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159-502: Because of generations of adaptations to its desert surroundings, Yazd has a unique Persian architecture . It is nicknamed the "City of Windcatchers " ( شهر بادگیرها Shahr-e Badgirha ) from its many examples. It is also very well known for its Zoroastrian fire temples , ab anbars (cisterns), qanats (underground channels), yakhchals (coolers), Persian handicrafts , handwoven cloth ( Persian termeh ), silk weaving, Persian cotton candy , and its time-honored confectioneries. Yazd

318-718: A coup d'état , becoming the effective ruler of Iran. In 1923, Ahmad Shah went into exile in Europe. Reza Khan induced the Majles to depose Ahmad Shah in October 1925 and to exclude the Qajar dynasty permanently. Reza Khan was subsequently proclaimed monarch as Reza Shah Pahlavi , reigning from 1925 to 1941. Ahmad Shah died on February 21, 1930, in Neuilly-sur-Seine , France. Iran was divided into five large provinces and

477-479: A Russian possession ever since. Out of the greater part of the territory, six separate nations would be formed through the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, namely Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, and three generally unrecognized republics Abkhazia , Artsakh and South Ossetia claimed by Georgia. Lastly and equally important, as a result of Russia's imposing of the two treaties, It also decisively parted

636-582: A century. The Iranian monarchy became more of a symbolic concept in which Russian diplomats were themselves powerbrokers in Iran and the monarchy was dependent on British and Russian loans for funds. In 1879, the establishment of the Cossack Brigade by Russian officers gave the Russian Empire influence over the modernization of the Qajar army. This influence was especially pronounced because

795-431: A considerable ceramics and construction materials industry and unique confectionery and jewellery industries. A significant portion of the population is also employed in other industries including agriculture, dairy, metal works, and machine manufacturing. There are a number of companies involved in the growing information technology industry, mainly manufacturing primary materials such as cables and connectors. Currently Yazd

954-683: A continuity that, although temporarily distracted by internal political conflicts or foreign invasion, nonetheless has achieved an unmistakable style. Arthur Pope , a 20th-century scholar of Persian architecture, described it in these terms: "there are no trivial buildings; even garden pavilions have nobility and dignity, and the humblest caravanserais generally have charm. In expressiveness and communicativity, most Persian buildings are lucid, even eloquent. The combination of intensity and simplicity of form provides immediacy, while ornament and, often, subtle proportions reward sustained observation." According to scholars Nader Ardalan and Laleh Bakhtiar ,

1113-681: A decade later, in violation of the Gulistan Treaty, the Russians invaded Iran's Erivan Khanate . This sparked the final bout of hostilities between the two; the Russo-Persian War of 1826–1828 . It ended even more disastrously for Qajar Iran with temporary occupation of Tabriz and the signing of the Treaty of Turkmenchay in 1828, acknowledging Russian sovereignty over the entire South Caucasus and Dagestan, as well as therefore

1272-484: A distant glimpse of what contributions Persians made to the art of building. The imposing Sassanid castle built at Derbent , Dagestan (now a part of Russia) is one of the most extant and living examples of splendid Sassanid Iranian architecture. Since 2003, the Sassanid castle has been listed on Russia's UNESCO World Heritage list. According to Mohammad Karim Pirnia, the ancient architecture of Iran can be divided into

1431-685: A few hours, the Iranian king Agha Mohammad Khan was in full control of the Georgian capital. The Iranian army marched back laden with spoil and carrying off many thousands of captives. By this, after the conquest of Tbilisi and being in effective control of eastern Georgia , Agha Mohammad was formally crowned Shah in 1796 in the Mughan plain . As The Cambridge History of Iran notes; "Russia's client, Georgia, had been punished, and Russia's prestige, damaged." Erekle II returned to Tbilisi to rebuild

1590-527: A half years Amir Kabir initiated important reforms in virtually all sectors of society. Government expenditure was slashed, and a distinction was made between the private and public purses. The instruments of central administration were overhauled, and Amir Kabir assumed responsibility for all areas of the bureaucracy. There were Bahai revolts and a revolt in Khorasan at the time but were crushed under Amir Kabir. Foreign interference in Iran's domestic affairs

1749-546: A majority once again in one part of historic Armenia. Fath Ali Shah's reign saw increased diplomatic contacts with the West and the beginning of intense European diplomatic rivalries over Iran. His grandson Mohammad Shah , who fell under the Russian influence and made two unsuccessful attempts to capture Herat , succeeded him in 1834. When Mohammad Shah died in 1848 the succession passed to his son Naser al-Din , who proved to be

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1908-455: A minority of about 20%. As a result of the Treaty of Gulistan (1813) and the Treaty of Turkmenchay (1828), Iran was forced to cede Iranian Armenia (which also constituted the present-day Armenia ), to the Russians. After the Russian administration took hold of Iranian Armenia, the ethnic make-up shifted, and thus for the first time in more than four centuries, ethnic Armenians started to form

2067-574: A more sophisticated form of the pointed arch , is first attested during the 9th century in Abbasid monuments at Samarra in Iraq, such as the Qasr al-Ashiq palace. It became widely used in later Iranian architecture. Samarra also saw the appearance of new decorative styles, which rendered the earlier vegetal motifs of Sasanian and Byzantine traditions into more abstract and stylized forms, as exemplified by

2226-691: A number of ornate brick towers and minarets which have survived as stand-alone structures. Their exact functions are unclear. They include the Tower of Mas'ud III near Ghazna (early 12th century) and the Minaret of Jam built by the Ghurids (late 12th century), also in present-day Afghanistan. As the Great Seljuks declined in the 12th century, various other dynasties (often also of Turkic origin) formed smaller states and empires. In Iran and Central Asia,

2385-417: A picture of its classical architecture. The Achaemenids built on a grand scale. The artists and materials they used were brought in from practically all territories of what was then the largest state in the world. Pasargadae set the standard: its city was laid out in an extensive park with bridges, gardens, colonnaded palaces and open column pavilions. Pasargadae along with Susa and Persepolis expressed

2544-494: A pivotal role in further Iranian history, as they formed most of the ranks of the Persian Cossack Brigade , which was also to be established in the late 19th century. The initial ranks of the brigade would be entirely composed of Circassians and other Caucasian Muhajirs. This brigade would prove decisive in the following decades to come in Qajar history. Furthermore, the 1828 Treaty of Turkmenchay included

2703-635: A pointed, bulging profile, sometimes fluted or ribbed. Qajar Iran The Guarded Domains of Iran , alternatively the Sublime State of Iran and commonly called Qajar Iran , Qajar Persia or the Qajar Empire , was the Iranian state under the rule of the Qajar dynasty , which was of Turkic origin, specifically from the Qajar tribe , from 1789 to 1925. The Qajar family took full control of Iran in 1794, deposing Lotf 'Ali Khan ,

2862-470: A series of spaces which, since most are near important urban monuments, are used at other times as hubs from which visitors can tour the main spots in the city. There is also a sizable population of Zoroastrians in the city. In 2013, Sepanta Niknam was elected to the city council of Yazd and became the first Zoroastrian councillor in Iran. The Pir-e-Naraki sanctuary is one of the important pilgrimage destinations for Zoroastrians, where an annual congregation

3021-458: A sign of a great man's ideas for the future of his country. These reforms antagonized various notables who had been excluded from the government. They regarded the Amir Kabir as a social upstart and a threat to their interests, and they formed a coalition against him, in which the queen mother was active. She convinced the young shah that Amir Kabir wanted to usurp the throne. In October 1851,

3180-833: A square base. Around the same time, between the late 10th century and the early 13th century, the Turkic Qarakhanids ruled in Transoxiana and executed many impressive constructions in Bukhara and Samarkand (present-day Uzbekistan ). Among the known Qarakhanid monuments are the great congregational mosque in Bukhara, of which only the Kalyan Minaret (c. 1127) survives, the nearby Minaret of Vabkent (1141), and several Qarakhanid mausoleums with monumental façades, such as those in Uzgen (present-day Kyrgyzstan ) from

3339-580: A town near the ruins of the ancient city of Rayy . In 1796, he was formally crowned as shah . In 1797, Agha Mohammad Khan was assassinated in Shusha , the capital of Karabakh Khanate , and was succeeded by his nephew, Fath-Ali Shah Qajar . In 1744, Nader Shah had granted the kingship of the Kartli and Kakheti to Teimuraz II and his son Erekle II (Heraclius II) respectively, as a reward for their loyalty. When Nader Shah died in 1747, they capitalized on

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3498-539: A variety of traditions and experience. Without sudden innovations, and despite the repeated trauma of invasions and cultural shocks, it developed a recognizable style distinct from other regions of the Muslim world. Its virtues are "a marked feeling for form and scale; structural inventiveness, especially in vault and dome construction; a genius for decoration with a freedom and success not rivaled in any other architecture". Traditional Persian architecture has maintained

3657-655: A wall of carved stucco in the Mausoleum of Pir-i Bakran in Linjan (near Isfahan), and a mihrab added in 1310 to the Jameh Mosque of Isfahan. The latter is one of the masterpieces of Islamic sculptural art from this era, featuring multiple layers of deeply-carved vegetal motifs, along with a carved inscription. Various mosques were built or expanded during this period, usually following the four-iwan plan for congregational mosques (e.g. at Varamin and Kirman ), except in

3816-535: A way to foster trade and assert Seljuk authority in the countryside. They typically consisted of a building with a fortified exterior appearance, monumental entrance portal, and interior courtyard surrounded by various halls, including iwans. Some notable examples, only partly preserved, are the caravanserais of Ribat-i Malik (c. 1068–1080) and Ribat-i Sharaf (12th century) in Transoxiana and Khorasan, respectively. The Seljuks also continued to build "tower tombs", an Iranian building type from earlier periods, such as

3975-402: A yearly precipitation amount that is less than 60 millimetres (2.4 in), and has only 11.5 days of precipitation. Summer temperatures are frequently above 40 °C (104 °F) in blazing sunshine with low humidity, on 35.3 days per year the maximum daily temperature reaches or exceeds 40 °C (104 °F). Even at night the temperatures in summer are rather uncomfortable. In the winter,

4134-434: Is a good and noble city, and has a great amount of trade. They weave there quantities of a certain silk tissue known as Yasdi, which merchants carry into many quarters to dispose of. When you leave this city to travel further, you ride for seven days over great plains, finding harbour to receive you at three places only. There are many fine woods producing dates upon the way, such as one can easily ride through; and in them there

4293-479: Is also evidence of multi-domed mosques, though most mosques were modified or rebuilt in later eras. The Jameh Mosque of Na'in , one of the oldest surviving congregational mosques in Iran, contains some of the best-preserved features from this period, including decorative brickwork, Kufic inscriptions, and rich stucco decoration featuring vine scrolls and acanthus leaves that draw from the earlier styles of Samarra. Another important architectural trend to arise in

4452-582: Is also known as City of Bicycles, because of its old history of bike riders, and the highest number of bicycles per capita in Iran. It is reported that bicycle culture in Iran originated in Yazd as a result of contact with European visitors and tourists in the last century. Yazd means "pure" and "holy"; Yazd City means "City of the Holy [One, i. e. , God]". Former names of this city: Kath, Isatis. Archeological evidence 12 kilometers north of Yazd suggests that

4611-448: Is also one of the largest cities built almost entirely out of adobe . Yazd's heritage as a center of Zoroastrianism is also important. There is a Tower of Silence on the outskirts, and the city has an ateshkadeh which holds a fire that has been kept alight continuously since 470 AD. Zoroastrians make up a small minority of the population of Yazd, around 1,000 out of 600,000. The 11th-century brick mausoleum and shrine Davāzdah Imām

4770-577: Is among the three cities with the lowest divorce rates in Iran. The majority of the people of Yazd are Persians . They speak Persian with a Yazdi accent, which is different from the Persian accent of Tehran . During the Pahlavi era, a large group of Kurds from the Gulbaghi tribe were moved from the north of Kurdistan province to the city of Yazd and the cities of Isfahan, Kashan, and Nayin. Today,

4929-400: Is an example. At the time of the 2006 National Census, the city's population was 423,006 in 114,716 households. The following census in 2011 counted 486,152 people in 141,572 households. The 2016 census measured the population of the city as 529,673 people in 158,368 households. Yazd has a hot desert climate ( Köppen climate classification BWh ). It is the driest major city in Iran, with

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5088-490: Is great sport to be had in hunting and hawking, there being partridges and quails and abundance of other game, so that the merchants who pass that way have plenty of diversion. There are also wild asses, handsome creatures. At the end of those seven marches over the plain, you come to a fine kingdom which is called Kerman . Yazd briefly served as the capital of the Muzaffarid Dynasty in the fourteenth century, and

5247-433: Is held and frequent visits are made during the year; it is now also a famous tourist spot. The story of the last Persian prince to come to Yazd before the arrival of Islam adds to its importance. Such a transformation has occurred several times. There was once a relatively large Jewish-Yazdi community, however, after the creation of Israel , many have moved there for varying reasons. Former president of Israel Moshe Katsav

5406-408: Is recognized by UNESCO as being one of the cradles of civilization . Each of the periods of Elamites , Achaemenids , Parthians and Sassanids were creators of great architecture that, over the ages, spread far and wide far to other cultures. Although Iran has suffered its share of destruction, including Alexander The Great 's decision to burn Persepolis , there are sufficient remains to form

5565-619: Is served by the Shahid Sadooghi Airport . The University of Yazd was established in 1988. It has a college of architecture specializing in traditional Persian art and architecture. Yazd and its nearby towns contain the following institutes of higher education: Yazd is twinned with: [REDACTED] Media related to Yazd at Wikimedia Commons [REDACTED] Yazd travel guide from Wikivoyage Persian architecture Iranian architecture or Persian architecture ( Persian : معمارى ایرانی , Me'māri e Irāni )

5724-573: Is the Soltaniyeh Mausoleum built for Sultan Uljaytu ( r.  1304–1317 ), a massive dome supported on a multi-level octagonal structure with internal and external galleries. Only the domed building remains today, missing much of its original turquoise tile decoration, but it was once the centerpiece of a larger religious complex including a mosque, a hospital , and living areas. Smaller tombs and shrines in honour of local Sufis were also built or renovated by Ilkhanid patrons, such as

5883-520: Is the Tarikhaneh Mosque in Damghan . Though the chronology of its construction is not well-documented, its overall form and style may date to the 9th century, or possibly earlier, given its close similarities with Sassanid architecture. It has a courtyard surrounded by a portico and a hypostyle prayer hall where the central aisle leading to the mihrab (a niche in the wall symbolizing

6042-523: Is the architecture of Iran and parts of the rest of West Asia , the Caucasus and Central Asia . Its history dates back to at least 5,000 BC with characteristic examples distributed over a vast area from Turkey and Iraq to Uzbekistan and Tajikistan , and from the Caucasus to Zanzibar . Persian buildings vary greatly in scale and function, from vernacular architecture to monumental complexes. In addition to historic gates, palaces, and mosques,

6201-424: Is the home of the largest manufacturer of fibre optics in Iran. Yazd's confectioneries have a tremendous following throughout Iran and have been a source of tourism for the city. Confectioners workshops ( khalifehs , or experts) keep their recipes a guarded secret, and there are many that have remained a private family business for many generations. Baklava , ghotab and pashmak are the most popular sweets made in

6360-406: Is the oldest dated building in the city. Built in 12th century and still in use, Jame Mosque of Yazd is an example of the finest Persian mosaics and excellent architecture. Its minarets are the highest in the country. Tomb of Sayyed Rukn ad-Din is nearby the mosque. Always known for the quality of its silk and carpets, Yazd today is one of Iran's industrial centers for textiles. There is also

6519-564: Is today on the Iran-Afghanistan border. The settlement, which was named Yazdi, was located in what is now Farah City in the province of the same name in Afghanistan . Even today, people from this area speak with an accent very similar to that of the people of Yazd. One of the notable things about Yazd is its family-centered culture. According to official statistics from Iran's National Organization for Civil Registration, Yazd

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6678-680: The banna'i technique was used to create geometric patterns and Kufic inscriptions at relatively low cost, while more expensive tile mosaic continued to be used for floral patterns. Tiles were preferred on the outside, while interior walls could be covered with carved or painted plaster instead. Among the most important Timurid innovations was the more sophisticated and fluid arrangement of geometric vaulting. Large vaults were divided by intersecting ribs into smaller vaults which could then be further subdivided or filled with muqarnas and other types of decoration. Muqarnas itself also became even more complex by using smaller individual cells to create

6837-455: The qibla ) is slightly wider than the other aisles. It originally had no minaret, but a tall cylindrical tower was added to it in 1026. This minaret is now the oldest one still standing in Iran. In secular architecture, the remains of various palaces and residences from this period have also been studied, such as those around Merv (present-day Turkmenistan ). They shared many features with earlier Sasanian and Sogdian architecture. Among

6996-514: The Atrek River as the new boundary with Imperial Russia. Hence Merv , Sarakhs , Ashgabat , and the surrounding areas were transferred to Russian control under the command of General Alexander Komarov in 1884. Several trade concessions by the Iranian government put economic affairs largely under British control. By the late 19th century, many Iranians believed that their rulers were beholden to foreign interests. Mirza Taghi Khan Amir Kabir ,

7155-840: The Ayrums , Qarapapaqs , Circassians , Shia Lezgins , and other Transcaucasian Muslims. Through the Battle of Ganja of 1804 during the Russo-Persian War (1804–1813) , many thousands of Ayrums and Qarapapaqs were settled in Tabriz. During the remaining part of the 1804–1813 war, as well as through the 1826–1828 war , the absolute bulk of the Ayrums and Qarapapaqs that were still remaining in newly conquered Russian territories were settled in and migrated to Solduz (in modern-day Iran's West Azerbaijan province ). As The Cambridge History of Iran states; "The steady encroachment of Russian troops along

7314-618: The Azerbaijanis and Talysh ever since between two nations. Following the official losing of the aforementioned vast territories in the Caucasus, major demographic shifts were bound to take place. Solidly Persian-speaking territories of Iran were lost, with all its inhabitants in it. Following the 1804–1814 War, but also per the 1826–1828 war which ceded the last territories, large migrations, so-called Caucasian Muhajirs , set off to migrate to mainland Iran. Some of these groups included

7473-533: The Ghurids , built monuments in a very similar style. A general tradition of architecture was thus shared across most of the eastern Islamic world (Iran, Central Asia, and parts of the northern Indian subcontinent ) throughout the Seljuk period and its decline, from the 11th to 13th centuries. This period is also regarded as a "classical" age of Central Asian architecture. The most important religious monument from

7632-651: The Khwarazm-Shahs , formerly vassals of the Seljuks and Qara Khitai , took advantage of this to expand their power and form the Khwarazmian Empire, occupying much of the region and conquering the Ghurids in the early 13th century, only to fall soon after to the Mongol invasions. The site of the former Khwarazmian capital, Kunya-Urgench (in present-day Turkmenistan), has preserved several monuments from

7791-582: The Muzaffarids and the Jalayirids , also sponsored new constructions. Ilkhanid architecture elaborated earlier Iranian traditions. In particular, greater attention was given to interior spaces and how to organize them. Rooms were made taller, while transverse vaulting was employed and walls were opened with arches, thus allowing more light and air inside. Muqarnas , which was previously confined to covering limited transitional elements like squinches,

7950-507: The Russians capitalized on the moment, and annexed Kartli-Kakheti (eastern Georgia). In 1804, the Russians invaded and sacked the Iranian town of Ganja , massacring and expelling thousands of its inhabitants, thereby beginning the Russo-Persian War of 1804–1813 . Under Fath Ali Shah (r. 1797–1834), the Qajars set out to fight against the invading Russian Empire, who were keen to take

8109-585: The Samanids , with other dynasties arising in Central Asia soon after. It is around this period that many of the distinctive features of subsequent Iranian and Central Asian architecture first emerged, including the use of baked brick for both construction and decoration, the use of glazed tile for surface decoration, and the development of muqarnas (three-dimensional geometric vaulting) from squinches . Hypostyle mosques continued to be built and there

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8268-639: The Seleucid (310–140 BCE), Parthian (247 BCE – 224 CE), and Sassanid (224–651 CE) eras, reaching its apex of development in the Sassanid period. Examples of this style are Ghal'eh Dokhtar , the royal compounds at Nysa , Anahita Temple , Khorheh , Hatra , the Ctesiphon vault of Kasra , Bishapur , and the Palace of Ardashir in Ardeshir Khwarreh (Firouzabad). The Islamic era began with

8427-532: The Timurids (1370–1506). This period saw the construction of some of the largest and most ambitious Iranian monuments of the Islamic world. The Ilkhanids were initially traditional nomadic Mongols, but at the end of the 13th century, Ghazan Khan ( r.  1295–1304 ) converted to Islam and aided a cultural and economic resurgence in which urban Iranian culture was of primary importance. Ilkhanid vassals, like

8586-618: The Toghrul Tower built in Rayy (south of present-day Tehran ) in 1139. More innovative, however, was the introduction of mausoleums with a square or polygonal floor plan, which later became a common form of monumental tombs. Early examples of this are the two Kharraqan Mausoleums (1068 and 1093) near Qazvin (northern Iran), which have octagonal forms, and the large Mausoleum of Sanjar (c. 1152) in Merv (present-day Turkmenistan), which has

8745-519: The Turco-Mongol ruler Timur ( r.  1370–1405 ) was descended from Qajar Noyan. Based on the claims of the legend, Iranologist Gavin R. G. Hambly reconstructed the early history of the Qajars in a hypothetical manner, suggesting that they immigrated towards Anatolia or Syria following the collapse of the Ilkhanate in 1335. Then, during the late 15th-century, the Qajars resettled in

8904-445: The history of Iran . The most striking are a marked feeling for scale and a discerning use of simple and massive forms. The consistency of decorative preferences, the high-arched portal set within a recess , columns with bracket capitals, and recurrent types of plan and elevation can also be mentioned. Through the ages these elements have recurred in completely different types of buildings, constructed for various programs and under

9063-683: The 10th to 11th centuries is the development of mausolea , which took on monumental forms for the first time. One type of mausoleum was the tomb tower, such as the Gunbad-i-Qabus (circa 1006–7), while the other main type was the domed square, such as the Tomb of the Samanids in Bukhara (before 943). Turkic peoples began moving west across Central Asia and towards the Middle East from

9222-615: The 16th-century. The Safavids "left Arran (present-day Republic of Azerbaijan ) to local Turkic khans", and, "in 1554 Ganja was governed by Shahverdi Soltan Ziyadoglu Qajar , whose family came to govern Karabakh in southern Arran ". Qajars filled a number of diplomatic missions and governorships in the 16–17th centuries for the Safavids. The Qajars were resettled by Shah Abbas I throughout Iran. The great number of them also settled in Astarabad (present-day Gorgan , Iran ) near

9381-506: The 1907 Anglo-Russian Convention , carving out Russian and British influence zones and a neutral zone. In the early 20th century, the Persian Constitutional Revolution created an elected parliament or Majles , and sought the establishment of a constitutional monarchy, deposing Mohammad Ali Shah Qajar for Ahmad Shah Qajar , but many of the constitutional reforms were reversed by an intervention led by

9540-410: The 19th century. Meanwhile, by 1881, Russia had completed its conquest of present-day Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan , bringing Russia's frontier to Persia's northeastern borders and severing historic Iranian ties to the cities of Bukhara , Merv and Samarqand . With the conclusion of the Treaty of Akhal on 21 September 1881, Iran ceased any claim to all parts of Turkestan and Transoxiana , setting

9699-536: The 7,000 tribal soldiers on his successful expedition from Erzincan to Shirvan in 1500/1501, a contingent of Qajars was among them. After this, they emerged as a prominent group within the Qizilbash confederacy, who were made up of Turkoman warriors and served as the main force of the Safavid military . Despite being smaller than other tribes, the Qajars continued to play a major role in important events during

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9858-534: The 8th and 9th centuries, the power and unity of the Abbasid Caliphate allowed architectural features and innovations from its heartlands to spread quickly to other areas of the Islamic world under its influence, including Iran. Features from the Umayyad period, such as vaulting , carved stucco , and painted wall decoration, were continued and elaborated in the Abbasid period. The four-centred arch ,

10017-666: The 8th century onward, eventually converting to Islam and becoming major forces in the region. The most significant of these were the Seljuk Turks, who formed the Great Seljuk Empire in the 11th century, conquering all of Iran and other extensive territories in Central Asia and the Middle East. While the apogee of the Great Seljuks was short-lived, it represents a major benchmark in the history of Islamic art and architecture in Iran and Central Asia, inaugurating an expansion of patronage and of artistic forms. Much of

10176-599: The 9th century. Attached to the mosque was a minaret (tower for the muezzin to issue the call to prayer ), the base of which remains, constituting the oldest remnants of a minaret in the eastern Islamic world. The Jameh Mosque of Isfahan , one of the major Islamic monuments in Iran, was originally founded towards 771, but it was rebuilt and expanded in 840–841. It too had a courtyard surrounded by hypostyle halls. It continued to undergo further modifications and additions in subsequent centuries. The only major mosque from this early period to preserve some of its original form

10335-469: The Abbasid Caliphate fragmented into regional states in the 9th and 10th centuries that were formally obedient to the caliphs in Baghdad but were de facto independent. In Iran and Central Asia, a number of local and regional dynasties rose to power by the 10th century: Iraq and central Iran were controlled by the Buyid dynasty , northern Iran was ruled by the Bawandids and Ziyarids , and the northeastern regions of Khurasan and Transoxiana were ruled by

10494-417: The Anglo-Russian partition of Iran. By June 1914, Russia established near-total control over its northern zone, while Britain had established influence over Baluch and Bakhtiari autonomous tribal leaders in the southeastern zone. Qajar Iran would become a battleground between Russian, Ottoman, and British forces in the Persian campaign of World War I . Though Qajar Iran had announced strict neutrality on

10653-404: The Armenian Plateau, many Armenians chose to emigrate and settle elsewhere. Following Shah Abbas I 's massive relocation of Armenians and Muslims in 1604–05, their numbers dwindled even further. At the time of the Russian invasion of Iran, some 80% of the population of Erivan Khanate in Iranian Armenia were Muslims ( Persians , Turkics , and Kurds ) whereas Christian Armenians constituted

10812-645: The Eastern Iranian cities such as Bam and Zaranj . Overall, Mohammad Karim Pirnia categorizes the traditional architecture of the Iranian lands throughout the ages into the six following classes or styles ("sabk") : The pre-Islamic styles draw on 3000 to 4000 years of architectural development from various civilizations of the Iranian plateau. The post- Islamic architecture of Iran in turn, draws ideas from its pre-Islamic predecessor, and has geometrical and repetitive forms, as well as surfaces that are richly decorated with glazed tiles, carved stucco , patterned brickwork, floral motifs , and calligraphy . Iran

10971-499: The Great , Catherine the Great , the then-ruling monarch of Russia, viewed Georgia as a pivot for her Caucasian policy, as Russia's new aspirations were to use it as a base of operations against both Iran and the Ottoman Empire, both immediate bordering geopolitical rivals of Russia. On top of that, having another port on the Georgian coast of the Black Sea would be ideal. A limited Russian contingent of two infantry battalions with four artillery pieces arrived in Tbilisi in 1784, but

11130-464: The Great Game rivalry was so pronounced that mutual British and Russian demands to the Shah to exclude the other, blocked all railroad construction in Iran at the end of the 19th century. In 1907 the British and Russian Empires partitioned Iran into spheres of influence with the Anglo-Russian Convention . When Nasser al-Din Shah Qajar was assassinated by Mirza Reza Kermani in 1896, the crown passed to his son Mozaffar al-Din . Mozaffar al-Din Shah

11289-441: The Great Seljuk period is the Jameh Mosque of Isfahan, which was expanded and modified by various Seljuk patrons in the late 11th century and early 12th century. Two major and innovative domed chambers were added to it in the late 11th century. Four large iwans were then erected around the courtyard around the early 12th century, giving rise to the four-iwan plan in mosque architecture. The four-iwan plan quickly became popular and

11448-452: The Gulbaghi tribe are mostly assimilated elements in the population of these cities. The majority of people in Yazd are Shia Muslims . Yazd is a strongly religious, traditionalist and conservative city. Several city traditions are the Muslim parades and gatherings, which are mainly processions called azadari held to commemorate the events experienced by the main Islamic martyrs and other important figures. These huge public gatherings created

11607-480: The Iranian monarchy's legitimacy was predicated on an image of military prowess, first Turkic and then European-influenced. By the 1890s, Russian tutors, doctors and officers were prominent at the Shah's court, influencing policy personally. Russia and Britain had competing investments in the industrialisation of Iran including roads and telegraph lines, as a way to profit and extend their influence. However, until 1907

11766-411: The Iranian territories in the region. This period marked the first major economic and military encroachments on Iranian interests during the colonial era. The Qajar army suffered a major military defeat in the war, and under the terms of the Treaty of Gulistan in 1813, Iran was forced to cede most of its Caucasian territories comprising modern-day Georgia , Dagestan , and most of Azerbaijan . About

11925-538: The Iranian throne; Erekle II quickly tendered his de jure submission to the new Iranian ruler, however, de facto , he remained autonomous. In 1783, Erekle II placed his kingdom under the protection of the Russian Empire in the Treaty of Georgievsk . In the last few decades of the 18th century, Georgia had become a more important element in Russo-Iranian relations than some provinces in northern mainland Iran, such as Mazandaran or even Gilan . Unlike Peter

12084-531: The Iranians. With half of the troop's Agha Mohammad Khan crossed the Aras river with, he now marched directly upon Tbilisi, where it commenced into a huge battle between the Iranian and Georgian armies. Erekle had managed to mobilize some 5,000 troops, including some 2,000 from neighboring Imereti under its King Solomon II. The Georgians, hopelessly outnumbered, were eventually defeated despite stiff resistance. In

12243-567: The Khwarazmian Empire period (late 12th and early 13th century), including the so-called Mausoleum of Fakhr al-Din Razi (possibly the tomb of Il-Arslan ) and the Mausoleum of Sultan Tekesh . From the 13th century to the early 16th century, Iran and Central Asia came under the control of two major dynasties descended from the Mongol conqueror Genghis Khan , the Ilkhanids (1256–1353) and

12402-681: The Majles, in June 1908 he used his Russian-officered Persian Cossack Brigade (almost solely composed of Caucasian Muhajirs ), to bomb the Majlis building , arrest many of the deputies (December 1907), and close down the assembly (June 1908). Resistance to the shah, however, coalesced in Tabriz , Isfahan , Rasht , and elsewhere. In July 1909, constitutional forces marched from Rasht to Tehran led by Mohammad Vali Khan Sepahsalar Khalatbari Tonekaboni, deposed

12561-472: The Majlis), Russian forces in northwest Iran marched toward Tehran. Russian occupation of Tehran would mean complete Russian control of Iran. Local irregular forces under Heydar Latifiyan blocked the Russian advance at Robat Karim. The Russian force won the Battle of Robat Karim on 27 December, and Heydar Latifiyan was killed, but the Russian advance was delayed, long enough for the Majlis to dissolve and

12720-660: The Middle East. Dar-ol-Fonoon was established for training a new cadre of administrators and acquainting them with Western techniques. It marked the beginning of modern education in Iran. Amir Kabir ordered the school to be built on the edge of the city so it could be expanded as needed. He hired French and Russian instructors as well as Iranians to teach subjects as different as Language, Medicine, Law, Geography, History, Economics, and Engineering, amongst numerous others. Unfortunately, Amir Kabir did not live long enough to see his greatest monument completed, but it still stands in Tehran as

12879-464: The Persian orbit. For Agha Mohammad Khan, the resubjugation and reintegration of Georgia into the Iranian empire was part of the same process that had brought Shiraz , Isfahan , and Tabriz under his rule. He viewed, like the Safavids and Nader Shah before him, the territories no different from the territories in mainland Iran. Georgia was a province of Iran the same way Khorasan was. As The Cambridge History of Iran states, its permanent secession

13038-425: The Qajars had evolved from a shepherd-warrior tribe with strongholds in northern Persia into a Persian dynasty with all the trappings of a Perso-Islamic monarchy. "Like virtually every dynasty that ruled Persia since the 11th century, the Qajars came to power with the backing of Turkic tribal forces, while using educated Persians in their bureaucracy". Among these Turkic tribes, however, Turkmens of Iran played

13197-462: The Qajars were originally part of a larger tribal group, with the Bayats often considered the most likely tribe from which they later separated. According to the same late legend, the Qajar tribe's namesake ancestor was Qajar Noyan, said to be the son of a Mongol named Sartuq Noyan, who reportedly served as atabeg to the Ilkhanate ruler Arghun ( r.  1284–1291 ). This legend also claims that

13356-597: The Russian Empire . Qajar Iran's territorial integrity was further weakened during the Persian campaign of World War I and the invasion by the Ottoman Empire . Four years after the 1921 Persian coup d'état , the military officer Reza Shah took power in 1925, thus establishing the Pahlavi dynasty , the last Iranian royal dynasty. Since the Safavid era, Mamalik-i Mahrusa-yi Iran ( Guarded Domains of Iran )

13515-582: The Seljuk architectural heritage was destroyed during the Mongol invasions in the 13th century. Nonetheless, compared to pre-Seljuk Iran, a larger volume of surviving monuments and artifacts from the Seljuk period has allowed scholars to study the arts of this era in greater depth. Several neighbouring dynasties and empires contemporary with the Seljuks, including the Qarakhanids , the Ghaznavids , and

13674-425: The Shah and his court to escape to Qom. This preserved the independence of Iran. Ahmad Shah Qajar was born 21 January 1898 in Tabriz , and succeeded to the throne at age 11. However, the occupation of Persia during World War I by Russian , British, and Ottoman troops was a blow from which Ahmad Shah never effectively recovered. In February 1921, Reza Khan , commander of the Persian Cossack Brigade , staged

13833-480: The Shah and his officials. Popular demand to curb arbitrary royal authority in favor of the rule of law increased as concern regarding growing foreign penetration and influence heightened. The shah's failure to respond to protests by the religious establishment, the merchants, and other classes led the merchants and clerical leaders in January 1906 to take sanctuary from probable arrest in mosques in Tehran and outside

13992-726: The Shah, and re-established the constitution. The ex-shah went into exile in Russia. Shah died in San Remo, Italy , in April 1925. Every future Shah of Iran would also die in exile. On 16 July 1909, the Majles voted to place Mohammad Ali Shah's 11-year-old son, Ahmad Shah on the throne. Although the constitutional forces had triumphed, they faced serious difficulties. The upheavals of the Constitutional Revolution and civil war had undermined stability and trade. In addition,

14151-465: The ablest and most successful of the Qajar sovereigns. He founded the first modern hospital in Iran. During Naser al-Din Shah's reign, Western science, technology, and educational methods were introduced into Iran and the country's modernization was begun. Naser al-Din Shah tried to exploit the mutual distrust between Great Britain and Russia to preserve Iran's independence, but foreign interference and territorial encroachment increased under his rule. He

14310-450: The ancient ties could only be severed by a superior force from outside. It was therefore also inevitable that Agha Mohammad Khan's successor, Fath Ali Shah (under whom Iran would lead the two above-mentioned wars) would follow the same policy of restoring Iranian central authority north of the Aras and Kura rivers. On 12 September 1801, four years after Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar's death,

14469-488: The architectural landmarks in this style are the Teppe Zagheh , near Qazvin . Other extant examples of this style are Chogha Zanbil , Sialk , Shahr-i Sokhta , and Ecbatana . Elamite and proto-Elamite buildings among others, are covered within this stylistic subcategory as well. The "Persian style" (New Persian:شیوه معماری پارسی) is a style of architecture (" sabk ") defined by Mohammad Karim Pirnia when categorizing

14628-717: The area has been populated since the period of the Achaemenid Empire (550 BC–330 BC). In his Natural History , Pliny the Elder (died 79 AD) mentions a town in the Parthian Empire (247 BC–224 AD) named "Issatis", which is seemingly connected to the name of the Asagarta/Istachae/Sagartians . As a result, some scholars have suggested that the name of Yazd was derived from Issatis (also transliterated as Isatichae, Ysatis, Yasatis), and that

14787-505: The assembly, once again suspending the constitution. British and Russian officials coordinated as the Russian army, still present in Iran, invaded the capital again and suspended the parliament. The Tsar ordered the troops in Tabriz "to act harshly and quickly", while purges were ordered, leading to many executions of prominent revolutionaries. The British Ambassador, George Head Barclay reported disapproval of this "reign of terror", though would soon pressure Persian ministers to officialize

14946-528: The authority of 'The King of Kings', the staircases of the latter recording in relief sculpture the vast extent of the imperial frontier. With the emergence of the Parthians and Sassanids new forms appeared. Parthian innovations fully flowered during the Sassanid period with massive barrel-vaulted chambers, solid masonry domes and tall columns. This influence was to remain for years to come. For example,

15105-555: The capital. When the shah reneged on a promise to permit the establishment of a "house of justice", or consultative assembly, 10,000 people, led by the merchants, took sanctuary in June in the compound of the British legation in Tehran. In August, the shah, through the issue of a decree promised a constitution. In October, an elected assembly convened and drew up a constitution that provided for strict limitations on royal power, an elected parliament, or Majles , with wide powers to represent

15264-515: The ceding of what is nowadays Armenia and the remaining part of Republic of Azerbaijan ; the new border between neighboring Russia and Iran were set at the Aras River . Iran had by these two treaties, in the course of the 19th century, irrevocably lost the territories which had formed part of the concept of Iran for centuries. The area to the North of the river Aras, among which the territory of

15423-435: The cession of Transcaucasia and Dagestan , which had formed part of the concept of Iran for centuries, it would also directly lead up to the wars of even several years later, namely the Russo-Persian War (1804–1813) and Russo-Persian War (1826–1828) , which would eventually prove for the irrevocable forced cession of aforementioned regions to Imperial Russia per the treaties of Gulistan (1813) and Turkmenchay (1828), as

15582-455: The chaos that had erupted in mainland Iran, and declared de facto independence. After Teimuraz II died in 1762, Erekle II assumed control over Kartli, and united the two kingdoms in a personal union as the Kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti , becoming the first Georgian ruler to preside over a politically unified eastern Georgia in three centuries. At about the same time, Karim Khan Zand had ascended

15741-801: The cities of Khorasan and Transoxiana, including Samarkand, Bukhara, Herat , and Mashhad . Timur's own monuments are distinguished by their size; notably, the Bibi Khanum Mosque and the Gur-i Amir Mausoleum , both in Samarkand, and his imposing but now-ruined Ak-Saray Palace at Shahr-i Sabz . The Gur-i Amir Mausoleum and the Bibi Khanum Mosque are distinguished by their lavish interior and exterior decoration, their imposing portals, and their prominent dome. The domes are supported on tall, cylindrical drums and have

15900-497: The city of Kerman because the local populace had chosen to defend the city against his siege . The Qajar armies at that time were mostly composed of Turkoman warriors and Georgian slaves. By 1794, Agha Mohammad Khan had eliminated all his rivals, including Lotf Ali Khan , the last of the Zand dynasty. He reestablished Iranian control over the territories in the entire Caucasus . Agha Mohammad established his capital at Tehran ,

16059-594: The city, but the destruction of his capital was a death blow to his hopes and projects. Upon learning of the fall of Tbilisi General Gudovich put the blame on the Georgians themselves. To restore Russian prestige, Catherine II declared war on Iran , upon the proposal of Gudovich, and sent an army under Valerian Zubov to the Qajar possessions on April of that year, but the new Tsar Paul I , who succeeded Catherine in November, shortly recalled it. Agha Mohammad Shah

16218-515: The city. In 2000 the Yazd Water Museum opened; it features exhibits of water storage vessels and historical technologies related to water. Yazd has expanded its industrial fields since the 1980s. With at least three main industrial areas each containing over 70 different factories, Yazd has become one of the most technologically advanced cities of Iran. In addition to its connection with major Iranian cities via Iranian Railways , Yazd

16377-486: The competition of trade goods between two foreign empires. Ever since the 1828 Treaty of Turkmanchay , Russia had received territorial domination in Iran. With the Romanovs shifting to a policy of 'informal support' for the weakened Qajar dynasty — continuing to place pressure with advances in the largely nomadic Turkestan, a crucial frontier territory of the Qajars — this Russian domination of Iran continued for nearly

16536-473: The contemporary Republic of Azerbaijan, eastern Georgia, Dagestan, and Armenia was Iranian territory until they were occupied by Russia in the course of the 19th century. As a further direct result and consequence of the Gulistan and Turkmenchay treaties of 1813 and 1828 respectively, the formerly Iranian territories became part of Russia for around the next 180 years, except Dagestan, which has remained

16695-455: The course of the 19th century, comprising modern-day eastern Georgia , Dagestan , Azerbaijan , and Armenia . Despite its territorial losses, Qajar Iran reinvented the Iranian notion of kingship and maintained relative political independence, but faced major challenges to its sovereignty, predominantly from the Russian and British empires. Foreign advisers became powerbrokers in the court and military. They eventually partitioned Qajar Iran in

16854-457: The days remain mild and sunny, but in the morning the thin air and low cloudiness cause cold temperatures, with 24.3 days per year in which the minimum temperature falls below 0 °C (32 °F). Dust events are not uncommon in Yazd, as they happen 52 days per year. Thick haze is much more common (135.8 days annually) and is more frequent in winter. Yazd is an important centre of Iranian architecture . Because of its climate, it has one of

17013-542: The establishment of the early modern Persianate world. Its shortened variant was mamalik-i Iran ("Domains of Iran"), most commonly used in the writings from Qajar Iran. A late legend holds that the Qajars first came to Iran in the 11th-century along with other Oghuz Turkic clans. However, the Qajars neither appear in the Oghuz tribal lists of Mahmud al-Kashgari nor Rashid al-Din Hamadani . It has been speculated that

17172-543: The ex-shah, with Russian support, attempted to regain his throne, landing troops in July 1910. Most serious of all, the hope that the Constitutional Revolution would inaugurate a new era of independence from the great powers ended when, under the Anglo-Russian Entente of 1907, Britain and Russia agreed to divide Iran into spheres of influence. The Russians were to enjoy exclusive right to pursue their interests in

17331-469: The first day of November 1914 (which was reiterated by each successive government thereafter), the neighboring Ottoman Empire invaded it relatively shortly after, in the same year. At that time, large parts of Iran were under tight Russian influence and control, and since 1910 Russian forces were present inside the country, while many of its cities possessed Russian garrisons. Due to the latter reason, as Prof. Dr. Touraj Atabaki states, declaring neutrality

17490-507: The first time in four centuries. Erekle appealed then to his theoretical protector, Empress Catherine II of Russia, asking for at least 3,000 Russian troops, but he was ignored, leaving Georgia to fend off the Iranian threat alone. Nevertheless, Erekle II still rejected Agha Mohammad Khan's ultimatum . In August 1795, Agha Mohammad Khan crossed the Aras River , and after a turn of events by which he gathered more support from his subordinate khans of Erivan and Ganja , and having re-secured

17649-556: The following periods. The pre-Parsian style ( New Persian :شیوه معماری پیش از پارسی) is a sub-style of architecture (or " zeer-sabk ") when categorizing the history of Persian/Iranian architectural development. This architectural style flourished in the Iranian Plateau until the eighth century BC, during the era of the Median Empire . It is often classified as a subcategory of Parsian architecture. The oldest remains of

17808-620: The formation of Islam under the leadership of Muhammad in early 7th-century Arabia . The Arab-Muslim conquest of Persia began soon afterwards and ended with the region coming under the control of the Rashidun Caliphs , followed by the Umayyad Caliphs after 661. Early Islamic architecture was heavily influenced by Byzantine architecture and Sasanian architecture . Umayyad architecture (661–750) drew on elements of these traditions, mixing them together and adapting them to

17967-771: The frontier in the Caucasus, General Yermolov 's brutal punitive expeditions and misgovernment, drove large numbers of Muslims, and even some Georgian Christians, into exile in Iran." In 1864 until the early 20th century, another mass expulsion took place of Caucasian Muslims as a result of the Russian victory in the Caucasian War . Others simply voluntarily refused to live under Christian Russian rule, and thus disembarked for Turkey or Iran. These migrations once again, towards Iran, included masses of Caucasian Azerbaijanis , other Transcaucasian Muslims, as well as many North Caucasian Muslims, such as Circassians, Shia Lezgins and Laks . Many of these migrants would prove to play

18126-474: The guiding formative motif of Iranian architecture has been its cosmic symbolism "by which man is brought into communication and participation with the powers of heaven". This theme has not only given unity and continuity to the architecture of Persia, but has been a primary source of its emotional character as well. Available building materials dictate major forms in traditional Iranian architecture. Heavy clays , readily available at various places throughout

18285-544: The historical region of Azerbaijan , becoming affiliated with the neighbouring Erivan , Ganja and Karabakh . Like the other Oghuz tribes in Azerbaijan and eastern Anatolia during the rule of the Aq Qoyunlu , the Qajars likely also converted to Shia Islam and adopted the teachings of the Safavid order . The Qajar tribe first started to gain prominence during the establishment of the Safavids. When Ismail led

18444-689: The history of Persian/Iranian architectural development. Although the Median and Achaemenid architecture fall under this classification, the pre-Achaemenid architecture is also studied as a sub-class of this category. This style of architecture flourished from eighth century BCE from the time of the Median Empire, through the Achaemenid empire, to the arrival of Alexander the Great in the third century BCE This architectural style includes designs from

18603-426: The inside they had central courtyards or a central domed hall flanked by vaulted halls. Some had four iwans flanking a central courtyard. The Sasanian tradition of building caravanserais along trade routes also continued, with the remains of one such structure in southern Turkmenistan attesting to the presence of a central courtyard surrounded by arcaded galleries with domed roofs. After its initial apogee of power,

18762-542: The larger three-dimensional geometric plan. Visual balance could be achieved by alternating one type or pattern of decoration with another between the different subdivisions of the vault. By combining these vaulting techniques with a cruciform plan and by breaking the solid mass of supporting walls with open arches and windows, a strict division between dome, squinch, and wall was dissolved and an endless diversity of elaborate interior spaces could be created. The most significant preserved Timurid monuments are found in and around

18921-421: The largest networks of qanats (underground water supply systems) in the world, and Yazdi qanat makers are considered the most skilled in Iran. To deal with the extremely hot summers, many old buildings in Yazd have magnificent wind towers and large underground areas. The city is also home to prime examples of yakhchals , which were used to store ice retrieved from glaciers in the nearby mountains. Yazd

19080-582: The last Shah of the Zand dynasty , and re-asserted Iranian sovereignty over large parts of the Caucasus . In 1796, Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar seized Mashhad with ease, putting an end to the Afsharid dynasty . He was formally crowned as Shah after his punitive campaign against Iran's Georgian subjects . In the Caucasus, the Qajar dynasty permanently lost much territory to the Russian Empire over

19239-628: The latter name started to be used in the Median or Achaemenid eras. The area encompassing Yazd first started to gain prominence in the Late antiquity , namely under the Sasanian Empire (224–651). Under Yazdegerd I ( r.  399–420 ), a mint was established in Yazd (under the mint abbreviation of "YZ"), which demonstrates its increasing importance. According to the New Persian chronicle Tarikh-i Yazd ("History of Yazd") of 1441, Yazd

19398-407: The most prominent role in bringing Qajars to power. In 1779 following the death of Karim Khan of the Zand dynasty , Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar , the leader of the Qajars, set out to reunify Iran . Agha Mohammad Khan was known as one of the cruelest kings, even by the standards of 18th-century Iran. In his quest for power, he razed cities, massacred entire populations, and blinded some 20,000 men in

19557-414: The northern sphere, the British in the south and east; both powers would be free to compete for economic and political advantage in a neutral sphere in the center. Matters came to a head when Morgan Shuster , a United States administrator hired as treasurer-general by the Persian government to reform its finances, sought to collect taxes from powerful officials who were Russian protégés and to send members of

19716-670: The northwest, where cold winters discouraged the presence of an open courtyard, as at the Jameh Mosque of Ardabil (now ruined). Another hallmark of the Ilkhanid period is the introduction of monumental mosque portals topped by twin minarets, as seen at the Jameh Mosque of Yazd . Caravanserais were built again, although the Khan al-Mirjan in Baghdad is the only surviving example. The most impressive monument to survive from this period

19875-555: The official rights for the Russian Empire to encourage settling of Armenians from Iran in the newly conquered Russian territories. Until the mid-fourteenth century, Armenians had constituted a majority in Eastern Armenia . At the close of the fourteenth century, after Timur 's campaigns, Islam had become the dominant faith, and Armenians became a minority in Eastern Armenia. After centuries of constant warfare on

20034-401: The part of the vali of Georgia. Finding an interval of peace amid their own quarrels and with northern, western, and central Iran secure, the Iranians demanded Erekle II to renounce the treaty with Russia and to reaccept Iranian suzerainty, in return for peace and the security of his kingdom. The Ottomans, Iran's neighboring rival, recognized the latter's rights over Kartli and Kakheti for

20193-503: The patronage of a long succession of rulers . The columned porch , or talar , seen in the rock-cut tombs near Persepolis , reappear in Sassanid temples, and in late Islamic times it was used as the portico of a palace or mosque, and adapted even to the architecture of roadside tea-houses. Similarly, the dome on four arches, so characteristic of Sassanid times, is a still to be found in many cemeteries and Imamzadehs across Iran today. The notion of earthly towers reaching up toward

20352-432: The people and a government with a cabinet subject to confirmation by the Majles. The shah signed the constitution on 30 December 1906, but refusing to forfeit all of his power to the Majles, attached a caveat that made his signature on all laws required for their enactment. He died five days later. The Supplementary Fundamental Laws approved in 1907 provided, within limits, for freedom of press, speech, and association, and for

20511-464: The plateau, have encouraged the development of the most primitive of all building techniques, molded mud , compressed as solidly as possible, and allowed to dry. This technique, used in Iran from ancient times, has never been completely abandoned. The abundance of heavy plastic earth, in conjunction with a tenacious lime mortar , also facilitated the development and use of brick . Certain design elements of Persian architecture have persisted throughout

20670-436: The rapid growth of cities such as the capital Tehran has brought about a wave of demolition and new construction. According to American historian and archaeologist Arthur Pope , the supreme Iranian art, in the proper meaning of the word, has always been its architecture. The supremacy of architecture applies to both pre- and post-Islamic periods. Iranian architecture displays great variety, both structural and aesthetic, from

20829-427: The recurring elements are iwans and domed chambers. Some of the earlier examples up to the 8th century seem to have had halls with wooden pillars and roofs, while those that probably date to the 9th century seem to have favored domes and vaulted ceilings. They also had stucco decoration executed in the styles of Samarra. Residences built in the countryside were enclosed by outer walls with semi-circular towers, while on

20988-526: The requirements of the new Muslim patrons. After the overthrow of the Umayyads in 750 and their replacement by the Abbasid Caliphate , the caliphate's political center shifted further east to the new capital of Baghdad , in present-day Iraq. Partly as a result of this, Abbasid architecture was even more influenced by Sasanian architecture and by its roots in ancient Mesopotamia . During

21147-599: The roundness of the city of Baghdad in the Abbasid era, points to its Persian precedents, such as Firouzabad in Fars . Al-Mansur hired two designers to plan the city's design: Naubakht , a former Persian Zoroastrian who also determined that the date of the foundation of the city should be astrologically significant, and Mashallah ibn Athari , a former Jew from Khorasan . The ruins of Persepolis , Ctesiphon , Sialk , Pasargadae , Firouzabad , and Arg-é Bam give us

21306-486: The second half of the 12th century. Further east, the first major Turkic dynasty was the Ghaznavids , who became independent in the late 10th century and ruled from Ghazna , in present-day Afghanistan. In the second half of the 12th century, the Ghurids replaced them as the major power in the region from northern India to the edge of the Caspian Sea . Among the most remarkable monuments of these two dynasties are

21465-405: The security of life and property. The hopes for the constitutional rule were not realized, however. Mozaffar al-Din Shah's son Mohammad Ali Shah (reigned 1907–1909), who, through his mother, was also the grandson of Prime-Minister Amir Kabir (see before), with the aid of Russia, attempted to rescind the constitution and abolish parliamentary government. After several disputes with the members of

21624-475: The shah dismissed him and exiled him to Kashan , where he was murdered on the shah's orders. Through his marriage to Ezzat od-Doleh, Amir Kabir had been the brother-in-law of the shah. Qajar Iran would become a victim of the Great Game between Russia and Britain for influence over central Asia. As the Qajar state's sovereignty was challenged this took the form of military conquests, diplomatic intrigues, and

21783-706: The shrine of Bayazid Bastami in the town of Bastam , the aforementioned Mausoleum of Pir-i Bakran, and the aforementioned Tomb of Abd-al-Samad. Also in Bastam, the Ilkhanids built a traditional tower tomb to house the remains of Uljaytu's infant son. Unusually, rather than being an independent structure, the tomb was erected behind the qibla wall of the town's main mosque – a configuration also found in some contemporary Mamluk architecture . The Timurid Empire , created by Timur ( r.  1370–1405 ), oversaw another cultural renaissance. Timurid architecture continued

21942-419: The sky to mingle with the divine towers of heaven lasted into the 19th century, while the interior court and pool, the angled entrance and extensive decoration are ancient, but still common, features of Iranian architecture. A circular city plan was a characteristic of several major Parthian and Sasanian cities, such as Hatra and Gor (Firuzabad). Another city design was based on a square geometry, found in

22101-448: The so-called "beveled" style. This style subsequently spread to other regions, including Iran. Few of the major mosques built during this early Islamic period in Iran have survived in something close to their original form. Remains of a mosque at Susa , probably from the Abbasid period, show that it had a hypostyle prayer hall (i.e. a hall with many columns supporting a roof) and a courtyard. Another mosque excavated at Siraf dates to

22260-581: The south-eastern corner of the Caspian Sea , and it would be this branch of Qajars that would rise to power. The immediate ancestor of the Qajar dynasty, Shah Qoli Khan of the Quvanlu of Ganja, married into the Quvanlu Qajars of Astarabad. His son, Fath Ali Khan (born c.  1685 –1693) was a renowned military commander during the rule of the Safavid shahs Sultan Husayn and Tahmasp II . He

22419-743: The subsequent withdrawal of most of the Russian troops, the Ottomans gained the upper hand in Iran, occupying significant portions of the country until the end of the war. Between 1914 and 1918, the Ottoman troops massacred many thousands of Iran's Assyrian and Armenian population, as part of the Assyrian and Armenian genocides , respectively. The front in Iran would last up to the Armistice of Mudros in 1918. In late 1915, due to pro-CP actions by Iranian gendarmerie (encouraged by Ahmad Shah Qajar and

22578-489: The territories up to including parts of Dagestan in the north and up to the westernmost border of modern-day Armenia in the west, he sent Erekle the last ultimatum, which he also declined, but, sent couriers to St.Petersburg. Gudovich , who sat in Georgiyevsk at the time, instructed Erekle to avoid "expense and fuss", while Erekle, together with Solomon II and some Imeretians headed southwards of Tbilisi to fend off

22737-482: The tradition of Ilkhanid architecture, building monuments once again on a grand scale and with lavish decoration made to impress, but they also refined previous designs and techniques. Timurid rulers recruited the best craftsmen from their conquered territories or even forced them to move to the Timurid capital. Brick continued to be used as construction material. To cover large brick surfaces with colorful decoration,

22896-465: The treasury gendarmerie, a tax department police force, into the Russian zone. When in December 1911 the Majlis unanimously refused a Russian ultimatum demanding Shuster's dismissal, Russian troops, already in the country, moved to occupy the capital. To prevent this, on 20 December, Bakhtiari chiefs and their troops surrounded the Majles building, forced acceptance of the Russian ultimatum, and shut down

23055-490: Was a moderate, but relatively ineffective ruler. Royal extravagances coincided with an inadequate ability to secure state revenue which further exacerbated the financial woes of the Qajar. In response, the Shah procured two large loans from Russia (in part to fund personal trips to Europe). Public anger mounted as the Shah sold off concessions – such as road building monopolies, the authority to collect duties on imports, etc. – to European interests in return for generous payments to

23214-536: Was applied to other major mosques around this time, including those of Ardestan and Zavareh , as well as in secular architecture. It was probably also used for madrasas , a new type of building introduced around this time, though none of the Seljuk madrasas have been well preserved. Lodging places ( khān , or caravanserai) for travellers and their animals, generally displayed utilitarian rather than ornamental architecture, with rubble masonry, strong fortifications, and minimal comfort. Large caravanserais were built as

23373-407: Was curtailed, and foreign trade was encouraged. Public works such as the bazaar in Tehran were undertaken. Amir Kabir issued an edict banning ornate and excessively formal writing in government documents; the beginning of a modern Persian prose style dates from this time. One of the greatest achievements of Amir Kabir was the building of Dar ol Fonoon in 1851, the first modern university in Iran and

23532-466: Was inconceivable and had to be resisted in the same way as one would resist an attempt at the separation of Fars or Gilan. It was therefore natural for Agha Mohammad Khan to perform whatever necessary means in the Caucasus in order to subdue and reincorporate the recently lost regions following Nader Shah's death and the demise of the Zands, including putting down what in Iranian eyes was seen as treason on

23691-518: Was killed in 1726. Fath Ali Khan's son Mohammad Hasan Khan Qajar (1722–1758) was the father of Mohammad Khan Qajar and Hossein Qoli Khan (Jahansouz Shah), father of "Baba Khan," the future Fath-Ali Shah Qajar . Mohammad Hasan Khan was killed on the orders of Karim Khan of the Zand dynasty . Within 126 years between the demise of the Safavid state and the rise of Naser al-Din Shah Qajar ,

23850-464: Was later assassinated while preparing a second expedition against Georgia in 1797 in Shusha . Reassessment of Iranian hegemony over Georgia did not last long; in 1799 the Russians marched into Tbilisi, two years after Agha Mohammad Khan's death. The next two years were a time of muddle and confusion, and the weakened and devastated Georgian kingdom, with its capital half in ruins, was easily absorbed by Russia in 1801. As Iran could not permit or allow

24009-470: Was mostly spared from major conflicts and the devastation and havoc of warfare. For instance, it was a haven for those fleeing from destruction in other parts of the Khwarazmian Empire during the Mongol invasion . In 1272 it was visited by Marco Polo , who remarked on the city's fine silk-weaving industry. In the book The Travels of Marco Polo , he described Yazd in the following way: It

24168-536: Was not able to prevent Britain and Russia from encroaching into regions of traditional Iranian influence. In 1856, during the Anglo-Persian War , Britain prevented Iran from reasserting control over Herat . The city had been part of Iran in Safavid times, but Herat had been under Durrani rule since the mid–18th century. Britain also extended its control to other areas of the Persian Gulf during

24327-720: Was now used to cover entire domes and vaults for purely decorative effect. The Tomb of 'Abd al-Samad in Natanz (1307–8), for example, is covered inside by an elaborate muqarnas dome that is made from stucco suspended below the pyramidal vault that roofs the building. Brick remained the main construction material, but more color was added through the use of tile mosaic, which involved cutting monochrome tiles of different colors into pieces that were then fitted together to form larger patterns, especially geometric motifs and floral motifs. Carved stucco decoration also continued. Some exceptional examples in Iran come from this period, including

24486-538: Was re-founded by "Yazdegerd, son of Bahram", i.e. Yazdegerd II ( r.  438–457 ). The word yazd means God. After the Muslim conquest , many Zoroastrians migrated to Yazd from neighboring provinces. By paying a levy, Yazd was allowed to remain Zoroastrian even after its conquest, and Islam only gradually became the dominant religion in the city. Due to its secluded desert setting and challenging access, Yazd

24645-475: Was the common and official name of Iran. The idea of the Guarded Domains illustrated a feeling of territorial and political uniformity in a society where the Persian language, culture, monarchy, and Shia Islam became integral elements of the developing national identity. The concept presumably had started to form under the Mongol Ilkhanate in the late 13th-century, a period in which regional actions, trade, written culture, and partly Shia Islam, contributed to

24804-408: Was the young prince Naser al-Din's advisor and constable. With the death of Mohammad Shah in 1848, Mirza Taqi was largely responsible for ensuring the crown prince's succession to the throne. When Nasser ed-Din succeeded to the throne, Amir Nezam was awarded the position of the prime minister and the title of Amir Kabir , the Great Ruler. At that time, Iran was nearly bankrupt. During the next two and

24963-429: Was unsuccessfully besieged in 1350–1351 by the Injuids under Shaikh Abu Ishaq. The Friday (or Congregation) mosque, arguably the city's greatest architectural landmark, as well as other important buildings, date to this period. During the Qajar Empire (18th century AD) it was ruled by the Bakhtiari Khans. Under the rule of the Safavid Empire (16th century), some people migrated from Yazd and settled in an area that

25122-426: Was useless, especially as Iran had no force to implement this policy. At the beginning of the war, the Ottomans invaded Iranian Azerbaijan . Numerous clashes would take place there between the Russians , who were further aided by the Assyrians under Agha Petros as well as Armenian volunteer units and battalions, and the Ottomans on the other side. However, with the advent of the Russian Revolution of 1917 and

25281-422: Was withdrawn in 1787, despite the frantic protests of the Georgians, as a new war against Ottoman Turkey had started on a different front. The consequences of these events came a few years later when a strong new Iranian dynasty under the Qajars emerged victorious in the protracted power struggle in Iran. Their head, Agha Mohammad Khan , as his first objective, resolved to bring the Caucasus again fully under

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