Timur (meaning “iron”) was born in 1336 near the Transoxian city of Kesh. In modern-day Uzbekistan, this medieval Persian city is known as Shahrisabz.1)
Tamerlane is the Europeanized version of Timur's Persian nickname, Timur-e Lang, which translates as 'Timur the Lame'.2)
Tamerlane was paralyzed by injuries to his right leg and right hand in his mid-twenties. According to legend, he was killed by arrows when his party of robbers was attacked by a shepherd. It's more probable that he was injured in combat while serving as a soldier for the Khan of Sistan (in north-east Iran).3)
Tamerlane's tomb was unearthed in 1941 by Russian archaeologists, who discovered he had a crippling hip ailment and two missing fingers on his right hand.4)
He was tall for the period (1.73 m) and broad-chested, according to the excavation. His facial bones were pronounced, and he had Mongoloid characteristics.5)
The lines “When I Rise, The World Shall Tremble” were purportedly engraved on Timur's tomb.6)
“Whoever opens my grave shall unleash an invader more horrible than I,” his coffin allegedly said. Within two days following Timur's exhumation, Hitler invaded the USSR, and the Soviet triumph at Stalingrad came soon after.7)
Tamerlane's objective was to reconstruct Genghis Khan's kingdom, which had fallen apart a century before.8)
His military conquests included modern-day Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, major portions of Turkey and Syria, and the northwestern region of India (Delhi).9)
It is believed that his forces murdered 17 million people, or nearly 5% of the world's population at the time.10)
He claimed to himself as the “Sword of Islam”, and he converted a large portion of his dominion to Islam. The Borjigin clan, descendants of Genghis Khan, were among them.11)
Tamerlane's religious allegiance is unknown, and he may have used Islam to solidify and impose control. He was a brilliant politician who spoke Turkish, Mongolian, and Persian.12)
Tamerlane's father was a prominent member of Genghis Khan's Borjigin clan, which was allied to the Barlas tribe. The Barlas tribe, on the other hand, had converted to Islam and spoke Turkish.13)
Tamerlane was an innate leader. He spent his adolescence heading a gang of petty robbers. They robbed farmers of their animals and tourists and merchants of their belongings.14)
Tamerlane fought under the command of several Khans and Sultans. Because of his leadership abilities, he was assigned charge of a thousand warriors for an invasion of Khorasan (in north-east Iran). The accomplishment of this expedition resulted in more orders and prestige.15)
When his commander, Kurgan, died, the following fight for control was finally interrupted by the Mongol Chagatai Khanate's invasion of Tughlugh Khan. The leader of the Barlas tribe escaped the invasion, and Timur was chosen as his replacement by the Mongols.16)
When Tughlugh Khan died and left Transoxiania to his son Ilyas, Timur and his brother-in-law, Amir Husayn, saw an opportunity and invaded the territory.17)
Timur was a tribal chief who needed to protect his area. He used authority properly, treating aristocrats, merchants, and clergy with respect and generosity. As a result, he earned many supporters and a lot of authority.18)
Amir Husayn was harsh with his subjects and envious of Timur's burgeoning authority. They swiftly became adversaries, driving Timur to kidnap Amir. He was later murdered, ceding entire control of northern Iran and Afghanistan to Timur.19)
Tamerlane dominated the Chagatai chieftains to the north-east and finally claimed Mongol territory by marrying Saray Mulk Khanum, a Chagatai princess and Genghis Khan descendent.20)
Over the following three decades, Timur led his army in all directions. Persia had been totally subdued to the south and west. Georgia and Azerbaijan were taken to the north-west. The Mongol “Golden Horde” to the north was severely beaten, but he avoided attacking the Mongol heartland to the north-east.21)
Timur killed the inhabitants of Pakistan and India, explaining his atrocities as a holy war against the Hindu religion.22)
To frighten Timur's men, the Sultan of Delhi utilized war elephants clad in chain mail. Timur, in a horrific stroke of ingenuity, placed hay on the backs of camels, lit the hay on fire, and poked them till they cruelly rushed towards the elephants. Timur won easily because the elephants turned and stampeded their own army. The people of Delhi were slaughtered.23)
Timur's cruelty became more pronounced as he got older. Legend has it that during his 1399 assault of Baghdad (Iraq), each of his warriors was obliged to present him two severed heads from the predominantly Christian populace.24)
In 1402, Timur invaded the Ottoman Empire, and Bayezid died in captivity, in a cage.25)
His triumph triggered a civil war in Turkey, with Timur's nominee, Mehmed I, gaining control. Mehmed belonged to a tribe that had previously been granted control of the territory by the Mongols.26)
Timur continued to extend his dominion till his death. Timur was enraged after the head of the fledgling Chinese Ming Dynasty insulted him. However, after three months of victorious engagements, Timur succumbed to sickness and died.27)
Timur had invaded the Chinese during the severe winter of 1404 despite favoring spring invasions. This shows that his rage against the Chinese had a role in his fate.28)
Timur Tamerlane died on February 17, 1405 at the age of 68.29)
His remains was embalmed and interred in an ebony casket near Samarkand, fifty miles north of Kesh.30)