Shirdil Abu'l-Fawaris () (c. 960-September 7, 988 or September 6, 989) was the Buyid amir of Kerman and Fars (983-988/9), as well as

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 ...

(987-988/9). He was the eldest son of

'Adud al-Dawla Fannā (Panāh) Khusraw (), better known by his laqab of ʿAḍud al-Dawla (; 24 September 936 – 26 March 983) was an emir of the Buyid dynasty, ruling from 949 to 983. At the height of his power, he ruled an empire stretching from Makran ...

Early life

When Kerman was conquered by his father in 968, Shirdil was appointed as viceroy to that province. For some time after 977 he resided 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 ...

, but was then sent back to Kerman. As the eldest son, Shirdil regarded himself as the successor to his father; 'Adud al-Dawla's apparent preference for his second son Marzuban therefore made him hostile toward his brother. 'Adud al-Dawla never definitively named a successor by the time of his death in 983. Marzuban (now Samsam al-Dawla) took power in Baghdad as senior amir, but Shirdil also laid his claims to the succession, and from Kerman he invaded and captured Fars.

Reign

Shirdil, who now used the

title A title is one or more words used before or after a person's name, in certain contexts. It may signify their generation, official position, military rank, professional or academic qualification, or nobility. In some languages, titles may be ins ...

"Sharaf al-Dawla" (), soon found his position surrounded by enemies. In the west, Samsam al-Dawla ruled in Baghdad, while two more of his brothers, Taj al-Dawla and Diya' al-Dawla, were in control of

Basra Basra () is a port city in Iraq, southern Iraq. It is the capital of the eponymous Basra Governorate, as well as the List of largest cities of Iraq, third largest city in Iraq overall, behind Baghdad and Mosul. Located near the Iran–Iraq bor ...

and

Khuzestan Khuzestan province () is one of the 31 Provinces of Iran. Located in the southwest of the country, the province borders Iraq and the Persian Gulf, covering an area of . Its capital is the city of Ahvaz. Since 2014, it has been part of Iran's ...

. To the north, Fakhr al-Dawla ruled in Ray. The next few years were spent by Sharaf al-Dawla fighting against all of these individuals. He provided support to the Samanids when Fakhr al-Dawla attempted to wrest Khorasan from them. Despite this, the rulers of Basra and Khuzestan soon acknowledged Fakhr al-Dawla as senior amir, making the latter the most powerful of the Buyids. Despite this turn of events, Sharaf al-Dawla was able to expand his position. He recovered Buyid

Oman Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is a country located on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia and the Middle East. It shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Oman’s coastline ...

, which had earlier seceded to Samsam al-Dawla. In early 986 he captured Basra and Khuzestan, forcing the two brothers to flee to Fakhr al-Dawla's territory. He then took on Samsam al-Dawla; by May or June 986 the latter recognized Sharaf al-Dawla as senior amir. Sharaf al-Dawla probably intended to invade Fakhr al-Dawla's realm, but Iraq soon slipped into anarchy and he was forced to intervene there. He entered Baghdad in 987, deposed Samsam al-Dawla and imprisoned him along with his official Fuladh ibn Manadhar in Fars. He also had the Daylamite officer Ziyar ibn Shahrakawayh executed. In July of that year the

caliph A caliphate ( ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with Khalifa, the title of caliph (; , ), a person considered a political–religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of ...

proclaimed Sharaf senior amir. Sharaf al-Dawla next planned to subdue the

Kurd Kurds (), or the Kurdish people, are an Iranian peoples, Iranic ethnic group from West Asia. They are indigenous to Kurdistan, which is a geographic region spanning southeastern Turkey, northwestern Iran, northern Iraq, and northeastern Syri ...

Badr ibn Hasanwayh, who had taken over Diyarbakr during Samsam al-Dawla's reign and was an ally of Fakhr al-Dawla. The campaign failed, and not long afterwards Sharaf al-Dawla died, either in 988 or 989. He had managed to mostly preserve 'Adud al-Dawla's empire, but the Buyids of Ray under Fakhr al-Dawla had become effectively independent. He was succeeded by his brother Baha' al-Dawla, but Samsam al-Dawla escaped from prison and captured Fars, Kerman and Khuzestan.

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sharaf al-Dawla 960s births 980s deaths Buyid emirs of Fars Buyid emirs of Iraq Buyid emirs of Kerman Year of death uncertain 10th-century monarchs in the Middle East 10th-century Iranian people Amir al-umara of the Abbasid Caliphate