دانشگاه اصفهان پژوهش های تاریخی 2008-6253 18 2 2026 06 22 Shah Ismail I and Albuquerque: Investigating the Possibility of a Strategic Alliance to Capture the Hejaz شاه اسماعیل اول و آلبوکرک: بررسی امکان اتحادی راهبردی برای تصرف حجاز 15 31 30422 10.22108/jhr.2026.148571.2926 FA محمد حسن رحیمیان استادیار گروه آموزشی معارف اسلامی، دانشکده ادبیات و علوم انسانی، دانشگاه جهرم، جهرم، ایران Journal Article 2026 03 15 Abstract The early 16th century can be regarded as one of the most sensitive periods of power reconfiguration in the Islamic world and the global trade system. During this era, alongside the consolidation of the Safavid rule under Shah Ismail I in Iran and the expansion of Portuguese naval power in the Indian Ocean under Albuquerque, traditional power structures in Western Asia faced serious challenges. This historical convergence created the possibility of an alliance between the Safavids and Portugal against the Mamluks. In this context, the Hejaz emerged as the center of religious and political legitimacy in the Islamic world, and control over the holy sites of Mecca and Medina represented symbolic capital, which the Safavid rulers claimed through the title of "Servants of the Two Holy Sanctuaries". For Shah Ismail, gaining control over the Hejaz could serve as a tool to redefine legitimacy equations. On the other hand, the Portuguese sought to dominate the Red Sea and weaken the Mamluk state of Egypt in order to monopolize the spice trade and achieve their religious mission of Christianization. Thus, weakening the Mamluks and securing control over the Hejaz became a point of convergence between Shah Ismail and Albuquerque, prompting efforts toward joint action. However, practical limitations arising from the region's complex geopolitics, along with the early intervention of Sultan Selim I, ultimately prevented the realization of this plan. Keywords: Alliance, Albuquerque, Conquest of Hejaz, Shah Ismail, Ottoman, Qansuh. Introduction At the time of the rise of Shah Ismail I, the world was undergoing fundamental transformations. Only a few years had passed since the discovery of the American continent by Cristoforo Colombo; Vasco da Gama had recently opened the European sea route to India by rounding the Cape of Good Hope; and only a short time had elapsed since the expulsion of Muslims from the Iberian Peninsula. The expansion of the Portuguese maritime route around the African continent had a direct impact on developments in Iran, as the Portuguese, by establishing themselves in the Persian Gulf, laid the foundations of their maritime and colonial empire, and extended their rivalries and conflicts with the Ottomans and the Mamluks from Europe to Asia. The struggle to control the strategic straits of Hormuz, Bab el-Mandeb, and the Suez Canal created intense competition among the great powers, the consequences of which directly affected Safavid Iran. Having failed to gain the favor of the Venetians in order to confront the Ottomans, Shah Ismail decided to seek an alliance with the Portuguese. However, was this alliance formed specifically to counter the Ottomans? Previous scholarship has identified opposition to the Ottomans as Ismail’s objective, but the present study contends that Shah Ismail was, in fact, seeking to conquer the holy sites of the Hejaz. This goal is perfectly aligned with the aims of Albuquerque, the Portuguese commander in Asia, who dreamed of weakening the Mamluks and dominating the Red Sea—both to control the main maritime spice routes, which were under Mamluk control, and to realize the messianic religiosity of the Portuguese king. Shah Ismail, who on religious grounds considered it his legitimate right to dominate the Hejaz, accepted Albuquerque’s proposal to launch a joint operation to attack the Hejaz. This endeavor ultimately remained inconclusive due to Ottoman preemption and the death of Albuquerque. Materials and Methods This study employs a comparative historical method based on library research. Primary and secondary sources in three languages—Persian, Italian, and English—formed the core of the investigation. Persian materials included Safavid court chronicles and diplomatic correspondence related to Shah Ismail I. Italian and Portuguese sources comprised letters, naval reports, and memoranda from Alfonso de Albuquerque and his contemporaries, accessed through digital archives of the National Libraries of Portugal and Italy. English-language sources provided secondary analyses and compiled documentary collections. Data collection followed a systematic library-based procedure. All relevant documents were identified through keyword searches in historical databases and physical manuscript collections. Information pertaining to the proposed military cooperation, including dates, locations, troop movements, and diplomatic exchanges between Shah Ismail and Albuquerque, was extracted and organized into thematic tables. The analytical phase consisted of a rigorous cross-comparison of the three source groups. Discrepancies—particularly regarding the chronology of negotiations and the scope of the proposed Hejaz campaign—were examined by evaluating each source's provenance, authorial bias, and internal consistency. A critical synthesis was constructed by prioritizing information corroborated by at least two independent sources from different linguistic traditions, while accounting for the geopolitical context of the early 10th century AH / 16th century CE. All citations follow standard academic formatting. Research Findings The cross-comparative analysis of Persian, Italian, and English sources reveals a coherent yet ultimately failed strategic alignment between Shah Ismail I and Afonso de Albuquerque regarding the Hejaz. The findings confirm that following the establishment of Safavid rule and the officialization of Twelver Shi'ism in Iran, Shah Ismail actively sought religious legitimacy. This pursuit manifested in a territorial ambition toward the Hejaz, particularly the holy cities of Mecca and Medina, as controlling these cities was a common aspiration among contemporary Muslim rulers. Evidence from Persian court documents indicates that Ismail directly petitioned the Mamluk Sultan of Egypt, claiming rightful succession to Ali ibn Abi Talib as the basis for transferring control of the Hejaz to Safavid authority. Concurrently, Portuguese sources reveal that Albuquerque harbored both religious and political motivations, seeking to capture the Hejaz with the intention of exchanging it for Jerusalem. The comparative synthesis demonstrates a convergence of interests: both leaders independently desired control over the region, leading to a proposed alliance. However, the most significant finding is the chronological disruption caused by external intervention. While Safavid-Portuguese negotiations were underway, Ottoman Sultan Selim I acted preemptively. According to cross-referenced accounts, Selim's campaign resulted in the conquest of Egypt and subsequent Ottoman domination over the Hejaz. This development rendered the proposed Safavid-Portuguese alliance logistically and politically obsolete. No source evidence suggests that any military coordination materialized. The research concludes that although the alliance was strategically rational and mutually beneficial, Ottoman military superiority and rapid expansion permanently foreclosed any possibility of Safavid or Portuguese control over the holy cities during this period. Discussion of Results and Conclusions Shah Ismail and Albuquerque encountered each other at a historical juncture when initial confrontations might have been expected to lead to lasting enmity. However, Shah Ismail, engaged as he was with the Uzbeks and the Ottomans on his northern and western frontiers, had no desire to open a new front against himself in the south, for he lacked the naval force to confront the battle‑hardened Portuguese. On the other hand, Albuquerque—who, owing to negative Ottoman propaganda against the Safavids, regarded Shah Ismail and the Qizilbash as enemies of the (Sunni) Ottomans and Mamluks—nevertheless extended his hand toward an alliance in order to achieve his economic goals and religious messianism. Their common ground could lie in gaining control over the Hejaz and its holy sites, which would confer legitimacy upon Shah Ismail and, for Albuquerque, bring dominance over the Red Sea and the commercial choke point of the Mamluks—although some accounts also suggest that Albuquerque contemplated seizing Mecca and exchanging it for Jerusalem. Shah Ismail endeavored, through correspondence with Qansuh al-Ghawri, to prove, on religious grounds, his legitimacy to rule Egypt and the holy places of the Hejaz and the Levant. Albuquerque, for his part, undertook operations to capture Aden and parts of Yemen, which ended in failure. The joint operation of Ismail and Albuquerque was never launched due to the death of the Portuguese admiral; and when Shah Ismail sought to pursue the plan with Albuquerque’s successors, Sultan Selim I attacked Egypt, overthrew the Mamluks, and assumed full control over Egypt and the Hejaz. He could now claim leadership of the Islamic world under the title of Khadim al-Haramayn al-Sharifayn (Servant of the Two Holy Sanctuaries). آغاز قرن شانزدهم میلادی را می‌توان یکی از حساس‌ترین دوران بازآرایی قدرت در جهان اسلام و نظام تجارت جهانی دانست. در این دوره، هم‌زمان با تثبیت حکومت صفوی به رهبری شاه اسماعیل اول در ایران و گسترش قدرت دریایی پرتغال در اقیانوس هند به فرماندهی آلبوکرک، ساختارهای سنتی قدرت در غرب آسیا با چالش‌های جدی مواجه شد. این تقارن تاریخی، امکان شکل‌گیری نوعی اتحاد میان صفویان و پرتغال، علیه ممالیک را فراهم آورد. در این میان، حجاز به‌عنوان کانون مشروعیت مذهبی و سیاسی جهان اسلام در مرکز توجه قرار داشت و تسلط بر اماکن مقدسه مکه و مدینه به معنای دارا بودن سرمایه‌ای نمادین بود که تحت‌عنوان خادمین حرمین شریفین خودنمایی می‌کرد. برای شاه اسماعیل، دستیابی به حجاز می‌توانست ابزاری برای بازتعریف معادلات مشروعیت باشد و ازسوی‌دیگر، پرتغالی‌ها درصدد کنترل دریای سرخ و تضعیف دولت ممالیک مصر جهت انحصار تجارت ادویه و تحقق موعودگرایی مذهبی بودند؛ بنابراین، تضعیف ممالیک و تسلط بر حجاز نقطۀ هم‌گرایی شاه اسماعیل و آلبوکرک شد و به شروع تلاش‌هایی برای اقدام مشترک انجامید؛ بااین‌حال، محدودیت‌های عملیاتی ناشی از پیچیدگی‌های ژئوپلیتیکی منطقه، و پیش‌دستی سلطان سلیم اول، این برنامه را پیش‌از تحقق ناکام گذاشت.

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