In the meantime, the navy-less Safavids lost the island of Hormuz to the Portuguese in 1507. In this way, one of his sons was executed and two were blinded. Credit is due under the terms of this license that can reference both the New World Encyclopedia contributors and the selfless volunteer contributors of the Wikimedia Foundation. As the spiritual heir of Sheikh Zahed, Safi Al-Din transformed the inherited Zahediyeh Sufi Order into the Safaviyeh Order. Historians generally agree that the Safavids efforts to convert Muslims in their empire to Shiism utilized coercion and force. In the following centuries, this religious schism would both cement Iran's internal cohesion and national feelings and provoke attacks by its Sunni neighbors. However, several scholars went one step further and extended the familys history back to the biblical Adam. When Shah Abbas I came to power in 1588, he immediately began making plans to move the Safavid capital to Isfahan, a city in central Iran. The remaining 5 percent of Shia are Zaydis or Seveners, a sect established by Zayd, the great-grandson of Ali, who disagree with Twelvers over the identity of the seventh imam. Shah Ismail, who saw himself as infallible and semidivine, believed his strong religious convictions had won him the Iranian throne, and he used his political and military authority to impose his religious ideology on the country (Figure 4.23). While Naqsh-e Jahan Square provided a focus, the city also featured a broad tree-lined avenue called the Chahar Bagh, stretching over four kilometers from the square to a royal country estate (Figure 4.28). As the Safavid order developed, its members intermarried with other Turkic groups such as the Turcomen, Lar, and Bakhtiyari, and with Georgian, Armenian, and Pontic Greek Christians within their lands and bordering territories. In response, the Ottoman sultan Bayezid II deported the Shiites of his empire from Anatolia to other regions where they would be unable to heed the Safavid call. Due to his fear of assassination, Shah Abbas either put to death or blinded any member of his family who aroused his suspicion. This clearly differentiated Iran from the Ottomans, who were Sunnis. The Safavids generally ruled over a peaceful and prosperous empire. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Throughout the rest of the decade, Ismail I fended off attacks from the Ottomans, stamped out the remnants of a rival faction, called the Ak Koyunlu, and continued to expand his territoryHamadan in 1503, Shiraz and Kerman in 1504, Najaf and Karbala in 1507, Van in 1508, Baghdad in 1509, Khorasan and Herat in 1510. The Shia believe Ali, who finally succeeded Uthman to become the leader of the Muslim community in 656, was the first legitimate imam, the title they give their spiritual leader rather than caliph. They view the line of Muhammad that descends through Ali and his wife Fatima, Muhammads daughter, as the only source of definitive religious guidance. As in the Ottoman Empire, wealthy Safavid women raised their public stature by becoming patrons of the arts and endowing public buildings. When the second Persian "vakil" was placed in command of a Safavid army in Transoxiana, the Qezelbash, considering it a dishonor to be obliged to serve under him, deserted him on the battlefield with the result that he was slain. Find out more about saving to your Kindle. The greatest of the Safavid monarchs, Shah Abbas (15871629) came to power in 1587, at the age of 16, following the forced abdication of his father, Shah Muhammad Khudbanda. The Safavid dynasty had its origin in the Safavid order of Sufism, which was established in the city of Ardabil in the Iranian Azerbaijan region. [6] It was an Iranian dynasty of Kurdish origin, [7] but during their rule they intermarried with Turkoman, [8] Georgian, [9] Circassian, [10] [11] and Pontic Greek [12] dignitaries, nevertheless they . The Safavids declared Shia Islam the state religion of Iran in the early 1500s, and it remains so to this day, encompassing about 10 percent of the worldwide Muslim population. During the period of Mongol rule over Iran and the Caucasus, the distinction between Shia and Sunni became less important than it had been. Later, in 1722, an Afghan army led by Mir Wais' son, Mahmud, marched across eastern Iran, besieged, and sacked Isfahan and proclaimed Mahmud "Shah" of Persia. One faction, which became known as the Sunnis, supported the candidacy of Abu Bakr al-Sadiq, Muhammads father-in-law. The more than century of tug-of-war accentuated the Sunni and Shi'a rift in Iraq. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. @kindle.com emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply. Like Europe, it has a long history of big empires and small states. Shiism was not officially tolerated by the Sunni caliphs of the Umayyad and Abbasid Empires because of its perceived challenge to their rule. Ismail I, despite his heterodox Shi'a beliefs, which were not compatible with orthodox Shi'ism (Momen, 1985) patronized Shi'a religious leaders, granting them land and money in return for loyalty. Isfahan bears the most prominent samples of the Safavid architecture, all constructed in the years after Shah Abbas I permanently moved the capital to that city in 1598: The Imperial Mosque, Masjid-e Shah, completed in 1630, the Imami Mosque,Masjid-e Imami, the Lutfullah Mosque and the Royal Palace. His grandfather had acquired over thirty thousand enslaved people employed as civil servants and palace administrators; turning to the Caucasus region again, Abbas decided to also create an enslaved soldier corps like the Ottoman Janissaries. The Middle Ages had seen a series of invasions of Iran by Turks, Mongols, and others. Many of its members were bi- or multilingual, with Azeri Turkish and Persian being the linguae francae of the dynasty. Europeans imported some of the highest volumes of Safavid textiles. The Safavid concept of kingship, combining territorial control with . The Ottomans sued for peace in 1612, relinquishing the Caucasus to the Iranians. Then two Englishmen, Robert Sherley and his brother Anthony, helped Abbas I to reorganize the Shah's soldiers into a partially paid and well-trained standing army similar to the European model (which the Ottomans had already adopted). This strengthening of direct ties between the ulama and the people, and the separation of the religious establishment from the state, is believed to be one of the reasons Shiism long outlasted the Safavid era. It was perhaps to perpetuate the distinction of Persian from Arabic culture that attracted the Iranians towards Shi'a Islamthe heartland and sacred sites of Sunni Islam would always be in the Arabian peninsula. 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 all three the ruling dynasty was Islamic, the economic system was agrarian, and the military forces were paid in grants of land revenue. With his new army behind him, Abbas undertook to gain back the territories lost to the Uzbeks and Ottomans. Render date: 2023-04-30T14:46:17.907Z BBC - Religions - Islam: Safavid Empire (1501-1722) They wanted to spread "Shiism by military means." They viewed the leader of the Empire with reverence, and they. This warfare pattern repeated itself under Shah Tahmasp I and Sultan Suleiman I. (credit: Armenian Frescoes by David Stanley/Flickr, CC BY 2.0), This detail of a sixteenth-century miniature by the Persian artist Farrukh Beg shows Shah Tahmasp, who was a great patron of the arts. Culture flourished under Safavid patronage. The capture of Baghdad by Ismail I in 1509, was only followed by its loss to the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent in 1534. At the apex of this structure was the shah. Updates? If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. The elegantly baroque, yet famously misnamed, "Polonaise" carpets were made in Iran during the seventeenth century. All levels of society could mix there, from members of the royal court whose pavilion overlooked the square, to the Shiite clergy whose mosque was at the squares southern end, to foreign dignitaries, members of the military, merchants, and commoners. The Silk Road, which led through northern Iran to India, revived in the sixteenth century. The Ottoman Turks and Safavids fought over the fertile plains of Iraq for more than 150 years. First, he bargained for peace with the Ottomans in 1590, giving away territory in the north-west. The Afghans rode roughshod over their conquered territory for a dozen years, but were prevented from making further gains by Nadir Shah Afshar, a former slave who had risen to military leadership within the Afshar tribe in Khorasan, a vassal state of the Safavids. Abbas I | Biography, History, Architecture, & Significance The Safavids also staged incursions into eastern Anatolia; these triggered a conflict with the Ottoman Empire that continued for the length of the Safavids reign. After being sheltered by allies, the twelve-year-old Ismail emerged from exile in 1499 claiming to be the Mahdi or messiah and began rallying the Qizilbash troops who had fought for his father and brother. Although at first he was able to negotiate safe passage for his army, the Shirvanshahs, already uneasy about Haydars growing power, used his eventual attack on one of their cities as an excuse to declare war on the Safavids. (credit: Portrait of Shah Ismail I of Persia by Uffizi Gallery/Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain), This detail from a series of seventeenth-century paintings decorating the walls of the Chehel Sotoun Palace in Isfahan, Iran, depicts Shah Abbas I, who ruled over Iran at the height of the Safavid dynastys power. In these paintings, artists used mineral-based dyes, which produced brilliant and long-lasting colors (Figure 4.26). This group became known as the Shia. The princes had Turcoman, Persian, Kurdish, and even Armenian, Indian, Afghan, or Georgian mothers. Omissions? Haydar was killed in battle in 1488. Persian carpets of silk and wool were in high demand in Europe and other parts of the Islamic world. The Safavid Empire was one ruled by Sufi Muslims who later became Shia Muslims. Silk was akin to gold in this era, and Safavid silk was renowned for both the high quality of its raw silk, as well as the exquisite designs of their embroidered textiles. They expanded their empire by wagging Jihads (Holy war) against other countries. The net result of these various Safavid theories of kingship was absolutism. Later, Shah Abbas I moved the capital even deeper into central Iran, to the city of Isfahan, building a new city next to the ancient Persian one. In 1598, Abbas moved his capital from Qazvin to Isfahan in the central Iranian plateau, far from the constantly shifting borders with the Ottomans and Uzbeks and closer to the Persian Gulf and the newly arrived traders of the British and Dutch East India Companies. Iran also continued to face threats from outside. Ismail I continued to expand his base in northwestern Iran. then you must include on every digital page view the following attribution: Use the information below to generate a citation. According to many historians, the Safavid empire marked the beginning of modern Persia. Bihzad, the famed miniaturist from Herat, was commissioned by Shah Ismail to direct this royal workshop. Miniatures were an important form of Persian art long before Islam appeared; Persian artists were prized at the court of the Abbasids, and artistic styles derived from their work, such as the nonfigurative elements used in the borders of miniatures, were later used to decorate manuscripts of the Quran. Two decades of warfare severely strained the Iranian economy, however, and Tahmasp sought peace with the Ottomans. Increased contact with distant cultures in the seventeenth 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 Zaman to study in Rome). The Safavid Empire was established in an Iran that had been long fragmented. Capital of the Safavid Empire. In 1501, various disaffected militia from Azerbaijan and eastern Anatolia who were known as the Kizilbash (Azeri for "red heads" due to their red headgear) united with the Ardabil Safaviyeh to capture Tabriz from the then ruling Sunni Turkmen alliance known as Ak Koyunlu (The White Sheep Emirate) under the leadership of Alwand. Creative Commons Attribution License The main imports were specie, textiles (woolens from Europe, cottons from Gujarat), spices, metals, coffee, and sugar. By 1511, the Uzbeks in the north-east were driven across the Oxus River where they captured Samarkand establishing the Shaibanid dynasty, and from which they would continue to attack the Safavids. Abbas I was particularly lenient toward the Armenian Christian population of Isfahan, due to their participation in the lucrative manufacture and export of silk. Henceforth, a treaty, signed in Qasr-e Shirin, was established, delineating a border between Iran and Turkey in 1639, which still stands in northwest Iran/southeast Turkey. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They were originally a religious brotherhood who became more powerful because of warlords and political marriages. (attribution: Copyright Rice University, OpenStax, under CC BY 4.0 license), The Safavid Empire was as ethnically diverse as the Ottoman Empire. The entry of European ships to the Indian Ocean trade cut off much of Irans direct access to Africa and South Asia. The loss of his capital Tabriz to the enemyand to a Sunni Muslim at thatwas a huge blow to Shah Ismails standing among his own armies, made worse by the fact that he had declared himself invincible based on his fictionalized semidivine ancestry. In 1522, the Safavid royal library of Shah Tahmasp produced the most exquisitely illustrated Shahnameh of all time, now known as the Shahnameh of Shah Tahmasp. Royal manuscripts such as this were highly collaborative enterprises that brought together miniaturists, illuminators, calligraphers, poets, scribes, and gold sprinklers. on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. We recommend using a Junayds son Haydar created a solid political and military framework by establishing a Safavid military order known as the Qizilbash, after their distinctive red hats (qizil means red in Azeri). While silk had always been a highly sought after Persian commodity, dating back to ancient times, the Safavid era produced one of the most lucrative silk industries of the early modern world. The Safavid empire was founded by the Safavids.They became a centralized government. Poetry lacked the royal patronage of other arts and was hemmed in by religious prescriptions. This book uses the They embarked on a military campaign, winning victory after victory until, in July 1501, Ismail entered the Shirvanshah capital of Tabriz and declared himself shah, or emperor, of all Iran (Figure 4.20). After a long and bloody siege led by the Safavid grand vizier Hatem Beg, which lasted from November 1609 to the summer of 1610, the Kurdish stronghold of Dimdim was captured. Bureaucracy and landed class who were considered the middle classes. please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. Safavid Army - Military History - Oxford Bibliographies - obo Iran became a feudal theocracy: There was no separation of religion and state; the Shah was held to be the divinely ordained head of both. Junayd believed the Safavids should use their popular religious mandate to seek military and political power for themselves, and he found Shia doctrine more appropriate for his vision. (credit: Shah Tahmasp in the mountains by Freer Gallery of Art/Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain), This Persian miniature produced in the studio of Shah Tahmasp depicts the Feast of Sada, a mythical event that celebrates the discovery of fire. The Safavids are therefore widely known for bringing this historic change to the region. In this portrait of Shah Ismail by an Italian painter of the sixteenth century, for example, the shahs reddish hair, possibly an inheritance from his Greek grandmother, is clearly visible. The order in Ardabil was founded in the thirteenth century by the Sufi master Zahed Gilani, and little is known about its beliefs and practices in its . He 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. Safavid dynasty | History, Culture, Religion, & Facts | Britannica
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