| Ghazan | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Khan Pâdeshâh of Iran and Islam[1] | |||||
 | |||||
| Il khan | |||||
| Reign | 4 October 1295 – 11 May 1304 | ||||
| Coronation | 19 October 1295 | ||||
| Predecessor | Baydu | ||||
| Successor | Öljeitü | ||||
| Naib | Nawruz | ||||
| Viceroy ofKhorasan | |||||
| Reign | 1284–1295 | ||||
| Predecessor | Arghun | ||||
| Successor | Nirun Aqa | ||||
| Born | 5 November 1271 Abaskun,Ilkhanate | ||||
| Died | 11 May 1304(1304-05-11) (aged 32) Qazvin,Ilkhanate | ||||
| Consort | Yedi Kurtka Khatun Bulughan Khatun Khurasani Kököchin Bulughan Khatun Muazzama Eshil Khatun Dondi Khatun Karamun Khatun Khutulun | ||||
| Issue | Uljay Qutlugh Khatun | ||||
| |||||
| Father | Arghun | ||||
| Mother | Kultak Egechi | ||||
| Religion | Sunni Islam | ||||
Mahmud Ghazan[a] (alsoGhazan Khan, sometimes westernized asCasanus;[2] 5 November 1271 – 11 May 1304) was the seventh ruler of theMongol Empire'sIlkhanate division in modern-dayIran from 1295 to 1304. He was the son ofArghun, grandson ofAbaqa Khan and great-grandson ofHulegu Khan, continuing a long line of rulers who were direct descendants ofGenghis Khan. Considered the most prominent of theIlkhans, he is perhaps best known for converting toIslam and meetingImamIbn Taymiyya in 1295 when he took the throne, marking a turning point for the dominant religion of theMongols in West Asia.
One of his many principal wives wasKököchin, a Mongol princess (originally betrothed to Ghazan's father Arghun before his death) sent by his great-uncleKublai Khan.
Military conflicts during Ghazan's reign included war with theMamluk Sultanate for control ofSyria and battles with the Turko-MongolChagatai Khanate. Ghazan also pursued diplomatic contacts with Europe, continuing his predecessors' unsuccessful attempts at forming aFranco-Mongol alliance. A man of high culture, Ghazan spoke multiple languages, had many hobbies, and reformed many elements of the Ilkhanate, especially in the matter of standardizing currency and fiscal policy.
Ghazan's parents wereArghun and his concubine Kultak Egechi of theDörböd. At the time of their marriage, Arghun was 12. Kultak's elder sister Ashlun was the wife of Tübshin, son of Hulagu and the previous viceroy inGreater Khorasan. According toRashid al-Din Hamadani, the marriage took place inMazandaran, where Arghun was viceroy.[3]
Ghazan was born on 5 November 1271 inAbaskun (now nearBandar Torkaman),[4][5] although he was raised in the nomadic palace of theorda of his grandfather Abaqa's favorite wife,Buluqhan Khatun, who herself was childless.[6][full citation needed] Ghazan and Arghun didn't see each other until Abaqa's attack onQara'unas in 1279, when they briefly met.
Ghazan was raised anEastern Christian,[7] as was his brotherÖljaitü.The Mongols were traditionally tolerant of multiple religions, and during Ghazan's youth, he was educated by a ChineseBuddhist monk, who taught himOld Mandarin andBuddhism, as well as theMongolian andUighur scripts.[8]
He lived together with Gaykhatu inBuluqhan Khatun's encampment inBaghdad after Abaqa's death. He reunited again with his father when Buluqhan Khatun was wed to Arghun and became Ghazan's step-mother.
After the overthrow ofTekuder in 1284, Ghazan's father Arghun was enthroned as Ilkhan, the 11-year-old Ghazan became viceroy, and he moved to the capital ofKhorasan, never to see Arghun again. Emir Tegene was appointed as his deputy, who he didn't like very much. In 1289, conflict with other Mongols ensued when a revolt was led against Arghun byNawruz, a young emir of theOirat clan, whose father had been civil governor of Persia before the arrival of Hulegu. Ghazan's deputy Tegene was among the victims of Nawruz's raid on 20 April 1289 in which he was captured and imprisoned. Nawruz's protege, Prince Hulachu was arrested by Ghazan's commanderMulay ten days later.[9] When Nawruz was defeated by Arghun's reinforcements in 1290,[10] he fled the Ilkhanate and joined the alliance ofKaidu, another descendant of Genghis Khan who was the ruler of both theHouse of Ögedei and the neighboringChagatai Khanate. Ghazan spent the next ten years defending the frontier of the Ilkhanate against incursions by the Chagatai Khanate of Central Asia.
When his father, Arghun, died in 1291, Ghazan was prevented from pursuing his claim of leadership in the capital because he was engaged both with Nawruz's raids, and dealing with rebellion and famine in Khorasan andNishapur.Taghachar, an army commander who had served the previous three generations of Ilkhans, was probably behind the death of Arghun, and supported Ghazan's uncleGaykhatu as the new Ilkhan.[11] Despite being boyhood rivals, Gaykhatu sent aid to Ghazan's fight against Nawruz in Khorasan under the leadership of Prince Anbarchi (son ofMöngke Temür) and emirs Tuladai, Quncuqbal and El Temür; himself going to Anatolia to quellTurcoman uprisings. However, famine reached his court too in spring and Anbarchi, unable to feed his soldiers, had to leave soon for Azerbaijan again. He again tried to visit Gaykhatu, but after his refusal, he had to go back. Ghazan receivedKököchin, a Mongol princess from theYuan dynasty in China, on his way back fromTabriz to Khorasan. She had been brought from the east in a caravan which includedMarco Polo among hundreds of other travellers. She had originally been betrothed to Ghazan's father, IlKhan Arghun, but since he had died during her months-long journey, she instead married his son Ghazan.[12]
In 1294, Ghazan forced Nawruz to surrender atNishapur[13] and Nawruz then became one of Ghazan's lieutenants. Ghazan was loyal to his uncle, though he refused to follow Gaykhatu's lead in introducingpaper currency to his province, explaining that the weather of Khorasan was too humid to handle paper.[14]
In 1295,Taghachar and his conspirators, who probably had been behind the death of Arghun, had his successor Gaykhatu killed as well. They then placed the pliableBaydu, a cousin of Ghazan, on the throne. Baydu was primarily a figurehead, allowing the conspirators to divide the Ilkhanate among themselves. Hearing of Gaykhatu's murder, Ghazan marched on Baydu. Baydu explained that Ghazan was away during the events leading to Gaykhatu's fall, therefore nobles had no choice but to raise him to throne.[15] Nevertheless,Amir Nowruz encouraged Ghazan to take steps against Baydu, because he was nothing but a figurehead under grips of nobles. Baydu's forces commanded by Ildar (his cousin and Prince Ajay's son), Eljidei and Chichak met him nearQazvin. Ghazan's army were commanded by Prince Sogai (son ofYoshmut), Buralghi, Nowruz,Qutluqshah and Nurin Aqa. The first battle was won by Ghazan but he had to fall back after realising that Ildar's contingent was just a fraction of the whole army he faced, leaving Nowruz behind. Nevertheless, he captured Arslan, a descendant ofJochi Qasar.[16]
After a short truce, Baydu offered Ghazan co-rulership of the Ilkhanate and offered Nowruz the post ofsahib-i divan to which as a counter-condition Ghazan demanded the revenues of his father's hereditary lands inFars,Persian Iraq andKerman. Nowruz refused these conditions, which led to his arrest. According to an anecdote, he promised to bring Ghazan back tied up on condition of his release. Once he reached Ghazan, he sent back acauldron to Baydu; a word play on the Turkish wordkazan. Nowruz promised him the throne and his help on condition of Ghazan's conversion toIslam. Ghazan converted toSunni Islam, on June 16, 1295,[17][18] at the hands of Ibrahim ibn Muhammad ibn al-Mu'ayyid ibn Hamaweyh al-Khurasani al-Juwayni[19] as a condition for Nawruz's military support.[20] Nowruz enteredQazvin with 4,000 soldiers and claimed an additional number of 120,000 soldiers commanded by Ebügen (in other sources, 30,000)[21] – descendant of Jochi Qasar – on his way towards Azerbaijan which caused panic among masses which was followed by defections of Taghachar's subordinates (thanks to Taghachar's vizier Sadr ul-Din Zanjani) and other powerful emirs like Qurumishi andChupan on 28 August 1295.
Seeing imminent defeat, Baydu asked for Taghachar's support, ignorant of his defection. After realising Taghachar's withdrawal, he fled to Emir Tukal inGeorgia on 26 September 1295. Ghazan's commanders found him nearNakhchivan and arrested him, taking back toTabriz, having him executed on October 4, 1295.
Ghazan declared his victory after the execution of Baydu on the outskirts ofTabriz on 4 October 1295,[22] he entered the city. After this declaration, several appointments, orders and executions came as usual – Gaykhatu's son Alafrang's son-in-law Eljidai Qushchi was executed,Nawrūz was rewarded withnaʾibate of state and was given extreme power, akin toBuqa's back in the day of Arghun. Nawrūz, on his part, issued a formal edict in opposition to other religions in the Ilkhanate. Nawruz loyalists persecuted Buddhists and Christians to such an extent thatBuddhism in Iran never recovered,[23] the Church of the East cathedral in the Mongol capital ofMaragheh was looted, and churches inTabriz andHamadan were destroyed.
Baydu loyalists too were purged – emirs Jirghadai and Qonchuqbal were executed on 10 and 15 October respectively. Qonchuqbal was specifically hated for his murder of Aq Buqa Jalair, his executioner was Nawrūz's brother Hajji, who was also Aq Buqa's son-in-law.[24] Taghachar's protege, Sadr al-Din Zanjani was granted the office of vizier following deposition of Baydu's vizier, Jamal al-Din. He reappointedTaghachar to the Anatolian viceroyalty on 10 November 1295. Another series of executions came after 1296: Prince Ajai's son Ildar fled to Anatolia on 6 February but was captured and executed;[25] Yesütai, anOirat commander who supported Hulegu's son-in-law Taraghai, in his migration toMamluk Sultanate Syria, was executed on 24 May and Buralghi Qiyatai, a commander who was rebellious against Arghun was executed on 12 February.
Meanwhile,Nogai Khan, kingmaker in theGolden Horde, was murdered and his wife Chubei fled to Ghazan with his son Torai[26] (or Büri[27]) who wasAbaqa's son-in-law in 1296.
Ghazan eased the troubles with theGolden Horde, but theHouse of Ögedei and Chagatais of Central Asia continued to pose a serious threat to both the Ilkhanate and his overlord and ally to the Great Khan in China. When Ghazan was crowned, theChagatai khanDuwa invaded Khorasan on 9 December 1295. Ghazan sent two of his relatives, Prince Sogai (son ofYoshmut) and Esen Temür (son ofQonqurtai), against the army of Chagatai Khanate, but they deserted, believing this was Nawrūz's plot to further deprive the nobility of their possessions.[28] Nawrū informed Ghazan of this plot, subsequently executing them in 1296. Another Borjigid prince, Arslan who was captured by Ghazan previously and pardoned, revolted inBilasuvar. After a series of battles nearBaylaqan he too was captured and executed, along with the rebellious emirs on 29 March.
Following the purge of princes, Taghachar was thought to have been implicated in the rebellion of Prince Sogai and was declared a rebel.[29] Taghachar strengthened himself inTokat and resisted against Ghazan's commanders Harmanji, Baltu and Arap (son ofSamagar). He was soon arrested by Baltu nearDelice and was delivered to Ghazan in 1296. Shortly afterwards Ghazan reluctantly ordered the murder of Taghachar; he recognised that he had been a help and that he was not an imminent threat, and explained his decision by reference to a Chinese story about the execution of a commander who saved a future emperor by betraying a former one.[30] His protege Sadr ul-Din Zanjani was revoked from the vizierate and arrested in March 1296, but pardoned thanks to the intervention of Buluqhan Khatun.
The purges were followed by the executions ofChormaqan's grandson Baighut on 7 September 1296, Hazaraspid rulerAfrasiab I in October 1296, Baydu's vizier Jamal ud-Din Dastgerdani on 27 October 1296.
Taghachar's death triggered the revolt of Baltu of theJalayir, in Anatolia, where he was stationed since Abaqa's reign. He was supported by Ildar (son ofQonqurtai), who was arrested and executed in September 1296. Two months later, Qutluqshah invaded Anatolia with 30,000 men and crushed Baltu's revolt, arresting him in June. He was brought toTabriz and jailed there until 14 September 1297, when he was executed along with his son. Seljuk Sultan of RumMesud II on the other hand was arrested and jailed inHamadan.[29]
Nawrūz soon embroiled himself in an argument with Nurin Aqa, who was more popular with the military and then leftKhorasan. After returning to the west, he survived an assassination attempt by a soldier named Tuqtay, who claimed that Nawrūz murdered his father,Arghun Aqa. Soon he was accused of treason by Sadr al-Din Khaladi,sahib-divan of Ghazan by a secret alliance with theMamlukes. Indeed, according to Mamluk sources, Nawrūz corresponded withSultan Lajin.[32] Using the opportunity, Ghazan started a purge against Nawrūz and his followers in May 1297. His brother Hajji Narin and his follower Satalmish were executed, along with Nawrūz's children inHamadan, his other brother Lagzi Güregen was also put to death in Iraq on 2 April 1297. His 12-year-old son Toghai was spared due to efforts of Bulughan Khatun Khurasani, Ghazan's wifeArghun Aqa's granddaughter and given to the household of Amir Husayn. Others who were spared, were his brother Yol Qutluq and his nephew Kuchluk. Later that year Ghazan marched against Nawrūz himself, who at the time was the commander of the army of Khorasan. Ghazan's forces were victorious at a battle near Nishapur. Nawrūz took refuge at the court of the king ofHerat in northernAfghanistan, but the Malik betrayed him and delivered Nawrūz toKutlushah, who had Nawrūz executed immediately on August 13.[33]
Ghazan maintained strong ties with the Great Khan of theYuan and the Golden Horde. In 1296Temür Khan, the successor of Kublai Khan, dispatched a military commander, Baiju, to Mongol Persia.[34] Five years later Ghazan sent his Mongolian and Persian retainers to collect income from Hulegu's holdings in China. While there, they presented tribute to Temür and were involved in cultural exchanges across Mongol Eurasia.[35] Ghazan also called upon other Mongol Khans to unite their will under Temür Khan, in which he was supported by Kaidu's enemy,Bayan Khan of theWhite Horde. Ghazan's court had Chinese physicians present.[36]
In order to stabilize the country Ghazan attempted to control the situation[37] and continued the executions – Taiju (son ofMöngke Temür) on 15 April 1298 on charges ofsedition, vizier Sadr ul-Din Zanjani on 4 May and his brother Qutb ul-Din and with cousin Qawam ul-Mulk on 3 June on charges ofembezzlement, Abu Bakr Dadqabadi on 10 October. Ghazan appointed a Jewish convert to Islam –Rashid-al-Din Hamadani as new vizier succeeding Sadr ul-Din Zanjani, a post which Rashid held for the next 20 years, until 1318.[33] Ghazan also commissioned Rashid-al-Din to produce a history of the Mongols and their dynasty, theJami' al-Tawarikh "Compendium of Chronicles" orUniversal History. Over several years of expansion, the work grew to cover the entire history of the world since the time ofAdam, and was completed during the reign of Ghazan's successor, Öljaitü. Many copies were made, a few of which survive to the modern day.
After Taiju's execution, he appointed Nurin Aqa as viceroy ofArran on 11 September 1298.
Sulemish, who Qutlughshah appointed as viceroy inAnatolia after Baltu's revolt, rebelled himself in 1299. He assembled a 20,000 strong force, which postponed Ghazan's plan to invade Mamluk-controlledSyria. Qutlughshah was forced to come back from Arran and won a victory against him, on 27 April 1299 nearErzincan, causing the rebels to flee toMamluk Egypt. He returned withMamluk reinforcements toAnatolia but was defeated again. He was brought toTabriz and executed by burning on 27 September 1299.[29]
Ghazan was one of a long line of Mongol leaders who engaged in diplomatic communications with the Europeans andCrusaders in attempts to form aFranco-Mongol alliance against their common enemy, primarily the EgyptianMamluk Sultanate. He already had the use of forces from Christian vassal countries such asCilician Armenia andGeorgia. The plan was to coordinate actions between Ghazan's forces, the Christian military orders, and the aristocracy of Cyprus to defeat the Egyptian Mamluks, after whichJerusalem would be returned to the European Crusaders.[38] Many Europeans are known to have worked for Ghazan, such asIsol the Pisan orBuscarello de Ghizolfi, often in high positions. Hundreds of such Western adventurers entered into the service of Mongol rulers.[39] According to historianPeter Jackson, the 14th century saw such a vogue of Mongol things in the West that many new-born children in Italy were named after Mongol rulers, including Ghazan: names such asCan Grande ("Great Khan"),Alaone (Hulegu, Ghazan's great-grandfather),Argone (Arghun, Ghazan's father) orCassano (Ghazan) were recorded with a high frequency.[40]
In October 1299, Ghazan marched with his forces towards Syria and invited the Christians to join him.[41] His army took the city ofAleppo, and was there joined by his vassal KingHethum II of theArmenian Kingdom of Cilicia, whose forces included someTemplars andHospitallers, and who participated in the rest of the offensive.[42] The Mongols and their allies defeated the Mamluks in theBattle of Wadi al-Khazandar, on December 23 or 24, 1299.[43] One group of Mongols then split off from Ghazan's army and pursued the retreating Mamluk troops as far asGaza,[44] pushing them back to Egypt. The bulk of Ghazan's forces proceeded toDamascus, which surrendered somewhere between December 30, 1299, and January 6, 1300, though itsCitadel resisted.[43][45][46] Most of Ghazan's forces then retreated in February, probably because their horses needed fodder. He promised to return in the winter of 1300–1301 to attack Egypt.[47][48] About 10,000 horsemen under the Mongol generalMulay were left to briefly rule Syria, before they too retreated due to Mamluk raids.[49]
Ghazan was indeed feared and despised by theMamluks, who sent a delegation of leading scholars andimams includingIbn Taymiyya, north from Damascus toal-Nabk, where Ghazan was encamped, in January 1300, in order to persuade Ghazan to stop his attack on Damascus. Ibn Taymiyya also may have met the envoys of Ghazan, including the qadi Diya' al-Din Muhammad, in Damascus in August 1301.[50] On one of these occasions, it is reported that not one of the scholars dared to say anything to Ghazan exceptIbn Taymiyyah who said:
"You claim that you are a Muslim and you have with you Mu'adhdhins,Muftis,Imams andShaykhs but you invaded us and reached our country for what? Although your father and your grandfather,Hulegu were non-believers, they did not attack us and they kept their promise. But you promised and broke your promise."
In July 1300, the Crusaders formed a small fleet of sixteen galleys with some smaller vessels to raid the coast, and Ghazan's ambassador traveled with them.[51][52] The Crusader forces also attempted to establish a base at the small island ofRuad, from which raids were launched onTartus while awaiting Ghazan's forces. However, the Mongol army was delayed, and the Crusader forces retreated to Cyprus, leaving a garrison on Ruad which was besieged and captured by Mamluks by 1303 (seeSiege of Ruad).
In February 1301, the Mongols advanced again with a force of 60,000, but could do little else than engage in some raids around Syria. Ghazan's generalKutlushah stationed 20,000 horsemen in theJordan Valley to protect Damascus, where a Mongol governor was stationed.[54] But again, they were soon forced to withdraw.
Plans for combined operations with the Crusaders were again made for the following winter offensive, and in late 1301, Ghazan asked PopeBoniface VIII to send troops, priests, and peasants, in order to make the Holy Land a Frank state again.[54] But again, Ghazan did not appear with his own troops. He wrote again to the Pope in 1302, and his ambassadors also visited the court ofCharles II of Anjou, who on April 27, 1303, sentGualterius de Lavendel as his own ambassador back to Ghazan's court.[55]
In 1303, Ghazan sent another letter toEdward I viaBuscarello de Ghizolfi, reiterating his great-grandfather Hulegu Khan's promise that the Mongols would give Jerusalem to the Franks in exchange for help against the Mamluks.[56] The Mongols, along with their Armenian vassals, had mustered a force of about 80,000 to repel the raiders of theChagatai Khanate, which was under the leadership ofQutlugh Khwaja.[57] After their success there, they advanced again towards Syria. However, Ghazan's forces were utterly defeated by the Mamluks just south of Damascus at the decisiveBattle of Marj al-Saffar in April 1303.[58] It was to be the last major Mongol invasion of Syria.[59]
After military campaigns, Ghazan returned to his capital Ujan in July 1302 and made several appointments: Nirun Aqa andÖljaitü were reconfirmed in Arran and Khorasan as viceroys respectively, whileMulay was sent toDiyarbakir andQutluqshah was assigned to Georgia. He received a concubine fromAndronikos II Palaiologos in 1302, who may be the Despina Khatun that later married to Öljaitü.[60] On 17 September 1303, Ghazan betrothed his daughter Öljei Qutlugh to Bistam, son of his brotherÖljaitü.[61]
According to Rashid al-Din, Ghazan became depressed after his wife Karamun's death on 21 January. He once told his amirs that "life was a prison... and is not a benefit".[62] Later in March/April, he nominated his brother Öljaitü as his successor, as he had no son his own. Eventually, he died on 11 May 1304 nearQazvin.[63][4] He was bathed in the water of LarDamavand valley ofMazandaran.
Ghazan himself appears to have dabbled in Sufism. According to the testimony of Shaykh Sadr al-Din Ibrahim Hammuiya, recorded in several Mamluk sources, Ghazan was given a woolen coat by him, indicating that perhaps the Ilkhan was initiated as a Sufi. This is not to say that Ghazan's relations with Sufis were trouble-free. In 703/1303, word came to him of a conspiracy of Sufi shaykhs and others to depose and replace him with his cousin, Ala Fireng, son of the Ilkhan Gaykhatu (r. 1291–95).[64]
As part of his conversion to Islam, Ghazan changed his first name to the IslamicMahmud, and Islam gained popularity within Mongol territories. He showed tolerance for multiple religions, encouraged the original archaic Mongol culture to flourish, tolerated the shias, and respected the religions of hisGeorgian andArmenian vassals. Ghazan therefore continued his forefather's approach towardreligious tolerance. When Ghazan learned that some Buddhist monks feigned conversion to Islam due to their temples being earlier destroyed, he granted permission to all who wished to return toTibet orKashmir and other regions inIndia where they could freely follow their faith and be among other Buddhists.[65] The MongolYassa code remained in place and Mongol shamans remained politically influential throughout the reign of both Ghazan and his brother and successorÖljaitü, but ancient Mongol traditions eventually went into decline after Öljaitü's demise.[66] Other religious upheaval in the Ilkhanate during Ghazan's reign was instigated by Nawruz, Ghazan put a stop to these exactions by issuing an edict exempting the Christians from thejizya (tax on non-Muslims),[67] and re-established the Christian PatriarchMar Yaballaha III in 1296. Ghazan reportedly punished religious fanatics who destroyed churches and synagogues in Tabriz on 21 July 1298.[68]
Ghazan was a man of high culture, with many hobbies including linguistics, agro-techniques, painting, and chemistry. According to theByzantine historianPachymeres (1242–1310): "No one surpassed him, in making saddles, bridles, spurs, greaves and helmets; he could hammer, stitch and polish, and in such occupations employed the hours of his leisure from war."[70] Ghazan spoke numerous languages, including Chinese, Arabic, and "Frank" (probably Latin), as well as his own native language Mongolian.[71]
In addition to his religious deep impact on Persia, Ghazan had unifiedmeasures,coinage and weights in the Ilkhanate. He ordered a new census in Persia to define the Dynasty'sfiscal policy. He began to reuse wilderness, non-producing and abandoned lands to raise crops, strongly supporting the use and introduction of Eastern Asian crops in Persia, and improved theYam system. He constructed hostels, hospitals, schools, and posts. Envoys from the court received a per diemstipend, and those of the nobility traveled at their own expense. Ghazan ordered only envoys bearing urgent military intelligence to use the staffed postal relay service. Mongol soldiers were giveniqtas by the Ilkhanid court, where they were allowed to gather revenue provided by a piece of land. Ghazan also banned lending at interest.[72]
Ghazan reformed the issuance ofjarliqs (edicts), creating set forms and graded seals, ordering that all jarliqs be kept on file at court. Jarliqs older than 30 years were to be cancelled, along with oldpaizas (Mongol seals of authority). He fashioned new paizas into two ranks, which contained the names of the bearers on them to prevent them from being transferred. Old paizas were also to be turned in at the end of the official's term.
In fiscal policy, Ghazan introduced a unified bi-metallic currency including Ghazani dananeer ( plural of dinar ), and reformed purchasing procedures, replacing the traditional Mongol policy on craftsmen in the Ilkhanate, such as organizing purchases of raw materials and payment toartisans. He also opted to purchase most weapons on the open market.
On coins, Ghazan omitted the name of theGreat Khan, instead inscribing his own name upon his coins inIran andAnatolia. But he continued to diplomatic and economic relations with the Great Khan at Dadu.[72] InGeorgia, he minted coins with the traditional Mongolian formula "Struck by the Ilkhan Ghazan in the name of Khagan" because he wanted to secure his claim on theCaucasus with the help of the Great Khans of theYuan dynasty.[73] He also continued to use the Great Khan's Chinese seal which declared him to be a wang (prince) below the Great Khan.[74]
His reforms also extended to the military, as several new guard units, mostly Mongols, were created by Ghazan for his army center. However, he restricted new guards' political significance. Seeing Mongol commoners selling their children into slavery as damaging to both the manpower and the prestige of the Mongol army, Ghazan budgeted funds to redeem Mongol slave boys, and made his ministerBolad (the ambassador of the Great Khan Kublai) commander of a military unit of redeemed Mongol slaves.
Ghazan had nine wives, 6 of them being principal wives and one being concubine:
When Ghazan Khan embraced Islam and proclaimed himself "pādishāh-i Īrān wa Islām" at the end of the thirteenth century (...)
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