The dynasty which wouldn't die - a Zengi AAR

[Yvanoff]

Part 12: Down, then rising again - the beginning of Sultan Mahmud II's rule (1412-1431)​

And now, and for the last time, dear students, I wish you a good morning ! Yes, today is the last day where you'll be seeing me. Ah, don't make this face, Johanna - all good things must come to an end ! We're not quite finished yet. There's one last Sultan we have to study to complete this lesson about the medieval Zengis. He tends to be a bit overlooked, coming at the transition between two eras, but it's fair to say that he was absolutely crucial in ensuring the dynasty's survival. Even more so than Kutlug Ironside or Batuhan, I dare say.

Sultan Mahmud II. A well rounded ruler, without any major obvious strength, but no glaring flaws either. A balanced ruler was probably exactly what the Zengis needed in such a crucial period of history.​

When we stopped.... History looked set to repeat itself. Berkan had died aged merely 25, his life cut short by an unfortunate illness. His heir, and once again last male Zengi alive, was Mahmud II - a child barely 6. The Zengis' survival held on by a thread - as usual, one could say. But what would happen in case Mahmud II couldn't make it into adulthood ? Berkan was saved from his ambitious regent by a timely death on the battlefield, but what about Mahmud II ? Well, now the main threat wasn't internal, but external. You see, Caliph Tokhtamis, an intelligent man, didn't forget to include a certain provision in Berkan's terms of submission. Provision which said that should the Zengi ruler die without any direct heir, his lands would revert to the Caliph. Berkan, not planning on dying so quickly, had agreed - and now his 6 years old son was all that stood between the Caliph and direct ownership of the Zengi lands. Mahmud II could not quite grasp the gravity of the situation he was in, but his councilors certainly did. How could they protect their lord against the Caliph's ambitions ? Because undoubtedly, Tokhtamis would turn his eye towards the young Sultan at some point. Or would he ?..... In 1414, the Caliph passed away brutally, a lifetime in charge of a huge Empire encompassing Persia and most of Central Asia having taken its toll. His heir - young Tokhtamis II, born the previous year and very much unable to conspire against one of his vassals. Allah smiled again on the Zengis !

Tokhtamis II (r. 1414-1472), here pictured later in his life, inherited the Caliphate and the Ilkhanate as a newborn. Moreso than the survival of Mahmud II into adulthood, it is the Caliph's survival into the snake pit that was Esfahan at the time that is impressive.​

Mahmud II could then grow up quietly, instructed into the art of ruling by his advisors. It is said that he played a major role into convincing his regent to go to war against the usurper, High Chief Kogsegu of Mosul. The war being declared in 1418, when Mahmud II was already 12 years old, the story might well be true although it is not corroborated by reports of the time. Whoever was the instigator of the war, the aim was clear: restore the Zengis to their former glory - the target was none other than Mosul, the Zengi capital of old that Savtekin had had to leave over 40 years ago. High Chief Kogsegu was nicknamed "the Drunkard", which gives you a good insight of his abilities as a ruler. Well, he wasn't a better general, and had to surrender after 2 years of warfare. The year was 1420, and the Zengis were back in control of Mosul. They found that Mongol rule had not been too hard on the region. On the contrary, the Mongols had invested a lot of resources in the region, and Mahmud II was left in control of a prosperous region indeed worthy of being a Sultan's capital.

High Chief Kogsegu (r. 1383-1431). The poor guy was chased from his lands by the Zengis, who came back with a vengeance after half a century of exile. He died landless 4 years after his final defeat.​

Mahmud II came of age in 1422. He did not have the chance to be crowned in Mosul like his ancestors had before him, so he held a great ceremony in his new capital instead, linking his rule to the rule of the great Sultans of old. In the process, he took two wives. One of them was the daughter of the Khan of Bogen, powerful steppes warriors - albeit Catholic ones. The other was the daughter of Sultan Kaya of Rum. Mahmud II indeed prized the alliance with Rum above all else, probably in part because it had been forged by his ancestors, and also because the Turkish Sultanate remained a powerhouse in the region despite the loss of Anatolia. But Mahmud couldn't stay put. There was a time for celebrations, but also a time for war. After all, Zengi rule wasn't yet restored to the whole of al-Jazira. That is why in 1423, he led his troops to war against the Burcid Emirate. The aim now was not merely to conquer a bit of lands, but simply to make Emir Mîrza his vassal. The Burcids were just as weak as they were when Berkan had attacked them, and just as isolated. The war was over quickly - it took merely one year to make Mîrza swear allegiance to Mahmud II. The Sultan celebrated his victories by making the long travel to Mecca for the Hajj, to thank Allah for his benevolence towards the Zengis in general and himself in particular. As soon as he was back, he went to war again against Kogsegu, but was this time thwarted by an obstacle he had not accounted for. Tokhtamis was only 12 years old, but he insisted that his regent show the Caliph's power. He also did not approve of his vassals fighting among themselves when the true enemies were the Crusaders who had established Kingdoms on Sunni lands. That is why he proclaimed the Caliph's peace in the Ilkhanate. Faced with the choice of putting down his arms or raising the flag of rebellion against his overlord, Mahmud II wisely chose the former option - not without swearing to Kogsegu that they'd meet on the battlefield again. The truce, after all, was limited to 5 years, the Caliph being not so powerful as to impose perpetual peace on his vassals.

Pope Urbanus V (r. 1417-1433). It's fair to say the Zengis are no friends of the Papacy. ​

Made to wait, Mahmud II waited. He came back in 1431. Kogsegu was still as weak and isolated, and was quickly beaten. Sinjar, and with it the last parts of the original Zengi homeland, was now in the possession of Mahmud II. All that was left was to make the Emirs of Mudar pay homage to the Zengi Sultan again, and once again the lands of Kutlug Ironside and Batuhan would be whole again. Mahmud II celebrated his victory by crowning himself Emir of Mosul, and more importantly Sultan of al-Jazira. The title, last held by a Savtekin who held no lands there, was now Zengi again. But for how long ? Because that same year, terrible news arrived from Rome again: just as Batuhan before him, Mahmud II was the victim of the papal fury. The spiritual leader of all Catholics had indeed called for a crusade for the lands of Syria, much to the dismay of Mahmud II. But this time, the Zengis were vassals of Tokhtemis, who was the nominal target of the Crusade. Surely that would swing the balance of the war in favor of the Zengis this time ?.....

Well, we'll see about that this afternoon for our last lecture together ! Eat well but try not to sleep for this last time together please.

 

[Tommy4ever]

A Crusade on your lands in Syria? Time for death or glory!

 

[Yvanoff]

By the way, class, just before you leave, I have some more resources to give you. More maps ! Maps are always important to understand history. Those should make you realize the terrible situation the Zengis were left in after 1370 and how Berkan and especially Mahmud II turned back the tide of decline.

First map: the rump Zengi state (1370-1400)


Yes, this is the extent of Zengis-held lands between 1370 and 1395. Shocking, isn't it ? To compare with their earlier glory....
As per the other maps:
- orange are the lands held directly by the Sultan
- blue is the Ayyubid Emirate of Damascus
- green is the Ghazi Emirate, centered on Palmyra.
- red is the Ayyubid Emirate of Aleppo​

As you can see by comparing to maps from earlier times, the decline was severe, and the Emirs were all more powerful militarily than the Sultan. The conquest of Ghazi lands by Damascus led to an uneasy balance of power between on one side the Emir of Damascus and on the other the Emirs of Aleppo and Palmyra. This balance somehow managed to preserve the realm.

The beginning of the "rump Zengi state" - as it is usually nicknamed by historians - is dated to either 1370 and Savtekin's ascension to the throne, or 1371 and formal defeat at the hands of the Mongols. The end date is much more unclear, however. In 1395, the Emir of Aleppo managed to conquer the lands of Tell Bashir located immediately to his North, expanding Zengi territory once again, so some historians end the period there. But others argue that this victory wasn't the Sultan's doing and as such can't really be held to be the start of the Zengi Renaissance. Those historians would rather end the period in 1407, date of the military victory over the Burcid and first conquest by the Sultan themselves in over a century.

Second map: the Zengi Sultanate at the onset of the Syrian Crusade (1431)


what a drastic change, isn't it ? In not even half a century the Zengis had greatly expanded again. The same color scheme are used for the various Emirates, with two new colors:
- in grey-green to the North is the Coptic Burcid Emirate, recently vassalized by Mahmud II.
- in brown is the Emirate of Mudar, still a direct vassal of the Caliph at this stage but in discussion with his liege and Mahmud II over the possibility of swearing fealty to the Zengis, their former overlords. Mahmud II was ready to go to war over lands his ancestors had ruled over, but the Dayrikids used to be loyal Zengi vassals and as such Mahmud II would rather have a peaceful settlement of the question if at all possible.​

Berkan, but especially Mahmud II were energetic rulers, and they revived the Zengi fortunes. The comparison between the two maps make quite clear the extent of the reconquest, and while the Zengi Sutlan seem to held less lands than he used to be under Batuhan or Kutlug Ironside, the map doesn't show that Mahmud II also held at personal title various mosques and fortresses in the area he ruled over, making him having far more control over the lands he held than his predecessors (OOC: in short, I have less counties than I used to, but lucky inheritances left me with baronies I didn't use to have so I still had a decently sized personal demesne). Note that the Emirate of Aleppo, in red, expanded vastly during this period: know that Mahmud II had nothing to do with this, it was entirely the doing of strong willed Emirs taking advantage of the chaos reigning in the area at that time.

Third map: distinction between al-Jazira and Syria


With Mahmud II being crowned Sultan of al-Jazira, an important distinction has to be made between the lands he held as Sultan of al-Jazira and those coming with the Sultanate of Syria. The crusade targeted only the Syrian lands, colored in grey. In orange are the lands of the crown of al-Jazira. The Dayrikids are not included since they were independent.​

And now you can see the lands at stake with the Crusade. That's a fair amount of lands, to defend against the whole of Christendom. But Mahmud II was now vassal of the Caliph, ruler of the most powerful Empire of the time, an Empire stretching from Mecca to the steppes of Central Asia.

 

[Yvanoff]

A Crusade on your lands in Syria? Time for death or glory!

Yeah, a lot is at stake here ! Fortunately the Zengis have the backing of the Ilkhanate at this time. I'll do a map update after the last update, just so you can realize the vastness of the Caliph's Empire.

By the way, sorry for the delay, but map update #2 is here ! Hope it helps understanding the situation in the previous update better

 

[Bullfilter]

Catching up again - great stuff as usual.

The Zengi Sultanate was nothing more than a rump state, an old animal destined to die. And the first vultures manifested themselves quickly.

Nicely put.

We're nearing the end of our study of the medieval Zengis, it would be a shame to drop out now....

I haven't and won't!

just as Batuhan before him, Mahmud II was the victim of the papal fury. The spiritual leader of all Catholics had indeed called for a crusade for the lands of Syria, much to the dismay of Mahmud II.

Not again. But it has been a tale of survival against the odds, so here's hoping the Zengi's can survive just a little longer.

 

[Tommy4ever]

Maps always a plus! Impressive to see just how much you turned things around in the 15th century. I wonder if you will continue in EU4 if you survive the Crusade?

 

[Yvanoff]

Part 13: Dawn of a new era - the end of Sultan Mahmud II's rule (1431-1453)​

And for the last time, dear students, I will say good afternoon to you. Indeed, these lectures reach their end as we study the end of Mahmud II's reign, himself the last of the medieval Zengis. As the focus of your cursus is about the Middle Ages in the Near East, you won't study the Zengis any further, but you should know that there are lectures about the Zengis and the Renaissance for other students - if you're interested in knowing more detail about the later Zengis, be sure to contact those students ! But for us, right now, the focus is Mahmud II, so please focus on him until the end of these 2 hours.

Gerhard de Nîmes (r. 1437-1448), King of Syria. Upon his death, he was succeeded by his son Emelrich 'the Good'. Emelrich was indeed a more skilled diplomat than general, beaten by Ayubbid Egypt into becoming a tributary state.​

Unfortunately, it turned out even the great Ilkhanate was no match for the wrath of the united Catholic world. The Zengis themselves were beaten at Deir by the Papal troops in 1432, and the Ilkhanate lost all the decisive battles. Because of the huge resources available to each side and the vastness o the contested territories, the war dragged on for a while, but as more and more Crusaders kept arriving it soon became obvious that the war was unwinnable for the defenders. And in 1437, the Caliph was humiliatingly forced to surrender to his arch-nemesis, the Pope (now Martinus III, Ubranus V having died during the course of the Crusade - Martinus himself would die one month later). This event vastly diminished his prestige in the Sunni world - what good is a Caliph if he can't fight back against the Crusaders ? -, and especially in Mahmud II's eyes. Did his father Berkan bend the knee for nothing ?

Heir to Mîrza, Sahensah (r. 1435-1445) had to give up his father's faith at the behest of the Sultan. He was later killed in personal combat by his own vassal, Sheikh Nêcîrvan of Amida, leaving the Emirate to his son, Mîrza II. Despite having adopted Islam too, ambitious Mîrza II desired nothing more than becoming Sultan of al-Jazira himself, and was a troublesome vassal to handle. But these events are outside the scope of these lectures.​

Mahmud II, able to see that the Crusade was lost after 1434, decided to instead focus on the administration of his realm. Remember, after all, what happened when the Mongols invaded al-Jazira: Savtekin's regency council was very happy to accept the Caliph's offer of peace, since it meant they either could keep their lands under Mongol rule (Emirs of Mudar) or would be subject to a Zengi Sultan having lost all of his personal possessions and with it his power and leverage over his vassals (the other Emirs). Well, the situation was now reversed. Mahmud II had reconquered his family's ancestral homeland in al-Jazira, where all of the lands he held personally laid. Syria was full of powerful, troublesome vassals. Now, don't misinterpret this: all sources from this time depict a Mahmud II angered and depressed about the inevitable loss of his lands in Syria, which Kutlug Ironside had fought so hard for. But all in all, this wasn't that much of a big setback for the Sultan, since the core of his power, in al-Jazira, would remain untouched no matter what. So the Sultan set his sights on how to govern his realm effectively post-Crusade. And one big issue was the Burcid Emirate. Mîrza had bowed to Mahmud II's authority, true enough, but he remained a Coptic Christian who didn't enjoy being subject to a Sunni overlord. He was a destabilizing factor in the realm, and Mahmud II wouldn't have it. Studying history, he knew what the Zengis needed were peace to build up their strength. Peace, under Allah's protection. But Mîrza, a zealous Emir who had revolted against the Ilkhanate in great part because of religious tensions, wouldn't hear anything about converting. This left Mahmud II with no choices. Using the pretense of a plot instigated by Mîrza, the Sultan trried - and failed - to imprison the troublesome Emir. War ensued, but the Sultan was ready for the possibility of open rebellion. While his lands in Syria were subjected to blood and death at the hands of the cruel Crusaders, Mahmud was subjecting his lands in al-Jazira to civil war. That was quickly over, victories in Bira, Sinjar and Amida forcing the Burcids to surrender, but not before Mahmud II had become known as a Traitor. That is perhaps very unfair, seeing how much he did for the prosperity of his realm, but during a battle Mahmud II came to duel one of the rebels' commanders. He was about to lose the duel, when he managed to get away by throwing one of his own commanders in front of his foe. Not a very honorable action, to be sure, but tell me: is it better to rule 41 years, make your realm prosper, and survive in battle at all cost, or is it better to fight honorably and until the end in battle and die after ruling 4 years, plunging your realm into disarray ? At any rate, Mahmud II won the war, and Emir Sahensah, who had succeeded his father Mîrza who died during the war (of a non-war related cause), was forced to convert.

A map of the Ilkhanate at the end of Mahmud II's rule (borders outlined in red), with a list of the Caliph's most powerful vassals at the top left. The Caliph could raise 13k men from his own lands in Persia, and 60k men from his vassals. Of these vassals, the most powerful was the Khan of Irak and Arabia, who could count on at most 32k men including one third from his personal lands - although at the time, war with Abyssinia over Yemen and rule by the 11-years-old Toghtoga II had severely weakened the realm, forcing recourse to mercenaries. Akhutai, High Chief of Samarkand was roughly of equivalent strength to the Zengis, being able to raise 14k men, the vast majority of those from his personal lands - his strength here is a bit overstated since account of the times also take hired mercenaries in account of his strength. In reality, the Khan of Sistan Menggei was somewhat more powerful, being able to raise almost 20k men himself - a bit more than half of those coming from his own vassals. Mahmud II himself was no pushover, being the 3rd most powerful vassal in the realm if mercenaries are not taken into account, with 16k men at his disposal and three quarters of them coming from his own lands and such of ensured loyalty. Lastly, High Chief Chiledu II of Khiva could nominally count on 9k men at the best of times, although wars had weakened him and the hiring of mercenaries by High Chief Kogsegu of Fergana made the latter appear more powerful than the former. In reality, the High Chief of Ferghana could only rely on 6k men and used mercenaries to make himself more powerful than he actually was.​

The Sultan then did his utmost to improve his realm as best as he could. Lucky inheritances had given him direct control of a lot of strongholds and mosques in al-Jazira, and he spent the rest of his rule making sure his possessions were fitted with the latest technological improvements available. He notably vastly developed the settlement of Niniveh, which had been rebuilt as a small mosque by the Mongols and which was considerably expanded by Mahmud II. At the end of his reign, despite the loss of lands in Syria, Mahmud could field an army just as vast as Kutlug Ironside and Batuhan could in their time. He was among the Ilkhanate's most powerful and prosperous realms, helped by a settlement with the Caliph - to compensate for his loss of lands in Syria, to reward Mahmud II's loyalty towards his overlord, and because the Dayrikids used to be Zengis vassals, Tokhtamis II made the Emirs of Mudar Mahmud II's vassals, with the agreement of the Dayrikids, who weren't unhappy to serve the Zengis again. After all, better be a powerful vassal in a sub-realm than being insignificant in the great Ilkhanate, isn't it ? All in all, Mahmud II, otherwise also widely respected in his time as a scholar, was probably the greatest Zengi Sultan, ushering an era of prosperity upon his lands as the Middle Ages reached an end and firearms slowly replaced swords and spears as weapons.

His three eldest son. Berkan would marry shortly thereafter, but him remaining unmarried this late fed tensions with his father - Berkan, otherwise a great diplomat and able administrator, felt neglected by his father, who focused on his more warlike eldest sons, Kara and Kaikhusraw. The latter was the brightest of the two, being an excellent strategist and decent ruler, while Kara had nothing more than a decent grasp of military tactics. All in all, it is fair to say that Berkan looked to be the brother who would've made the best ruler, and his father often relied on his advice.​

There it, however, one last issue I haven't spoken of yet. What about the dynasty ? The biggest problem the Zengis had faced at the turn of the century was the lack of male heirs putting the dynasty in a precarious situation. Well, it's fair to say Mahmud II tackled the problem effectively. Acutely aware of the problems a lack of male heirs could bring, he was a productive Sultan, siring no less than 11 children including 8 males (one of them died shortly after birth, however). Though, it has to be pointed out, his firstborn Kara was not his actual son - Kara, according to the legend, was actually a young toddler that Mahmud II had found while hunting on his lands. Toddler cared for by a wolf, like the famous Romulus and Remus. Allegedly, Mahmud II saw a good omen in this, and adopted the boy. Whether that is true or a clever disguise for an illegitimate child, we don't know for sure. Kara, however, was surpassed in skill by his half-brother Kaikusraw, whose ability as a ruler did not escape the Caliph's acute eyes. Kaikusraw was appointed governor in Persia (in the region of Yazd) by the Caliph himself, a great source of pride for Mahmud II who therefore made him his heir, feeding tensions between his two eldest sons. But conflicts between rival titles claimants was something preferable to extinction, isn't it ?

The Sultan was overall fairly, how to say, productive. He certainly ensured Zengi survival with his great skills on the matter, something which can't be said of his predecessors.​

And, well, I think that will be all for this lecture. We've covered everything, I think, and we leave as the Zengis are able to look forward a seemingly bright future, their eyes fixated on the lost territories of Syria. I would like to thank you very much for your patience - you've put up with me during these long lectures very well, studiously listening to everything I had to say. I'll see you again for the test, but given your attitude during these lectures I'm fairly confident all of you will pass easily ! I wish you good luck and a lot of success in the rest of your lives - goodbye !

 

[Yvanoff]

So it's the end then ! Thank you very much for reading this AAR, whether you were a poster or a lurker (being a lurker is OK, I tend to be one when reading AARs too !).

It was a lot of fun to write and publish, and I'll have to say I'll miss having to do these updates each Wednesday and Sunday. I also learnt a lot by completing my first AAR ever, and notably about how important are the readers - after all what good is an AAR if nobody can read it ? The "1 update a day" target I had at the beginning was really utterly silly in hindsight, and I would guess 1 update a week is probably the most preferable update frequency.

All in all, thank you for the very pleasant experience and I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing this ! I'll try to make a proper update about the state of the world next week (but it's been weeks since I've said I'd prepare that one and I have done nothing for now )

 

[JSB217118]

Though, it has to be pointed out, his firstborn Kara was not his actual son - Kara, according to the legend, was actually a young toddler that Mahmud II had found while hunting on his lands. Toddler cared for by a wolf, like the famous Romulus and Remus. Allegedly, Mahmud II saw a good omen in this, and adopted the boy

Did this actually happen in-game? Either way, congratulations on finishing your AAR. The format you used was very interesting and I hope we see it more often in future AAR's.

 

[Yvanoff]

Did this actually happen in-game? Either way, congratulations on finishing your AAR. The format you used was very interesting and I hope we see it more often in future AAR's.

Yeah, that was an actual in game event. I suppose it can only fire when you're childless, but I have no clue about other conditions to meet.

Thank you ! Hope you appreciated the read

 

[Bullfilter]

Thank you Professor, for this excellent lecture series. It was most enjoyable and very well put together. I valued being there from the start. Congratulations on finishing.

 

[Idhrendur]

This was an excellent AAR. Thank you.

 

[Tommy4ever]

Well done Yvanoff, most people never manage to actually finish their AARs!

I definitely enjoyed hearing about the Zengis fortunes through this lecture series .

 

[Cromwell]

I'm a little late to the party but I thought this was a great AAR and a real story of a dynasty surviving against all the odds, it was nice it ended on a positive note with plenty of heirs.

 

[Yvanoff]

I'm a little late to the party but I thought this was a great AAR and a real story of a dynasty surviving against all the odds, it was nice it ended on a positive note with plenty of heirs.

Thank you very much ! Glad you appreciated it

Sorry for not doing a last, state of the world update as promised. I really wanted to, but it's a lot more work than I thought it'd be and I don't really have neither the time nor the motivation to do it, unfortunately