Battle of Zarghan

Battle of Zarghan
Part of Nader's Campaigns
Illustration of the battle showing Nader leading his troops against the Afghans
Date 15 January 1730 (1730-01-15) Location Zarghan, Shiraz County, Southern Persia Result Safavid victory [1]
Belligerents
Safavid Iran	Hotak dynasty local Arab tribes
Commanders and leaders
Nader Shah	Ashraf Hotaki
Strength
20,000–30,000	10,000–20,000
Casualties and losses
Unknown	Unknown

The Battle of Zarghan (Persian : نبرد زرگان) was the last battle of Ashraf Hotaki's career as a statesman. Having been repeatedly bludgeoned by Nader's army through the Battles of Mihmandoost and Murche-Khort Ashraf had withdrawn from Isfahan and escaped south to Shiraz to rebuild his army in an ultimately futile attempt to reverse his fortunes. Although he found some local support amongst a few of the tribes he was decisively beaten, for the last time, after which he disappeared from Persia as well as the historical records, with no consensus being reached concerning the manner of his demise.

See also

• Battle of Gulnabad
• Battle of Murche-Khort
• Battle of Khwar Pass

References

1. "AŠRAF ḠILZAY". Encyclopaedia Iranica. Retrieved 20 November 2025. Ašraf continued to pose a real threat, because he commanded an army still about 20,000 strong, and had with him a large amount of treasure. Nāder therefore set out as soon as possible in pursuit. He defeated the Afghan army at Zarqān near Shiraz and destroyed a detachment of rearguard troops at Pol-e Fasā, 16 km southeast of Shiraz)

Further reading

• Michael Axworthy, The Sword of Persia: Nader Shah, from Tribal Warrior to Conquering Tyrant Hardcover 348 pages (26 July 2006) Publisher: I.B. Tauris Language: English ISBN   1-85043-706-8
• Pirnia, Hasan; Ashtiani, Abbas Iqbal; Babaei, Parviz (2012). History of Persia (in Persian). Negah Publications. ISBN   978-9643513320.