poo ^he Government^ Laws^ and Conditution Book Hi 
cheated and deceived than if the Management*was in one 
Hand. Befides, the Baroga or Governor, the Vizier 
and Vacanavijh, there are aifo in every Town the Ca~ 
-di, or Civil Judge, before whom all ordinary Caufes are 
heard ; the Head Officer among the Trading People, 
the Provoft or Sheriff j and every particular Trade has 
a Warden or Mafter. There is an Officer alfo who has 
a Watch, and is principally concerned in keeping the 
Peace in every great Town in the Night-time. 
The Governor of every Town is the Judge in the 
laft Refort in criminal and civil Cafes too, if he pleafes 
to interpofe, and may inffidt any Pains on Offenders 
ffiort of Death. Capital Puniffiments are very rare in 
Perfia^ and the Sentence i-s, in moft Cafes, palled by 
the Shah himfelf. The ufual Puniffiment is a Fine, 
which always goes to the Shah, or rather to the Gover- 
nor of the Province, who generally brings the Crown 
indebted to him in his Accounts. When a Governor or 
Vizier isfent into any Province, he has his InllrudHons 
in Writing ; wherein are contained the Extent of his 
Government, of the Revenues, and the Manner in 
which he is to treat the People and Inftruffions, in 
like Manner, are given to every Officer of State when 
he enters on his Poft. On the other Hand, when a 
Governor or other Officer returns from his Command, 
which he never does but by exprefs Order of the Court, 
he waits without at the Gate of the Palace, and gives 
Notice by fome of his Friends of his Arrival, and that 
he begs to throw himfelf at his Imperial Majefty’s 
Feet j whereupon Orders are ufually given for his Ad- 
mittance ; but fometimes, if the Perfon has misbehaved 
in his Poft,^ inftead of an Anfwer in the ordinary Stile, 
Orders are iffued to take off his Head. 
6. The Perfians are naturally a brave People, but the 
Sloth and Inadlivity of their Princes had of late renderM 
them not fo formidable as they ufed to be. In the laft 
Century, under Ablas the Great, they made confider- 
able Conquefts on the Side of Turkey, as well as India, 
though their Troops were always much inferior in Num- 
ber to the Armies either of the Grand Signior or Great 
Mogul j but they funk in our Time fo much below 
what they were in that Reign, that every little T^arlar 
and Arabian Prince infulted their Frontiers, and robbed 
them of fome Part of their Territories, before the late 
Shah Nadir affumed the Government. 
The Forces of Perfia are divided into the Troops of 
the State and the Shah’s. The Troops of the State are 
entertained by the Governors of the refpedive Provin- 
ces, and paid out of certain Lands appropriated for that 
Purpofe, and are divided into Militia and regular 
Troops. The regular Troops a-re called Courtchis •, they 
were originally of Tartary, a flout hardy Race of People 
who lived in Tents. Thefe are the Soldiers which are 
properly called Coofelbajhes, or Red-heads, fo ftiled when 
they came to the Affiftance of Cheic Seji, the Founder 
of the late Imperial Family, for which Service he al- 
lowed them the Honour of wearing red Caps or Tur- 
bants, of a particular Form, like that he wore himfelf. 
Thefe Coofelbathes remained in their Tents, as well in 
Time of Peace as War, and employed themfelves in 
feeding, buying and felling of Cattle, from whence they 
were called Courtchis, or Shepherds. 
The Service they clid to Cheic SeJi., and their Zeal for 
the Religion of the Mans, procured them great Re- 
fpefl, and they poffeffed the chief Pofts both in the 
Court and Army ; and from thefe the Perfian Soldiery, 
and afterwards all the Perfians in general, obtained the 
Appellation of Coofelbajhes, a Name formidable to the In- 
dians, Turks and Tartars in the laft Age 5 and it was by 
this Generation that the Turkijh Language was intro- 
duced into the Court of Perfia, and the Northern Parts 
of that Kingdom, where they fpeak it much more than 
the Perfian. The Coofelbajhes held the firft Rank in the 
Kingdom till the Reign of Abbas the Great, who endea- 
voured to fupprefs them upon account of the unreafon- 
able Influence he obferved they had in all Affairs of 
State, depofing and fetting up what Princes they thought 
fit, like Turkifo Janizaries. He was fo jealous of 
his ov/n Son, on account of the Refpebl he had obfer- 
ved they paid him, that he caufed him to be put to 
Death, and difperfed the Coofelbajhes in fmall Detach- 
ments through all the Provinces of the Empire. Thefe 
Troops ferve on Horfeback, carrying a Bow and Ar- 
rows, a Sword, Poinard, and Lance, with a Hatchet 
at the Saddle-skirts ; and for Defenfive Arms have a 
Shield and Helmet ; they are commanded always by 
their own Officers, and their General is called Courchi- 
bathi, or Commander of the Courcthis. 
Both ihQ Courtchis and Militia have their Pay out of the 
Lands of the State of the refpeclive Provinces, and en- 
joy it as their Inheritance, from Father to Son, if they 
do not refufe to bear Arms ; They are obliged to march 
to the Place of Rendezvous on twelve Hours Notice, 
and every Year pafs in Review before a Commif- 
fary fent from Court, or before the Governor of the. 
Province. 
7. The Troops of the Shah are two Bodies, which 
Abbas the Great inftituted. One confifts of twelve thou- 
fand Men, and are called the Musketeers, becaufe in- 
ftead of Bows and Arrows they carry Muskets, and 
though they march on Horfeback, yet like our Dragoons 
they fight on Foot. Shah Abbas ufed to oppofe them 
to the Turkijh Janizaries, of whom he had obferved 
the Enemy made great Advantage in their Engagement^ 
with him. Before this Time neither Foot-Soldier or 
Fire-Arms were ever heafd of in Perfia, and their 
Neighbours the Tartars have no Foot among them to 
this Day. The other Body confifted of Ten thoufand 
Horfe j thefe were called Coulars, and carried Fire- 
Arms alfo inftead of Bows. They were called Coulars 
or Slaves, to fignify their Devotion to their Sovereign, 
or as fome fay, becaufe they come from thofe Countries - 
from whence the Perfians had their Slaves, as Georgia, 
Circajfia, &c. Part of them are fent as Prefents to the 
Shah when they are young ; and the reft are defeended 
from the People of thofe Countries, who are fettled in 
Perfia. They almoft all profefs the Mahometan Religi- 
on, though defeended from Chriftian Parents. Abbas 
the Great had a particular Affedion for this Body, and 
ufed to call them his Horfe Janizaries, They are tall 
well-made Fellows, in whofe Courage and Fidelity the 
Shah has a particular Confidence ; for as they fcarce 
know the Country or Relations from whence they 
fprang, and can have no other Views, than to recom- 
mend themfelves to their Mafter by their Services, they 
are entirely devoted to the Crown, and obey every Or- 
der without Helitation \ and from among thefe, the 
Court ufually prefers Men to the higheft Pofts ; fo that 
confidering the Number of Georgian Women which 
are married into Perfia, and the Pofts the Men who 
derive themfelves from thence poffefs, the Perfian Court 
may, one half of them, probably be of Georgian Ex- 
tradion. 
It is obferved, that in Perfia, as well as India, the 
Word Slave is an honourable Title, and preferable to 
that of Subjed •, nay, a certain French Author tells us, 
that the Word Koulam Shah, or King’s Slave, is equal 
to that of Marquis in France, becaufe all that have that 
Denomination are fure to be preferred to fome Poft if 
they behave well. Befides thefe, there are two other 
fmall Bodies, the one called Sophias or Sephi*s, inftitu- 
red for a Guard to the King’s Perfon by Cheik Sefi ; 
thefe are not above two hundred Men, and wear 3he 
Sophi’s Cap on their Heads, and for their Arms have a 
Sabre, a Poinard, and an Ax, which they carry on 
their Shoulders. The fecond, called the Ziezari, or 
the Six hundred, who are all of the Size of Grenadiers, 
flout young Fellows, inftituted by Abbas the Second for 
a Guard to his Perfon, Anno 16^4. The Monarchs of 
Perfia, before that Time, had no Guards in the Palace, 
or when they went abroad, for the Sephies only ferved 
to make a Show at Feftivals, and on publick Occafions ; 
they wear long red Caps of the Form of a Sugar-loaf, 
and their Arms are a Musket, Sabre, and Poinard, 
which are adorned with Silver, and exceeding fine ; 
they are under the Command of the General of the 
Mufqueteers, and a fmall Party of them do Duty at 
the Palace Gates. 
All the Troops of Perfia are comprehended under 
thefe two Names, of Courtchis Coulars, that is. 
Shepherds 
