Vizier Assassinations from Bozorgmehr to Today – Volume 1

The first volume of the book ‘Vizier Assassinations from Bozorgmehr to Today’ begins with an introduction to one of the notable figures of the Sasanian civilization era, Bozorgmehr Bakhtagan. The author, referencing ancient Iranian and Arabic sources, notes that Bozorgmehr was the teacher of Hormoz IV (son of Khosrow Anushirvan), and since Khosrow found him to be a sharp-witted man, he appointed him as the chief vizier. In this position, he ranked above the chief priest (Mobad-e Mobadan) and was eventually executed by Khosrow due to his criticism of military policies and dissatisfaction with the current state. The book continues with descriptions of the appointment, dismissal, and assassination of other Iranian viziers, including Abu Sulayman (the first Iranian-origin minister in the Abbasid Caliphate), Khwaja Rashid al-Din and Khwaja Sa’d al-Din (viziers of Sultan Muhammad Khodabanda), Hasanuk Vizier, Yahya al-Barmaki, Mamun, Khwaja Nizam al-Mulk (the powerful Seljuk vizier), Sa’d al-Din Masud, Hasan Sabbah, Zainal Khan (the famous minister of Shah Abbas), Ibrahim Khan Kalantar, Lotf Ali Khan Zand, Mirza Abolqasem Farahani, and Mirza Taqi Khan Amir Kabir.