Gharib Shah

Sultan Kalanjar (Persian: کالنجار سلطان‎), better known as Gharib Shah (غریب شاه), was an Iranian aristocrat who rebelled against Safavid rule in 1629/30, but was defeated and later executed.

Biography
Map of northern Iran.

A native of Gilan, Gharib Shah was a descendant of the Kia'i dynasty, and his original name was Sultan Kalanjar, but when he in 1629/30 rebelled against Safavid rule in his home-province, he took the name of Adil Shah, while he was called Gharib Shah by his enemies.[1] Before Gharib Shah rebelled, he had received the blessing of a certain Pir Shams-i Gulgiluva'i.[2]

During his rebellion, he was joined by various descendants of dynasties of Mazandaran and Gilan.[2] After having declared himself as the ruler of Gilan, he occupied the provinces two major cities, Lahijan and Rasht.[1] When Gharib's rebellion spread to Mazandaran, the rebels sacked Shah Abbas' warehouses, selling off the royal silk.[1] Two hundred kharvari were lost or stolen.[1]

According to the Tarikh-i Gilan, by Abd al-Fattah Fumani, Gilan's inhabitants lost over 300,000 tumans, due to this rebellion.[1] Consequently, Gharib Shah was eventually defeated by a group of Safavid governors,[1] which included Saru Taqi,[3] the governor of Gilan and Mazandaran. Gharib Shah, along with 2,000 of his supporters, were then executed at Isfahan.[3] However, a supporter of Gharib Shah who claimed that he was his brother, rebelled in Mazandaran.[3]

References
  1. Matthee 1999, p. 122.
  2. Babae 2004, p. 153.
  3. Newman 2008, p. 75.

Sources
  • Blow, David (2009). Shah Abbas: The Ruthless King Who became an Iranian Legend. London, UK: I. B. Tauris & Co. Ltd. ISBN 978-1-84511-989-8. LCCN 2009464064.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Matthee, Rudi (2011). Persia in Crisis: Safavid Decline and the Fall of Isfahan. I.B.Tauris. pp. 1–371. ISBN 978-0857731814.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Babaie, Sussan (2004). Slaves of the Shah: New Elites of Safavid Iran. I.B.Tauris. pp. 1–218. ISBN 9781860647215.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Newman, Andrew J. (2008). Safavid Iran: Rebirth of a Persian Empire. I.B.Tauris. pp. 1–281. ISBN 9780857716613.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Matthee, Rudi (1999). The Politics of Trade in Safavid Iran: Silk for Silver, 1600-1730. Cambridge University Press. pp. 1–290. ISBN 0521641314.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
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