Draft:Hajji Dawud

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Hajji Dawud (Lezgian: Гьажи Дауд; 1680, Dedeli Mushkur district, now Khachmaz district, Azerbaijan — c. 1735-1736, Gelibolu) was the ruler of Lezgistan and the leader of the anti-Persian uprising in Shirvan. He also fought against Russia and the Ottoman Empire. He was an Islamic imam. He is revered by Lezgins as a folk hero.

Hajji Dawud
A modern painting depicting Hajji Dawud.
Ruler of the Shirvan Khanate
Reign	1721–1728
Successor	Surkhay ibn Gharai Bey
Born	1680 Dədəli, Khachmaz, Shirvan
Died	1735–1736 Gelibolu, Ottoman Empire
Religion	Sunni Islam

Leadership of the uprising

At the beginning of the 18th century, increased tax oppression and the increasing arbitrariness of the Persian administration were the main prerequisites that caused mass popular unrest in the Eastern Caucasus. In order to replenish the treasury, the Shah's government introduced new taxes. Armenian Catholicos Esayi Hasan-Jalalyan writes: "if in 1698-1701 a very sharp increase in taxes was carried out and already in 1702 they were levied at a newly appointed amount, then less than a year later, the Shah introduced new taxes in the country". On top of that, in 1705-1707, the Qizilbash Shiites unleashed terror against the Sunnis.

In 1707, an uprising against the Qizilbash broke out in Dzharo-Belokany. The mountaineers took and plundered Shamakhi, the residence of the Shirvan fugitive Hassan Ali Khan, and killed him.

In 1711, anti-Persian and anti-Qyzylbash demonstrations began again in Jar-Balakan. The uprising spread to Lezgistan, Tabasaran, Shirvan and Shaki.

During this period, Hajji Dawud was also referred to as the spiritual teacher or head of the Sunni clergy of Lezgistan. He managed to unite the scattered detachments of the rebels and led the uprising.

In search of allies, Hajji Dawud went to Dagestan, where he managed to win over some of the mountain feudal lords, in particular Ali Sultan of Tsakhur, Ahmed Khan of Kaitag, Surkhay ibn Gharai Bey.

In 1711, Hajji Dawud captured such large Shirvan cities as Shabran and Khudat — the capital of the Quba Khanate. The Quba Khan Sultan Ahmad Khan, who was a Shiite, and all his relatives were executed. The followers of Sultan Ahmad Khan managed to save only his young son Hussein Ali Khan. In the autumn, Hajji Dawud, united with the allied forces, besieged Shamakhi, but, having met strong resistance, he was forced to lift the siege.

In the spring of 1712, the combined detachments of Hajji Dawud and Surkhay again approached Shamakhi. The Shamakhi refugee Hassan Khan and his army made a sortie, intending to defeat the rebels in open battle. During the fierce battle that ensued near the city, the Safavid troops suffered a complete defeat: part of the Persian-Qizilbash army was exterminated right on the battlefield, and the other fled, and beylerbey himself died. In pursuit of the retreating rebels, they broke into the city.

The capture of Shamakhi was published in the manifesto of Peter the Great in 1712 as follows: "In 1712, the owner of the Lezgins Dawud bey and the owner of the Kazikumukh Surkhay rebelled against the Shah, their sovereign, and the city of Shamakhi was stormed and the Russian people who traded there were cut down and their estates were stolen for four million rubles".

The Safavid authorities, in turn, took desperate measures to suppress the increasingly heated uprising. At the end of 1719, they even managed to capture Hajji Dawud and imprison him in Derbent prison, from where he soon managed to escape. The experience of the first years of the struggle against the Persians taught him to critically evaluate the successes achieved and carefully prepare military operations.

In June 1720, Hajji Dawud's army besieged and stormed Shabran. Khudat was taken in July. Soon after these successes, Ahmed Khan of Kaitag and Surkhay of Gazikumukh arrived with their detachments to Hajji Dawud. In August, their combined army besieged Shamakhi for the third time, but could not take it. However, Shamakhi was plundered by the rebels.

By the end of 1720, the uprising against Safavid rule had engulfed most of the Eastern Caucasus. The Persian troops and the Qizilbash were practically trapped in Shamakhi, Baku and Derbent. Unlike in the previous period, the rebels did not limit themselves to lightning attacks on cities and other settlements where the Shah's administration, Shiites and Qizilbash were concentrated. In the new conditions, when the crisis of the Safavid state reached its peak, it became possible to retain occupied settlements and establish their own power structures on the ground.

Knowing about Russia's interests in the Caucasus, Hajji Dawud intended to ask Peter I for help. Since April 1721, Hajji Dawud has repeatedly appealed to representatives of the Russian authorities in Astrakhan. In a letter to I. V. Kikin, assistant to Astrakhan governor A. P. Volynsky, Hajji Dawud asked for permission for Russian merchants to bring lead and iron to his possessions in exchange for raw silk. In response, Volynsky sent a letter to Hajji Dawud, where he asked about his desire to accept Russian citizenship, after which he wrote to Peter I. The Russian government did not provide assistance to Hajji Dawud.

Ruler of Shirvan

On August 10, 1721, Hajji Dawud, together with Surkhay of Gazikumukh, Ali Sultan of Tsakhur, Ibrahim of Kutkashen, the Kaitags and other allies, again besieged Shamakhi— the main Safavid stronghold in Shirvan. On August 25, the city was stormed. The captured Shirvan fugitive Hussein Khan was executed. The entire Shiite population was slaughtered. But the Armenians, Jews and foreigners were not touched by the rebels, this fact is recognized by Yesai Hasan-Jalalyan and the English traveler Joans Henway. However, 300 Russian merchants were robbed and killed.

In the autumn of 1721, Hajji Dawud defeated 30,000 troops of the Erivan and Ganja beglerbeks at the crossing of the Kura River.

After this victory, Hajji Dawud took Barda (Partav), the ancient capital of Caucasian Albania. Having failed to receive Russian support, Hajji Dawud, together with Surkhay of Gazikumukh, through the Crimean Khan, began negotiations with the Turkish sultan.

In the spring of 1722, Hajji Dawud besieged Ganja. King Vakhtang VI of Kartli, who enjoyed the support of Russia, came to the aid of the city. Knowing this, Hajji Dawud refrained from fighting Vakhtang VI's army and lifted the siege of Ganja on the twelfth day. Vakhtang VI did not pursue him, despite the fact that he had repeated orders from the Shah to march on Shamakhi, which became the capital of the state of Hajji Dawud.

On May 30, 1722, after a 17-day siege, Hajji Dawud captured and plundered Ardabil.

In October, Hajji Dawud, Surkhay of Gazikumukh and Ahmed Khan of Kaytag besieged Derbent, occupied by the Russians during the Russo-Persian War, for a week and ravaged the territory around it.

On December 31, 1722, the Ottoman Sultan Ahmed III accepted Haji Dawud into Ottoman citizenship. Hajji Dawud received a letter of commendation from the sultan, according to which he was accepted into the citizenship of the Porte with the rights of the Crimean Khan. He was granted the khan's title and power over Shirvan, Shaki, Lezgistan and Dagestan as the supreme ruler.

In the spring of 1723, Hajji Dawud, Ali Sultan of Tsakhur, Ahmed Khan of Kaitag, Adil Giray of Tarkovsky and the Jars supported the king of Kakheti, Constantine II (Mahmad Kuli Khan), who was at odds with King Vakhtang VI of Kartli. On May 4, the Allies captured the capital of Kartli, Tbilisi, and received a ransom of 60,000 tumans from the city.

At the same time, Surkhay of Gazikumukh, who claimed power in Shirvan and Sheki, entered into negotiations with Russia on December 12, 1722, and in 1723 betrayed Hajji Dawud and began a war with him, raiding his possessions.

At the end of 1722-1723, the anti-Safavid coalition of the mountain feudal lords, formed thanks to the efforts of Hajji Dawud, practically collapsed. Of the major feudal rulers, only Ali Sultan of Tsakhur continued to support him. In the context of the collapse of the anti-Safavid coalition, Hajji Dawud made efforts to attract other feudal lords to his side, sometimes resorting to intimidation and raids.

After the end of the war with Persia

On June 13, 1724, an agreement was signed in Constantinople dividing Transcaucasia between the Russian and Ottoman Empires: the Ottoman Empire recognized Russia's Caspian provinces as voluntarily ceded to it by Iran; Russia recognized the rest of Transcaucasia for the Ottoman Empire.

A prominent place in the treaty was occupied by the issue of Shirvan, which was supposed to be a khanate headed by Hajji Dawud, which was in vassalage to the Ottoman Empire. Both empires officially recognized the state created by Hajji Dawud as a separate khanate with internal autonomy.

Hajji Dawud, who sought to unite the whole of Shirvan under his rule, including Derbent and Baku, which were under Russian control, did not recognize the terms of the treaty and opposed it.

Surkhai of Kazikumukh refused to recognize the Treaty according to which Shirvan passed from Persia to Turkey. Surkhay demanded that Turkey transfer Shirvan to its possessions. Turkey refused, but later handed over Shirvan to Surkhay.

In 1725, the Turkish army, contrary to the terms of last year's treaty with Russia, invaded Shirvan. But Hajji Dawud defeated him near the Kura River.

In 1727, Hajji Dawud began negotiations with Russia for the second time. However, the Russians again refused to support Haji Dawud, citing their unwillingness to violate the treaty with Turkey. Soon, Russian troops under the command of General Rumyantsev stormed the Sabrum fortress, founded by Hajji Dawud in 1720 on the banks of the Belbel River, 40 versts from the Caspian Sea. The defense of the fortress was led by Hajji Dawud's son Suleiman.

In May 1728, Hajji Dawud was invited by the Turkish Sultan to negotiate in Ganja. Hajji Dawud accepted the invitation and arrived there with his family, including four sons and two brothers, and his entourage. However, his desire for independence and uncontrollability frightened the Turkish authorities, so upon arrival in Ganja, he was taken into custody and on October 5, together with his family and associates, was taken to Turkey. He was initially exiled to Rhodes, and then to Gelibolu. According to other sources, Hajji Dawud was exiled to Cyprus. He died around 1735-1736.