Mohammed I. (Kerman)

Mohammed b. Arslan Shah (ruled 1142-1156) was an independent Seljuks ruler of Kerman ( Kerman-Seljuks ).

He came to power in a follow-up dispute in which he captured and killed his father Arslan Shah in 1142. He then had around twenty of his brothers and nephews killed or blinded . Another brother, Seljuk Shah, had to be defeated in a battle near Jiroft , whereupon Seljuk fled to Oman and was imprisoned there until the end of Muhammad's government.

Mohammed maintained an extensive system of espionage in the country and with his neighbors, which indicates a hidden opposition. Despite his tyrannical behavior he is praised by the chroniclers, he mosques and libraries in Bardasir , Jiroft and Bam was built, the ulama supported and poor students with payments and encouraged astronomy. He always obtained a fatwa before executions .

In view of the internal unrest in the other Seljuq states (from 1153) Mohammed obtained temporarily the protective rule over the cities of Tabas and Isfahan . He also controlled Oman until 1153/4 .

literature

• JA Boyle: Cambridge History of Iran, Volume 5: The Seljuk and Mongol periods. Cambridge, 1968
• Nagendra Kr.Singh: International encyclopaedia of Islamic dynasties, New Delhi, 2005