Malek Ashraf (died 1357) was a Chupanid

Chupanids

The Chobanids or the Chupanids , were descendants of a Mongol family of the Suldus clan that came to prominence in 14th century Persia. At first serving under the Ilkhans, they took de facto control of the territory after the fall of the Ilkhanate...

 ruler of northwestern Iran

Iran

Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...

 during the 14th century. He was the last of the Chupanids to possess a significant influence within Persia. He was the son of Timurtash.

Malek Asraf distinguished himself while serving under his brother Hasan Kucek, defeating an army of Khurasan

Greater Khorasan

Greater Khorasan or Ancient Khorasan is a historical region of Greater Iran mentioned in sources from Sassanid and Islamic eras which "frequently" had a denotation wider than current three provinces of Khorasan in Iran...

 sent by Togha Temur

Togha Temür

Togha Temür , also known as Taghaytimur, was a claimant to the throne of the Ilkhanate in the mid-14th century. Of the many individuals who attempted to become Ilkhan after the death of Abu Sa'id, Togha Temür was the only one who hailed from eastern Iran, and was the last major candidate who was of...

 against Hasan in 1341. He then became embroiled in the conflict with the Injuids

Injuids

The House of Inju was a Mongol dynasty that came to rule over the Persian cities of Shiraz and Isfahan during the 14th century AD...

 over Shiraz

Shiraz, Iran

Shiraz is the sixth most populous city in Iran and is the capital of Fars Province, the city's 2009 population was 1,455,073. Shiraz is located in the southwest of Iran on the Roodkhaneye Khoshk seasonal river...

. Malek Asraf received a request for assistance by the Injuid Abu Ishaq against the former's cousin Pir Hosayn, following which Malek defeated Pir Hosayn in August 1342, allowing Abu Ishaq to temporarily regain control of Shiraz.

Upon the death of Hasan Kucek in 1343, the Chobanid lands were at first split between Malek and his uncles Yagi Basti and Surgan. However, the division did not last, and Malek defeated Surgan in battle. After having Yagi Basti murdered, he again triumphed over Surgan in 1345. Having unified the Chobanid lands, he placed a puppet (Anusirvan-i 'Adel

Anusirvan

Anushirwan Khan occupied the Ilkhanid throne from 1344 until his death in 1357. He was a puppet of the Chobanid ruler Malek Ashraf and possessed no power of his own....

) on the throne and ruled in his name.

Malek soon became embroiled with the Jalayirids

Jalayirids

The Jalayirids were a Mongol Jalayir dynasty which ruled over Iraq and western Persia after the breakup of the Mongol Khanate of Persia in the 1330s....

, under the rule of Hasan Buzurg

Hasan Buzurg

Shaikh Hasan, called "Buzurg" , was the first of several de facto independent Jalayirid rulers of Iraq and central Iran. He was the son of Husain and Öljetey.-Shaikh Hasan-i Buzurg:...

. Malek sent his brother, Malek Astar, to capture Baghdad

Baghdad

Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...

 in the first half of 1347, but the campaign failed with heavy losses. In 1350 he also attempted to wrest Fars from the Injuids, but failed to take Isfahan

Isfahan (city)

Isfahan , historically also rendered in English as Ispahan, Sepahan or Hispahan, is the capital of Isfahan Province in Iran, located about 340 km south of Tehran. It has a population of 1,583,609, Iran's third largest city after Tehran and Mashhad...

 and was forced to settle for tribute.

During his time as ruler, Malek became increasingly violent and quickly grew unpopular with many of his subjects. This, combined with the spread of the bubonic plague

Bubonic plague

Plague is a deadly infectious disease that is caused by the enterobacteria Yersinia pestis, named after the French-Swiss bacteriologist Alexandre Yersin. Primarily carried by rodents and spread to humans via fleas, the disease is notorious throughout history, due to the unrivaled scale of death...

 in the region, prompted many citizens to leave the area. His hated rule was finally ended when Jani Beg

Jani Beg

Jani Beg was a khan of the Golden Horde from 1342 to 1357, succeeding his father Uzbeg Khan.After putting two of his brothers to death, Jani Beg crowned himself in Saray-Jük. He is known to have actively interfered in the affairs of Russian principalities and of Lithuania...

 of the Golden Horde

Golden Horde

The Golden Horde was a Mongol and later Turkicized khanate that formed the north-western sector of the Mongol Empire...

 invaded in 1357. Malek fled, but was captured and hung in Tabriz

Tabriz

Tabriz is the fourth largest city and one of the historical capitals of Iran and the capital of East Azerbaijan Province. Situated at an altitude of 1,350 meters at the junction of the Quri River and Aji River, it was the second largest city in Iran until the late 1960s, one of its former...

, to the joy of the local populace. Malek's mother and children were taken by Jani Beg upon his departure from the region. His son Temürtas

Temürtas

Temürtas was also the name of another Chupanid; see Timurtash.Temürtas was the eldest son of the Chupanids prince Malek Ashraf.In 1357 Temürtas' father was executed by the forces of the Blue Horde under Jani Beg, and his lands were annexed by the Mongols...

 was killed by Hasan Buzurg's successor Shaikh Uvais

Shaikh Uvais

Shaikh Uvais, also known as Uways or Oways , was a Jalayirid ruler of Iraq and Azerbaijan . He was the son of Hasan Buzurg and the Chobanid Delsad Katun.-Life:...

in 1360, while his daughter Soltanbakt was mentioned as having been in Shiraz. Malek's death signified the end of Chobanid rule in Persia.