1991/01/01 by Rudi Matthee · 1 citation
Economics, Econometrics and Finance · Social Sciences · #Admiration #Ancient history #Art #Charge (physics) #Element (criminal law) #Historical Economic and Social Studies #Historiography #History #Hospitality #Islamic Studies and History #Law #Literature #Narrative #Ottoman Empire History and Society #Physics #Political science #Politics #Reign #State (computer science) #Tourism
paper · doi:10.1080/00210869108701755
openalex publication_date 1991/01/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/30
La plus belle charge de la cour, c'est la faveur. Safavid historiography has oscillated between admiration and vilification in its appraisal of Shah ‘Abbas II's reign (1642-1666). In the accounts of contemporary observers—for the most part European travelers—one finds favorable descriptions of the shah and his court as part of a positive assessment of the overall state of the country. Impressed by the hospitality they enjoyed at the court of Isfahan, these foreign visitors spoke highly of a magnanimous and tolerant monarch; moreover, the absence of rebellion and relatively secure roads prompted them to refer to Iran as a prosperous and stable country. Those who visited Iran within a generation after the shah's death corroborated this image; indeed, in their narratives one already finds an element of nostalgia for the days of ‘Abbas II.