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| Part of the Mughal–Persian wars | |||||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||||
 Safavid Empire |
 Mughal Empire | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
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Soltan Hosayn Mirza Safavi |
Muhammad Shah Qalati  | ||||||||
Shah Tahmasp of Persia tried to exploit the inexperience of the young Mughal Emperor Akbar, then an adolescent. He sent an army to lay siege to Kandahar, a vital southern Afghan city held by Shah Muhammad, a governor appointed by the Mughal regent Bairam Khan. With no way to offer military assistance, Akbar was compelled to surrender Kandahar to the Persians. The Persians held the city on and off for almost four decades before the Mughals recovered it.
Background
Humayun Kandahar Safavid Aggreement
Emperor Humayun, the son of Babur, was expelled from India by the Afghans in 1544–45 and took refuge in Iran, where he was warmly welcomed by the Safavid Empire's Shah Tahmasp. Humayun was sorry for what his brother Mirza Kamran did. Then an agreement with Shah Tahmasp saw Humayun agree that once he regained control of Kandahar, he would transfer control to the Safavid authorities. Humayun kept his promise after vainly recapturing Kandahar, aided by the Safavid army. After the capture of Askari Mirza, Mirza Kamran's governor of Kandahar, Budagh Khan, the commander of the Safavid army during the campaign and duly appointed guardian of Sultan Murad Mirza, was put in control of the city.
Within a year of Sultan Morad's death, Emperor Humayun needed to consolidate his position amidst all the difficulties that still existed. He captured Kandahar from Budagh Khan and assigned it to Bayram Khan Turkman to establish a safe base for his loyal Chagatai forces. Bayram Khan was an ardent supporter of both Humayun and the Shah. Humayun left him in charge of the city until he had managed his affairs and consolidated his kingdom. Humayun kept his entire energy concentrated upon his battle with Mirza Kamran at Kabul and Badakhshan, meanwhile Bayram Khan ruled over Kandahar, whom the Shah did not press for return due to partial reverence towards Humayun, partial because of loyalty of Bayram Khan toward Shah Tahmasp.