Abbas III (; January 1732 – February 1740) was a son of Shah Tahmasp II and Shahpari Begum of the

Safavid dynasty The Safavid dynasty (; , ) was one of Iran's most significant ruling dynasties reigning from Safavid Iran, 1501 to 1736. Their rule is often considered the beginning of History of Iran, modern Iranian history, as well as one of the gunpowder em ...

and reigned from 1732 to 1736. After the deposition of his father by Nader Khan (the future Nader Shah) the infant Abbas was appointed nominal ruler of

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

on 7 September 1732. Nader Khan, who was the real ruler of the country, assumed the positions of deputy of state and viceroy. Abbas III was deposed in March 1736, when Nader Khan had himself crowned as Nader Shah. This marked the official end of the Safavid dynasty. Abbas was sent to join his father in prison in

Sabzevar Sabzevar (; ) is a city in northeastern Iran. It is located in the Central District (Sabzevar County), Central District of Sabzevar County, Razavi Khorasan province, Razavi Khorasan province, serving as the capital of both the county and the ...

, Khorasan. In 1738, Nader Shah set out on campaign to

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

and

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, leaving his son Reza Qoli Mirza Afshar to rule his realm in his absence. Hearing rumours that his father had died, Reza made preparations for assuming the crown. According to the most "authoritative account", Mohammed Hosein Khan Qajar, who had been entrusted with supervising Abbas and his father in captivity, warned Reza that on hearing the news of Nader's death, the townspeople of Sabzevar would rise up in revolt, free Tahmasp II and place him on the throne again. Reza gave Mohammed Hosein orders to execute Tahmasp and his sons to forestall this. Mohammed Hosein strangled Tahmasp, cut the young Abbas down with his sword and also had his brother Esmail killed. According to

Michael Axworthy Michael George Andrew Axworthy (26 September 1962 – 16 March 2019) was a British academic, author, and commentator. He was the head of the Iran section at the British Foreign & Commonwealth Office between 1998 and 2000. Personal life and fami ...

, the dating of these events is speculative, but they probably took place in May or June 1739. Other sources ('' Encyclopædia Iranica'', Lockhart) prefer 1740.

References

Bibliography

* *L. Lockhart, ''Nadir Shah'', London, 1938 *R.M. Savory, ''Encyclopaedia Iranica'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Abbas 03 1732 births 1740 deaths Safavid monarchs Monarchs deposed as children Child monarchs 18th-century monarchs of Persia Murdered Persian monarchs 18th-century murdered monarchs People murdered in 1740 Burials at Fatima Masumeh Shrine