TURKOMANS BETWEEN TWO EMPIRES: THE ... - Bilkent University

Ismail to retreat. Then he turned towards the left wing of the Ottoman army which was
commanded by Hasan Pasha. 1923 Here, the qizilbash fighters commanded by Ismail
managed to defeat the Rumelian troops, killing many prominent begs among which were
Hasan Pasha, famous brothers Malkoçoğlu Ali Beg 1924 and Tur Ali Beg. 1925 When
informed about the situation in the left wing, Selim ordered to send a portion of the
Janissary troops, which were using rifle, to help Rumelian troops. When the Janissaries
joined the battle with their firearms, the fate of the war was changed and it brought the
victory to Sultan Selim. 1926 As David Morgan puts succinctly, “Çaldıran is seen above
all else as the victory of modern military technology over the outdated steppe ways of
warfare.” 1927 Kemalpaşazāde’s following words clearly put forth how the qizilbashes
were vulnerable to the fire-armed warfare:
Lā-cerem, fermān-ı kazā-cereyān şöyle sādır buldu ki Yeniçeri askerinin tüfenkendāz
serbāzlarından bir koşun asker Rumili leşkerine imdād u incād kasdine
yüzlerin ol cānibe döndürdüler. Tüfeng-i tārek-şiken havādan tolı gibi yağub,
‘adū-yı kīne-cūyun yüzin binin bir uğurdan Cehenneme gönderdiler. Terk ü
1923 KPZ9,p. 108. Roger Savory argues, however, that Ismail first attacked Rumelian troops of the
Ottomans then turned towards the center. See Savory, “The Consolidation”, p. 89.
1924 According to HS, HR, and AA he was killed by Ismail himself. See HS, p. 606; HR, p. 180; AA, p. 69.
Especially AA vividly describes the duello between Ismail and Malkoçoğlu. These sources specially
praise Ismail’s courage and bravery underlining that he personally fought even in frontal lines of the battle
and grounded a great number of Rūmīs into the dust of annihilation. HS says, for example, that on seeing
most of his highest rank Hans were killed and his troops were routed “The Shah’s wrath was kindled and,
unsheathing his sword, he charged without reinforcement into the midst of the enemy lines and killed a
number of foes. Without fear of exaggeration it can be said that in that battle he displayed such a valor that
Draco was vary of his serpentine arrows and Leo quivered in his lair from the heat of his fire-dripping
sword.” HS, p. 606. AA recounts similarly that “Shah Esma’il entered that frightful field in person,
supervising the course of the battle and performing deeds of valor surpassing those of Sām and Esfandīār.
It is a matter of record among the Ottomans that the Shah several times forced his horse right up to the gun
carriages and the barricade, and with blows of his sword severed the chains linking the gun carriages. …”
See AA, pp. 69-70. On the other hand, HSE, a sixteenth century court historian of the Ottomans, recites
from his grand-father Hafız Mehmed who attended the battle among Safavid ranks that during the battle
the Shah personally committed seven assaults into Ottoman ranks, changing his horse in each case. See
HSE4, p. 211. Also see MNB, p. 463.
1925 KPZ9, pp. 108-111; CLZ, p. 245. KPZ says that during the battle the qizilbashes shouted “Şah! Şah!”
while Muslim soldiers shouted “Allah! Allah!” See KPZ9, p. 110. ALI repeats the same account. See
ALI, pp. 1085-6. Also see IDRS, pp. 173-5.
1926 IDRS, pp. 176-8; SKB, pp. 173-6; HSE4, pp. 201-202; ALI, pp. 1100-1101. See also the letter of
Selim (fetih-nāme) to his son Suleyman in HYDR, pp. 51-52.
1927 Morgan, p. 117.
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