The Foreign Service Journal, January 2005

Limbert, who served in Iran both as a Peace Corps Volunteer and an FSO in the 1970s (and was one of the diplo- mats held hostage there from 1979 to 1981), has evoked the life and history, both bloody and sublime, of Shiraz during the lifetime of the great Persian poet Hafez (ca. 1320-1389). Shiraz has been from time to time the capital of Iran, or at least the capital of several minor dynasties. It has sur- vived as a lovely city, beloved of many Iranians, not least as the native city of Hafez, but also that of Sa’adi, another great Persian poet. The people of Shiraz were lucky in that their city, located in southwest Iran, was far enough south to escape the direct onslaught of Mongol invaders in the 13th and 14th cen- turies. Though subject to Mongol suzerainty, the wily Shirazis were suf- ficiently removed from the center of Mongol power in the north to enable them to pursue their endless quarrels, triumphs, and defeats more or less unfettered by Mongol meddling. One of the more colorful rulers was Jamal al-Din Shah Sheikh Abu Eshaq, who commanded the city- state from 1343 to 1357. He appears to have been afflicted with what would today be called bipolar disor- der. According to Hafez and the chroniclers the author relies on, Abu Eshaq was noted for his “intelligence, bravery, chivalry and generosity” and was devoted to art, literature and reli- gious scholarship. At the same time, he foolishly provoked conflict with neighboring magnates and sank repeatedly into depression and debauchery. He was succeeded by Amir Mohammad Mozaffer, strict in religion and confiscatory in practice, known as “The Inspector.” Hafez wrote of him: “Drink not wine to the strains of the harp, for the inspector is awake.” Such personalities typify the dichotomy in the life of Shiraz in the 14th century. These quarrelsome people finally got their comeuppance when the conqueror Timur, having occupied Shiraz for the second time, arrested all the remaining princes and the city’s artists, scholars and crafts- men. The princes he murdered and the others, clearly useful people, he sent on to his capital, Samarqand. 56 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / J A N U A R Y 2 0 0 5 B O O K S u Interim Accommodations for Corporate and Government Markets Apartments, Townhouses & Single Family Homes “FOR THE EXECUTIVE ON THE MOVE”  finder5@IX.netcom.com Locations throughout Northern Virginia and D.C. Units fully furnished, equipped and accessorized Many “Walk to Metro” locations Pet Friendly 5105-L Backlick Road, Annandale, Virginia Tel: (703) 354-4070 Fax: (703) 642-3619 Executive Lodging Alternatives