| • Science | • People | • Locations | • Timeline |
In the midst of general anarchy in Persia, he was proclaimed ruler of Khorasan in 1581, and obtained possession of the Persian throne with the help of Morshed Gholi Ostajlou , whom he later killed in July, 1589. Determined to raise the fallen fortunes of his country, he first directed his efforts against the predatory Uzbeks, who occupied and harassed Khorasan. After a long and severe struggle, he regained Mashhad, defeated them in a great battle near Herat in 1597, and drove them out of his dominions.
He moved his capital from Qazvin to Isfahan in 1592. A few years later, in 1599, the EnglishEngland is the largest, the most populous, and the most densely populated of the four " Home Nations" which make up the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (UK). Occupying the south-eastern portion of the island of Great Britain, England Sir Robert ShirleySir Robert Shirley (c. 1581 July 13, 1628) was an English traveller and adventurer, younger brother of Sir Anthony Shirley. He went with his brother to Persia in 1598, remaining in that country when the latter returned to Europe in 1599. Having married a directed a major army reform. With his new army, he defeated the OttomanOsmanlı İmparatorluğu Devlet-i Aliye-i Osmaniye The Ottoman Coat of Arms Imperial motto: unknown The Ottoman Empire at the height of its power Official language Ottoman Turkish Capital İstanbul ( Constantinople) Sovereigns Sultans Turks in 1603Events March 24 Death of Elizabeth I of England her cousin King James VI of Scotland succeeds her uniting the crowns of Scotland and England April 28 Funeral of Elizabeth I of England in Westminster Abbey July 17 or July 19 Sir Walter Raleigh arrested for, forcing them to give back the territory they had seized, including Baghdad. In 1605Events April 13 Tsar Boris Godunow dies Feodor II accedes to the throne May 16 Paul V becomes Pope June 1 Russian troops in Moscow imprison Feodor II and his mother. They are later executed June 20 Pretender Dmitri and his supporters march to Moscow July following a victory at BasraBasra (also known as Basrah or Basara historically sometimes called Busra Busrah and early on Bassorah Arabic: , Al-Basrah is the second largest city of Iraq with an estimated population of about 1,377,000 in 2003. It is the country's main port. The city he extended his empire beyond the EuphratesThe Euphrates (the traditional Greek name for the river, which is in Aramaic Frot/Frat Old Persian Ufrat in Arabic , in Turkish Firat and in ancient Assyrian language Pu-rat-tu is the westernmost of the two great rivers that define Mesopotamia ( Bethnahri; Sultan Ahmed I was forced to cede Shirvan and Kurdistan in 1611; the united armies of the Turks and Tatars were completely defeated near Sultanieh in 1618, and Abbas made peace on very favourable terms; and on the Turks renewing the war, Baghdad fell into his hands after a year's siege in 1623. In 1622 he took the island of Hormus from the Portuguese, by the assistance of the British, and much of its trade was diverted to the town of Bandar Abbas which he had took from the Potuguese in 1615 and had named after himself.
Shah Abbas' reign, with its military successes, efficient administrative system, raised Iran to the status of a great power. Abbas was a skilled diplomat, tolerant of his Christian subjects in Armenia and sending Sherley to Italy, Spain and England in order to create a pact against the Ottomans.
Trade with the west and industry grew. Isfahan became the center of Safavid architectural achievement, with the mosques Masjed-e Shah and the Masjed-e Sheykh Lotfollah; and other monuments like the Ali Qapu , the Chehel Sotoun , and the Meydan-e Shah .
When he died, his dominions reached from the Tigris to the Indus. His fame is tarnished, however, by numerous deeds of tyranny and cruelty, particularly against his own family. Afraid of a coup by his family (as he had done to his father), he locked them up in palaces in order to keep them without knowledge of the outside world. This resulted in weak successors. He killed his eldest son, Safi Mirza, and left his throne to his grandson.