Sack of Baghdad (1812)

Sack of Baghdad (Turkish: Bağdatın yağmalanması 1812) — Part of the Ottoman-Qajar tension, can also be labelled as the sack of Baghdad by the Qajars or Attack on Baghdad (1812)

Sack of Baghdad (1812)
Part of Ottoman–Persian wars
Date 1812 Location Baghdad, Iraq Result Qajar victory • Both sides deescalate the conflict
Combatants
Qajar dynasty	Ottoman Empire
Commanders and leaders
Muhammad Ali Mirza	Suleiman Pasha
Units involved
Unknown	Unknown
Casualties and losses
Unknown	Unknown

Background

After Baghdad Governor Ali Pasha was assassinated, Ottomans were eager to end the Qollemen's rule in Iraq. They aimed to appoint Yusuf Ziya Pasha, a member of the Qollemen, as the new governor of Baghdad. However, due to requests from both the French ambassador Sebastiyani and Iran, Yusuf Ziya Pasha ended up withdrawing, and Suleiman Pasha was appointed instead.

In 1811, tensions flared when Qajar Empire attacked the Ottoman Sanjak of Baban, pulling in Muhammad Ali Mirza, the governor of Kirman Shah. Fortunately, after some negotiations, the situation was defused when the Sanjak of Baban was handed over to Halit Pasha. That same year, even though the Ottoman Empire declared its neutrality in the Persian-Russia war, Qajars viewed the Ottomans' agreement to supply agricultural products to Russia as a betrayal. The Ottomans tried to ease the situation through their ambassador in Tehran, Yasinzade Abdulvehhab Efendi, but their efforts didn’t yield any positive outcomes.

Attack

In reaction to the Ottoman Empire, the Qajar Empire intervened in the internal affairs of the Ottoman Empire during the dispute between the Governor of Baban, Abdurrahman Pasha, and the Governor of Baghdad, bringing the two states to the brink of war. In the Treaty of Bucharest signed by the Ottoman Empire with the Russian Empire, the Ottoman Empire added an article about Iran to the treaty. Thus, on the orders of Fath Ali Shah, the Qajar army under the command of Muhammad Ali Mirza, the governor of Kermanshah, attacked Baghdad in 1812. Baghdad was looted and damaged. However, the Governor of Baghdad chose not to retaliate and instead tried to resolve the issue through negotiations. This diplomatic approach successfully prevented the outbreak of a major war.

To restore relations with Iran, the Ottoman Empire appointed Jalaluddin Efendi as its envoy in 1813. He requested compensation from the Shah for the damages incurred during the Baghdad attack, but ultimately returned to Istanbul without achieving any results.