AlamutFortress of the Nizari Ismailis in northern Iran, which fell to the Mongols in 654 AH/1256 CE.:Name of a mountain fortress in northern Iran. Situated about forty-five kilometres northeast of the city of Qazwin,Alamutwas built on the summit of an inaccessible rock in the central Alborz mountains. According to legend, an eagle indicated the site to a Daylami ruler, which its name in the Daylami dialect, derived fromaloh(eagle) and硃鳥喝域堯喧泭(taught). The fortress was constructed by aJustanidruler ofDaylamin 860. Subsequently the area came under the influence of Zaydi Alid rulers. The Ismaili leaderHasan-i Sabbahseized the fortress in 1090 and made it the headquarters of hisNizariIsmaili state.
The fortress became the focal point of Sabbah’s challenge toSeljukauthority in Iran. It became famous for its assassins. The Mongols tookAlamutin 1256 and partially demolished it, also burning its famous library. It was restored under theSafavidsA major Shi’i dynasty which ruled Persia (1501-1732 CE), and was succeeded by the Afsharids. (See also Qizilbash, Safawiyya.), who used it as a prison until the seventeenth century. After that,Alamutwas abandoned, and it was gradually destroyed by the elements and local inhabitants searching for treasures.
This article by was originally published in The Oxford Dictionary of Islam, 2004.
Author
Dr Farhad Daftary
Co-Director and Head of the Department of Academic Research and Publications
An authority in Shi’i studies, with special reference to its Ismaili tradition, Dr. Daftary has published and lectured widely in these fields of Islamic studies. In 2011 a Festschrift entitledFortresses of the Intellectwas produced to honour Dr. Daftary by a number of his colleagues and peers.
