Стр. 13 - Azərbaycan xalçaları

13
Iravan province returned when the Safavid government weakened, but Azerbaijani commander Nadir khan Af-
shar’s position strengthened. Ottoman armies left Iravan castle in October of 1735. In 1736, Nadir khan declared
himself shah in Mughan. Iravan Province became part of Nadir Shah Afshar’s empire. In June of 1747, after Nadir
Shah was assassinated, independent khanates (government entities) were established in Azerbaijani lands, includ-
ing Iravan.
The invasion of Chukursed by the Ottomans during the Safavid-Ottoman wars resulted in certain changes in the
division of the administrative territory. Following the Istanbul Treaty signed after the war period (1578-1590), Chu-
kursed became part of the Ottoman Empire. Chukursed province was divided into Iravan and Nakhchivan districts.
The Ottoman Empire conducted a census in Iravan district in 1590, noting it as a separate province with Iravan city
as the center of the province. Thus, the ancient Azerbaijani city of Iravan moved toward more development. The
census of 1590 thoroughly describes Iravan province and confirms that the absolute majority of the population were
Azerbaijani Turks. The Safavid government reclaimed Iravan province during the war against the Ottoman Em-
pire at the beginning of the seventeenth century (1603-1612). However, the Safavids again had to relinquish Iravan
Province to the Ottomans during the war in 1723-1728 (Map 4). The Ottoman Empire conducted another census in
Iravan Province in 1728. This detailed description of Iravan Province is one of the most important resources about
the demographics at that time.
Map 4
Iravan Province And Nakhchivan Exclave. 1728
Source: İrəvan əyalətinin icmal dəftəri.
Bakı, 1996, s.184