Aga Muhammad Khan

Aga Muhammad Khan or Agha Muhammad Khan , 1742-97, shah of Persia, founder of the Qajar dynasty. He was emasculated by family enemies at the age of five. He was vigorous and able, but his cruelty is proverbial. In 1794, he captured and killed the last ruler of the Zand dynasty (see Iran ) and ended his campaign with a wholesale massacre in Kerman. He became shah in 1796. Aga Muhammad resisted a Russian invasion and himself invaded (1795) Georgia. Hated by his subjects, he was finally assassinated. His nephew Fath Ali Shah succeeded him.

Aga Khan (Pers., Āghā Khān). Title conferred on the Ismāʿīlī imām (spiritual leader), Ḥasan ʿAlī Shāh (d. 1881) and to his successors as leaders of the Nizārī Ismāʿīlīs. They claim descent from ʿAlī and Fāṭima (the daughter of Muḥammad).

Imam Leader of a Muslim community invested with various forms of spiritual or temporal authority. It may describe a man who leads public prayers at a mosque. The word Imam is also a title of honour for Islamic theologians and religious leaders, such as the Aga Khan. Finally, it is the title borne by any of a succession of spiritual guides and intercessors for the Shi'ite Muslims.