Safavid occupation of Basra
Safavid occupation of Basra | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1697–1701 | |||||||||
 Flag | |||||||||
![17th-century map zoomed in on the Persian Gulf area]](/File:Accuratissima_et_Maxima_Totius_Turcici_Imperii_Tabula_(cropped).jpg) Basra (Bassora) on a 1688 map created by Justus Danckerts | |||||||||
| Status | Military occupation | ||||||||
| Capital | Basra | ||||||||
| Historical era | Early modern period | ||||||||
• Established | 26 March 1697 | ||||||||
• Disestablished | 9 March 1701 | ||||||||
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| Today part of | Iraq | ||||||||
The Safavid occupation of Basra (1697–1701) took place between 26 March 1697 and 9 March 1701. It was the second time that the important Persian Gulf city had fallen to Safavid Iran.
Basra, located in present-day Iraq, had already been under Safavid control from 1508 to 1524, when it was lost upon Emperor Ismail I's death. In the ensuing period, the Ottoman Empire, rivals of the Safavids, managed to establish nominal rule over the city. De facto rule of Basra remained in the hands of the local Arab Al-Mughamis tribe, a branch of the Banu'l-Muntafiq. In 1596, the Ottoman governor of Basra, Ali Pasha, sold his office to a local named Afrasiyab. Over the next c. 70 years, Basra was considered a hereditary eyalet under Afrasiyab and his descendants.
The Safavid attempts to retake Basra in 1624, 1625, and 1628–1629 proved unsuccessful, through a combination of Imperial Portuguese interference, pressing concerns on other fronts and, finally, Emperor Abbas the Great's (r. 1588–1629) death. Basra continued to be pulled towards the Safavids due to geographical and economic reasons. Issues related to pilgrimage, uneasy Ottoman relations with the rulers of Basra, and unrest in the southern part of Ottoman-held Iraq continued to irk the Safavids and prompt Safavid involvement in southern Iraq. When the Safavids were allowed to regain territory in Iraq under Emperor Suleiman I (r. 1666–1694) however, they did not act. For instance, in 1667, when the Ottomans conducted a punitive expedition to Basra, its ruler Husayn Pasha of the Afrasiyab dynasty evacuated the city's population to Safavid territory and offered control of Basra to the Safavids. Shah Suleiman I dismissed Husayn Pasha's pleas as he did not want to antagonize the Ottomans.
In 1690, plague and famine led to tribal unrest among the Muntafiqs in southern Iraq. In 1695, the local Arab tribal leader Shaykh Mane ibn Mughamis led his tribesmen in a revolt against the Ottomans. Shaykh Mane and his men gained control of Basra with the support of 5000 members of the
Background
Geopolitical significance of Basra
Basra was of particular geopolitical importance in the 16th and 17th centuries, being on the border between the rival (Sunni) Ottoman and (Shi'i) Safavid empires, on the frontier of the Arabian Desert, and having a pivotal role in the growth of the Indian Ocean trade.[1] As a result, possession of Basra was contested between the Ottomans and Safavids. Although the two empires claimed jurisdiction over the city at various times, their authority was nominal for the most part, with de facto control being in the hands of local governors who ruled under Safavid or Ottoman suzerainty.[1][2] During this period, large parts of present-day Iraq were made unsafe by the depredations of the semi-nomadic and "fiercely independent" Arabs in the south and Kurds in the north, who attacked passing caravans.[2] The weather in the Sawad was harmful to health, with plagues and killer epidemics contributing to turbulent periods in Basra's history.[1][2] Nevertheless, Basra became an important traffic hub for the Persian Gulf area, both for merchants and for pilgrims en route to Mecca and Medina.[1]
From the 16th to the 17th century
The
In 1508, during the reign of the first Safavid ruler, Ismail I (r. 1501–1524), Basra and the Musha'sha' became part of the Safavid Empire.[1][a] The Musha'sha' proved to be valuable allies to the Safavids, often acting as Safavid proxies in campaigns against the Arabs of southern Iraq and Basra, led by a Safavid-appointed governor. Although nominally Safavid subjects, they had broad autonomy, and their territory served as a buffer zone between the Safavids and the Ottomans.[2][5]
In 1524, following Ismail I's death, the Al-Mughamis resumed effective control.
Despite being
From the 17th to the 18th century
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In 1596 the Ottoman governor sold Basra to a certain Afrasiyab, a local magnate descended from the Sunni
During this period, the Safavid Shah Abbas the Great (r. 1588–1629) made a number of attempts to capture Basra, a major rival for his own commercial port city of Bandar Abbas, and a base for the Portuguese traders in the region. The Safavid attempts in 1624, 1625, and 1628–1629 during the War of 1623–1639 proved unsuccessful, through a combination of Portuguese interference, pressing concerns on other fronts and, finally, Abbas' death.[2]
Though the Safavids acknowledged Ottoman rule over Iraq in the
Basra was also drawn to the Safavids for economic reasons: in the mid to late 17th century, Safavid
Prelude
The turn of the 18th century saw greater turmoil and renewed Safavid involvement in southern Iraq.
Safavid control: 1697–1701
Farajollah Khan and his loyal Musha'sha' emerged victorious and captured Basra in name of the Safavid Shah, prompting Shaykh Mane to flee.
Though the Safavids had established control over Basra, they refrained from laying "full and definitive claim" to the city.[10] Sultan Husayn's government was still concerned not to disrupt the peace with the Ottomans. Furthermore, they were aware of Iran's military weakness at the time and realized it would be "difficult to hold on to a city located in an extremely volatile region".[2] The activities of the Kurdish rebel Suleiman Baba, who had captured the town of Ardalan and the fortress of Urmia near the Ottoman border in the same year, reinforced their concerns.[10] In late 1697, Shaykh Mane, having made peace with his former enemy Farajollah Khan,[c] and assisted by Musha'sha' defectors, defeated a large Safavid force near the fortress of Khurma (Khorma) and captured their general. This forced Sultan Husayn to offer the Basra to the Ottomans.[2][10] Sultan Husayn had keys made of pure gold and sent Rostam Khan Zanganeh as ambassador to Constantinople, to hand them over to the Ottoman Sultan Mustafa II (r. 1695–1703), in a symbolic gesture offering the city to Ottoman control.[10] However, although the Safavids continued showing a willingness to return Basra to the Ottomans and entertained an Ottoman embassy in Isfahan between December 1698 and April 1699, Basra would stay in Safavid hands until 1701.[2][d]
In early 1700, Shaykh Mane reappeared before the city of Basra and demanded 500
Assessment
Matthee notes that it remains unclear "how Basra fared under the Iranians" in 1697–1701, as contemporary sources "voice no consensus about the issue".[10] Some eyewitnesses insisted that Basra was well governed by the Iranians and hail both Ali Mardan Khan and Ebrahim Khan as "just rulers who showed concern for the people".[10] According to resident Carmelites (members of a Roman Catholic mendicant order) in Basra the city prospered under the beneficent rule of these two Safavid governors, while according to the Scottish sea captain Alexander Hamilton the Iranians encouraged trade and were kind to foreign merchants, unlike the Turks.[10] However, in 1700 the Dutch East India Company stated that Basra had declined under the Safavids and that trade had diminished.[10]
Notes
- vali) of Basra.[4]
- Rabi'a.[10]
- ^ Farajollah Khan had been dismissed as vali of Arabestan around the same time by the central Safavid government for his role in the occupation of Basra.[10]
- ^ In the letter given by Mustafa II to the Shah (carried by the embassy), the Ottoman sultan apparently "had not responded to the question of whether or not he wished to recover Basra. Instead, he was said to have ordered the governor of Baghdad to go reclaim the city, and rumour had it that Suleiman Baba was enlisted in the efforts as well".[10]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Longrigg & Lang 2015.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai Matthee 2006b.
- ^ a b c Matthee 2006a, p. 57.
- ^ a b Floor 2008, p. 165.
- ^ a b Matthee 2006a, p. 55.
- ^ Matthee 2006a, pp. 53, 58.
- ^ Matthee 2006a, p. 59.
- ^ Matthee 2006a, pp. 67–69.
- ^ a b c d e Matthee 2006a, p. 74.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Matthee 2006a, p. 75.
- ^ a b c Matthee 2006a, p. 76.
Sources
- ISBN 978-1933823232.
- Longrigg, Steven Helmsley; Lang, Katherine H. (2015). "Basra since the Mongol Conquest". In Fleet, Kate; ISSN 1873-9830.
- S2CID 159935186.
- Matthee, Rudi (2006b). "Iraq iv. Relations in the Safavid period". Encyclopaedia Iranica (Vol. XIII, Fasc. 5 and Vol. XIII, Fasc. 6). New York. pp. 556–561.
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