''Abu Nasr'' Qara Yusuf ibn Mohammad Barani ( 1356 – 1420) was the ruler of the

Qara Qoyunlu The Qara Qoyunlu or Kara Koyunlu (, ; ), also known as the Black Sheep Turkomans, were a culturally Persianate, Muslim Turkoman "Kara Koyunlu, also spelled Qara Qoyunlu, Turkish Karakoyunlular, English Black Sheep, Turkmen tribal federation tha ...

dynasty (or "Black Sheep Turkomans") from 1388 to 1420, although his reign was interrupted by

Tamerlane Timur, also known as Tamerlane (1320s17/18 February 1405), was a Turco-Mongol tradition, Turco-Mongol conqueror who founded the Timurid Empire in and around modern-day Afghanistan, Iran, and Central Asia, becoming the first ruler of the Timuri ...

's invasion (1400–1405). He was the son of Qara Mahammad Töremish, a brother-in-law to Ahmad Jalayir.

Rise to chiefdom

After his father's death in rebellion by Pir Hasan, Qara Qoyunlu elders gathered to choose his brother Khwaja Misr, however more energetic Qara Yusuf prevailed in succession. He made short-term alliance with Kara Osman against Pir Hasan and crushed his forces.

Early reign

At the beginning of Qara Yusuf's reign, the Qara Qoyunlu established an alliance with the

Jalayirid The Jalayirid Sultanate () was a dynasty of Mongol Jalayir origin, which ruled over modern-day Iraq and western Iran after the breakup of the Ilkhanate in the 1330s.Bayne Fisher, William. ''The Cambridge History of Iran'', p. 3: "From then until ...

dynasty in

Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...

and

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 ...

against

Aq Qoyunlu The Aq Qoyunlu or the White Sheep Turkomans (, ; ) was a culturally Persianate society, Persianate,Kaushik Roy, ''Military Transition in Early Modern Asia, 1400–1750'', (Bloomsbury, 2014), 38; "Post-Mongol Persia and Iraq were ruled by two trib ...

. However, he was soon captured and jailed in

Suşehri Suşehri (formerly: ''Endires'') is a town in Sivas Province of Turkey. It is the seat of Suşehri District.Qara Yuluq. Soon Jalayirids and Qara Qoyunlu both were threatened by the

Timurids The Timurid Empire was a late medieval, culturally Persianate, Turco-Mongol empire that dominated Greater Iran in the early 15th century, comprising modern-day Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, much of Central Asia, the South Caucasus, and parts of contem ...

from the east. In 1393

Timur Timur, also known as Tamerlane (1320s17/18 February 1405), was a Turco-Mongol conqueror who founded the Timurid Empire in and around modern-day Afghanistan, Iran, and Central Asia, becoming the first ruler of the Timurid dynasty. An undefeat ...

conquered

and 3 years later appointed his son

Miran Shah Mirza Jalal-ud-din Miran Shah Beg (1366 – 20 April 1408), commonly known as Miran Shah (), was a son of the Central Asian conqueror Timur, founder of the Timurid Empire. During his father's reign, Miran Shah was initially a powerful regio ...

as viceroy of

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

. In 1394, Timur imprisoned Khwaja Misr and sent him to

Samarkand Samarkand ( ; Uzbek language, Uzbek and Tajik language, Tajik: Самарқанд / Samarqand, ) is a city in southeastern Uzbekistan and among the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest continuously inhabited cities in Central As ...

. By collaborating on equal terms with the Sultan Ahmed Jalayir against the

, Qara Yusuf effectively secured the independence of the Qara Qoyunlu.

The Timurid Invasion

The Timurids began another campaign in 1400 and defeated both the Qara Qoyunlu and the Jalayirids. Qara Yusuf and Sultan Ahmed Jalayir both fled and took refuge with the

Mamluks Mamluk or Mamaluk (; (singular), , ''mamālīk'' (plural); translated as "one who is owned", meaning "slave") were non-Arab, ethnically diverse (mostly Turkic, Caucasian, Eastern and Southeastern European) enslaved mercenaries, slave-sold ...

first, then

Ottoman Sultan The sultans of the Ottoman Empire (), who were all members of the Ottoman dynasty (House of Osman), ruled over the Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental empire from its perceived inception in 1299 to Dissolution of the Ottoman Em ...

Bayezid I Bayezid I (; ), also known as Bayezid the Thunderbolt (; ; – 8 March 1403), was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1389 to 1402. He adopted the title of ''Sultan-i Rûm'', ''Rûm'' being the Arabic name for the Eastern Roman Empire. In 139 ...

. In 1402 they returned to

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia is a historical region of West Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the Fertile Crescent. Today, Mesopotamia is known as present-day Iraq and forms the eastern geographic boundary of ...

together with an army following the

Battle of Ankara The Battle of Ankara or Angora () was fought on 28 July 1402, at the Çubuk plain near Ankara, between the forces of the Ottoman sultan Bayezid I and the emir of the Timurid Empire, Timur. The battle was a major victory for Timur, and it led to ...

. However, once they had retaken control of

they quarreled, and Qara Yusuf expelled Sultan Ahmed Jalayir from the city. Sultan Ahmed Jalayir took refuge with the Nasir-ad-Din Faraj the Sultan of

Mamluk Egypt The Mamluk Sultanate (), also known as Mamluk Egypt or the Mamluk Empire, was a state that ruled Egypt, the Levant and the Hejaz from the mid-13th to early 16th centuries, with Cairo as its capital. It was ruled by a military caste of mamluks ...

, but he imprisoned him out of fear of

. In 1403 the Timurids defeated Qara Yusuf at the Battle of Algami Canal and drove him out of Baghdad again, also killing his brother Yar Ali which made him to seek asylum in

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

, which was then ruled by

. Soon they were both imprisoned on the order of Nasir-ad-Din Faraj. Together in prison, the two leaders renewed their friendship, making an agreement that Sultan Ahmed Jalayir should keep Baghdad while Qara Yusuf would have

. Ahmad also adopted his son Pirbudag. When Timur died in 1405 Nasir-ad-Din Faraj released them both. However, according to

Faruk Sümer Farooq (also transliterated as Farouk, Faruqi, Farook, Faruk, Faroeq, Faruq, or Farouq, Farooqi, Faruque or Farooqui; ) is a common Arabic given and family name. ''Al-Fārūq'' literally means "the one who distinguishes between right and wrong." ...

, they were released on the orders of the rebellious

wali The term ''wali'' is most commonly used by Muslims to refer to a saint, or literally a "friend of God".John Renard, ''Friends of God: Islamic Images of Piety, Commitment, and Servanthood'' (Berkeley: University of California Press, 2008); John ...

– Shaykh Mahmud. Qara Yusuf, having returned from exile in

and went back to

Anatolia Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

. He forced Timur's governor in

Van A van is a type of road vehicle used for transporting goods or people. There is some variation in the scope of the word across the different English-speaking countries. The smallest vans, microvans, are used for transporting either goods or ...

Izzaddin Shir to submit, while capturing Altamış, another viceroy set up by Timur and sending him to

Barquq Al-Malik Az-Zahir Sayf ad-Din Barquq (; born ) was the first Sultan of the Circassians, Circassian Mamluk Burji dynasty of Mamluk Sultanate (Cairo), Egypt ruling from 1382 to 1389 and 1390 to 1399. Born to a Christianity, Christian father in Cir ...

's court in

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

. He later moved on to Azerbaijan. He defeated the Timurid Abu Bakr at the

Battle of Nakhchivan The Battle of Nakhchivan was a battle that took place in Nakhchivan (city), Nakhchivan, during the Aras War. It was fought by the troops of the First Republic of Armenia, and troops of the Republic of Aras. The battle would be the decisive factor t ...

on 14 October 1406 and reoccupied

. In 1407 he raided Georgia, took 15,000 prisoners and killed Giorgi VII. Abu Bakr and his father

tried to recapture Azerbaijan, but on 20 April 1408, Qara Yusuf inflicted a decisive defeat on them at the Battle of Sardrud in which Miran Shah was killed. This battle, one of the most important in the history of the Orient, nullified the results of Timur's conquests in the West.René Grousset. "The Empire of the Steppes: A History of Central Asia", translated by N. Wallford. Rutgers University Press, 1970, , p. 458 In 1409 he entered

and sent a raiding party to

Shirvan Shirvan (from ; ; Tat: ''Şirvan'') is a historical region in the eastern Caucasus, as known in both pre-Islamic Sasanian and Islamic times. Today, the region is an industrially and agriculturally developed part of the Republic of Azerbaijan ...

, especially Shaki, which was fruitless. Another invasion force was sent to capture Sultaniyya and

Qazvin Qazvin (; ; ) is a city in the Central District (Qazvin County), Central District of Qazvin County, Qazvin province, Qazvin province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. It is the largest city in the provi ...

under the command of Rustam Beg. The same year, he marched to

and deposed Salih Şihabeddin Ahmed (thus ending the

Mardin Mardin (; ; romanized: ''Mārdīn''; ; ) is a city and seat of the Artuklu District of Mardin Province in Turkey. It is known for the Artuqids, Artuqid architecture of its old city, and for its strategic location on a rocky hill near the Tigris ...

branch of the

Artuqids The Artuqid dynasty (alternatively Artukid, Ortoqid, or Ortokid; Old Anatolian Turkish: , , plural, pl. ; ; ) was established in 1102 as a Turkish people, Turkish Anatolian beyliks, Anatolian Beylik (Principality) of the Seljuk Empire. It formed a ...

in northern

), who was then married to a daughter of Yusuf and sent to govern

Mosul Mosul ( ; , , ; ; ; ) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. It is the second largest city in Iraq overall after the capital Baghdad. Situated on the banks of Tigris, the city encloses the ruins of the ...

Defeating Jalayirids

Having firmly established as a ruler of Azerbaijan with Tabriz as his capital, Qara Yusuf fell foul of his former ally Sultan Ahmed Jalayir. Sultan Ahmed Jalayir tried to seize Azerbaijan, but was defeated near Tabriz on 30 August 1410. He was captured and forced to abdicate in favor of Pirbudag (7 year old biological son of Qara Yusuf) and to appoint Shah Muhammad (another son of Qara Yusuf) to be governor of Baghdad. He was executed the next day passing

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

into the hands of Qara Yusuf after Bistam Beg urged him. Qara Yusuf declared his son as "sultan" and crowned him in 1411, however he was still in charge as regent.

Later reign

Further consolidating his rule, he marched on Shirvan, where Shirvanshah Ibrahim, a loyal Timurid vassal was still reigning. The combined forces of

Constantine I Constantine I (27 February 27222 May 337), also known as Constantine the Great, was a Roman emperor from AD 306 to 337 and the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity. He played a Constantine the Great and Christianity, pivotal ro ...

, Ibrahim and Syed Ahmed Orlat (lord of Shaki) were defeated on Battle of Chalagan, 1412. He later revoked the governorship of

Soltaniyeh Soltaniyeh () is a city in the Central District (Soltaniyeh County), Central District of Soltaniyeh County, Zanjan province, Zanjan province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. History Soltaniyeh, located some ...

from Bistam Beg and bestowed it on

Jahan shah Muzaffar al-Din Jahan Shah ibn Yusuf (; ; 1397 in Khoy or 1405 in Mardin – 30 October or 11 November 1467 near Bingöl) or Abu al-Muzaffar Jahan Shah was the leader of the Qara Qoyunlu Oghuz Turkic tribal confederacy in Azerbaijan (Iran), Azer ...

in 1415. He repeatedly defeated

Qara Osman Uthman Beg or Osman Beg (Ajami Turkic and ; 1356 – 1435) was a late 14th and early 15th-century leader of the Turkoman tribal federation of Aq Qoyunlu in what is now eastern Turkey, Iran, Azerbaijan and Iraq. Name He was born Baha-ud-Din Uth ...

in 1417 and on 20 September 1418. He also made raids into

Aintab Gaziantep, historically Aintab and still informally called Antep, is a major city in south-central Turkey. It is the capital of the Gaziantep Province, in the westernmost part of Turkey's Southeastern Anatolia Region and partially in the Medit ...

which was then under

Mamluk Mamluk or Mamaluk (; (singular), , ''mamālīk'' (plural); translated as "one who is owned", meaning "slave") were non-Arab, ethnically diverse (mostly Turkic, Caucasian, Eastern and Southeastern European) enslaved mercenaries, slave-so ...

rule in response to them granting asylum to Qara Osman. In October 1418, his son and nominal sultan Pirbudag died, which left Qara Yusuf in grief for days. He tried to forge an anti-Timurid alliance with

Mehmed I Mehmed I (; – 26 May 1421), also known as Mehmed Çelebi (, "the noble-born") or ''Kirişçi'' (, "lord's son"), was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1413 to 1421. Son of Sultan Bayezid I and his concubine Devlet Hatun, he fought with hi ...

in 1420 unsuccessfully. According to

Ghiyāth al-dīn Naqqāsh Mawlānā Ghiyāth al-Dīn Naqqāsh (; ) was an envoy of the Timurid ruler of Persia and Transoxania, Mirza Shahrukh (r. 1404–1447), to the court of the Yongle Emperor (r. 1402–1424) of the Ming Dynasty of China, known for an imp ...

– Timurid envoy to

Ming China The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of ...

, he also sent an emissary to

Yongle Emperor The Yongle Emperor (2 May 1360 – 12 August 1424), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Chengzu of Ming, personal name Zhu Di, was the third List of emperors of the Ming dynasty, emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigning from 1402 to 142 ...

around the same time.

Death

He died on his way to battle Shahrukh (who demanded his submission) on 17 November 1420. According to Ahmad Faridun Bey's "''Munshat-us-Salatin''" Shahrukh's ''Fathnama'' ("term used to denote proclamations and letters announcing victories in battle or the successful conclusion of military campaigns" according to

Encyclopædia Iranica ''Encyclopædia Iranica'' is a project whose goal is to create a comprehensive and authoritative English-language encyclopedia about the history, culture, and civilization of Iranian peoples from prehistory to modern times. Scope The ''Encyc ...

) sent to

, right after Qara Yusuf's death his treasury was stolen by his nephews Qazan beg (Khwaja Misr's son) and Zeynal beg and taken to Avnik. Shah Muhammad and

Qara Iskander Qara Iskandar (; ) ruled the Qara Qoyunlu or Black Sheep Turkoman (ethnonym), Turcoman tribe from 1420 to 1436. His struggles with the Timurid dynasty, Timurid ruler Shah Rukh show that he was a brave leader, but he was not able to continue develo ...

retreated to

Ganja ''Ganja'' (, ; ) is one of the oldest and most commonly used synonyms for cannabis flower, specifically marijuana or hashish. Its usage in English dates to before 1689. Etymology ''Ganja'' is borrowed from Hindi (, IPA: �aːɲd͡ʒa� ...

and Barda. While

Jahan Shah Muzaffar al-Din Jahan Shah ibn Yusuf (; ; 1397 in Khoy or 1405 in Mardin – 30 October or 11 November 1467 near Bingöl) or Abu al-Muzaffar Jahan Shah was the leader of the Qara Qoyunlu Oghuz Turkic tribal confederacy in Azerbaijan (Iran), Azer ...

took his father's body to be buried in his ancestral town

Erciş Erciş (; ; , historically , ''Arčeš'') is a municipality and district of Van Province, Turkey. Its area is 2,133 km2, and its population is 171,000 (2022). It is located at the northern end of Lake Van. History of Artchesh During Cl ...

Aftermath

After the death of Qara Yusuf in December 1420,

Shahrukh Mirza Shah Rukh or Shahrukh Mirza (, ''Šāhrokh''; 20 August 1377 – 13 March 1447) was the ruler of the Timurid Empire between 1405 and 1447. He was the son of the Central Asian conqueror Timur (Tamerlane), who founded the Timurid dynasty in 1370. ...

tried to take Azerbaijan from Qara Yusuf's son

, using the fact that none of his sons were accompanying their father. Despite defeating Iskander, twice, in 1420–21 and 1429, only in the third expedition of Shahrukh Mirza in 1434–35 did the

succeed, when he entrusted the government to Iskander's own brother,

as his vassal.

Family

He was married to a daughter of

Manuel III of Trebizond Manuel III Megas Komnenos (; 16 December 13645 March 1417) was Emperor of Empire of Trebizond, Trebizond from 20 March, 1390 to his death in 1417. The major event of Manuel's reign was the arrival of the Central Asian conqueror Timur, Tamerlane ...

. He was also married to

's great-granddaughter, a daughter of Abu Bakr, son of

. Following Qara Yusuf's death, she was remarried by

Shah Rukh Shah Rukh or Shahrukh Mirza (, ''Šāhrokh''; 20 August 1377 – 13 March 1447) was the ruler of the Timurid Empire between 1405 and 1447. He was the son of the Central Asian conqueror Timur (Tamerlane), who founded the Timurid dynasty in 1370 ...

Khalilullah I Khalilullah I (), also known as Sultan-Khalil (), was the Shirvanshah (king of Shirvan) from 1418 to 1465. He was the son and successor of Ibrahim I (). He was succeeded by his son Farrukh Yasar. Reign After the death of the Qara Qoyunlu ruler ...

Sons

* Pirbudag (1403 – 1418) * Shah Muhammad – ''wali'' of

– ''wali'' of

* Abu Said – ''wali'' of

Erzincan Erzincan (; ), historically Yerznka (), is the capital of Erzincan Province in eastern Turkey. Nearby cities include Erzurum, Sivas, Tunceli, Bingöl, Elazığ, Malatya, Gümüşhane, Bayburt, and Giresun. The city is majority Turkish Sunni w ...

Rise to chiefdom

Early reign

The Timurid Invasion

Defeating Jalayirids

Later reign

Death

Aftermath

Family

Sons

Daughters

References

Notes

See also