During the first century of the Safavid empire (1501-1722), Gilan remained semi-autonomous and maintained its tradition of local rule. This northern region of Iran was governed by two local dynasties, the Kiyayis and the Eshaqiyyeh, long before the Safavids came to power. These local dynasties remained in power until 1592, when Shah Abbas I (r. 1571-1629) conquered Gilan and established firmer control over the territories of both the Kiyayis and the Eshaqiyyeh. Gilani rulers up to that point had paid intermittent tribute to the Safavid monarchs, but they had also maintained their own system of local governance, including a taxation system that enabled the local elite to create lavish courts. As a silk-producing region, Gilan held a special place in the economic interest of the Safavid empire, which made its incorporation into the Safavid administration essential to their project. Gilan’s tradition of local chronicles has left us with valuable sources that shed light on the particular and dynamic elements of local governance in Gilan, including some insight into its taxation system. Gilan’s taxes were based on both local customs and Shari’a. After the Safavid conquest, however, the local customary taxes came under scrutiny and were set for abolishment. While Gilan’s tax system was designed to bring revenues into the treasury of Gilan’s ruling elite, the Safavid policies were designed to abolish the local tax systems in favour of the centre to maximize their extraction capability. The Safavid politics of tax reform in Gilan was designed specifically to abolish some of the long standing local customary taxes in an effort to weaken the local elite’s position vis a vis the centre. This of course created tensions between the Safavids and the local aristocratic elite of Gilan for some decades, until the Safavids gradually put an end to the local opposition and completely incorporated Gilan into the Safavid administrative system.