- Karim Khan
Karim Khan Zand, ( _fa. کریم خان زند), (c. 1705- 1779), also called Karim Khan the Great (Bozorg), was the ruler and
de facto Shah ofIran from 1760 until 1779. He founded theZand dynasty . He never styled himself as "shah " or king, and instead used the title "Vakil ar-Ra'aayaa" ("The representative of the peasants").Karim Khan was one of the generals of
Nader Shah Afshar . After Nader Shah's death in 1747, Persia fell into a state of civil war. At that time, Karim Khan,Abdolfath Khan andAli Mardan Khan reached an agreement to divide the country among themselves and give the throne toIsmail III . However, the cooperation ended after Ali Mardan Khan invaded Isfahan and killed Abdolfath Khan. Subsequently, Karim Khan killed Ali Mardan Khan and gained control over all of Iran exceptKhorasan , respecting Shah Rukh, grandson of Nader Shah. Nevertheless, he did not adopt the title of "Shah" for himself, preferring the title, "Vakil e-Ra'aayaa" ("Advocate of the People").While Karim was ruler, Persia recovered from the devastation of 40 years of war, providing the war ravaged country with a renewed sense of tranquility, security, peace, and prosperity.During his reign,relations with Britain were restored, and he allowed the East India Company to have a trading post in southern Iran. He made Shiraz his capital and ordered the construction of several architectural projects there. Following Karim Khan's death, civil war broke out once more, and none of his descendants were able to rule the country as effectively as he had. The last of these descendants,
Lotf Ali Khan , was killed byAgha Mohammad Khan , and theQajar dynasty came to power.To this day, he has a reputation as one of the most just and able rulers in Iranian history. A wealth of tales and anecdotes portray Karim Khan as a compassionate ruler, genuinely concerned with the welfare of his subjects.
He is buried at
Pars Museum of Shiraz .References
Perry, John R. "Karīm Khān Zand: a history of Iran, 1747-1779" University of Chicago Press, 1979ISBN 978-0226660981 and One World Publications, 2006 ISBN 978-1851684359
s-ttl|title=
Shah of Persia
years=1760-1779succession box| before=Azad Khan Afghan | title=Ruler of Azerbaijan (as part of Persia)| years=1756–1779| after=Abol Fath Khan Zandsuccession box| before=Mohammad Hasan Khan Qajar | title=Ruler of Mazandaran (as part of Persia)| years=1757–1779| after=Abol Fath Khan Zand
###@@@KEYEND@@@###External links
* [http://www.iranchamber.com/history/zand/zand.php History of Iran: Zand Dynasty]
* [http://www.qajarpages.org/karimkhan.html Karim Khan's portrait]
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