=Kaveh|authorlinkauthor-link=Kaveh Farrokh|title=Iran at War: 1500-19881500–1988|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TVObCwAAQBAJ|year=2011|publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing|isbn=978-1-78096-240-5}}</ref> Shortly after the installation of Ismail II on August 22, 1576, Haydar was beheaded.

====Ismail II (''r.'' 1576–771576–1577)====

====Mohammad Khodabanda (''r.'' 1578–871578–1587)====

On the death of Ismail II there were three candidates for succession: Shāh Shujā', the infant son of Ismail (only a few weeks old), Ismail's brother, Mohammad Khodabanda; and Mohammad’sMohammad's son, Sultan Hamza Mirza, 11 years old at the time. Pari Khān Khānum, sister of Ismail and Mohammad, hoped to act as regent for any of the three (including her older brother, who was nearly blind). Mohammad was selected and received the crown on February 11, 1579.<ref>Roemer, p. 253.</ref> Mohammad would rule for 10 years, and his sister at first dominated the court, but she fell in the first of many intrigues which continued even though the Uzbeks and Ottomans again used the opportunity to threaten Safavid territory.

Mohammad allowed others to direct the affairs of state, but none of them had either the prestige, skill or ruthlessness of either Tahmāsp or Ismail II to rein in the ethnic or palace factions, and each of his rulers met grim ends. Mohammad's younger sister, who had a hand in elevating and deposing Ismail II and thus had considerable influence among the Qizilbash, was the first. She did not last much longer than Mohammad's installation at Qazvin, where she was murdered.<ref name="Roem 255">Roemer, p. 255.</ref> She was done in by intrigues by the vizier [[Mirza Salman Jaberi]] (who was a holdover from Ismail II's reign) and Mohammad's chief wife [[Khayr al-Nisa Begum]], known as Mahd-i ‘Ulyā. There is some indication that Mirza Salman was the chief conspirator.<ref>Roemer, p. 354</ref> [[Pari Khan Khanum|Pari Khān Khānum]] could master strong support among the Qizilbash, and her uncle, [[Shamkhal Sultan]], was a prominent [[Circassians|Circassian]] who held a high official position.<ref>Streusand, P. 149.</ref> Mirza Salman left the capital before Pari Khān Khānum closed the gates and was able to meet Mohammad Khodabanda and his wife in Shiraz, to whom he offered his services.<ref>Abolala Soudavar, "The Patronage of Vizier Mirza Salman," ''Muqarmas.'' Vol. 30, pp. 213–34213–234 (2013), p. 216.</ref> He may have believed that he would rule once their enemy was disposed of, but Mahd-i ‘Ulyā proved the stronger of the two.

<blockquote> She was by no means content to exercise a more or less indirect influence on affairs of state: instead, she openly carried out all essential functions herself, including the appointment of the chief officers of the realm. In place of the usual royal audience, these high dignitaries had to assemble each morning at the entrance to the women’swomen's apartments in order to receive the Begum’sBegum's orders. On these occasions the royal edicts were drawn up and sealed.<ref name="Roem 255" /></blockquote>

The amirs demanded that she be removed, and Mahd-i Ulya was strangled in the harem in July 1579 on the ground of an alleged affair with the brother of the [[Crimean khanateKhanate|Crimean khan]], Adil Giray,<ref name="Roem 255" /> who was captured during the 1578–1590 Ottoman war and held captive in the capital, Qazvin.{{sfn|Sicker|2001|pp=2–3}} None of the perpetrators were brought to justice, although the shah lectured the assembled amirs on how they departed from the old ways when the shah was master to his Sufi disciples. The shah used that occasion to proclaim the 11-year-old Sultan Hamza Mirza (Mahd-i ‘Ulyā's favorite) crown-prince.<ref>Roemer, p. 256.</ref>

The palace intrigues reflected ethnic unrest which would soon erupt into open warfare. Iran's neighbors seized the opportunity to attack. The Uzbeks struck in the Spring of 1578 but were repelled by Murtaza Quli Sultan, governor of Mashhad.<ref>Roemer, p. 257.</ref> More seriously the Ottomans ended the [[Peace of Amasya]] and commenced [[Ottoman–Safavid War (1578–90)|a war with Iran that would last until 1590]] by invading Iran's territories of [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]] and [[Shirvan]]. While the initial attacks were repelled, the Ottomans continued and grabbed considerable territory in [[Transcaucasia]], [[Dagestan]], [[Safavid Kurdistan|Kurdistan]] and [[LuristanSafavid Lorestan|Lorestan]] and in 993/1585 they even took [[Tabriz]].<ref>Roemer, pp. 257–58257–258.</ref>

{{Main|Abbas Ithe of PersiaGreat}}

The 16-year-old Abbas I was installed as nominal shah in 1588, but the real power was intended to remain in the hands of his "mentor," Murshid Quli Khan, who reorganized court offices and principal governorships among the Qizilbash<ref>Streusand, p. 151</ref> and took the title of ''wakīl'' for himself.<ref>Savory, p. 77.</ref> Abbas' own position seemed even more dependent on Qizilbash approval than even Mohammad Khodabanda's was. The dependence of Abbas on the Qizilbash (which provided the only military force) was further reinforced by the precarious situation of the empire, in the vice of Ottoman and Uzbek territorial plunder. Yet over the course of ten years Abbas was able, using cautiously-timed but nonetheless decisive steps, to affect a profound transformation of Safavid administration and military, throw back the foreign invaders, and preside over a flourishing of Persian art.

Whether Abbas had fully formed his strategy at the onset, at least in retrospect his method of restoring the shah's authority involved three phases: (1) restoration of internal security and law and order; (2) recovery of the eastern territories from the Uzbeks; and (3) recovery of the western territories from the Ottomans.<ref>Savory, p. 76.</ref> Before he could begin to embark on the first stage, he needed relief from the most serious threat to the empire: the military pressure from the Ottomans. He did so by taking the humiliating step of coming to peace terms with the Ottomans by making, for now, permanent their territorial gains in Iraq and the territories in the north, including Azerbaijan, [[QarabaghSafavid District, GhazniKarabakh|QarabaghKarabakh]], [[Ganja, Azerbaijan|Ganja]], eastern [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]] (comprising the [[Kingdom of Kartli]] and [[Kingdom of Kakheti|Kakheti]]), [[Dagestan]], and Kurdistan.<ref>Savory, p. 177</ref><ref>Streusand, pp. 151–52151–152.</ref> At the same time, he took steps to ensure that the [[Qizilbash]] did not mistake this apparent show of weakness as a signal for more tribal rivalry at the court. Although no one could have bristled more at the power grab of his "mentor" Murshid Quli Khan, he rounded up the leaders of a plot to assassinate the ''wakīl'' and had them executed. Then, having made the point that he would not encourage rivalries even purporting to favor his interests, he felt secure enough to have Murshid Quli Khan assassinated on his own orders in July 1589.<ref>Savory, pp. 82–83.</ref> It was clear that Abbas' style of leadership would be entirely different thanfrom Mohammad Khodabanda's leadership.

Abbas was able to begin gradually transforming the empire from a tribal confederation to a modern imperial government by transferring provinces from ''mamalik'' (provincial) rule governed by a Qizilbash chief and the revenue of which mostly supported local Qizilbash administration and forces to ''khass'' (central) rule presided over by a court appointee and the revenue of which reverted to the court. Particularly important in this regard were the [[Gilan Provinceprovince|Gilan]] and [[Mazandaran province|Mazandaran]] provinces, which produced Iran's single most important export; silk. With the substantial new revenue, Abbas was able to build up a central, standing army, loyal only to him. This freed him of his dependence on Qizilbash warriors loyal to local tribal chiefs.<ref>Streusand, p. 152.</ref>

What effectively fully severed Abbas's dependence on the Qizilbash, however, was how he constituted this new army. In order not to favor one Turkic tribe over another and to avoid inflaming the Turk-Persian enmity, he recruited his army from the "third force", a policy that had been implemented in its ''baby-steps'' since the reign of Tahmasp I—theI{{snd}}the [[Circassians|Circassian]], [[Georgians|Georgian]] and to a lesser extent Armenian ''[[Ghilman|ghulāms]]'' (slaves) which (after conversion to Islam) were trained for the military or some branch of the civil or military administration. The standing army created by Abbas consisted of: (1) 10,000–15,000 cavalry ''ghulām'' regiments solely composed of ethnic [[PeoplesEthnic ofgroups in the Caucasus|Caucasians]], armed with muskets in addition to the usual weapons (then the largest cavalry in the world<ref>{{cite news | last = Kremer | first = William | url = https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-21151350 | title = Why Did Men Stop Wearing High Heels? | website = BBC News | date = 25 January 2013 | archive-date = 17 August 2014 | access-date = 13 September 2014 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140817160312/http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-21151350 | url-status = live | ref = harv | df = }}</ref>); (2) a corps of musketeers, ''tufangchiyān'', mainly Iranians, originally foot soldiers but eventually mounted, and (3) a corps of artillerymen, ''tūpchiyān''. Both corps of musketeers and artillerymen totaled 12,000 men. In addition the shah's personal bodyguard, made up exclusively of Caucasian ''ghulāms'', was dramatically increased to 3,000.<ref>Savory, pp. 78–79.</ref> This force of well-trained Caucasian ghulams under Abbas amounted to a total of near 40,000 soldiers paid for and beholden to the Shah.<ref name="Savory 1980 79">{{harvnb|Savory|1980|p=79}}</ref><ref name="BN142">{{harvnb|Bomati|Nahavandi|1998|pp=141–142}}</ref>

Abbas also greatly increased the number of cannons at his disposal, permitting him to field 500 in a single battle.<ref name=BN142/> Ruthless discipline was enforced and looting was severely punished. Abbas was also able to draw on military advice from a number of European envoys, particularly from the English adventurers Sir [[Anthony Shirley]] and his brother [[Robert Shirley]], who arrived in 1598 as envoys from the [[Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex|Earl of Essex]] on an unofficial mission to induce Iran into an anti-Ottoman alliance.<ref>{{harvnb|Bomati|Nahavandi|1998|p=143}}</ref> As mentioned by the ''[[Encyclopaedia Iranica]]'', lastly, from 1600 onwards, the Safavid statesman [[Allahverdi Khan|Allāhverdī Khan]], in conjunction with Robert Sherley, undertook further reorganizations of the army, which meant among other things further dramatically increasing the number of ''ghulams'' to 25,000.<ref name="ALLĀHVERDĪ KHAN 1">{{cite web|last1=R.M.|first1=Savory|title=ALLĀHVERDĪ KHAN (1)|url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/allahverdi-khan-d-1|website=Encyclopaedia Iranica|accessdateaccess-date=1 January 2016}}</ref>

{{see also|Ottoman–Safavid War (1603–181603–1612)}}

Abbas I first fought the Uzbeks, recapturing [[Herat]] and Mashhad in 1598. Then he turned against Iran's archrival, the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottomans]], recapturing [[Baghdad]], eastern [[Iraq]] and the [[Caucasus|Caucasian]] provinces by 1616, all through the 1603–1618, marking the first grand Safavid pitched victory over the Ottomans. He also used his new force to dislodge the Portuguese from [[Bahrain]] (1602) and, with English help, from [[Ormus|Hormuz]] (1622), in the [[Persian Gulf]] (a vital link in Portuguese trade with India). He expanded commercial links with the [[English [[East India Company]] and the [[Dutch East India Company]]. Thus Abbas was able to break dependence on the Qizilbash for military might indefinitely, and therefore was able to fully centralize control for the first time since the foundation of the Safavid state.

The [[Ottoman Turks]] and Safavids fought over the fertile plains of Iraq for more than 150 years. The capture of Baghdad by Ismail I in 1509 was only followed by its loss to the Ottoman Sultan [[Suleiman the Magnificent|Suleiman I]] in 1534. After subsequent campaigns, the Safavids [[Capture of Baghdad (16231624)|recaptured Baghdad in 16231624]] during the [[Ottoman–Safavid War (1623–39)]] yet lost it again to [[Murad IV]] in 1638 after Abbas had died. Henceforth a treaty, signed in [[Qasr-e Shirin]] known as the [[Treaty of Zuhab]] was established delineating a border between Iran and Turkey in 1639, a border which still stands in northwest Iran/southeast Turkey. The 150-year tug-of-war accentuated the Sunni and Shi'a rift in [[Iraq]].

{{see also|CaptureShah ofAbbas' Tbilisiinvasions and Gökçeof warGeorgia}}

In 1614–16 during the [[Ottoman–Safavid War (1603–1618)]], Abbas suppressed a rebellion led by his formerly most loyal [[Georgians|Georgian]] subjects [[Luarsab II of Kartli|Luarsab II]] and [[Teimuraz I of Kakheti|Teimuraz I]] (also known as ''Tahmuras Khan'') in the [[Kingdom of Kakheti]]. In 1613, Abbas had appointed these trusted Georgian ''gholams'' of his on the puppet thrones of [[Kingdom of Kartli|Kartli]] and Kakheti, the Iranian Safavid ruled areas of Georgia. Later that year, when the shah summoned them to join him on a hunting expedition in [[Mazandaran province|Mazandaran]], they didn't show up due to the fear they would be either imprisoned or killed.<ref name="Colin P. Mitchell p 69">{{cite book|last=Mitchell|first=Colin P.|authorlinkauthor-link=Colin P. Mitchell|title=New Perspectives on Safavid Iran: Empire and Society|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1uCaELAsv3MC&pg=PA69|year=2011|publisher=Taylor & Francis|isbn=978-1-136-99194-3|page=69}}</ref> Ultimately forming an alliance, the two sought refuge with the Ottoman forces in Ottoman ruled [[Kingdom of Imereti|Imereti]]. This defection of two of the shah's most trusted subjects and ''[[gholam]]s'' infuriated the shah, as reported by the Safavid court historian [[IskanderIskandar Beg Munshi]].<ref name="Colin P. Mitchell p 69"/>

The following spring in 1614, Abbas I appointed a grandson of [[Alexander II of Imereti]] to the throne of Kartli, [[Jesse of Kakheti]] also known as "Isā Khān".<ref name="Colin P. Mitchell p 69"/> Raised at the court in [[Isfahan]] and a Muslim, he was fully loyal to the shah. Subsequently, the shah marched upon [[Kutaisi|Grem]], the capital of Imereti, and punished its peoples for harbouring his defected subjects. He returned to Kartli, and in two punitive campaigns he [[AbbasShah IAbbas's Kakhetianinvasions and Kartlianof campaignsGeorgia|devastated Tbilisi]], killed 60–70,000 Kakheti Georgian peasants, and deported between 130,000–200000 and 200,000 [[Georgians|Georgian]] captives to mainland Iran.<ref>{{harvnb|Khanbaghi|2006|p=131}}</ref>{{sfn|Mikaberidze|2015|pagespp=291, 536}}{{sfn|Blow|2009|pagep=174}}<ref name="Matthee 2012">Malekšāh{{cite Ḥosayn,web p|last1=Matthee |first1=Rudi |title=GEORGIA vii. 509{{IncompleteGeorgians shortin the Safavid Administration citation|url=https://iranicaonline.org/articles/georgia-vii- |website=iranicaonline.org |access-date=September14 2014May 2021 |date=7 February 2012}}</ref> After fully securing the region, he executed the rebellious [[Luarsab II of Kartli]] and later had the Georgian queen [[Ketevan the Martyr|Ketevan]], who had been sent to the shah as negotiator, tortured to death when she refused to renounce Christianity, in an act of revenge for the recalcitrance of Teimuraz.<ref>Suny p. 50{{Incomplete short citation|date=September 2014}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Asat'iani|Bendianachvili|1997|p=188}}</ref> Kakheti lost two-thirds of its population in these years by Abbas' punitive campaign. The majority were deported to Iran, while some were slaughtered.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://farig.org/images/stories/pdfs/research-alaverdi-part1.pdf|title=Alaverdy Eparchy|accessdateaccess-date=12 May 2015}}</ref>

Teimuraz returned to eastern Georgia in 1615 and defeated a Safavid force. It was just a brief setback, however, as Abbas had already been making long-term plans to prevent further incursions. He was eventually successful in making the eastern Georgian territories an integral part of the Safavid provinces. In 1619 he appointed the loyal [[Simon II of Kartli|Simon II]] (or ''Semayun Khan'') on the symbolic throne of Kakheti, while placing a series of his own governors to rule of districts where rebellious inhabitants were mostly located.<ref name="Colin P. Mitchell p 69"/> Moreover, he planned to deport all nobles of Kartli. Iranian rule had been fully restored over eastern Georgia, but the Georgian territories would continue to produce resistance to Safavid enroachments from 1624 until Abbas' death.<ref>{{cite book|last=Mitchell|first=Colin P.|authorlinkauthor-link=Colin P. Mitchell|title=New Perspectives on Safavid Iran: Empire and Society|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1uCaELAsv3MC&pg=PA70|year=2011|publisher=Taylor & Francis|isbn=978-1-136-99194-3|page=70}}</ref>

In 1609–10, a war broke out between [[Kurdish people|Kurdish]] tribes and the Safavid Empire. After [[BattleSiege of DimDimDimdim|a long and bloody siege]] led by the Safavid grand vizier [[HatimHatem BekBeg UrdubadiOrdubadi|Hatem Beg]], which lasted from November 1609 to the summer of 1610, the Kurdish stronghold of Dimdim was captured. Shah Abbas ordered a general massacre in Beradost and Mukriyan ([[Mahabad]], reported by Eskandar Beg Monshi, Safavid Historian (1557–1642), in "Alam Ara Abbasi") and resettled the [[Turkic peoples|Turkic]] [[Afshar tribe]] in the region while deporting many Kurdish tribes to [[Greater Khorasan|Khorasan]].<ref>{{iranica|dimdim}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |isbn= 978-0-89158-296-0 |first= O Dzh |last= Dzhalilov |language= Russianru |title= Kurdski geroicheski epos Zlatoruki Khan (The Kurdish heroic epic Gold-hand Khan) |place= Moscow |year= 1967 }}</ref> Nowadays, there is a community of nearly 1.7 million people who are descendants of the tribes deported from Kurdistan to Khorasan (Northeastern Iran) by the Safavids.<ref>{{Cite journalweb |publisher= University of Texas |title= Islamic Groups |format= [[JPEG]] |url= http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/commonwealth/commonwealth_islamic_groups.jpg}}</ref>

Abbas's tolerance towards Christians was part of his policy of establishing diplomatic links with European powers to try to enlist their help in the fight against their common enemy, the Ottoman Empire. The idea of such an anti-Ottoman alliance was not a new one—overone{{snd}}over a century before, [[Uzun Hassan]], then ruler of part of Iran, had asked the [[Venice|Venetians]] for military aid—butaid{{snd}}but none of the Safavids had made diplomatic overtures to Europe. Shah Ismail I was the first of the Safavids to try to establish once again an alliance against the common Ottoman enemy through the earlier stages of the [[Habsburg–Persian alliance]], but this also proved to be largely unfruitful during his reign.<ref>{{cite book|last=Vehse|first=Carl Eduard|authorlinkauthor-link=Carl Eduard Vehse|title=Memoirs of the Court, Aristocracy, and Diplomacy of Austria|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vZVHAAAAIAAJ|year=1856|publisher=Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans|page=71}}</ref> Abbas's attitude, however, was in marked contrast to that of his grandfather, Tahmasp I, who had expelled the English traveller [[Anthony Jenkinson]] from his court on hearing he was a Christian.<ref>Laurence Lockhart in ''The Legacy of Persia'' ed. A. J. Arberry ([[Oxford University Press]], 1953), p. 347.</ref> For his part, Abbas declared that he "preferred the dust from the shoe soles of the lowest Christian to the highest Ottoman personage."<ref>Nahavandi and Bomati p. 114.</ref> Abbas would take active and all measures needed in order to seal the alliances.

In 1599, Abbas sent his [[Persian embassy to Europe (1599–1602)|first diplomatic mission to Europe]]. The group crossed the [[Caspian Sea]] and spent the winter in Moscow before proceeding through Norway and Germany (where it was received by [[Emperor Rudolf II]]) to Rome, where [[Pope Clement VIII]] gave the travellers a long audience. They finally arrived at the court of [[Philip III of Spain]] in 1602. Although the expedition never managed to return to Iran, being shipwrecked on the journey around Africa, it marked an important new step in contacts between Iran and Europe. The Europeans began to be fascinated by the Iranians and their culture — {{snd}}Shakespeare's ''[[Twelfth Night]]'' (1601–02), for example, makes two references (at II.5 and III.4) to 'the [[Sophy (Safavid Empire)|Sophy]]', then the English term for the Shahs of Iran.<ref>{{cite book|last=Shakespeare|first=William|authorlinkauthor-link=William Shakespeare|title=Twelfth Night: Or, What You Will|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DNKKsveMfhQC&pg=PA177|year=2001|publisher=Classic Books Company|isbn=978-0-7426-5294-1|page=177}}</ref><ref>[http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~content=a923903386~db=all~jumptype=rss Richard Wilson, “When Golden Time Convents”]: Twelfth Night and Shakespeare's Eastern Promise, ''Shakespeare'', Volume 6, Issue 2 June 2010, pp. 209–26209–226.</ref> Henceforward, the number of diplomatic missions to and fro greatly increased.<ref>Nahavandi, Bomati pp. 128–30128–130.</ref>

The shah had set great store on an alliance with Spain, the chief opponent of the Ottomans in Europe. Abbas offered trading rights and the chance to preach Christianity in Iran in return for help against the Ottomans. But the stumbling block of Hormuz remained, a vassal kingdom that had fallen into the hands of the [[Spanish Habsburgs]] when the King of Spain inherited the throne of Portugal in 1580. The Spanish demanded Abbas break off relations with the English before they would consider relinquishing the town. Abbas was unable to comply. Eventually Abbas became frustrated with Spain, as he did with the [[Holy Roman Empire]], which wanted him to make his over 400,000 [[Armenians|Armenian]] subjects swear allegiance to the Pope but did not trouble to inform the shah when the Emperor Rudolf signed a peace treaty with the Ottomans. Contacts with the Pope, Poland and [[Tsardom of Russia|Moscow]] were no more fruitful.<ref>Nahavandi, Bomati, pp. 130–7130–137.</ref>

More came of Abbas's contacts with the English, although England had little interest in fighting against the Ottomans. The Shirley brothers arrived in 1598 and helped reorganize the Iranian army, which proved to be crucial in the [[Ottoman–Safavid War (1603–18)]], which resulted in Ottoman defeats in all stages of the war and the first clear pitched Safavid victory of their archrivals. One of the Shirley brothers, [[Robert Shirley]], would lead Abbas's [[Persian embassy to Europe (1609–15)|second diplomatic mission to Europe]] from 1609–16151609 to 1615.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Olson|first1=James S.|authorlink1author-link1=James S. Olson|last2=Shadle|first2=Robert|authorlink2author-link2=Robert Shadle|title=Historical Dictionary of the British Empire|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-YwDfm1pFF8C&pg=PA1005|year=1996|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|isbn=978-0-313-29367-2|page=1005}}</ref> The English at sea, represented by the English East India Company, also began to take an interest in Iran, and in 1622 four of its ships helped Abbas retake Hormuz from the Portuguese in the [[Capture of Ormuz (1622)|capture of Ormuz]]. This was the beginning of the English East India Company's long-running interest in Iran.<ref>Nahavandi, Bomati, pp. 161–2161–162.</ref>

===Decline of the Safavid state===

{{Main|HotakiHotak dynasty|Afsharid dynasty|Russo-Persian War (1722-17231722–1723)|Treaty of Constantinople (1724)}}

[[File:Shah Abbas II.jpg|thumb|left|[[Abbas II of Persia|Shah Abbas the II]] holding a banquet for foreign dignitaries. Detail from a ceiling fresco at the [[Chehel Sotoun|Chehel Sotoun Palace]] in Isfahan.]]

In addition to fighting its perennial enemies, their archrival the Ottomans and the Uzbeks as the 17th century progressed, Iran had to contend with the rise of new neighbors. Russian [[Tsardom of Russia|Muscovy]] in the previous century had deposed two western Asian khanates of the [[Golden Horde]] and expanded its influence into Europe, the Caucasus Mountains and Central Asia. [[Astrakhan]] came under Russian rule, nearing the Safavid possessions in [[Dagestan]]. In the far eastern territories, the [[Mughal Empire|Mughals]] of India had expanded into [[Greater Khorasan|Khorasan]] (now [[Afghanistan]]) at the expense of Iranian control, briefly taking [[Kandahar]].

In 1659, the [[Kingdom of Kakheti]] rose up against the Safavid Iranian rule due to a change of policy that included the mass settling of [[Qizilbash]] Turkic tribes in the region in order to repopulate the province, after Shah Abbas' [[Abbas I's Kakhetian and Kartlian campaigns|earlier]] mass deportations of between 130,000<ref>{{harvnb|Munshī|1978|p=1116}}</ref> – 200,000{{sfn|Mikaberidze|2015|pp=291, 536}}{{sfn|Blow|2009|pagep=174}}<ref>{{harvnb|Sīstānī||p=509}}{{Full citation needed|date=May 2015}}</ref> [[Georgians|Georgian]] subjects to Iran's mainland and massacre of another thousand in 1616 virtually left the province without any substantial population. This [[Bakhtrioni Uprising]] was successfully defeated under personal direction of Shah [[Abbas II of Persia|Abbas II]] himself. However, strategically it remained inconclusive.<ref>{{harvnb|Javakhishvili|1970}}{{page needed|date=May 2015}}</ref> The Iranian authority was restored in Kakheti, but the Qizilbash Turkics were prevented from settling in Kakheti, which undermined the planned Iranian policies in the respective province.

More importantly, theEuropean [[Dutchtrading East India Company]] and later the English/Britishcompanies used their superior means of maritime power to control trade routes in the western Indian Ocean. As a result, Safavid Iran was cut off from's overseas links to East Africa, the Arabian peninsula, and South Asia were greatly diminished.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Subrahmanyam|first1=Sanjay|year=1988|title=Persians, pilgrims, and Portuguese: The travails of Masulipatnam shipping in the western Indian ocean, 1590–1665|journal=Modern Asian Studies|volume=22|issue=3|pages=503–530|doi=10.1017/S0026749X00009653|s2cid=144502214}}</ref> Overland trade grew notably however, as Iran was able to further develop its overland trade with North and Central Europe during the second half of the seventeenth century.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Kotilaine|first1=Jarmo T.|title=Russia's foreign trade and economic expansion in the seventeenth century: Windows on the world|url=https://archive.org/details/russiasforeigntr00koti|url-access=limited|year=2005|location=Leiden|pages=330–360[https://archive.org/details/russiasforeigntr00koti/page/n347 330]–360, 450–485|isbn=9789004138964}}</ref> In the late seventeenth century, Iranian merchants established a permanent presence as far north as Narva on the Baltic sea, in what now is Estonia.<ref>{{Cite thesis|degree=Ph.D.|title=Cultural exchange, imperialist violence, and pious missions: Local perspectives from Tanjavur and Lenape country, 1720–1760|last=Utz|first=Axel|year=2011|publisher=Pennsylvania State University|pages=84–85, 93–94|id={{ProQuest|902171220}}}}</ref>

TheIranian Dutchtrade andwith EnglishEuropean weremerchants still ableled to drain the Iranian governmentdepletion of much of its preciousIran's metal supplies. Except for Shah Abbas II, the Safavid rulers after Abbas I were therefore rendered ineffectual, and the Iranian government declined and finally collapsed when a serious military threat emerged on its eastern border in the early eighteenth century.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Floor|first1=Willem|last2=Clawson|first2=Patrick|year=2000|title=Safavid Iran's search for silver and gold|journal=International Journal of Middle East Studies|volume=32|issue=3|pages=345–368|doi=10.1017/S0020743800021139|s2cid=162418783}}</ref> The end of the reign of Abbas II, 1666, thus marked the beginning of the end of the Safavid dynasty. Despite falling revenues and military threats, later shahs had lavish lifestyles. [[SultanSoltan HusaynHoseyn]] (1694–1722) in particular was known for his love of wine and disinterest in governance.<ref>Mottahedeh, Roy, ''The Mantle of the Prophet: Religion and Politics in Iran'', One World, Oxford, 1985, 2000, p. 204.</ref>

The country was repeatedly raided on its frontiers—Kermanfrontiers{{snd}}Kerman by [[Baloch tribes]] in 1698, Khorasan by the [[Hotaki dynasty|Hotakis]] in 1717, [[Dagestan]] and northern [[Shirvan Beylarbeylik|Shirvan]] by the [[Lezgins]] [[Sack of Shamakhi (1721)|in 1721]], constantly in [[Mesopotamia]] by Sunni peninsula Arabs. Sultan Hosein tried to forcibly convert his Afghan subjects in Qandahar from Sunni to Twelverism. In response, a [[Ghilzai]] [[Afghan (name)|Afghan]] chieftain named [[Mir WaisMirwais Hotak]] revolted and killed [[Gurgin Khan]], the Safavid governor of the region, along with his army. In 1722, an Afghan army led by Mir Wais' son [[Mir Mahmud Hotaki|Mahmud]] advanced on the heart of the empire and defeated the government forces at the [[Battle of Gulnabad]]. He then [[Siege of Isfahan|besieged]] the capital of Isfahan, until Shah SultanSoltan HusaynHoseyn [[Abdication|abdicated]] and acknowledged him as the new king of Iran.<ref>Axworthy pp. 39–55</ref>{{full citation needed|date=June 2015}} At the same time, the [[Imperial Russia|Russians]] led by [[Peter the Great]] attacked and conquered swaths of Safavid Iran's [[North Caucasus|North Caucasian]], [[Transcaucasia]]n, and northern mainland territories through the [[Russo-Persian War (1722-1723)|Russo-Iranian War (1722-1723)]]. The Safavids' archrivals, the neighbouring [[Ottoman Empire|Ottomans]], invaded western and northwestern Safavid Iran and took swaths of territory there, including the city of [[Baghdad]]. Together with the Russians, they agreed to divide and keep the conquered Iranian territories for themselves as confirmed in the [[Treaty of Constantinople (1724)]].<ref>{{cite book|title=Aspects of Altaic Civilization III: Proceedings of the Thirtieth Meeting of the Permanent International Altaistic Conference, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, June 19-2519–25, 1987|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UWYdLuA34OQC&pg=PA49|date=13 December 1996|publisher=Psychology Press|isbn=978-0-7007-0380-7|pagespage=49}}</ref>

The tribal Afghans rode roughshod over their conquered territory for seven years but were prevented from making further gains by [[Nader Shah]], a former slave who had risen to military leadership within the [[Afshar tribe]] in Khorasan, a vassal state of the Safavids. Quickly making a name as a military genius both feared and respected amongst the empire's friends and enemies (including Iran's archrival the Ottoman Empire, and Russia; both empires Nader would deal with soon afterwards), Nader Shah easily defeated the GhilzaiAfghan Hotaki forces in the 1729 [[Battle of Damghan (1729)|Battle of Damghan]]. He had removed them from power and banished them from Iran by 1729. In 1732 by the [[Treaty of Resht]] and in 1735 [[Treaty of Ganja]], he negotiated an agreement with the government of Empress [[Anna of Russia|Anna Ioanovna]] that resulted in the return of the recently annexed Iranian territories, making most of the [[Caucasus]] fall back into Iranian hands, while establishing an [[Iran-Russia relations|Irano-Russian]] alliance against the common neighbouring Ottoman enemy.<ref>{{cite book|last=Mikaberidze|first=Alexander|title=Conflict and Conquest in the Islamic World: A Historical Encyclopedia|year=2011|location=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-1598843361|page=329|editor=Mikaberidze, Alexander|chapter=Treaty of Ganja (1735)}}</ref><ref>{{iranica|nader-shah}}</ref> In the [[Ottoman–Persian War (1730–35)|Ottoman–Iranian War (1730–35)]], he retook all territories lost by the Ottoman invasion of the 1720s, as well as beyond. With the Safavid state and its territories secured, in 1738 Nader [[Siege of Kandahar|conquered the Hotaki's last stronghold in QandaharKandahar]]; in the same year, in need of fortune to aid his military careers against his Ottoman and Russian imperial rivals, he started his invasion of the wealthy but weak Mughal Empire accompanied by his Georgian subject [[Erekle II]],<ref>{{cite book|last=Lang|first=David Marshall|authorlinkauthor-link=David Marshall Lang|title=The Last Years of the Georgian Monarchy, 1658-18321658–1832|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ITnRAAAAMAAJ|year=1957|publisher=Columbia University Press|page=142|isbn=9780231937108}}</ref> occupying [[Ghazni]], [[Kabul]], [[Lahore]], and [[Nader Shah's invasion of India|as far as Delhi]], in India, when he completely humiliated and looted the militarily inferior Mughals. These cities were later inherited by his [[Durrani|Abdali]] Afghan military commander, [[Ahmad Shah Durrani]], who would go on to found the [[Durrani Empire]] in 1747. Nadir had effective control under Shah [[Tahmasp II]] and then ruled as regent of the infant [[Abbas III]] until 1736 when he had himself crowned shah.

Although the Safavid rulers and citizens were of native stock and continuously reasserted their Iranian identity, theThe power structure of the Safavid state was mainly divided into two groups: the Turkic-speaking military/ruling elite—whoseelite{{snd}}whose job was to maintain the territorial integrity and continuity of the Iranian empire through their leadership—andleadership{{snd}}and the Persian-speaking administrative/governing elite—whoseelite{{snd}}whose job was to oversee the operation and development of the nation and its identity through their high positions. Thus came the term "Turk and Tajik", which was used by native Iranians for many generations to describe the [[Persianate]], or [[Turko-Persian tradition|Turko-Persian]], nature of many dynasties which ruled over Greater Iran between the 12th and 20th centuries, in that these dynasties promoted and helped continue the dominant Persian linguistic and cultural identity of their states, although the dynasties themselves were of non-Persian (e.g. Turkic) linguistic origins. The relationship between the Turkic-speaking 'Turks' and Persian-speaking 'Tajiks' was symbiotic, yet some form of rivalry did exist between the two. As the former represented the "''people of the sword''" and the latter, "''the people of the pen''", high-level official posts would naturally be reserved for the Persians. Indeed, this had been the situation throughout Persian history, even before the Safavids, ever since the Arab conquest.<ref>[[Michael Axworthy|Axworthy, Michael]]; ''History of Iran'' (2010).</ref>{{Failed verification|date=September 2022}}{{Page numbers needed|date=September 2022}} Shah Tahmasp introduced a change to this, when he, and the other Safavid rulers who succeeded him, sought to blur the formerly defined lines between the two linguistic groups, by taking the sons of Turkic-speaking officers into the royal household for their education in the Persian language. Consequently, they were slowly able to take on administrative jobs in areas which had hitherto been the exclusive preserve of the ethnic Persians.<ref>Savory; 184-5pp. 184–185.</ref>

The series of campaigns that Tahmāsp subsequently waged after realising this in the wider [[Caucasus]] between 1540 and 1554 were meant to uphold the morale and the fighting efficiency of the Qizilbash military,<ref>[[Roger Savory]]; ''Iran under the Safavids''; p. 65</ref> but they brought home large numbers (over 70,000)<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2BMVnw9JQh8C&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false|title=Slaves of the Shah:New Elites of Safavid Iran|year=2004|accessdateaccess-date=1 April 2014|isbn=9781860647215|last1=Babayan|first1=Associate Professor of Iranian History Culture Kathryn|last2=Babaie|first2=Sussan|last3=Babayan|first3=Kathryn|last4=McCabe|first4=Ina|last5=Farhad|first5=Massumeh|publisher=Bloomsbury Academic |author-link5=
Massumeh Farhad}}</ref> of Christian [[Georgians|Georgian]], Circassian and Armenian slaves as its main objective, and would be the basis of this third force; the new (Caucasian) layer in society.<ref name="Streusand, p. 148"/> According to the ''Encyclopædia Iranica'', this would be as well the starting point for the corps of the ''ḡolāmān-e ḵāṣṣa-ye-e šarifa'', or ''royal slaves'', who would dominate the Safavid military for most of the empire's length, and would form a crucial part of the ''third force''. As non-Turcoman converts to Islam, these Circassian and Georgian [[ghilman|ḡolāmān]]s (also written as ''ghulams'') were completely unrestrained by clan loyalties and kinship obligations, which was an attractive feature for a ruler like Tahmāsp whose childhood and upbringing had been deeply affected by Qizilbash tribal politics.<ref name="Tahmāsp I"/> Their formation, implementation, and usage was very much alike to the [[janissaries]] of the neighbouring Ottoman Empire.<ref name="iranicaonline.org"/> In turn, many of these transplanted women became wives and concubines of Tahmasp, and the Safavid harem emerged as a competitive, and sometimes lethal, arena of ethnic politics as cliques of Turkmen, Circassian, and Georgian women and courtiers vied with each other for the king's attention.<ref name="Tahmāsp I"/> Although the first slave soldiers would not be organized until the reign of Abbas I, during Tahmasp's reign, Caucasians already became important members of the royal household, [[Harem]] and in the civil and military administration,<ref name="Manz"/><ref name="books.google.nl"/> and were on their way of becoming an integral part of society. Tahmasp I's successor, [[Ismail II]], brought another 30,000 Circassians and Georgians to Iran of which many joined the ghulam force.<ref>Oberling, Pierre, ''Georgians and Circassians in Iran'', The Hague, 1963; pp. 127–143</ref>

Following the full implementation of this policy by Abbas I, the women (only Circassian and Georgian) now very often came to occupy prominent positions in the harems of the Safavid elite, while the men who became part of the ghulam "class" as part of the powerful third force were given special training on completion of which they were either enrolled in one of the newly created ''ghilman'' regiments, or employed in the royal household.<ref>Blow, D; Shah Abbas: The ruthless king who became an Iranian legend, p. 9.</ref> The rest of the masses of deportees and importees, a significant portion numbering many hundreds of thousands, were settled in various regions of mainland Iran, and were given all kinds of roles as part of society, such as craftsmen, farmers, cattle breeders, traders, soldiers, generals, governors, woodcutters, etc., all also part of the newly established layer in Iranian society.<ref>Matthee, Rudolph P. (1999), ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=5U0yECMV--wC The Politics of Trade in Safavid Iran: Silk for Silver, 1600–1730] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221020172718/https://books.google.com/books?id=5U0yECMV--wC |date=2022-10-20 }}.''</ref>

It is estimated that during Abbas' reign alone some 130,000–200,000 Georgians,<ref>Eskandar Beg, pp. 900–901, tr. Savory, II, p. 1116</ref>{{sfn|Blow|2009|pagep=174}}{{sfn|Mikaberidze|2015|pagespp=291, 536}}<ref>Malekšāh Ḥosayn,name="Matthee p. 509<2012"/ref> tens of thousands of Circassians, and around 300,000 [[Armenians]]<ref>[[George Bournoutian|Bournoutian, George A.]]; [https://books.google.nlcom/books?id=jIvtAAAAMAAJ&q=shah+abbas+deported+300,000+armenians&dq=shah+abbas+deported+300,000+armenians&hl=nl&sa=X&ved=0CDUQ6AEwBDgKahUKEwjLyJXbxvzIAhUGjnIKHd5fAuQ ''A Concise History of the Armenian People: (from Ancient Times to the Present)''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221118074628/https://books.google.nl/books?id=jIvtAAAAMAAJ&q=shah+abbas+deported+300,000+armenians&dq=shah+abbas+deported+300,000+armenians&hl=nl&sa=X&ved=0CDUQ6AEwBDgKahUKEwjLyJXbxvzIAhUGjnIKHd5fAuQ |date=2022-11-18 }} (original from the [[University of Michigan]]) Mazda Publishers, 2002 {{ISBN|978-1568591414}} p. 208</ref><ref>Aslanian, Sebouh. [https://books.google.com/books?id=l0Kn-DMl5ZoC&dq=shah+abbas+deport+300%2C000+armenians&pg=PA1 ''From the Indian Ocean to the Mediterranean: The Global Trade Networks of Armenian Merchants from New Julfa''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221118074628/https://books.google.nl/books?id=l0Kn-DMl5ZoC&pg=PA1&dq=shah+abbas+deport+300,000+armenians&hl=nl&sa=X&ved=0CBwQ6AEwAGoVChMI5f3ChMX8yAIVA_FyCh3OHgFY#v=onepage&q=shah%20abbas%20deport%20300%2C000%20armenians&f=false ''From|date=2022-11-18 the Indian Ocean to the Mediterranean: The Global Trade Networks of Armenian Merchants from New Julfa'']}} [[University of California Press]], 4 mei 2011 {{ISBN|978-0520947573}} p. 1</ref> had been deported and imported from the Caucasus to mainland Iran, all obtaining functions and roles as part of the newly created layer in society, such as within the highest positions of the state, or as farmers, soldiers, craftspeople, as part of the Royal harem, the Court, and peasantry, amongst others.

====Emergence of a clerical aristocracy====

An important feature of the Safavid society was the alliance that emerged between the [[ulama]] (the religious class) and the merchant community. The latter included merchants trading in the bazaars, the trade and artisan guilds (''asnāf'') and members of the quasi-religious organizations run by [[dervish]]es (''futuvva''). Because of the relative insecurity of property ownership in Iran, many private landowners secured their lands by donating them to the clergy as so called ''vaqf''. They would thus retain the official ownership and secure their land from being confiscated by royal commissioners or local governors, as long as a percentage of the revenues from the land went to the ulama. Increasingly, members of the religious class, particularly the [[mujtahid]]s and the [[seyyed]]s, gained full ownership of these lands, and, according to contemporary historian [[Iskandar Beg Munshi|Iskandar Munshi]], Iran started to witness the emergence of a new and significant group of landowners.<ref>Savory, pp. 185–6185–186.</ref>

=====Akhbaris versus Usulis=====

=====Allamah Majlisi=====

The Safavid state was one of checks and balance, both within the government and on a local level. At the apex of this system was the Shah, with total power over the state, legitimized by his bloodline as a [[sayyid]], or descendant of [[Muhammad]]. So absolute was his power, that the French merchant, and later ambassador to Iran, [[Jean Chardin]] thought the Safavid Shahs ruled their land with an iron fist and often in a despotic manner.<ref>Ferrier, R. W.; A Journey to Persia: Jean Chardin's Portrait of a Seventeenth-century Empire; pp. 71–71.</ref> To ensure transparency and avoid decisions being made that circumvented the Shah, a complex system of bureaucracy and departmental procedures had been put in place that prevented fraud. Every office had a deputy or superintendent, whose job was to keep records of all actions of the state officials and report directly to the Shah. The Shah himself exercised his own measures for keeping his ministers under control by fostering an atmosphere of rivalry and competitive surveillance. And since the Safavid society was meritocratic, and successions seldom were made on the basis of heritage, this meant that government offices constantly felt the pressure of being under surveillance and had to make sure they governed in the best interest of their leader, and not merely their own.

===The governmentStructure===

The highest level in the government was that of the Prime Minister, or [[Vizier#In Islamic states|Grand Vizier]] (''Etemad-e Dowlat''), who was always chosen from among doctors of law. He enjoyed tremendous power and control over national affairs as he was the immediate deputy of the Shah. No act of the Shah was valid without the counter seal of the Prime Minister. But even he stood accountable to a deputy (''vak’anevis''), who kept records of his decision-makings and notified the Shah. Second to the Prime Minister post were the General of the Revenues (''mostoufi-ye mamalek''), or finance minister,<ref name="Blow 165">Blow, David. Shah Abbas: the ruthless king who became an Iranian legend, p. 165.</ref> and the ''Divanbegi'', Minister of Justice. The latter was the final appeal in civil and criminal cases, and his office stood next to the main entrance to the [[Ālī Qāpū|Ali Qapu]] palace. In earlier times, the Shah had been closely involved in judicial proceedings, but this part of the royal duty was neglected by [[Shah Safi]] and the later kings.<ref name="Ferrier; pp. 80-82">Ferrier, pp. 80–280–82.</ref>

Chardin specifically noticed the rank of doctors and astrologers and the respect that the Shahs had for them. The Shah had a dozen of each in his service and would usually be accompanied by three doctors and three astrologers, who were authorized to sit by his side on various occasions.<ref name="Ferrier; pp. 80-82"/> The Chief Physician (''Hakim-bashi'') was a highly considered member of the Royal court,<ref name="Savory 221">[[Roger Savory]], Roger, ''Iran under the Safavids'', p. 221.</ref> and the most revered astrologer of the court was given the title ''Munajjim-bashi'' (Chief Astrologer).<ref>Blow, p. 175.</ref>

The Safavid court was furthermore a rich mix of peoples from its earliest days.{{sfn|Blow|2009|pagep=165}} As Prof. David Blow states, foremost among the [[courtiers]] were the old nobility of Turkoman [[Qizilbash]] lords and their sons. Although already by the early years of king [[Abbas I of Persia|Abbas]]' reign (r. 1588–1629) they were no longer controlling the state, the Turkoman Qizilbash continued to provide many of the senior army officers and to fill important administrative and ceremonial offices in the royal household.{{sfn|Blow|2009|pagep=165}} There were the Persians who still dominated the bureaucracy and under Abbas held the two highest government offices of [[List of Safavid Viziers|Grand Vizier]] and Comptroller-General of the Revenues (''mostoufi-ye mamalek''), which was the nearest thing to a finance minister.{{sfn|Blow|2009|pagep=165}} There were also the large number of ''[[Military of the Safavid dynasty#Ghulam|gholams]]'' or "slaves of the shah", who were mainly [[Georgians]], [[Circassians]] and [[Armenians]].{{sfn|Blow|2009|pagep=165}} As a result of Abbas' reforms, they held high offices in the army, the administration and the royal household. Last but by no means least there were the palace [[eunuchs]] who were also ghulams – "white" eunuchs largely from the [[Caucasus]], and "black" eunuchs from India and Africa.{{sfn|Blow|2009|pagep=165}} Under Abbas, the eunuchs became an increasingly important element at the court.{{sfn|Blow|2009|pagep=165}}

During the first century of the dynasty, the primary court language remained [[Azerbaijani language|Azeri]],<ref name="Blow 165" /> although this increasingly changed after the capital was moved to Isfahan.<ref name="Cyril Glassé 2003, pg 392">Cyril Glassé (ed.), ''The New Encyclopedia of Islam'', Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, revised ed., 2003, {{ISBN|0-7591-0190-6}}, p. 392: "Shah Abbas moved his capital from [[Qazvin]] to [[Isfahan]]. His reigned marked the peak of Safavid dynasty's achievement in art, diplomacy, and commerce. It was probably around this time that the court, which originally spoke a Turkic language, began to use Persian"</ref> David Blow adds; "it seems likely that most, if not all, of the Turkoman grandees at the court also spoke Persian, which was the language of the administration and culture, as well as of the majority of the population. But the reverse seems not to have been true. When Abbas had a lively conversation in Turkish with the Italian traveller [[Pietro Della Valle]], in front of his courtiers, he had to translate the conversation afterwards into Persian for the benefit of most of those present."{{sfn|Blow|2009|pagep=165}} Lastly, due to the large amount of Georgians, Circassians, and Armenians at the Safavid court (the ''gholams'' and in the harem), the [[Georgian language|Georgian]], [[Circassian language|Circassian]] and [[Armenian language|Armenian]] languages were spoken as well, since these were their [[mother tongues]].{{sfn|Blow|2009|pagespp=165–166}} Abbas himself was able to speak Georgian as well.{{sfn|Blow|2009|pagespp=118–119, 166}}

===Democratic institutions in a Authoritarianan authoritarian society===

==Legal system=Law===

In Safavid Iran there was little distinction between theology and jurisprudence, or between divine justice and human justice, and it all went under ''Islamic jurisprudence'' ([[fiqh]]). The legal system was built up of two branches: [[Civil law (legal system)|civil law]], which had its roots in [[sharia]], ''received wisdom'', and [[urf]], meaning ''traditional experience'' and very similar to the Western form of [[common law]]. While the imams and judges of law applied civil law in their practice, urf was primarily exercised by the local commissioners, who inspected the villages on behalf of the Shah, and by the Minister of Justice (''Divanbegi''). The latter were all secular functionaries working on behalf of the Shah.<ref name="Ferrier 90-4">Ferrier, RW, A journey to Persia: Jean Chardin's Portrait of a Seventeenth-century Empire, pp. 90–490–94.</ref>

The highest level in the legal system was the Minister of Justice, and the law officers were divided into senior appointments, such as the magistrate (''darughah''), inspector (''visir''), and recorder (''vak’anevis''). The lesser officials were the [[Qadi|qazi]], corresponding a civil lieutenant, who ranked under the local governors and functioned as judges in the provinces.

{{quoteblockquote |There were no particular place assigned for the administration of justice. Each magistrate executes justice in his own house in a large room opening on to a courtyard or a garden which is raised two or three feet above the ground. The Judge is seated at one end of the room having a writer and a man of law by his side.}}

In the late 17th century, Safavid Iran had higher [[living standards]] than in Europe. According to traveller [[Jean Chardin]], for example, farmers in Iran had higher living standards than farmers in the most fertile European countries.<ref>{{cite book|title=Economics and World History: Myths and Paradoxes|author=Paul Bairoch|publisher=[[University of Chicago Press]]|year=1995|url=https://www.scribd.com/document/193124153/Economics-and-World-History-Myths-and-Paradoxes-Paul-Bairoch|page=107|author-link=Paul Bairoch|access-date=2020-01-03|archive-date=2017-10-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171012060209/https://www.scribd.com/document/193124153/Economics-and-World-History-Myths-and-Paradoxes-Paul-Bairoch|url-status=dead}}</ref>

According to the historian [[Roger Savory]], the twin bases of the domestic economy were [[pastoralism]] and agriculture. And, just as the higher levels of the social hierarchy was divided between the Turkish "men of the sword" and the Persian "men of the pen"; so were the lower level divided between the Turcoman tribes, who were cattle breeders and lived apart from the surrounding population, and the Persians, who were settled agriculturalists.<ref>Savory, R.; Iran under the Safavids; pp. 186–7186–187.</ref>

In the period prior to Shah Abbas I, most of the land was assigned to officials (civil, military and religious). From the time of Shah Abbas onwards, more land was brought under the direct control of the shah. And since agriculture accounted for by far largest share of tax revenue, he took measures to expand it. What remained unchanged, was the "''crop-sharing agreement''" between whomeverwhoever was the landlord, and the farmer. This agreement concistedconsisted of five elements: land, water, plough-animals, seed and labour. Each element constituted 20 percent of the crop production, and if, for instance, the farmer provided the labour force and the animals, he would be entitled to 40 percent of the earnings.<ref>Savory; p. 187.</ref><ref>Blow, D.; Shah Abbas: The ruthless king who became an Iranian legend; p. 211.</ref> According to contemporary historians, though, the landlord always had the worst of the bargain with the farmer in the crop-sharing agreements. In general, the farmers lived in comfort, and they were well paid and wore good clothes, although it was also noted that they were subject to forced labour and lived under heavy demands.<ref>Lambton, A. K. S.; ''Landlord and Peasant in Persia'' (Oxford 1953); ppp. 127-8127–128.</ref>

[[File:Hotel Shah Abbas Sahn.jpg|thumb|right|The Mothers Inn caravanserai in Isfahan, that was built during the reign of [[Abbas II of Persia|Shah Abbas II]], was a luxury resort meant for the wealthiest merchants and selected guests of the shah. Today it is a luxury hotel and goes under the name of [[Abbasi Hotel|Hotel Abassi]].]]

Horses were the most important of all the beasts of burden, and the best were brought in from Arabia and Central-Asia. They were costly because of the widespread trade in them, including to Turkey and India. The next most important mount, when traveling through Iran, was the mule. Also, the camel was a good investment for the merchant, as they cost nearly nothing to feed, carried a lot weight and could travel almost anywhere.<ref>Ferrier; pp. 25–625–26.</ref>

Under the governance of the strong shahs, especially during the first half of the 17th century, traveling through Iran was easy because of good roads and the [[caravanserai]]s, that were strategically placed along the route. [[Jean de Thévenot|Thévenot]] and [[Jean-Baptiste Tavernier|Tavernier]] commented that the Iranian caravanserais were better built and cleaner than their Turkish counterparts.<ref>Savory; p. 190.</ref> According to Chardin, they were also more abundant than in the Mughal or Ottoman Empires, where they were less frequent but larger.<ref>Ferrier; p. 31.</ref> Caravanserais were designed especially to benefit poorer travelers, as they could stay there for as long as they wished, without payment for lodging. During the reign of Shah Abbas I, as he tried to upgrade the Silk Road to improve the commercial prosperity of the Empire, an abundance of caravanserais, bridges, bazaars and roads were built, and this strategy was followed by wealthy merchants who also profited from the increase in trade. To uphold the standard, another source of revenue was needed, and road toll, that were collected by guards (''rah-dars''), were stationed along the trading routes. They in turn provided for the safety of the travelers, and both Thevenot and Tavernier stressed the safety of traveling in 17th century Iran, and the courtesy and refinement of the policing guards.<ref>Savory; p. 191.</ref> The Italian traveler [[Pietro Della Valle]] was impressed by an encounter with one of these road guards:<ref>Blow; p. 210.</ref>

The [[Portuguese Empire]] and the discovery of the trading route around the [[Cape of Good Hope]] in 1487 not only hit a death blow to [[Venice]] as a trading nation, but it also hurt the trade that was going on along the Silk Road and especially the [[Persian Gulf]]. They correctly identified the three key points to control all seaborne trade between Asia and Europe: The [[Gulf of Aden]], The Persian Gulf and the [[Straits of Malacca]] by cutting off and controlling these strategic locations with high taxation.<ref>[[Roger Savory]], R; ''Iran under the Safavids''; pp. 193–95193–195.</ref> In 1602, Shah Abbas I drove the Portuguese out of [[Bahrain]], but he needed naval assistance from the newly arrived BritishEnglish [[East India Company]] to finally expel them from the [[Strait of Hormuz]] and regain control of this trading route.<ref>Blow, D; Shah Abbas: The ruthless king who became an Iranian legend; pp. 113–131.</ref> He convinced the BritishEnglish to assist him by allowing them to open factories in Shiraz, Isfahan and Jask.<ref>Blow; chapter: "English adventurers at the servise of Shah Abbas."</ref><ref>Savory; p. 195.</ref> With the later end of the Portuguese Empire, the BritishEnglish, Dutch and French in particular gained easier access to Persian seaborne trade, although they, unlike the Portuguese, did not arrive as colonisers, but as merchant adventurers. The terms of trade were not imposed on the Safavid shahs, but rather negotiated.

In the long term, however, the seaborne trade route was of less significance to the Persians than was the traditional Silk Road. Lack of investment in ship building and the navy provided the Europeans with the opportunity to monopolize this trading route. The land-borne trade would thus continue to provide the bulk of revenues to the Iranian state from transit taxes. The revenue came not so much from exports, as from the custom charges and transit dues levied on goods passing through the country.<ref>Blow; p. 212.</ref> Shah Abbas was determined to greatly expand this trade, but faced the problem of having to deal with the Ottomans, who controlled the two most vital routes: the route across Arabia to the Mediterranean ports, and the route through [[Anatolia]] and Istanbul. A third route was therefore devised which circumvented Ottoman territory. By travelling across the [[Caspian seaSea]] to the north, they would reach Russia. And with the assistance of the [[Muscovy Company]] they could cross over to Moscow, reaching Europe via Poland. This trading route proved to be of vital importance, especially during times of war with the Ottomans.<ref>Savory; p. 196.</ref>

By the end of the 17th century, the Dutch had become dominant in the trade that went via the Persian Gulf, having won most trade agreements, and managed to strike deals before the BritishEnglish or French were able to. They particularly established monopoly of the spice and porcelain trade between the EastFar IndiesEast and Iran.<ref>Savory; pp. 199–200.</ref> Protected by Dutch naval power, competition from Bengali silk and Sino-Japanese porcelain contributed to the decline of the Safavid economy during the late 17th century.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Axworthy |first=Michael |title=The Sword of Persia: Nader Shah, from Tribal Warrior to Conquering Tyrant |publisher=Bloomsbury Academic |year=2009 |isbn=9781845119829}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Chinese–Iranian Relations iv. The Safavid Period, 1501–1732 |url=https://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/chinese-iranian-iv}}</ref>

{{PersianCulture artsof Iran}}

Abbas I recognized the commercial benefit of promoting the arts—artisanarts{{snd}}artisan products provided much of Iran's foreign trade. In this period, handicrafts such as tile making, pottery and textiles developed and great advances were made in miniature painting, bookbinding, decoration and calligraphy. In the 16th century, carpet weaving evolved from a nomadic and peasant craft to a well-executed industry with specialization of design and manufacturing. [[Tabriz]] was the center of this industry. The [[Ardabil Carpet|carpets of Ardabil]] were commissioned to commemorate the Safavid dynasty. The elegantly baroque yet famously [['Polonaise' carpets]] were made in Iran during the 17th century.

Using traditional forms and materials, [[Reza Abbasi]] (1565–1635) introduced new subjects to Persian painting—semipainting{{snd}}semi-nude women, youth, lovers. His painting and calligraphic style influenced Iranian artists for much of the Safavid period, which came to be known as the Isfahan school. Increased contact with distant cultures in the 17th century, especially Europe, provided a boost of inspiration to Iranian artists who adopted modeling, foreshortening, spatial recession, and the medium of oil painting (Shah Abbas II sent [[Muhammad Zaman]] to study in Rome). The epic ''[[Shahnameh]]'' ("Book of Kings"), a stellar example of manuscript illumination and calligraphy, was made during Shah Tahmasp's reign. (This book was written by Ferdousi in 1000 AD for Sultan Mahmood Ghaznawi) Another manuscript is the [[Khamsa of Nizami (British Library, Or. 12208)|Khamsa]] by [[Nizami Ganjavi|Nizami]] executed 1539–1543 by [[Aqa Mirak]] and his school in Isfahan.

Indeed, one of the greatest legacies of the Safavids is the architecture. In 1598, when Shah Abbas decided to move the capital of his Iranian empire from the north-western city of [[Qazvin]] to the central city of [[Isfahan]], he initiated what would become one of the greatest programmes in Iranian history; the complete remaking of the city. By choosing the central city of Isfahan, fertilized by the [[Zayanderud|Zāyande roud]] ("The ''life-giving river''"), lying as an oasis of intense cultivation in the midst of a vast area of arid landscape, he both distanced his capital from any future assaults by the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottomans]] and the [[Uzbeks]], and at the same time gained more control over the [[Persian Gulf]], which had recently become an important trading route for the Dutch and British [[East India Company|East India Companies]]English.<ref>Savory, Roger; ''Iran under the Safavids'', p. 155.</ref>

Distinctive monuments like the [[Lotfollah mosque|Sheikh Lotfallah]] (1618), [[Hasht Behesht]] (Eight Paradise Palace) (1469) and the [[Chahar Bagh School]] (1714) appeared in Isfahan and other cities. This extensive development of architecture was rooted in Persian culture and took form in the design of schools, baths, houses, caravanserai and other urban spaces such as bazaars and squares. It continued until the end of the Qajar reign.<ref>Jodidio, Philip, ''Iran: Architecture For Changing Societies'': Umberto Allemandi (August 2, 2006).</ref>

===The Isfahan School—IslamicSchool – Islamic philosophy revived===

Islamic philosophy<ref>Dabashi, H. (1996) 'Mir Damad and the Founding of the School of Isfahan', in SH Nasr and O. Leaman (eds) History of Islamic Philosophy, London: Routledge, ch. 34, 597–634.</ref> flourished in the Safavid era in what scholars commonly refer to the School of Isfahan. [[Mir Damad]] is considered the founder of this school. Among luminaries of this school of philosophy, the names of Iranian philosophers such as Mir Damad, [[Mir Fendereski]], [[Shaykh Bahai]] and [[Mohsen Fayz Kashani]] standout. The school reached its apogee with that of the Iranian philosopher [[Mulla Sadra]] who is arguably the most significant Islamic philosopher after Avicenna. Mulla Sadra has become the dominant philosopher of the Islamic East, and his approach to the nature of philosophy has been exceptionally influential up to this day.<ref>{{Cite book |last= Rizvi |first= Sajjad |contribution= Mulla Sadra |title= The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy |date= Summer 2009 |publisher= Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University |editor-first= Edward N |editor-last= Zalta |url= http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/sum2009/entries/mulla-sadra/}}</ref> He wrote the ''[[Al-Hikma al-muta‘aliya fi-l-asfar al-‘aqliyya al-arba‘a'']]'' ("The Transcendent Philosophy of the Four Journeys of the Intellect"),<ref>[[Seyyed Hossein Nasr|Nasr, Seyyed Hossein]], '''Sadr al-Din Shirazi and his Transcendent Theosophy, Background, Life and Works''', 2nd ed., Tehran: Institute for Humanities and Cultural Studies.</ref> a meditation on what he called 'meta philosophy' which brought to a synthesis the philosophical mysticism of Sufism, the theology of [[Shi'a Islam]], and the [[Peripatetic school|Peripatetic]] and [[Illuminationist philosophy|Illuminationist]] philosophies of [[Avicenna]] and [[Suhrawardi Maqtul|Suhrawardi]].''

{{quoteblockquote |They were the continuers of the classical tradition of Islamic thought, which after Averroes died in the Arab west. The Persians schools of thought were the true heirs of the great Islamic thinkers of the golden age of Islam, whereas in the Ottoman empire there was an intellectual stagnation, as far as the traditions of Islamic philosophy were concerned''.}}

[[File:Canons of medicine.JPG|thumb|A [[Latin language|Latin]] copy of ''The Canon of Medicine'', dated 1484, located at the P.I. Nixon Medical Historical Library of The [[University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio]], USAUS.]]

The status of physicians during the Safavids stood as high as ever. Whereas neither the [[ancient Greeks]] nor the [[Ancient Rome|Romans]] accorded high social status to their doctors, Iranians had from ancient times honored their physicians, who were often appointed counselors of the Shahs. This would not change with the [[Muslim conquest of Persia|Arab conquest of Iran]], and it was primarily the Persians that took upon them the works of [[Persian philosophy|philosophy]], logic, medicine, mathematics, [[astronomy]], [[astrology]], music and [[alchemy]].<ref>Savory, Roger: Iran under the Safavids, pp. 220–5220–225.</ref>

By the sixteenth century, [[Islamic science]], which to a large extent meant [[Persian science]], was resting on its laurels. The works of [[Muhammad ibn Zakariya al-Razi|al-Razi]] (865–92865–892) (known to the West as Razes) were still used in European universities as standard textbooks of alchemy, [[pharmacology]] and [[pediatrics]]. [[The Canon of Medicine]] by [[Avicenna]] (c. 980–1037) was still regarded as one of the primary textbooks in medicine throughout most of the civilized world.<ref>Savory, ppp. 220.</ref> As such, the status of medicine in the Safavid period did not change much, and relied as much on these works as ever before. [[Physiology]] was still based on the four humours of ancient and mediaeval medicine, and bleeding and purging were still the principal forms of therapy by surgeons, something even [[Jean de Thévenot|Thevenot]] experienced during his visit to Iran.<ref name="Savory 221" />

| chapter-url = https://books.google.com/books?id=qwwoozMU0LMC&pg=PA86#PPA87,M1

| pages = 86–786–87

Safavids also used [[Persian language|Persian]] as a cultural and administrative language throughout the empire and were bilingual in Persian.<ref name="Mino"/> According to Arnold J. Toynbee,<ref>Arnold J. Toynbee, ''A Study of History'', V, pp. 514–15514–515.</ref>

{{quoteblockquote |In the heyday of the Mughal, Safawi, and Ottoman regimes New Persian was being patronized as the language of litterae humaniores by the ruling element over the whole of this huge realm, while it was also being employed as the official language of administration in those two-thirds of its realm that lay within the Safawi and the Mughal frontiers}}

According to John R. Perry,<ref>John R. Perry, "Turkic-Iranian contacts", ''[[Encyclopædia Iranica]]'', January 24, 2006.</ref>

{{quoteblockquote |In the 16th century, the Turcophone Safavid family of Ardabil in Azerbaijan, probably of Turkicized Iranian, origin, conquered Iran and established Turkic, the language of the court and the military, as a high-status vernacular and a widespread contact language, influencing spoken Persian, while written Persian, the language of high literature and civil administration, remained virtually unaffected in status and content.}}

According to Zabiollah Safa,<ref name="cambridgesafa">Zabiollah Safa (1986), "Persian Literature in the Safavid Period", ''The Cambridge History of Iran'', vol. 6: The Timurid and Safavid Periods. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, {{ISBN|0-521-20094-6}}, pp. 948–65948–965. P. 950: "In day-to-day affairs, the language chiefly used at the Safavid court and by the great military and political officers, as well as the religious dignitaries, was Turkish, not Persian; and the last class of persons wrote their religious works mainly in Arabic. Those who wrote in Persian were either lacking in proper tuition in this tongue, or wrote outside Iran and hence at a distance from centers where Persian was the accepted vernacular, endued with that vitality and susceptibility to skill in its use which a language can have only in places where it truly belongs."</ref>

{{quoteblockquote |In day-to-day affairs, the language chiefly used at the Safavid court and by the great military and political officers, as well as the religious dignitaries, was Turkish, not Persian; and the last class of persons wrote their religious works mainly in Arabic. Those who wrote in Persian were either lacking in proper tuition in this tongue, or wrote outside Iran and hence at a distance from centers where Persian was the accepted vernacular, endued with that vitality and susceptibility to skill in its use which a language can have only in places where it truly belongs.}}

{{quoteblockquote |A specific Turkic language was attested in Safavid Persia during the 16th and 17th centuries, a language that Europeans often called Persian Turkish ("Turc Agemi", "lingua turcica agemica"), which was a favourite language at the court and in the army because of the Turkic origins of the Safavid dynasty. The original name was just turki, and so a convenient name might be Turki-yi Acemi. This variety of Persian Turkish must have been also spoken in the Caucasian and Transcaucasian regions, which during the 16th century belonged to both the Ottomans and the Safavids, and were not fully integrated into the Safavid empire until 1606. Though that language might generally be identified as Middle Azerbaijanian, it is not yet possible to define exactly the limits of this language, both in linguistic and territorial respects. It was certainly not homogenous—maybehomogenous – maybe it was an Azerbaijanian-Ottoman mixed language, as Beltadze (1967:161) states for a translation of the gospels in Georgian script from the 18th century.}}

{{quoteblockquote |Although the Arabic language was still the medium for religious scholastic expression, it was precisely under the Safavids that hadith complications and doctrinal works of all sorts were being translated to Persian. The [['AmilisJabal Amel|'Amili]] (LebaneseShiite scholars of Shiʻiwhat faithis now [[South Lebanon]]) operating through the Court-based religious posts, were forced to master the Persian language; their students translated their instructions into Persian. Persianization went hand in hand with the popularization of 'mainstream' Shiʻi belief.}}

{{quoteblockquote |The Safavid dynasty under Shah Ismail (961/1501) adopted Persian and the Shiʻite form of Islam as the national language and religion.}}

According to David Blow,{{sfn|Blow|2009|pagep=165}}

{{quoteblockquote |The primary court language [with Abbas I's reign (r. 1588–1629)] remained Turkish. But it was not the Turkish of Istanbul. It was a Turkish dialect, the dialect of the Qizilbash Turkomans, which is still spoken today in the province of Azerbaijan, in north-western Iran. This form of Turkish was also the mother-tongue of Shah Abbas, although he was equally at ease speaking Persian. It seems likely that most, if not all, of the Turkoman grandees at the court also spoke Persian, which was the language of the administration and culture, as well as of the majority of the population. But the reverse seems not to have been true. When Abbas had a lively conversation in Turkish with the Italian traveller [[Pietro Della Valle]], in front of his courtiers, he had to translate the conversation afterwards into Persian for the benefit of most of those present.}}

Regarding the usage of [[Georgian language|Georgian]], [[Circassian language|Circassian]] and [[Armenian language|Armenian]] at the Royal Court, David Blow states,{{sfn|Blow|2009|pagespp=165–166}}

{{quoteblockquote |Georgian, Circassian and Armenian were also spoken, since these were the mother-tongues of many of the ghulams, as well as of a high proportion of the women of the harem. [[García de Silva Figueroa|Figueroa]] heard Abbas speak Georgian, which he had no doubt acquired from his Georgian ghulams and concubines.}}

It was the Safavids who made Iran the spiritual bastion of Shiʻism, and the repository of Persian cultural traditions and self-awareness of Iranianhood, acting as a bridge to modern Iran. The founder of the dynasty, Shah Isma'il, adopted the title of "PersianKing Emperorof Iran" (''Pādišah-ī Īrān''), with its implicit notion of an Iranian state stretching from [[Greater Khorasan|Khorasan]] as far as [[Euphrates]], and from the [[Oxus]] to the southern Territories of the [[Persian Gulf]].<ref>Hillenbrand R., ''Islamic Art and Architecture'', London (1999), {{ISBN|0-500-20305-9}}, p. 228.</ref> According to Professor [[Roger Savory]]:<ref>{{Cite book | first = RM | last = Savory | title = UNESCO: History of Humanity|chapter=18 Iran, Armenia and Georgia – Rise of a Shiʻi State in Iran and New Orientation in Islamic Thought and Culture | volume = 5: From the Sixteenth to the Eighteenth Century | place = London, New York | publisher = Routledge | page = 263 | chapter-url = http://www.unesco.org/culture/humanity/html_eng/volume5.htm}}</ref><ref>Mujtahid: A ''mujtahid'' in Arabic means a person who qualified to engangeengage in ''ijtihad'', or interpretation of religious texts. ''Ithna 'ashari'' is the number twelve in Arabic, signifying Twelver Imami Shiʻi Islam. Ulama: Arabic for religious scholars.</ref>

{{quoteblockquote|In a number of ways the Safavids affected the development of the modern Iranian state: first, they ensured the continuance of various ancient and traditional Persian institutions, and transmitted these in a strengthened, or more 'national', form; second, by imposing Ithna 'Ashari [[Shi'a Islam]] on Iran as the official religion of the Safavid state, they enhanced the power of [[mujtahidsmujtahid]]s. The Safavids thus set in train a struggle for power between the turban and the crown that is to say, between the proponents of secular government and the proponents of a theocratic government; third, they laid the foundation of alliance between the religious classes ('Ulama') and the bazaar which played an important role both in the Persian Constitutional Revolution of 1905–1906, and again in the Islamic Revolution of 1979; fourth the policies introduced by Shah Abbas I conduced to a more centralized administrative system.}}

The empire presided over by the Safavids was not a revival of the [[Achaemenids]] or the [[Sasanians]], and it more resembled the [[Ilkhanate]] and [[Timurid Empire|Timurid]] empires than the [[Islamic caliphate]]. Nor was it a direct precursor to the modern Iranian state. According to Donald Struesand, "[a]lthoughalthough the Safavid unification of the eastern and western halves of the Iranian plateau and imposition of Twelver Shiʻi Islam on the region created a recognizable precursor of modern Iran, the Safavid polity itself was neither distinctively Iranian nor national."<ref>Streusand, p. 137.</ref> Rudolph Matthee concluded that "[t]houghthough not a nation-state, Safavid Iran contained the elements that would later spawn one by generating many enduring bureaucratic features and by initiating a polity of overlapping religious and territorial boundaries."<ref>Rudolph P. Matthee, ''The Politics of Trade in Safavid Iran: Silk for Silver, 1600–1730'' (Cambridge, U.K.: Cambridge University Press, 1999), p. 231.</ref>

* {{cite book |last1 last =Blow Amanat |first1 first =David Abbas |author1-link=Abbas Amanat| title =Shah AbbasPivot of the Universe: TheNasir RuthlessAl-Din KingShah WhoQajar Becameand anthe Iranian Legend|date=2009Monarchy, 1831–1896 | publisher = I.B. Tauris | year = 1997 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=xdFu7X2UtpAC | isbn = 978-0857716767|ref=harv1845118280 }}

* {{cite book |last1=Amanat |first1=Abbas|editor1-last=KhanbaghiAmanat |editor1-first=AptinAbbas |editor2-last=Ashraf |editor2-first=Assef |title=The Fire,Persianate the Star and the CrossWorld: MinorityRethinking Religionsa inShared MedievalSphere and Early Modern|date=2019 Iran|publisher=I.B.Brill Tauris|year=2006|isbn=978-184511056790-04-38728-7 |refpages=harv15–62 |chapter=Remembering the Persianate}}

* {{cite book |last1=MikaberidzeAshraf|first1=Alexander|authorlink1=AlexanderAssef Mikaberidze|title=HistoricalMaking Dictionaryand ofRemaking GeorgiaEmpire in Early Qajar Iran|date=20152024 |publisher=RowmanCambridge &University Littlefield|isbn=978-1442241466|edition=2Press|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JNNQCgAAQBAJ&dq=sakhltukhutsesiWBrxEAAAQBAJ|refisbn=harv978-1009361552}}

*{{cite book|lastlast1=SavoryBlow|firstfirst1=RogerDavid|title=IranShah underAbbas: theThe Safavids|publisher=[[CambridgeRuthless UniversityKing Press]]Who Became an Iranian Legend|yeardate=20072009|publisher=I.B. Tauris|isbn=978-0521042512|ref=harv0857716767}}

*{{cite book|last=YarshaterKhanbaghi|first=EhsanAptin|title=EncyclopædiaThe IranicaFire, the Star and the Cross: Minority Religions in Medieval and Early Modern Iran|publisher=RoutledgeI.B. & Kegan PaulTauris|year=20012006|isbn=978-0933273566|ref=harv1845110567}}

* Christoph Marcinkowski (tr., ed.),''Mirza Rafi‘a's [[Dastur al-Muluk]]: A Manual of Later Safavid Administration. Annotated English Translation, Comments on the Offices and Services, and Facsimile of the Unique Persian Manuscript'', Kuala Lumpur, ISTAC, 2002, {{ISBN|983-9379-26-7}}.

{{Commons category|Safavid dynastyEmpire}}

*[http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/iran-ix23-shiism-in-iran-since-the-safavids "IRANIran ix. RELIGIONSReligions INin IRANIran (2) Islam in Iran (2.3) Shiʿism in Iran Since the Safavids: Safavid Period"], ''Encyclopædia Iranica'' by Hamid Algar