The Period of the Safavids - Research Paper Example

Safavid Empire Safavid Empire (1502-1736) has played a very important and decisive role in shaping Iran (Abisaab, 2004). “The period of the Safavids, named for the dynasty that took control of Persia at the start of the sixteenth century, marks the start of modern Persia” (Nova Online, 2012). Migrated Mongolians and Turks adopted the customs and language of Persia in the 1200s after Mongols’ disastrous invasion. Genghis Khan’s grandson Holagu Khan founded a dynasty called as the Ilkhanids which remained very influential in Persia in the 1300s. The Persians delved deeper into Sufism and Islamic devotion in these turbulent years. Timur claimed to descent from the family of Ghengis Khan towards the 14th century’s end. Benefiting from the chaos in Mongol Transoxania, he laid the foundations of a kingdom in Central Asia. Timur entered Iran in the year 1380 and after taking Baghdad, reduced the power and domination of the Jalayirids in 1393 (Ghasemi, 2015). He captured Bayezid, the Ottoman Sultan, at Ankara in 1402 and after conquering Syria, shifted his focus towards the capaigns to the east of the empire which was in its nascent stages. Timur passed away on an expedition to China in 1405 (Ghasemi, 2015). He had deep interested in the Islamic mysticism known as Sufism. Timur’s legacy destabilized Iran and his ill-assimilated conquests were divided between his sons in such a way that it was impossible to achieve an integrated and strong Timurid Empire. Timurid state evolved into an integrated Iranian Empire during the reign of Shahrokh Shah, Timur’s son. Shahrokh Shah made Herat the home of Persian philosophy and poetry revival that was linked with an effort to claim the leadership in Sunni ideology’s propagation for an Iranian center. Western Iran was dominated by Turkman after they had replaced the Jalayirids in Azerbaijan. The Safavids were a militant Islamic Sufi order that came from among the Turkish speaking people at Ardabil. Table 1 shows the Safavid Kings from 1502-1736. In the late 13th century, the Safavids survived Timur’s invasion in the west of the Caspian Sea. The Safavids had adopted Shi’ism by 1500 and were all set to use military means to advance Shi’ism. In 1502, Esma’il, Sheikh Heydar’s son, defeated the ruler of Azerbaijan’s army and seized Tabriz and at 15 years old, Esma’il was declared the Shah (Ghasemi, 2015). His descendants were Shah Tahmasp I, Shah Esma’il II, and Shah Mohammad, each of whom expanded the Empire as far as Transoxiana. The control of Safavid Shahs over Iran tightened over the decades. Abbas I succeeded Mohammad Shah and extended the state-owned lands. Iran greatly prospered under Shah Abbas I’s rule as he transplanted Armenians in Azerbaijan. His death in 1629 rose his son Shah Safi I to power who ruled till 1642. Shah Abbas II, his successor, was the last fully competent Safavid Shah. After his death in 1667, power shifted to Shah Soleyman who ruled till 1694. During his reign, food prices soared up and the country was struck by disease and famine, showing evidence of his lack of competence as a ruler. He was succeeded by Shah Sultan Hossein who was the most incompetent Safavid shah and can be considered responsible for the unexpected and quick end of the Safavid Empire. Afghan invaders captured Esfahan in 1722 and murdered Shah Sultan Hossein. Nader Khan from northern Khorasan reconsolidated the country. Although Nader Khan was the effective ruler, he acknowledged Tahmasp II, the son of Sultan Hossein as the Safavid Shah until the year 1732. Nader Khan expelled the Afghans from the country and reestablished control over Iran’s northwestern provinces. Table 1: Safavid Kings from 1502 to 1736 (Ghasemi, 2015). Period Safavid Kings 1502 - 1524 Ismail I 1524 - 1576 Tahmasp 1576 - 1577 Ismail II 1577 - 1587 Mohammad 1587 - 1629 Abbas I, The Great 1629 - 1642 Safi I 1642 - 1667 Abbas II 1667 - 1694 Safi II 1694 - 1722 Soltan Hossein 1722 - 1732 Tahmasp II 1732 - 1736 Abbas III During the early years, the strength of the Safavid Empire was maintained by conquering new territories and defending them from the Ottoman Empire. However, the 17th century brought a decline in the Ottoman threat to the Safavids as the effectiveness of the military forces was reduced. Eased by the decline in the threat posed to them by the neighboring Ottoman Empire, the Safavid Shahs became decadent, corrupt, and complacent to the extent that they were eventually deposed by the Shi’a ulama. The Shi’a ulama proclaimed Iran as the first Islamic Republic of the world in the 18th century (BBC, 2009). The Shi’a ulama made a rule according to which, nobody but a Mujtahid could become a ruler since a Mujtahid has deep knowledge of the Sharia and has a blameless record in the past. The ruling dynasty was destroyed by an Afghan group in 1726 (BBC, 2009). The conquest was followed by a mutual consensus between the Shi’a ulama and the new Afghan Shahs over the division of powers. While the state and foreign policy was controlled by the Afghan Shahs, the religious practice was controlled and administered by the Shi’a ulama. The challenges associated with the division of politics and religion troubles Iran to date. One of the most important decisions made by Shah Ismail was the declaration that Shi’ism would be the dominant form of Islam in the state. Iranian culture was not accustomed to Shi’ism at that time. The Safavids converted the predominantly Sunni population by launching a vigorous campaign that forced and/or persuaded the people to convert from Sunni to Shia. This is evident from the fact that the Sunni ulama were killed and many of the remaining ulama left. To create a new religious elite in the state preaching Shi’ism to the people, the Safavids called scholars from different Shi’ite countries to the state. The elite was coordinated by an official called the Sadr whose responsibility was to ensure that the religious elite followed the orders of the Shah. The Safavids promoted Shi’ism by making grants to the religious schools and shrines teaching Shi’ism to the people. They established a community of wealthy religious aristocrats by using money and grants of land. The Safavids not only massmurdered the Sunni Muslims, but also persecuted the Shi’ites who held views contrasting with the main Shi’ite ideology. They made Sufi mystic groups forbidden and vandalized many alien shrines. This contrasts with the fact that the origins of the Safavids relates to a Sufi order. The Safavids elevated the status of the Shi’ite shrines by encouraging people to make pilgrimage to them while reducing the importance of Hajj. The early Safavid Empire can be described as a theocracy in which the political and religious ideologies were integrated. People of the Safavid Empire did not take long to embrace the new faith. They started partaking in the Shi’ite festivals with zeal and spirit. One of these festivals that are celebrated with immense enthusiasm to date is Ashura. The Safavid Empire played an important role in the development of theology and philosophy in the state as Shi’ism became its dominant religion. The Safavid Empire kept disintegrating over the centuries. The Empire was further weakened by the feudal lords and bandit chiefs and alongside, people opted for stability in the state and a strong central rule. The ulama continued tolerating the Shah’s non-religious practices all the time till the 1970s and finally in 1979, the ulama overthrew the monarchy (BBC, 2009). As a result of this, the Ayatollahs started exercising the power since they were the ulama’s highest officials. The challenge of Ayatollah Khomeini to the Royal authority of the Shah was a confirmation of the Iranian history’s deep religious tradition. References: Abisaab, R. J. (2004). Converting Persia: Religion and Power in the Safavid Empire. I.B.Tauris. BBC. (2009). Safavid Empire (1501-1722). Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/islam/history/safavidempire_1.shtml. Ghasemi, S. (2015). Safavid Empire 1502 – 1736. Iran Chamber Society. Retrieved from http://www.iranchamber.com/history/safavids/safavids.php. Nova Online. (2012). Safavid Empire aka Persia. Retrieved from http://novaonline.nvcc.edu/eli/evans/his112/notes/safavid.html. Read More