Qurchi (royal bodyguard)

The qurchis or qorchis^[a] (Persian: قورچی, romanized: qurči) were the royal bodyguard of the Safavid emperor. The head of the qurchis was the qurchi-bashi.

Qurchi
17th-century illustration of a qurchi.
Active	1501-1736
Allegiance	Safavid dynasty
Type	Royal bodyguard
Size	c. 1,000-3,000 (under Ismail I)[1] 5,000 (under Tahmasp I) c. 6,000 (under Ismail II)[1] <3,000 (under Mohammad Khodabanda)[2][b] 10,000-15,000 (under Abbas the Great) 20,000 (course of the 17th century)[3]
Commanders
First	Abdal Beg Talish
Last	Qasem Beg Qajar

History

The term qurchi comes from Mongolian and meant "quiver-bearer". It was a title attached to the khan's household members during the Mongol Empire (1206-1259) and the Ilkhanate ruling Greater Persia (1264-1335). Qurchis were theoretically enlisted from the Qizilbash tribes and were paid by money taken from the treasury. Qurchis lived off land handouts and fees given to them by the emperor.^[4]

During the early Safavid period, the qurchis were all from the same tribe, but that changed. They numbered 3000 under the Ismail I at the Battle of Chaldiran, but were reduced to 1700 after the battle, and then later to 1000 after Ismail had "done away with 700 of them."^[5] They numbered 5000 under Tahmasp I (r. 1524–1576).^[6][7]

Under Abbas the Great, qurchis had become crucial and numbered 10 to 15,000. Abbas gave several qurchis the governorship of large provinces, which decreased the power of the Qizilbash commanders, who were used to governing large provinces. During the late period of Abbas' reign, the qurchi-bashi was the most powerful office of the empire.^[6]

Some qurchis were assigned to some provinces and cities, headed by officers also referred to as qurchi-bashi but were subordinate to a supreme qurchi-bashi.^[8] These qurchis were identified by the city or province they served in; for example, a qurchi stationed in Derbent was referred to as a Qurchi-e Darband.^[8]

Local rulers also had qurchis at their disposal, though they were limited in number.^[9] The vali (administrator) of Safavid Georgia had a qurchi corps to serve him, including a qurchi-bashi and a legion of specialized qurchis for his "accoutrements" (i.e. qurchi-e zereh, qurchi-e kafsh, qurchi-e tarkesh, etc.).^[9]

Notes

^ a: The word is derived from Mongolian, which means "archer"^[6]
^ b: Due to internal issues among the Qizilbash^[2]