Anushtegin Gharchai

Anushtegin Gharchai was a Turkish slave turned Seljuk commander from Gharchistan in modern Afghanistan, east of Herat. He was sold to Gumushtegin Bilge-Beg, a commander serving Malik Shah I, the third Seljuk king. His rise to power in the early second millennium BCE laid the foundations of the Khwarazmian Empire.https://www.destinationiran.com/anushtegin-gharchai-khwarazm.htm

Life

The earliest records of Anushtegin date back to 1073 and the Seljuk-Ghaznavid conflict over Northern Khorasan. Gumushtegin Bilge-Beg was tasked by Malik Shah I to defeat Ibrahim of Ghazni and conquer the territories of Sakalkand in northern Afghanistan. He was appointed a “Tasht-dar ”, a ceremonial role that was the keeper of royal Tashts (bowls).

Reign

While he was the governor of Khwarezm, he managed this place as an autonomous region and his descendants established the Turkish State of the Khwarezm Shahs.https://www.devletialiyyei.com/Zaman-Tuneli/anus-tekin

Dynasty

The Anushtegin dynasty that ruled the empire was founded by Anush Tigin (also known as Gharachai), initially a Turkic slave of the rulers of Gharchistan, later a Mamluk in the service of the Seljuqs.http://www.xenophon-mil.org/jalali/chaptersevenreferences.htm

Death

The details of his tenure as governor are unclear, but he died by 1097 and the post was briefly given to Ekinchi bin Qochqar before being transferred to his son, Qutb al-Din Muhammad.https://kids.kiddle.co/Khwarazmian_Empire#Anushtegin_Gharachai

 References