The Shirvan province ( fa, ولایت شیروان, Velāyat-e Shirvān) was a province founded by the
Safavid Empire
Safavid Iran or Safavid Persia (), also referred to as the Safavid Empire, '. was one of the greatest Iranian empires after the 7th-century Muslim conquest of Persia, which was ruled from 1501 to 1736 by the Safavid dynasty. It is often consi ...
on the territory of modern
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...
and
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eigh ...
(
Dagestan
Dagestan ( ; rus, Дагеста́н, , dəɡʲɪˈstan, links=yes), officially the Republic of Dagestan (russian: Респу́блика Дагеста́н, Respúblika Dagestán, links=no), is a republic of Russia situated in the North ...
) between 1501 and 1736 with its capital in the town of
Shamakhi
Shamakhi ( az, Şamaxı, ) is a city in Azerbaijan and the administrative centre of the Shamakhi District. The city's estimated population was 31,704. It is famous for its traditional dancers, the Shamakhi Dancers, and also for perhaps giving i ...
.
The province had six administrative jurisdictions; Alpa'ur,
Arash—
Shaki,
Baku, Chemeshgazak—Agdash,
Derbent
Derbent (russian: Дербе́нт; lez, Кьвевар, Цал; az, Дәрбәнд, italic=no, Dərbənd; av, Дербенд; fa, دربند), formerly romanized as Derbend, is a city in Dagestan, Russia, located on the Caspian Sea. It is ...
(Darband),
Quba
Quba () is a city and the administrative centre of the Quba District of Azerbaijan. The city lies on the north-eastern slopes of Shahdag mountain, at an altitude of 600 metres above sea level, on the right bank of the Kudyal river. It has a p ...
—Qolhan, and
Saliyan.
The capital of Shamakhi had a separate governor, but is not mentioned by the then contemporary historians and geographers to have formed a separate administrative jurisdiction.
Control over Shirvan was firmly held by the Safavids from the time of the subjugation of Shirvan (except for several brief
Ottoman intermissions) when eventually the
Afsharid ruler of Iran,
Nader Shah
Nader Shah Afshar ( fa, نادر شاه افشار; also known as ''Nader Qoli Beyg'' or ''Tahmāsp Qoli Khan'' ) (August 1688 – 19 June 1747) was the founder of the Afsharid dynasty of Iran and one of the most powerful rulers in Iranian ...
established firm rule over the area until the area. After his death, the area was divided into various subordinate
various khanates, before they were conquered by the Russian Empire from
Qajar Iran
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� ...
in the course of the 19th century.
History
Having ended the rule of the
Shirvanshah
''Shirvanshah'' ( fa, شروانشاه), also spelled as ''Shīrwān Shāh'' or ''Sharwān Shāh'', was the title of the rulers of Shirvan from the mid-9th century to the early 16th century. The title remained in a single family, the Yazidids, ...
s in 1538,
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 t ...
established Shirvan as an administrative unit of the empire. At the end of the 16th century, the Ottoman General
Lala Kara Mustafa Pasha briefly captured Shirvan during the
Ottoman–Safavid War (1578–1590) and appointed
Özdemiroğlu Osman Pasha as its governor. In 1607,
Shah Abbas I
Abbas I ( fa, ; 27 January 157119 January 1629), commonly known as Abbas the Great (), was the 5th Safavid Shah (king) of Iran, and is generally considered one of the greatest rulers of Iranian history and the Safavid dynasty. He was the third son ...
invaded Shirvan again and instituted
Qizilbash
Qizilbash or Kizilbash ( az, Qızılbaş; ota, قزيل باش; fa, قزلباش, Qezelbāš; tr, Kızılbaş, lit=Red head ) were a diverse array of mainly Turkoman (ethnonym), Turkoman Shia Islam, Shia militant groups that flourished in A ...
rule over the province. After several interstate wars, Shirvan was eventually captured by Nader Shah in 1734 to establish Safavid rule over the province again.
List of governors
See also
* Shirvan
Shirvan (from fa, شروان, translit=Shirvān; az, Şirvan; Tat: ''Şirvan''), also spelled as Sharvān, Shirwan, Shervan, Sherwan and Šervān, is a historical Iranian region in the eastern Caucasus, known by this name in both pre-Islam ...
* Shirvan (city)
* Shirvan, Iran
Shirvan ( fa, شيروان, also Romanized as Shīrvān) is a city and capital of Shirvan County, North Khorasan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 162,790, in 70,878 families.
Etymology
The name of this city branches from ...
References
Sources
*
Safavid Iran
History of Dagestan
16th century in Azerbaijan
17th century in Azerbaijan
18th century in Azerbaijan
Provinces of the Safavid dynasty
History of Tats
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