Excerpts from Books and Wikipedia
Established new capital in Isfahan; Captured Baghdad in 1623 but forced to surrender to Ottomans in 1639; The empire was in decline by 18th century; [Overy, p. 189]
"After a period of civil war in Persia, Abbas I became Shah in 1588. Shah Abbas, pictured here with one of his pages, was the Safavid dynasty most outstanding leader. He had the military strength to drive the Ottomans and their allies out of parts of western and northern Persia that they had occupied during earlier periods of civil disorder.
At the same time, he was an efficient administrator, who restored much of the imperial structure laid down centuries before by Cyrus and Darius. The road network was reinstated, cities grew and expanded, and new commercial links were established. Under his influence, Persia became the cultural center of the Islamic world. Architecture, painting, and literature flourished, and the restored capital city Isfahan, was an outstanding example of the medieval Persian style." [DK Timelines, p. 288]