Persian Safavid

Safavids was founded by Sufi mystics and religious preachers near the Caspian Sea. Safavids origins derived its name from the founder of the Sufi order, Shaykh Safi al-Din Ardabili (1252-1334).

During the last two Sufi leaders of Ardabil, Shaykh Joneyd and Shaykh Heydar, the order adopted Shi’ism as it main ideology. After centuries of warfare, Shah Ismā’īl I and his tribal forces captured Tabriz in 1501 eight different rulers held sway over what would become Safavid territory. During his coronation in Tabriz he declared Shi’ism the official state religion,

Within less than a decade Safavid forces had seized these rulers’ lands and drove out the Safavid’s enemies. They created a single political entity that dominated the Iranian plateau.

The Safavid socio-political state was dominated by an alliance between a coalition of different Turkic tribes – the Qizilbāsh confederation – that was the realm’s military backbone and the Tajiks (native Persians) who furnished the political/administrative elements.

Restoring Persia as a major center of political power and cultural creativity, they also established one of the strongest and most enduring centers of Shi’ism within the Islamic world.

The Safavi dynasty reached its apogee under Shah ‘Abbas (1587-1629). Shah ‘Abbas bequeathed to his successors a centralized administrative system, a standing army, and a state with well-defined boundaries. The reign of Shah ‘Abbas also was a time of a dramatic increase in diplomatic and commercial contacts with the west.

Later shahs were weak and were increasingly dominated both by haram women and, especially, by the rising political influence of an intolerant, orthodox clerical class. The latter crushed the philosophical renaissance of the earlier half of the century and forestalled any effective Court response to a series of political, economic and military crises that increasingly enveloped the realm.

The Afghan invasion and capture of the Safavid capital Esfahan in 1722 were the inevitable result thereof. Ottomans, Mughals, Afghani tribes besieged Ishfahan – fell Oct 1722 (80,000 inhabitant killed of starvation & disease).
Persian Safavid

Nineteenth Dynasty XIX (1292–1189 BC)

The Nineteenth Dynasty began with the reign of Horemheb’s vizier Ramesses I. The death of Tutankhamen brought about a break in the royal succession; his successors Ay and Horemheb were not of royal blood and neither left an heir of his body.

In these circumstances Horemheb appointed his vizier Pramesse to succeed him so that on the king’s death in 1320 BC.  Pramesse ascended the throne as Ramesses I, thus inaugurating the Nineteenth Dynasty.

The nineteenth dynasty is made famous by the victories of Ramesses I, but already under his successor Sethi I, Egypt appears to have begun to lose some of her outlaying possession acquired by the eighteenth dynasty.

Ramesses II, however, a greater warrior that his father. He first conquered Kush, or Ethiopia; then he led an expedition against the Khitae or Hittites.

Ramesses fought with and conquered the Amorites, Canaanites and other tribes of Palestine and Syria.

List of the King during Nineteenth Dynasty
Ramesses I
Seti I
Ramesses II
Merneptah
Seti II
Amenmesse
Siptah
Twosret

According to the history, that near the end of Merneptah’s reign, corresponding roughly to the end of the Nineteenth Dynasty, Egypt was engulfed in a veritable tide of violence and chaos.

A mysterious group of people, known generally as the ‘Sea People’ or ‘Peoples of the Sea’ descended on Egypt from the north. He also faced invasion of Libvan from the west but eventually defeated them at Pi-yer in the western Delta.
Nineteenth Dynasty XIX (1292–1189 BC)

Almoravid dynasty (1042-1147)

A Berber dynasty that succeeded the Fatimid dynasty in the Maghreb arose from the deserts of southern Mauritania, the Almoravids conquered Morocco and Islamicate Spain during the second half of the 11th century.

Their name derives from murabitun, ‘performers of ribat’, usually interpreted as indicating their links with fortified convent on the frontiers of Islam, although must likely referring to a way of life that united both spiritual and military discipline.

The founder of the Almoravid movement a teacher of Maliki law named And Allah ibn Yassin, was originally brought to the desert by a Berber chief who eager for his people to receive proper Islamic instruction.

Ibn Yassin developed a core group of followers who he he later sent to conquer the surrounding lands and enforce his rigorous interpretation of Islam. Although Ibn Yassin was killed in battle in 1058 his successors Abu Bakr ibn Umar (d. 1087) an Yusuf Ibn Tashfin (d.1106) extended Almoravid rule southward into Ghana and northward throughout Morocco and into Islamicate Spain.

It was under ibn Tashfin - responsible for the conquest of the rest of Morocco, part of Algeria and Andalus - that the movement united under a single religious political and military leadership with the capital of the empire established in the newly founded Marrakech.

In 1086, the dynasty moved into Spain at the request of Al-Mutamid. Toledo had fallen and the Muslim in Spain needed aid. AlMoravid dynasty was able to stop the advance of the Christian armies.

But the Christians began to win back territory in 1118. In 1147, they were overthrown by the Almohad dynasty.
Almoravid dynasty (1042-1147)

Zhou dynasty (1045 - 256 BC)

The first urban settlements in the People’s Republic of China emerged some 4000 years ago. Many historians considered Shang dynasty as the first true dynasty of China.

Shang dynasty rules the Chinese civilization from about 1700 to 1027 BC before it was succeeded by the Zhou dynasty. The origins of Chinese culture, literature and philosophy developed during the Zhou Dynasty.

Concept of the ‘Mandate of Heaven’ was developed during the Zhou Dynasty. A ruler was in position because he had the Mandate of Heaven.

Iron was first introduced in China during this period, the art of fine gastronomy was referred to as ‘k’o’peng’, namely ‘to cut and cook’. It was said that Confucius (551 – 479 BC) that he would eat no meat that had not been properly cut.

During Zhou dynasty, examinations have been characteristics of school education and were used to select talented people to serve as offci8cials in provinces and villagers.

With the development of technology and military tactics hand to hand combat skills and weapon skills appeared in military training in the Spring and Autumn Period (770 – 476 BC). During this period Wushu began to be practiced by civilian.

In the last period of the Zhou, Confucius and Mencius supplied Chinese civilization with its most influential public philosophy, later to be known as Confucianism. Confucius made great impacts on late generations of Chinese and on the curriculum of the Chinese educational system for much of the following 2000 years.
Zhou dynasty (1045 - 256 BC)

History of Maurya Empire

In 323 BC Alexander the Great dies, providing the opportunity for an independent state to arise in north-west India. As a result Chandragupta Maurya founds the Mauryan dynasty, the first native Indian empire.

Chandragupta founded the Maurya dynasty, or ruling family in 321 BC. He defeated the Nanda dynasty and came to occupy the capital of the kingdom. Chandragupta reigned for 24 years.

He was reportedly advised by a brilliant Brahmin minister, variously called Kautilya or Chanakya, who is considered the author of the Arthashastra.

Chandragupta is credited with having an enormous army and driving out the last Greek garrisons. In 305 BC he defeated Seleucus Nicator.

To expand his territory, Chandragupta conquered many surrounding lands. His son Bindusara, who took the throne in 297 BC conquered more lands to the south.

Grandson of Chandragupta, Asoka rules during 273-232 BC was the most prominent king of the Mauryan dynasty. His empire extends from Afghanistan (northwest) to Assam (northeast) and from the Himalayas in the north to Mysore in the south.

Around 200 BC, the Mauryan Empire went into decline. A military commander assassinated the last Maurya emperor, Brhadratha, in 185 BC. The commander founded his own dynasty and the Mauryan Empire ended.
History of Maurya Empire