An Analysis of the Broadcasting and Informing in the Islamic Governments during the Safavid`S Era

Ali Akbar Jafari^[1]
Marjan Sarmadi Zadeh^[2]

Abstract

One of the main principles of stability of a government is receiving and transmitting news to the capital as quickly as possible so that appropriate and timely decisions can be made. This has long led to invention of different methods for transmitting and accessing the news. The analysis shows that organizations such as Pony Express system, Brigadier Court, and Noble Court were established in order to receive timely news and deliver it in time. Among others, Brigadier Court enjoyed a higher publicity and efficiency, though it was discharged after Baghdad overthrown. Anyway, the necessity of receiving and transmitting the news and information in the following eras, especially in the Safavid era, made the Safavid government utilize similar methods.

The universal status and the strategic location of the Safavid government, standing along Ottoman and Uzbeks governments, as well as its great power, solidarity, and authority in Iran, further increased the necessity of receiving and transmitting of information. The present research aims at examining the approaches taken by the Safavid government for receiving and transmitting the news. The posed questions are: How was the information received and transmitted in the Safavid territory? What was the effect of informing and spying system on the stability or decadence of the Safavid government?

The hypothesis is that the dispersal of responsibilities on informing and spying and lack of stable organization for receiving and disseminating information were among the main reasons for Safavid decadence; which eventually led to its ongoing weakness and overthrown. The historical data provided in the paper would display a clear picture of this system and confirm the above-mentioned hypothesis.