Military History of the Gurkani Sultanate (Principia Moderni IV Map Game)

With thousands of years of recorded history, and due to an unchanging geographic (and subsequently geopolitical) condition, Persia has had a long, varied, and checkered military culture and history, ranging from triumphant and unchallenged ancient military supremacy affording effective superpower status in its day, to a series of near catastrophic defeats (beginning with the destruction of Elam) at the hand of previously subdued and conquered peripheral nations (including Greece, Macedon, Arabia, and the Asiatic nomadic tribes at the Eastern boundary of the lands traditionally home to the Iranian people).

This list primarily mentions the Military History of the Gurkani Sultanate, a state which has had a long and complex history and as a result has been involved in a broad range of conflicts. The conflicts that the Gurkani have or are currently participating in as follows, displayed in a manner to indicate which Sultan ruled during each war.

List of Wars[]

Sultan Shahrukh Mirza (1410 - 1434)[]

Shahrukh Mirza's reign as the Sultan began following the end of the Timurid Interregnum which lasted roughly from 1407 to 1410. Shahrukh Mirza came out on top, securing the sovereignty and integrity of the Gurkani Sultanate. Only four years following the Civil War, fears of a Nogai revolt erupted which prompted the Sultan to invade the Kingdom of Georgia in hopes of securing a coastline with the Black Sea. The successful conquest of Georgia ensured Gurkani contact with the Black Sea and resulted in the relatively peaceful release of the Astrakhan Khanate the very same year. However, the Russian Boyardom had also set its sights upon the Black Sea and subsequently invaded the Astrakhan the next year. The resultant war resulted in the occupation of the Western portion of the Astrakhan Khanate, opening up Russia to the Black Sea. Whilst the Gurkani secured the independence of the Eastern halve, halting Russian expansion; it was nevertheless a defeat for the Gurkani forces. This war would ignite the flames of a long-lasting Russo-Gurkani rivalry that would result in the loss of thousands of lives. Such was the impact of the war that only four years later, the Gurkani Sultanate would invade the Genoan colonies in Crimea, a decision undertaken to take control of the Kerch Straits and limit Russian influence in the Black Sea. During the last few years of Shahrukh Mirza's reign, the Sultanate faced a major famine which coupled with raiders attacking food caravans further deteriorated the situation. In response, the Sultan armed the caravans and began cracking down on the inhabitants of the Samarkand and Bukhara Wilayets, keen identifying and punishing the raiders. This sufficed and the raiding stopped, however this did not stop Shahrukh who continued his oppressive and autocratic policies up until his death.

Conflict	Year(s)	Side One	Side Two	Result
Gurkani - Georgian War	1414	Gurkani Sultanate	Kingdom of Georgia	Victory The Kingdom of Georgia is annexed into the Gurkani Sultanate
First White War	1415 - 1416	Astrakhan Khanate Supported by: Gurkani Sultanate (1416)	Russian Boyardom	Defeat The Russian Boyardom occupies Western portions of the Astrakhan Khanate Eastern portions of the Astrakhan Khanate maintain independence with Gurkani support
The Gazarian War	1420	Gurkani Sultanate	Republic of Genoa	Victory The Genoan colonies in the Crimean Peninsula are occupied
The Mawarannahr Insurgecy	1430 - 1432	Gurkani Sultanate	Mawarannahr Raiders	Victory Raiding of Gurkani food caravans comes to a halt

Sultan Ulugh Beg Mirza (1434 - 1445)[]

Following the death of Sultan Shahrukh Mirza, he was succeeded by his son, Ulugh Beg Mirza. Ulugh Beg's reign was relatively peace and stable until 1437 when the inhabitants of Central Asia expressed their anger towards the draconian measures adopted by the Sultan and the promotion of Persian culture by the Royal family. Both of these were valid reasons as Ulugh Beg had continued his fathers oppressive policies in Central Asia, persecuting the Turkics residing in the region. Moreover, the fact that Ulugh Beg had decreed his half-Arab son as his heir further infuriated the people. Simultaneously, the Arabs in Mesopotamia increasingly felt detached from the Monarchy, with the unrest backed by the Abbasid Caliphate. Much to the dismay of the nobles, Ulugh Beg spent most of his time surrounded by books instead of concentrating on national issues. As such, when the Arabs revolted in 1439, the Sultan was left completely aloof with the entire responsibility put on his younger son, Zeeshan Beg Mirza and his nephew, Mahmud Mirza. Simultaneously, the Uzbeks staged their own revolt in Khorasan, infamously storming the cities of Samarkand and Bukhara and slaughtering the Crown Prince, his wife and their infant son. With the revolts crippling the Sultanate, the Abbasids and Ottomans exploited the opportunity to launch massive attacks upon the cities of Mosul and Trebizond respectively. The prospect of facing such massive armies frightened the Sultan who reportedly retreated to the company of the Royal harem whilst Zeeshan and Mahmud fought on the front lines. Both sides suffered large-scale casualties in the battles but the overall outcome placed the Gurkani on top who secured decisive victories in both Mosul and Trebizond. Hoping to exploit the chaos, the Russians had also joined the war and managed to overrun Crimea and marching down the Caucasus. Whilst initially the Gurkani were unable to defend their territories due to the entire army being stationed in Mesopotamia, Mahmud Mirza later marched to confront the Russians and chased them out of the Sultanate. Despite having successfully repulsed the invasions, it was little more than a Pyrrhic victory with hundreds of thousands slaughtered during the war. Nonetheless, despite all the damage done due to the war, it also had some benefits as it witnessed the recognition of Zeeshan's leadership capabilities and of Mahmud as a military prodigy, both seen as war heroes. Mahmud Mirza would later also be responsible for his string of victories in the Baloch Sultanate where he would decisively defeat the Baloch tribes and annex the Sultanate. Meanwhile, following the cessation of hostilities, Ulugh Beg would step down under massive pressure from the aristocracy, abdicating the throne and being forced to exile in Bukhara where he would die 17 years later.

Conflict	Year(s)	Side One	Side Two	Result
The Arab Fitna	1439	Gurkani Sultanate	Arab Rebels Supported by: Abbasid Caliphate	Victory Rebels subdued
The Uzbek Fitna	1439	Gurkani Sultanate	Uzbek Rebels	Defeat Rebels successfully break off with the entire Eastern portion of the Sultanate
The Tigris War	1439 - 1442	Gurkani Sultanate	Abbasid Caliphate Ottoman Empire Russia (1440-1441)	Inconclusive Coalition invasion of the Gurkani Sultanate repulsed Overall status quo ante bellum
Gurkani - Baloch War	1443	Gurkani Sultanate	Baloch Sultanate	Victory The Baloch Sultanate is annexed into the Gurkani Sultanate

Sultan Zeeshan Beg Mirza (1445 - 1468)[]

Conflict	Year(s)	Side One	Side Two	Result
Gurkani - Pashtun War	1451	Gurkani Sultanate	Pashtun Sultanate	Victory The Pashtun Sultanate is annexed into the Gurkani Sultanate
Second White War	1462 - 1464	Gurkani Sultanate Astrakhan Khanate	Russian Boyardom	Victory Treaty of Sarai

Sultan Salman Beg Mirza (1468 - 1480)[]

Conflict

Year(s)

Side One

Side Two

Result

Permian Revolt

1470 - 1471

Tatar Rebels

Supported by:

Astrakhan Khanate
Gurkani Sultanate (1471)

Russian Boyardom

Victory

Rebels successfully break off and join the Astrakhan Khanate.

Sultan Suleiman Shah Mirza (1480 - 1512)[]

Conflict	Year(s)	Side One	Side Two	Result
The Cossack War	1481 - 1483	Gurkani Sultanate Astrakhan Khanate	Polish Empire	Victory Treaty of Krakow
Adana War	1483	Gurkani Sultanate	Ramazanid Sultanate	Victory The Ramazanid Sultanate is annexed into the Gurkani Sultanate
Rhodes Incident	1483	Gurkani Sultanate	Knights Hospitaller Supported by: Papal States	Inconclusive The Gurkani Sultanate withdraws its fleet
Third White War	1483 - 1485	Gurkani Sultanate Astrakhan Khanate	Russian Boyardom Polish Empire Supported by: Papal States	Inconclusive Tactical victory secured by the Gurkani Sultanate Overall status quo ante bellum
Hamadi Insurgency	1484 - 1490	Gurkani Sultanate Supported by: Bahmani Sultanate (1486 - 1487) Delhi Sultanate (1486 - 1487) Abbasid Caliphate (1485 - 1487)	Hamadi Rebels Supported by: Abbasid Caliphate (1487 - 1490) Kingdom of Oman (1485 - 1487)	Victory Hamadi rebels driven out of the Levant Oman's navy destroyed