Tabriz Khanate

The Tabriz Khanate () was a Caucasian Khanate, located in northwestern Iran.
History.
Until the end of the Safavid dynasty, the city of Tabriz and the surrounding regions belonged to Iran and was the capital of the province ("beylik") of Azerbaijan. After the death of Nader Shah Afshar his empire was divided among his heirs and grandees, and Azad Khan Afghan, a Pashtun warlord got Azerbaijan. With the war of succession about the throne of Iran between the Qajar and Zand princes, the Donboli lords of Khoy and Salmas could establish their rule also in Tabriz and extended their influence over the whole province. Najaf Qoli Donboli, a khan of Kurdish origin and son of Shahbaz Khan I of Khoy, entered the service of Nader Shah and remained also in the position of governor-general in the time of his successor. He founded the khanate with Tabriz as its centre. Najaf Qoli Khan and his nephew Shahbaz Khan II joined Fath Ali Khan Afshar-Arashlu, the khan of Urmia, who broadened its boundaries by occupying Ardabil, Khalkhal, and certain parts of southern Azerbaijan. Finally, Fath Ali Khan made himself supreme ruler over all of Azerbaijan, and Tabriz became capital of his kingdom. The acting ruler of the khanate was commissioned to Najaf Qoli Khan. Later they pleged allegiance to Karim Khan Zand. 
After his death in 1779, Sadiq Khan Shaqaqi and his Sarab Khanate conquered Tabriz in 1787 and killed Khodadad Khan. Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar's invasion of Azerbaijan in 1791 destroyed the Sarab Khanate, who gave Tabriz back to the Donbolis. Agha Mohammad Khan was proclaimed 1796 "shahanshah" and emperor of all of Iran. Upon his death in 1797, Sadiq Khan Shaqaqi revolted against the new Iranian ruler, Fath-Ali, and attempted to seize the lands of the Donboli but was repulsed. He was pardoned but revolted again in 1798 when Jafar Khan Donboli was appointed governor of Tabriz. They eventually allied themselves against the Qajars along with the Afshars of Urmia. Iranian forces eventually moved into Azerbaijan, captured Urmia on June 20, and on July 1 moved towards Salmas and Khoy and deposed Jafar Qoli Khan. By then, Fath-Ali Shah had enough of Sadiq, and had him walled up and killed in the Golestan Palace in 1800. When Hossein Qoli Khan died in 1799, Jafar returned to Khoy with the support of the elders and asked Fath-Ali Shah to comfirm his position as governor of Khoy. Fath-Ali Shah refused and sent his son Abbas Mirza to deal with the Donbolis. In June Abbas Mirza entered Tabriz, and finally defeated the Donboli army on September 17 and entered Khoy, effectively ending the Donbolis as a major political force in the region. In 1809 the Khanate of Tabriz was incorporated into the new established regency ("velayat") of the Qajar crown prince, who hold traditionally the post of vicegerent ("vali") of Azerbaijan with his seat of power at Tabriz.