Safavid Empire

  General Description   The Safavid period of rule in Persia (1501-1722 CE) was begun by Shah Ismail (1501-1524 CE) and is known as a ’gunpowder empire’ due to the now widespread use of artillery and muskets on the battlefield. ^[1]
Shah Ismail, whose original power base was near the Caspian sea, began the conquest of Iran with the capture Tabriz from the Ak Koyunlu. He declared that the state religion was Shi’ia and the Safavids were decisive for the spread of Shi’ism in Iran.
While initially the governing system was "largely a continuation of its Aq Qoyunlu counterpart and its Turco-Mongolian traditions" ^[2] it eventually became a "highly cen­tralized and complex bureaucratic system" ^[3] based at the Safavid court in the capital city. The highest officials of the Safavid court included the Vazir-e-azam (chief minister), Amir al-omard (commander in chief of the army, later titled Sepdhsdldr-e koll-e lasgar-e Iran), the Sadr (judiciary and religious minister), and vice-regent. ^[4]
As a defensive measure against Ottoman attacks Shah Tahmasp (1524-1576) moved the capital from Tabriz to Qazvin, but Shah Abbas I (1587-1629 CE) moved it again, further south, to a new monumental city at Isfahan. Under Shah Abbas Isfahan’s population grew to 200,000. ^[5] The rule of Shah Abbas I (1587-1629 CE) is widely thought of as representing the peak Safavid achievement. Incredible wealth acquired from the state monopoly over the silk trade, was spent on large-scale building works. Abbas also made key reforms to improve the administration and the army. ^{[6] [7] [8]}

[1]: (Haneda 1989, 62) Masashi Haneda. January 1, 1989. “The Evolution of the Safavid Royal Guard.” Iranian Studies 22, no. 2/3.

[2]: (Mitchell 2009, 29) Mitchell, Colin P. 2009. Practice of Politics in Safavid Iran, The: Power, Religion and Rhetoric. I.B. Tauris. London.

[3]: (Lambton 2011) Lambton, Ann K S. 2011. CITIES iii. Administration and Social Organization. Encyclopedia Iranica. http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/cities-iii

[4]: (Mousavi 2008, 23-24) Mohammad A. Mousavi. January 1, 2008. “The Autonomous State in Iran: Mobility and Prosperity in the Reign of Shah ’Abbas the Great (1587-1629).” Iran & the Caucasus 12, no. 1 doi:10.2307/25597352.

[5]: David Blow. 2009. Shah Abbas: The Ruthless King Who Became an Iranian Legend. London: I.B. Tauris, 2009, p.193.

[6]: (Matthee 2008) Rudi Matthee. 2008. ‘SAFAVID DYNASTY’. IranicaOnline. http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/safavids

[7]: (Savory 1967, 75) R M Savory. 1967, “The Sherley Myth.” Iran 5

[8]: (Ward 2009, 49) Steven R. Ward. 2009. Immortal: A Military History of Iran and Its Armed Forces (Washington, D.C: Georgetown University Press.