Eldiguzids
Eldiguzids Atabegs of Azerbaijan اتابکان آذربایجان | |||||||||||
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1136–1225 | |||||||||||
Status | Atabegate | ||||||||||
Capital | Nakhchivan Hamadan Tabriz | ||||||||||
Atabeg | |||||||||||
• 1136 - 1175 | Eldiguz | ||||||||||
• 1175 - 1186 | Muhammad | ||||||||||
• 1186-1191 | Qizil Arslan | ||||||||||
• 1191-1210 | Nusrat al-Din Abu Bakr | ||||||||||
• 1210-1225 | Muzaffar al-Din Uzbek | ||||||||||
History | |||||||||||
• Established | 1136 | ||||||||||
• Disestablished | 1225 | ||||||||||
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The Ildegizids,
The historical significance of the Atabeg of Azerbaijan lies in their firm control over north-western Persia during the later Seljuq period and also their role in Transcaucasia as champions of Islam against the Bagratids of Georgia.[4]
Shams ad-Din Eldiguz
In 1136, Sultan
He made himself virtually independent ruler of Azerbaijan by 1146. His marriage with the widow of Sultan
The word Azam (meaning "great" in
became his liegemen.Campaigns against Georgia
Kingdom of Georgia, whose army was additionally strengthened by the Kipchak mercenaries, became the strongest rival of the Shams al-Din Eldiguz. In 1138, Georgian king Demetrius I, attacked the earthquake-ridden city of Ganja.[9] While leaving the city, his troops carried off the well-known gate of Ganja as their trophy, which up to this date remains on display at the Gelati monastery.[10] From 1161 onwards Georgians began to make plundering raids and outright conquests on Ani, Dvin, Ganja, Nakhchivan and other regions controlled by Atabegs.[11][12]
Eldiguz formed a coalition with other Seljuqids in the beginning of the 1160s to fight against the Georgians, and in 1163 the allies inflicted a defeat on king George III of Georgia.[citation needed] The Seljuqid rulers were jubilant, and they prepared for a new campaign. However, this time they were forestalled by George III, who marched into Arran at the beginning of 1166, occupied a region extending to faraway cities as Nakhchivan and Beylagan, devastated the land and returned with prisoners and booty. There seemed to be no end to the war between George III and atabeg Eldiguz. But the belligerents were exhausted to such an extent that Eldiguz proposed an armistice. George had no alternative but to make concessions. Eldiguz restored Ani to its former rulers, the Shaddadids, who became his vassals.[citation needed]
In 1173, Atabeg Eldiguz began another campaign against Georgia but he was defeated.[citation needed] Atabeg's troops retreated and Eldiguz died in 1174 in Nakhchivan.
Muhammad Jahan Pahlavan
After the death of Shams al-Din Eldiguz, in 1175, the Seljuq Sultan Arslan Shah tried to escape from the yoke of the Grand Atabeg of Azerbaijan but failed, and was poisoned to death by Shams ad-Din's son, the new Grand Atabeg Muhammad Jahan Pahlavan (c.1174–1186).[13] Pahlavan transferred his capital from Nakhchivan to Hamadan in western Iran, and made his younger brother, Qizil Arslan Uthman, the ruler of Azerbaijan. In 1174, Qizil Arslan captured Tabriz, which subsequently became his capital.[14]
Jahan Pahlavan suppressed all rebellious emirs and appointed faithful mamluks to key positions. He apportioned each of them any region or town as
Qizil Arslan
The same year Qizil Arslan, who had become the sole ruler of the Great Seljuq Empire, was assassinated. The power was divided among his three sons: Abu Bakr, Qutluq Inandj and Amir Mihran. Abu Bakr governed Azerbaijan and Arran, and his brothers were the rulers of Khorasan and several neighboring regions. Soon, these three successors began to fight for the throne. Victorious in power struggle, Abu Bakr "Jahan-pahlavan" (c. 1195–1210) had his elder brother Qutluq Inandj assassinated and forced the younger brother, Amir Mihran, to take refuge at the court of the latter's brother-in-law, Shirvanshah Akhsitan I (c.1160-1196). The Shirvanshah together with Amir Mihran headed for Tbilisi, the capital of Kingdom of Georgia, and appealed for help to Queen Tamar of Georgia, an official protector of Shirvan. Received with great honors at the Georgian court, they were given desired support, and the Georgian army led by Consort David Soslan marched to Shirvan.
The Eldiguzid atabeg Abu Bakr attempted to stem the Georgian advance, but suffered a defeat at the hands of David Soslan at the Battle of Shamkor[15] and lost his capital to a Georgian protégé in 1195. Although Abu Bakr was able to resume his reign a year later, the Eldiguzids were only barely able to contain further Georgian forays.[16][17] The State's defense capability was stricken. Khorezmshahs' and Georgians’ non-stopping forays aggravated the situation in the country and speeded up its decay.
In 1209, the Georgian army
Uzbek
After the death of Qizil Arslan, the power was divided among Jahan Pahlavan's sons, however, soon they started to fight for the throne. Abu Bakr came to the fortress of Alinja. The fortress, along with all the treasures, was at the disposal of Jahan Pahlavan's other widow, Zahida Khatun. Abu Bakr captures the fortress and the treasury. Qizil Arslan's nephews began to rule independently, and one of the Mamluks of Jahan Pahlavan, Mahmud Anas Oglu,freed Toghrul III from his prison and regains the sultanate throne in May 1192. However, soon after, in 1194, after a long war with the Khwarazm Shahs, Sultan Togrul III was defeated and the existence of the Iraqi Seljuk Sultanate came to an end.[2][7]
After defeated by Abu Bakr, Amir Amiran Omar went to gain a support from Shirvanshah Akhsitan I and Georgian Tsarina Tamar. In 1194, the united Georgian-Shirvan and Amir Amiran Omar's troops defeated Abu Bakr in the battles of Shamkir and Beylagan. Later, the Georgians trying to capture Ganja, temporarily occupied it, but soon Abu Bakr's troops drove the Georgians out of
List of Eldiguzids (Atabegs of Azerbaijan)
- Eldigüz(ca. 1135 or 1136-1174 or 1175)
- Muhammad Jahan Pahlawan, son of Eldigüz (1174 or 1175–1186)
- Qizil Arslan, son of Eldigüz (1186–1191)
- Qutluq Inandj, stepson of Muhammad Jahan Pahlawan (1191)
- Nusrat al-Din Abu Bakr, son of Muhammad Jahan Pahlawan (1191–1210)
- Muzaffar al-Din Uzbek, son of Muhammad Jahan Pahlawan (1210–1225)
Family tree
Eldiguz ?-1175 Atabeg of Azerbaijan R.1136-1175 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Muhammad Jahan Pahlavan Atabeg of Azerbaijan R.1175-1186 | Qizil Arslan ?-1191 Atabeg of Azerbaijan R.1186-1191 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Nusrat al-Din Abu Bakr ?-1210 Atabeg of Azerbaijan R.1191-1210 | Muzaffar al-Din Uzbek ?-1225 Atabeg of Azerbaijan R.1210-1225 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
See also
History of Azerbaijan | |
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c.700 BC–c.590s BC | |
Achaemenid Empire | 550 BC–330 BC |
• Satrapy of Media | c.550 BC – 323 BC |
Seleucid Empire | 312 BC – 63 BC |
Parthian Empire | 247 BC – AD 224 |
Caucasian Albania | c.200 BC – c.AD 800 |
Roman Empire | 27 BC – AD 395 |