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The Nizari Ismaili state, also called the Alamut state, was a Shia Nizari Ismaili state founded by Hasan-i Sabbah after he took control of the Alamut Castle in 1090 AD. The state consisted of a nexus of strategic strongholds throughout Persia (Iran) and Syria, surrounded by huge swathes of hostile territory. The Nizari Ismaili state managed a unified power structure that proved more effective than the Ismaili Fatimid Caliphate in Egypt, or the Sunni Seljuq Empire, both of which suffered political instability. The state collapsed when Rukn-ud-Din Khurshah surrendered Alamut Castle to the invading Mongols. ==History== Most Ismaili Shias outside North Africa, mostly in Persia (Iran) and Syria, came to acknowledge Nizar bin Mustansir Billah's claim to the Imamate as maintained by Hasan-i Sabbah, and this point marks the fundamental split between Ismaili Shias. Within two generations, the Fatimid Empire would suffer several more splits and eventually implode. Following his expulsion from Egypt over his support for Nizar, Hasan-i Sabbah found that his co-religionists, the Ismailis, were scattered throughout Iran, with a strong presence in the northern and eastern regions, particularly in Daylaman, Khurasan and Quhistan. The Ismailis and other occupied peoples of Iran held shared resentment for the ruling Seljuqs, who had divided the country’s farmland into ''iqtā’'' (fiefs) and levied heavy taxes upon the citizens living therein. The Seljuq ''amirs'' (independent rulers) usually held full jurisdiction and control over the districts they administered. Meanwhile, Persian artisans, craftsmen and lower classes grew increasingly dissatisfied with the Seljuq policies and heavy taxes.〔 Hasan too, was appalled by the political and economic oppression imposed by the Sunni Seljuq ruling class on Shi'ite Muslims living across Iran.〔 It was in this context that he embarked on a resistance movement against the Seljuqs, beginning with the search for a secure site from which to launch his revolt. By 1090 AD, the Seljuq vizier Nizam al-Mulk had already given orders for Hasan’s arrest and therefore Hasan was living in hiding in the northern town of Qazvin, approximately 60 km from the Alamut castle. There, he made plans for the capture of the fortress, which was surrounded by a fertile valley whose inhabitants were mainly fellow Shi’i Muslims, the support of whom Hasan could easily gather for the revolt against the Seljuqs. The castle had never before been captured by military means and thus Hasan planned meticulously.〔 Meanwhile, he dispatched his reliable supporters to the Alamut valley to begin settlements around the castle. In the summer of 1090 AD, Hasan set out from Qazvin towards Alamut on a mountainous route through Andej. He remained at Andej disguised as a schoolteacher named Dehkhoda until he was certain that a number of his supporters had settled directly below the castle in the village of Gazorkhan or had gained employment at the fortress itself.〔 Still in disguise, Hasan made his way into the fortress, earning the trust and friendship of many of its soldiers. Careful not to attract the attention of the castle’s Zaydi lord, Mahdi, Hasan began to attract prominent figures at Alamut to his mission. It has even been suggested that Mahdi’s own deputy was a secret supporter of Hasan, waiting to demonstrate his loyalty on the day that Hasan would ultimately take the castle.〔 The Alamut fortress was eventually captured from Mahdi in 1090 AD and therefore from Seljuq control by Hasan and his supporters without resorting to any violence.〔 Mahdi's life was spared, and he later received 3,000 gold Dinars in compensation. Capturing of the Alamut Castle marks the founding of the Nizari Ismaili state. Under the leadership of Hasan-i Sabbah and the succeeding Lords of Alamut, the statergy of covert capture was successfully replicated at strategic fortresses across Iran, Iraq, and the Fertile Crescent. The Nizari Ismaili created a state of unconnected fortresses, surrounded by huge swathes of hostile territory, and managed a unified power structure that proved more effective than either that in Fatimid Cairo, or Seljuq Bagdad, both of which suffered political instability, particularly during the transition between leaders. These periods of internal turmoil allowed the Ismaili state respite from attack, and even to have such sovereignty as to have minted their own coinage. The Fortress of Alamut was thought impregnable to any military attack, and was fabled for its heavenly gardens, impressive libraries, and laboratories where philosophers, scientists, and theologians could debate all matters in intellectual freedom. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Nizari Ismaili state」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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