came nizari ismailis secret sect headquarters alamut castle rasht tehran controlled immediate area years sporadically sent adherents strengthen rule murdering important officials several various theories etymology word ''assassin'' derive killers ref name islamic conquest parts northwestern iran conquered early th century ad kingdom georgia led tamar great ref name lordkipanidze lordkipanidze mariam ''georgia xi xii centuries'' tbilisi ganatleba p ref mongol conquest rule mongol invasion
Humanities History Asian history Iranian history