The conflict was preceded by the fall of Timurid empire immediately after the great conqueror’s death (1405) and subsequent clashes between the various clans in Azerbaijan. Having taken control of Azerbaijan (around 1406), the Kara Koyunlu tribal federation leader, Abu Nasr Qara Yusuf, launched an offensive against Ibrahim I (1382-1417) of Shirvanshah who struggled against the Timurids in Northern Azerbaijan. Shirvan's former ally the Karabakh ruler Yar Ahmed Qaramanli sided with Abu Nasr Qara Yusuf, while Ibrahim joined his forces with the ruler of Shaki, Syed Ahmed Orlat and the Georgian king Constantine I, who marched in the head of 2,000 Georgian cavalry to support the Shirvanese.