Alqas Mirza


Abul Ghazi Sultan Alqas Mirza , better known as Alqas Mirza , was a Safavid prince and the second son of king Ismail I . In early 1546, with Ottoman help, he staged a revolt against his brother Tahmasp I , who was king at the time.

Of the four sons that survived of Ismail I, Alqas was the second one. Sam Mirza was probably his full brother, while Bahram Mirza and Tahmasp were brothers born by other mothers. In 153233, he was given the governorship of Astarabad, while Badr Khan Ustajlu was made his regent . In March 1538 Tahmasp I ordered Alqas with his regent to move against the rebel Shirvanshah, and six months later he was appointed governor of Shirvan, where he remained for the next eight years. During the frequent Caucasian campaigns under Tahmasps tenure, Alqas was defeated by the Circassians, and was appointed governor of Derbent afterwards. He started to openly revolt there, which included minting his own coins. Upon hearing of this, Tahmasp, at that time in a winter campaign in Georgia, started to march upon Derbent. Alqas subsequently fled Derbent, to Crimea, while by early 1547, Tahmasp had already retaken Derbent.

Source: Wikipedia