When was Nader Shah born and what was his early life like?
Nader Qoli Beg was born into the semi-nomadic Qirqlu clan of the Turkoman Afshar tribe and lived a life of constant movement across the rugged valleys of Dastgerd. His father Emam Qoli was a herdsman who may have also worked as a coatmaker, and Nader lost his father at the age of thirteen. He supported himself and his mother by gathering sticks for firewood and transporting them to the market before being captured by marauding Uzbeks in 1704.