Cheragh Khan Zahedi Explained

Cheragh Khan Zahedi (Persian: چراغ خان زاهدی; also spelled Cherag), also known as Pirzadeh (Persian: پیرزاده), was an Iranian officer in Safavid Iran, who served as the head of the royal bodyguard (qurchi-bashi) from 1631 until his death in 1632.

Biography

Cheragh Khan was the son of a certain Shaikh Sharif and a descendant of Zahed Gilani, the prominent Iranian grandmaster (murshid), and the teacher of Safi-ad-din Ardabili, who was the eponymous ancestor of the Safavid dynasty. Cheragh Khan was a supporter of the family of the qurchi-bashi Isa Khan Safavi, which was a cousin family to the ruling Safavid dynasty. However, in 1632/1633, he accused the sons of Isa Khan Safavi planning to stage a coup against Safi and then usurp the throne. Safi then had them executed, including Isa Khan Safavi himself. Cheragh Khan was then given the qurchi-bashi post as a reward.

However, Cheragh Khan was one year later accused of hiding his empathy for the family of Isa Khan Safavi, and was executed in July 1632. He was succeeded by Amir Khan Zulqadr.

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