Siege of Balkh ( 1370 ) The battle of Balkh was a key success in Timur ' s rise to power , and established him as the ruler of the western Chaghatai in Transoxiana . Background . Rise to power . Twelve years earlier Timur had been a minor member of the Barlas tribe , one of many tribes in the western part of the Chagatai Khanate . Since the 1330s the Khanate had been split in two , between Mawarannahr ( Transoxiana ) in the west and Moghulistan in the east . Between 1347 and 1358 Mawarannahr was ruled by Amir Qazaghan , but in 1358 he was assassinated on the orders of Tughlugh Timur , Khan of Moghulistan . This was followed by an invasion from Moghulistan . Hajji Beg , ruler of the Barlas tribe , decided to flee , but Timur offered his services to the Moghuls , as a result becoming head of the tribe . During this period Tamerlane formed an alliance with Amir Husayn of Balkh , a grandson of Qazaghan , marrying his sister . Going underground . Timur ' s period as a Moghul vassel came to an end when Tughlugh Timur appointed his son Ilyas Khoja as governor of Mawarannahr . Tamerlane and Husayn both rebelled , going underground . Over the next few years Timur survived as a bandit and a mercenary , and it was probably during this period that he suffered the wounds that caused his famous lameness . Eventually the two men were able to force the Moghuls out of Mawarannahr , but only for a short time . In 1365 Ilyas Khoja returned at the head of an army , defeating Tamerlane and Husayn at the battle of Tashkent . Husayn ' s failure to support Timur during this battle probably played a part in the eventual end of their alliance , but for the moment the two men remained together . Ilyas Khoja was unable to take advantage of his victory . He advanced to besiege Samarkand , but was repulsed and forced to retreat back into Moghulistan , where in 1369 his family was overthrown . Control of Samarkand . In the aftermath of this failed siege Timur and Husayn were able to seize control of Samarkand . Something of a ' cold war ' period seems to have followed , with the two men uniting against further Moghul threats , but fighting amongst themselves the rest of the time . Timur seems to have been more successful at building up support than Husayn , successfully maintaining a balance between the nomads who formed the core of his army and the more settled city dwellers . In contract Husayn alienated many of the nomads by rebuilding the city and citadel of Balkh , at the south - western edge of the Chagatai Khanate . This city had an ancient history and had been one of the jewels of the Islamic world before being destroyed by Genghis Khan in 1220 . It was still uninhabited in 1333 , and Husayn ' s decision to rebuild will have worried his nomad supporters , who traditionally preferred their leaders to rely on the strength of their troops and not on fortifications ( similar disputes had hastened the original split in the Chagatai Khanate ) . Battle . In 1370 ( some sources say 1369 ) Timur decided to attack Husayn at Balkh . After crossing the Amu Darya at Termez his army surrounded the reconstructed city . Husayn ' s army came out of the city to attack Timur ' s men , perhaps suggesting that they were unhappy to find themselves being besieged . The same occurred on the second day of the battle , but this time Timur ' s men managed to get into the city . Husayn shut himself up inside the citadel , leaving Timur ' s men to sack the city . Realising that he could no long hope to win , Husayn offered to leave Mawarannahr and go on a pilgrimage to Mecca if Timur spared his life . Tamerlane agreed to these terms , but Husayn was not convinced that he could be trusted . After an unsuccessful attempt to hide from Timur ' s men Husayn was finally captured and handed over to Timur . He kept to the letter of his promise - Husayn was killed by Kay - Khusrau , a chief who had a blood feud with him . Aftermath . The defeat of Husayn made Timur the main power in Mawarannahr and western Chagatai , but the laws laid down by Genghis Khan prevented him from become Khan in his own right . Instead a ' puppet ' khan descended from Ögedei , Suurgatmish , was installed . Timur increased his own legitimacy by marrying Husayn ' s widow Saray Mulk , a princess descended from Genghis Khan . She began his most important Queen , and allowed Timur to call himself Temur Gurgan , or ' son - in - law of the Great Khan ' . This form of his name was used on his coins , in Friday prayers and at ceremonial officials for the rest of his life . Balkh was looted and the citadel and palace destroyed . Despite this Timur chose Balkh as the site for a ceremony in which the tribal leaders of the western Chagatai agreed to accept his rule . Timur spent most of the next decade securing his authority over the Chagatai as well as on campaigns in the east , before beginning his famous series of conquests during the 1380s .