Abu Said Aq Sunqur al-Hajib (full name: ''Qasim ad-Dawla Aksungur al-Hajib'') was the

Seljuk Seljuk (, ''Selcuk'') or Saljuq (, ''Saljūq'') may refer to: * Seljuk Empire (1051–1153), a medieval empire in the Middle East and central Asia * Seljuk dynasty (c. 950–1307), the ruling dynasty of the Seljuk Empire and subsequent polities * S ...

governor of

Aleppo Aleppo is a city in Syria, which serves as the capital of the Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Governorates of Syria, governorate of Syria. With an estimated population of 2,098,000 residents it is Syria's largest city by urban area, and ...

under

Sultan Sultan (; ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be use ...

Malik Shah I Malik-Shah I (, ) was the third sultan of the Seljuk Empire from 1072 to 1092, under whom the sultanate reached the zenith of its power and influence. During his youth, he spent his time participating in the campaigns of his father Alp Arslan, ...

. He was beheaded in 1094 following accusations of

treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state (polity), state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to Coup d'état, overthrow its government, spy ...

Tutush I Abu Sa'id Taj al-Dawla Tutush (; died 25 February 1095) or Tutush I, was the Seljuk emir of Damascus from 1078 to 1092, and sultan of Damascus from 1092 to 1094. Years under Malik Shah Tutush was a brother of the Seljuk sultan Malik-Shah I. In ...

, the

Seljuk Turk The Seljuk dynasty, or Seljukids ( ; , ''Saljuqian'',) alternatively spelled as Saljuqids or Seljuk Turks, was an Oghuz Turkic, Sunni Muslim dynasty that gradually became Persianate and contributed to Turco-Persian culture. The founder of the S ...

ish ruler of

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 ...

. Aq-Sunqur was the father of

Imad ad-Din Zengi Imad al-Din Zengi (; – 14 September 1146), also romanized as Zangi, Zengui, Zenki, and Zanki, was a Turkoman (ethnonym), Turkoman atabeg of the Seljuk Empire, who ruled Emir of Mosul, Mosul, Emirate of Aleppo, Aleppo, Hama, and, later, Ede ...

, the founder of the

Zengid dynasty The Zengid or Zangid dynasty, also referred to as the Atabegate of Mosul, Aleppo and Damascus (Arabic: أتابكة الموصل وحلب ودمشق), or the Zengid State (Old Anatolian Turkish: , Modern Turkish: ; ) was initially an '' Atabegat ...

Biography

Governor of Aleppo

Aq Sunqur was one of the Turcoman

bey Bey, also spelled as Baig, Bayg, Beigh, Beig, Bek, Baeg, Begh, or Beg, is a Turkic title for a chieftain, and a royal, aristocratic title traditionally applied to people with special lineages to the leaders or rulers of variously sized areas in ...

s that were assigned in 1084 by Sultan

Malik-Shah I Malik-Shah I (, ) was the third sultan of the Seljuk Empire from 1072 to 1092, under whom the sultanate reached the zenith of its power and influence. During his youth, he spent his time participating in the campaigns of his father Alp Arslan, ...

to aid

Fakhr ad-Dawla ibn Jahir Fakhr ad-Dawla Abū Naṣr Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad ibn Jahīr, also called Fakhr ad-Dawla, Ibn Jahir, or Fakhr ad-Dawla ibn Jahir, (1007-1090) was an 11th-century government official who served 5 different dynasties, most notably as Vizier (Abba ...

in the capture of the Uqaylid realm. Malik-Shah then made Aq-Sunqur the governor of

in 1086. Aq Sunqur subsequently ruled for eight years. Because of the many conflicts between the rulers and princes of the regions, conditions within the city were difficult. A combination of high taxes and goods prices led to an increase in crime. Aq-Sunqur began reforming by fixing the security situation in Aleppo and its environs. He activated the

Hudud ''Hudud'' is an Arabic word meaning "borders, boundaries, limits". The word is applied in classical Islamic literature to punishments (ranging from public lashing, public stoning to death, amputation of hands, crucifixion, depending on the c ...

in Islam, repelling thieves and bandits and stamping out corruption. He increased the use of the

police The police are Law enforcement organization, a constituted body of Law enforcement officer, people empowered by a State (polity), state with the aim of Law enforcement, enforcing the law and protecting the Public order policing, public order ...

to secure civilian rights. He used the police authority to protect people rather than to control them. Aq-Sunqur created the "principle of collective responsibility" for every village or sector, which meant that if a village was raided by thieves, the whole village shared the responsibility of defending it. Because of his policy to make order in the city, it became a suitable place for trading and farming, the economy recovered and inflation went down. He asked the people to not remove their goods from the road should they travel, stating that he would guarantee that their goods would not be stolen.

Conflict with Tutush and death

In 1089, Aq Sunqur was sent together with Bozan and

Yağısıyan Yağısıyan, also known as Yaghi-Siyan (; died 1098) was a Seljuk Turkoman commander and governor of Antioch in the 11th century. Although little is known about his personal life he was an important figure of the First Crusade. Governor of Anti ...

by Malik Shah to aid his brother Tutush to capture cities that the Fatimids had reconquered under

Badr al-Jamali Abu'l-Najm Badr ibn Abdallah al-Jamali al-Mustansiri, better known as Badr al-Jamali () or by his eventual title as Amir al-Juyush (, ), was a military commander and statesman for the Fatimid Caliphate under Caliph al-Mustansir. Of Armenian origi ...

. However, the coalition fell apart when Aq Sunqur refused to continue the siege of Tripoli after he had been bribed and claimed the city had proclaimed allegiance. After the death of Malik Shah, Tutush tried to become Sultan himself and Aq Sunqur first supported his bid until he and Bozan defected again, forcing Tutush to withdraw. In return, Tutush marched on Aq Sunqur in March/April together with Yağısıyan. Aq Sunqur was defeated and captured in battle on 27 May 1094 after a part of his Türkmen defected. Aq Sunqur was then decapitated together with fourteen others by Tutush. He died when his son Zengi was 10 years old.

Legacy

Ibn al-Qalanisi Abū Yaʿlā Ḥamzah ibn al-Asad ibn al-Qalānisī (; c. 1071 – 18 March 1160) was an Arab politician and chronicler in 12th-century Damascus. Biography Abu Ya'la ('father of Ya'la'), whose surname was al-Qalanisi ('the Hatter'), descended fro ...

said in his book ''The history of Damascus'': that he was just with the people, he protected the roads, guaranteed order, treated religion properly, attacked corruption and removed the bad people.

Ibn Kathir Abu al-Fida Isma'il ibn Umar ibn Kathir al-Dimashqi (; ), known simply as Ibn Kathir, was an Arab Islamic Exegesis, exegete, historian and scholar. An expert on (Quranic exegesis), (history) and (Islamic jurisprudence), he is considered a lea ...

and Ali ibn al-Athir wrote about him and found that he had a good reputation.

References

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Aq Sunqur Al-Hajib 11th-century government officials Year of birth unknown 1094 deaths People from Aleppo Government officials of the Seljuk Empire Generals of the Seljuk Empire