Abul-Qasim Babur Mirza

Who was Abul-Qasim Babur Mirza?

Abul-Qasim Babur Mirza bin Baysonqor Beg, was a Timurid ruler in Khurasan. He was the son of Ghiyath-ud-din Baysonqor ibn Shahrukh Mirza, and thus a great-grandson of Amir Timur.

Babur was one of the many people involved in the succession struggle that took place during Shah Rukh's last years. Together with Khalil Sultan, he plundered the baggage-train of the army and then made his way to Khurasan. Meanwhile, Ulugh Beg also invaded Khurasan in 1448 in an attempt to defeat Ala-ud-Daulah Mirza bin Baysonqor, who held Herat. Ulugh Beg defeated Ala-ud-Daulah Mirza bin Baysonqor at Tarnab and took Mashhad, while his son Abdal-Latif Mirza conquered Herat. Ala-ud-Daulah Mirza bin Baysonqor fled to south-western Afghanistan. However, Ulugh Beg felt Transoxiana, where he had already ruled for decades, to be more important, and soon left the area. On the way back, Babur sent a force that inflicted heavy losses on his army.

With a power vacuum now in Khurasan, Babur quickly seized control. Mashad and Herat fell to him in 1449. Ala-ud-Daulah Mirza bin Baysonqor occasionally raided the area but was not a significant factor. Together with Ulugh Beg and Sultan Muhammad bin Baysonqor, Babur became one of the three important Timurid rulers. This balance of power was soon upset by Sultan Muhammad bin Baysonqor, who invaded Khurasan. The campaign started out badly for Babur, with a defeat at Mashad in March 1450 convinced him to cede parts of his territory. However, Babur soon recovered and took Sultan Muhammad prisoner, and then executed him. He then marched to Shiraz to take control of Sultan Muhammad's lands.