Şehzade Murad


Şehzade Murad was an Ottoman prince, the son of Şehzade Ahmet. He was involved in the chaos that surrounded the succession to Sultan Bayezid II.
Murad's father, Ahmet, the legal heir to the Ottoman throne, had fought against Şehzade Selim ; during this struggle, Ahmet received support from King Ismail I of the neighboring Safavid Empire. When Ahmet was put to death by the victorious Selim, Prince Murad was subsequently given support by Ismail I as claimant to the throne. Ismail I wanted to use prince Murad to mobilize opposition against Selim I. In 1512, during Nur-Ali Khalifa's large-scale campaign in Anatolia, Murad joined his campaign, and even "girded the Qizilbash crown". According to information Selim I received from his spies, Ismail I allegedly wanted to conquer Anatolia, give the Rum beylerbeylik to Murad, while the rest of the territory would be ruled by the Qizilbash. Anyhow, when the Safavid support meant for Murad failed to materialize, the scheme was abandoned, and Murad migrated to the Safavid Empire where he was given asylum. He died at Kashan, or Isfahan.
Ismail I's support to these rivals of Selim I formed one of the main casus belli that led to the decisive Battle of Chaldiran.