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Aq Qoyunlu territorial expansion in the 1470s

Type Event Region Asia Time 1470–1478

In the 1470s Aq Qoyunlu under Uzun Hasan expanded from a local Turkic tribe into a cross-regional empire, annexing Black Sheep remnants, controlling …

Timeline

  1. 1467–1470Azerbaijan · AzerbaijanAfter destroying the Black Sheep's Jahan Shah in 1467, Uzun Hasan gradually controlled Azerbaijan and western Iran. The 1469 Battle of Karabakh annihilated Timur's main force, making Aq Qoyunlu the strongest Turkic power south of the Caucasus and clearing the way for multi-directional expansion in the 1470s.
  2. 1470–1475Baghdad · IraqAq Qoyunlu armies moved south to control most of Iraq, including Baghdad and Persian Gulf ports, seizing the Mesopotamia–Gulf trade lifeline. This extended Aq Qoyunlu's realm from the Anatolian frontier to Indian Ocean shipping nodes, forming triangular competition with the Mamluks and Ottomans.
  3. 1471–1478Eastern Anatolia · TurkeyAfter capturing Erzincan in 1471, Aq Qoyunlu forces penetrated deep into the Ottoman east; despite defeat at Otlukbeli in 1473, they retained control of the Caucasus and Iraq. By Uzun Hasan's death in 1478 Aq Qoyunlu's territory reached its greatest extent, but eastern Anatolian expansion was checked by Ottoman counterattacks.

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