Abdollah Khan Ustajlu

Abdollah Khan Ustajlu (died 1566/67) was a high-ranking Safavid dignitary of Turkoman origin, who served during the reign of king Tahmasp I (1524-1576). He successively held the posts of amir al-omarāʾ (commander-in-chief) and divanbegi (chancellor, chief justice), before becoming the governor of Shirvan from 1549 until 1565 or 1566.[upper-alpha 1]

Biography

Abdollah Khan was a son of Qara Khan Ustajlu by his wife, a sister of king Ismail I (r. 1501-1524), and was thus a nephew to Ismail's successor and son Tahmasp I.[4] He married a Safavid princess himself as well, a daughter of Ismail I with the name of Pari Khan Khanum.[2][upper-alpha 2]

In 1549, having already served as amir-al-omarāʾ and divanbegi, he was appointed governor of Shirvan, a post he held for numerous years. in 1562-1563, Abdollah Khan sent envoys to the capital of the Russian Tsardom, Moscow, to conduct discussions about trade.[5] In the 1560s, Abdollah Khan granted the Muscovy Company trading privileges, whose mission to Safavid Iran at the time was led by Anthony Jenkinson.[6] Abdollah Khan's grandson, Salman Khan Ustajlu b. Shah-Qoli Mirza (died 1623-1624), became one of the "highest and richest dignitaries of the state" on his turn.[7]

Notes

1. According to Floor (2008), his tenure as governor of Shirvan ended in 1565.[1] According to Nashat & Beck (2003), his tenure ended either in 1566 or "perhaps even" in 1577, with the latter being "the year of his death".[2] According to Newman (2008), he died in "1566-7".[3] Floor (2008) also specifically adds on the page about Shirvan that he was governor of Shaki "as of 1549-50", but he does not list him as governor on the page about Shaki/Sheki itself.[1]
2. In order to avoid confusion with Tahmasp I's daughter Pari Khan Khanum, Ismail I's daughter is sometimes referred to as Pari Khan Khanum I while Tahmasp I's daughter is sometimes referred to as Pari Khan Khanum II.

References

1. Floor 2008, p. 285.
2. Nashat & Beck 2003, p. 145.
3. Newman 2008, p. 168.
4. Newman 2008, p. 164.
5. Matthee 1999, p. 30.
6. Matthee 1999, p. 31.
7. Nashat & Beck 2003, pp. 145-146.

Sources

• Floor, Willem M. (2008). Titles and Emoluments in Safavid Iran: A Third Manual of Safavid Administration, by Mirza Naqi Nasiri. Washington, DC: Mage Publishers. p. 285. ISBN 978-1933823232.
• Newman, Andrew J. (2008). Safavid Iran: Rebirth of a Persian Empire. I.B.Tauris. ISBN 978-0857716613.
• Matthee, Rudolph P. (1999). The Politics of Trade in Safavid Iran: Silk for Silver, 1600-1730. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0521641319.
• Nashat, Guity; Beck, Lois, eds. (2003). Women in Iran from the Rise of Islam to 1800. University of Illinois Press. ISBN 978-0252071218.