Safavid Shehzade Alkas Mirza and His Role in the Ottoman Empire

Abstract

This article explores the short life of the Safavid Shehzade Alkas Mirza (1516–1550), the second son of Shah Ismail. In the early adult years, he served as the governor (beylerbey) of Shirvan, where he ruled under the authority of his elder brother Tahmasp, who would later become a shah of Iran. Alkas Mirza sought independence for his province. These ambitions brought him into conflict with Shah Tahmasp and ended in defeat. In search of support, he fled to the Ottoman Empire and was received there as a legitimate ruler of an independent state rather than a shehzade in exile. After several meetings with Sultan Suleiman, he persuaded him to march against Shah Tahmasp. In the 1548–1549 campaign, Alkas Mirza not only participated but played an active role in the Ottoman military operations against the Safavid forces. However, the campaign ultimately failed due to the clever military strategy devised by Shah Tahmasp to counteract the enemy, thus leading to Alkas Mirza’s loss of favor and diminishing influence at the Ottoman court. Forced to leave the country, he soon fell into his brother’s hands and died under mysterious circumstances. During the research at the Ottoman Archives in Istanbul, new diplomatic documents, which shed light on the described events marking a significant milestone in the history of the Ottoman–Iranian relations over the mid-16th century, were discovered.