WHO WAS TIMUR - TAMERLANE

Just as the Islamic world was making its peace with the Mongol invasion, the world was hit by the Black Death which killed anywhere from30 to 50 percent of the people in many cities. However, immediately afterward, a man who rose in Central Asia wanted to give those numbers a strong challenge.

WHO WAS TIMUR - TAMERLANE

This man is remembered as Tamerlane by the west. In the years following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, various successor Khanates had emerged. Basically, the empire had been divided amongst the many sons and grandsons of Genghis Khan. We’re only concerned with two for now.

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The Ilkhanate, which had been given to HulaguKhan, the grandson of Genghis Khan. Although, over the next century, it had converted to Islam and fallen apart. Its former territory of Persia, Iraq, and Syria had fallen to local powers. To the east, there was the Chagatai Khanate. By Timur’s time, it was essentially divided into two.

The east of the Tian Shan range was Moghulistan. Mughal is Persian for Mongol and Stan means“the land of.” While west of the range was Transoxiana also known as Mawarannahr. Timur (تیمور) was born in 1336CE near what is today, Shekhrisabz in Uzbekistan, to a minor noble of the Barlas Clan. The Barlas shared ancestry with Genghis Khan himself, although, they weren’t his descendants.

They were Mongols who had moved to Khorasanand had adopted many Turkic traditions which had pretty much Turkified them. We don’t know much about his childhood but he became somewhat prominent around 1360 at the age of 24 or so. The Amir of the Western Chagatai Khanate was assassinated and taking advantage of that, the Khan of the Eastern Chagatai Khanate also known as the Moghul Khan invaded.

WHO WAS AMEER TIMUR IN ENGLISH

The head of the Barlas clan was a man named Hagi Beg (حاجی بیگ). He decided to flee with his tribe fearing the invasion but Timur promised him to win his homeland back if he gave him some men. Timur took those men and marched to the Khan’scamp where he did what’s called a pro-gamer move and switched sides. He swore allegiance to the Khan and became his subject. He was then installed as the chief of the Barlas tribe. Although, the Khan decided to install his own son as the governor of Transoxiana.

Timur was not happy with that and decided to revolt along with an aristocrat named Hussain. Hussain’s family had ruled the region prior to the invasion of the Khan. Timur solidified the alliance by marryingHusayn’s sister. Over the next few years, as the Moghul Khaninvaded Transoxiana, Timur and his men became something like highway bandits. They harassed the army of the Khan and on occasions, suffered major defeats.

WHO WAS TIMUR - TAMERLANE IN ENGLISH

At one point, it’s said that his entourage came down to just him, his wife,, and one more. It was probably at this point that Timur received the injury that led to his unfortunate and much-hated nickname. It was around 1363CE. Along with the injury on his right leg that made him lame for the rest of his life, he lost his little finger and the ring finger. It’s said that he was left for the dead in that battle and managed to crawl to safety and eventually, glory.

In the, somewhat legendary, final battle with the Khan’s army, Timur had his men burn campfires all over the area to give the impression of a larger army. Similarly, when he charged, he ordered his men to tie leafy branches on their horses so that they stir up more dust than they would otherwise.

This was effective and scared the enemy into giving chase. Through guerilla tactics and psychological warfare, Timur defeated the Khan’s army. As one writer said, he triumphed over an army by fire and conquered a city by dust.

REAL STORY OF TIMUR

The city he conquered, Shekhrisabz became his base and he glorified it with many architectural projects, some of which still stand today. While Timur was the brilliant commander, he lacked the legitimacy to actually rule.

Especially, in this Turko-Mongol environment where kin was everything, his humble genealogy did not do him any favors. Husayn, being of much higher birth, was the more senior of the two, at least in terms of titles. Although, Husayn fell out of favor soon after.

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The Khan invaded Transoxiana again in 1365CE. This time, like before, he was stopped by Timur and Husayn. Although, in that battle, Husayn had been reluctant and unreliable for Timur. The next year, they invaded Samarkand together.

Husayn started styling himself as sort of the Khan of Transoxiana. Even though, his official title was Amir. Timur was patient and building alliances that would allow him to rise. Luckily for him, the glue that was holding the alliance together, Timur’s wife and Husayn’s sister, passed away in 1366CE.

The relationship between the two fell further into decay. It came to a head in 1370, when Timur invaded Balkh, Husayn’s capital. Husayn was killed in the aftermath by one of Timur’s subordinates. He took Husayn’s wife Saray Mulk Khanum(سارای ملک خانم) as his own wife. She was a princess and a descendant of GenghisKhan himself. Through her, Timur got a bit of that legitimacy so dearly wanted. He styled himself Timur Gurgan (تیمورگورگان) from there on meaning, “The son-in-law of the great Khan.”

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Since he could not rule himself, he installed a puppet Khan of Transoxiana while he became the actual ruler and took the rather humble title of Amir. Hence, he is known as Amir Timur in the Muslim world today. Next, Timur set his eyes on Khwarazm. It was an oasis and an important part of the Silk Road.

It was a rich independent region that, if conquered, would greatly enrich Timur’s realm. Timur wrote to its ruler, asking for submission but his famous reply was that “Khwarazm had been granted its independence by the sword and the only sword can take it away” and as it turns out, Timur had plenty of swords. He invaded Khwarazm in 1372CE.