List of massacres of Nizari Ismailis

Last updated

Numerous massacres are recorded against the minority Nizari Ismaili Shia Muslims, particularly during the Alamut Period. [1]

Contents

In many cases, the victims include non-Nizaris; such as supporters of the Nizaris, and people who are falsely accused and killed due to personal enmity.

The Nizari response was often the assassination of the leader behind the massacre. [1]

List

List of massacres of Nizaris
DateLocationPerpetrator(s)DeathsNotable victimsNotes
1010–1025 Multan and al-Mansura, Sindh Ghaznavids Multiple massacres of Ismailis. [2]
1093 Isfahan's city square, Seljuk Empire local Sunni Muslims All suspected Ismailis in the town were burned alive in the city center. [3]
1101- Seljuk Empire Sultan Barkiyaruq Muhammad ibn Dushmanziyar ibn Ala' al-Dawla (محمد بن دشمنزیار بن علاءالدوله), governor of Yazd; son of Kayqubad, commandant of Tikrit [4] As listed below.
1101 Isfahan's city square, Seljuk Empire local Sunni Muslims, allowed by Barkiyaruq [5] [6]
1101- Baghdad and elsewhere in Iraq ordered by Abbasid caliph al-Mustazhir Abu Ibrahim Asadabadi (relative of Bahram al-Da'i)Widespread massacres. [6]
1113 Aleppo Sa'id ibn Badi', ra'is of Aleppo and militia commander, approved by Alp Arslan al-Akhras during Muhammad I Tapar's anti-Nizari campaign~200 massacred or imprisoned and their properties were confiscatedda'i Abu Tahir al-Sa'igh, da'i Isma'il, and a brother of da'i al-Hakim al-Munajjim [7]
1124 Amid, southern Armenia~700 [8]
1125Aleppo Ibn al-Khashshab
September 1129 Damascus, Emirate of Damascus Atabeg Taj al-Muluk Buri, the militia ( al-ahdath ) and the mob6,000-10,000Shadhili al-Kadim [9]
1138 Isfahan, Seljuk Empire After the assassination of the Abbasid caliph al-Rashid Billah. [10]
1140s Seljuk Empire Abbas (governor of Rayy)After the assassination of Sultan Da'ud [11]
1204Lower Iraq
May 1256Tun (modern Ferdows), Nizari Ismaili state Kitbuqa and Köke Ilgei almost all inhabitants [12]
1257 Mongol Empire Mongke Khan ~100,000Multiple massacres, as listed below [13] [14]
1257Toungat, Mongol Empire Khurshah's Mongol guard (ordered by Mongke Khan) Rukn al-Din Khurshah and his companions [15] [16] [17] [18]
1257between Qazvin and Abhar, Mongol Empire Qaraqai Bitikchi (ordered by Mongke Khan)Khurshah's relatives [19] [20]
1257 Quhistan, Mongol Empire Ötegü-China (ordered by Mongke Khan)12,000 [19]
1257? Mongol Empire Bulghan Khatun or Bulghan or Qara-Bulghan, the child of the assassinated Mongol commander Chagatai the Elder 200 or 300 [21]
15 December 1270 Gerdkuh, Ilkhanate Ilkhanate forces (during Abaqa Khan's reign)the garrison of Gerdkuh [19]
1809 Eyalet of Acre, Ottoman Empire (present-day Syria) Nusayris [20]
1392 Tabaristan, Timurid Empire Timur's troops [20]
May 1393 Anjudan, Timurid Empire Timur's troops [20]
1416 Daylam Sayyid Radi Kiya of the Karkiya dynasty Many Isma'ili leaders, including some descendants of the Imam Khudawand Ala al-Din Muhammad [20]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Order of Assassins</span> 1090–1275 Nizari Ismaili religious sect

The Order of Assassins or simply the Assassins were a Nizari Isma'ili order that existed between 1090 and 1275 AD, founded by Hasan al-Sabbah.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alamut Castle</span> 9th-century fortress in Qazvin Province, Iran

Alamut is a ruined mountain fortress located in the Alamut region in the South Caspian, near the village of Gazor Khan in Qazvin Province in Iran, approximately 200 km (130 mi) from present-day Tehran.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hasan-i Sabbah</span> Ismaili religious and military leader (c. 1050–1124)

Hasan al-Sabbah also known as Hasan I of Alamut, was a religious and military leader, founder of the Nizari Ismai'li sect widely known as the Hashshashin or the Order of Assassins, as well as the Nizari Ismaili state, ruling from 1090 to 1124 AD.

Rashid al-Din Sinan also known as the Old Man of the Mountain, was an Arab Muslim missionary who served as the leader of the Nizari Ismaili state and the Order of Assassins from 1162 until his death in 1193. An adherent of Nizari Ismailism, a branch of Shia Islam, he was a prominent figure during the Crusades.

Jalāl al-Dīn Ḥasan III (1187–1221), son of Nūr al-Dīn Muḥammad II, was the 25th Nizari Isma'ili Imām. He ruled from 1210 to 1221.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gerdkuh</span> Nizari Ismaili fortress in present-day Semnan Province, Iran

Gerdkuh was a castle of the Nizari Isma'ili state located near Damghan in the region of Qumis.

Kiyā Buzurg-Ummīd was a dāʿī and the second ruler (da'i) of the Nizari Isma'ili State, ruling Alamut Castle from 1124 to 1138 CE. He was of Daylami origin from the region of Rudbar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nizari Ismaili state</span> 1090–1310 Nizari state in northwest Iran and Syria

The Nizari state was a Nizari Isma'ili Shia state founded by Hassan-i Sabbah after he took control of the Alamut Castle in 1090 AD, which marked the beginning of an era of Ismailism known as the "Alamut period". Their people were also known as the Assassins or Hashashins.

Nūr al-Dīn Muḥammad II or ʾAʿlā Muḥammad was the Nizari Isma'ili Imām of Alamūt who reigned the longest period out of any lord (Khudawand) of Alamut, forty-four years. He affirmed the policies of his father, Hassan Ala Dhikrihi's Salam, who had been stabbed to death a year after proclaiming Qiyāma, or Resurrection.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Muhammad III of Alamut</span> 26th Nizari Ismaili Shia Imam (1221–1255)

ʿAlāʾ ad-Dīn Muḥammad III, more commonly known as ʿAlāʾ ad-Dīn, son of Jalāl al-Dīn Ḥasan III, was the 26th Nizāri Isma'ilism Imām. He ruled the Nizari Ismaili state from 1221 to 1255. By some accounts, he was considered a respected scholar and the spiritual and worldly leader of the Nizari Ismailis. The intellectual life of Persia has been described as having flourished during his 34-year reign. Allegedly, he was known for his tolerance and pluralism. His reign witnessed the beginnings of the Mongol conquests of Persia and the eastern Muslim world. He was assassinated by an unknown perpetrator on 1 December 1255, and was succeeded by his eldest son, Rukn al-Din Khurshah, in 1255.

Shams al-Din Muhammad was the 28th imam of the Nizari Isma'ili community. Little is known about his life. He was the first imam to rule after the destruction of the Nizari state by the Mongol Empire, and spent his life hiding his true identity.

By the late 11th century, the Shi'a sub-sect of Ismailism had found many adherents in Persia, although the region was occupied by the Sunni Seljuk Empire. The hostile tendencies of the Abbasid–Seljuk order triggered a revolt by Ismailis in Persia under Hassan-i Sabbah, starting the so-called Alamut Period.

The Mongol campaign against the Nizaris of the Alamut period began in 1253 after the Mongol invasion of the Khwarazmian Empire and a series of Nizari–Mongol conflicts. The campaign was ordered by the Great Khan Möngke and was led by his brother, Hülegü. The campaign against the Nizaris and later the Abbasid Caliphate was intended to establish a new khanate in the region—the Ilkhanate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Qal'eh Kuh of Ferdows</span> Ismaili castle in Quhistan

Ghal'eh Kuh of Ferdows is a ruined fortress on top of Kuh-e Ghal'eh, located south of Ferdows (Tun) in South Khorasan Province, Iran. The fortress was famously used by the Nizari Ismailis of the Alamut period, and was the biggest Nizari stronghold in the Quhistan region, according to the Tarikh-i Jahangushay.

Qal'eh Dokhtar, Ferdows, also the Ghal'eh Kuh of Hasanabad, is a small ruined fortress located north west of Ferdows (Tun) and near the village Hasanabad in South Khorasan Province, Iran. The fortress was used by the Nizari Ismailis of the Alamut period.

The siege of Maymun-Diz, an unlocated fortress and the stronghold of the leader of the Nizari Ismaili state, Imam Rukn al-Din Khurshah, occurred in 1256, during the Mongol campaign against the Nizaris led by Hülegü.

References

  1. 1 2 B. Hourcade, “ALAMŪT,” Encyclopædia Iranica, I/8, pp. 797-801; an updated version is available online at http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/alamut-valley-alborz-northeast-of-qazvin- (accessed on 17 May 2014).
  2. ↑ Kassam, Tazim R. (1995). Songs of Wisdom and Circles of Dance: Hymns of the Satpanth Isma'ili Muslim Saint, Pir Shams. SUNY Press. p. 120. ISBN   978-0-7914-2591-6.
  3. ↑ Daftary, Farhad (2007). The Isma'ilis: Their History and Doctrines. Cambridge University Press. p. 329. ISBN   978-1-139-46578-6.
  4. ↑ واحددرآبادی, رقیه; برومند, صفورا. "اتهام به الحاد و مصادیق آن در دوران سلجوقیان" (PDF). پژوهش نامه تاریخ اجتماعی و اقتصادی (in Persian). 4 (1): 83–102. ISSN   2383-1278.
  5. ↑ Peacock, A. C. S. (2015). Great Seljuk Empire. Edinburgh University Press. p. 75. ISBN   978-0-7486-9807-3.
  6. 1 2 Wasserman, James (2001). The Templars and the Assassins: The Militia of Heaven. Simon and Schuster. p. 91. ISBN   978-1-59477-873-5.
  7. ↑ Daftary, Farhad (2007). The Isma'ilis: Their History and Doctrines. Cambridge University Press. pp. 334–335. ISBN   978-1-139-46578-6.
  8. ↑ Wasserman, James (2001). The Templars and the Assassins: The Militia of Heaven. Simon and Schuster. p. 101. ISBN   978-1-59477-873-5.
  9. ↑ Mirza, Nasseh Ahmad (1997). Syrian Ismailism: The Ever Living Line of the Imamate, AD 1100-1260. Psychology Press. p. 12. ISBN   978-0-7007-0505-4.
  10. ↑ Lewis, Bernard (2011). The Assassins: A Radical Sect in Islam. Orion. pp. 54–. ISBN   978-0-297-86333-5.
  11. ↑ Wasserman, James (2001). The Templars and the Assassins: The Militia of Heaven. Simon and Schuster. p. 102. ISBN   978-1-59477-873-5.
  12. ↑ Daftary, Farhad (1992). The Isma'ilis: Their History and Doctrines. Cambridge University Press. p. 423. ISBN   978-0-521-42974-0.
  13. ↑ Daftary, Farhad. "The Mediaeval Ismailis of the Iranian Lands | The Institute of Ismaili Studies". www.iis.ac.uk. Archived from the original on 3 August 2016. Retrieved 31 March 2020.
  14. ↑ Willey, Peter (2005). Eagle's Nest: Ismaili Castles in Iran and Syria. Bloomsbury Academic. pp. 75–85. ISBN   978-1-85043-464-1.
  15. ↑ Willey, Peter. Eagle's Nest - Ismaili Castles in Iran and Syria (New York: I. B. Tauris, 2005), 83
  16. ↑ Juvaini, Ata-Malik; Qazvini, Mirza Muhammad (1997). Genghis Khan: The History of the World Conqueror. Manchester University Press. p. 609, note 9. ISBN   978-0-7190-5145-6.
  17. ↑ Ohsson, Constantin Mouradgea d' (1834). Histoire des Mongols (in French). p. 201.
  18. ↑ The Chinese Recorder and Missionary Journal. American Presbyterian Mission Press. p. 310, note 4.
  19. 1 2 3 Daftary, Farhad (1992). The Isma'ilis: Their History and Doctrines. Cambridge University Press. p. 429. ISBN   978-0-521-42974-0.
  20. 1 2 3 4 5 Virani, Shafique N. (2003). "The Eagle Returns: Evidence of Continued Isma?ili Activity at Alamut and in the South Caspian Region Following the Mongol Conquests". Journal of the American Oriental Society. 123 (2): 351–370. doi:10.2307/3217688. ISSN   0003-0279. JSTOR   3217688.
  21. ↑ Boyle, John Andrew (1977). The Mongol World Empire, 1206-1370. Variorum Reprints. ISBN   978-0-86078-002-1.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.