Abu'l-Harith Muhammad was ruler of

Khwarazm Khwarazm (; ; , ''Xwârazm'' or ''Xârazm'') or Chorasmia () is a large oasis region on the Amu Darya river delta in western Central Asia, bordered on the north by the (former) Aral Sea, on the east by the Kyzylkum Desert, on the south by th ...

for a period in 1017. The son of

Abu al-Hasan Ali Abu al-Hasan 'Ali (died c. 1009) was ruler of Khwarazm (a large oasis region on the Amu Darya river delta in western Central Asia) from 997 until his death c. 1009. The second member of the Ma'munid dynasty, he was the son of Ma'mun I ibn Muhamm ...

, he was the last member of the

Iranian Iranian () may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Iran ** Iranian diaspora, Iranians living outside Iran ** Iranian architecture, architecture of Iran and parts of the rest of West Asia ** Iranian cuisine, cooking traditions and practic ...

Ma'munid dynasty The Maʾmunids () were an independent dynasty of Iranian rulers in Khwarazm. Their reign was short-lived (995–1017), and they were in turn replaced by the expansionist Ghaznavids. History The ancient Iranian kingdom of Khwarazm had been ruled ...

to rule Khwarazm. In 1017, a young Muhammad was declared shah by the murderers of his uncle Abu'l Abbas Ma'mun.

Mahmud of Ghazna Abu al-Qasim Mahmud ibn Sabuktigin (; 2 November 971 – 30 April 1030), usually known as Mahmud of Ghazni or Mahmud Ghaznavi (), was Sultan of the Ghaznavid Empire, ruling from 998 to 1030. During his reign and in medieval sources, he is usual ...

, who had been Ma'mun's brother-in-law, was afforded a pretext for invading and a force was assembled in northern

Khurasan KhorasanDabeersiaghi, Commentary on Safarnâma-e Nâsir Khusraw, 6th Ed. Tehran, Zavvâr: 1375 (Solar Hijri Calendar) 235–236 (; , ) is a historical eastern region in the Iranian Plateau in West Asia, West and Central Asia that encompasses wes ...

. The Khwarazamis were unable to provide any effective resistance, and Muhammad was captured and imprisoned; Khwarazm therefore became a part of the

Ghaznavid Empire The Ghaznavid dynasty ( ''Ġaznaviyān'') was a Persianate Muslim dynasty of Turkic peoples, Turkic ''mamluk'' origin. It ruled the Ghaznavid Empire or the Empire of Ghazni from 977 to 1186, which at its greatest extent, extended from the Oxus ...

. After taking vengeance on the Ma'mun's murderers Mahmud installed a Turk, the ''

hajib Hajib or hadjib (, ) was a court official, equivalent to a chamberlain, in the early Muslim world, which evolved to fulfil various functions, often serving as chief ministers or enjoying dictatorial powers. The post appeared under the Umayyad Ca ...

Altun Tash Altuntash (died 1032) was a Turkic Khwarazmshah from 1017 until his death in 1032.''The Political and Dynastic History of the Iranian World'', C.E. Bosworth, The Cambridge History of Iran, Vol. 5, Ed. J. A. Boyle, (Cambridge University Press, 19 ...

, as governor of the province.

Sources

* 11th-century monarchs in Asia 11th-century Iranian people Ma'munids Year of death unknown {{Iran-royal-stub