Urban Development -Financial Relations of Nadir Shah Afshar with Urbanites

 With the collapse of the Safavid government, many residents of the country's cities were massacred or forced to flee to remote rural and mountainous areas during internal riots and the aggression of neighboring countries. With the beginning of Nadir's rule and the improvement of the relative security of the country, the Urban development policy and tax exemptions caused the residents to return to their hometowns. the present research, thus aimed to respond to this question that what was urban development -financial relations of Nadir Shah Afshar with urbanites? To answer this question this study was performed that nadir in his effort to gain the consent of the city dwellers to achieve the monarchy followed the Urban development tradition of the Safavid government to improve the cities and exempt them from taxes. During the monarchy, the Afshar ruler's Emphasis on War camp supplies led to double taxes, torture, and reprimands of the urbanites.So far, no comprehensive research has been done on Nadir Shah Afshar's relations with the city dwellers, but in some researches related to the Afshar era, brief references have been made to the social-financial conditions of the cities.The author of the thesis "Insight and method in the historiography of the Afsharid era" by citing first-hand sources has made references to Nadir Shah's actions and personality including his vows to the Razavi shrine or his wealth-hoarding trend which caused the misery of the people. (Naseri, 2016: 110 , 125) The authors of the article "The effect of Nader Shah and Alisha Afshar's endowment policies on the decrease or growth of the endowments of Astan Quds Razavi" have mentioned the confiscation of endowment income by Nadir. (Suzanchi Kashani and Shaabani, 2013: 85) In the research of "Discrete Institutional Changes of Nadir shah and Evaluation of the Economic Conditions of Iran in the Age of Afsharid" attention has been paid to Nadir shah's tax arrangement and also to the destruction of cities. (Ehsani et al., 1400: 17 , 28) In the article of "Nadir shah, Legitimacy and Social Rebellions, 1139 AH-1152 AH/ 1726 AD-1740 AD" is mentioned about the rebellion of different cities under the command of Mohammad Khan Baloch. (Faridi, 1396: 158) In the book of "Iran in the Age of Nadir" is mentioned that Nadir considered the city dwellers to be the patrons of the Safavid dynasty. (Axworthy, 2008: 230) In the authorship of "Fragile Resistance: The History of Iran's Social Developments" is stated that the excessive pressure of taxes on the merchant class led to the destruction of regional and local trade in the country but Mashhad became an active commercial city. (Foran, 1377: 131-132)

the current research pays attention to the condition of the cities during the period of Nadir Shah by carefully studing the historical sources in order to survey a comprehensive description of his Urban development and financial policy with the city dwellers. In this regard, the research analyzes and interprets these features and their effects on the situation of cities by using the historical approach and classification of various aspects such as Urban development and the tax system of Afsharid government.  

With the declinee of the Safavid government, the Necessity to strengthen the military arm to establish social security led to the domination of the militarian over the executive affairs of the country which in turn provided the basis for the removal and change of the nature of many bureautical positions such as the prime minister. However, with the beginning of the reign of Shah Tahmasab II, the tradition of Safavid statehood which was based on the improvement of the ruins left over from the civil wars was revived to some extent and the Shah gave orders to the governors for Urban development actions; For example, in 1140 A.H., Nadir was ordered to allocate cash and commodity amounts to the Biotat of Astan Quds Razavi. (Shahidi, 2017: 216-216) Under the influence of the legacy of the Safavid bureaucracy, nadir Urban development actions were continued in the early period of his reign which were especially in Isfahan. For example, in 1150 AD, the royal palaces of Isfahan and the suburbs quickly became Rebuilding. For this reason, Nadir Shah gained a lot of respect among the people for reviving the works of Shah Abbas I. (Du cluster, 1346: 172-173) Despite of the relative revival of Isfahan city, the business center was moved to Mashhad due to the greater Urban development attention of the ruler. (Spilman, 1742:39(In case of political-military necessity, Nadir Shah sometimes built residential cities and castles. These actions was mostly carried out during military campaigns to the strategic areas. The ruler founded two cities in his name, one of which was around of Mashhad on behalf of Kandahar. He also built a fort and a bazaar for the settlement of people after the destruction of the Kandahar fort. (Wared, 1349: 254) By combineing the functions of the kingdom and the ministry, Nadir Shah personally closely supervised the appointments of officials such as the city governor, Mustofi, tax collectors, kalantars and heads of guilds in order to obtain maximum taxes. For example, in 1149 A.H, he established the process of evaluating all the properties of the country and the inputs and expenses of the marketers in order to obtain the maximum tax; As he confiscated all the waqf properties of Astan Quds Razavi. (Toomar Alishahi, 1379: 25-30)

During the Safavid era, there was not much tax strictness and sometimes the tax of low-income urban guilds was also forgiven.With the collapse of the Safavid government, the lack of a powerful and comprehensive central government caused the urban society which was the most accessible type of community in the country and the center for the establishment of the treasury, various guilds, and government courts, damaged a lot in the struggle of the Afghans with the claimants of the monarchy. Therefore, the re-establishment of the central government under Nadir Shah led to the gradual improvement of the situation of the cities as the centers of the establishment of the government in Urban development and financial affairs. At the beginning, Nadir tried to gain widespread legitimacy by improving the conditions of the society in the form of tax exemptions, Urban development actions and get interest of local residents and elders to finally prepare the conditions for attaining the monarchy by leaving the Safavid princes. However, during the period of the monarchy, Nadir Shah's change of behavior due to factors such as failure in political, military and religious goals led to tax strictures and even destructive actions such as confiscation of property, torture and mutilation of city dwellers under the pretext of providing military forces. The rebellion of urban classes, tax collectors and even Ali Qoli Khan, the nephew of Nadir Shah, caused many times. A process that, while disquietuding and fleeing the city dwellers to distant areas, gradually led to the deterioration of the foundations of the Afsharian government and even the murder of the Afsharian ruler.