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Source: Vlasdon

By 1370, a Mongol-Turkic dynasty had emerged victorious in the East. Timur, also known as Tamerlane, ruled from 1370 to 1405. After defeating his rivals, he consolidated his power within ten years across Central and Western Asia, Persia and Mesopotamia.

Timur appointed several Persians to important positions in the state administration. Persians also played a prominent role in artistic life.

After Timur’s death in 1405, his sons and grandsons competed for the throne and supreme power. Their rivalry repeatedly plunged the empire into civil war. Most governors declared their territories independent, while Timur’s former state also lost lands along its western borders.

Timur Lenk

The restoration of Persian great-power status:

Although the country suffered from war and widespread chaos, Timur’s empire remained partly intact until the 16th century. Then a Shiite dynasty with Azeri-Kurdish roots, the Safavids, began to rise.

At first, the Safavids extended their influence across present-day Azerbaijan and northern Iran, with Tabriz as their centre. Timur’s successors gradually lost ground. In 1502, the Safavid leader Shah Ismail I, who ruled from 1501 to 1524, declared himself ruler of Persia.

After defeating his internal rivals, Ismail began to expand his territory. He advanced into Afghanistan and conquered Mesopotamia and eastern Anatolia. The Ottoman Turks soon took the latter two regions from Persia.

During Ismail’s reign, Shiite religious policy became firmly established. Its aim was to spread and secure the acceptance of Shiite Islam throughout the empire.

Portrait of Shah Ismail I, by an unknown artist.

Shah Abbas I, also known as Abbas the Great, ruled from 1587 to 1629. He came to power as an ambitious conqueror. In the east, he fought the Uzbeks. In the west, he faced the Ottoman Empire and temporarily recaptured Baghdad and parts of the Caucasus.

He also turned south to limit Portuguese and British colonial influence in the Persian Gulf. His forces expelled the Portuguese from Bahrain and the British from Hormuz. At the same time, the shah established relations with the British and Dutch East India Companies.

Abbas strengthened Safavid rule in Persia and turned the country into a major regional power. He also made Persia an attractive destination by launching large-scale building projects. His policies helped travel and tourism flourish.

After his death in 1629, his successors could not govern with the same commitment or ability. Later shahs gradually fell into excessive spending and luxury.

Shah Abbas I and his court.

By the early 18th century, the Persian army and central government had become severely weakened. Rebellions and foreign attacks further destabilised the country. Two major powers saw an opportunity to expand their influence and gain territory: the Ottoman Empire and the Russian Empire.

Persia’s former strength was restored by Nader Shah of the Afsharid dynasty, who ruled from 1736 to 1747. In the east, he defeated Afghan forces seeking independence. In the west, he fought the Ottomans. At first, he restored the Safavids to power, but later removed them and ruled Persia himself.

Nader reformed the army and used its new strength to expand eastwards. His forces invaded the Mughal Empire and sacked Delhi.

However, Nader built a harsh and oppressive regime. This damaged his popularity and eventually contributed to his death. In 1747, he was assassinated.

His death plunged Persia into another period of chaos. Rival warlords fought for control, and the resulting civil war weakened the state. In the east, former Persian territories broke away and formed independent states such as Khiva, Bukhara and Afghanistan.

Portrait of Nader Shah.

Caught between great powers:

The civil war ended only in the late 18th century, when the Qajar dynasty rose to power and restored peace in Persia. While the rival Ottoman Empire appeared to be weakening, Russia grew steadily stronger. During the 19th century, it pursued an active expansionist policy across Inner Asia.

This expansion soon clashed with Persian interests in the Caucasus. Moscow turned its attention to Azerbaijan, which was then under Persian control. War broke out between Russia and Persia in 1804. Control of the Caucasus depended on the outcome. Persia lost the war in 1813. Under the peace agreement, it gave up major territories, including Azerbaijan, eastern Georgia and Dagestan. These lands became part of the Russian Empire. Tehran did not accept the defeat. With some British encouragement, Persia launched another campaign in 1826 to recover the lost territories. The attempt failed badly. Persia lost again in 1828, and Russian forces even occupied Tabriz.

The new peace treaty cost Persia further northern territories, including Armenia and Nakhchivan. Russian political influence within Persia also continued to grow. Persian power declined in western Central Asia, while Britain expanded in India and southern Arabia. This led to growing rivalry between the British and Russian Empires over Central Asia. Persia found itself caught in the middle of this struggle. Britain wanted to preserve an independent Afghanistan that would serve British interests. Such a state could act as a buffer between British India and Russia.

Persia still held considerable influence in Afghanistan. However, by the early 19th century, Persian policy had become increasingly dependent on Russian interests. Britain feared that Russian influence might therefore spread into Afghanistan as well. Persia also had territorial ambitions of its own. It repeatedly tried to gain control of Herat in western Afghanistan, but without success.

In 1856, with Russian encouragement, Persian forces finally occupied Herat. Britain responded by declaring war on Persia. Around six months later, British forces defeated the Persians and concluded a peace agreement. Persia withdrew from Afghanistan. British influence then grew steadily in eastern Persia and began to rival Russia’s sphere of influence in the north.

Nasir al-Din Shah.

Nasir al-Din Shah ruled from 1848 to 1896. His nearly half-century reign brought major efforts to modernise the Persian Empire. After a state bankruptcy soon after his accession, the government introduced broad social and economic reforms. Western science, technology and teaching methods gained increasing influence. In 1851, Persia opened its first modern institution of higher education in Tehran.

Nasir al-Din Shah also tried to balance relations between Russia and the United Kingdom. He hoped this would strengthen Persia’s independence, but the policy brought limited success. Before the war of 1856, he travelled through Europe to present Persia as an ancient yet civilised state. By the turn of the century, however, Persian sovereignty had weakened significantly. The country became trapped between Russian and British ambitions and could not escape their rivalry. Persia was later drawn into the First World War and became a theatre of conflict.

The 20th century therefore began with serious challenges for Tehran.