Shah Khalil Allah III ( fa, شاه خليل الله‎; 1740–1817) was the 45th Imam of the

Nizari The Nizaris ( ar, النزاريون, al-Nizāriyyūn, fa, نزاریان, Nezāriyān) are the largest segment of the Ismaili Muslims, who are the second-largest branch of Shia Islam after the Twelvers. Nizari teachings emphasize independent ...

Ismaili

Shia Islam Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that the Islamic prophet Muhammad designated ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his successor (''khalīfa'') and the Imam (spiritual and political leader) after him, m ...

community. Khalilullah Ali III was born in 1740 in the city of

Kirman Kerman is the capital city of Kerman Province, Iran. Kerman or Kirman may also refer to: Places *Kirman (Sasanian province), province of the Sasanian Empire * Kerman Province, province of Iran ** Kerman County *Kerman, California People * Jo ...

. His upbringing in Mahallat began under the care of his uncle, Mirza Muhammad Bakir at the age of two years, and got rudiments of his formal education at home. In 1792 he succeeded his father Abū-l-Ḥasan ‘Alī ibn Qāsim ‘Alī, for whom he was his eldest son. He moved the seat of the Imamate from

to Kahak, from where he led for 20 years. His name of Shah Khalil Allah was a Ni'matullāhī Sufi name, which reflected the close relationship between the Nizaris and Ni'matullāhīs. In 1815 Shāh Khalīlullāh moved to

Yazd Yazd ( fa, یزد ), formerly also known as Yezd, is the capital of Yazd Province, Iran. The city is located southeast of Isfahan. At the 2016 census, the population was 1,138,533. Since 2017, the historical city of Yazd is recognized as a Wor ...

in order to be closer to his Indian followers.

Death and succession

Shāh Khalīlullāh died at the age of 77 in 1817 (along with several followers) as a result of a fanatical

Twelver Twelver Shīʿīsm ( ar, ٱثْنَا عَشَرِيَّة; '), also known as Imāmīyyah ( ar, إِمَامِيَّة), is the largest branch of Shīʿa Islam, comprising about 85 percent of all Shīʿa Muslims. The term ''Twelver'' refers t ...

Shia cleric called Mulla Husayn Yazdi inciting a Twelver mob to attack the Imam's house as a follow up to a dispute between some Nizaris and some Twelver shopkeepers. However, Yazdi's real aim may have been to weaken the spreading influence of the Nizaris. The Imam's house was also plundered in the attack. Mulla Husayn Yazdi was punished for his actions by Fat′h-Ali Shah Qajar (the second

Qajar Qajar Iran (), also referred to as Qajar Persia, the Qajar Empire, '. Sublime State of Persia, officially the Sublime State of Iran ( fa, دولت علیّه ایران ') and also known then as the Guarded Domains of Iran ( fa, ممالک م ...

king of Iran), since the king and the Imam had been on good terms.''The Ismailis: Their History and Doctrines'', by Farhad Daftary, page 463. The Imam was buried in the holy city of

Najaf Najaf ( ar, ٱلنَّجَف) or An-Najaf al-Ashraf ( ar, ٱلنَّجَف ٱلْأَشْرَف), also known as Baniqia ( ar, بَانِيقِيَا), is a city in central Iraq about 160 km (100 mi) south of Baghdad. Its estimated popula ...

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...

, in a mausoleum that also contains the bodies of some of his relatives and descendants. The Imam was the last to have spent his entire Imamate in

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

. He was succeeded by his eldest son Shāh Ḥassan ‘Alī, who was the first Nizari Imam to use the title Aga Khan- a trend which has continued to the present day. Following the Imams death, the Ismailis of Iran were in a strong enough position to finally come out publicly and cease their use of

Taqiyya In Shi'ism, ''Taqiya'' or ''Taqiyya'' ( ar, تقیة ', literally "prudence, fear")R. STROTHMANN, MOKTAR DJEBLI. Encyclopedia of Islam, 2nd ed, Brill. "TAKIYYA", vol. 10, p. 134. Quote: "TAKIYYA "prudence, fear" ..denotes dispensing with th ...

, which had been in force for over 500 years.

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Shah Khalilullah 03 Nizari imams Iranian Ismailis Assassinated Shia imams 1740 births 1817 deaths 18th-century Ismailis 19th-century Ismailis