Nasr ibn Ali
Karakhanid ruler of Ferghana and Shash who took Bukhara in 999, ended the Samanid state and brought Transoxiana under Karakhanid rule.
- Occupation:
- Historical figure, Politician, Military officer
- Nickname:
- Ilig Nasr
- Died:
- 1012
- Father:
- Ali ibn Muso
- Children:
- Ibrohim Tabg'ach-xon
Biography
Nasr ibn Ali belonged to the Karakhanid dynasty. He was a son of Ali ibn Musa and a younger brother of the dynasty's supreme ruler, Ahmad (Togan Khan). His birth year is unknown; his capital was Uzgen in the Ferghana Valley. Nasr never bore the title of khan; from 998 he was an ilig, but in practice he became the most powerful of the Karakhanids and held the largest domains.
Exploiting the decline of the Samanids, in 994–995 he took Ferghana and Khujand from them and then Ilaq. Under a treaty of 996, mediated by Sebuktegin, the border with the Samanids ran along the Katvan steppe northeast of Samarkand. In the following years Shash and Ushrusana also came under his rule.
In early 999 the Turkic commanders Begtuzun and Faiq deposed the Samanid amir Mansur ibn Nuh and put his brother Abd al-Malik on the throne. Nasr seized the moment: in October of that year he entered Bukhara without a fight, sent Abd al-Malik and other Samanids to Uzgen, and left his own governors in Samarkand and Bukhara.
In 1000 the Samanid prince Ismail ibn Nuh, who had escaped from captivity in Uzgen and taken the name al-Muntasir, tried to recover his ancestral lands. He met with success at first in the Zarafshan valley, but withdrew to Khorasan as Nasr's main forces approached and was killed there in early 1005. Transoxiana then remained firmly in Karakhanid hands; in 1004–1005 Isfijab was added to their realm.
To the south Nasr's neighbour was Mahmud of Ghazni. Around 1001 the two agreed on a border along the Amu Darya, sealed by Mahmud's marriage to a daughter of Nasr. In 1007 Nasr, together with Qadir Khan Yusuf, crossed the Amu Darya with a large army, but on 4 January 1008 he was defeated by the Ghaznavids near Balkh. The Amu Darya then remained the frontier between the two states.
Nasr ibn Ali died in Uzgen in 1012 (402 AH).
Career
- Karakhanid stateIlig; ruler of Ferghana, Shash and Transoxiana · 998–1012Everyone who held this post →
Life path
- 994–995Conquest of Ferghana, Khujand and Ilaq
Took Ferghana and Khujand from the Samanids, then Ilaq.
- 996Treaty with the Samanids
An agreement mediated by Sebuktegin set the border along the Katvan steppe, northeast of Samarkand.
- 998Title of ilig
Held third place in the Karakhanid hierarchy, after Ahmad and Qadir Khan Yusuf.
- 999Capture of Bukhara
In October he took Bukhara without resistance, captured the Samanid amir Abd al-Malik and sent him to Uzgen; he left governors in Samarkand and Bukhara.
- 1000–1005War against al-Muntasir
Repelled the attempts of the escaped Samanid prince Ismail ibn Nuh; al-Muntasir was killed in Khorasan in early 1005.
- c. 1001Treaty with Ghazni
A border along the Amu Darya was agreed with Mahmud of Ghazni and sealed by Mahmud's marriage to Nasr's daughter.
- 1004–1005Annexation of Isfijab
Isfijab was finally incorporated into the Karakhanid realm.
- 1007–1008Campaign into Khorasan
Crossed the Amu Darya together with Qadir Khan Yusuf; defeated by the Ghaznavids near Balkh on 4 January 1008.
- 1012Death
Died in Uzgen.
Legacy
Nasr ibn Ali was among the rulers who decided the fate of the Samanid state and the passing of Transoxiana to the Karakhanids. Under him the Amu Darya became the frontier between the Karakhanid and Ghaznavid realms; the Karakhanids governed Transoxiana for more than two centuries.
Era: Late 10th – early 11th century, the replacement of the Samanids by the Karakhanids- Capture of Bukhara, end of Samanid rule (999)
- Battle near Balkh; the Amu Darya becomes the border (1008)