Page 12 - Azərbaycan xalçaları

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khchivan was one of the most important districts of the Sa-
favid state.
Possessing a vital military-strategic position, Nakhchivan
became the focal point of the Safavid-Ottoman wars in the
beginning of the sixteenth century, passing from one power
to the other scores of times. During the reign of Muhammad
Khudabandeh (1578-1587), control over Nakhchivan was
given to the heads of the Kangarli-Ustajli tribe, which was
one of the most militant tribes in Azerbaijan. The Kangarli,
having settled in the territory of Nakhchivan together with
the Pechenegs as far back as the early first century, took
an active part in the composition of the Ustajli tribe in the
creation of the Safavid state. The heads of the Kangarli tribe
were the hereditary governors of Nakhchivan until the Rus-
sian invasions at the beginning of the nineteenth century.
Azerbaijan, including Nakhchivan, again faced heavy
trials of history from the late sixteenth century until the
1740s22. The country became an area of military-political
rivalry among the Safavid, Ottoman, and Russian empires.
The bloody skirmishes once again struck a hard blow to
Nakhchivan’s development. Finally, the Safavid ruler Shah
Abbas the First succeeded in recovering Nakhchivan and
other Azerbaijani lands.
Hatambey Ordubadi, appointed as the vizier during the
reign of Shah Abbas the First, played an important role in
running the great Safavid Empire. After his visit to Ordubad
in 1606, Shah Abbas the First presented the city to him as
a gift and Hatambey implemented extensive construction.
The population of Ordubad was exempted from taxes by a
Nakhchivan khanate (1747‒1828).
Alinjeriver Cloister for Dervishes. 12th-13th centuries. Julfa.
Map 5.
Source: Azərbaycan Respublikası Naxçıvan tarixi atlası. Bakı, 2010, s. 30