The Siege Wars of Babur Shah

Year 2023, Volume: 6 Issue: 11, 81 - 106, 26.12.2023

Yakup Aslan

Abstract

Babur Shah was a ruler who was constantly engaged in military activities from the first days of his reign until the time of his death. Among his military achievements, the battles of Pânîpet and Kânvâ, which led to the conquest of Hindustan, stand out. However, Babur Shah's military activities extended beyond field battles. This article analyses his siege wars in various territories from Fergana to India. The most notable sieges in the Vaqâyi have been identified as Madu, Isfarah, Bajaur, Samarkand and Chanderi. While Babur continued to conduct his siege operations based on conventional methods, he also sought to exploit the potential of firearms. The paper tries to analyze Babur Shah's siege wars by examining the physical features of the forts, the siege weapons and equipment, and the siege methods.

Keywords

Babur, Vaqâyi’, Siege Warfare, Firearms

Babür Şah'ın Kuşatma Savaşları

Abstract

Babür Şah, saltanatının ilk günlerinden vefat ettiği tarihe kadar mütemadiyen askeri faaliyetler ile iştigal etmiş bir hükümdardır. Onun askeri başarıları içerisinde Pânîpet ve Kânvâ muharebeleri, Hindustan’ın fethine yol açması sebebiyle öne çıkar. Ancak Babür Şah’ın askeri faaliyetleri meydan muharebeleri ile sınırlandırılamaz. Bu makalede Babür Şah’ın Fergana’dan Hindistan’a; farklı bölgelerde yürüttüğü kuşatma savaşlarını inceledik. Madu, Esfera, Becur, Semerkant, Çendiri Vekâyi’de dikkat çeken kuşatmalar olarak tespit edilmiştir. Babür geleneksel yöntemlere dayalı kuşatma faaliyetlerini sürdürürken bir yandan da ateşli silahların imkânlarından faydalanmaya çalışıyordu. Çalışmamız; kalelerin fiziki unsurları, kuşatma silah ve teçhizatları ile kuşatma yöntemleri üzerinden Babür Şah’ın kuşatma savaşlarını analiz etmektedir.

Keywords

Babür, Vekâyi, Kuşatma Savaşları, Ateşli silahlar

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