Editing Bandar Abbas (section)

==History==
{{see also|Timeline of Bandar Abbas}}

=== Pre-Islamic history ===
The earliest record of Bandar Abbas is during the reign of [[Darius the Great]] (between 522 and 486 BC). Darius's commander, Silacus, embarked from Bandar Abbas to [[India]] and the [[Red Sea]]. During [[Alexander III of Macedon|Alexander]]'s conquest of the [[Achaemenid Empire]], Bandar Abbas was known under the name of '''Hormirzad'''.

===Portuguese period===
[[File:Ormus -Hormuz- - Costumes des quatre parties du monde, gravés dans la manière de Luycken (1670).jpg|thumb|left|Local costumes from Ormus, 1670]]
By the 16th century, Bandar Abbas was known as '''Gamrūn''' to the [[Persian people|Persian]]s. In 1565, a European navigator called it '''Bamdel Gombruc''' (that is, ''Bandar Gümrük'', or "Customhouse Port"), citing this as the Persian and [[Turkish language|Turkish]] name. Bandar Abbas was conquered by the Portuguese in 1514, and was an important location to protect their commerce in the [[Persian Gulf]] and [[Portuguese India|India]].<ref>[http://www.itto.org/city/?cityid=29 Iran tourism and touring official website, ''Bandar Abbas'']</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20031018214325/http://www.salamiran.org/CT/provinces/bandar_abbas.html SalamIran''Province of Bandar Abbas'']</ref> They named the city Comorão, due to the presence of lobsters and crabs on its shores. In 1614, Comorão was taken by Shah [[Abbas the Great]] from the Portuguese and renamed '''Bandar-e Abbas''' ("Port of Abbas"). Backed by the [[Royal Navy|English Navy]], Abbas developed the city (known to the English-speaking world as '''Gombraun''') into a major port. By 1622, the Portuguese and English names had been officially combined to form '''Combrù''' or '''Combu''', although the inhabitants still called it Bandar-e Abbas. Sir [[Sir Thomas Herbert, 1st Baronet|Thomas Herbert]] said the official English name was '''Gumbrown''', but pronounced [gŏmrōōn]. He wrote in 1630 that "some (but I commend them not) write it '''Gamrou''', others '''Gomrow''', and othersome '''Cummeroon'''."{{quote without source|date=October 2014}} By the 1670s, the city was known as '''Gameroon'''.

In 1622, Shah Abbas defeated Portuguese troops with the help of English troops and the Iranian commander [[Imam Quli Khan (Safavid governor)|Imam Quli Khan]]. In honour of this victory Gumbroon was renamed Bandar Abbas Port. In the current division of Bandar Abbas in [[Hormozgan province]] and one of the most important strategic and commercial centre is in the vicinity of the [[Persian Gulf]] and [[Oman Sea]].

[[File:Gombroon·Persia·1704.jpg|thumb|right|English and Dutch [[trading post]]s in Bandar Abbas in 1704]]
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===Dutch and English period ===
In 1625, a combined Anglo-Dutch fleet attacked the Portuguese at Bandar Abbas and took control of the trade posts. Soon, the [[Dutch East India Company]] outcompeted its English counterpart and eventually, from 1654 onwards, was in complete control of the local spice and silk trade, due to multiple English ships being taken, and the [[Action of 29 January 1654]]. The Dutch remained in complete control until 1765.<ref>Donald Hawley: The Trucial States, Ardent Media, 1970, pp. 76.</ref>

===Omani period===
[[File:AMH-7105-KB View of the city of Gamron.jpg|thumb|Prospect of "Gamron", c. 1740]]Between 1794 and 1868, Bandar Abbas was under the control of the [[Oman|Sultanate of Oman and Zanzibar]] through a lease agreement with Persia. The details of the original lease apparently differed between the Arabic and Persian versions. The Omanis controlled the coastal stretch of some 100 miles from [[Sadij]] to [[Bandar Khamir|Khamir]], and inland about 30 miles, as far as [[Shamil, Hormozgan|Shamil]]. They also controlled the islands of [[Hormuz Island|Hormuz]] and [[Qeshm]]. In 1823, the Persians attempted to oust the Omanis, but the sultan managed to keep his hold on Bandar through bribery and tribute of the governor of [[Shiraz]]. In 1845–1846, an army under the governor-general of [[Fars province|Fars]] menaced Bandar to extort tribute, while another army under the governor of [[Kerman]] besieged [[Minab]]. The Omanis threatened to blockade Persia, but the [[Persian Gulf Residency|British resident at Bushir]] convinced them to back down.<ref name=Potter>Lawrence G. Potter, "The Consolidation of Iran's Frontier on the Persian Gulf in the Nineteenth Century", in Roxane Farmanfarmaian (ed.), ''War and Peace in Qajar Persia: Implications Past and Present'' (Routledge: 2008), pp. 125–48.</ref>[[File:Bandar Abbas 1862.jpg|thumb|"Gombroon, or Bender-Abbas", illustration from 1862]]

The Persians recovered the city in 1854, while the sultan was in Zanzibar. Under British pressure following the [[Anglo-Persian War]] in 1856, Persia renewed Oman's lease on favourable terms. It was clarified that the leased territory belonged to the province of Fars and that the Persian flag would fly over Bandar Abbas. The rental rate was also increased. Under British pressure the agreement was renewed in 1868, but at a higher rate of rent and for a shorter duration. Two months after its renewal, the lease was cancelled by the Persian government, citing a clause which permitted its termination if the sultan of Oman were overthrown.<ref name=Potter/>

===Contemporary history===
An earthquake in July 1902 damaged parts of the city, including the governor's house and the customs office, and nearby [[Qeshm Island]].<ref>{{Cite news|newspaper=The Times|title=Latest intelligence – Earthquake shocks on the Persian Gulf|date=19 July 1902|page=7|issue=36824}}</ref>

[[Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi]] paid particular attention to Bandar Abbas as a strategic port and during his time the government invested huge amounts of capital in the infrastructure.{{Citation needed|date=March 2025}} Before initial plans to develop it as a major harbour, Bandar Abbas was a small fishing port with approximately 17,000 residents in 1955. By 2001, it had grown into a major city.{{Citation needed|date=March 2025}} It has a population of 450,000 (2011 estimate).<ref name="2011 Hormozgan Province"/>

Bandar Abbas serves as a major shipping point, mostly for imports, and has a long history of trade with India, particularly the port of [[Surat]]. Thousands of tourists visit the city and nearby islands including [[Qeshm]] and [[Hormuz Island|Hormuz]] every year.

On 27 April, 2025, a [[Port of Shahid Rajaee explosion|powerful explosion at Iran's biggest port of Bandar Abbas occurred]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Desk |first=Reuters/ News |date=2025-04-27 |title=At least 28 dead, hundreds injured after massive explosion at Iran’s Bandar Abbas port |url=https://tribune.com.pk/story/2542548/iran-port-blast-death-toll-rises-to-18-over-800-injured |access-date=2025-04-27 |website=The Express Tribune |language=en}}</ref> The death toll was reported to be at least 28, with more than 700 people injured.<ref name=":0"/><!--[[File:Hanabandan.jpg|thumb|right|[[Mehndi|Henna tattoo]], signs of love and joy, worked on the hand and arm of a Bandari girl.]]-->