Khwaja Shams al-Din 'Ali
| Khwaja Shams al-Din 'Ali | |
|---|---|
| King | |
| Reign | 1348–1353 |
| Predecessor | Lutf Allah |
| Successor | Yahya Karawi |
| Dynasty | Sarbadars |
| Religion | Shia Islam |
Khwaja Shams al-Din 'Ali (died 1351–52) was the leader of the Sarbadars of Sabzewar from 1348 until his death.
Shams al-Din 'Ali was a member of the Sabzewar aristocracy and a leader of one of the city guilds. During Shaikh Hasan Juri's lifetime, he had been an adviser to him, and was a supporter of Hasan's dervish organization. In 1346 he led a group of pro-dervish Sarbadar chiefs in a coup against the leader of the Sarbadars, Muhammad Aytimur, who was overthrown and executed on Shams al-din 'Ali's orders.
After the elimination of Muhammad Aytimur, Shams al-Din 'Ali decided not to formally take over the Sarbadar government; he no doubt realized that a counter-coup was probable and that he would not have enough support amongst the partisans of Wajih ad-Din Mas'ud and the army to maintain his position. Instead he decided to install a compromise candidate, Kulu Isfandiyar, as the head of the Sarbadars. Despite Kulu Isfandiyar's military credentials, he proved unsuitable as a ruler and was forcibly removed from power after only a year by supporters of Mas'ud's brother, Shams al-Din ibn Fazl Allah.
Shams al-Din 'Ali was able to emerge from Kulu Isfandiyar's downfall mostly unscathed. When Shams al-Din ibn Fazl Allah proved himself incapable of paying the army, Shams al-Din 'Ali saw is chance and forced him to abdicate in around 1348. He then assumed control of the government.
One of the first actions of Shams al-Din 'Ali after ascending to the head of the government was to reform the tax administration. In order to avoid his predecessors' failure to pay the military, he increased the revenues of the state and made sure that officials and members of the army were paid in cash. This raised the morale of the military and made it more loyal to him, enabling him to take the offensive against the Ilkhanid claimant Togha Temur and his allies. Togha Temur was eventually compelled to forfeit any claims of suzerainty over the Sarbadars. An attempt to seize Tus from the Jauni Kurban, a tribe allied to Togha Temur, was on the other hand unsuccessful.
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