Marj Dabiq had both short- and long-term consequences on regional and international history. The Ottomans, under the leadership of Selim I (r. 1512–1520), defeated the Mamluk army, led by the sultan Qansuh alGhawri (r. 1501–1516), allowing them to occupy Syria and invade Egypt the following year, dealing the Mamluks a deathblow and putting an end to their 267-year sultanate.
Causes
The immediate cause of the war between the Ottomans and the Mamluks in 1516 was the result of the three-way conflict between them and a third Muslim power in the east, the Safavids. Shah Ismail founded the Safavid Empire in 1501, which encompassed what is mostly modern-day Iran and some of its bordering regions. He also declared Twelver Shia Islam as the state religion, viewed as heretical by the predominantly Sunni Ottoman and Mamluk Empires. The Safavids made several incursions into Syria, which prompted the Mamluks to send troops to the region. The Safavids posed an even graver risk to the Ottomans after their propaganda won over many Turkmen tribes in Eastern Anatolia, the Qizilbash or ‘redheads’ (due to their red headgear). Sultan Selim I was more warlike and aggressive than his predecessor. He moved against this threat and massacred thousands of Qizilbash in his domains and
