Conquests of Murad III

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Chronology

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• January 1580: The Duchy of the Archipelago was annexed by the Ottomans in 1579.
• January 1579: In 1578, the Ottoman Empire attempted to expand into the highlands of Medri Bahri with the assistance of Bahr negus Yeshaq, who was the ruler of the region at the time. This move was part of the Ottoman Empire's efforts to increase its territorial control and influence in the area.
• January 1575: In 1574, the city of Sousse, known as Susa, was taken over by the Ottoman Empire from the Spanish. This marked a significant shift in power in the region, with the Ottomans gaining control over the strategic city.
• January 1588: The Pazuki Principality came to an end in 1587 when it was annexed by the Ottomans.
• January 1575: The Principality of Moldavia becomes a vassal of the Ottoman Empire.
• January 1581: In the 1570s, the Ottoman navy occupied the fort of Tskhumi, turning it into the Turkish fortress of Suhum-Kale. Abkhazia came under the influence of Turkey.
• January 1575: In 1574, La Goulette was captured by the Ottoman Empire from the Spanish.
• January 1581: The Shamkhalate of Tarki became a vilayet within Ottoman Empire (1580s-1590s).
• July 1586: In 1585, Ottoman admiral Murat Reis captured the island of Lanzarote in the Canary islands off the West African coast.
• January 1586: The Ottomans had pushed as far south as the third Nile cataract and subsequently attempted to conquer Dongola, but, in 1585, were crushed by the Funj at the battle of Hannik. Afterwards, the battlefield, which was located just south of the third Nile cataract, would mark the border between the two kingdoms.
• January 1576: Crimean Tatar raid in Central Europe and Russia in 1576.
• January 1578: In 1577, the territory of Ouargla was taken over by the Ottoman Empire. Previously, in the 16th century, the Beylerbey of Algiers Salah Raïs had paid tribute to the populations of Ouargla before it became part of the Eastern Beylik.

1. Ottoman-Safavid War (1578-1590)

Was a war between the Ottoman Empire and the Safavid Empire. The war was won by the Ottomans that gained various territories, in particular western Iran.

1.1. Lala Mustafa Pasha's Caucasian campaign

Was a military Ottoman expedition launched in 1578 by grand-vizier Lala Mustafa Pasha against Persia.

• August 1578: Turkish armies defeated the coalition of Irano-Georgian forces in the Battle of Çıldır.
• January 1578: Samtskhe-Saatabago revolted against Ottoman rule.
• August 1578: The Ottomans continued their expansion against the Safavids, and by the August 24 took the Georgian capital of Tbilisi.
• September 1578: King of Kakheti, Alexander acted wisely and made peace with the Ottomans on September 1, agreeing on the payment of annual tribute. Because of this agreement, the Kingdom of Kakheti managed to escape the war completely unharmed.
• August 1578: Some Samtskhian nobles, including the brother of the ruler, accepted Ottoman vassalage.

1.2. Treaty of Constantinople (1590)

Was a treaty that ended the Ottoman-Safavid War of 1578-1590.

• March 1590: According to the Treaty of Constantinople, the Ottoman Empire kept most of its gains in the Ottoman-Safavid War of 1578-1590. These included most of the southern Caucasus (which included the Safavid domains in Georgia, composed of the Kingdoms of Kartli and Kakheti and the eastern part of the Samtskhe-Meskheti principality, as well as the Erivan Province, Karabakh, and Shirvan), the Azerbaijan Province (incl. Tabriz, but not Ardabil, which remained in Safavid hands), Luristan, Dagestan, most of the remaining parts of Kurdistan, Shahrizor, Khuzestan, Baghdad and Mesopotamia.

2. Ottoman-Portuguese conflicts (1586-1589)

Were armed military engagements which took place between the Portuguese Empire and the Ottoman Empire along the coast of eastern Africa.

2.1. Ottoman backed revolt of Indian Ocean coast

Was a revolt backed by the Ottomans in the East African coast against Portuguese rule.

• January 1587: In 1586, at Pate island, Mir Ali Bey, a prominent Ottoman naval commander, captured a Portuguese merchant carrack. This event was part of the ongoing conflict between the Ottoman Empire and the Portuguese Empire for control of trade routes and territories in the Indian Ocean.
• January 1582: Muscat conquered by Ottoman Empire.
• January 1587: In 1586, Mir Ali Bey captured a small galley belonging to Roque de Brito Falcão in Lamu, a port city in present-day Kenya. The king of Lamu handed over Portuguese refugees to the Ottoman Empire, marking a shift in power dynamics in the region.
• January 1587: Barawa and Faza declared their support and allegiance to the Ottoman Empire.
• January 1586: Ottoman conquest of Mombasa.
• January 1587: At Mogadishu, Mir Ali Bey convinced its inhabitants to rebel against the Portuguese.
• January 1587: The Ottomans occupied Mombasa and built a fort there.

2.2. Portuguese Counterattack

Were a series of Portuguese military actions against African rebels and the Ottomans during the Ottoman-Portuguese conflicts (1586-1589).

• May 1589: After capturing the Ottoman corsair Mir Ali Bey, the Portuguese reestablished suzerainty over the entire Swahili coast, using diplomacy or force of arms.
• January 1589: Muscat conquered by portugal.
• March 1589: Battle of Mombasa.

Selected Sources

• Zeuske, M. (2013): Handbuch Geschichte der Sklaverei. Eine Globalgeschichte von den Anfängen bis zur Gegenwart, De Gruyter, Berlin p. 470ff.