The Bloody Reign Of Emir Timur

Emir Timur, or Tamerlane as he is better known in the west, was a controversial figure of the 14th century whose bloody reign of terror reshaped the face of Asia for centuries. Born in a small town called Kesh, near Samarkand, in 1336 in what was then part of the Chagatai Khanate, now modern Uzbekistan, but scarce little else is known about his childhood and early adolescence.
This son of a minor chief would rise to control an empire that stretched from Syria to India. Nicknamed Timur Leng (the lame) due to a severe leg wound he probably received fighting as a mercenary in southern Iran in his youth. Many people claim that he received these wounds while stealing sheep, which is probably not true, but understandable that some people might wish to slander your memory when you have wiped out whole populations in war.
Timur claimed descent from Genghis Khan on his mother’s side (also probably not true), and declared his aim was to reunite the empire of his Mongol ancestors. His army was organized on the Mongol model but administration was left in the hands of trained Muslim administrators. A patron of the arts and respecter of learned men but he also regularly order the death of whole populations after a revolt.
He fell ill on a campaign to conquer China in 1405 and returned to Samarkand wear he died that February. Restorer of the Silk Road central Asia bloomed under his rule, but in India and Iran he was a bringer of nightmares destroying whole populations. Despite his contributions to learning and the arts his history will always be stained with blood.