Farahabad (; "abode of joy") was a palace and city built by

Shah Abbas I Abbas I (; 27 January 1571 – 19 January 1629), commonly known as Abbas the Great (), was the fifth Safavid shah of Iran from 1588 to 1629. The third son of Shah Mohammad Khodabanda, he is generally considered one of the most important rulers ...

Mazandaran Mazandaran Province (; ) is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. Its capital is the city of Sari, Iran, Sari. Located along the southern coast of the Caspian Sea and in the adjacent Central Alborz mountain range and Hyrcanian forests, it is border ...

province,

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

. It was built on a site formerly known as Tahan and linked to the town of

Sari A sari (also called sharee, saree or sadi)The name of the garment in various regional languages include: * * * * * * * * * * * * * * is a drape (cloth) and a women's garment in the Indian subcontinent. It consists of an un-sti ...

, away, by a stone causeway. The shah used the city as his winter capital, and he died there in 1629. Shah Abbas was fond of the province of Mazandaran, the birthplace of his mother

Khayr al-Nisa Begum Khayr al-Nisa Begum (; known under the royal title ''Mahd-i Ulya'' (), "the highest-ranked cradle"; died 26 July 1579) was an Iranian Mazandarani princess from the Marashi dynasty, who was the wife of the Safavid shah (king) Mohammad Khodabanda ...

. Work began on the palace in 1611–12. Situated on top of a hill with a view of the sea and the

Elburz Mountains The Alborz ( ) range, also spelled as Alburz, Elburz or Elborz, is a mountain range in northern Iran that stretches from the border of Azerbaijan along the western and entire southern coast of the Caspian Sea and finally runs northeast and merge ...

, it was decorated with murals by

Reza Abbasi Reza Abbasi (), also known as Aqa Reza ( – 1635), was the leading Persian miniature, Persian miniaturist of the Isfahan School during the later Safavid period, spending most of his career working for Shah Abbas I. He is considered to be the l ...

and goldwork by a German craftsman, and surrounded by gardens in the Persian style. The city grew around the palace. In 1618, the Italian traveller Pietro della Valle visited Farahabad and compared the length of the walls to that of

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

. The population was made up of peoples resettled from other regions of Abbas' empire. According to della Valle (who had spoken to the shah himself) they included 40,000

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...

families, 12,000 Georgian families, 7,000

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

families and 25,000

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

families from the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...

. The Jewish merchants were given privileges similar to the Armenians in

New Julfa New Julfa (, ''Now Jolfā'', or , ''Jolfâ-ye Now''; , ''Nor Jugha'') is the Armenians, Armenian quarter of Isfahan, Iran, located along the south bank of the Zayanderud. Established and named after the Gülüstan, Nakhchivan, older city of Julf ...

, Isfahan. Abbas hoped they would help promote Iranian commerce, especially the

silk Silk is a natural fiber, natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be weaving, woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is most commonly produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoon (silk), c ...

and

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink made from Fermentation in winemaking, fermented fruit. Yeast in winemaking, Yeast consumes the sugar in the fruit and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Wine is most often made f ...

trades. Abbas' successors neglected Farahabad. The climate in the summer was unhealthy and

malarial Malaria is a Mosquito-borne disease, mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects vertebrates and ''Anopheles'' mosquitoes. Human malaria causes Signs and symptoms, symptoms that typically include fever, Fatigue (medical), fatigue, vomitin ...

. A large number of the immigrant residents died of epidemics, particularly

malaria Malaria is a Mosquito-borne disease, mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects vertebrates and ''Anopheles'' mosquitoes. Human malaria causes Signs and symptoms, symptoms that typically include fever, Fatigue (medical), fatigue, vomitin ...

. Many Armenians and Georgians abandoned the city and returned to their native lands. In 1668 the Russian rebel

cossacks The Cossacks are a predominantly East Slavic languages, East Slavic Eastern Christian people originating in the Pontic–Caspian steppe of eastern Ukraine and southern Russia. Cossacks played an important role in defending the southern borde ...

led by

Stepan Razin Stepan Timofeyevich Razin (, ; c. 1630 – ), known as Stenka Razin ( ), was a Don Cossack leader who led a major uprising against the nobility and tsarist bureaucracy in southern Russia in 1670–1671. Early life Razin's father, Timofey Ra ...

sacked Farahabad. Today little remains of the town. The main remains today are the restored main mosque, built to a similar ground plan like the Masjed-e Shah in

Isfahan Isfahan or Esfahan ( ) is a city in the Central District (Isfahan County), Central District of Isfahan County, Isfahan province, Iran. It is the capital of the province, the county, and the district. It is located south of Tehran. The city ...

, the ruins of the royal palace and parts of a bridge over the Tajandrud river which belonged to the royal road connecting Isfahan with the palaces of the Caspian region. Farahabad was also the name of a palace and gardens built by Shah Sultan Husayn near

References

Citations

Bibliography

*H. Nahavandi, Y. Bomati, ''Shah Abbas, empereur de Perse (1587-1629)'' (Perrin, Paris, 1998) pp. 222–226 *Roger Savory ''Iran under the Safavids'' (Cambridge University Press, 2007 reissue) pp. 96–100 {{Cite map , author=((OpenStreetMap contributors)) , url=https://www.openstreetmap.org/?mlat=36.727222&mlon=51.007222&zoom=15#map=15/36.7272/51.0072 , website=

OpenStreetMap OpenStreetMap (abbreviated OSM) is a free, Open Database License, open geographic database, map database updated and maintained by a community of volunteers via open collaboration. Contributors collect data from surveying, surveys, trace from Ae ...

, title=Shah Abbas Mosque, Sari County , date=17 March 2024 , access-date=17 March 2024 Sari County Populated places in Sari County Palaces in Iran Buildings and structures in Mazandaran province 1610s establishments in Iran Tourist attractions in Mazandaran province 1612 establishments in Asia