User:Kansas Bear/Shaddadids

The Shaddadids were a Kurdish dynasty who ruled in various parts of Armenia and Arran from 951-1174 AD. They were established in Dvin. Through their long tenure in Armenia, they often intermarried with the Bagratuni royal family of Armenia.

They began ruling in the city of Dvin, and eventually ruled other major cities, such as Barda, Ganja. A cadet line of the Shaddadids were given the city of Ani and Tbilisi as a reward for their service to the Seljuqs, to whom they became vassals. From 1047 to 1057, the Shaddadids were engaged in several wars against the Byzantine army. The area between the rivers Kura and Arax was ruled by a Shaddadid dynasty.

History
In 951, Muhammad bin Shaddadid established himself at Dvin. Unable to hold Dvin against Musafirid incursion, he fled to the Armenian kingdom of Vaspurakan. His son, Ali Lashkari bin Muhammad, ended Musafirid influence in Arran by taking Ganja in 971. He later expanded into Transcaucasia as far north as Shamkur and as far east as Bardha'a. His brother, Marzuban bin Muhammad's reign also lasted only a few years.

Muhammad bin Shaddadid's third son, Al-Fadl I bin Muhammad, during a lengthy reign expanded his territory. He took Dvin from Armenian Bagratids in 1022 and his campaigns against them met with varying degrees of success. Al-Fadl I bin Muhammad, who held part of Azerbaijan, raided the Khazars in 1030. Later that year, while returning from a successful campaign in Georgia, his army encountered Georgian and Armenian forces and was decisively defeated.

After this, the entire region became chaotic with Byzantine pressure on Armenian princes and the Seljuq Turks gaining influence over Azerbaijan after a Seljuq attack on Dvin. Ali II Lashkari, whose court was at Ganja, was praised by the poet Katran for his victory over Armenian and Georgian princes. Abu-l-Aswar Shavur I bin al-Fadl I took power in 1049 with Ganja as his capital. He was the last independent ruling Shaddadid until 1067, when Tugrul I arrived at Ganja and demanded his vassalage. With this, the Seljuqs imposed direct rule over Arran and ended Shaddadid influence there.

As their influence continued to decline, Abu-l-Aswar's son, Al Fadl II bin Shavur I was captured by the Georgians and in 1075 Alp Arslan annexed the last of the Shaddadid territories. A cadet branch of Shaddadids continued to rule in Ani and Tbilisi as vassals of the Great Seljuq Empire until 1175, when Malik-Shah I deposed Al-Fadl III.

Shaddadid Rulers

 * Muhammad bin Shaddad (AH 340/951-971 AD)
 * Ali Lashkari bin Muhammad (971-978 AD)
 * Marzuban bin Muhammad(978-986 AD)
 * Al-Fadl I bin Muhammad (AH 375-422/986-1031 AD)
 * Abu-l-Fa't Musa (AH 422-425/1031-1034 AD)
 * Ali II Lashkari (AH 425-441/1034-1049 AD)
 * Anushirvan bin Ali II Lashkari(AH 441 /1049 AD)
 * Abu-l-Aswar Shavur I bin al-Fadl I(AH 441-459/1049-1067 AD)
 * Al Fadl II bin Shavur I (AH 459-466/1067-1073 AD)
 * Ashot bin Shavur I (AH 459/1067 AD)
 * Al-Fadl III bin al-Fadl II (AH 466-468/1073-1075 AD)

Emirs in Ani

 * Menuchir (1075-1118 AD) (The emir of Ani. A mosque in the city is named after him)
 * Abu-l-Asvar Shavur II(1118-1124 AD)
 * Fadlun IV bin Shavur II(1125-?)
 * Mahmud (?-1131 AD)
 * Khushchikr (1131-? AD)
 * Shaddad (?-1155 AD)
 * Fadl V (1155-1161 AD)
 * Shahanshah (also, Sultan ibn Mahmud) (1164-1174 AD)