The Last Mongol
 

The Last Mongol

Introduction

Timur was born in 1336 in Kesh, a city 50 miles South of Samarkand. He was born with a deformed left foot, resulting in the name Tamerlane, or Timur the Lame. Through his military skill, Timur forged an empire in Persia and Central Asia.

Around 1358, Timur began his career as a military leader. His first campaigns included the invasion of Khorasan, and the subjugation of Kwarizm. With the death of his father, and assassination of his brother, by 1369 Timur sat on the throne of Samarkand, his capitol. The next thirty years were spent on a series of military conquests, and Timur captured most of Persia, Kurdistan, Baghdad, Karbala, and lands along the Caspian Sea. In 1398, Timur turned to India, capturing Delhi. Timur then turned west, capturing Aleppo and Damascus. In 1402 he defeated the Ottomans at Ankara, capturing Sultan Bayezid I. Smyrna was also captured from the Knights of Rhodes. Timur died of plague in February of 1405.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2..._dominions.jpg
Timur's Empire

After Timur’s death, the empire began to fall apart. Kara Koyunlu captured Baghdad in 1410. However, Timur’s son, Shah Rukh was able to take control in Persia and Transoxiana by 1409. Under Shah Ruhk, the cultural centers of the empire shifted to Samarkand and Herat. Trade from the silk road created wealth for the Timurid Dynasty, but without Timur’s ledership, by 1419 the empire was falling apart.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...15/hdfhdtr.jpg
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EU2 v. 1.08 April 21 Beta
AGCEEP v. 1.37
Very hard/normal

A Mughal Empire AAR

Starting later this week :)

The Timurids/Mughals always make for an interesting AAR. I'll be following it.

I tried the Timurid Empire last night. I had revolts every other minute, and all my neighbors declared war on me. :( All in all, a tought nation to start with, it seems. Not to play, mind you, but certainly if you want an easy start its not the nation to pick. IIRC, it starts with -3 stability doesn't it? :wacko:

Which is why I wish you all the luck with your AAR ;)

I think it starts out a little better in the AGCEEP, to reflect how things actually were under Shah Rukh.

Isn't is to that the Timurids start with only one core province?
Good luck with this one!

Once played a good game with the timurids, but that was in a very early version, both the new patches and AGCEEP does it a lot more difficult.

Since it's an AGCEEP AAR, I'll follow it!

ah, the Timurids, always an exciting choice. Best of luck!

The Last Mongol

1419-1428

Shah Rukh was a great general and an able administrator. By 1419, Shah Rukh had realized that without care his empire would collapse. The many peoples of the Empire were difficult to effectively rule, but Shah Rukh was able to hold the empire together. In early 1419, he took steps to centralize and consolidate his power. Some nobles protested this move, in particular Quaido bin Bakr*, but Shah Rukh was able to deal with him. However, when Quaido bin Bakr died under strange circumstances on January 5, 1420 people were suspicious.

Realizing that potential enemies stood on all sides surrounded the realm, Shah Rukh formed a military alliance with his vassal Mazandaran, a small state bordering the Caspian Sea. On February 12, 1420, Kara Koyunlu declared war on the Timurids. They were hoping to expand upon the gains that they made in 1410, when they captured Baghdad. The small Iraqi state, with its capitol in Basrah, was a vassal of the Black Sheep Turks, so they joined the war as well. Upon receiving the declaration of war, Shah Rukh led his armies into Azerbaijan**, where he a battle along the shores of the Caspian Sea. From March 30 until April 15, the two armies fought a series of battles. However, the mountainous terrain gave an advantage to the defenders, and Shah Rukh was driven back to Tabriz. The armies of Kara Koyunlu pursued, capturing the unfortified province on June 9. Shah Rukh rallied his army and turned south, lying siege to Basrah. However, Kara Koyunlu raised a new army, bringing 28,000 men to siege Tabristan, starting on November 27.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...5/33b28125.jpg

On March 9, Basrah surrendered to Shah Rukh, and gave 124 ducats for peace. Shah Rukh turned north, recapturing Tabriz on May 13. Coordinating with another Timurid army, Shah Rukh’s forces attacked Tabaristan. The battle lasted from June 9 until July 6, but the Timurids were successful in breaking the siege.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...15/battle1.jpg
Battle of Tabaristan

However, on July 14, Hamadan fell to the Black Sheep Turks. Shah Rukh tried unsuccessfully to drive the enemy from Hamadan, and was he was forced to return to Tabaristan. Kara Koyunlu attacked again, but by January 12, 1422 they were defeated. However, Shah Rukh was wounded, permanently ending his military career***. The Timurid armies returned to the offensive, retaking Tabriz on May 18, and laying siege to Hamadan and Kirkuk.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...5/51d78865.jpg

Kara Koyunlu counter attacked, finally capturing Tabaristan on January 27, 1423. Although the Timurids captured Kirkuk on February 1, they were still forced to make peace. On September 6, 1423, a deal was finally made. The Timurids were forced to give up the Tabriz province****.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...5/0da8af86.jpg

Much unrest within the empire was caused by the war. Many groups saw an opportunity for revolt, with Shah Rukh fighting in the West. In Karabogaz, the nomadic peoples revolted. In August 1421, Shiite Muslims in Tabaristan and Baluchistan rebelled against Sunni Timurid rule. On February 22, 1423, a meteor was seen over Herat. This was considered to be a bad omen for the Timurid Dynasty. Campaigns against the rebels were not made until 1424. Throughout 1425, addition rebellions plagued the empire. Further rebellions broke out in 1426, when Shah Rukh decided to enforce the Jizya laws, taxing non-Muslims. These laws did create much needed revenue for the emperor, and the revolts were seen as a small price to pay. By January 1427, all of the rebellions had been suppressed, and the empire was at peace. On April 17, 1427 Shah Rukh reaffirmed that his son Ulugh Beg, then the governor of Samarkand was his heir.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...5/0cf4ceff.jpg
Campaign against rebels

When the truce with Kara Koyunlu expired in October 1428, Shah Rukh transferred the army to the western border, preparing for war. On October 20, Kara Koyunlu, Iraq and Shirvan declared war on the Timurid Empire.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...215/Save22.jpg

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*Game terms- +1 Centralization, Assassination of Noble event. Quaido bin Bakr is fictional.
**AGCEEP renamed several provinces. In the mod, Azerbaijan province represents Tabriz. However, for simplicity I have named provinces by the names that are on the map.
***The leader Shah Rukh died. However the monarch is still alive.
****Tabriz province was the wrong culture, the wrong religion, and unfortified. I think that I gain by giving it away.

Pablo Sanchez: I'm glad to have you along.

Henry v. Keiper: I started with +2 stab. And in AGCEEP the revolts are nowhere near as bad as in vanilla. Thanks for reading.

Grundius: I have cores on most of Central Persia. I hope that you enjoy my AAR. :)

yourworstnightm: Actually, I think that AGCEEP might be a bit easier than vanilla. ;) I still face many revolts, however and there are several deterministic province seceding events.

Norrefeldt: I'm glad your following. :)

zacharym87: I'm mainly focusing on the Mughals in this AAR, but it still should be interesting.

What an intriguing beginning. I can hardly wait for more.

I guess the revolts aren't as bad, but clearly still present. :) Nonetheless, you've done a good job so far.

Well, Timurids do not seem to be the easiest nation to play with. What tech group are you in? Muslim? Not exotic I hope.

From the Grand United Strategy guide:

Good luck ;)

Just wait, til you get Babur as a leader, nothing can stop you anymore then.

Agreed. Babur is a super leader, and with a 3 siege value at the time he appears... he truly is unstopable. India will be yours!

I like this very much. Nice balance of pictures/screenies and just the right amount of text for me, enough to give me the feel for the era, plus explaining what is going on in the game and in your head. Screenies with a bit of imagination can go along way imho.

The Last Mongol

1429-1438

In early 1429, Shah Rukh continued the process of centralizing his government and consolidating his power in Herat*. The divide between the princes of Herat and Samarkand continued to grow, and this divide would prove to be a problem for later emperors. The Timurid war with Kara Koyunlu continued into 1429. On February 1, Timurid armies captured Tabriz. The Timurids won a series of battles in Tabriz and Iraq in the coming months, defeated the armies of Kara Koyunlu soundly. However, the good fortune of the Timurids turned around quickly. On April 20, the Uzbek Horde and the Golden Horde declared war. Shah Rukh saw the futility of attempting a two front war against determined foes, and quickly made a white peace with Kara Koyunlu.

The Golden Horde and the Uzbeks swept across the undefended Northern border, seizing undefended Timurid lands, pressing as far south as Lut. The Timurids constantly counterattacked**, retaking lands that the advancing hordes had left undefended, only to be overwhelmed by the superior numbers of the enemy. The desert terrain favored the Golden Horde, who had much more cavalry then the Timurids. With a stroke of luck, Shah Rukh was able to arrange a separate white peace with the Golden Horde, whose troops made up the bulk of the attacking armies on January 19, 1430. However, Sibir joined the war, sending large armies across the Timurids northern border. By minting money and levying taxes, Shah Rukh was able to raise an army and launch a costly counter attack. By January 11, 1431, all of the Uzbek forces had been driven from Timurid lands.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...215/Save31.jpg

In April 1431, a fresh force sent by the Sibir Khanate crossed the northern border. Knowing that his forces could not hold out against this new threat, Shah Rukh sued for peace, giving Kwarizim to the Uzbeks.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...215/Save33.jpg

Eleven months of peace ensued. The Empire returned to a state of stability and prosperity. Trade flourished in Samarkand, and merchants traveled the Silk Road. The peace was broken on March 12, 1432 when Gujarat, Bengal, and Hyderabad declared war. Shah Rukh began the process of creating and gathering a new army to fight back. This took time, and Quetta fell to Gujarat.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...215/Save37.jpg

The Timurid currency deflated during the winter of 1432, lowering the cost of raising an army. In 1433, the Timurids launched their counter attack on Gujarat, capturing Indus on February 9, retaking Quetta on May 16, and capturing Thar on November 22. The following year Kutch was taken on May 24 and Sindh was captured on September 16. On April 5, 1436 peace was made with the Gujarati alliance. The Timurids received 196 ducats, and Thar and Indus provinces.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...215/Save42.jpg

During the war with Gujarat, a series of diplomatic moves were made to protect the borders of the Timurid Empire. Shah Rukh married his granddaughter to a noble from Kara Koyunlu, securing the western border. Marriages were also made with the Chagtai Khanate and the Uzbeks. Timurid diplomats earned a great reputation for securing the borders with friendship rather than war. Peace lasted until June of 1438, when nobles in the Western provinces began to abuse their privileges and oppress the peasants who lived on their lands. Shah Rukh stepped in to protect the peasants, and the nobles revolted.
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*+1 Centralization
**- I made sure that they didn’t hold Khiva, Kwarizim, and Karabogaz at the same time. If they control all 3 at once, province ceding events start happening.

zacharym87: And more you shall have ;)

Henry v. Keiper: Thanks. The revolts have been surprisingly light so far. :)

Grundius: I think Muslim, but I'm not sure.

Fodoron: I guess that should make things...interesting ;)

yourworstnightm, HoChiMinh: Babur is a great leder, and he lasts for 25 years. Using him well will be important.

The Real Deal: Thanks, I'm glad you enjoy it.

I took a shot at the Timurids myself and experienced firsthand what a pain they can be to play, yet nonetheless fun. The're great for practicing fighting BB wars because (at least in the AGCEEP version I have - 1.35 I believe) you're in them as soon as you dow the first enemy. I tried multiple approaches, yet I think kicking Qara Konyunlu first is the best choice, placating Chagatai, Uzbek and the Delhi/Gujarat alliance with provinces.

You seem to be going well. Without all the events to plague them, I think Timurids could be one of the top nations in every game. So if you can survive those events, there are almost limitless possibilities.