Aliqoli Khan ( fa, علیقلی بیگ کرجی d. 1667) was a
Safavid
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 conside ...
official, ''
gholam
Ghulam ( ar, غلام, ) is an Arabic word meaning ''servant'', ''assistant'', ''boy'', or ''youth''. It is used to describe young servants in paradise. It is also used to refer to slave-soldiers in the Abbasid, Ottoman, Safavid and to a lesse ...
'', and high-ranking military commander of
Georgian
Georgian may refer to:
Common meanings
* Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country)
** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group
** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians
**Georgian scripts, three scrip ...
origin, who served during the reign of three consecutive Safavid kings (''
shah
Shah (; fa, شاه, , ) is a royal title that was historically used by the leading figures of Iranian monarchies.Yarshater, EhsaPersia or Iran, Persian or Farsi, ''Iranian Studies'', vol. XXII no. 1 (1989) It was also used by a variety of ...
s'');
Safi (r. 1629–1642),
Abbas II (r. 1642–1666) and
Suleiman I (r. 1666–1694)
A member of the
Saakadze clan, he was a son of
Bijan Beg and a brother to
Rostam Khan (d. 1644) and Isa Khan (d. 1654). Known for his "remarkable career", which spanned some fifty years, Aliqoli Beg, the future
khan, held the high posts of chancellor/chief justice (''divanbegi''), commander-in-chief (''
sepahsalar-e Iran'') and governor (''beglarbeg'') of the
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 ...
Province.
In 1654, Aliqoli Khan fell out of favor with then incumbent king Abbas II. Known for being the most capable Safavid ruler after his great-grandfather
Abbas I (r. 1588–1629), Abbas II effectively tackled many issues that had risen as a result of Safi's reign, including in the military administration. Following complaints by soldiers, Aliqoli Khan's conduct was examined by Abbas II; as a result, he was fired on the spot. Later, during the reign of Abbas II's son and successor Suleiman I, Aliqoli Khan was rehabilitated, and Suleiman I reappointed him as the ''sepahsalar-e Iran''.
According to the French traveller
Jean Chardin
Jean Chardin (16 November 1643 – 5 January 1713), born Jean-Baptiste Chardin, and also known as Sir John Chardin, was a French jeweller and traveller whose ten-volume book ''The Travels of Sir John Chardin'' is regarded as one of the finest ...
, Aliqoli Khan was the ''de facto'' ruler of the Safavid Empire by the time of his death in 1667. He was married to a daughter of
Imam-Quli Khan.
Sources
*
*
*
*
1667 deaths
Shia Muslims from Georgia (country)
Iranian people of Georgian descent
Safavid governors of Azerbaijan
Commanders-in-chief of Safavid Iran
Nobility of Georgia (country)
Safavid ghilman
Year of birth missing
17th-century people of Safavid Iran
{{Georgia-stub