A Glance at the Status of Georgian Slaves in the Military Structure of the Safavids during the Reign of Shah Abbas

One of the important accomplishments of Shah Abbas I was transforming the structure of the army. Through fortifying the army, he consolidated the foundations of the Safavid government. In order to execute this policy, after the conquest of Georgia and becoming familiar with Georgians’ special features, he founded a new military structure by benefitting from the services of some powerful and worthy Georgian military men and called it Qullar or ghulams (slave soldiers). Following a descriptive-analytic method, the purpose of this study was to investigate the role of Georgian slaves in the Safavid army in Shah Abbas’ period. The findings of the study demonstrate that Georgian slaves held a high position in the military structure of the Safavid government.