Ahmad Jalayir

Sultan Ahmad was a Jalayirid ruler (1382–1410). He was the son of Shaikh Awais Jalayir.

Struggle With His Brothers

Ahmad came to power as a result of a plot against his brother Shaikh Hussain Jalayir. In 1382 he departed from Ardabil, which he had been given control of, and took Tabriz; Husain was captured and executed. Ahmad's other brothers, Shaikh 'Ali and Bayazid opposed him; Husain's former amir, 'Adil Aqa, had Bayazid proclaimed sultan in Soltaniyeh, while Shaikh 'Ali prepared to leave Baghdad and march on Tabriz. To secure his position, Ahmad requested the assistance of the Black Sheep Turkmen. Shaikh 'Ali fell in battle against the Turkmen; within two years Ahmad was also able to neutralize Bayazid (see Bayazid (Jalayirids) for further details).

Conflict With Timur

In the spring of 1384 the Chagatai amir Timur attacked the Jalayirids. Although Sultan Ahmad was not captured, his subordinates in Soltaniyeh failed to defend the town and Timur took it with a minimum of resistance. Timur gave the town to 'Adil Aqa, who had defected to him, before retiring from the campaign. Ahmad then sent an army to retake Soltaniyeh, but 'Adil Aqa successfully defended it.

Jalairs

Jalair (Mongolian: Жалайр/Jalair; ,also Djalair (~ Yyalair), Jalair ) is one of the Darliqin Mongol tribes according to Rashid-al-Din Hamadani's Jami' al-tawarikh. They lived along the Shilka River in modern Zabaykalsky Krai of Russia. After the Mongol conquest in the 13th century many Jalairs spread over Central Asia and the Middle East. Jalairs are one of the founding tribes of Mongolia's largest ethnic group Khalkha. Smaller clans named Jalayir are also found among the Inner Mongolians in China. The Jalayirs who stayed in Central Asia under the rules of Genghis Khan's older sons' descendants eventually adopted Turkic language. They are found among the Kazakhs of the Great jüz; also they are found among the Uzbeks (especially among Uzbeks of Southern Tajikistan and Afghanistan), Karakalpaks, and the Kyrgyz. The Jalairs who went to Iran, Iraq, and Afghanistan found the Jalairid Sultanate in 1330. The state was then taken over by the "Black sheep" Turks or Kara Koyunlu in 1432. Smaller numbers of powerful Jalair families lived in Khorasan, Iran as well as in the Mughal Empire until the 19th century.