The Rule of the Safavids Chapter 15-2

The Safavid Empire Prior to the sixteenth century much of Persia, modern day Iran, as well as central Asia was in chaos A new dynasty known as the Safavids would come in & take control The Safavids were ardent Shia Muslims, as compared to the majority of the Muslims who were Sunnis This dynasty was founded by Shah Esma il While still in his teens Esma seized much of Iran & Iraq in 1501 He called himself shah or king of the new Persian state He sent preachers to the Ottoman Empire to convert the Sunni Muslims there When people refused they were massacred

The Safavid Empire Alarmed by the activities of the Safavid’s the Ottomans attacked them in Persia at the battle of Tabriz The Ottomans won the battle but Selim could not maintain control allowing Esma to regain control a few years later In subsequent years the Safavids attempted to consolidate their rule but ran into problems when they attempted to integrate the Turkish peoples with the Persian speaking population of the urban centers To remedy this the Shia faith was used as a unifying force as it was made mandatory for the largely Sunni Turks

The Safavid Empire Those that opposed the conversion were exiled or killed Like the Turkish Sultan the Shah claimed to be the religious leader of all Islam By 1580 the Turks had had enough & went on attack capturing Azerbaijan forcing the Shah to sign a peace treaty in which he conceded a large amount of territory in the northwest The Safavid capital was moved from Tabriz to Esfahan where it became on of the worlds largest cities

Glory and Decline Under the rule of Shah Abbas the Safavids reached their high point As did the Ottomans Abbas used trained administrators to run the country as well as strengthen the army by supplying them with the latest technology when it came to weapons In the early seventeenth century Abbas moved against the Ottomans in an attempt to regain lost territory The Safavids had some early success but could not hold all their gains so they signed a peace agreement that returned Azerbaijan to the Safavid empire

Glory and Decline After the death of Abbas in 1629 the Safavids began to lose its power Future leaders did not have the talent or political skills of Abbas to lead as the power of Shia religious groups began to increase within the court There was also pressure to conform to traditional religious beliefs Safavid territory was invaded & lost The Safavid capital of Esfahan was invaded & seized by the Afghan army The Turks also seized territory along its western border Persia sank into a period of political & social anarchy

Life Under the Safavids Persia under the Safavids was a mixed society of combination of Persian & Turkish elements The Safavid rulers were generally supported by the Shia’s in return for the Shia religion being declared the state religion The shahs were strong minded & firmly controlled the power of the landed aristocracy In addition positions in the bureaucracy was based on merit rather than birth When it came to trade the shahs maintained an active role in marinating trade routes & protecting goods from thieves Safavid culture or knowledge of science, medicine, & mathematics was equal to other societies of the region In the arts Persia witnessed extraordinary growth especially when it came to silk & carpet weaving