Over the past two centuries,^[1]http://www.timemaps.com/history/middle-east-1453ad most of the Middle East has come under the rule of two major powers. The Ottoman empire sent its armies east from Asia Minor^[2]http://www.timemaps.com/history/turkey-1648ad to conquer Syria^[3]http://www.timemaps.com/history/syria-1648ad in 1516,  Egypt^[4]http://www.timemaps.com/history/egypt-1648ad in 1517, western Arabia^[5]http://www.timemaps.com/history/arabia-1648ad (the Hejaz and Yemen) in the following years, and Iraq^[6]http://www.timemaps.com/history/iraq-1453ad in 1534. The Ottomans have brought much needed peace and stability to these countries, and a measure of economic progress. To the east has arisen the other major Middle Eastern power, Safavid Iran.^[7]http://www.timemaps.com/history/iran-1648ad Under the Safavids, Iran has experienced a period of great cultural achievement, particularly in architecture.