Battle of Jam
Near Torbat-e Jam, Razavi Khorasan, Iran
What happened
Shah Tahmasp I of Safavid Iran, then about fourteen years old, fought the Uzbek army of Ubaydullah Khan. The Uzbeks had captured cities in the eastern province of Khorasan and were besieging Herat. At Jam, the Uzbeks at first gained the upper hand, and many of their soldiers scattered to gather loot. Tahmasp's smaller army, defended by a ring of wagons and cannons, then made a night raid on the Uzbek camp, and Ubaydullah was wounded and carried away.
Why it matters
Why it matters: It relieved the Uzbek threat to Khorasan at its height. It showed how the Safavids had learned to use cannons and wagon forts from the Ottomans.
What came next
Tahmasp had to hurry west to deal with a revolt in Baghdad, and the Uzbeks returned. By late 1530 the Safavids had driven them out again.
Did you know?
Tahmasp became shah at the age of ten and reigned for almost 52 years, longer than any other Safavid ruler.
Timeline
- 23 May 1524Tahmasp becomes shah at age ten.
- 24 September 1528The Safavids win at Jam.
- 1530The Safavids drive the Uzbeks out of Khorasan again.
- 1555The Peace of Amasya ends the Ottoman-Safavid war.
- 1576Tahmasp dies.