Qutb al-Din ibn 'Izz al-Din
Encyclopedia
Qutb al-Din was the Mihrabanid malik
of Sistan
from 1380 until 1383. He was the son of 'Izz al-Din ibn Rukn al-Din Mahmud
.
and the local malik of Farah
invaded Sistan and reinstalled 'Izz al-Din in the capital. By the end of the year, however, Qutb al-Din had defeated the invaders, forced his father into exile and later received the latter's renunciation of the throne. Over the course of his first year in power, he worked at consolidating his rule in Sistan; he led an army against the town of Uq and killed many of the local landowners who had risen in opposition to him.
In the meantime, the amir Timur
had begun his expansion into Afghanistan
and Persia
, forcing the Kartid dynasty of Herat
into submission. Around this time, an envoy arrived to Qutb al-Din's court and requested a hostage as a sign of good faith. The malik responded by sending a relative, Taj al-Din Shah-i Shahan, to Timur's camp with an offer of tribute; the Mihrabanid made a good impression on Timur and returned to Sistan.
In November 1383, however, Timur and his army arrived in Sistan. After negotiations between the two sides failed a battle was fought in which the Mihrabanid forces were defeated. After building a pyramid of human skulls out of the slain Mihrabanid soldiers, the Timurid army forced its way into Shahr-i Sistan
and Qutb al-Din was imprisoned. Timur appointed Shah-i Shahan as governor of Sistan and proceeded to ravage the province. Qutb al-Din was deported to Samarkand
, where he was executed three years later at the age of thirty.
Malik
Malik is an Arabic word meaning "king, chieftain".It has been adopted in various other, mainly Islamized or Arabized, Asian languages for their ruling princes and to render kings elsewhere. It is also sometimes used in derived meanings...
of Sistan
Sistan
Sīstān is a border region in eastern Iran , southwestern Afghanistan and northern tip of Southwestern Pakistan .-Etymology:...
from 1380 until 1383. He was the son of 'Izz al-Din ibn Rukn al-Din Mahmud
'Izz al-Din ibn Rukn al-Din Mahmud
Izz al-Din was the Mihrabanid malik of Sistan from 1352 until 1380. He was the son of Rukn al-Din Mahmud.- Biography :'Izz al-Din was appointed as malik by the notables of Sistan in 1352 after the death of Jalal al-Din Mahmud...
.
Biography
During his father's lifetime Qutb al-Din had not been given a role in the government. He eventually grew angry over this state of affairs and sided with a faction seeking to murder 'Izz al-Din's vizier, who had a large amount of influence over the malik. In 1380 they openly revolted and defeated 'Izz al-Din's army on the field. Qutb al-Din suffered a temporary setback when the KartidsKartids
The Kartid Dynasty was a Persian dynasty that ruled over a large part of Khorassan during the 13th and 14th centuries...
and the local malik of Farah
Farah Province
Farah is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. It is in the southwest of the country. Its capital is Farah. Farah is a spacious and sparsely populated province that lies on the Iranian border...
invaded Sistan and reinstalled 'Izz al-Din in the capital. By the end of the year, however, Qutb al-Din had defeated the invaders, forced his father into exile and later received the latter's renunciation of the throne. Over the course of his first year in power, he worked at consolidating his rule in Sistan; he led an army against the town of Uq and killed many of the local landowners who had risen in opposition to him.
In the meantime, the amir Timur
Timur
Timur , historically known as Tamerlane in English , was a 14th-century conqueror of West, South and Central Asia, and the founder of the Timurid dynasty in Central Asia, and great-great-grandfather of Babur, the founder of the Mughal Dynasty, which survived as the Mughal Empire in India until...
had begun his expansion into Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
and Persia
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...
, forcing the Kartid dynasty of Herat
Herat
Herāt is the capital of Herat province in Afghanistan. It is the third largest city of Afghanistan, with a population of about 397,456 as of 2006. It is situated in the valley of the Hari River, which flows from the mountains of central Afghanistan to the Karakum Desert in Turkmenistan...
into submission. Around this time, an envoy arrived to Qutb al-Din's court and requested a hostage as a sign of good faith. The malik responded by sending a relative, Taj al-Din Shah-i Shahan, to Timur's camp with an offer of tribute; the Mihrabanid made a good impression on Timur and returned to Sistan.
In November 1383, however, Timur and his army arrived in Sistan. After negotiations between the two sides failed a battle was fought in which the Mihrabanid forces were defeated. After building a pyramid of human skulls out of the slain Mihrabanid soldiers, the Timurid army forced its way into Shahr-i Sistan
Zaranj
Zaranj or Zarang is a border town in south-western Afghanistan, with a population of approximately 49,851 people as of 2004. It is the capital of Nimruz province and is situated next to Milak, Iran. It is linked by highways with Lashkar Gah to the east, Farah to the north and Zabol in Iran to the...
and Qutb al-Din was imprisoned. Timur appointed Shah-i Shahan as governor of Sistan and proceeded to ravage the province. Qutb al-Din was deported to Samarkand
Samarkand
Although a Persian-speaking region, it was not united politically with Iran most of the times between the disintegration of the Seleucid Empire and the Arab conquest . In the 6th century it was within the domain of the Turkic kingdom of the Göktürks.At the start of the 8th century Samarkand came...
, where he was executed three years later at the age of thirty.