Zengids

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Zengids around 1146 green, Byzantium purple, Crusader states pink

The Zengiden (also Zangiden , Arabic زنكيون, DMG Zankiyūn ) were a Turkish dynasty in northern Syria and northern Iraq (1126–1262).

history

The dynasty was founded by the Afshar , an Oghuz tribe, namely by the Mamluk Aq Sunqur al-Hajjib , who served the Seljuks as the Atabeg (educator) of their Prince Tutush I in Aleppo .

His son Imad ad-Din Zangi ( regent 1127–1146) became governor in Iraq (including Baghdad ) in 1127 and conquered Mosul in 1128 , so that he soon ruled large parts of Iraq and Syria. The submission of Damascus failed in 1140 when it allied itself with the Crusaders . Imad ad-Din Zangi took up the fight against them in northern Syria and from them captured the county of Edessa in 1144 . He was murdered in 1146.

His son Nur ad-Din Zangi (1146–1174) inherited Syria, while Saif ad-Din Ghazi I was given Iraq and founded his own line of the dynasty in Mosul (1146–1262). Only ad-Din led the rule of the Zangids to its climax, by uniting all of Muslim Syria after the subjugation of Damascus (1154) . In 1149 he had won the first great victory over the Crusaders at Inab . He also promoted the economy and education through the establishment of Madrasan in order to further enforce Orthodox Sunnism in Syria and to curtail the influence of the Shiites .

Under his general Schirkuh , the subjugation of the Fatimids in Egypt also succeeded in 1168 . Saladin , the successor of Shirkuh in Egypt, overthrew the Fatimids and founded the Ayyubid dynasty . There was considerable tension with Nur ad-Din, who regarded Saladin as his vassal .

The death of Nur ad-Din in 1174 prevented the war. Saladin took advantage of this by occupying Syria and overthrowing Nuraddin's son Ismail. The branch lines of the Zangids in the Jazira (1250) and Sinjar (1220) were also eliminated by the Ayyubids. In 1262 the branch line in Mosul was overthrown by the Ilchane .

Zengid Atabegs

Mosul

Aleppo

Damascus

Sinjar (in Northern Iraq)

Jazirah (in Northern Iraq)

family tree

 
 
 
 
 Aq Sunqur
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Aleppo
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Zengi
(1127-1146)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Ghazi I
(1146-1149)
 
 Mawdud
(1149-1170)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Ad-Din only
(1146–1174)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Ghazi II
(1170-1180)
 
 Mas'ud I
(1180-1193)
 
 
 Zengi II
(1181-1183)
 
 as-Salih
(1174–1181)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Arslan Shah I
(1193-1211)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Mas'ud II.
(1211-1218)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Arslan Shah II
(1218-1219)
 
 Mahmud
(1219-1234)