Rostom ( ka, როსტომი) or Rustam Khan ( fa, خان جودکي; died 8 March 1722) was a
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 ...
prince
A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...
, member of the
Bagratid House of Mukhrani
The House of Mukhrani is a Georgian princely family that is a branch of the former royal dynasty of Bagrationi, from which it sprang early in the 16th century, receiving in appanage the domain of Mukhrani, in the Kingdom of Kartli. The family — ...
of
Kartli
Kartli ( ka, ქართლი ) is a historical region in central-to-eastern Georgia traversed by the river Mtkvari (Kura), on which Georgia's capital, Tbilisi, is situated. Known to the Classical authors as Iberia, Kartli played a crucial role ...
, and a general in the service of the
Safavid dynasty
The Safavid dynasty (; fa, دودمان صفوی, Dudmâne Safavi, ) was one of Iran's most significant ruling dynasties reigning from 1501 to 1736. Their rule is often considered the beginning of modern Iranian history, as well as one of th ...
of
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
. He was killed by the
Afghan
Afghan may refer to:
*Something of or related to Afghanistan, a country in Southern-Central Asia
*Afghans, people or citizens of Afghanistan, typically of any ethnicity
** Afghan (ethnonym), the historic term applied strictly to people of the Pas ...
rebels at the climactic
battle of Gulnabad
The Battle of Gulnabad (Sunday, March 8, 1722) was fought between the military forces from Hotaki Dynasty and the army of the Safavid Empire. It further cemented the eventual fall of the Safavid dynasty, which had been declining for decades.
Af ...
.
Family background
Rostom was a natural son of
Levan, the regent of Kartli, by an unknown concubine. He was a half-brother of three monarchs of Kartli—
Kaikhosro,
Vakhtang VI
Vakhtang VI ( ka, ვახტანგ VI), also known as Vakhtang the Scholar, Vakhtang the Lawgiver and Ḥosaynqolī Khan ( fa, حسینقلی خان, translit=Hoseyn-Qoli Xān) (September 15, 1675 – March 26, 1737), was a Georgian ...
, and
Jesse
Jesse may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Jesse (biblical figure), father of David in the Bible.
* Jesse (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters
* Jesse (surname), a list of people
Music
* ''Jesse'' ( ...
—and the
catholicos patriarch of the
Georgian Orthodox Church
The Apostolic Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს სამოციქულო ავტოკეფალური მართლმადიდებელი ეკლესია, tr), commonly ...
,
Domentius IV. Rostom's career, like those of many of his relatives, was shaped by the political hegemony of Safavid Iran over Kartli. He spent many years far from his homeland as a member of the Safavid élite to which he was also related by kinship: he was married to a daughter of
Fath 'Ali Khan Daghestani, who served as
grand vizier
Grand vizier ( fa, وزيرِ اعظم, vazîr-i aʾzam; ota, صدر اعظم, sadr-ı aʾzam; tr, sadrazam) was the title of the effective head of government of many sovereign states in the Islamic world. The office of Grand Vizier was first ...
(chief minister) of Iran from 1716 to 1720.
Safavid general
Rostom's appointments in the Safavid service included being ''
darugha
''Darugha'' ( ba, даруга, tt-Cyrl, даруга, translit=daruğa, from Mongol: ''daru-'', 'to press, to seal') was a territorial subdivision in the Mongol Empire. A ''darugha'' was ruled by a ''darughachi''.
Later, the term was used for th ...
'' (prefect) of the capital city of
Isfahan
Isfahan ( fa, اصفهان, Esfahân ), from its Achaemenid empire, ancient designation ''Aspadana'' and, later, ''Spahan'' in Sassanian Empire, middle Persian, rendered in English as ''Ispahan'', is a major city in the Greater Isfahan Regio ...
in 1709, ''
khan'' (governor) of
Kerman
Kerman ( fa, كرمان, Kermân ; also romanization of Persian, romanized as Kermun and Karmana), known in ancient times as the satrapy of Carmania, is the capital city of Kerman Province, Iran. At the 2011 census, its population was 821,394, in ...
in 1717, and ''
qullar-aqasi'' (commander) of the shah's élite
ghulam
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 lesser ...
regiments in 1717. In this latter capacity he served through the Afghan revolts, which had taken lives of Rostom's uncle,
George XI (Gurgin Khan), his half-brother, Kaikhosro, and a cousin,
Alexander
Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history.
Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...
.
Rostom played a prominent role in the battle with the Afghan rebels led by
Mahmud Hotaki
Shāh Mahmūd Hotak, ( Pashto/ Dari: ), also known as Shāh Mahmūd Ghiljī () (lived 1697 – April 22, 1725), was an Afghan ruler of the Hotak dynasty who overthrew the heavily declined Safavid dynasty to briefly become the king of Persia fr ...
at Gulnabad, close to Isfahan, on 8 March 1722. The grand vizier, Muhammad-Quli-Khan Shamlu, urged patience and avoidance of a pitched battle before putting the capital's defences in a state of proper readiness. Rostom, being in command of the Safavid right wing, went ahead with an attack and successfully charged the Afghan left wing. In the meantime, the
Arab
The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...
cavalry of the Safavid army, tempted into looting the Afghan baggage train, detached from the fighting and the grand vizier also failed to advance with his main troops. Mahmud had his forces regrouped and surrounded Rostom's men, who fought with desperate courage until completely annihilated. On his retreat, Rostom fell off when his horse stumbled in the mud. An Afghan soldier hit him with a
flail
A flail is an agricultural tool used for threshing, the process of separating grains from their husks.
It is usually made from two or more large sticks attached by a short chain; one stick is held and swung, causing the other (the swipple) to st ...
and others repeatedly speared him with their lances, killing him.
The battle occasioned the downfall of the Safavid dynasty. In vain did the beleaguered shah
Sultan Husayn urge Vakhtang VI of Kartli to come to his aid. After a
six-month siege, Isfahan fell to Mahmud's army and the Afghan chieftain took over the shah's throne.
See also
*
List of Safavid governors of Kerman
Safavid governors of Kerman (1502–1736)
Sources
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Safavid governors of Kerman
Iran-related lists
Lists of office-holders in Iran ...
References
Sources
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rostom, Prince of Kartli
House of Mukhrani
Year of birth unknown
1722 deaths
Georgian princes
Iranian people of Georgian descent
17th-century people from Georgia (country)
18th-century people from Georgia (country)
Illegitimate children of Levan of Kartli
Safavid governors of Kerman
Safavid prefects of Isfahan
Qollar-aghasi