Siege of Kandahar (1557–1558)

Part of the Mughal–Persian wars
| Date| 1557–1558

|

Location|

Kandahar, modern day Afghanistan

Result|  Safavid victory
Territorial
changes|  Kandahar falls to Safavid Empire
Belligerents
Safavid Empire|  Mughal Empire
Commanders and leaders
Soltan Hosayn Mirza
Yar Sultan Afshar
Vali Kalifa Shamlou
Shahverdi Shamlou
Ali Sultan Tatiogla Zul-Qadar|  Muhammad Shah Qalati

Shah Tahmasp of Persia tried to exploit the inexperience of the young Mughal Emperor Akbar, then an adolescent. He sent an army to lay siege to Kandahar, a vital southern Afghan city held by Shah Muhammad, a governor appointed by the Mughal regent Bairam Khan. With no way to offer military assistance, Akbar was compelled to surrender Kandahar to the Persians. The Persians held the city on and off for almost four decades before the Mughals recovered it.[1][2][3]

Map of the Safavid Iran and the surrounding Ottoman and Mughal empires

## Background

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Tahmasp I and Humayun at a Nowruz festival (Chehel Sotoun, Isfahan)

### Humayun Kandahar Safavid Aggreement

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Emperor Humayun, the son of Babur, was expelled from India by the Afghans in 1544–45 and took refuge in Iran, where he was warmly welcomed by the Safavid Empire's Shah Tahmasp. Humayun was sorry for what his brother Mirza Kamran did.[4] Then an agreement with Shah Tahmasp saw Humayun agree that once he regained control of Kandahar, he would transfer control to the Safavid authorities.[5] Humayun kept his promise after vainly recapturing Kandahar, aided by the Safavid army. After the capture of Askari Mirza, Mirza Kamran's governor of Kandahar, Budagh Khan, the commander of the Safavid army during the campaign and duly appointed guardian of Sultan Murad Mirza, was put in control of the city.[6]

Portrait of Tahmasp I of Safavid Empire.

### Humayun and Kandahar Control

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Within a year of Sultan Morad's death, Emperor Humayun needed to consolidate his position amidst all the difficulties that still existed. He captured Kandahar from Budagh Khan and assigned it to Bayram Khan Turkman to establish a safe base for his loyal Chagatai forces.[4] Bayram Khan was an ardent supporter of both Humayun and the Shah.[5] Humayun left him in charge of the city until he had managed his affairs and consolidated his kingdom. Humayun kept his entire energy concentrated upon his battle with Mirza Kamran at Kabul and Badakhshan, meanwhile Bayram Khan ruled over Kandahar, whom the Shah did not press for return due to partial reverence towards Humayun, partial because of loyalty of Bayram Khan toward Shah Tahmasp.[6]

Portrait of Humayun of the Mughal Empire.

### Humayun's Rule and Succession

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Eventually, Humayun succeeded and became an independent king of Ghazni, Kabul, and Hindustan. However, Kandahar was not within his control, and by the time of his death, it had still not been returned to Qizilbash. He was succeeded in 1556 by his son, Jalal al-Din Muhammad Akbar. During this period, Shah Mohammad Qalati was conducting the affairs of Kandahar for Bairam Khan.[6]

Portrait of Bairam Khan the reagent of Akbar.

## Prelude

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In 1556, Bahadur Khan Uzbeg, the governor of Zamin Davar, launched a campaign against Kandahar with the intention of capturing it from Shah Muhammad. In response to this, Shah Muhammad sent a messenger to Shah Tahmasp requesting him to send a Qizilbash army against Bahadur Khan. Shah Muhammad directed that Kandahar was under the jurisdiction of the royal court and would not allow Bahadur Khan to succeed in his dream to conquer the land and own it for himself.[6]

In response to this call, Shah Tahmasp dispatched Shah Mohammad Qalati with the aid of Sultan Hoseyn Mirza, son of Bahram Mirza, along with Ali Yar Sultan Afshar, Vali Kalifa Shamlou, and several other emirs. Shahverdi Kalifa Shamlou, son of Vali Kalifa, led a rapid attack on Bahadur Khan with a contingent of Shamlou forces, which caught him off guard. After fierce fighting, Bahadur Khan retreated toward India. However, Shah Mohammad Qalati proved to be treacherous and not trustworthy. He stopped the prince and emirs referred to above from going into the fortress of Kandahar and instead prepared himself for a siege. The senior emirs captured the province of Zamin Davar and went ahead to inform Shah Tahmasp about the situation in the matter of Kandahar.[6]

## Battle

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In 1557–1558, Shah Tahmasp of the Safavid Empire sent an army led by Ali Sultan Tatiogla Zul-Qadar to conquer Kandahar. After the successful campaign, the province's governance and administration were entrusted to Soltan Hosayn Mirza. The city was besieged by the Safavid forces, who waged protracted battles with Shah Mohammad Qalati, who defended it.[1][6] Both sides continued to exchange heavy fire with arrows and muskets for six months.[5] Shah Mohammad was ultimately forced to make an appeal for terms of safe passage. Once formal agreements were made, he relinquished control of the fort to leave for India.[6]

Soltan Hosayn Mirza took full power over Kandahar and ruled the province with stability and prosperity for almost four decades.[1] He died of natural causes in the reign of Shah Ismail II. The region is located in the Helmand River valley, and it extends from the Hindu Kush Mountains down to Bost, which is an important geographical landmark in the region.[6]

## See also

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* Safavid Iran
* Mughal–Persian wars
* Mughal–Safavid War (1637–1638)
* Siege of Kandahar (1605–1606)

## References

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1. ^ a b c Jaques, Tony (2006-11-30). Dictionary of Battles and Sieges: A Guide to 8,500 Battles from Antiquity through the Twenty-first Century [3 volumes]. Bloomsbury Publishing USA. p. 507\. ISBN 978-0-313-02799-4.
2. ^ Douglas E. Streusand. Islamic gunpowder empires: ottomans, safavids, and mughals. p. 148.
3. ^ Chahryar, Adle; M, Baipakov, Karl; Irfan, Habib; UNESCO (2003-12-31). History of civilizations of Central Asia: Development in contrast: from the sixteenth to the mid-nineteenth century. UNESCO Publishing. p. 332\. ISBN 978-92-3-103876-1.`{{cite book}}`: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
4. ^ a b Eraly, Abraham (2000). Emperors of the peacock throne : the saga of the great Mughals. Internet Archive. New Delhi, India ; New York : Penguin Books. pp. 101–114\. ISBN 978-0-14-100143-2.101-114&rft.pub=New+Delhi,+India+;+New+York+:+Penguin+Books&rft.date=2000&rft.isbn=978-0-14-100143-2&rft.aulast=Eraly&rft.aufirst=Abraham&rft_id=https://archive.org/details/emperorsofpeacoc0000eral&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Siege+of+Kandahar+(1557–1558)" class="Z3988">
5. ^ a b c Foundation, Encyclopaedia Iranica. ""KANDAHAR iv. From The Mongol Invasion Through the Safavid Era"". iranicaonline.org. Retrieved 2025-01-02.
6. ^ a b c d e f g h Savory, Roger M. (1930). History Of Shah Abbas The Great Vol. 1. pp. 153–155.153-155&rft.date=1930&rft.aulast=Savory&rft.aufirst=Roger+M.&rft_id=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.38521&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Siege+of+Kandahar+(1557–1558)" class="Z3988">