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Why Did Shah Jahan Send an Embassy to the Ottoman Empire? [Ottoman-Mughal Relations]

Why Did Shah Jahan Send an Embassy to the Ottoman Empire? [Ottoman-Mughal Relations]

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In this video, we explore a fascinating diplomatic mission (Ottoman-Mughal Relations) that connected two of the greatest empires in history—the Mughal Empire and the Ottoman Empire. During the reign of Shah Jahan, an embassy was sent to Sultan Murad IV, strengthening ties between the two superpowers of their time.

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In November 1637, a grand embassy left Agra, led by Mir Zarif, a trusted ambassador of the Mughal Empire. He was heading to Istanbul, the capital of the powerful Ottoman Empire. This wasn’t just a friendly visit—it had a deeper purpose. But what exactly did Emperor Shah Jahan want to achieve?

Ottoman-Mughal Relations

As soon as Shah Jahan ascended the Mughal throne, he had a big dream: to take back control of Qandahar. This city wasn’t just a dot on the map. It was a key spot for trade routes in Central Asia and an important gateway to India. But there was a problem—Qandahar had been under Safavid rule since 1622.

To change this, Shah Jahan came up with a clever plan. He decided to send an embassy to the Ottoman Sultan. Officially, it was to buy horses from Arabia and Turkey. But was that the real reason?

Mir Zarif had been on a similar mission before, sent to Iraq to purchase horses. According to a Mughal historian Abdul Hamid Lahori, the horses he brought back didn’t meet the emperor’s high standards. This time, Mir Zarif had a chance to redeem himself, travelling straight to Constantinople to find the finest horses—or so it seemed.

But there was more to this mission. On the western front, the Ottomans and Safavids had been locked in a struggle over control of Mesopotamia for decades. Now, the Ottoman Sultan Murad IV was preparing a major campaign to recapture Baghdad, which had recently fallen into Safavid hands. At that moment, Shah Jahan saw an opportunity.

According to the Ottoman historian Mustafa Naima, Shah Jahan wanted to signal his intentions to the Sultan, hinting that he was mobilizing his forces for Qandahar.

In his letter to the Sultan, Shah Jahan urged him to act quickly against Persia. His strategy was smart: if the Ottomans and Mughals both applied pressure on the Safavids, they would be forced to defend themselves on two fronts. This would divide their resources and make them weaker.

Reports from European traders and officials confirmed this hidden plan. English agents and the Portuguese Viceroy of Goa noted that the Mughal embassy wasn’t just about buying horses—it was about forming an alliance with the Ottomans against Persia. To keep the Safavids in the dark, the Mughals stuck to their story about the horses.

In the end, both the Mughals and Ottomans succeeded. By 1638, the Ottomans had recaptured Baghdad, and the Mughals had regained Qandahar. These victories showed the power of careful planning and smart diplomacy.

Sources

  • FAROOQI, N. R. (1996). SIX OTTOMAN DOCUMENTS ON MUGHAL-OTTOMAN RELATIONS DURING THE REIGN OF AKBAR. Journal of Islamic Studies, 7(1), 32–48. http://www.jstor.org/stable/26195476
  • Farooqi, N. R. (1989). Mughal-Ottoman Relations: A Study of Political & Diplomatic Relations Between Mughal India and the Ottoman Empire, 1556-1748. India: Idarah-i Adabiyat-i Delli.
  • Streusand, D. E. (2018). Islamic Gunpowder Empires: Ottomans, Safavids, and Mughals. United Kingdom: Taylor & Francis.

Last updated on February 9th, 2025 at 05:49 pm

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