Abu'l-Fath Khan Bakhtiari ( fa, ابوالفتح خان بختیاری, Abōlfatḥ Khān-e Bakhtīārī ) was the Bakhtiari supreme chieftain (''ilkhani'') of the Haft Lang branch.

Biography

He was the governor 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 ...

at the time of the death of

Nader Shah Nader Shah Afshar ( fa, نادر شاه افشار; also known as ''Nader Qoli Beyg'' or ''Tahmāsp Qoli Khan'' ) (August 1688 – 19 June 1747) was the founder of the Afsharid dynasty of Iran and one of the most powerful rulers in Iranian h ...

(r. 1736–1747) in 1747—the latter's successors,

Adil Shah Ali-qoli Khan ( fa, علیقلی‌خان), commonly known by his regnal title Adel Shah (also spelled Adil; , "the Just King") was the second shah of Afsharid Iran, ruling from 1747 to 1748. He was the nephew and successor of Nader Shah (), th ...

, Ebrahim Shah, and

Shahrokh Shah Shahrokh Mirza ( fa, شاهرُخ‌میرزا; 1734–1796), better known by his dynastic title of Shahrokh Shah () was the Afsharid king (shah) of the western part of Khorasan (corresponding to the present-day Khorasan Province) from 1750 to 17 ...

, continued to acknowledge Abu'l-Fath's post as governor of the city. When the Chahar Lang chieftain

Ali Mardan Khan Bakhtiari Ali Mardan Khan Bakhtiari (Luri/ fa, علی‌مردان‌خان بختیاری, Alī-Mardān Khān-e Bakhtīārī ) was the Bakhtiari supreme chieftain (''ilkhani'') of the Chahar Lang branch, and major contender for supremacy in western Iran a ...

and the

Zand Zand may refer to: * Zend, a class of exegetical commentaries on Zoroastrian scripture * Zand District, an administrative subdivision of Iran * Zand Boulevard, in Shiraz, Iran * Z And, a variable star As a tribal/clan and dynastic name * Zand tr ...

chieftain

Karim Khan Mohammad Karim Khan Zand ( fa, محمدکریم خان زند, Mohammad Karīm Khân-e Zand; ) was the founder of the Zand Dynasty, ruling from 1751 to 1779. He ruled all of Iran (Persia) except for Khorasan. He also ruled over some of the Cau ...

stormed the gates of Isfahan in May 1750—Abu'l-Fath and other prominent residents assembled to protect the fortress of the city, but agreed to surrender and collaborate with them after Ali Mardan's reasonable proposals. Abu'l-Fath, together with Ali Mardan and Karim Khan, formed an alliance in western Iran under the cover of restoring 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 ...

, appointing a 17 year old Safavid prince, Abu Turab, as a puppet ruler—on June 29, Abu Turab was declared

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 ...

, and assumed the name of

Ismail III Abu Torab ( fa, ابوتراب), better known by his dynastic name of Ismail III (), was a Safavid prince, who reigned as a figurehead under the authority of Ali Mardan Khan Bakhtiari briefly from 1750 to 1751, and then under the Zand ruler Karim ...

. Ali Mardan then took the title of '' Vakil-e

daulat Daulat may refer to: *Daulat (painter), Mughal painter * ''Daulat'' (1949 film) * ''Daulat'' (1982 film) * ''Daulat'' (2020 film) *Daulat Beg Oldi, Indian military base in Ladakh People with the given name *Daulat Khan Lodi, 16th-century governor ...

'' ("deputy of the state") as the head of the administration, while Abu'l-Fath maintained his post as governor of Isfahan, and Karim Khan was appointed commander (''

sardar Sardar, also spelled as Sardaar/Sirdar ( fa, سردار, , 'commander', literally 'headmaster'), is a title of royalty and nobility that was originally used to denote princes, noblemen, chiefs, kings and other aristocrats. It has also been u ...

'') of the army, and was given the task of conquering the rest of Iran. However, a few months later, while Karim Khan was on an expedition in

Kurdistan Kurdistan ( ku, کوردستان ,Kurdistan ; lit. "land of the Kurds") or Greater Kurdistan is a roughly defined geo-cultural territory in Western Asia wherein the Kurds form a prominent majority population and the Kurdish culture, Kurdish la ...

, the ambitious Ali Mardan had Abu'l-Fath deposed and killed.

References

Sources

* * * * {{s-end Bakhtiari people 18th-century Iranian politicians Afsharid governors Governors of Isfahan 1750 deaths Year of birth unknown