Person:Ismail II (1)

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Ismail II (; Born Ismail Mirza; 31 May 1537 – 24 November 1577) was the third Shah of Safavid Iran from 1576 to 1577. He was the second son of Tahmasp I with his principal consort, Sultanum Begum. By the orders of Tahmasp, Ismail spent twenty years imprisoned in Qahqaheh Castle; whether for his recurrent conflicts with the realm's influential vassals, or for his order of mustering an army to invade the Ottoman Empire, in the time of the peace and the newly-signed Treaty of Amasya between the two empires, or for Ismail's growing popularity between the Qizilbash tribes, or due to his homosexuality and revelrous lifestyle.

Tahmasp died In 1576 without a designed heir. Ismail, with the support of his sister, Pari Khan Khanum, overcame his opponents and usurped the crown. In order to relieve himself of potential claimants, Ismail purged all the male members of the royal family, except for his full-brother, Mohammad Khodabanda and his three sons. In fear of the Qizilbash influence on the administration and the army, Ismail replaced them with people whom he trusted. His short reign was scarce of war. Ismail belittled the Shi'ia Islam scholars and sought spiritual guiding with the Sunni Islam scholars. This was perhaps out of spite for his father, who was a devoted Shi'ia.

Towards the ending months of his reign, Ismail shunned his influential sister, Pari Khan, and treated her with lack of appreciation despite her efforts to made him king. In 24 November 1577, Ismail unexpectedly died from unknown reasons, but the general view is that he was poisoned by either Pari Khan Khanum or the Qizilbash. He was succeeded by his brother, the blind Mohammad Khodabanda. Ismail is not remembered fondly by the contemporary historians who considered him as an irrational, perverted, and inept ruler, who brought the Safavid dynasty to the brink of collapse. However, a number of contemporary chroniclers also portray him as a just ruler. The modern historians regard his policies as disastrous and his personality as unusually ruthless even by the period's standards.

1. ↑ ^1.0 1.1 Ismail II, in Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia.