-
Ismail, A member of the Safavid Sufi order, rises to the top of the order and proclaims himself Shah. He captures Tabriz, the capital Azerbaijan and begins minting coins in his name. He also declared Shi'ism the official religion of his empire.
-
In 1508, Ismail attacked Baghdad, slaughtering hundreds of Sunni Muslims and captured the city.
-
The Ottoman Empire considered the Safavids a major threat, and in 1514, the Ottomans and Safavids met in battle at Chaldiran. The Ottoman forces won a major victory when their artillery decimated the Safavid Cavalry. This defeat lowered the army's morale for many years.
-
Tahmasp, Ismail's son, takes power after Ismail's death in 1524. He was 10 years old at the time, and due to low morale and internal fighting, the empire suffered internal struggles for the first decade of Tahmasp's reign.
-
During Tahmasp's reign, the position of Shah began to become a more political figure, rather than the leader of the Safavid Sufi order.
-
Tens of thousands of prisoners from the Caucasus region north of Persia are taken, which changes the ethnic mix of the empire, bringing Armenian Christians and Georgians into the empire.
-
Ismail II took power after Tahmasp's death, and began a short but brutal reign. He murdered many members of his family and court for no reason, and tried to convert the empire to Sunniism. Ismail II was murdered a year after taking power.
-
Abbas I, also known as Abbas the Great, is considered the greatest ruler of the Safavid Empire. He rebuilt the empire after the inept rule of Ismail II and brought new success to the empire.
-
Abbas I ended the practice of appointing his sons to be regional governors because he believed it gave the princes too much power. After Abbas' death, a string of weak rulers without any government experience took power, contributing to the decline of the empire.
