theocracy · Mesopotamia and Iran
Nizari Ismaili state
Origins
Hasan-i Sabbah, an Ismaili missionary, seized the castle of Alamut in the Alborz in 1090. When the Fatimid Caliphate passed over the heir Nizar in 1094, Hasan and his followers supported Nizar's line, breaking with Cairo and founding an independent Nizari movement in Iran.
Rule and society
The state was a scattered collection of fortresses in Rudbar, Quhistan and, from the 12th century, Syria, where Rashid al-Din Sinan became known to the crusaders as the 'Old Man of the Mountain'. Unable to match Seljuk armies, the Nizaris used targeted killings by devotees (fida'is) against hostile leaders. Alamut had a famous library; the scholar Nasir al-Din al-Tusi lived among them. In 1164 Hasan II proclaimed the qiyama, the spiritual resurrection.
Decline and legacy
Hulagu's Mongol army forced the last imam, Rukn al-Din Khurshah, to surrender Alamut in 1256; he was later killed. The Syrian castles fell to the Mamluk Sultanate by 1273. The Aga Khans trace their imamate to this line.
On the connections map
Open the full map →Connections (2)
- Nizari Ismailis of Syria was part of Nizari Ismaili state1132 CE – 1256 CE
- Nizari Ismaili state was conquered by Mongol Empire1256 CE
More states of Mesopotamia and Iran →
Cite this page
- APA
- The Epoch Institute. (2026). Nizari Ismaili state. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/nizari-ismaili-state
- MLA
- “Nizari Ismaili state.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/nizari-ismaili-state. Accessed .
- Chicago
- The Epoch Institute. “Nizari Ismaili state.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/nizari-ismaili-state.
- Harvard
- The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Nizari Ismaili state’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/nizari-ismaili-state (Accessed: ).
Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻