Ïnanch Sonqur (Turkic) (in ) or Husam al-Din Sunqur Inanj (in ) (died 1169) 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 ...

amir Emir (; ' (), also transliterated as amir, is a word of Arabic origin that can refer to a male monarch, aristocrat, holder of high-ranking military or political office, or other person possessing actual or ceremonial authority. The title has ...

'' of Ray from 1160 at the latest until his death. During his eight years in power he played a major role in the events that occurred in northern

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

Career

Before the decline of the Seljuk Sultanate of

Merv Merv (, ', ; ), also known as the Merve Oasis, was a major Iranian peoples, Iranian city in Central Asia, on the historical Silk Road, near today's Mary, Turkmenistan. Human settlements on the site of Merv existed from the 3rd millennium& ...

, the city of Ray had been part of Sultan Sanjar's territories. After Sanjar's capture in 1153 by bands of rebellious

Oghuz Turks The Oghuz Turks ( Middle Turkic: , ) were a western Turkic people who spoke the Oghuz branch of the Turkic language family. In the 8th century, they formed a tribal confederation conventionally named the Oghuz Yabgu State in Central Asia ...

, his empire fell into chaos. In the midst of this confused situation, Ïnanch Sonqur was able to take Ray with assistance from the

Bavandids The Bavand dynasty () (also spelled Bavend), or simply the Bavandids, was an Iranian dynasty that ruled in parts of Tabaristan (present-day Mazandaran province) in what is now northern Iran from 651 until 1349, alternating between outright indep ...

. Ïnanch soon began meddling in the affairs of the Seljuks of

Hamadan Hamadan ( ; , ) is a mountainous city in western Iran. It is located in the Central District of Hamadan County in Hamadan province, serving as the capital of the province, county, and district. As of the 2016 Iranian census, it had a po ...

. After the death of Sultan Muhammad ibn Mahmud in 1159, the amirs of the surrounding provinces disagreed on who should succeed him. In the end, Ïnanch's candidate Suleiman-Shah won out.Bosworth, p. 177 For the duration of Suleiman Shah's reign Ïnanch lent him support, but the sultan's incompetence eventually led the amirs to overthrow him and ask the Atabeg of Azerbaijan, Shams al-Din Eldigüz, to replace him with Arslan. Arslan was accordingly installed in Hamadan in 1161. Eldigüz was able to gain Ïnanch's approval of the affair after arranging a marriage between his son Pahlavan and Ïnanch's daughter, Ïnanch Khatun. Arslan, however, ran into problems of his own, and eventually Ïnanch and a coalition of other amirs revolted and marched against Hamadan. Arslan, Eldigüz and Gird-Bazu defeated them in battle, forcing Ïnanch to flee. After his defeat, Ïnanch made his way to the territories of the

. He then went to the court of the Shah of Khwarezm,

Il-Arslan Il-Arslan ("The Lion") (full name: ''Taj ad-Dunya wa ad-Din Abul-Fath Il-Arslan ibn Atsiz'', Persian: تاج الدین ابوالفتح ایل ارسلان بن اتسز) (died March 1172) was the Shah of Khwarezm from 1156 until 1172. He was th ...

, who supplied him with an army and sent him back to northern Iran.Bosworth, p. 178 Ïnanch invaded the area around

Qazvin Qazvin (; ; ) is a city in the Central District (Qazvin County), Central District of Qazvin County, Qazvin province, Qazvin province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. It is the largest city in the provi ...

and Zanjan in 1166/7, but was unable to make any headway against the Seljuks or Eldigüz, and the loosely disciplined Khwarezmian troops were hated by the local people. Ïnanch retreated to

Gurgan Gorgan (; ) is a city in the Central District of Gorgan County, Golestan province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. It lies approximately to the northeast of the national capital Tehran, and some a ...

, but was able to enlist the support of the Bavandids and with their help managed to regain Ray.''Ala-al-Dawla Hasan'' Ïnanch's victory in reasserting his position was short lived. In 1169 Eldigüz invaded and besieged Ïnanch. Soon afterwards, he convinced some of Ïnanch's ghulams to murder him. Ray was taken by Eldigüz, who granted it to his son Pahlavan and left his

vizier A vizier (; ; ) is a high-ranking political advisor or Minister (government), minister in the Near East. The Abbasids, Abbasid caliphs gave the title ''wazir'' to a minister formerly called ''katib'' (secretary), who was at first merely a help ...

to administer the city.

Notes

References

*"Al-E Bavand." ''Encyclopaedia Iranica Online.'' Encyclopædia Iranica. 2 February 2008. *"'Ala'-al-Dawla Hasan." ''Encyclopaedia Iranica Online.'' Encyclopædia Iranica. 2 February 2008. *Bosworth, C.E. "The Political and Dynastic History of the Iranian World (A.D. 1000-1217)." ''The Cambridge History of Iran, Volume 5: The Saljuq and Mongol Periods.'' Edited by J.A. Boyle. Great Britain: Cambridge University Press, 1968. {{s-end 1169 deaths Year of birth unknown People of the Nizari–Seljuk wars Ray County, Iran Government officials of the Seljuk Empire