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Monarchy in Persia and Iran

  • Achaemenid EmpireIn 550 BC, Cyrus the Great defeated the Median king Astyages and captured Ecbatana. This single event marked the birth of an empire that would stretch from…
  • Safavid IranThe story begins in the mountainous region of Ardabil, about 40 miles inland from the Caspian Sea. Here lived Sheikh Safi al-Din Ardabili, a revered Sufi…
  • Safavid dynastyThe Safavid dynasty began as a Sunni Sufi order in the city of Ardabil during the 14th century. Shaykh Safi al-Din established this spiritual movement, which…