- Following the Battle of Chaldiran, fought against the OttomanTurks in 1514, the Safavid family consolidated their control overmodern-day Iran and ruled until 1736.- They established the Shi'a sect of Islam as the official religion of the empire.- Under Shah Abbas the Great (r. 1588-1629) the capital was moved to Isfahan, the army was modernized, and long-distance trade flourished. Comparable to other absolute rulers, Shah Abbas sought to strengthen his power and expand central authority at the expense of the nobility.- A theocracy, all other forms of Islam were suppressed. Over time, Shiism would serve to unite the people of the empire; the Safavids' neighbors, the Ottoman Turks, were Sunni.- Constant conflict with the Ottomans, coupled with the threat of an increasingly stronger Russian Empire to the north and the Mughal Empire to the south, led to decline.

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