From Regional Vassal to Transregional Empire: The Geostrategic Realignment of Central Asia under Ala al-Din Tekish (1172–1200)
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17605/cajssh.v7i3.1337Keywords:
Ala al-Din Tekish, Khwarazmshahs, Sultan Shah Mahmud, Dasht-i Kipchak, Baghdad Caliphate, Central Asia, Geostrategy, Khorasan, Ghurids, Qara KhitaiAbstract
This article explores the geostrategic landscape in Central Asia during Ala al-Din Tekish's rule, a key monarch of the Khwarazmshah dynasty. It focuses on three main areas of Tekish’s domestic and foreign policies: the ethnopolitical and socio-economic activities in the lower Amu Darya and Khwarazm oasis; diplomatic and military actions with Transoxiana's nomadic confederations and the Dasht-i Kipchak; and the southwestern expansion, which involved relations with Khorasan, Iran, and Iraq, including the late Seljuks, the Abbasid Caliphate, and Atabegs. By examining these strategic areas, the study shows how Khwarazm evolved from a regional vassal into a transregional empire, emphasizing both achievements and the structural vulnerabilities of Tekish's geopolitical strategy.
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