Pir Muhammad Mirza (c. 1376 – 22 February 1407) was a

Timurid Timurid refers to those descended from Timur (Tamerlane), a 14th-century conqueror: * Timurid dynasty, a dynasty of Turco-Mongol lineage descended from Timur who established empires in Central Asia and the Indian subcontinent ** Timurid Empire of ...

prince and briefly succeeded as King of

Timurid Empire 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 co ...

after the death of his grandfather Timur the Lame. He was the son of

Jahangir Mirza Jahangir Mirza (c. 1472 – c. 1515)Muhammad Haidar says (p. 329) that he is 42 years old in 1514, but he is notoriously unreliable with dates. was a Dughlat prince and briefly the ruler of Yarkand (1514). He was the eldest son of Mirza Abu Bakr ...

who was the actual successor to the throne but had died before his father. Next in line was

Umar Shaikh Mirza I Mu'iz-ud-din Umar Shaikh Mirza (; 1356 – February 1394) was a member of the Timurid dynasty and a son of its founder, the Central Asian conqueror Timur. Known for being a skilled soldier, Umar Shaikh was one of Timur's military commanders and ...

but he too died. Pir Muhammad's brother Muhammad Sultan was appointed Timur's heir, but he had succumbed to battle-wounds in 1403.Marthe Bernus-Taylor, ''Tombs of Paradise: The Shah-e Zende in Samarkand and Architectural Ceramics of Central Asia'' (2003), p. 27 This left

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 ...

, whom

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 ...

considered too meek to rule and

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 ...

who suffered from mental difficulties post head trauma. Timur felt that none of his sons were capable of ruling so he named Pir Muhammad as his successor. Pir Muhammad had been Governor of

Kandahar Kandahar is a city in Afghanistan, located in the south of the country on Arghandab River, at an elevation of . It is Afghanistan's second largest city, after Kabul, with a population of about 614,118 in 2015. It is the capital of Kandahar Pro ...

since 1392. His territory extended from the lands west of the

Hindu Kush The Hindu Kush is an mountain range in Central Asia, Central and South Asia to the west of the Himalayas. It stretches from central and eastern Afghanistan into northwestern Pakistan and far southeastern Tajikistan. The range forms the wester ...

to the

Indus River The Indus ( ) is a transboundary river of Asia and a trans-Himalayas, Himalayan river of South Asia, South and Central Asia. The river rises in mountain springs northeast of Mount Kailash in the Western Tibet region of China, flows northw ...

. In the fall of 1397 he led the first wave of Timurids into

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, and was invested with the rulership of

Multan Multan is the List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, fifth-most populous city in the Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab province of Pakistan. Located along the eastern bank of the Chenab River, it is the List of cities in Pakistan by populatio ...

. However, none of Pir Muhammad's relatives supported him following Timur's death. He was unable to assume command in

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 ...

. He went into battle twice against

Khalil Sultan Khalil Sultan () was the Timurid ruler of Transoxiana from 18 February 1405 to 1409. He was a son of Miran Shah and a grandson of Timur. Biography During Timur's lifetime, Khalil Sultan gained Timur's particular favor. He distinguished himself ...

a cousin and the other claimant to the throne but was defeated. He was allowed to remain in his lands. However, six months later he was murdered by his vizier

Pir Ali Taz Pir or PIR may refer to: Places * Pir, Kerman, a village in Kerman Province, Iran * Pir, Satu Mare, commune in Satu Mare County, Romania Religion * Pir (Sufism), a Sufi teacher or spiritual leader * Pir (Zoroastrianism), pilgrimage site in Pers ...

in 1407.

References

1370s births 1407 deaths Timurid monarchs Timurid dynasty {{India-royal-stub