TRENDEFRARAtlas of the Sultans · Wars, battles and treaties
Campaign · 1553
Suleiman's third Iranian campaign is known in Ottoman sources as the “Nakhchivan campaign”. According to the TDV article on Suleiman I, the sultan left Istanbul on 28 August 1553; on the way he had Prince Mustafa executed, lost his son Cihangir at Aleppo, and after wintering there set out on 9 April 1554. Before Kars he openly declared war on the Safavids; on 13 July he reached Erivan and had its surroundings laid waste, repeating this on 28 July at Nakhchivan, which had been evacuated. The aim was to avenge Shah Tahmasp's earlier raids and force the Safavids to make peace, so no garrison was left. Successes were also gained in the Çoruh valley and around Kirkuk. While the army wintered at Amasya, Tahmasp's envoy arrived, and the Peace of Amasya was signed in 1555.
| Date | 28 August 1553 – October 1554 |
|---|---|
| Location | Erivan and Nakhchivan |
| Result | The Erivan and Nakhchivan districts were laid waste; the Safavids sued for peace (Amasya, 1555) |
| Belligerents | Ottoman Empire | Safavid Empire |
|---|---|---|
| Commanders | Suleiman I | Tahmasp I |
Took place during the reign of Suleiman I (1520–1566). Suleiman I
Open the reign of Suleiman I on the mapBy the atlas's calculation the Ottoman lands covered about 5,067,000 km² in 1553; at the start of Suleiman I's reign they measured 3,034,000 km², at its end 5,127,000 km².
During Suleiman I (1520–1566) the atlas records 20 regions gained and 1 region lost.
Regions gained: Belgrade–Šabac (1521), Rhodes and the Dodecanese (1522), Eastern Slavonia and Syrmia (Osijek–Vukovar) (1526), Lika–Krbava (1527), Baghdad–Basra (1534), Požega (central Slavonia) (1537), Kars–Ardahan–Artvin (1537), Yemen–Asir (1538), and 12 more.
Regions lost: Kars–Ardahan–Artvin (1565).
With a reign of forty-six years he ruled longer than any other sultan. He brought the state to its military, legal and cultural peak; yet the executions of his sons Mustafa and Bayezid are the gravest instances of violence within the dynasty.
Areas are land area computed from the atlas's region data; see Method and sources.
Source: TDV Encyclopedia of Islam, “NAHCIVAN” (Turkish); text written for the atlas.
Cite as: Atlas of the Sultans, “Ottoman–Safavid War (1532–1555): Date, Commanders and Outcome”, https://padisahlaratlasi.com/en/events/ottoman-safavid-war-1532-1555/ (last updated 12 November 2026). Corrections