Shah Rukh (Timurid Dynasty)

Shah Rukh (Timurid Dynasty)

Shāhrukh Mīrzā (Persian: شاهرخ میرزا‎ Šāhrukh Mīrzā) (August 30, 1377 – March 12, 1447) was the Timurid ruler of the eastern portion of the empire established by the Central Asian warlord Timur (Tamerlane) - the founder of the Timurid dynasty - governing most of Persia and Transoxiana between 1405 and 1447. Shāhrukh was the fourth and youngest son of Timur and child of one of his Tajik concubines.

After Timur's death in 1405, his empire fell apart with various tribes and warlords competing for dominance. The Black Sheep Turkmen destroyed the western empire in 1410 when they captured Baghdad, but in Persia and Transoxiana Shāhrukh was able to secure effective control from about 1409. His empire controlled the main trade routes between East and West, including the legendary Silk Road, and became immensely wealthy as a result.

The devastation of Persia's main cities led to the cultural centre of the empire shifting to Samarqand in modern Uzbekistan and Herat in modern Afghanistan. Shāhrukh chose to have his capital not in Samarqand, but in Herat. This was to become the political centre of the Timurid empire, and residence of his principal successors, though both cities benefited from the wealth and privilege of Shāhrukh's court, which was a great patron of the arts and sciences.