Selim I

"The Grim," who defeated the Safavids and the Mamluks and doubled Ottoman territory.

Life

The Grim

In 1512 Selim I forced his father Bayezid II to abdicate, then executed the brothers who contested the throne with him, earning the name "the Grim."

Chaldiran

In 1514 at Chaldiran he used artillery and firearms to rout Ismail I of the Safavid dynasty. In 1516–1517 he destroyed the Mamluk Sultanate, gaining Syria, Egypt and the Islamic holy cities of Mecca and Medina; from then on the Ottoman sultan also held the title of caliph.

Conquest of Egypt

In a reign of only eight years he nearly doubled the empire's territory. He died in 1520 and was succeeded by his son Suleiman.

Legacy

Selim I made the Ottoman Empire the dominant power of the Islamic world.

Did you know? He was also a poet and wrote a good deal of poetry in Persian.

Key dates

• 1512Forces his father to abdicate
• 1514Battle of Chaldiran
• 1516Battle of Marj Dabiq
• 1517Conquest of Egypt
• 1520Died