Afshars of Urmia


The Afshars of Urmia are a branch of the Afshar tribe centered in the Iranian city of Urmia. From 1624/25 to 1820/21, the governorship of Urmia was mainly in the hands of the Urmia Afshars. After that, only a few them served as its governor, the last one being Imam Quli Khan, who became governor in 1879/80.
Many of the Afshar governors of Urmia bore the prominent title of beglarbegi, i.e. governor-general.

History

Fath-Ali Khan Afshar was in power from 1747 to 1748, and again from 1757 until 1762. Shortly after coming to power, he was expelled by Mehdi Khan Afshar, who was then appointed governor by Ebrahim Shah. However, Mehdi Khan Afshar was then overthrown by Azad Khan Afghan, and Fath 'Ali Khan became his deputy. In the aftermath of Nader Shah's death, the khans of Urmia were able to expand to control practically all the lands of Azerbaijan.
After the fall of Azad Khan Afghan, the people of Tabriz invited Fath 'Ali Khan to become the new ruler. In 1759, Fath 'Ali Khan marched onto Karabakh Khanate, which resulted in 6 months long siege and ultimately, Panah Ali Khan, khan of Karabakh Khanate, accepting to be the dependency of Fath-Ali. Panah Ali Khan's son Ibrahim Khalil Khan was taken hostage after the siege.
In 1761 Karim Khan Zand and Panah Ali Khan's combined forces marched onto Urmia, which resulted in Fath-Ali retreating to the city of Urmia. In May 1762, Karim Khan Zand struck again by capturing the city of Maragha and later sieging the city of Urmia for 9 months, which resulted in it being captured. Fath-Ali was hanged in Shiraz in 1763.
After Fath-'Ali Khan's death, Rustam Khan Afshar succeeded him. In 1768, he was succeeded by Reza Qoli Khan Afshar. In 1772 he was succeeded by Imam Qoli Khan Afshar. After the death of Karim Khan Zand in 1779, Imam Qoli Khan Afshar expanded Urmia once again. It is said that he received taxes from Savojbulagh, Senneh, Maragheh, Tabriz, and Khoy. However, eventually in 1783 the Zand leader 'Ali Morad Khan Zand sent an army to defeat Imam Qoli Khan Afshar. He succeeded in killing the khan and installing Amir Aslam Khan Afshar on the throne as a Zand puppet, but a few months later Mohammad Qoli Khan Afshar overthrew him with the support of the Afshar chieftains.
Eventually in 1824 the governor of Urmia was extinguished as the Afshars lost control of the governorship, but the Afshars continued to play an important role in the politics of Urmia.

List of governors of Urmia from 1624/25 to 1879/80

The governors of Urmia from 1624/25 to 1879/80 were the following;
DateGovernorOriginSovereign
1624/25Kalb Ali KhanImanlu subgroup of the Afshar tribeShah Abbas I
1633/34Ganj Ali KhanImanlu subgroup of the Afshar tribeShah Safi
?Muhammad Isa KhanImanlu subgroup of the Afshar tribeShah Abbas II
?Muhammad Ali KhanAfshar tribe. Possibly ImanluShah Abbas II
?Shah Virdi KhanImanlu subgroup of the Afshar tribeShah Abbas II
?Ganj Ali Khan IIImanlu subgroup of the Afshar tribeShah Abbas II
?Muhammad Isa Khan IIAfshar tribe. Possibly ImanluUnknown
1656Silspur Khan JalaliEmigrant from the Ottoman EmpireUnknown
1677/78Imam Virdi KhanAfshar tribeShah Suleiman
?Fazl Ali KhanImanlu subgroup of the Afshar tribeShah Suleiman
?Subhan Virdi KhanAfshar tribeShah Suleiman
?Jani KhanUnknownShah Suleiman
1695Aghzivar KhanShamlu tribeSoltan Hoseyn
1696Fazl Ali KhanUnknownSoltan Hoseyn
1707/08Khudadad KhanQasimlu subgroup of the Afshar tribeSoltan Hoseyn
1722Muhammad Qasim KhanQasimlu subgroup of the Afshar tribeSoltan Hoseyn
1725Yusuf PashaUnknownAhmed III
?Farrukh PashaUnknownAhmed III
1730Paru KhanAfshar tribeTahmasp Qoli Khan
1734Ashur KhanFrom Khorasan. Papalu subgroup of Afshar tribeTahmasp Qoli Khan
?Baktash KhanFrom Khorasan. Qirqlu subgroup of the Afshar tribeTahmasp Qoli Khan
1735/36Muhammad Isa KhanKhudadad Khan family from the Qasimlu subgroup of the Afshar tribeTahmasp Qoli Khan
?Muhammad Qasim KhanAfshar tribeTahmasp Qoli Khan
1736Muhammad Karim KhanQasimlu subgroup of the Afshar tribeNader Shah
1745/46Fath-Ali Khan AfsharArashlu subgroup of the Afshar tribeNader Shah
Mahdi Khan AfsharQasimlu subgroup of the Afshar tribe-
?Fath-Ali Khan AfsharArashlu subgroup of the Afshar tribeMahdi Khan Afshar
?Naqi KhanQasimlu subgroup of the Afshar tribeMahdi Khan Afshar
1750Azad Khan AfghanPashtun-
1759Fath-Ali Khan AfsharArashlu subgroup of the Afshar tribe-
1763Rustam KhanQasimlu subgroup of the Afshar tribeKarim Khan Zand
1768/69Riza Quli KhanQasimlu subgroup of the Afshar tribeKarim Khan Zand
1772/73Imam Quli KhanQasimlu subgroup of the Afshar tribeKarim Khan Zand
1783Amir Aslan KhanSayin-Qalah subgroup of the Afshar tribeAli-Morad Khan Zand
1784Muhammad Quli KhanQasimlu subgroup of the Afshar tribeAli-Morad Khan Zand
1790Qasim KhanKhudadad Khan family from the Qasimlu subgroup of the Afshar tribeAgha Mohammad Khan Qajar
1792/93Muhammad Quli KhanKhudadad Khan family from the Qasimlu subgroup of the Afshar tribeAgha Mohammad Khan Qajar
1798Husayn Quli KhanKhudadad Khan family from the Qasimlu subgroup of the Afshar tribeFath-Ali Shah Qajar
1820/21Najaf Quli KhanKhudadad Khan family from the Qasimlu subgroup of the Afshar tribeAbbas Mirza
1823/24Malik Qasim MirzaPrince of the Qajar dynastyAbbas Mirza
1828Ibrahim Khan SardarQajar tribeAbbas Mirza
1832Jahangir MirzaPrince of the Qajar dynastyAbbas Mirza
1834Haydar Ali KhanFrom the city of ShirazMohammad Shah Qajar