Shamkhal Sultan, also known as Shamkhal Sultan Cherkes, was an important Circassian noble of the second half of the 16th century in the Safavid Empire.

Biography

Family

Shamkhal Sultan, alongside his sister Sultan-Agha Khanum, were from a prominent Circassian family from within the Safavid Empire. Sultan-Agha Khanum was married to king

Tahmasp I Tahmasp I ( fa, طهماسب, translit=Ṭahmāsb or ; 22 February 1514 – 14 May 1576) was the second shah of Safavid Iran from 1524 to 1576. He was the eldest son of Ismail I and his principal consort, Tajlu Khanum. Ascending the throne after ...

, having one daughter known as Pari Khan Khanum, and a son known as Suleiman Mirza.

Career

Shamkhal Sultan appears prominently on the political scene during the same time as his niece, Pari Khan Khanum, who was born by his sister Sultan-Agha Khanum and king

. He participated actively in Pari Khan Khanum's political designs and acted for a time as her spokesman, and during their presence, the Safavid political sphere was dominated by ethnic Circassians, amongst the other factions that joined Shamkhal Sultan and his cousin. He was executed shortly afterward his niece's own assassination in 1578. Savory, Roger (2007). Iran under the Safavids. Cambridge University Press. pp. 1–288. .

References

Sources

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sultan, Shamkhal 1588 deaths Iranian people of Circassian descent Circassian nobility 16th-century people of Safavid Iran Safavid governors of Shaki