Umar Shaikh Mirza II ( fa, , b. 1456 – d. 1494) was the ruler of the

Fergana Valley The Fergana Valley (; ; ) in Central Asia lies mainly in eastern Uzbekistan, but also extends into southern Kyrgyzstan and northern Tajikistan. Divided into three republics of the former Soviet Union, the valley is ethnically diverse and in the ...

. He was the fourth son of

Abu Sa'id Mirza Abu Sa'id Mirza ( Chagatay/ fa, ابو سعید میرزا; 14248 February 1469) was the ruler of the Timurid Empire during the mid-fifteenth century. Born a minor prince of the Timurid dynasty, Abu Sa'id quickly established himself as the most ...

, the emperor of the

Timurid Empire The Timurid Empire ( chg, , fa, ), self-designated as Gurkani (Chagatai language, Chagatai: کورگن, ''Küregen''; fa, , ''Gūrkāniyān''), was a PersianateB.F. Manz, ''"Tīmūr Lang"'', in Encyclopaedia of Islam, Online Edition, 2006 Tu ...

in what is now

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...

Uzbekistan Uzbekistan (, ; uz, Ozbekiston, italic=yes / , ; russian: Узбекистан), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Ozbekiston Respublikasi, italic=yes / ; russian: Республика Узбекистан), is a doubly landlocked co ...

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is borde ...

and eastern

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

. His first wife and chief consort was

Qutlugh Nigar Khanum Qutlugh Nigar Khanum (''also spelled Kutlak Nigar Khanum''; d. 1505) was the first wife and chief consort of Umar Shaikh Mirza II, the ruler of Ferghana Valley. She was a princess of Moghulistan by birth and was a daughter of Yunus Khan, the Great ...

, a princess of the

Chagatai Khanate The Chagatai Khanate, or Chagatai Ulus ( xng, , translit=Čaɣatay-yin Ulus; mn, Цагаадайн улс, translit=Tsagaadain Uls; chg, , translit=Čağatāy Ulusi; fa, , translit=Xânât-e Joghatây) was a Mongol and later Turkicized kh ...

and daughter of

Yunus Khan Yunus Khan (b. 1416 – d. 1487) ( ug, يونس خان}), was Khan of Moghulistan from 1462 until his death in 1487. He is identified by many historians with Ḥājjī `Ali (, Pinyin: ''Hazhi Ali'') ( ug, ھاجى علي}), of the contempor ...

Moghulistan Moghulistan (from fa, , ''Moghulestân'', mn, Моголистан), also called the Moghul Khanate or the Eastern Chagatai Khanate (), was a Mongol breakaway khanate of the Chagatai Khanate and a historical geographic area north of the Ten ...

. Umar Shaikh had two other wives and had three sons and five daughters from his wives. His eldest son was Babur Mirza from his wife Qutlugh Nigar Khanum. His sons from this other two wives were

Jahangir Mirza II Jahangir Mirza II (born 1485) was the second son of Umar Sheikh Mirza and half brother of Babur, the founder of the Mughal Empire. He was two years younger to Babur and his mother, Fatima Sultan, belonged to the clan of Mughal Tuman Begs. Jahangir ...

and

Nasir Mirza Nasir Mirza (b. 1487–1515 d.) was the third son of Umar Sheikh Mirza and the younger half-brother of Babur, the founder of the Mughal Empire. According to the Baburnama, Nasir Mirza was four years younger to Babur and his mother was a native ...

. His eldest son Babur Mirza founded the

Mughal Empire The Mughal Empire was an early-modern empire that controlled much of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries. Quote: "Although the first two Timurid emperors and many of their noblemen were recent migrants to the subcontinent, the d ...

in 1526 and was the first Mughal Emperor of India. Umar Shaikh died in a freak accident in Aksi fort, North Fergana, on 10 June 1494. It occurred when he was in his

dovecote A dovecote or dovecot , doocot ( Scots) or columbarium is a structure intended to house pigeons or doves. Dovecotes may be free-standing structures in a variety of shapes, or built into the end of a house or barn. They generally contain pige ...

, which was built at the edge of the building, collapsed, thus making eleven-year-old Babur the ruler of Fergana. His son Babur describes him as a devout Muslim who never neglected the 5 daily prayers.

Family

His mother

Umar Shaikh's mother was not explicitly named in any historical sources, including the ''

Baburnama The ''Bāburnāma'' ( chg, ; literally: ''"History of Babur"'' or ''"Letters of Babur"''; alternatively known as ''Tuzk-e Babri'') is the memoirs of Ẓahīr-ud-Dīn Muhammad Bābur (1483–1530), founder of the Mughal Empire and a great-great- ...

'', his son

Babur Babur ( fa, , lit= tiger, translit= Bābur; ; 14 February 148326 December 1530), born Mīrzā Zahīr ud-Dīn Muhammad, was the founder of the Mughal Empire in the Indian subcontinent. He was a descendant of Timur and Genghis Khan through hi ...

's autobiography. This was somewhat unusual, as Babur provided the maternal ancestry for many of his prominent relatives. However, Babur did refer multiple times to a certain Shah Sultan Begum (d. 1501) in a way that suggested she was Umar Shaikh's mother. This identification is one that is used by historians. Shah Sultan Begum's own background was never stated. However, Khwand Amir, the

vizier A vizier (; ar, وزير, wazīr; fa, وزیر, vazīr), or wazir, is a high-ranking political advisor or minister in the near east. The Abbasid caliphs gave the title ''wazir'' to a minister formerly called '' katib'' (secretary), who was ...

of Babur's uncle Sultan Mahmud, referred to Umar Shaikh as "the own younger brother" of Mahmud and Sultan Ahmed. If this wording were interpreted to say that they were full brothers, this would mean that Shah Sultan Begum was mother to all three rulers, and thus the daughter of Aurdu-Bugha Tarkhan

Arghun Arghun Khan (Mongolian Cyrillic: ''Аргун хан''; Traditional Mongolian: ; c. 1258 – 10 March 1291) was the fourth ruler of the Mongol empire's Ilkhanate, from 1284 to 1291. He was the son of Abaqa Khan, and like his father, was a dev ...

, who is known to have been Ahmad and Mahmud's maternal grandfather.

Consorts

He had a total of seven consorts: *

(m.1475), daughter of

and

Aisan Daulat Begum Aisan Daulat Begum (died June, 1505, other spellings ''Ehsan Daulat, Isan Daulat, Ësan Dawlat'') was the first wife and chief consort of Yunus Khan of Moghulistan. She was the mother of Qutlugh Nigar Khanum, and hence the grandmother of the first ...

; *Ulus Agha (div.), daughter of Khwaja Hussein Beg; *Fatima Sultan Agha, daughter of one of the begs of Mogul Tumans; *Makhdum Sultan Begum, known as Karaguz Begum; *Umid Aghacha, a concubine who died before Mirza; *Yun Sultan Aghacha, a Moghul concubine; *Agha Sultan Aghacha, another concubine;

Children

;Sons He had three sons: *

- with Qutlugh Nigar Khanum; *Jahangir Mirza (1485 - 1508) - with Fatima Sultan Agha; *Nasir Mirza (1487 - 1515) - with Umid Aghacha; ;Daughters He had six daughters: *A stillborn daughter - with Ulus Agha; *

Khanzada Begum Khanzada Begum ( 1478 – 1545) was a Timurid princess and the eldest daughter of Umar Shaikh Mirza II, the ''amir'' of Ferghana. She was also the elder sister of Babur, the founder of the Mughal Empire. She and her brother remained deeply attac ...

(1478 - 1545) - with Qutlugh Nigar Khanum; *Mihr Banu Begum (born 1481) - with Umid Aghacha; *Shahr Banu Begum (1491 - 1542) - with Umid Aghacha, married to Junaid Barlas; *Yadgar Sultan Begum (born 1494) - with Agha Sultan Aghacha, married to Abdul Latif Sultan, son of Hamza Sultan; *Rukaiya Sultan Begum (1494 - 1528) - with Makhdum Sultan Begum, married to Jani Beg Sultan;

Death

Umar died on 10 June 1494 at age 37 after the building which he was in collapsed; He was succeeded by his son, Babur.

Notes

References

*{{cite web , quote=On the occasion of the birth of Babar Padishah (the son of Omar Shaikh) , url=http://depts.washington.edu/silkroad/texts/rash1.html , title=Mirza Muhammad Haidar , publisher=University of Washington , work=Silk Road Seattle , access-date=2006-11-07 People from Samarkand Timurid monarchs 1469 births 1494 deaths