500 years of doubt and concealment were brought to an end in the mid-18th century as the 43rd Imam of the Ismaili faith came out of hiding in south eastern Iran.
But it's with the 46th Imam, Hasan 'Ali Shah, that Ismaili history took a turn.
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Iran
**Population**: 77 million
**Number of Ismailis**: Unknown, several thousand
**Key Areas**: Alamut - site of Hasan-i Sabbah's legendary castle
Over a few decades, the Fatimid Ismaili empire succombed to bitter infighting, intense factionalism, leadership crises and defeat at the hands of the Crusaders in the Middle East. Finally, in 1171 Cairo itself was conquered by Saladin and his Sunni warriors. The Ismaili empire was at an end.
Meanwhile, in the mountains of Iran, a shift was taking in place in the identity of Ismailism.