Bektash Khan (governor of Baghdad)

Bektash Khan (Persian: بکتاش خان), also known as Bektash Khan Gorji (Persian: بکتاش خان گرجی) (died 1639), was a Safavid official and gholam who served as the governor (beglarbeg) of Baghdad between 1631-1638, during the reign of king Safi (r. 1629-1642). His tenure was brought to an end in 1638 when the Ottomans captured the city during the ongoing Ottoman-Safavid War of 1623-39.

Biography

Bektash Khan was a member of the Mirimanidze clan, whose members had steadily risen through the Safavid ranks with the advent of the reign of king Abbas I (1588-1629), but had held influential positions priorly as well. After the death of his nephew Safiqoli Khan (Mirman Mirimanidze), Bektash Khan succeeded him to the governorship of Baghdad.[1]

Bektash Khan made considerable repairs to the fortifications that were damaged in the previous sieges.[2] He also built extensive outworks to prevent the enemy from approaching the walls.[2] During the decisive Ottoman siege of 1638, Bektash Khan offered tough resistance, and it took them almost six weeks to take the city.[3] Bektash Khan died a year after the fall of Baghdad.[4]

References

1. Maeda 2003, p. 253.
2. Mikaberidze 2011, p. 177.
3. Bengio & Litvak 2014, p. 63.
4. Maeda 2003, p. 271.

Sources

• Bengio, O.; Litvak, Meir (2014). The Sunna and Shi'a in History: Division and Ecumenism in the Muslim Middle East. Springer. ISBN 978-1137495068.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Floor, Willem (1997). "The Rise and Fall of Mirza Taqi, The Eunuch Grand Vizier (1043-55/1633-45)". Studia Iranica. 26 (2): 247. doi:10.2143/SI.26.2.2003944.
• Maeda, Hirotake (2003). "On the Ethno-Social Background of Four Gholām Families from Georgia in Safavid Iran". Studia Iranica (32): 1–278.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Mikaberidze, Alexander, ed. (2011). Conflict and Conquest in the Islamic World: A Historical Encyclopedia [2 volumes]: A Historical Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-1598843378.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)