- 47 - The army of Mohammad Khan Qajar, some 25,000 men, went out to fight the Bakhtiari army outside Isfahan. As the fight went on, the Bakhtiari army retreated systematically into their territories, 18 KM away. Mohammad Qajar’s Mazandran army ended in the town of Berya where they destroyed everything and subjugated the population to complete submission. Twenty-seven KMs from Isfahan, a battle took place between the 25,000-man army of Mohammad Khan Qajar and the 20,000-man Bakhtiari army led by Khusro Khan of Ardali. The casualties in the Bakhtiari army was minimal, unlike their opponents who lost 3,000 men in the fighting. Then, a short while later, the Khusro Khan-led Bakhtiari army declared its support to Ja‘far Khan, who announced he was heading to Isfahan on 25th July, 1785. Mohammad Khan Qajar went to Mazandran on 31st July 1785 after large numbers of his men deserted him to join Ja‘far Khan. The rest of his army dispersed into various provinces. Ja‘far Khan entered Isfahan and immediately appointed Sayed Murad bin Khuda Murad Khan Zand, ruler of Isfahan.(2)
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