Medieval Persia 1040-1797 by David Morgan (PDF)

Description

Medieval Persia 1040-1797 charts the remarkable history of Persia from its conquest by the Muslim Arabs in the seventh century AD to the modern period at the end of the eighteenth century, when the impact of the west became pervasive. David Morgan argues that understanding this complex period of Persia’s history is integral to understanding modern Iran and its significant role on the international scene. The book begins with a geographical introduction and briefly summarises Persian history during the early Islamic centuries to place the country’s Middle Ages in their historical context. It then charts the arrival of the Saljūq Turks in the eleventh century and discusses in turn the major political powers of the period: Mongols, Timurids, Türkmen and Safawids. The chronological narrative enables students to identify change and consistencies under each ruling dynasty, while Persia’s rich social, cultural, religious and economic history is also woven throughout to present a complete picture of life in Medieval Persia. Despite the turbulent backdrop, which saw Persia ruled by a succession of groups who had seized power by military force, arts, painting, poetry, literature and architecture all flourished in the period. This new edition contains a new epilogue which discusses the significant literature of the last 28 years to provide students with a comprehensive overview of the latest historiographical trends in Persian history. Concise and clear, this book is the perfect introduction for students of medieval Persia and the medieval Middle East.

User’s Reviews

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐I was very skeptical whether this book can give a satisfactory account of nearly 700 years of Persian history in less than 200 pages. I was very pleased and a little surprised that is did just that. No wonder considering that David Morgan is one of the most respected scholars in Persian and Mongol studies. The books contains a concise but detailed history of medieval Iran from the early Islamic age up to near 1800. What makes the book unique is its coverage of little known dynasties or states and that it gives a nice background to medieval Iran. As such the book covers the Sassanian period, the Qara Khitai, the Khwarazmshahs, and other obscure yet influential powers. Other very helpful features include maps, a genealogical table of rulers, a glossary, and a nice bibliography.However, some drawbacks to this book is that given its length, it isn’t a exhaustive account of Persian history and it lacks detail in many places. The other drawback is that it’s very expensive considering it’s thin size and the the book only has one map which is a shame given how broad the subject matter is. Despite that I would recommend this to scholars, students, and general readers who want a primer or overview of medieval Iranian history. Before I end this review I have a tip: Buy the 1988 edition. Third party sellers tend to sell it cheap and honestly there are little differences from the 1988 edition and the revised edition. Unless you really need a updated bibliography the older edition will save you money and will still give you a great overview of Perisian history.

⭐This is a 2nd edition, and seems to be not much rewritten save the introduction, and a quite excellent “Epilogue” that is really an essay on sources, mostly published since the first edition of Morgan’s book came out.He considers that “medieval” really is appropriate for Persia in the era the book covers, that the fury of modernization did not significantly affect Persia until the 19th century. It’s a complex history reflective of the 1980s when the original came out, lots od conquerors and rulers and some analysis of how the place was run, and wars and murders, but not much of what more recent histories concern themselves with: Morgan’s book contains modest social history, very little about the common folk and little about women (save that a few were somewhat powerful through the institution of the harem, which was much more than a collection of the ruler’s consorts). There’s not much about the environment, either.The book does a good job of giving a reader a sense of complexity and near-chaos. Most importantly he describes the rise of the Shi’a form of Islam and in particular the role of several Shahs in its becoming the dominant for of Islam in Persia. That alone is worth reading about, because it is fundamental to understanding 21st century Iran.

⭐The book is a very interesting read on an under-treated subject. If you want a concise, highly readable, brief book on the period between the rise of the Seljuks to the collapse of the Safawids, I strongly recommend it.That said, it seems odd to have such a quick survey on such a limited subject. The usefulness of a monograph is that an author can get into more detail than with a general survey, but the detail is lacking here. We have barely two pages on Toghril Beg. Alp Arslan gets three. Tamerlane gets a little over eight.Still, if the reader is willing to supplement the framework set forth here with in-depth studies of the major players, dynasties and battles, Morgan’s book will have served its purpose of providing a coherent “big picture” view.

⭐I was a little disappointed with how skinny this book was when I got it in the mail, but the truth is that it provided me with several weeks of fascinating reading. Not at all dry or overly scholarly. Similar to the “Age of the Prophets” in tone, but the more limited scope makes for more focused reading. This isn’t a textbook — enjoy it!

⭐My only two gripes with the book is that it’s too skinny and somewhat too expensive for the volume. But otherwise it’s a highly readable narrative of Persian political history. Of course it can only serve as an introduction to the topic, but it’s very hard to find alternatives (I failed), making this book unrivaled at the moment.

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