Iskandar (Timurid dynasty)

Iskandar was born on 25 April 1384 and was the second son of Umar Shaikh Mirza I by his wife, the Mongol princess Malikat Agha.

[1][2] Upon his father's appointment as viceroy of Fars in 1393, Iskandar and his family were transferred from his birthplace of Uzgand to join Umar Shaikh at Shiraz.

Soon after, both his father and elder brother Pir Muhammad were summoned to re-join the Timurid army, leaving the young Iskandar as the nominal governor in Umar Shaikh's stead.

Upon the latter's death the following year, this role was given to Pir Muhammad while Iskandar and other family members accompanied Umar Sheikh's bier for burial in Kesh.

[2] In 1397, following his marriage to his cousin Biki Sultan (daughter of Miran Shah by his wife Khanzada), Iskandar and his amirs were assigned to Ferghana.

Shah Rukh, who was both uncle and stepfather to the brothers,[9] dispatched Iskandar to Shiraz, bearing a letter to Pir Muhammad requesting a pardon for the young prince.

When he had first gained Shiraz in 1409, he gathered prominent religious figures to his court, such as the theologian Al-Sharif al-Jurjani and the poet Shah Nimatullah Wali.

At the same time, Iskandar began an extensive patronage of book production, resulting in the creation of albums, anthologies of historical and scientific writings, and poetry in Persian, Turkic and Arabic.

Troubled by reports from his nephew's realm, Shah Rukh sent an emissary to invite him in a joint-expedition against the Qara Qoyunlu, a pretext to have Iskandar recognise his authority.

The prince's lands were distributed among various Timurids, including Bayqara, who received Hamadan and Luristan, and Rustam, who had Isfahan returned to him.

However, this act of sedition proved one too many for Iskandar, who was captured by Qashqa'i nomads near Gandoman and handed over to Rustam, who had him executed in November of that year.