In the early sixteenth century, Persian conqueror Shah Ismail (1487 – 1524) embarked on a series of campaigns within the Greater Iran region that led to the establishment of the Safavid Empire. He was the first native Iranian monarchRoger M. Savory. "Safavids" in Peter Burke, Irfan Habib, Halil İnalcık: History of Humanity-Scientific and Cultural Development: From the Sixteenth to the Eighteenth Century, Taylor & Francis. 1999, p. 259. since late antiquity to achieve dominion over the entirety of Iran (and beyond it). This article provides an overview of Ismail's wars.

In the initial seven years of Ismail’s reign, the Qizilbash dominated almost entirely, holding key governmental and military posts. Yet, upon reaching maturity, Ismail began appointing certain roles to native Persian-speaking individuals, referred to then as "Tajiks." This move aimed to counterbalance the Qizilbash’s authority and limit their control.

Shah Ismail's Campaigns Hailing from the city of Ardabil in the northwest of the country, Ismail was the head of the mystical Safavid order of Sufi Muslims. At only thirteen years of age, he commenced his exploits by conquering the state of Shirvan in 1500 – 1501. Immediately after this he began demolishing the Aq Qoyunlu confederation of Turkomans, which ruled western Iran at the time. It was the Aq Qoyunlu who, alarmed at the fall of Shirvan, set out halt the progress of this new conqueror. The two armies met at the Battle of Sharur on 17 July 1501. Ismail's army triumphed despite being outnumbered by four to one.

When he took Tabriz in 1501, he proclaimed himself Shahanshah (King of Kings) of Iran and the Safavid state came into existence. Ismail established the Shia denomination of Islam as the official religion of Iran and began mass conversions of the formerly predominant Sunni Muslims, spreading the compulsory Shia faith by the sword and slaying those who did not convert.Cleveland, William L. "A History of the Modern Middle East" (Westview Press, 2013) p. 131 He also announced himself to be the Mahdi and the reincarnation of Ali and Husayn, while simultaneously claiming to be the personification of the divine light called khvarenah or khvarenah which had existed in the ancient Iranian shahs Darius the Great, Shapur I and Khosrow Anushirvan, and wielding a supernatural aura of invincibility.

The Safavid conquest of the Aq Qoyunlu was mostly complete by 1503 – with Fars and Persian Iraq falling to Ismail in that year – but the Shah continued pursuing its remnants for another five years, conquering Mesopotamia and taking Baghdad in 1508. There he destroyed the tombs of several important Sunni figures including those of the Abbasid caliphs. In 1510, having turned east, the shah triumphed once again at the dénouement of the Perso-Uzbek Wars, the Battle of Merv, which confirmed his hold over Khorasan.

Having thus unified Iran, Ismail had established the country as a great power for the first time in several centuries. Naturally his next war was with the other power of the region, the Ottoman Empire. The two states faced off at the Battle of Chaldiran in 1514. Ismail had all but won the battle against sultan Selim "The monarch [Selim], seeing the slaughter, began to retreat, and to turn about, and was about to fly, when Sinan, coming to the rescue at the time of need, caused the artillery to be brought up and fired on both the janissaries [sic] and the Persians. The Persian horses hearing the thunder of those infernal machines, scattered and divided themselves over the plain, not obeying their riders bit or spur anymore, from the terror they were in ... It is certainly said, that if it had not been for the artillery, which terrified in the manner related the Persian horses which had never before heard such a din, all his forces would have been routed and put to edge of the sword." when the Ottoman artillery came to the enemy's rescue. Thus, at the last moment, the battle was lost.

List of campaigns and battles Date Conflict Opponents Outcome Notes1500Battle of Gulistan (or Cabanı)Shirvan Victory Part of the Safavid conquest of Shirvan (1500 – 1501)1501Siege of BakuNesib Nesibli, "Osmanlı-Safevî Savaşları, Mezhep Meselesi ve Azerbaucan", Türkler, Cilt 6, Yeni Türkiye Yayınları, Ankara, 2002, , p. 895. Shirvan Victory Part of the Safavid conquest of Shirvan (1500 – 1501)1501Battle of SharurAq Qoyunlu Victory Part of the Safavid conquest of the Aq Qoyunlu confederation (1501 – 1503/08)1501Siege of TabrizAq Qoyunlu Victory Part of the Safavid conquest of the Aq Qoyunlu Ismail, at fourteen years of age, makes Tabriz his capital and declares himself "Shahanshah" (King of Kings) of Iran.1502Capture of Erzincan and ErzurumEastern Turkey: An Architectural & Archaeological Survey, Volume II p. 289 Aq Qoyunlu Victory Part of the Safavid conquest of the Aq Qoyunlu1502Conquest of ArmeniaAq Qoyunlu Victory Part of the Safavid conquest of the Aq Qoyunlu1502Turkoman invasions of GeorgiaAq Qoyunlu Victory The Safavids aided Georgia against the Turkic invaders of that country.1502 – 1510Perso-Uzbek WarShaybanid Dynasty Kazakh Khanate Victory Safavids supported by Timurid Herat and Timurid Kabul (the latter led by Babur)1503Conquest of FarsAq Qoyunlu Victory Part of the Safavid conquest of the Aq Qoyunlu1503Conquest of Persian IraqAq Qoyunlu Victory Part of the Safavid conquest of the Aq Qoyunlu1503Battle of HamadanAq Qoyunlu Victory Part of the Safavid conquest of the Aq Qoyunlu1503Capture of KermanAq Qoyunlu Victory Part of the Safavid conquest of the Aq Qoyunlu1503Capture of NakhchivanAq Qoyunlu Victory Part of the Safavid conquest of the Aq Qoyunlu1504Conquest of MazanderanAfrasiyab Dynasty Victory Destruction of the Afrasiyab Dynasty of Mazanderan1504Conquest of YazdAq Qoyunlu Victory Part of the Safavid conquest of the Aq Qoyunlu1506 – 1510Yazidi uprisingYazidi rebels Victory Kurdish rebellion suppressed1507 – 1508Conquest of DiyarbakirAq Qoyunlu Victory Part of the Safavid conquest of the Aq Qoyunlu The Safavid power is extended into eastern Anatolia1508Battle of Baghdad (1508)Aq Qoyunlu Victory Sultan Murad flees Baghdad causing the collapse of the Aq Qoyunlu, Shah Ismail rules over all of Iraq and destroys the graves of Al Gilani and Abu Hanifa. 1510Battle of Merv Khanate of Bukhara Victory Conclusion of the Perso-Uzbek War and the Safavid conquest of Khorasan1514Battle of Chaldiran Ottoman Empire Defeat Campaign against Turkish sultan Selim the Grim1522 Battle of Teleti Kingdom of Georgia Victory Part of Ismail's Georgian Campaign of 1516 – 1522

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See also Safavid Iran Qizilbash Husayn Beg Shamlu Aq Qoyunlu List of wars involving Iran Safavid conversion of Iran to Shia Islam List of monarchs of Iran List of Mahdi claimants