Shahs of Shirwan

''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, an originally Arab but speedily Persianized dynasty, although the later ''Shirvanshahs'' are also known as the Kasranids or Kaqanids.Barthold, W., C.E. Bosworth "Shirwan Shah, Sharwan Shah. "Encyclopaedia of Islam. Edited by: P. Bearman, Th. Bianquis, C.E. Bosworth, E. van Donzel and W.P. Heinrichs. Brill, 2nd edition The Shirvanshah established a native state in Shirvan (located in modern Azerbaijan).

The Shirvanshahs dynasty, existing as independent or a vassal state, from 861 until 1538; one of longest existing dynasties in the Islamic world, are known for their support of culture. There were two periods of an independent and strong Shirvan state: first in the 12th century, under kings Manuchehr and his son, Akhsitan I who built the stronghold of Baku, and second in the 15th century under Derbendid dynasty.

Origins

The title 'Shirvanshah' appears to date back to the period before Islam's emergence in the Arabian peninsula. Ibn Khordadbeh mentions the Shirvanshah as one of the local rulers who received their title from the first Sassanid emperor, Ardashir I. Al-Baladhuri also mentions that a Shirvanshah, together with the neighbouring Layzanshah, were encountered by the Arabs during their conquest of Persia, and submitted to the Arab commander Salman ibn Rab'ia al-Bahili.

History

Rise of the Shirvanshahs

From the late 8th century, Shirvan was under the rule of the members of the Arab family of Yazid ibn Mazyad al-Shaybani (d. 801), who was named governor of the region by the Abbasid caliph Harun al-Rashid.V. Minorsky, A History of Sharvan and Darband in the 10th–11th Centuries, Cambridge, 1958. His descendants, the Yazidids, would rule Shirvan as independent princes until the 14th century. By origin, the Yazidids were Arabs of the Shayban tribe and belonged to high ranking generals and governors of the Abbasid army. In the chaos that engulfed the Abbasid Caliphate after the death of the Caliph al-Mutawakkil in 861, the great-grandson of Yazid b. Mazyad Shaybani, Haytham ibn Khalid, declared himself independent and assumed the ancient title of Shirvanshah. The dynasty continuously ruled the area of Shirvan either as an independent state or a vassal state until the Safavid times.

One of the important books in the early history of this dynasty is the anonymous ''Taʾrikh Bab al-Abwab'' ("History of Darband"), preserved by the Ottoman historian Münejjim Bashi (Chief Astronomer), the last date of which concerning the dynasty is 468/1075. A translation of this important work into English language was published by the orientalist Vladimir Minorsky in 1958. We know from this book that the history of the Shirvan Shahs was closely tied with that of the Arab Hashimid family in Darband (Bab al-Abwab) and intermarriage between the two Arab families was common with Yazidids often ruling for various periods in the latter town.

V.F Minorsky in his book titled "A History of Sharvan and Darband in the 10th–11th Centuries" distinguishes four dynasties of Shirvanshahs; l. The Shirvanshahs, (the Sassanids designated them for the protection of northern frontier; 2. Mazyadids, 3. Kasranids; 4. House of Derbent or Derbent dynasty.

By the time of the anonymous work Hodud al-Alam (c. 982 AD), the Shirvan Shahs, from their capital of Yazīdiyya (the later Shamakhi), had absorbed neighbouring kingdoms north of the Kur river and thus acquired the additional titles of Layzan Shah and Khursan Shah. We can also discern the progressive ''Persianisation of this originally Arab family''. According to Encyclopedia of Islam: ''After the Shah Yazid b. Ahmad (381-418/991-1028), Arab names give way to Persian ones like Manūčihr, Ḳubādh, Farīdūn, etc., very likely as a reflection of marriage links with local families, and possibly with that of the ancient rulers in Shābarān, the former capital, and the Yazidids now began to claim a nasab (lineage) going back to Sassanid kings Bahrām Gūr or to Khusraw Anushirwan''. According to Vladimir Minorsky, the most likely explanation of the Iranicisation of this Arab family could be marriage link with the family of the ancient rulers of Shabaran. He further states: ''The attraction of a Sassanian pedigree proved stronger than the recollection of Shaybani lineage''. The coat of arms with two lions could be a reminder of the story of Bahrām Gur in Shahnama where Bahrām had to claim the crown from between two lions to be recognized as the king.

According to al-Masudi, in 917, Russian merchants attacked the Caspian provinces and Shirvan from the Don River with 500 ships. However, due to the lack of a fleet of Shirvan ruler Ali ibn Haysam, Russian merchants looted the area, as a result, the ruler of Shirvan was dethroned.

During the reign of Ahmad ibn Muhammad, the Shirvanshah state was dependent on the Sallarid dynasty for some time and became independent again after the collapse of the Sallarids.

After Ahmad's death, his son Muhammad ruled for ten years (981-991). In the first years, Mohammad was able to include the city of Gabala in his state. In 983, he rebuilt the castle walls of Shabran, then captured Barda, and appointed Musa as its governor. Khurasan, Tabasaran, Sheki and were also annexed to Shirvanshahs.

At the end of the 10th – beginning of the 11th century they began wars with Derbent (this rivalry lasted for centuries), and in the 1030s they had to repel the raids of the Rus, and Alans.

The last ruler of the Mazyadid was Yazid ibn Ahmad, and from 1027 to 1382, the Kasranids dynasty began to rule the Shirvanshahs. In 1032 and 1033, the alans attacked the territory of Shamakhi, but were defeated by the troops of the Shirvanshahs.

Seljuqid rule

In the mid-11th century, Seljuk Turks ended Abbasid control by invading Shirvan from Central Asia and asserting political dominance. The Kasranid dynasty ruled the state independently until 1066 when the Seljuk tribes came to the territory of Arran, Shirvanshah I Fariburz accepted dependence on them, preserving internal independence. The Seljuks brought with them the Turkish language and Turkish customs. The Seljuqs became the main rulers of a vast empire that included most of the Near East until the end of the 12th century. During the Seljuq period, the influential vizier of the Seljuq sultans, Nizam ul-Mulk is noted for having helped introduce numerous educational and bureaucratic reforms. His death in 1092 marked the beginning of the decline of the once well-organized Seljuq state that further deteriorated following the death of Sultan Ahmad Sanjar

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