Siege
Bıyıklı Mehmed Pasha, who was currently the Governor of Erzincan, gathered his forces upon receiving the decree and despite the winter, came to Kemah and started the siege. The castle, which remained under siege throughout the winter, was not fired upon or attacked in general. The reason for this was the harsh winter conditions. It was impossible to bring siege cannons in the falling snow and the blizzard, as was the infantry attack. The siege had two aims: to stop the village raids of the Safavid forces in the castle and to prevent the blockaded castle from supplying food and ammunition. When spring came, the Sultan, who was in Amasya himself, went to Kemah with the siege cannons. Thanks to the softening weather conditions, the siege army under the command of Bıyıklı Mehmed Pasha also launched attacks on the castle and reduced the resistance of the defenders. With the arrival of the Sultan and the main army, the old walls of the castle could not withstand the bombardments and some parts of it were breached. On Saturday, May 19, the castle was captured with a general assault on the breaches.
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