Abbas I., the Great, fifth shah of Persia of the dynasty of the Sofis, born in 1557, died Jan. 27, 1628. He succeeded to the throne on the murder of his two elder brothers in 1587. He conquered Gilan, Mazanderan, Khorassan, and a great part of Afghanistan; and by the victory of Bassorah in 1605 over the Turks, and in many successive campaigns, he gained extensive accessions of territory all along the western frontier. Shah Abbas constructed the great highroad of Mazanderan, 300 miles long and 40 feet wide, of which parts still remain. He suppressed the Kurghis, a body similar to the Turkish janizaries; he fomented the sectarian differences of the Shiahs and the Sunnis, and reduced the dogmas of the Shiahs into the form of a creed. His fame extended to Europe, and ambassadors were sent to him from every court. He was not exempt from the vices of oriental despotism. Among other crimes, he put to death his eldest son, leaving his throne to his grandson, Sefy Mirza.