The Ottoman–Safavid War of 1616–1618 was a brief war between the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

and

Safavid Iran The Guarded Domains of Iran, commonly called Safavid Iran, Safavid Persia or the Safavid Empire, was one of the largest and longest-lasting Iranian empires. It was ruled from 1501 to 1736 by the Safavid dynasty. It is often considered the begi ...

. After the

Ottoman–Safavid war (1603–1612) The Ottoman–Safavid war of 1603–1612 consisted of two wars between Safavid Iran under Abbas the Great, Shah Abbas I and the Ottoman Empire under Mehmed III and his son Ahmed I. The first war began in 1603 and ended with a Safavid victory ...

, the Ottomans and Safavids had signed the Treaty of Nasuh Pasha, in which their borders were changed back to the previous one under

Selim I Selim I (; ; 10 October 1470 – 22 September 1520), known as Selim the Grim or Selim the Resolute (), was the List of sultans of the Ottoman Empire, sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1512 to 1520. Despite lasting only eight years, his reign is ...

and

Shah Ismail I Ismail I (; 17 July 1487 – 23 May 1524) was the founder and first shah of Safavid Iran, ruling from 1501 until his death in 1524. His reign is one of the most vital in the history of Iran, and the Safavid period is often considered the beginn ...

. In exchange, the Safavid ruler

Shah Abbas I Abbas I (; 27 January 1571 – 19 January 1629), commonly known as Abbas the Great (), was the fifth Safavid shah of Iran from 1588 to 1629. The third son of Shah Mohammad Khodabanda, he is generally considered one of the most important rulers ...

promised to send the Ottomans 200 pack-loads of silk each year. In 1616, the Ottomans used the Safavids' failure to deliver the silk as a pretext to start another war. At the end of August 1616, a sizable Ottoman army led by the

grand vizier Grand vizier (; ; ) was the title of the effective head of government of many sovereign states in the Islamic world. It was first held by officials in the later Abbasid Caliphate. It was then held in the Ottoman Empire, the Mughal Empire, the Soko ...

Öküz Mehmed Pasha "Öküz" Mehmed Pasha ("Mehmed Pasha the Ox"), also known as Kara Mehmed Pasha ("the Black") or "Kul Kıran" Mehmed Pasha ("the Disciple-breaker"), was an Ottoman Turkish statesman, administrator, and military figure of the early 17th century. H ...

besieged Erivan. Abbas harassed the Ottoman supply lines, and by the time winter was nearing, Mehmed Pasha ended the siege and retreated, leading to death of many of soldiers due to the cold weather. Due to his setback, he was replaced by Damat Halil Pasha as the new grand vizier. In 1618, with the assistance of

Tatar Tatar may refer to: Peoples * Tatars, an umbrella term for different Turkic ethnic groups bearing the name "Tatar" * Volga Tatars, a people from the Volga-Ural region of western Russia * Crimean Tatars, a people from the Crimea peninsula by the B ...

and Georgian warriors, Halil Pasha launched another Ottoman invasion into Iran. He dispatched an emissary to Abbas in

Qazvin Qazvin (; ; ) is a city in the Central District (Qazvin County), Central District of Qazvin County, Qazvin province, Qazvin province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. It is the largest city in the provi ...

with the prospect of withdrawing if the Safavids gave back the lands they had conquered. Abbas rejected the offer and marched to the Azerbaijan province to confront the invading Ottoman army. He marched to the Safavid shrine city of

Ardabil Ardabil (, ) is a city in northwestern Iran. It is in the Central District (Ardabil County), Central District of Ardabil County, Ardabil province, Ardabil province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. The ...

with a portion of the army, and there he rejected another Ottoman emissary. Even after the emissary dropped the territorial demands and urged Abbas only to pay the silk tribute and surrender his son to

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

as a hostage, he refused to consider a peace proposal. Abbas' new commander-in-chief, Qarachaqay Khan, an

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...

'' gholam'', was given orders to raze the countryside and target enemy gathering groups while avoiding a major battle until the winter was upon them and the Ottomans were starving and cold. In 1618, the Ottomans and Safavids made peace by signing the

Treaty of Serav Treaty of Serav (, ) was a treaty between Ottoman Empire and Safavid Persia after the war of 1615–1618. (signed on 26 September 1618 in Sarab, East Azerbaijan, Sarab) Background By the treaty of Nasuh Pasha in 1612 Ottoman Empire had agreed ...

which reaffirmed the terms of the previous peace treaty.

References

Sources

* * {{cite book , last = Mikaberidze , first = Alexander , authorlink= Alexander Mikaberidze , title = Conflict and Conquest in the Islamic World: A Historical Encyclopedia volumes, year = 2011 , isbn = 978-1598843361 , publisher = ABC-CLIO 1610s conflicts Ottoman–Persian Wars 1610s in Iran 17th century in Armenia Wars involving Safavid Iran 1610s in the Ottoman Empire