Abish Khatun () – was the 9th and last ruler of the

Salghurids The Salghurids (), also known as the Atabegs of Fars (), were a Persianate dynasty of Salur Turkoman origin that ruled Fars, first as vassals of the Seljuks then for the Khwarazm Shahs in the 13th century. History The Salghurids were es ...

Shiraz Shiraz (; ) is the List of largest cities of Iran, fifth-most-populous city of Iran and the capital of Fars province, which has been historically known as Pars (Sasanian province), Pars () and Persis. As of the 2016 national census, the popu ...

from 1264 to 1284.

Life as princess

She was born in

around 1259/1260 to Salghurid Atabeg Sa'd II ( ca) and Turkan Khatun (who was originally from

Yazd Yazd (; ) is a city in the Central District of Yazd County, Yazd province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. At the 2016 census, its population was 529,673. Since 2017, the historical city of Yazd is rec ...

). After the death of Sa'd II, Turkan Khatun held power, acting as regent of her short-lived son and then, and to secure her position, married Saljuqshah, the ruling Atabeg. He layer had Turkan Khatun killed. Saljuqshah later started a rebellion against Ilkhanate, killing two local '' basqaqs''.

Hulegu khan Hulegu Khan, also known as Hülegü or Hulagu; ; ; ; ( 8 February 1265), was a Mongol ruler who conquered much of Western Asia. As a son of Tolui and the Keraite princess Sorghaghtani Beki, he was a grandson of Genghis Khan and brother of Ar ...

in his turn executed Muhammadshah, elder brother of Saljuqshah, sent an army under commanders Altaju and Temür to suppress revolt. Saljuqshah suddenly found himself under siege from Nizam al-Din Hasanwayh of Shabankara, Atabeg Alauddawla Mahmud of

and Adud al-Din Amir Hajji – commander of Qutlugh-khanids. In the battle near

Kazerun Kazerun () is a city in the northwest of Fars Province in Iran and the center of Kazerun County. This city has an ancient history, numerous ancient and historical monuments, and numerous tourist attractions. Kazerun is the largest and most p ...

, Shabakara chief was killed by Saljuqshah. Saljuqshah found refuge in the Friday Mosque, but Mongols stormed the mosque, capturing, torturing and finally executing him in 1264.

Reign

Abish Khatun was declared the Atabeg of Fars on the orders from Hulegu. The '' khutba'' was also proclaimed in her name, signifying her confirmation as sovereign monarch. She and her older sister Bibi Salghum (widow of Muhammadshah) was taken to

Ilkhanate The Ilkhanate or Il-khanate was a Mongol khanate founded in the southwestern territories of the Mongol Empire. It was ruled by the Il-Khans or Ilkhanids (), and known to the Mongols as ''Hülegü Ulus'' (). The Ilkhanid realm was officially known ...

capital by their grandmother Yaqut Turkan (daughter of Buraq Hajib). Another revolt started in 1265 by local Islamic preacher Shaykh Sharaf al-Din Ibrahim during her reign was suppressed cruelly. Abish's Mongol overseers Altaju, Shadi, Damur all followed each other hastily as the result of ongoing turmoil. Situation was stabilized when

Abaqa Khan Abaqa Khan (27 February 1234 – 4 April 1282, , "paternal uncle", also transliterated Abaġa), was the second Mongol ruler ('' Ilkhan'') of the Ilkhanate. The son of Hulagu Khan and Lady Yesünčin and the grandson of Tolui, he reigned from 1265 ...

appointed Angyanu – a Turk overseer to the province. However his actions also draw a hate from Shirazi elite and he war removed from his post in 1271. New overseer Suqunjaq Noyan (grandson of Chilaun) arranged Abish Khatun's marriage. She was already betrothed to Mengü Temür (son of Hulegu) by 1261, she went on to marrying him in 1272. Although it was against ''

sharia Sharia, Sharī'ah, Shari'a, or Shariah () is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition based on Islamic holy books, scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran, Qur'an and hadith. In Islamic terminology ''sharīʿah'' ...

'' to marry a Muslim woman to a non-Muslim, there was a grandiose wedding with lavish gifts according to Wassaf. From this moment she lived in the '' orda'' of Oljai Khatun – mother of Mengü Temür. This also made Mengü Temür a de facto ruler of Shiraz. Abish returned to effective rule only in 1284. When Abish returned to Shiraz there was great celebration and coins were struck in her name for a month. Abish appointed Jalal ad-Din Arqan, a

Salghurid The Salghurids (), also known as the Atabegs of Fars (), were a Persianate society, Persianate dynasty of Salur tribe, Salur Turkoman (ethnonym), Turkoman origin that ruled Fars province, Fars, first as vassals of the Seljuks then for the Khwara ...

descendant and her 2nd cousin once removed as the new chief minister. Abish's corrupt government coincided with a famine where over 100.000 people died in Fars. Furthermore, she got into a power struggle with new overseer Sayyed Imadaddin, leading to his murder on 30 December 1284. As the result Buqa and

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

ordered removal of Abish from her post. She was summoned to the court later and was interrogated. It was Jalal ad-Din Arqan first to reveal the details of murder, after which he was sawed in half. She was ordered to may blood money to Sayyed's sons as the result of court.

Death

She remained in

Tabriz Tabriz (; ) is a city in the Central District (Tabriz County), Central District of Tabriz County, in the East Azerbaijan province, East Azerbaijan province of northwestern Iran. It serves as capital of the province, the county, and the distric ...

's Charandab district and died from an illness after a year. She was the last sovereign of the Salghurid dynasty.

Family

She was married to Mengü Temür (son of Hulegu) in 1272. She had two daughters: Kurdujin Khatun and Alghanchi.

Life as princess

Reign

Death

Family

References

Further reading