Ala ad-Din Muhammad II (علاءالدين محمد ʿAlā al-Dīn Muḥammad) was the ruler of the Khwarezmid Empire from 1200 to 1220. His father was a Turkish slave who eventually became a viceroy of a small province named Khwarizm. After his father died, Muhammad inherited his father's lands, and it was from there he began expanding outwards. By 1205 he had conquered all of Persia from the Seljuk Turks and in 1212 he defeated Kutluk, the Gur-Khan of the Kara Khitay (Kara-Khitan Khanate). When he had conquered all the lands from the river Jaxartes to the Persian Gulf he declared himself shah and demanded formal recognition from the caliph in Baghdad. When the caliph an-Nasir rejected his claim, Ala ad-Din Muhammad proclaimed one of his nobles caliph and marched towards Baghdad to depose an-Nasir. However, when crossing the Zagros Mountains, the shah's army was caught in a blizzard. Thousands of warriors died and with the army decimated the generals had no choice but to return home. The Khwarezmid Empire (also known as the Khwarezmian Empire) was a Muslim Iranian state in the 11th century in Khwarezmia that lasted until the Mongol invasion in 1220. ... Events University of Paris receives charter from Philip II of France The Kanem-Bornu Empire was established in northern Africa around the year 1200 Mongol victory over Northern China — 30,000,000 killed Births Al-Abhari, Persian philosopher and mathematician (died 1265) Ulrich von Liechtenstein, German nobleman and poet (died... // The world in 1220 Middle Ages in Europe Fifth Crusade (1217-1221) Events Mongols first invade Abbasid caliphate - Bukhara and Samarkand taken End of the Kara-Khitan Khanate, destroyed by Genghis Khans Mongolian cavalry Dominican Order approved by Pope Honorius III Frederick II crowned Holy Roman Emperor by Pope... Events January 6 - Philip of Swabia becomes King of the Romans April 14 - Battle of Adrianople (1205) between Bulgars and Latins August 20 - Following certain news of Baldwin Is death, Henry of Flanders is crowned Emperor of the Latin Empire Births Walter IV of Brienne Wenceslaus I, King of... Motto: Esteqlāl, āzādÄ«, jomhÅ«rÄ«-ye eslāmÄ«  (Persian) Independence, freedom, (the) Islamic Republic Anthem: SorÅ«d-e MellÄ«-e Īrān Capital (largest city) Tehran Persian Government Islamic Republic  - Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei  - President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Establishment 550 BCE Cyrus the Great overthrows Median overlords and... The Seljuk coat of arms was a double headed eagle The Seljuk Turks (also Seldjuk, Seldjuq, Seljuq; in modern Turkish Selçuklular; in Persian سلجوقيان SaljÅ«qiyān; in Arabic سلجوق SaljÅ«q, or السلاجقة al-Salājiqa) were a major branch of the Oghuz Turks and a dynasty that ruled parts of... Events The first Great Fire of London burns most of the city to the ground Battle of Navas de Tolosa Childrens crusade Crusaders push the Muslims out of northern Spain In Japan, Kamo no Chōmei writes the Hōjōki, one of the great works of classical Japanese... The Kara-Khitan Khanate (Simplified Chinese: 西辽; Traditional Chinese: 西遼; pinyin: XÄ« Liaó) (1124 or 1125-1218), also known as Western Liao was established by Yelü Dashi (耶律大石) who led around 100,000 Khitan remnants after escaping Jurchen conquest of their native country, the Khitan dynasty (also known as Liao Dynasty). ... Syr Darya (also known as Syrdarya or Sirdaryo) is a river in Central Asia. ... It has been suggested that Persian Gulf States be merged into this article or section. ... Shah is an Iranian & Pakistani/Indian term in Persian language & Urdu (شاه), for a monarch (king or emperor), and has also been adopted in many other languages. ... Caliph is the title for the Islamic leader of the Ummah, or community of Islam. ... Baghdad ( translit: ) is the capital of Iraq and of Baghdad Governorate. ... An-Nasir (d. ... Baghdad ( translit: ) is the capital of Iraq and of Baghdad Governorate. ... The Zagros Mountains are the most extensive range in Western Asia in terms of the area covered. ...

It was in this situation that, in 1218, Genghis Khan sent his emissaries to the shah in Samarkand. The shah executed the Mongol diplomats and sent back their entourage with their heads shaved in defiance of the emerging great power, and Genghis retaliated with a force of 200,000 men that crossed the Jaxartes in 1220 and sacked the cities of Samarkand and Bukhara. Muhammad's capital, Urgench, followed in 1221. Ala ad-Din Muhammad fled and sought refuge throughout Khorasan, but died of pleurisy on an island in the Caspian Sea some weeks later. // Events Damietta is besieged by the knights of the Fifth Crusade. ...   or Temüjin by birthname, (c. ... Colour photograph of a Madrasa taken in Samarkand ca. ... Combatants Mongol Empire Khwarezmia Commanders Genghis Khan, Jochi, Chaghatai, Ogodei, Tolui Ala ad-Din Muhammad, Jalal Al-Din Strength 90,000 - 250,000 men 400,000 men Casualties Unknown At least 150,000 killed The Mongol invasion of Khwarezmia lasted from 1219 to 1221. ... // The world in 1220 Middle Ages in Europe Fifth Crusade (1217-1221) Events Mongols first invade Abbasid caliphate - Bukhara and Samarkand taken End of the Kara-Khitan Khanate, destroyed by Genghis Khans Mongolian cavalry Dominican Order approved by Pope Honorius III Frederick II crowned Holy Roman Emperor by Pope... Bukhara (Bokhara in XIX century English, Buxoro or Бухоро in Uzbek (the Cyrillic alphabet was officially phased out for Uzbek after independence); بُخارا /Bukhârâ/ in Persian, Buhe/Puhe Tang Chinese, Бухара in Russian; also Boxara in Tatar) is the fifth-largest city in Uzbekistan, and capital of the Bukhara region (Bukhoro Wiloyati). ... Ruins of Muhammad IIs palace in Old Urgench. ... // Events May 13 - End of the reign of Emperor Juntoku, emperor of Japan Emperor ChÅ«kyō briefly reigns over Japan Former Emperor Go-Toba leads an unsuccessful rebellion against the Kamakura Shogunate Emperor Go-Horikawa ascends to the throne of Japan January - Mongol Army under Jochi captures the city of... Khorasan (Persian: خراسان) (also transcribed as Khurasan and Khorassan; Horasan in Turkish) is a region located in eastern Iran. ... Pleurisy, also known as pleuritis, is an inflammation of the pleura, the lining of the pleural cavity surrounding the lungs, which can cause painful respiration and other symptoms. ... The Caspian Sea is the largest lake on Earth by both area and volume,[1] with a surface area of 371,000 square kilometres (143,244 mi²) and a volume of 78,200 cubic kilometres (18,761 mi³).[2] It is a landlocked endorheic body of water and lies between...

References

Neil Blandford & Bruce Jones - The World's Most Evil Men, 1985
Nigel Cawthorne - The World's Worst Atrocities, 1999