Taj al-Din Yildiz (also spelled Yaldiz, Yildoz, and Yalduz, fa, تاج‌ الدین یلدوز) was a

Turkic Turkic may refer to: * anything related to the country of Turkey * Turkic languages, a language family of at least thirty-five documented languages ** Turkic alphabets (disambiguation) ** Turkish language, the most widely spoken Turkic language * ...

ghulam Ghulam ( ar, غلام, ) is an Arabic word meaning ''servant'', ''assistant'', ''boy'', or ''youth''. It is used to describe young servants in paradise. It is also used to refer to slave-soldiers in the Abbasid, Ottoman, Safavid and to a lesser ...

of the

Ghurid dynasty The Ghurid dynasty (also spelled Ghorids; fa, دودمان غوریان, translit=Dudmân-e Ğurīyân; self-designation: , ''Šansabānī'') was a Persianate dynasty and a clan of presumably eastern Iranian Tajik origin, which ruled from th ...

, who, after the death of Sultan

Muhammad of Ghor Mu'izz ad-Din Muhammad ibn Sam ( fa, معز الدین محمد بن سام), also Mu'izz ad-Din Muhammad Ghori, also Ghūri ( fa, معز الدین محمد غوری) (1144 – March 15, 1206), commonly known as Muhammad of Ghor, also Gh ...

, became the ''de facto'' ruler of

Ghazni Ghazni ( prs, غزنی, ps, غزني), historically known as Ghaznain () or Ghazna (), also transliterated as Ghuznee, and anciently known as Alexandria in Opiana ( gr, Αλεξάνδρεια Ωπιανή), is a city in southeastern Afghanistan ...

, while, however, still recognizing Ghurid authority.''The Iranian World'', C.E. Bosworth, The Cambridge History of Iran, Vol. 5, ed. J. A. Boyle, John Andrew Boyle, (Cambridge University Press, 1968), 166.

Biography

After the death of Sultan Mu'izz al-Din Muhammad, two factions arose in the Ghurid Empire; a faction of

'' ghulams'', who supported Mu'izz's nephew Ghiyath al-Din Mahmud, while the other faction consisted of native Iranian soldiers, who supported the Ghurid ruler of Bamiyan, Baha al-Din Sam II. But Baha al-Din Sam II died after a few days, which made the Iranian soldiers support his two sons Jalal al-Din Ali and Ala al-Din Muhammad. Ghiyath, however, managed to emerge victorious during the struggle, and became the ruler of

Firuzkuh Firuzkuh ( fa, فيروزكوه, also Romanized as Fīrūzkūh and Fīrūz Kūh; Tabarian: Pirezcow; also known as Qaşabeh-ye Fīrūz Kūh) is a city and capital of Firuzkuh County, Tehran Province, Iran. At the 2016 census, its population w ...

. Meanwhile, Yildiz seized

from the Ghurid rulers of Bamiyan, but shortly recognized the authority of Ghiyath. Ghiyath, not glad about Tajuddin controlling Ghazni, and not daring to leave Ghur unprotected, requested help from the Khwarazmian Muhammad II. Muhammad, however, instead invaded the domains of Ghiyath, capturing

Balkh ), named for its green-tiled ''Gonbad'' ( prs, گُنبَد, dome), in July 2001 , pushpin_map=Afghanistan#Bactria#West Asia , pushpin_relief=yes , pushpin_label_position=bottom , pushpin_mapsize=300 , pushpin_map_caption=Location in Afghanistan ...

and

Termez Termez ( uz, Termiz/Термиз; fa, ترمذ ''Termez, Tirmiz''; ar, ترمذ ''Tirmidh''; russian: Термез; Ancient Greek: ''Tàrmita'', ''Thàrmis'', ) is the capital of Surxondaryo Region in southern Uzbekistan. Administratively, it is ...

. In 1208, the semi-independent Ghurid governor of India,

Qutb-ud-din Aibak Qutb ud-Din Aibak ( fa, قطب‌الدین ایبک), (1150 – 14 November 1210) was a Turkic general of the Ghurid king Muhammad Ghori. He was in charge of the Ghurid territories in northern India, and after Muhammad Ghori's assassination in ...

, attacked and occupied Ghazni, but was defeated by Yildiz forty days later.. In 1214, Yildiz killed Ala al-Din Atsiz, and put the latter's cousin Ala al-Din Ali on the Ghurid throne as his puppet. However, one year later, Muhammad II conquered Firuzkuh and captured Ala al-Din Ali; he shortly marched to Ghazni, where he decisively defeated Yildiz, who fled to

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

and captured

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest ...

from

Nasir ad-Din Qabacha Nasir-ud-Din Qabacha or Kaba-cha ( fa, ناصرالدین قباچه) was the Muslim Turkic Kipchak governor of Multan, appointed by the Ghurid ruler Muhammad Ghori in 1203. Successors of Ghori Ghori had no offspring, but he treated thou ...

. Yildiz later fought the Delhi Sultan

Iltutmish Shams ud-Din Iltutmish ( fa, شمس الدین ایلتتمش; died 30 April 1236, ) was the third of the Mamluk dynasty (Delhi), Mamluk kings who ruled the former Ghurid Empire, Ghurid territories in northern India. He was the first Muslim sove ...

, and laid claim to the throne of

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders wi ...

as the heir to Mu'izz al-Din Muhammad. Iltutmish refused, stating The two armies met at Tarain in January 1216. Yildiz was defeated and taken prisoner by Iltutmish, and after being led through the streets of

was sent to

Budaun Budaun is commonly pronounced Badayun is a city and a seat of Budaun district, Uttar Pradesh, India. It is located near the Ganges river in the centre of Western Uttar Pradesh. Budaun was the capital of Delhi Sultanate for four years from 1210 ...

, where he was put to death in the same year. After the fall of Yildiz, Qabacha again occupied

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Yildiz, Taj al-Din Turkic rulers Year of death unknown Year of birth unknown Ghurid generals 12th-century Turkic people