[6][7] The idea of the Guarded Domains illustrated a feeling of territorial and political uniformity in a society where the Persian language, culture, monarchy, and Shia Islam became integral elements of the developing national identity.

[8] The concept presumably had started to form under the Mongol Ilkhanate in the late 13th-century, a period in which regional actions, trade, written culture, and partly Shia Islam, contributed to the establishment of the early modern Persianate world.

In order to add legitimacy to his claim, Karim Khan placed the infant Shah Ismail III, the grandson of the last Safavid king, on the throne in 1757.

The biggest enemies of the Zands, the Qajar chiefs, led by the former hostage, Agha Mohammad Khan, were advancing fast against the declining kingdom.

Politically, it is also important that the Zands, especially Karim Khan, chose to call themselves Vakilol Ro'aya (Advocate of the People) instead of kings.

[5] Following Karim Khan's death, the Zand dynasty became embroiled in disputes over succession and other intrigues, which put a halt to further significant patronage of the arts.

[17] He decorated Shiraz with new buildings including the Arg of Karim Khan, the Vakil Bazaar and the Kulah-e Farangi and grouped these around a public square (maidan in Persian).

[5][17] Zand-era architecture is notable in Iranian history for "its revetments in carved marble and overglaze-painted tiles with flowers, animals and people".

[17] According to the Italian scholar Alessandro Bausani: "The eighteenth century, which in Europe (and partly also in India, for example) was a ferment of renewal, is the darkest and most sterile period in Persian literature and culture."

John Perry commented on these statements: "While regrettably true of literature, this view is somewhat too sweeping to be fair to the fine and applied arts."

[19] The numerous artists active during Karim Khan's time who were born in or educated in Isfahan, many of whom carry the surname "Esfahani," can be considered as representations of the lengthy political and cultural traditions of the Safavid court; they account for at least seventeen of the twenty-seven identified by Abu'l-Hasan Mostawfi Ghaffari.

During the interim period, a large number of people, primarily in the central region of Isfahan, Qom, and Kashan, remained in Iran.

[20] The city's poets, including Azar Bigdeli, were actively supported by the governor Mirza Abd ol-Vahhab Musavi.

[21] The distinguishing quality of Karim Khan's leadership came from his refusal to exercise royal authority independent of nominal Safavid sovereignty.

However, his decision to continue serving as vakil al-dowleh ("deputy of the state") marked a subtle change from his previous role as the regent of a prince distantly related to the Safavid dynasty and of no importance.

He also drew on Iranian monarchy traditions that were directly related to the Fars province in order to distance himself from the distressing events of recent times.

[23] A common reference for consecutive rulers was Nader Shah's mention of Iran's established borders during the Safavid dynasty.

Historical documents do contain occasional references to the established Safavid court offices and protocols under the Zands, but nothing suggests that the chief minister (etemad ol-dowleh, sadr-e azam) and resident court amirs (the qurchi-bashi, qollar-aghasi, eshik-aqasi-bashi, and tofangchi-aghasi) formed the "close council of state" as they did in the late Safavid era.

[30] Karim Khan might have been anticipated to seek the ulama's approval for his unusual position as the head of an nominally neo-Safavid (but in reality kingless) monarchy.

By minting coins under the name of the hidden imam, erecting mosques and shrines, and probably participating in Friday prayers—though this is not mentioned—Karim Khan supported the Shia beliefs in a traditional manner.

His responsibilities seemed to be more constrained than those of his Safavid predecessors, and the title molla-bashi (chief theologian) created by Soltan Hoseyn was not retained.

[32] Presentations of the passion play, which reenacted the martyrdom of Husayn ibn Ali, gained popularity from Karim Khan's reign onward, possibly as a result of the more tolerant religious climate.

The latter was a hostage in Karim Khan's entourage during the struggle for supremacy in western Iran, but in 1756 he managed to escape to the Shia shrine city of Najaf and subsequently to India, where he reunited with his family.

Between 1742 and 1758, refugees settled in Mughal India, Bengal, Ottoman Iraq and Yemen, giving rise to a new generation of Iranians and Armenians.

[35] While European and Iranian emigrants eagerly scanned the horizon for signs that "Persia would soon be reunited under one chief, which would undoubtedly lead to the reestablishment of trade, so long interrupted," rumors of Karim Khan's victories and of his fair rule started to spread in the mid-1750s, which convinced many refugees to come back.

Even though Shiraz appeared to be "demolished and destroyed... altogether depopulated and empty of Christians" in 1756, refugees from Isfahan, especially Armenians from the suburb of New Julfa, were already making their way there every day.

Other cities in central Iran, like Qom, reportedly experienced a revival under Karim Khan's rule after suffering under the Afghans, Afsharids and the Zand-Qajar conflicts.

The Armenian population in Shiraz, whose quarter was located in the western corner by the Kazerun Gate, was primarily engaged in viticulture and wine trade.

There was no monetary unity in Iran even though Karim Khan was acknowledged as the overlord of the majority of the country after 1763, as many regions remained independent or semi-autonomous.

This was especially true for the semi-autonomous local khans that controlled the Caspian and Caucasian regions, as well as Khorasan, which was ruled by the Durranids and Afsharids.