The Russo-Persian War of 1651–1653 was an armed conflict in the

North Caucasus The North Caucasus, ( ady, Темыр Къафкъас, Temır Qafqas; kbd, Ишхъэрэ Къаукъаз, İṩxhərə Qauqaz; ce, Къилбаседа Кавказ, Q̇ilbaseda Kavkaz; , os, Цӕгат Кавказ, Cægat Kavkaz, inh, ...

fought between the

Safavid Empire Safavid Iran or Safavid Persia (), also referred to as the Safavid Empire, '. was one of the greatest Iranian empires after the 7th-century Muslim conquest of Persia, which was ruled from 1501 to 1736 by the Safavid dynasty. It is often conside ...

and the

Tsardom of Russia The Tsardom of Russia or Tsardom of Rus' also externally referenced as the Tsardom of Muscovy, was the centralized Russian state from the assumption of the title of Tsar by Ivan IV in 1547 until the foundation of the Russian Empire by Peter I i ...

, associated with the

Safavid Safavid Iran or Safavid Persia (), also referred to as the Safavid Empire, '. was one of the greatest Iranian empires after the 7th-century Muslim conquest of Persia, which was ruled from 1501 to 1736 by the Safavid dynasty. It is often conside ...

plans to strengthen its position in the region and to exclude Russia. The main issue involved the expansion of a Russian garrison on the Koy Su River, as well as the construction of several new fortresses, in particular the one built on the Iranian side of the

Terek River The Terek (; , Tiyrk; , Tərč; , ; , ; , ''Terk''; , ; , ) is a major river in the Northern Caucasus. It originates in the Mtskheta-Mtianeti region of Georgia (country), Georgia and flows through North Caucasus region of Russia into the Casp ...

. The Safavid government then sent troops, and destroyed the fortress while expelling its Russian garrison. In 1653

Alexis of Russia Aleksey Mikhaylovich ( rus, Алексе́й Миха́йлович, p=ɐlʲɪkˈsʲej mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪtɕ; – ) was the Tsar of Russia from 1645 until his death in 1676. While finding success in foreign affairs, his reign saw several wars ...

and the Russian government, which thought about sending the Russian Zaporozhian Army, but did not want to disperse its forces, sent an embassy to Persia for a peaceful settlement of the conflict.

Shah Abbas II Abbas II (; born Soltan Mohammad Mirza; 30 August 1632 – 26 October 1666) was the seventh Shah of Safavid Iran, ruling from 1642 to 1666. As the eldest son of Safi and his Circassian wife, Anna Khanum, he inherited the throne when he was ni ...

agreed, stating that the conflict was initiated without his consent.

Events

From the 1520s there had been Cossacks on the

. They were more-or-less controlled by the Russian governor at

Astrakhan Astrakhan ( rus, Астрахань, p=ˈastrəxənʲ) is the largest city and administrative centre of Astrakhan Oblast in Southern Russia. The city lies on two banks of the Volga, in the upper part of the Volga Delta, on eleven islands of the ...

, the intervening land being nomad country. South of the Terek in Dagestan were various khanates who recognized the supremacy of Persia. The main Cossack town was Terki on the lower Terek. The Cossack towns had local allies who were a major part of their military force. In 1634 they built a new fort on the lower

Sunzha River The Sunzha ( rus, Су́нжа, p=ˈsunʐə, inh, Шолжа, Sholʒə, ce, Соьлжа, Sölƶa, p=sɥølʒə) is a river in North Ossetia, Ingushetia and Chechnya, Russia, a tributary of the Terek. It flows northeast inside the great n ...

near the modern city of

Grozny Grozny ( rus, Грозный, p=ˈgroznɨj; ce, Соьлжа-ГӀала, translit=Sölƶa-Ġala), also spelled Groznyy, is the capital city of Chechnya, Russia. The city lies on the Sunzha River. According to the 2010 census, it had a pop ...

, in support of the Georgian ruler Teimuraz I, who had been deposed by his Safavid suzerains and had turned to the Russians for aid. The immediate pretext was the plundering, by a group of Cossacks, of a caravan belonging to the Khan of

Shamakhi Shamakhi ( az, Şamaxı, ) is a city in Azerbaijan and the administrative centre of the Shamakhi District. The city's estimated population was 31,704. It is famous for its traditional dancers, the Shamakhi Dancers, and also for perhaps giving it ...

. He demanded compensation from the Astrakhan governor and threatened to eliminate both the Cossacks and Astrakhan. First campaign: In 1651 the Shamakhi Khan received a decree from the Shah telling him to destroy the Sunzha fort and march on Astrakhan. 12,000 men were gathered from all over Dagestan along with 800 Persian regulars. They marched to the Sunzha River. Between 25 October and 7 November, there were a number of battles which the Russians won. After looting the surrounding country the Dagestanis withdrew, taking with them thousands of horses, cattle, sheep, and camels as well as human captives. Second campaign: When the then incumbent Safavid king (

shah Shah (; fa, شاه, , ) is a royal title that was historically used by the leading figures of Iranian monarchies.Yarshater, EhsaPersia or Iran, Persian or Farsi, ''Iranian Studies'', vol. XXII no. 1 (1989) It was also used by a variety of ...

) Abbas II learned of the events, he ordered the governors of Ardabil, Chokhur-e Sa'd (Erivan), Qarabagh, Astara and parts of

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...

to send forces in order to assist the Safavid governor of Shirvan, Khosrow Khan. Further reinforcements were sent by the governor of

Derbent Derbent (russian: Дербе́нт; lez, Кьвевар, Цал; az, Дәрбәнд, italic=no, Dərbənd; av, Дербенд; fa, دربند), formerly romanized as Derbend, is a city in Dagestan, Russia, located on the Caspian Sea. It is ...

, the Shamkhal of

Kumukh Kumukh (russian: Кумух; lbe, Гъумук) aka Gazi Kumukh is a village and the administrative center of Laksky District in Dagestan. It is located on the banks of the Kazikumukh Koysu, a branch of the Sulak River. Etymology Laks use the na ...

, as well as the ruler of Kara Qaytaq. On 7 March 1653 a 20,000 man Persian army, made up of Persians, Kumyks, Nogais, and Dagestani mountaineers began a siege of the Sunzha fort. On 25 March the remains of the garrison managed to slip out and make it to Terki. After devastating the surrounding area the army returned to

Tarki Tarki ( kum, Таргъу, Tarğu; russian: Тарки́) formerly also spelled Tarkou and also known as Tarku, is an urban locality (an urban-type settlement) under the administrative jurisdiction of Sovetsky City District of the City of M ...

in Dagestan (1 April). By the end of the campaign, the Russians (and the Nogais who assisted them) were driven out of the fort, and the fort was destroyed by the Safavid forces. The Shah planned a third campaign but this was prevented by the Mughal siege of

Kandahar Kandahar (; Kandahār, , Qandahār) is a List of cities in Afghanistan, city in Afghanistan, located in the south of the country on the Arghandab River, at an elevation of . It is Afghanistan's second largest city after Kabul, with a population ...

. A Russian ambassador went to Persia and settled the matter (April–October 1654). In Moscow, the Persian ambassador said that the Shemakhi Khan had acted on his own authority but he could not be punished because he had suddenly died.

Other wars

The situation was complicated for both states. Troops of the

Mughal Empire The Mughal Empire was an early-modern empire that controlled much of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries. Quote: "Although the first two Timurid emperors and many of their noblemen were recent migrants to the subcontinent, the d ...

attacked the far eastern borders of Persia, besieging

. Persia could not fight on two fronts. Peace was needed, both for Persia and Russia, which was preparing for war with

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

(the Russo-Polish War (1654-67)).

Resolution

In August 1653 Prince Ivan Lobanov-Rostovsky and Ivan Komynin traveled from

to Iran. In April 1654 the ambassadors met with the Shah in Iran. As a result of the Russian-Iranian negotiations and compromises, the conflict was extinguished. In October 1654 the "Great Embassy" moved back. The fall of the Sunzha fort led to some strengthening of Persia's position. Shah increased the pressure on the Highlanders, and in 1658 announced the construction of two fortresses on lands of Kumyk. This provoked a sharp protest among mountaineers who rebelled against Persia.

References

Sources

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Events

Other wars

Resolution

See also

References

Sources

Further reading