Safi al-Din •Founder of Islamic religious brotherhood whose followers were known as Safavids.–15th Century: aligned themselves with the Shi’a branch of Islam

•Squeezed in between the Ottoman Empire & the Mughal Empire. Because of this they built an incredibly strong army.

Geography

Isma’il

• Took the throne @ the age of 12:– Immediately wanted

to conquer Persia. . . – When he was 14 he

completed the task. . . .

• Conquered Persia (modern-day Iran)

• Took the name of “Shah”, or king, to celebrate

Isma’il

• Established Shi’a Islam as the state religion. – Isma’il became a

religious tyrant. – Any citizen who didn’t

convert was put to death.

• Destroyed the Sunni population of Baghdad in his confrontation with the Ottomans.

1514: The Battle of Chaldiran

•Ottoman Empire vs. Safavid Empire–Ottomans won with the use of gunpowder and the border was set between the two empires. (modern day borders between Iran and Iraq).

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/ba/Sekumname1525_Chaldiran_battle.jpg

1514: The Battle of Chaldiran

• Ottoman Empire vs. Safavid Empire– The Ottoman

Sultan, Selim the Grim, later ordered the execution of all Shi’a in the Ottoman Empire. .

– Over 40,000 people were killed.

Tahmasp

• Isma’il’s son – Learned from the Safavids’ defeat at the Battle of Chaldiran.–Learned to use gunpowder and artillery in the military.

Tahmasp

• He expanded the Safavid Empire up to the Caucasus Mountains, northeast of Turkey, and brought Christians under Safavid rule.

• He laid the groundwork for the Golden Age of the Safavids.

Shah Abbas

•Also known as Abbas the Great.

•Took the throne in 1587.

•Created a Golden Age by drawing from the Ottoman, Persian, and Arab cultures.

Shah Abbas

• Reformed both military and civilian life • He limited the power of the military &

created two new armies that would be loyal to him alone. –One Army was made up of Persians.–The other was a force that Shah Abbas recruited from the Christian north & modeled after the Ottoman janissaries.

• He armed both armies artillery.

Shah Abbas

• Government Reforms: – Punished corruption

severely – Promoted only

officials who proved their competence & loyalty.

– He hired foreigners from neighboring countries to fill positions in the government.

Shah Abbas

• Religious Reform: – Brought in

members of Christian religious orders to prove to the European merchants that his empire was tolerant of all religions.

Shah Abbas•Religious Reform:

–This brought Europeans into the land and industry, trade, and art exchanges grew between the Safavid Empire and European nations.

Esfahan

Esfahan

• The city was raided and most of its inhabitants were massacred by the Mongols in the 13th century.

Esfahan•The Golden Age of Esfahan arrived in the 16th Century under Shah Abbas the Great, who conquered it and made it the new capital of the Safavid dynasty.

•Design covered 4 ½ miles & was considered one of the most beautiful cities in the world.

Esfahan • It served as a showplace for many artisans, both foreign & Safavid, who worked on the buildings and the objects in them.–Examples:

•300 Chinese potters produced glazed building tiles for the buildings in the city.

•Armenians wove carpets.

The Golden Age of Esfahan

•Esfahan had parks, libraries and mosques that amazed Europeans, who had not seen anything like this at home.

The Golden Age of Esfahan

•The Persians called Esfahan “Nesf-e-Jahan”, meaning “half the world”.

•They felt that to see Esfahan was to see half the world, and also referring to it as a point where many cultures and nationalities meet and mingled.

•Esfahans population was over a 500,000 people.

The Golden Age of Esfahan

• Shah Abbas brought hundreds of Chinese artisans to Esfahan.

• Working with Safavid artists, they produced intricate metalwork, miniature paintings, calligraphy, glasswork, tile work, and pottery. These decorations beautified the many mosques, palaces, and marketplaces.

• This collaboration gave rise to artwork that blended Chinese & Persian ideas.

The Golden Age of Esfahan

• Carpets–The most important result of

Western influence on the Safavids.–This demand changed carpet

weaving from a local craft to a national industry.

– In the beginning, carpets reflected traditional Persian themes but then the designs incorporated new themes.

The Golden Age of Esfahan

•16th Century:–Shah Abbas sent artists to Italy to study under the Renaissance artist Raphael.

–Rugs then began to reflect European designs.

The Dynasty Declines Quickly. . .

• In finding a successor, Shah Abbas made the same mistake as the Ottoman Sultan Suleyman– He killed or blinded his ablest sons. – His incompetent grandson, Safi,

succeeded Shah Abbas.– Safi led the Safavids down the

same road to decline that the Ottomans had taken, only quicker.

1736: Nadir Shah Afshar

•Began to expand the Safavid Empire again!!!

•He conquered land all the way to India but was so cruel that one of his own troops assassinated him in 1747.

•After this the Safavid Empire fell apart.