Mahmud of Ghazni

Yamīn-ud-Dawla Abul-Qāṣim Maḥmūd ibn Sebüktegīn (Persian: یمین‌الدوله ابوالقاسم محمود بن سبکتگین‎‎), more commonly known as Mahmud of Ghazni (محمود غزنوی; 2 November 971 CE – 30 April 1030 CE), also known as Mahmūd-i Zābulī (محمود زابلی), was the most prominent ruler of the Ghaznavid Empire. He conquered the eastern Iranian lands and the northwestern Indian subcontinent (modern Afghanistan and Pakistan) from 997 to his death in 1030. Mahmud turned the former provincial city of Ghazna into the wealthy capital of an extensive empire which covered most of today's Afghanistan, eastern Iran, and Pakistan, by looting the riches and wealth from the then Indian subcontinent.

He was the first ruler to carry the title Sultan ("authority"), signifying the extent of his power, though preserving the ideological link to the suzerainty of the Abbasid Caliphate. During his rule, he invaded and plundered parts of Hindustan (east of the Indus River) 17 times.

Early life and origin

Mahmud was born on Thursday, 10 Muharram, 361 AH/ November 2, 971 CE in the town of Ghazna in Medieval Khorasan (modern southeastern Afghanistan). His father Sabuktigin was a Turkic Mamluk who founded the Ghaznavid dynasty. His mother was the daughter of a Persian aristocrat from Zabulistan.